"Yes, that's right—the Hexenzirkel, the one connected to things beyond the skies," Venti said with a nod.
Lora looked at him with clear curiosity.
"How did you know Lumine would meet that astrologer when she returned to Liyue?"
"Well… of course I divined it through astrology," Venti replied, blinking and smiling at her.
Zhongli glanced at him, a hint of surprise in his tone.
"You practice astrology as well? Truly, one can never have too many skills. With an ability like that, you wouldn't have to worry about going hungry or lacking clothes."
Lora thought for a moment about Mona's way of life, then added,
"If you made it your main profession, it might still be worth reconsidering."
"Part-time, part-time!" Venti waved his hand quickly. "You all know what my main job is."
They were longtime colleagues—who didn't know what his main profession was?
"So? What do you think—want to come along?" Venti asked Lora again.
Lora shook her head, looking at him with complete seriousness.
"I really do want to attend the Windflower Festival, but my heart is willing and my strength is not. There are things in Liyue that I simply can't let go of."
"What things?" Venti asked, staring at her blankly.
Before Lora could answer, Zhongli spoke up in her place.
"Commonly known as… 'giving up,' correct? That's how you described it some time ago."
"..."
"Giving… up?" Venti tilted his head, blinked, and looked at Lora. Then he burst out laughing.
"That description is… how should I put it… surprisingly fitting. Not bad! In that case, I suppose I'll just have to send Lumine and… Paimon back to Mondstadt."
The next day, Venti told Lumine about the Windblossom Festival and extended an invitation. He deliberately left out any mention of the astrologer—after all, that was something she needed to encounter naturally along the way once she set off for Mondstadt. Saying it too early would cause serious problems.
"But isn't Lora coming with us to Mondstadt?" Paimon asked, looking at her curiously.
Lora explained,
"I'm a Liyue Adeptus. There's still a whole pile of things I haven't finished handling here in Liyue. I need to deal with all of that first. Otherwise, how could I travel with you?"
"Oh! That makes sense!" Paimon said, suddenly enlightened.
Lumine looked at Lora and said,
"Then wait for us in Liyue! We'll come back as soon as we can!"
"Alright!" Lora nodded obediently.
「Obediently」
…
One day, Lora was eating at Wanmin Restaurant as usual. After finishing her meal, she set down her chopsticks and said to Xiangling,
"Send the bill to Northland Bank."
"Wow, Miss Lora, you have so many places you can send your bills!" Xiangling exclaimed in surprise. "Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, the Jade Chamber, Northland Bank…"
She stared at Lora in amazement, utterly shocked by her ability to put so many different parties on the tab.
"Actually," Lora said seriously, "if cross-border matters weren't such a hassle, I could even have you send them to the Knights of Favonius."
"Even Mondstadt's Knights of Favonius? That's amazing!" Xiangling said in awe.
"Want to learn?" Lora asked, looking at the astonished Xiangling.
Xiangling nearly blurted out "Yes," but after a moment's thought, she shook her head instead.
"Never mind. I'll just send it to Wanmin Restaurant. That's enough for me, and I probably don't have the ability to send anything to Northland Bank anyway…"
"Actually, there's someone in the Fatui who's fairly easy to talk to…" Lora began.
But seeing that Xiangling clearly wasn't interested in keeping accounts, she didn't continue.
After leaving Wanmin Restaurant, Lora wandered through the streets of Liyue.
As she walked, a voice suddenly reached her ears.
"Excuse me, have you seen this person?"
"The person in this painting—have you seen them?"
"Yes, blue-and-white hair, not very tall, quite good-looking, uses water, very gentle, and very capable."
"Huh? You haven't seen them? Sorry about that—then I'll ask someone else."
Lora froze when she heard this. Blue-and-white hair, not very tall, uses water…
Wasn't that describing her?
But the voice didn't belong to Rhodeia. And in Liyue, aside from Rhodeia, who else would be looking for her like this?
Feeling puzzled, Lora stopped and turned toward the source of the voice.
What she saw left her completely taken aback.
"Is that… a Melusine?"
Standing before her was a Melusine, holding a painting and asking passersby along the street.
The Melusine went from person to person. When she finally raised the painting and saw Lora, she froze on the spot.
The Melusine and Lora stared at each other. She looked at the painting in her hands, then at Lora, then back at the painting.
In the next instant, she let out an excited cheer, rushed forward, and grabbed Lora's dress before Lora could react.
"I found her!" the Melusine shouted. "Lord Neuvillette, Hélie found the person in the painting!"
"Um… excuse me, Miss Melusine?" Lora frowned slightly as she looked at Hélie, who was clutching her clothes. "Could you explain what's going on?"
At this point, the two of them had become the most eye-catching sight on the entire street. Quite a few passersby had already begun looking their way.
"Oh, right! I should explain!" Hélie nodded quickly. She glanced around, then frowned again.
"But this isn't the place to talk. Um… is there somewhere a bit more secluded? This is really important!"
"Somewhere secluded…" Lora looked around. This was the largest street in Liyue Harbor—there was nowhere even remotely private.
Without hesitation, Lora took Hélie's hand.
"If you trust me, then come with me."
"Mm!" Hélie nodded firmly. "You're the person Lord Neuvillette is looking for. I trust you!"
With that, she followed Lora away.
Lora brought Hélie back to the Jade Chamber and into her own room. She closed the door carefully, making sure no one else was present. She even checked specifically to confirm that Rhodeia hadn't returned.
"Alright. Now you can talk," Lora said as she sat across from Hélie.
She looked at Hélie, then at the painting she had been carrying the entire time. The figure in the painting looked very much like Lora, but the features were vague—no facial details had been drawn.
"You mentioned Neuvillette earlier?" Lora asked.
Hélie nodded.
"Yes! Hélie came to Liyue Harbor on Lord Neuvillette's orders—to find you."