Beidou rolled her eyes and joked:
"Stop thinking about it. Do you really think joining the Millelith is as simple as signing up now?"
"How many people in Liyue Harbor are eagerly waiting for the Millelith to expand? Just recently, there were only 3,000 new spots, and tens of thousands fought for them."
Chongzuo mumbled:
"Boss, you can't say it like that! We're out at sea all the time, fighting—surely we're stronger than those little guys, right?"
Beidou waved her hand.
"I'm telling you to forget it. Liyue won't be expanding the Millelith anytime soon."
"Even if you join the Millelith, how do you know you'll be admitted into the Dragon Knight Corps?"
"The Liyue Dragon Knights are Liyue's future strongest combat unit; every member is a warrior capable of taking on hundreds alone."
"The spots are already fixed and the training is in full swing."
"Even if you join the Millelith, at best, you'll be in the Alchemy Potion Light Infantry or Heavy Cavalry."
"You might not even make it into the Heat Weapons Unit."
Beidou wasn't lying.
Alchemy Potion Light Infantry and Heavy Cavalry, in the eyes of Liyue people—or even all of Teyvat—are top-tier combat troops.
But Beidou, having been to that other world, knew these units were just the basic frontline forces for Liyue.
The Heat Weapons Unit and the Dragon Knights were the real trump cards.
And the entry requirements for these two units were not ordinary.
Currently, members of the Heat Weapons Unit had all been to that other world; even if they were later stationed elsewhere, they'd need to train in the MC world.
As for the Dragon Knights… don't even think about it.
The veteran elders like Dashii were still waiting. New Millelith recruits in the MC world didn't qualify, let alone the rookies who had just joined.
Chongzuo scratched his head and chuckled awkwardly:
"Um… actually, Heavy Cavalry and Light Infantry aren't bad either."
"Light Infantry have wolves, Heavy Cavalry have horses—they're both awesome!"
Beidou slapped Chongzuo on the head and scolded with a laugh:
"Get lost! Am I in charge of you all now or what? And you're already thinking of jumping ship?"
Chongzuo quickly waved his hands:
"Just joking, Boss."
Beidou shook her head, not particularly amused.
"Actually, for a while, I probably won't be going out to sea so often. Liyue has more important matters that need me."
"In the meantime, I plan to let you all take over the Alcor. Its voyages won't stop."
"But if any of you want a different lifestyle, I can talk to Ningguang. Whether you want to go to the General Affairs Department or the Millelith, you can try it out."
"You've been at sea for years, your combat skills aren't bad, and Huixing and the others handle things efficiently."
"You all are definitely qualified to join Liyue's official institutions."
Beidou paused, then looked at the slightly bewildered crew, shaking her head with a sigh:
"Forget it… that's for later. We'll talk about it another time."
Beidou shouted, raising her voice:
"Lumine! Ayaka! Paimon! Get down! We're going through the storm—Inazuma is just ahead!"
The three of them stopped soaring through the skies and guided their dragons back onto the Alcor.
Though powerful, these dragons were no match for the storm, which was entirely Raiden Shogun's handiwork. It wasn't a matter of fearing lightning strikes; the real concern was whether charging in so openly would alert her to appear and block them personally.
Fortunately, the Alcor was practically an aircraft carrier at sea, its massive size barely accommodating the dragons.
Even so, the three dragons took up more than half of the deck.
Up close, their appearances were a bit strange, but it did nothing to diminish their imposing presence.
They obediently crouched on the deck like three small fortresses.
A dense aura of draconic might radiated from them, making everyone slightly uneasy.
Lumine let out a grunt as she jumped off the dragon's back, pulled out a bunch of fish, and began feeding them.
The fierce, mighty beasts squinted happily and rubbed their heads against her hands like playful puppies.
"Hmph! My dragon-riding skills are clearly superior!"
Lumine proudly put her hands on her hips, looking smugly at Paimon.
"What do you think? Did you see my fancy aerial maneuvers? Did Thomas spin completely?"
Paimon snorted.
"I'm not bad either! If we weren't heading into the storm, I could've flown even better than you!"
Ayaka quietly smiled to herself.
She couldn't understand how Paimon, just holding onto the reins while flying, wasn't thrown off midair.
This flying pet was really something else!
Chongzuo and the others quickly forgot what Beidou had said earlier and crowded around Lumine and the others.
"Miss Lumine! Miss Kamisato! Miss Paimon! That was amazing flying!"
"Yeah, yeah! Absolutely artful!"
"Only you three could handle dragons so effortlessly. No wonder you're friends with the big boss!"
The constant flattery made Lumine and Paimon feel a little giddy.
Waving her hand, Lumine responded grandly:
"Eh, it's just average! The time was too short; otherwise, I could've done some even harder maneuvers!"
Chongzuo scratched his head, chuckling softly:
"Miss Lumine, can we take a picture with the camera?"
"No problem!"
Lumine waved her hand casually.
"Take it however you want!"
Immediately, everyone scattered, crowding around the dragons and clamoring to take photos.
Lumine didn't rush to put the dragons away and instead quickly walked over to Beidou's side.
Glancing at the massive storm right in front of them, she murmured:
"Raiden Shogun is really strong… This storm has covered such a huge area for how long?"
Ayaka sighed softly.
"Ever since the Shogun issued the national lockdown, the storm has never ceased…"
Lumine clicked her tongue in awe.
"Gods really are terrifying…"
"Though the more I look at it, the more I think Venti is too much!"
"Being the original ruler, that guy's lived over three thousand years—there's no way he's weak!"