Mushoku Impact

Before completely recovering from his stupor, Paul remarked, "I think I'm going to have another aneurysm..."
Surprised by Paul's words, Ningguang's eyes briefly widened before the smile on her face revealed a hint of amusement.
"I see our presence here hasn't provided you the satisfaction and peace of mind it was intended to. Please forgive me if my question was a little too forward..."
After blinking in surprise, a wry smile developed across Paul's face as he asked, "Peace of mind? Satisfaction? You're kidding me, right...?"
"Hmm..."
Rising to her feet, Ningguang briefly cast a glance towards Zhongli before turning her wine-red eyes to Paul and saying, "With your consent, I would like to confer with Lady Zhongli. I feel I am lacking too much context and do not wish to offend you further."
Confused by Ningguang's words, Paul parroted, "Offend me...?" before promptly shaking his head and saying, "You're mistaken. I'm just a little shaken by your sudden appearance. As for my opinion on marriage...I'm not entirely sure what you mean?"
Though he had an idea, Xinyan's behavior left Paul unwilling to jump to conclusions. Trying to figure out women was like trying to solve a Rubix Cube without colored vision. You could eventually work it out, but it took a combination of luck, perseverance, and, more often than not, external assistance.
"I see..."
Adopting her characteristic cross-armed stance, Ningguang brought the back of her left index finger to her lips, a pensive expression on her face as she considered the simplest way to explain things. When she believed she had, a faint smile developed across her face as she said, "Simply put, I wish to become the Lady of House Notos. According to the knowledge I have received, the Lady and Chamberlain of the House are the ones who manage the affairs of the Estate. While I am fairly confident I could work something out if granted autonomy, a union with you would save decades of effort."
Seeing Paul's helplessly dumbfounded expression, Ningguang couldn't help squinting her eyes as the smile on her face became marginally more prominent. She was half tempted to reach forward and caress Paul's chin. Instead, she placed her hand over her chest and said, "To put it another way, I desire everything you possess...in exchange, I offer you my heart, not just my body..."
With Ningguang confirming his suspicions, Paul momentarily deflated. If the mature form of Ningguang had asked him such a question, he might not have hesitated in the slightest. However, because she and everyone currently resembled children, Paul couldn't help feeling a combination of exasperation and anger...
Feeling something 'snap' within his mind, Paul's expression morphed into an angry yet resolute expression as he threw up his hands and said, "You know what? Fuck it. You want to get married? Sure, why not? I genuinely don't care at this point."
"Paul...?"
Worried that Paul may have 'broken', Jean tentatively approached with a concerned expression on her face. The anger in Paul's briefly waned, but only for a brief moment before he furrowed his brows and asked, "What? Did you want to get married as well?"
Instead of immediately responding to Paul's words, Jean sat down next to him, a deeply concerned look on her face as she gently grasped his hand and whispered, "It's going to be okay..."
"..."
Averting his eyes from Jean's, a profound wave of guilt washed over Paul. Unfortunately, while it caused his anger to wane, it did little to counteract the frustration that seemed to permeate his entire being. He couldn't help feeling as though the Intersection of Fate and the Gods that governed the boundaries were fucking with him...
Worried that Paul might do something he would regret, Jean suggested, "Maybe we should end things here for today? It's getting late, and we just returned from a long journey. You need to rest..."
Shaking his head, a touch of resolution returned to Paul's face as he said, "No. I need to obtain someone that can heal or at least help take care of my mother. I'm also only seven rolls away from Pity. Each 5-Star summon is a powerful weapon, ally, or Archon. For you and everyone to be able to use your Visions, we need to obtain each of the Seven..."
Before he had finished speaking, Paul began slotting gold coins into the groove above the oversized handprints. Jean still had a worried look on her face, but instead of trying to convince him to rest, she joined him in sacrificing gold to the summoning circle.
Realizing she may be in the way, Ningguang gave Jean a calculative look before stepping out of the summoning circle, kneeling on the other side of Paul, and saying, "Pardon me..." as she grabbed a stack of gold coins and began feeding them into the platform. This caused Paul's brows to furrow, but he was honestly too fed up to care, much less complain. He was tired of being the only one that seemed to give a shit...
