I share all of your questions. But I have been slowly reducing the size of my kit and recently traded in my X-T4, X-S10 and X-Pro3 on the X-H2s. So I have the stacked 26mp sensor for wildlife and sports.
I still have my X100V and my X-E4, and I'm still happy with both. The X100 lens was updated for generation V, by the way. But if the 40mp sensor trickles down to less expensive camera bodies, I'd be interested. Perhaps the X-T5 will get a $200-300 discount for Christmas of 2023. But if a potential X-S20 gets the sensor for $1200 or less, that would be a good option.
Part of me would love to see 40mp in an X-T40. I wonder if IBIS is necessary at such resolutions. But I think I'd be okay with just using higher shutter speeds.