"Is it really okay to just leave Diona like that?" Paimon asked worriedly, watching Diona gradually disappear into the distance.
"When people experience something traumatic, they often want to be alone for a while... Let’s not disturb her," Su Yuan replied.
"Yeah," Aether nodded in agreement and said, "Diona’s not someone fragile. At this point, all we can do is believe in her—that she’ll be able to pull through this sorrow."
"Actually, if Diona can recover from her grief and join our fight against the eerie, she might become quite a powerful ally..."
Su Yuan mused thoughtfully:
"If the condition for Diona’s eerie state is seeing someone who has consumed alcohol—and once transformed, she targets those who’ve been drinking..."
"Then maybe, in future battles against the eerie, we could find a way to make the enemies drink alcohol. That way, they’d become Diona’s targets."
"But... making someone drink alcohol mid-battle sounds kind of strange and not that easy to pull off..." Paimon said doubtfully.
"Judging from past experiences, it might not have to be actual liquid alcohol," Aether replied after thinking over Su Yuan’s idea.
"Maybe alcoholic chocolates or liquor-filled desserts like rum-soaked egg tarts could also trigger Diona’s eerie state."
"Yeah... but in any case, we’ll have to wait for Diona to recover from this blow first," Su Yuan said with a sigh.
And so, after a brief discussion and some rest, Su Yuan and the others continued their journey toward Mondstadt...
Before long, the group arrived at the large bridge in front of Mondstadt’s city gates...
However, Su Yuan and the others all felt that something was off—like something was missing...
"Traveler, Su Yuan, do you feel it too? Something doesn’t feel quite right..." Paimon said, furrowing her brows, her voice filled with suspicion.
"Yeah, I feel it too... It’s like something’s not there," Aether replied.
"You’re right, I feel the same way," Su Yuan nodded.
"Timmy... and his pigeons???"
In the next moment, the three of them spoke in unison.
Puzzled and uneasy, the group continued heading toward Mondstadt.
But then they noticed something even more unusual—two Knights of Favonius guards, who were normally stationed at the gate, were nowhere to be seen...
"What on earth is going on in Mondstadt right now?" Aether asked, confused.
"Whether it was Springvale earlier, or now at the city gate, everything seems severely understaffed..."
"Whatever it is, let’s head to the Knights of Favonius headquarters and figure out what’s going on!"
"Hm? Traveler? Paimon? Is that really you?"
Just then, a familiar voice called out from behind them:
"You’re back in Mondstadt? I didn’t expect to run into you here!"
The group turned around—and saw that it was Eula!
"Eula, what exactly is going on right now?" Aether asked urgently, skipping the usual pleasantries.
"Why does it feel like the Knights of Favonius are seriously understaffed right now?"
"Has something really happened to Mondstadt... or to the Knights of Favonius?"
"Oh? As expected of the Traveler—you even noticed that?"
Eula showed an intrigued expression and said:
"But don’t worry. Mondstadt is still relatively stable right now. Nothing major has happened..."
"I just finished a mission and I’m exhausted and starving. Let’s head to Good Hunter and talk over a meal—my treat!"
"Yay! Food! It’s been so long since I’ve had Sweet Madame and Sticky Honey Roast from Good Hunter!"
The moment she heard there’d be food, Paimon started cheering excitedly, barely able to contain her joy.
"And since it’s Eula’s treat today, I’m definitely going to eat to my heart’s content!"
Soon after, at a table inside Good Hunter, Eula began explaining the current situation in Mondstadt:
"That’s right, Traveler. Just like you said—right now, there are barely one in ten Knights of Favonius still stationed in Mondstadt. We’re severely understaffed..."
"You should already know—Jean is just the Acting Grand Master. The real Grand Master, Varka, took most of the Knights with him on an expedition some time ago..."
"But recently, Mika—you remember him, right? Varka’s forward scout and cartographer—he came back with a letter from the Grand Master. In the letter, Varka mentioned that he’d run into some kind of trouble and was requesting reinforcements..."
"So Mika led a large number of Knights to join up with Grand Master Varka. That’s why you’re noticing the shortage of manpower in the city right now."
"I see..." Aether nodded after hearing Eula’s explanation.
"Even though I’ve never met Grand Master Varka, I’ve long heard of his legendary reputation..."
"For someone like him to need reinforcements... Just what kind of danger is he facing?"
"And what about the old friends I know? Are they still in Mondstadt? Or did they go with Mika to support Varka?"
"Besides Captain Kaeya—whom the Grand Master specifically named to join the reinforcements—the others were just ordinary Knights of Favonius," Eula answered.
Upon hearing that name, both Su Yuan and Aether furrowed their brows slightly...
Others might not know, but Su Yuan and Aether were well aware that Kaeya was very likely a descendant of Khaenri’ah.
So why did Grand Master Varka specifically request Kaeya by name to join the reinforcements?
Could it be that the reason Varka needed support... had something to do with Khaenri’ah?
Or perhaps... something related to the Abyss?
Su Yuan and Aether remained deep in thought, analyzing the situation.
Meanwhile, Paimon was blissfully enjoying her food, munching away in delight...
Seeing Paimon’s mouth covered in crumbs like a cute little glutton, Eula couldn’t help but smile softly and said:
"Paimon, I know I said this meal is on me, but wow—you really didn’t hold back at all. You ordered so much, my wallet took quite a hit..."
Then suddenly, Eula shifted her tone.
She crossed her arms, tilted her head up, and pouted as she declared:
"Hmph! How dare you... I’ll remember this grudge!"
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