With ten Acquaint Fates appearing around the summoning platform, Paul surprised Xinyan by looking back and asking, "Round two?" in a level tone.
"Uh...sure?"
Though it felt incredibly awkward with Jean and Ningguang flanking him, Xinyan made her way over and planted a kiss on Paul's cheek. When she pulled away, even the tips of her ears were glowing a faint shade of red as she forced a smile and asked, rather than saying, "Good luck...?"
Chuckling dryly, Paul placed his palms on the summoning dais and said, "Confirm..." in a calmer than usual tone. He wasn't really feeling it at the moment, but that changed pretty quickly when he saw the meteor gain a vibrant shade of purple.
"Holy shit, Xinyan. You really might be my lucky goddess..."
With Ningguang directing a curious look towards her, an awkward laugh emanated from Xinyan's throat. She had never been good at accepting compliments, so it made her feel all kinds of discombobulated hearing Paul continually referring to her as a goddess.
Observing the meteor split and crash into the summoning platform, Paul's eyes widened as the illusory and very naked figure of Xiangling appeared from within the purple light. Then, before anyone could make sense of the situation, she locked eyes with her far more corporeal counterpart. At that exact moment, her body burst into motes of ruby-red light that sped past Paul and the others before sinking into the original Xiangling's body.
Though she was more than a little surprised by the strange phenomenon, Xiangling's panic dissipated almost immediately as she placed her hand over her heart and said, "I just got a lot stronger...I can feel it..."
Nodding her head in affirmation, Zhongli explained, "That was the Stella Fortuna, the Manifested Essence of a Constellation. Each time you obtain one, your physical parameters, mana capacity, and inherent talents will strengthen by around 15%. Congratulations on being the first to obtain a Constellation, Xiangling."
Feeling a little sheepish, a self-deprecating smile marred Xiangling's face as she rubbed the back of her head and said, "Too bad it wasn't someone with more power...hahaha..."
"Xiangling..."
Worried about her friend and 'senior', Yaoyao gave Xiangling's shoulder a gentle squeeze as she added, "You deserve it..."
Before Xiangling could refute the chestnut-haired girl's words, Paul spoke out, asserting, "Yaoyao's right, Xiangling. You've been working hard since the moment we first met. Now that you've obtained a Constellation, I've no doubt you'll work even harder."
Though she still felt the Constellation was wasted on someone who spent most of the day cooking or lost in their own thoughts, Xiangling managed a sincere smile as she replied, "Thank you, Paul. That means a lot coming from you..."
Raising his brows, Paul was tempted to ask what she meant but quickly decided against it. Instead, he adopted a smile of his own before turning his attention back to the summoning circle and loudly saying, "Right. Let's get on with the next summon." in a marginally more enthused tone.
With the help of Ningguang and Jean, it took less than a minute for Paul to fill each of the hemispherical slots reserved for Fates. Then, without him needing to ask, Xinyan subsequently grabbed his hand and planted a wet kiss on his cheek, saying, "Good luck..." with an awkward smile on her face.
Feeling his own cheeks beginning to tinge, Paul replied with a subdued, "Right..." before placing his hands on the summoning dais and shouting, "Confirm...!" with renewed enthusiasm.
Shifting his gaze skyward, an enthused yet mildly incredulous laugh emanated from Paul's throat as the meteor shifted from blue to purple. When Xinyan witnessed this, even she couldn't quite believe Paul's luck, muttering, "Are you serious...?" to no one in particular.
Hearing Xinyan's utterance, Paul was briefly tempted to respond with a teasing remark. Instead, he followed the meteor until it split into a series of nine blue, one purple, comets. He was curious to see what would come out, never in his wildest dreams expecting it to be another illusory version of Xiangling.
"Seriously...?"
Without responding to Paul's words, the illusory Xiangling zeroed in on her corporeal counterpart before repeating the same actions as her previous incarnation.
Though she felt even more powerful, so much so that she was seized by a sudden and intense urge to move around, Xiangling lowered her head and muttered, "Sorry..." before following it with an even softer, "And thanks..."
