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A figure came running toward them in a hurry.
Looking closely, it turned out to be a girl wearing a monocle and a bright red newsboy cap.
Her shoulder-length pink hair bounced up and down as she ran, her entire presence brimming with energy and liveliness.
She also wore black knee-high boots, giving her a neat and capable appearance.
Just as she was about to reach the ship, the fiery girl suddenly stumbled on the steps leading aboard!
With a startled "Ah—!", she pitched forward in a clumsy fall.
At the same time, the baguette she had been gripping tightly flew from her hand, arcing through the air straight toward Shao Yun.
In that split second, Lumine stepped forward with stunning reflexes, catching the girl firmly before she could fall.
Meanwhile, Shao Yun didn't remain idle—he reached out and caught the airborne baguette.
He looked at the bread in his hand, a teasing smile forming on his face. "Whoa there, you need to be careful. Before you find any 'big news,' your bread might make the headlines first."
The girl flushed with embarrassment, adjusting her delicate single-frame glasses before giving them both a thankful smile.
"Thank you so much."
Perhaps out of basic manners—or simply to ease the awkwardness—she promptly introduced herself with cheerful confidence.
"Hello! Nice to meet you all for the first time. My name is Charlotte, and I'm a reporter for The Steambird. It's a real pleasure to run into you here!"
When Shao Yun heard the name "Charlotte," something clicked in his mind. With a hint of humor, he asked, "Charlotte? Charlotte Balfour?"
Charlotte, who had been smiling brightly, froze when she heard the surname "Balfour."
Tilting her head in confusion, she blinked. "Huh? My full name is Charlotte Gagnepetit. Who's Charlotte Balfour?"
(AN: Charlotte's mother is Lady Gagnepetit, so Charlotte's surname likely follows Fontaine's naming conventions.)
Shao Yun waved it off casually. "Ah, nothing. Your name just reminded me of a friend…"
Meanwhile, Charlotte wolfed down the baguette in just a few quick bites, then briskly pulled out a notebook stuffed with dense interview notes.
Her eyes locked eagerly onto Shao Yun as she asked, "Ahem, sorry, we seem to have gone off topic. Mr. Tacitus—"
"I wonder if you have time right now to accept an interview from me?"
Her focus on him alone surprised Shao Yun—she hadn't spared even a glance for anyone else.
He raised a brow. "Interview me? You're sure that wouldn't be a huge waste of your time?"
I mean, shouldn't you be talking to Lumine and Paimon, maybe building rapport?
Or better yet, why not the superstar magician duo Lyney and Lynette?
But Charlotte shook her head vigorously, answering with unwavering conviction, "No, no, absolutely not! Please—please accept my interview!"
Before Shao Yun could respond, she anxiously flipped her notebook open to a marked page, looked up again, and fired off her first question:
"What are your feelings after defeating Clorinde—the one hailed as Fontaine's strongest Champion Duelist?"
Shao Yun tilted his head slightly, answering with indifference, "Feelings? What feelings? It was just an ordinary duel."
Charlotte froze, staring at him wide-eyed. "Ordinary? You're calling that heart-stopping duel ordinary?"
Her emotions ignited in an instant.
"You must be joking! Your opponent was the famous Clorinde!"
She looked at him as if despairing over his lack of appreciation for his achievement.
But Shao Yun remained calm, speaking plainly.
"Clorinde? Is her marksmanship supposed to be impressive?"
To be fair, he couldn't help thinking:
She's Clorinde, not Landon Ricketts.
Wearing black tights doesn't magically make someone the legendary gunslinger.
Charlotte hurriedly nodded, deeply earnest. "Of course! Ever since Clorinde became Fontaine's Champion Duelist, she has never once tasted defeat."
"Not only that—she is now one of the Hydro Archon's personal guards! For you to defeat someone like her, you've become famous across Fontaine!"
She paused for breath, then continued excitedly, "And what's more—you struck second and still disarmed her firearm to win the match."
"If I were to write an article about you, I'd certainly give you the title 'Living Legend'!"
Shao Yun smiled humbly at her praise, waving his hands. "Oh no, no, you're giving me way too much credit. 'Living Legend'? That sounds way too fake…"
After all, "Legend of the East" or "Legend of the West" sounded better anyway.
Charlotte, however, interpreted his dismissal as modesty.
So, she pressed on, eyes sparkling. "Then—would you accept a special feature interview?"
"My journalistic instincts tell me you're definitely hiding shocking, explosive headlines!"
Seeing him hesitate, her eyes gleamed with an idea.
"Don't worry—I'd never waste your precious time."
"If you agree to let me do this exclusive interview, I'll treat you to a meal and pay you a very generous amount of mora! How about that?"
As Charlotte grew more enthusiastic and persistent, Shao Yun sensed the situation spiraling. Seeing no end in sight, he quickly changed the topic with a grin.
"Haha, an exclusive? A special feature? Charlotte, are you planning to imitate Theodore Levin and write a western novel or something?"
As expected, the moment the words "write a novel" appeared, Charlotte's train of thought derailed completely.
She frowned slightly. "Write a novel? I don't think I have time for that. I'm already overwhelmed with daily interviews…"
But another thought snagged her attention.
"Wait—Theodore Levin? Who's that? An author? Why have I never heard of him in Fontaine? Is he from Mondstadt?"
