Lora looked at the tiny Paimon, who was perched on Lumine's shoulder and whispering secrets, and said helplessly, "Paimon, I can hear you…"
"Huh? My voice is already this quiet—how can you hear me?" Paimon stared at Lora in disbelief.
Lumine motioned for Paimon to calm down, then apologized to Lora. "Lora, that's just how Paimon is. Please don't mind her."
"It's fine." Lora smiled and shook her head. She understood Paimon's concerns. If she herself encountered someone who fell from the sky and then claimed they wanted to join her on a journey, her first reaction would also be suspicion. That was only natural.
In the end, Lumine still agreed to travel together with Lora. Her intuition told her that Lora was not a bad person—and for people like them, intuition was often crucial.
Led by Paimon, the two set off along the road toward Mondstadt, the City of Wind and Song.
Paimon fluttered back and forth around Lumine and Lora, trailing faint points of starlight as she flew. She looked curiously at Lora and rattled off a string of questions.
"Lora, where are you from? Why did you suddenly fall from the sky? Can you fly like me? Did you get so hungry that you ran out of strength to fly?"
"Well…" Lora felt her head ache from the barrage of questions, but she had no intention of revealing her true identity just yet.
Lumine could be trusted—but Paimon…
There were simply too many mysteries surrounding her. For Lora, Teyvat was now her "reality," and she could not afford to take any risks. To be safe, she shook her head.
"Sorry… I don't know either."
"Huh? You don't know?" Paimon looked at her in confusion. "How can that be? How could someone not know where they came from?"
She frowned and thought for a moment, then suddenly exclaimed, "Ah! I know! You must be one of those legendary cases of… amnesia, right?"
Seeing that Paimon had already come up with an explanation on her behalf, Lora nodded slightly. "Perhaps I really have lost my memory…"
Paimon rummaged through her small pouch, took out a Sunsettia, and handed it to Lora.
"Here, I've still got one Sunsettia—just picked! It's really tasty. You can have it."
Lora didn't refuse Paimon's offering. It was her first time eating food from the game, and the flavor was surprisingly good—sweet and delicious.
Watching her eat the Sunsettia, Paimon patted her small chest proudly.
"Lora, don't worry! I'll definitely help you find your family and your home! Just trust Paimon!"
"I'll help too," Lumine added from the side.
Lora nodded. "Thank you, Lumine. And thank you, Paimon."
Paimon flew ahead for a bit, then suddenly pointed excitedly toward the distance.
"Lumine! Lora! Look! That's Mondstadt! And that over there is the Statue of The Seven of the Anemo Archon, Barbatos!"
Following the direction of her finger, Lora and Lumine saw a magnificent city standing on the distant horizon. From here, they could even make out the enormous statue of the Anemo Archon within Mondstadt, wings spread wide.
A gentle breeze brushed against their faces, as if welcoming their arrival. Flocks of birds soared through the sky, their calls echoing in Lora's and Lumine's ears.
Everything felt free. Everything felt peaceful.
Lora's gaze settled on the Statue of The Seven standing in the middle of the lake. She seemed to sense a warm, tranquil divine power flowing from it.
The sacred statue radiated a faint glow, gazing upon the world like a true god.
Paimon spoke up from the side. "Everyone knows that words and poetry drift upon the wind. Mondstadt, ruled by the Anemo Archon Barbatos, is a land of freedom. I think there might be clues about Lumine's and Lora's families there!"
Guided by Paimon, the group came to the lakeside and stopped to look on.
Paimon spun around in midair and said, "The Statue of The Seven is an extension of a god's power. Even though I don't think the Anemo Archon is the same god you mentioned before, it's still worth trying to see if we can get any useful information."
Lumine nodded and began looking for a way to reach the center of the lake.
Lora walked over to the water's edge and looked down. The surface of the lake reflected her image, and only then did she clearly see her appearance in this world.
It was not her original form, but the same appearance as Egeria she had seen before.
Blue-and-white hair like rolling waves, and a blue gauze dress.
Her water-colored eyes reflected her figure in the lake. When she crouched down, fish gathered around her, leaping out of the water one after another, as if competing for her attention.
"Huh? What's going on with those fish?" Paimon noticed the disturbance on the lake's surface and exclaimed in surprise.
Watching the fish flick their tails and jump about excitedly, Lora's hands, clasped behind her back, moved slightly. Gentle Hydro energy flowed into the lake, soothing their agitation.
Just as she channeled her power to calm the fish, a call echoed from deep within the forest.
Lora paused. She glanced at Lumine and Paimon—neither of them seemed to have sensed anything. Recalling the events of the story at this point, she already had a guess as to the source of the call.
"Lumine, Paimon, I'll go take a look over there," Lora said before heading alone toward the depths of the forest.
Lumine turned to her and reminded her, "Lora, be careful."
Paimon added, "We'll wait for you here!"
Lora gave a soft response and followed the mountain path deeper into the woods.
The farther she went, the stronger the call became.
Deep in the forest, Lora saw a youth dressed in green standing before a massive blue-black dragon. The youth was speaking to the dragon, and the call she sensed came from both of them.
She heard the dragon's mournful cries, and the words of comfort spoken by the youth.
This scene was etched deeply into her memory. She called out his name without hesitation.
"Barbatos… Venti!"
The God of Wind and Freedom, the Anemo Archon of Mondstadt—Barbatos.
A gust of wind swept through, leaves rustling loudly. Dvalin noticed Lora and beat its wings, soaring into the sky.
Venti turned toward her with a look of anger. But when his eyes fell upon her face, the fury vanished, replaced by shock.
"It's you… How is this possible? You should have already—" Venti frowned deeply as he walked toward Lora.
The breeze swirled around her, conveying everything it sensed. After receiving the wind's response, Venti still looked utterly incredulous.
"It's your aura. There's no mistake," he said slowly. "But why are you still alive?"