Voicing the thought that had just crossed Paul's mind, Xinyan humorously replied, "Are you sure Xiangling isn't your lucky star? There are were like a hundred of us in the Intersection of Fate, yet you've summoned her three times? If that isn't luck, I don't know what is..."
Raising his brows, Paul was tempted to ask for the identities of everyone in the Intersection of Fate but ultimately decided against it. Some things were better off not knowing.
"Right. Let's speed things along a bit. There are a lot of things we need to talk about, and I don't want to be here all night."
Making things much easier for Paul, Jean and Ningguang had already started slotting in gold coins immediately following the second illusory Xiangling's appearance. By the time his interplay with Xiangling and Xinyan had ended, they had already managed to manifest nine Fates.
Instead of thanking the two girls, Paul just smiled awkwardly before turning to face Xinyan. In response, she adopted a smile of her own, but instead of planting a kiss on his cheek, she grabbed the sides of his face and gave him a chaste yet lingering kiss on the lips before pulling away, averting her eyes, and muttering, "For extra luck..."
"..."
Without saying anything, Paul mechanically shifted his attention to the stone dais before placing his palms against its surface and muttering, "Confirm..."
Leaving Paul even more muddleheaded, the meteor in the sky shifted from blue to purple for the fourth consecutive time in a row. He didn't know what the actual odds of this were, but it wasn't an exaggeration to say he had been abnormally fortunate since Xinyan started kissing him...
Breaking Paul from his reverie, the purple comet impacted the center of the platform before dissipating to reveal an adorable girl with pink hair, teardrop eyebrows, and luminous aquamarine eyes. However, her most notable features were undoubtedly her calico-like tail and ears.
"Diona...?"
Hearing Paul say her name, a fretful expression developed across Diona's face as she asked, "Are you the person who's supposed to be my Master? But you're just a little kid..."
Furrowing his brows, Paul was about to point out the fact that Diona was much younger than him, but she beat him to the punch, exhaling a sigh as she touched her fingers to her large forehead and muttered, "Whatever...I just need to do my job, and you'll help restore our world, right? Just don't go getting handsy if you get drunk. It's one thing if your sober, but I hate, hate, hate people who treat alcohol as if it gives them a license to act like perverted idiots!"
Though he was a little annoyed by Diona's insinuation, Paul did his best not to let it bother him. Even Diona's original self was only around 12-13 years old, so he wasn't going to let her fluster him. Instead, he adopted what he hoped to be a friendly smile as he replied, "Sure thing." before gesturing toward Xiangling and Yaoyo, adding, "Mind waiting over there for a bit? We're in the middle of performing a mass summoning."
Nodding her head in affirmation, Diona briefly exchanged glances with Jean before 'prancing' over to Xiangling and Yaoyao. She had a lot more bounce to her step than the average person; a point made all the clearer by her long and surprisingly thick cat tail. It curled upwards in a snaking manner, but it bobbed each time she took a springy step forward.
"Where are you looking...?"
Tilting her head to obscure Paul's vision, Xinyan had a curious and slightly 'threatening' look on her face. In response, Paul lightly furrowed his brows before plainly stating, "I was just staring at her tail. It's different from the Beast People in this world, so I was worried she might stand out. Why...?"
Raising her brows, Xinyan adopted her characteristically playful smile as she asked, "Remember what I said about taking everything seriously? If it wasn't obvious, I was messing with you. Man, you really are helpless, you know that...?"
Closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose, Paul resisted the almost overwhelming urge to tell Xinyan to fuck off. Instead, he tiredly replied, "There is a time and a place for everything..." before shaking his head and adding, "Forget it. I'm just a little stressed out."
Seemingly empathizing with Paul's words, Xinyan gave him a support pat on the back. Paul smiled in response to this, but it quickly cramped when Xinyan suddenly asked, "Want another kiss? Or maybe a hug...?"
Exhaling a sigh, Paul hung his head for a moment. Xinyan immediately felt regret upon seeing this, but before she could find the words to apologize, Paul surprised her by answering, "A hug would be nice..."
