"I see — taking a break now and then isn't a bad idea. Working without rest isn't good for the body."
Kaito nodded along, agreeing that a little time off sounded perfectly fine.
Though he was fairly sure that wasn't the real reason Childe was heading back, he had no intention of saying so.
After all, if the other person clearly didn't want to get into it, pushing further would just be rude.
And more importantly, there was nothing to be gained by pressing — better to leave it alone.
That said, when it came to the question of workload, Kaito privately felt that Childe's posting in Liyue had to be the most cushy assignment imaginable.
Then again, the man was a Fatui Harbinger — you couldn't exactly measure his job by ordinary standards.
"Ha! Yeah — taking a break and spending time with family, now that's something truly wonderful."
Another booming laugh from Childe, and this time what he said was completely genuine — none of the half-truths he'd been spinning before.
"Well, it's getting late. Time to head back."
"Head back where? Don't tell me you're going all the way to Inazuma?" Knowing that Kaito had traveled to Inazuma after leaving Liyue, Childe figured it was worth asking.
"Of course not — I've still got things to take care of here." Kaito shook his head. "Just heading back to the little courtyard Mr. Zhongli arranged for us. It's not early anymore."
"Ah, I see. In that case — how about we all grab dinner together? Perfect timing for an evening meal."
Now that he knew Kaito wasn't leaving Liyue, Childe was keen to extend the evening.
Much as he was already itching to see Mobius again, he knew better than to rush something like this.
"No need — we've already bought groceries. We're cooking at home tonight." Kaito waved off the invitation.
Lumine had mentioned at lunch that she'd be cooking again tonight, so naturally he was heading back to eat.
More importantly, he was hoping Miko would use the occasion to bring up the subject of Kiana's culinary abilities.
But just as Kaito said this, Miko beside him looked subtly surprised. She hadn't expected Lumine to be the one cooking.
Could it be that Kiana had suddenly declared she'd cook precisely because she'd learned Lumine was here in Liyue cooking for Kaito?
Recalling how Kiana had out of nowhere announced she wanted to make stir-fried pork with peppers, Miko felt something click into place.
As for how Kiana had found out that Lumine was cooking for Kaito here in Liyue — Miko's best guess was that Wendy had told her.
After all, that little girl was absurdly fast. A round trip between Inazuma and Liyue would take her practically no time at all.
The trouble, though, was Kiana's cooking. It was... not something Miko could bring herself to praise.
And now she was genuinely curious about one thing: how on earth had Kaito survived eating Kiana's cooking?
Never mind Mei and Wendy — one of them genuinely couldn't taste the difference, and the other probably just didn't eat at all.
But Kaito? How had he managed to hold up against Kiana's culinary disasters?
Miko was absolutely dying to know.
Though she supposed she didn't have to just wonder — she could simply ask him once they got back.
"I see. Well, I won't impose then." Childe glanced at Lumine, then at Miko — clearly from Inazuma — and graciously bowed out.
After all, the man was having dinner with his girlfriends. An outsider like him had no business getting in the middle of that.
He turned to Zhongli beside him. "In that case, Mr. Zhongli — shall we go get dinner together?"
"Mm. Though..."
"Dinner's on me. Tea was on me too." Knowing exactly what Zhongli was about to say, Childe got ahead of it immediately.
After spending so much time in Zhongli's company, he knew the man through and through.
He didn't even need to hear the rest. Just offer to pay, and everything would sort itself out.
"Very well. Let's be off then. Until next time, young Kaito."
With that guarantee secured, Zhongli rose to his feet, ready to go.
"Until next time, Mr. Zhongli."
Kaito stood as well. He watched the easy, wordless understanding between Childe and Zhongli with quiet amusement, and gave them both a wave.
The group went their separate ways after that, with Kaito, Miko, and Lumine heading back to the courtyard together.
"I didn't realize you could cook, Lumine." Once they were inside, Miko said so right away, looking genuinely surprised.
"I used to do it all the time when Paimon and I were traveling together," Lumine replied. "That little glutton can eat just fine but couldn't cook to save her life, so it always fell to me."
As she spoke, Lumine looked perfectly resigned to the absurdity of it.
Not that she had to anymore — but Paimon's utter inability to contribute anything beyond her appetite still managed to exasperate her.
Right.
Speaking of Paimon, Lumine found herself wondering how she was getting on back in Inazuma.
So she asked, "Oh — Miko, did you happen to see Paimon before you came here? I wonder if she's been missing me."
"I didn't run into her myself, but apparently Acheron's been taking her out to eat quite regularly."
Miko hadn't seen Paimon herself, but she knew Acheron had been treating her to meals.
"Got it. Thanks!"
The moment she heard that Acheron was taking Paimon out to eat, Lumine felt instantly relieved.
For Paimon, getting taken out for food on a regular basis meant everything was perfectly fine — she'd probably forgotten all about Lumine already, given that eating was the only thing that ever occupied that girl's mind.
"Don't mention it — we're friends." Miko waved it off.
"So, Miko — do you know how to cook? How about we make dinner together?" Lumine nodded and asked.
She genuinely wasn't sure whether Miko could cook, so it was worth finding out.
If not, she'd handle it herself, with Kaito as her assistant. Though if Miko wanted to help out, that was more than welcome.
"I can, yes — but before we get started, there's something I'd like to mention." Miko nodded and glanced over at Kaito.
She'd actually considered pulling Kaito aside to discuss Kiana's cooking privately. But she worried that would make Lumine think the two of them were keeping secrets from her — which wasn't a great look.
On the other hand, bringing up Kiana's cooking habits in front of someone other than Kaito felt somehow unkind to Kiana.
So she decided to say it in a way that only Kaito would fully grasp, then leave it to him to decide whether to address Kiana's cooking in front of Lumine.
"What is it?" Lumine looked over, a little curious — she'd assumed Miko was about to say something to her.
"It's about Kiana — she actually loves cooking too, it's just that—"
"Kiana, huh..." Before Miko could finish, Kaito had already sighed.
He knew exactly where this was going.
"What about Kiana?" Lumine's curiosity immediately sharpened.
It wasn't about her, but a sigh like that clearly meant something was amiss.
"Kiana's cooking..." Kaito paused for a moment, then decided to just come out with it. He'd worried Miko would dance around it too delicately. "...isn't exactly what you'd call good."
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