"Hehe, it looks great!"
In front of the full-length mirror, Amy was wearing the little princess dress, [Immernachtstraum]. Her little feet, wrapped in white stockings, stepped directly onto the floor. She stood on her tiptoes, spinning around and around.
A pair of sparkling green eyes stared at her reflection in the mirror. At this moment, she truly looked like a princess, the genuine article.
Having admired herself enough, Amy ran over to the dressing table and pulled open a drawer. Inside, there was an entire drawer filled with eye masks of various styles.
She carefully selected one and finally found an eye mask that perfectly matched her outfit. She quickly put it on and struck a handsome pose. In this moment, she was no longer Amy, but the Prinzessin der Verurteilung—Fischl!
"Excellent! This magnificent gown, presented by My retainer, truly fits My noble body perfectly! Good! Very good!"
Beside her, Oz stood on the table and respectfully agreed: "Indeed! As expected of the Personal Knight, your discernment is truly sharp!"
Fischl nodded. With a wave of her hand, the figure of a Night Raven suddenly appeared in the previously empty space.
"Your Highness, Leon of the Royal Knights, sends you greetings. May I ask why you have summoned me here..."
Now that she possessed [Immernachtstraum], Fischl could not only travel freely to Immernachtreich at any time but also gained complete control over all Night Ravens, allowing her to mobilize them wherever and whenever she wished.
Fischl tossed her long golden hair and issued a command to Leon: "Good, Knight Leon, the reason I summoned you here this time is to have you handle a matter for Me. Go find My Personal Knight and tell him that the noble Prinzessin hopes to travel with him in Immernachtreich. Any time will suffice!"
When her voice faded, Leon's reply did not come. Fischl looked at Leon, confused, and Oz asked on her behalf, "What is the matter, Knight Leon? Is there something you cannot speak of?"
Leon visibly paused, then finally spoke: "Your Highness the Prinzessin, Knight Orion... he left Mondstadt a short while ago and departed on the next journey with his companions."
"Clack."
Fischl suddenly took two steps back, bumping into the table. She held out her hand towards Leon, palm facing out: "Wait, just wait a moment. He, he left?"
"...Yes, Your Highness."
"But, but [Immernachtstraum] is still here with me, Immernachtreich is still here with me, and he didn't call you back..."
"Your Highness," Leon's voice came from beneath the metal helmet, "The moment Knight Orion handed [Immernachtstraum] to you meant that we and Immernachtreich are all now your possessions."
Leon extended his wing and handed a ring to Fischl: "And this. This is the Miliastra Wonderland Pass. Knight Orion instructed me to give it to you."
Fischl took the ring. It was an exquisite silver ring inlaid with a circle of purple gems.
"What is this for?"
"You can understand Immernachtreich and the Miliastra Wonderland as different planes within the same dimension, and this is the key to opening the gate between those planes. In other words, you can meet him in the Miliastra Wonderland or Immernachtreich at any time; space is no longer an obstacle between the two of you."
Fischl lowered her head, her bangs covering one eye, making it impossible for the bird to discern her expression.
Oz and Leon exchanged glances, about to offer comfort, when Fischl suddenly tossed the ring to Oz.
"Miss?" Oz hurriedly caught the ring and asked, surprised.
"How rude!" Fischl turned her back, crossed her arms, and said, "How can one give a gift to a noble lady by having someone else deliver it? Oz, keep this safe for me! The next time you see him, instruct him to put it on me himself!"
"...Haha, yes, Miss."
"Also, Leon, in front of me, you can—you can, you can call him King! But when you are facing him, you must still call him Knight, understood!"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
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"Just send us off here. There are more monsters further ahead."
After chatting and laughing the whole way, the group arrived once again at the cliff where Xiangling and Orion had found Mona.
Seeing a group of Cryo Slimes in the distance, Orion proactively stopped walking and urged Amber to return quickly.
Although the group hadn't spent much time in Mondstadt, every day had been fulfilling, and they had become quite familiar with the people of Mondstadt, especially Amber, their guide.
At this moment, Amber was hugging everyone goodbye individually.
"Little Sister Clara, you are the most careful among them. Take good care of them."
"Paimon, try to eat a little less on the road, or eat more of the stomach-soothing digestive pills Orion made. It's hard to treat stomach issues if you get sick eating outdoors."
"Big Sister Skirk, this is the signed limited edition of Battle Through the Heavens that you asked me to buy last time. I haven't unwrapped it yet. Here, take it!"
Finally, Amber came before Orion. She smiled, looked into Orion's eyes for a moment, and then heavily patted his shoulder: "You're the strongest one. Make sure you protect them!"