...
..
.

After an awkward yet comforting hug, Paul would be lying if he said he didn't feel a lot better. When Xinyan attempted to kiss him on the cheek, however, he politely refused, explaining, "I want to test whether or not you really are my lucky goddess. This time around, I'll roll without using my own luck..."
Though she felt a little awkward being refused after she had already puckered up her lips, Xinyan just smiled and winked as she said, "Sure. Just don't blame me if you end up regretting it."
Chuckling dryly, Paul placed his hands on the summoning dais and said, "Confirm..." with a bit of irresolution in his tone. He doubted she had done it deliberately, but he felt like Xinyan's words had just jinxed him.
Turning his eyes skyward, Paul watched as the meteor overhead retained its vibrant blue hue throughout its flight. When Xinyan saw this, a nervous chuckle emanated from her throat as she scratched the back of her head. At the same time, a rather potent blush spread through her cheeks as she seriously considered the possibility she was Paul's good luck charm.
Seeing nothing but 3-Star Weapons appear, Paul's expression morphed into a deadpan as he said, "Now's your chance to shine...if I get another 4-Star pull after this, I'll-"
Before Paul could finish speaking, Xinyan grabbed the sides of his head, saying, "Don't go making promises that will stress you out...". Then, with no discernible hesitation, she pulled his head closer as she leaned in to give him a much longer kiss than before. By the time she released him, nearly twenty seconds later, even Paul's face was beet red.
Though he didn't know what had caused it, Paul was now pretty fucking sure that Xinyan liked him. He suspected it had something to do with the Suspension Bridge Effect or Stockholm Syndrome, but that didn't change the fact that she was showing clear interest in him...
"What are you waiting for...?"
Seeing Paul staring at her with a completely blank expression on his face, Xinyan's blush spread through her ears. Her efforts to resist looking away caused her to gaze back at Paul with an upturned gaze, her amber eyes glistening with natural allure. Had she been a little older, Paul might have keeled over from such a look. Instead, he promptly averted his eyes, sat straight, and replied, "Right. Gotta get someone who can help take care of my mom..." in a dull yet audibly flummoxed tone.
While doing his best to ignore Jean and Ningguang staring at him, Paul placed his hands on the summoning dais. However, instead of shouting confirm, he offered a silent prayer to the RNG Gods, imploring them 'not' to give him a good roll. If Xinyan's kisses became any more intense, his brain might legitimately shortcircuit.
"Confirm..."
As if to spite Paul, the meteor in the sky immediately transitioned from blue to purple. To add insult to injury, the meteor promptly split apart to reveal two dazzling purple comets among an entourage of eight sky-blue trails of light.
Resisting the urge to facepalm and massage his temples, Paul waited patiently for the comets to impact the summoning platform. When they did, any doubts he had about Xinyan's effect on his luck were shattered as not one but two people appeared.
"Oh? Do I spy a half-pint Ningguang? How adorable."
Standing taller than the other girls present, a rather heroic-looking little girl with maroon-brown hair, red eyes, and a Maid outfit that more closely resembled a swordswoman's garb made her presence known. Compared to the petite and incredibly delicate-looking girl behind her, she was like a tiny yet indomitable mountain.
Before Ningguang could respond to the first girl's words, Jean interposed herself into the conversation, muttering, "Barbara...?" in reference to the dainty, twin-tailed girl standing behind.
Seeing her elder sister sitting next to Paul, a brief glimmer of frustration flashed across Barbara's eyes before she promptly adopted an incredibly radiant smile and said, "Sister Jean, I'm relieved to see you here. I was a little worried I wouldn't have anyone to talk to."
Exhibiting considerably less enthusiasm than her younger sister, Jean turned toward Paul and muttered, "Master Paul..." in an imploring tone.
Understanding Jean's concern, Paul answered, "Go ahead. I'll see you back at the estate."
With Paul's permission, Jean intended to take Barbara someplace they could talk in private. Barbara seemed to take exception to this, however, her face forming into a pout as she asserted, "Jean. It was my decision to accept the contract. I don't need you to protect me."
