Zhongli, familiar with the way, led everyone to the backstage of Heyu Teahouse, hoping to meet with Yun Jin...
Perhaps because today’s new opera left the story unfinished, the backstage area was already crowded with people, all wanting to ask Yun Jin a few questions in person...
"What’s going on with Miss Yun? She used to be so enthusiastic about talking with us."
"This time, the new opera felt a bit rushed, and now she won’t even meet with us?"
"Ladies and gentlemen, please don’t block the entrance any longer!"
Seeing the crowd murmuring and restless, Master Fan spoke up:
"Miss Yun has already left through the back door of Heyu Teahouse. She’s no longer here!"
"And since it’s already quite late, Miss Yun also needs to rest. If you truly have something to ask her, it’s better to wait until tomorrow."
After hearing Master Fan’s explanation, someone nodded and said:
"That’s true. Miss Yun spent the whole day writing the new opera, and then performed it at length just now. That’s a big strain both mentally and physically!"
"We really shouldn’t disturb her in such a rush. Let’s let her get some proper rest first!"
"Everyone, the night is deep. Whatever it is, let’s discuss it in the morning. Let us sleep, let us sleep!"
The crowd gradually dispersed, and Su Yuan was left a little unsure what to do...
What’s going on with Yun Jin?
She told such a veiled, metaphorical story, left behind a pile of mysteries—and then slipped away herself?
"Looks like Yun Jin isn’t avoiding the opera fans," Neuvillette said, "she’s deliberately avoiding us..."
"So what now? Should we go to Miss Yun’s house to look for her, or to the Yun-Han Opera Troupe?" Lyney asked.
"...Maybe let’s just call it a night for now."
Su Yuan let out a soft sigh and said:
"If Yun Jin really intends to avoid us, then on a dark, windy night , when everything is quiet and still, it’ll probably be difficult for us to find her..."
"Do you think it’s possible that Yun Jin has already been corrupted and controlled by the Eerie?"
Lynette spoke with a hint of doubt:
"Although some Eerie aren’t good at disguising themselves, Miss Yun is a seasoned performer on stage. Naturally, acting and deception are second nature to her..."
"If she truly intended to disguise herself, we likely wouldn’t be able to notice anything unusual..."
"Forget it. Whatever the case may be, let’s deal with it tomorrow..."
Su Yuan added, "Let’s see what intel I can gather once I make it through tonight."
After that, Su Yuan parted ways with the others and returned to his guest room at Yunhai pavillion.
After a quick wash-up, he lay down in bed...
Lying on his back with his eyes closed, Su Yuan found himself replaying Yun Jin’s words from before the performance at Heyu Teahouse...
She had said that earlier today, she met with a friend who told her a story...
After hearing that story, Yun Jin was so moved that she wrote it into an opera...
If everything she said was true—then who could that friend be?
And how would they know such a story?
Could it be that Yun Jin’s abrupt departure after the opera was also due to that mysterious friend’s instructions behind the scenes?
This friend clearly shared an unusual relationship with Yun Jin...
After all, every opera Yun Jin writes is adapted from real events.
For her to turn such a story into a play so quickly—it meant she trusted this friend deeply.
Su Yuan suddenly opened his eyes wide and sat up straight in bed, a realization striking him like lightning.
Could Yun Jin’s mysterious friend actually be Traveler Aether?
Only someone like him would be trusted so fully by Yun Jin.
But... considering the intel revealed on his left palm earlier, that Aether should actually be Lumine in disguise, right?
So this Aether—disguised by Lumine—didn’t follow the path hinted at in the message on his left palm, where she was supposed to meet up with Xingqiu and Chongyun to find him...
Instead, she went to see Yun Jin?
But why did Lumine—disguised as Aether—change her original course of action?
Wasn’t the entire point of Su Yuan’s death-loop rewind power to allow him to make different choices when facing the same circumstances?
Yet now, even events that were supposed to happen as they were... have started to change, and his own choices shifted accordingly...
And Lumine—what was she trying to do by going to Yun Jin and telling her that story?
What exactly was her intent?
And then—why did the second half of the story say that there was an evil dragon hidden within the hero?
In other words, that there was something eerie residing inside himself?
Was it suggesting that a dragon-slaying hero ultimately becomes the dragon—that the one fighting against the Eerie will, in the end, become one of them?
Lost in thought, Su Yuan gradually drifted off into sleep...
The morning sunlight of the next day streamed into Su Yuan’s room through the window, and he slowly opened his eyes.
He felt a stinging pain in the palm of his right hand.
Lifting it, he looked at his palm:
[First of all, congratulations on surviving the sixteenth night.]
[Currently available intel:]
[46. As a renowned Liyue opera performer who both writes and sings, Yun Jin wishes to present every detail of her stories to the audience. However, in order to maintain the integrity of her performances, there are many things she wants to do but cannot. Is it truly worth suppressing her innermost thoughts for the sake of those fictional roles on stage?]
Staring at this new intel, Su Yuan furrowed his brows...
Was it hinting at the reason Yun Jin might become Eerie?
What exactly are the things Yun Jin wants to do but cannot?
That might be the key to understanding the conditions behind her possible Eerie transformation...
Su Yuan nodded slightly, deciding to discuss it with the others later.
Then, he continued reading:
[47. The Traveler you saw is not the Traveler. Proceed with caution.]
Although yesterday’s message from the left hand warned him not to trust intel written in the palm of the right hand too easily...
Now, even the right hand was saying the Traveler wasn’t really the Traveler.
The conclusion was clear: this so-called "Traveler Aether" was actually Lumine in disguise.
Still, Su Yuan couldn’t help but complain—was the system seriously using one of his valuable intel slots just to tell him something he had basically already figured out?
Wasn’t that kind of... abstract?
What a waste of an intel point...
Su Yuan continued reading, hoping that the next piece of intel would finally be something useful:
[48. If you’re feeling tired, worn out—perhaps take a look back. Return to the very beginning. You might discover something new.]
Su Yuan fell silent, unsure what to say.
Yet another cryptic, riddle-like intel message... Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on novelꜰire.net
Still, this particular hint didn’t seem too difficult to interpret.
The so-called "very beginning"—could it be referring to the moment he first crossed into this world?
That is, the top floor of the Fontaine Palais Mermonia, the bed in Furina’s former room?
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