At home.
Klee sat on her bed, gazing at the beautiful lamp before her. She spoke the incantation in her sweet, clear voice: "[Please allow me to disturb your peace.]"
The lamp lit up instantly.
A familiar voice drifted out: "Why is the lamp glowing again? Who's calling me?"
Klee shouted happily, "Mama!"
Alice let out a soft gasp. "Klee? Why are you calling me so late?"
"Klee missed Mama!"
"Mama misses you too, sweetheart."
"I miss you more!"
"Hahaha…"
Alice's laughter was warm, tinged with fond indulgence.
"Then Mama will chat with you for a while."
"Tell me a story, Mama!"
"A bedtime story, huh? What kind of story does my little one want to hear?"
"A story about your travels! Tell me what you saw, so tomorrow I can retell it to Yaoyao and Xia Lin."
"Then let me tell you about Inazuma's landscapes. First, there's Mt. Yougou—on Narukami Island's northern side. The mountain is covered in magnificent cherry trees, all connected to the giant Sacred Sakura at the summit. The shrine that enshrines this Sacred Sakura is none other than Inazuma's largest—the Grand Narukami Shrine…"
Alice had barely begun when Klee suddenly interrupted, "Klee knows Mt. Yougou! Klee knows the Sacred Sakura too! The blossoms are so pretty!"
Alice's voice faltered. "Sweetheart, how do you know that? You shouldn't have been to Inazuma before."
Klee giggled. "Klee hasn't gone to Inazuma, but I saw it with my telescope!"
"Telescope?"
"Mm! Xia Lin gave me one that can see really, really far. From Mondstadt, I can see Inazuma's Sacred Sakura with it!"
"…And who is Xia Lin?"
"She's the one who calls Brother Xia Zhi 'Papa'!"
"!!!"
Alice's voice suddenly sharpened.
"Mr. Xia already has a daughter?!"
"Mm-hm! Xia Lin is also his third disciple."
"Disciple…?"
So he played that way, did he.
Alice fell silent for a while, then spoke softly. "Sweetheart, since you've already seen Inazuma's scenery, I won't go on about it. Instead… tell Mama, who's around Mr. Xia these days?"
"Mama wants to know?"
"Yes, I do."
"There's Sister Xia Ci, Sister Xia Zhen…"
Klee rattled off everyone's names one by one.
Alice listened quietly to the end. "…Thank you, sweetheart."
"You're welcome, Mama! Oh, Mama, have you ever seen Inazuma's summer festival?"
"Of course."
"Is it fun?"
"Mm, very fun."
"Does it have fireworks too?"
"Yes. Naganohara's fireworks are quite good."
"Really?"
"Of course."
"Klee made her own fireworks too! They're really pretty! If Klee could go to Inazuma's summer festival, mine would be the best!"
Alice chuckled but didn't contradict her daughter. She didn't tell her, either, that she had been the one to teach the Naganoaharas their formulas.
"Mama, I want to go to Inazuma too."
"Alright. When Mama comes back, I'll take you there."
"When will you come back?"
"…For now, I cannot leave."
"…Then Mama, can I go with Brother Xia Zhi to Inazuma instead?"
"So Mr. Xia's next destination is Inazuma?"
"Mm! That's what he said!"
"I see. Mama only forbids you from running about because I want you to grow up safe and sound. Inazuma is far, and the sea voyage dangerous. But if you're with someone as steady as Mr. Xia, then I needn't worry too much."
"So Mama, I can go?"
"You can. But you must remember to use this lamp often to contact me."
"Okay!"
"It's late now. Go to sleep, sweetheart."
"Goodnight, Mama!"
---
Out at sea.
A ship from Port Ormos cut across the waves.
In one of its cabins, a girl around Amber's age sat on her bed, eyes closed in prayer.
Her hair was adorned with a feathered clip. Her arms were covered by wide, flared cuffs, and she wore finger-looped archer's gloves.
Her outfit was a sleeveless short dress, a pale green cape draped around her neck, and twin yellow sashes hanging behind her.
Her over-the-knee black socks were mismatched in length, with three dark yellow patches sewn at the top of the longer right sock, while the shorter left was held up with a circular garter.
On her feet were open-toed high-heeled boots lined with fur.
A Dendro Vision dangled from her left hip by a ribbon.
What stood out most, though, were the bandages wrapped all over her body—covering what seemed to be many hidden wounds.
The girl's prayers were addressed to the Lesser Lord Kusanali.
When she finished, she opened her eyes and looked out the window.
The night was filled with rolling waves and the roar of the sea.
The girl sat quietly on her bed, lost in thought.
"At this pace, we should reach Mondstadt in about ten days."
"By then, the Windblume Festival will nearly be over…"
"I'll deliver what the God of Wisdom asked me to carry, and then I'll go find Amber."
"I still don't understand what use the God of Wisdom's friend has for so many Akasha Terminals…"
"…Amber should still remember me, right?"
---
Soft lamplight spread across the desk. Papers of varying thickness were stacked neatly, and the sharpened charcoal pencil scratched against the page, the rustling sound echoing in the office.