Taken aback by her sister's words, Jean opened her mouth but couldn't find the words to speak. It didn't help that Barbara immediately folded her hands across her lap, bowing towards Paul as she said, "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Master Paul. I may not be very strong, but I vow to do everything in my power to make your life more pleasant. If you need healing or any other services, please don't hesitate to ask. I am here to do my part to restore our world, not to be protected..."
Directing the final few words at her sister, Barbara made it clear she had no intention of letting Jean keep her 'protected' while everyone else was working hard. Jean had attempted to prevent her and several others from signing the Gods' contract back when they first arrived at the Intersection of Fate. Barbara both understood and appreciated her intentions, but she also hated how Jean always tried to carry everything herself.
Not wanting to see the two sisters fight, Paul thought about stepping in to try and mediate. Before he could, Jean surprised both him and Barbara by saying, "Very well...just...don't do anything you'll regret..."
"Jean..."
Expecting her older sister to put up much greater resistance, innumerable thoughts crossed Barbara's mind as she shifted her cerulean eyes to Paul. He was the only reason she could think of to explain her sister's swift and unexpected capitulation.
Realizing that Paul might not be the monster many of them expected him to be, a genuine smile developed across Barbara's face as she said, "You must be an incredible person to have my sister's trust..."
Feeling discomforted by the unexpected praise, Paul forced a smile as he scratched the back of his head and said, "Not really...compared to all the people I've summoned through the Intersection of Fate, I may as well be completely average..."
Instead of expressing concern or being put off by Paul's words, Barbara felt an almost immediate kinship with him. She was well acquainted with living in the unfathomably long shadows of superior people, so she could easily empathize with what he was saying.
Bringing the tips of her fingers together, Barbara's smile increased in size as she said, "Then we just need to work together. If we both do our best, I'm certain we can become much, much stronger."
Gaining a marginally more sincere smile of his own, Paul replied, "Sure. I look forward to working with you, Barbara."
As Barbara was about to return Paul's words, the heroic-looking woman standing next to her interjected, asking, "You two about done, or are you going to keep flirting all night?"
With Barbara silenced by a bout of bashfulness, the heroic-looking girl thumbed her chest, a fearless smile on her face as she met Paul's gaze and said, "The name's Beidou. Back in my world, I was Captain of The Crux Pir-I mean, The Crux Privateering Company. When it comes to sea travel, bootlegging, and exploration, I'm your girl. Of course, I'll need a fleet, crew, and plenty of booze if you want to see my true power."
Though Beidou was one of his favorite characters in Genshin Impact, Paul couldn't help feeling a little overwhelmed. She was only six years old, but he could genuinely imagine her sailing into a storm with a dauntless smile and a jar of wine in hand.
Forcing a smile, Paul explained, "The Milbots Region is landlocked. There are plenty of rivers, but few are large enough to serve as shipping lanes."
Without losing even a fraction of her intensity, Beidou just shrugged her shoulders, saying, "Not like I could do much in this body. Just make sure to set aside funds for a few ships. Once I flesh out a bit, I'll journey East, beat a few people into shape, and take over a couple of ports."
Intervening before Beidou could give Paul an aneurysm, Ningguang said, "Beidou, you're troubling our Master. We'll address this matter at a later date. Understood?"
Wriggling her thin, swordlike eyebrows in response to Ningguang's words, Beidou maintained a fearless smile as she said, "Sure thing, Guangguang. Just don't leave me sitting on my ass for the next twenty years. I get stir crazy when I'm away from the sea for too long."
Well aware of the type of person Beidou was, Ningguang simply nodded her head, a faint smile on her face as she said, "Understood. Now, please remove yourself from the center platform. Master Paul is presently in the process of growing our numbers."
"Sure. Just give me one second..."
Before leaving the center of the summoning circle, Beidou attempted to pick up one of the higher quality claymores present. It was a lot heavier than she expected, but that didn't deter her from straining herself to pick it up place it on her shoulder. Then, with a wolfish grin on her face, she looked to Paul and asked, "Mind if I keep this one...?"
