"Hey, isn't that Lora?" Paimon exclaimed to Lumine upon spotting Lora seated in a chair.
As they approached, Paimon hurriedly asked, "Lora, what are you doing here?"
"I came to meet a friend. Didn't you go with Zhongli to prepare for the Rite of Descension? How's it going?" Lora replied before asking.
"It's going smoothly! We've already prepared the incense paste, and…"
Paimon answered.
At this point, she suddenly leaned in and whispered mysteriously to Lora, "We heard from Zhongli that Rex Lapis might actually be a mature lady!"
"Uh… a mature lady?" Lora froze, staring blankly at Paimon.
"Yes!" Paimon nodded, mimicking Zhongli's tone. "Rex Lapis manifests in myriad forms. Perhaps one of those forms truly is a mature lady."
"Huh… Would Zhongli really say something like that?" Lora frowned.
"Me, that is," Paimon clarified. "But when I asked Zhongli, that's exactly what he meant."
Lora nodded slightly.
Hmm… once we return to Fontaine, I'll have Zhongli transform into a mature lady. That way, it separates him from his current identity and makes activities in Fontaine more convenient.
Besides, he's committed to helping her with all his might—what's one transformation?
Yes! That was a happily unilateral decision!
Lora asked again, "So how did you end up here?"
"We were commissioned by Zhongli to find Madame Ping and ask for… what was it again?" Paimon trailed off, suddenly forgetting the name, and turned to look at Lumine for help.
"The Cleansing Bell," Lumine continued.
"Right! The Cleansing Bell!" Paimon clapped her hands and said.
"So you're here to borrow the Cleansing Bell…"
Ping'er looked at Lumine and Paimon, feeling a bit sentimental upon hearing the name.
"Once upon a time, so many people came to borrow this bell from me. But I don't know when it started—people just stopped coming. It's been ages since anyone last asked to borrow it."
"You're suddenly getting sentimental…" Paimon looked at Ping'er with a puzzled expression.
"Ah, my old bones move slowly when searching for things," Ping'er continued. "You probably can't afford to wait that long."
"No problem! We can help search too!" Paimon volunteered, nodding to Lumine beside her. "That's right, we can help! We're great at finding things!"
"I see…" Ping'er smiled, pointing to the teapot on the table. "The Cleansing Bell is inside here. All my worldly possessions are in there too. It won't be easy to find."
"This teapot…" Paimon examined it, tilting her head. "It doesn't look big enough to hold an entire fortune. Madame Ping, could you have misremembered?"
"My body may be old, but my memory is sharp," Ping'er chuckled at Paimon.
"Why don't you go inside and take a look, Paimon?" Lumine suggested, turning to her.
"I can't get in! No matter how I think about it, I just can't!" Paimon stamped her foot in midair.
"Heh… well, if you want the bell, you'll have to go in and see for yourselves," Ping'er said with a smile, watching Lumine and Paimon.
She could tell the two were no ordinary visitors, and she understood who had sent them for the Cleansing Bell.
Paimon and Lumine touched the surface of the Serenitea Pot. A flash of dusty light erupted, and their figures vanished.
Lora finished her tea and looked at Ping'er.
"This tea is so sweet. Where did you get the water?"
"It's mountain spring water my disciple, Yaoyao, brings back for me each day when she goes out gathering herbs."
"Crystal-clear mountain spring water, paired with roasted tea leaves, brewed in the Serenitea Pot—truly exquisite," Ping'er replied with a smile, answering Lora's question.
"Ah, mountain spring water…" Lora nodded.
Should she pack the spring water back to Fontaine, or trick Yaoyao into coming to Fontaine?
What? Violating Fontaine's laws? Which one? She'd amend it.
What? Violating Liyue's laws? Which one? She'd amend it.
As she pondered, Lora felt the plan wasn't very feasible.
Ping'er watched Lora standing there deep in thought and continued, "If you like these teas, I'll bring you some in a while."
"Just send them to the Jade Chamber, thank you!" Lora quickly gave her address.
"Alright!" Ping'er nodded.
"Then I won't disturb you and Lumine anymore. I'll be going now." Lora bid Ping'er farewell and departed.
Before returning to the Jade Chamber, Lora first stopped by the Unfathomable Pavilion to pick up Rhodeia. She didn't want her to wander the streets after leaving the pavilion, unable to find her and spouting nonsense about "narrow-mindedness."
It seemed she needed to occasionally assert her deity's authority to keep Rhodeia from getting too bold.
However, when Lora arrived at the floating staircase with Rhodeia, Ganyu was standing there, seemingly occupied with something.
Curious, Lora approached and asked, "Ganyu, what are you doing here? Looking for Ningguang?"
Unexpectedly, upon seeing Lora, Ganyu's eyes lit up, and she immediately ran toward her.
Startled, Lora recoiled. Rhodeia immediately stepped from behind her to the front, raising her hand protectively. She could sense Ganyu's intense longing for both herself and Lora—especially for Lora—and feared Ganyu might actually do something reckless.
"You're finally back, Purifying Water…" Ganyu halted, her gaze fixed on Lora.
"Uh, you were looking for me?" Lora asked, somewhat bewildered.
Ganyu shook her head.
"It wasn't me—it was Cloud Retainer. She said it's been ages since her confrontation with the Liyue Qixing. Why haven't you gone to Mt. Aozang to see her yet? She's bored out of her mind."
"…Well, that is exactly the kind of thing Cloud Retainer would say."
Hearing Ganyu's relay, Lora sighed helplessly. But thinking about it, she was right—nowadays, Shenhe was probably the only one keeping her company on Mt. Aozang, and Shenhe might even be on guard duty at Tianqiu Valley.
A solitary old bird truly is lonely.
"Perfect timing! I just got back from Ping'er's place. Let's crash her dinner tonight!"
Lora clapped her hands together and suggested.
Ganyu looked at Lora, hesitating to speak. After a moment's pause, she finally said,
"Um… Adeptus of Purifying Water, if you chat with Adeptus Cloud Retainer, whatever she says, don't believe a word of it. She hasn't spoken to anyone in ages and speaks without restraint. What she says might not be true."