Orion also rubbed Amber's head: "Then I wish you the courage to leap down whenever you face a dead end, and may the Ideal Wind forever be the first boost to lift you off."
After speaking, a wisp of barely visible Ideal Fluid quietly wrapped around Amber's body as the little red bunny ran further and further away.
Everyone except Skirk waved toward Amber. As Orion lowered his hand, he looked toward Dawn Winery and saw another streak of red far away on the cliff top.
Diluc, seeing Orion looking over from afar, clearly gave a slight chest tremor before turning around and walking back, without waving or anything.
With his transcendent alien vision, Orion was certain that Master Diluc had let out a cold "Hmph."
Orion was quite speechless: "Wow, this Diluc guy, he specially came to see us off but still refuses to say goodbye out loud? Talk about maintaining a persona."
Paimon glanced around and barely caught sight of a retreating back: "Eh! It's Master Diluc! Why did he sneak over to see us? He should have just come straight here."
"Exactly! Unlike me, who came personally to see you off." Suddenly, a soft, delicate body pressed against Orion's back, like a gentle breeze settling down, accompanied by the fragrance of dandelions and Cecilia Flowers.
Orion felt cold sweat soak his back.
"Why aren't you saying anything? Your good brother specially came to see you off, aren't you happy?" The female-bodied Venti whispered in Orion's ear, her face dark.
Orion swallowed hard, only to realize that Lumine and the others had secretly run to the other end of the valley. Damn it! They actually abandoned me and ran off!
Orion swallowed hard: "Venti, calm down. We're buddies, so you didn't need to run all the way here just to see me off, right?"
Venti didn't let go. Instead, she wrapped her arms around Orion's neck and continued, her face dark: "I originally wanted to transform into my Divine Attire to show you that your spell has a chance of failing.
But who knew that today would happen to be the day I transformed genders? Orion, what do you think?"
"Gulp. Uh, you smell nice, bro?"
"Smell nice, huh! Go tell my tornado that!"
"Aaaaah, help!"
Orion hurriedly struggled free from Venti's grasp and frantically ran toward Lumine and the others.
A massive Hydro-Tornado chased Orion's footsteps, sending him flying to the other side of the river.
Venti snorted coldly and changed back into Venti. When he looked across the river, he saw Orion waving at him.
"Drink less alcohol in the future! Don't lose yourself again!"
Venti finally let out a heavy sigh: "Next time you return, bring me some Liyue liquor! And also, send my regards to that old man!"
Orion didn't reply, simply flashing an Ok sign from afar.
Venti's lips curled up, and with a gust of wind, he vanished
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This river was not the official border between Liyue and Mondstadt. According to the calculated range of a game item called the "Treasure Compass" that can only be used in one's own nation, the place where Xiangling previously gathered Jueyun Chilis was actually closer to the border line.
As the group walked forward amidst laughter and chatter, the road beneath their feet was the first thing to change.
Most of Mondstadt's roads were built during the era of the Decarabian, but they had been eroded by the cleansing of the Thousand Winds. Yet, under Venti's rule, even their damaged appearance seemed lighthearted and casual, like a tune hummed by a drunkard.
The flagstone road broke off at one point, and after crossing a wooden bridge, the road that resumed was incredibly neat, as if it were a thousand-year-old sedimentary rock layer smoothed by the wind, emitting an ethereal yet profound echo like chimes.
High cliffs rose on both sides. The sky was clear, but the sun was blocked by the tall mountains, allowing a thread of coolness to permeate the murmuring stream.
After walking a few more steps and passing several wooden watchtowers in the distance, a dark wooden path replaced the flagstone road, making a 'creaking' sound under the group's feet.
Passing through the gorge and reaching the Stone Gate, the sun peered out from behind the tall mountains, and the previously enclosed scenery suddenly opened up.
The last wisp of wind from Mondstadt swept across the reeds, bringing a rustling, whispering sound, mixed with the gentle flow of water and the occasional clear, high-pitched croaking of frogs from deep within the marsh.
Several ancient stone bridges lay quietly over the water, their arches and reflections forming a perfect circle, as if they had been resting here in silence for hundreds of years, accustomed to the autumn moon and the spring breeze.
In the distance, a glowing statue of the seven was situated behind the stone bridge, possessing a solemnity different from those in Mondstadt.
Xiangling quickly took two steps forward to stand before the group. She turned around and spread her arms, as if trying to frame the entire landscape.
"Everyone! Welcome to Liyue—Bishui Plain, Dihua Marsh!"
This was the scenery of the thousand-year-old mountains and rocks of Liyue.
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