Though he was about to ask where she would keep a sword that was longer than she was tall, Paul recalled that Beidou possessed an Electro Vision. In other words, she was one of the few people present who could actually make use of her Vision.
Seeing no reason to refuse, Paul answered, "Go ahead. However, I would suggest practicing with something smaller..."
Completely ignoring Paul's words, Beidou synchronized the Bloodstained Greatsword with her Vision, saying, "Neat." before making her way over to Zhongli, Ei, Xiangling, Yaoyao, and Diona.
After shaking his head in mock exasperation, Paul placed his hands on the summoning dais. Ningguang had dutifully slotted 100AGC into the groove while everyone else was distracted, so he just needed to initiate it.
"Forgetting something...?"
Hearing Xinyan's voice, Paul briefly startled before turning to her. Before he could even think to apologize, however, she grabbed the sides of his head and planted an even longer kiss on his lips. This caused Barbara to immediately cover her face, but if you looked closely, you could see her peeking between her fingers.
Releasing Paul's head nearly a minute later, Xinyan licked the remnant saliva from her lips before saying, "Good luck..." in a soft and noticeably sultry tone.
Recovering from his stupor several seconds later, Paul muttered, "Yeah..." before turning to the summoning dais. Xinyan had attempted to slip her tongue into his mouth towards the very end, but he managed to prevent it by pursing his lips and keeping his mouth shut. He felt like an insensitive twat for doing such a thing but acquitted himself on the grounds he and Xinyan currently resembled children.
Shaking stray thoughts from his mind, Paul placed his hands within the oversized prints and shouted, "Confirm...!". When the vibrant blue meteor immediately gained a purple hue, he wasn't even surprised. It likely had absolutely nothing to do with Xinyan, but every single pull following one of her kisses resulted in a hit...
Interrupting Paul's reverie, the nine blue and one purple comet impacted the center of the platform. From within, a petite girl with maroon hair, not all that dissimilar to Lilia's, emerged. It was just much shorter and had a wine-red streak running down her bangs. Her eyes were a shade of wine red with pink, cat-like irises, and her skin was a pale, nearly grey shade of purple.
Speaking out before anyone else could, Barbara covered her mouth in shock as she exclaimed, "Sister Rosaria...!" in a pleasantly surprised tone. In stark contrast to this, the sickly-looking little girl maintained a neutral expression as she gave herself a quick once-over and complained, "How troublesome..."
...
..
.

After opening the Intersection of Fate, Paul, more so out of curiosity than anything else, turned back to ask Lilia, "What do you see...?"
Confused by Paul's words, Lilia didn't immediately respond. Instead, she just stared at him for several seconds before asking, "Is there something out in the hallway...?"
"Right..."
Though he had already been informed that others could neither see nor interact with the Intersection of Fate, Paul was still a little surprised by Lilia's reaction. He could see the entrance perfectly fine, and, if he looked closely, there was even a reflection of the interior within her eyes.
Deciding he would worry about such things later, Paul said, "Wait here. We'll be back in a few minutes." before stepping through the door. From Lilia's perception, his body had abruptly vanished the moment he crossed over the threshold. From Paul's, he could look back and see her staring at the entryway with a completely bewildered look on her face.
Just as Paul was about to ask if Lilia could see him, a voice from behind caught his attention as Xinyan asked, "Did you forget something?"
Turning around, Paul noticed Xinyan, Xiangling, Yaoyao, Kaeya, and Ei waiting on the center platform. He had seen them when he first looked inside, but they had been frozen in time, much like the rest of the world around them. Now that he was inside, time began flowing at the same rate as the outside world.
"No. We just got back earlier this afternoon. Nearly eight weeks have passed since I asked everyone to stay here."
Though she knew time was supposed to stop while Paul was away, Xinyan was still surprised by his words, asking, "Eight weeks?" before giving herself a quick once-over. It wasn't that noticeable, but she did feel a little taller than before.
Before Paul could ask what Xinyan was thinking, Ei took the initiative to bow, saying, "Welcome back, Master." At the same time, Zhongli and Jean stepped through the portal-like door behind Paul, leaving only Xingqiu to keep Lilia company.