Shao Yun smirked inwardly and guided the topic further away.
"Correct. He's an author. I once helped him gather some material he needed."
"As payment, he gave me over ten million mora—plus a copy of the novel he wrote."
The reaction was immediate—like thunder exploding in the middle of the ship.
Everyone went wide-eyed in stunned silence.
Ten. Million. Mora.
Lyney cried out involuntarily, "What?! Over ten million?! My ears aren't malfunctioning, right?"
Lynette tugged gently at his sleeve, whispering calmly, "No, you heard correctly. It really was over ten million mora…"
Charlotte's mouth hung open as she mentally calculated how long she would have to work non-stop to earn such an astronomical sum.
"Just… for gathering material? And he paid you that much? That sounds unreal…"
Shao Yun observed their reactions and thought:
This is normal.
It's not like he dealt with ordinary people—they were the Four Legendary Gunslingers and the terrifying Little Boy Calloway.
Of the five, only the black-clad beauty could carry a normal conversation.
The other four… well, their thinking wasn't quite aligned with normal humans.
With their crimes and abilities, if they existed in Teyvat, even billions of mora wouldn't tempt anyone to approach them.
Compared with the shocked Lyney and Charlotte, Lynette remained much calmer. Her naturally cool demeanor made her reaction subtle, even if she was surprised deep down.
As for Lumine and Paimon—they'd long since become numb to this kind of scene.
After Shao Yun robbed Liyue's Northland Bank of fifty billion mora, nothing about his finances shocked them anymore.
At this point, Charlotte's attention left Shao Yun and fixated on the book.
"That book he wrote—may I take a look? I want to know what kind of novel is worth ten million mora!"
Hearing that, Shao Yun reached into the Legend of the East backpack at his waist and rummaged around.
"Let me see…"
After some rustling, he pulled out a thick, hefty-looking novel.
Its cover was worn, but the title was still clear—[Jim "Boy" Calloway].
He handed it to Charlotte, who immediately accepted it with both hands.
She glanced at the cover and muttered, "Jim "Boy" Calloway? Hmm, not bad. And it's written in Teyvat Common—great, no reading issues for me."
(AN: Shao Yun can only read Teyvat Common, which is why he sometimes can't recognize certain written languages.)
Charlotte opened the first page and began reading attentively.
Minutes passed. She grew more and more absorbed, completely immersed in the story.
Eventually, she lifted her head, eyes shimmering with awe.
"Oh, my goodness! This is incredible! It's leagues better than that serialized novel [The Gunslinger Butcher from Fontaine]!"
Then she stared at Shao Yun again, her expression layered and complex.
After a deep breath, she said, "Honestly, I think charging only ten million mora was underselling it. Once this book gets published, it'll cause an uproar."
"I mean it—this novel could stay popular for a hundred years. It could become a family heirloom!"
"No—more than that. It could create an entirely new genre, becoming the founding pillar of a whole new literary tradition!"
Hearing her high praise, Paimon's curiosity exploded.
She blinked her watery eyes and looked at Shao Yun. "Is it really that good? Then why didn't you ever show it to me?!"
Shao Yun spread his hands innocently. "You never asked. And isn't there plenty for you to read at Yae Publishing House?"
Paimon thought for a moment. "…Oh. True, I guess…"
But then she perked up instantly with a request. "Well, after Charlotte's done, I want to read it next!"
Shao Yun patted her cheek gently. "Alright, alright. Don't worry, you'll get your turn."
…
Finishing the entire novel on the patrol ship was impossible. After reading several dozen pages, Charlotte was completely hooked.
Unable to restrain herself, she looked up sharply. "Can I interview this amazingly talented author? Can you contact him for me?"
"Honestly, he deserves a full special feature!"
Shao Yun let out a helpless sigh. "I… don't think you'll be able to meet him."
And he was telling the truth—how could she interview someone from another world?
But Charlotte interpreted it differently.
An author of such incredible talent, yet no fame in Teyvat?
There was only one explanation—he must have passed away.
Charlotte returned the book with visible reluctance. "Alright… I guess I should focus on cracking the chain of missing-girls cases instead."
Lumine perked up at that. "Missing-girls cases?"
Paimon, holding [Jim "Boy" Calloway] in her arms, also looked over. "'Chain of missing girls'? What kind of case is that? They never found the culprit?"
Charlotte nodded solemnly. "Yes. The first missing girl case happened twenty years ago…"
"Ever since then, every so often, another girl disappears. All around the same age. And without leaving a single trace."
Her voice dropped, creating a chilling atmosphere.
"And the most frightening part: none of the missing girls have ever been found."
"People have been arrested as suspects before, but the disappearances continued afterward."
Lumine listened with a deepening frown. "That's terrifying… Could there be a large criminal group behind this?"
Beside her, Shao Yun remained calm.
He glanced at Lumine and reassured her, "Good thing I taught you two how to use guns. If danger comes, just shoot the 'danger' in the head. Shouldn't ruin our vacation."
Lumine turned to him, confidence flickering in her eyes. "Even without guns, my swordsmanship is good. And I have elemental powers. If someone dared kidnap me or Paimon, I'd take them down easily."
As for what happened in Mondstadt—well, Paimon wasn't beside her at the time, so that doesn't count…
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