Until suddenly, a knock came from outside the door—tapping out a very particular rhythm.
Ningguang paused, lifted her head toward the door, and a flicker of surprise and delight appeared in her eyes.
She spoke: "Yelan? You're back?"
The door opened, and a familiar figure stepped inside, still carrying the dust of travel.
It was none other than Ningguang's special intelligence officer.
Yelan smiled faintly. "Good evening, Lady Ningguang."
Ningguang looked her over carefully, relieved when she saw no signs of injury. "So long as you're unharmed."
Yelan laughed lightly. "The Chasm may be perilous, but with the Vigilant Yaksha guarding us, it was safe enough. Truthfully, we shouldn't have returned so soon, but the Conqueror of Demons worried that his absence was too long—that Archon Residues in the Guili Plains might fester into new evils and harm people. Anxious to get back, he used his adeptal power to carry both Yanfei and me part of the way."
Ningguang nodded. "I see. And what were the results of your investigation?"
Yelan took out an object resembling a disk. "We went deep into the Chasm and found this adeptal artifact."
"Oh?"
"According to ancient records, this should be the [Fantastic Compass], lost by one of my clan's ancestors five hundred years ago. It has the strange ability to warp time, and was once used to suppress evil spirits underground."
"If it was a sealing tool, then why did you bring it out?"
"No need to worry. The underground has already been swept clean by the Conqueror of Demons—it's safe now. This item is no longer necessary. Those abnormal phenomena below have vanished as well, so the miners can resume their work."
"That is excellent news. You've worked hard."
"Honestly, it wasn't much hardship at all…"
Yelan thought back on her days there—instant noodles and canned food when hungry, Rainbow Juice when thirsty, and if she grew tired, she could retreat into the Serenitea Pot and lie down on a soft bed. As for safety, with a yaksha standing guard outside, there was little to fear.
It felt less like carrying out a dangerous mission, and more like taking a subterranean vacation.
All thanks to Mr. Xia's careful preparations in advance…
Yelan gave Ningguang a full report of the trip, then took her leave.
Back at the Yanshang Teahouse, she didn't immediately rest. Instead, she had her subordinates present all the intelligence gathered during her absence.
As the head of intelligence, she had to catch up quickly on all developments to make sound judgments.
Brewing a cup of [Silver Dew], Yelan sat down and began reading through the reports carefully.
[The Stormterror Dvalin was drawn down from the skies by two people's music.]
[Strange thunderstorms erupted over Windrise; monsters mutated under the influence, launching a siege on Mondstadt, but were wiped out by a young girl wielding a peculiar device.]
[An editor from Inazuma's Yae Publishing House visited the Liyue Publishing House, seeking rights to several novels.]
[Sumeru rumored to have produced canned knowledge infused with a god's wisdom.]
[Fontaine experiencing ongoing torrential rain; water levels rising, strange rumors spreading.]
…
After skimming, Yelan had a rough grasp of the major events of the past days. Only then did she pick up the special reports concerning Xia Zhi. A faint, inexplicable smile slowly crept onto her face.
Meanwhile, Yanfei went straight to Yujing Terrace after returning.
She had meant to visit Madame Ping.
But the door was locked, and the house was empty.
Though Yanfei had a key, she decided not to intrude. She turned back toward her own law office instead.
The mailbox at her office door was stuffed full of letters.
She opened it, gathered the pile into her arms, and carried them inside.
By lamplight, she tore the envelopes open and skimmed through them.
Most were requests for legal consultation and trial representation.
Yanfei wasn't in the mood for those. She set them aside after a glance—until she came across one that lit up her eyes.
It was a letter from Mondstadt.
From a friend.
Her name was Eula, captain of the Knights of Favonius' Reconnaissance Company, famed as the "Spindrift Knight," standing shoulder-to-shoulder in reputation with the "Dandelion Knight."
Because of her duties, Eula was often away leading hunts for monsters and the Abyss Order, rarely returning to Mondstadt City.
Once, while tracking Abyss Order contraband, she had coincidentally saved Yanfei. The contraband had been disguised as ordinary goods meant to ship to Liyue Harbor. Yanfei, acting as a consultant aboard the merchant vessel, had noticed something off and taken it upon herself to investigate—only to get herself in serious danger. If Eula had arrived minutes later, Yanfei might have met a very grim fate.
That incident was how the two had become friends—despite Eula's rocky reputation in Mondstadt.
Since then, they often exchanged letters.
Yanfei opened this one and read slowly.
It had arrived just days after she departed for the Chasm.
In it, Eula expressed curiosity about Liyue's "Lantern Rite," asking about the events. At the end, she mentioned the coming Windblume Festival and invited Yanfei to Mondstadt to enjoy it—promising to treat her warmly.
After reading, Yanfei let out a small sigh of regret.
The invitation had come just a little too late.
If it had arrived earlier, perhaps she would have turned down that commission, skipped the Chasm trip, and joined Mr. Xia's group in Mondstadt instead.
Folding the letter carefully, she put it away, then turned to the window.
In her letters to Eula last year, she had mentioned Mr. Xia…
She wondered whether Eula and Mr. Xia had crossed paths in Mondstadt.