With people on both sides of him, Paul became keenly aware that he was standing on a sky bridge without handrails.
Resisting the urge to peer over the edge, Paul made his way over to the comparably less dangerous central platform before nodding towards Ei and saying, "Thanks. It's great to see everyone in good health."
"I wouldn't say that..."
Shifting his attention to Kaeya, Paul's expression revealed a mixture of concern and confusion as he asked, "What do you mean...?"
Shrugging her shoulders, Kaeya adopted a teasing smile as she mused, "I was holding it in before we came inside, so I've basically needed to poop for like eight weeks. Mind if we hurry this along?"
Closing his eyes, Paul inhaled a deep breath before exhaling through his nose and saying, "If you need to go, then go. Now that we're back, you don't need to stay in here."
"Sounds good to me."
Without waiting around, Kaeya slipped past Zhongli and Jean, giggling as the latter sent her an unamused glower. In truth, she didn't actually need to poop; she just wanted to mess with Paul. He was too serious, so Kaeya couldn't help teasing both him and Jean. It helped that they were almost always together...
Waiting until Kaeya had exited the Intersection of Fate completely, Paul exhaled a sigh before turning to the group and explaining, "I'll be leaving for school in a few days, so I wanted to try my luck at summoning before I go. My goal is to summon Ningguang, so I'm going to keep pulling until I obtain either her or Albedo."
Raising her hand, Xinyan asked the question on hers and several other people's minds, specifically, "What's your deal with Ningguang? Plannin' to use her to increase your fortunes, eh?"
Without any hesitation, Paul nodded his head, explaining, "I'm doing my best, but I don't think I have what it takes to govern the Milbots Region properly. I hate dealing with Nobles, and that's bound to affect my ability to make deals. And don't even get me started on our finances..."
Though he had taken a few economics classes during high school, Paul didn't need to be a financial expert to understand that removing hundreds of thousands of gold from circulation would have an adverse effect on the economy. After all, the entire Milbots Region, the most prosperous of the four major regions, only had around 3,750,000AGC in circulation.
Since she was more curious than anything else, Xinyan responded to Paul's words with a simple, "Cool." before adopting a cheeky smile and asking, "Want a kiss for good luck?"
Furrowing his brows, Paul was going to mention it was unnecessary when Xinyan held up her hands, adding, "Hey, now. It was just a joke. You don't need to take everything people say seriously, Paul. Lighten up a little..."
"..."
Lowering his eyes towards the ground, Paul took a moment to consider if Xinyan was right. Well, he knew she was, but it was hard not to be serious when the fate of two worlds was on the line...
Shaking his head, Paul offered a faint, "Sorry..." before looking towards the summoning circle and supplanting, "Who knows? Maybe a good luck kiss really would help..." in a muted tone.
As those words left his lips, Paul bent down and began slotting 100AGC into the groove for currency. It was a slow and monotonous process, but Paul could feel his excitement compounding each time an Acquaint Fate manifested into existence.
When all ten Fates had appeared, Paul took a moment to rub his hands together, muttering, "Come on, Ningguang..." before bending down and placing his hands into the oversized handprints. He knew the RNG Gods rarely rewarded those that coveted specific draws within a Gacha, but it wasn't like he could conceal his desire for Ningguang. Even as far back as his first pull, Paul had considered Ningguang to be the best possible pull...
"Confirm...!"
Gaining a hit of fervity in his eyes, Paul immediately shifted his attention to the blue meteor that had appeared high in the sky. He knew it would have no effect, but, for a very brief moment, Paul attempted to 'will' it to change colors. Instead, his expression gradually formed into a deadpan as the meteor maintained its blue hue even after splitting into ten.
"I should have accepted the kiss..."
Since his words were more of a joking complaint than anything else, Paul was a little surprised when Xinyan squat next to him, arms resting on her knees as she remarked, "It isn't too late, ya know?"
Rolling his eyes, Paul managed a snarky smile as he tapped his left cheek and droned, "Sure. Go ahead and plant one on me. If it works, I'll worship you as my lucky goddess from this moment onward..."
Rewarding Paul's words with a light shove, Xinyan adopted a cheeky smile and suggested, "How about this. If I kiss you and it goes well, you have to stop acting so bashfully when we're in the bath together. I can't explain it all that well, but it makes me feel really weird when you won't even look at me."
Furrowing his brows, Paul considered refusing, but Xinyan preempted him by grabbing his head and planting a long and unnecessarily loud kiss on his cheek. Then, with a faint red hue coloring her cheeks, she pretended to ignore him and began slotting gold coins into the summoning circle on his behalf.
"..."
Figuring nothing would come of it, Paul ultimately remained silent and just began helping Xinyan slot gold into the tiny, coin-sized notch. If her good luck charm really did net him Ningguang, he wouldn't complain even if her condition had been to meticulously wash every inch of her body. It would have been incredibly awkward but ultimately worth it if he could preserve his funds. After all, even Ningguang would find it difficult to turn an empty coffer into the mountain of gold he would need to obtain everything from the gacha...
"Want another...?"
"Huh...?"
Looking to his side, Paul found Xinyan staring directly at him with a far more prominent shade of red coloring her cheeks. He didn't think it was possible, but he couldn't help asking, "Do you like me...?"
Instead of responding to Paul's words with her own, Xinyan gave him a much stronger push than the playful shove from before. As a result, Paul ended up being knocked onto his side as Xinyan stood up and returned to her original position in an apparent huff. When she noticed him staring at her, however, she adopted one of her characteristically playful smiles and just stuck her tongue out at him...
("Did I fucking miss something...?")
Looking to Jean as if she would somehow be able to explain things, Paul was left feeling at an utter loss as she pointed to herself and asked, "Did you want a kiss from me as well...?"
"Oh, gods..."
Covering his forehead and eyes, Paul did his best to suppress his growing feelings of exasperation. Then, even though it made him feel like a bit of an asshat, Paul ignored Jean's inquiry and focused all of his attention on the summoning circle, whispering, "Please just come out..." before taking a deep breath and shouting, "Confirm...!"
Following Paul's outburst, the sky in the distance split open as a vibrant blue meteor appeared from within the void. When Paul saw its color shift to purple, equal parts excitement and trepidation washed over him as he asked, "There's no way, right...?"
Demonstrating that Xinyan really might be his lucky star, the blindingly purple meteor split into three purple and seven blue comets. This was enough to cause even Zhongli to mutter a soft, "Oh my..." as everyone else became nearly as excited as Paul usually was.
Though two of the purple lights turned out to be weapons, one bow, and one catalyst, Paul's jaw nearly hit the floor when the person that emerged from the center was a young girl with white hair bound into a very stylish hairdo. She was wearing an Maid outfit not all that dissimilar to Zhongli's, but the thing that stood out the most was the reddish-orange tassel that dangled between her neatly parted bangs.
"No fucking way..."
Crossing her arms, the elegant-looking girl brought one of her fingers up to the side of her lips as she remarked, "That's quite the peculiar thing to say to someone you just met. Are you disappointed by my arrival...?"
Though she could tell Paul was the furthest thing from disappointed, the white-haired girl couldn't help teasing him. She was a little concerned by the youthful state of her body, but she found Paul's youthful stupefaction rather endearing.
Breaking Paul from his reverie and taking the white-haired girl by surprise, Xinyan burst into a laughter so jubilant she eventually keeled over, falling onto her butt before lying down and holding her stomach. As for everyone else, they were nearly as bewildered as Paul. The only exception was the ever-stoic Zhongli, who asserted, "Welcome, Ningguang. Our Master has been awaiting you for some time."
"Oh...?"
Hearing Zhongli's words, the white-haired girl, none other than the famed Tianquan of Liyue, Ningguang herself, adopted a faint smile as she looked to Paul and mused, "That makes things a little easier..."
Before Paul could ask what Ningguang meant, the latter took a few steps forward before kneeling down so that their faces and eyes were less than 20cm apart. Then, with a half-smiling expression that exuded equal parts confidence and severity, she inquired, "Paul Notos Greyrat...what are your thoughts on marriage?"
...
..
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Chapter 28: MI28: Goddess of Luck