After finishing the laundry, Klee looked like a little calico kitten. Her hands were clean enough, but her face was covered in streaks of black soot, clearly from touching the ashes on the clothes and accidentally smudging them onto herself.
"What kind of bomb was that? How can it make so much soot?" Jiang Bai brushed the dirt off her clothes, gradually revealing the original bright red beneath the layer of black ash.
"Hehe, that was Klee's special Super-Smoke Bomb! It explodes into a huge cloud of black smoke so the rabbits can't see where they're going! Klee invented it during solitary confinement!" Klee announced proudly.
It was her new recipe, and today was its very first explosion!
But in the next moment, she remembered what happened earlier and began drawing embarrassed circles on the ground with her toes. "But maybe Klee added too much black soot..."
Jiang Bai poked her forehead gently. "You certainly have plenty of wild ideas. But next time, consider white smoke—it'll look cleaner when it gets all over your clothes."
Klee innocently stuck out her tongue.
Jiang Bai picked her up by the back of her collar, walked to a spacious tree, and, under her confused gaze, hung her onto a sturdy branch. From afar, it looked as if the tree had grown a small child.
"I'll clean the dirt off you."
As he spoke, wind rushed in from all directions, fluttering her clothes noisily and blowing away the ash.
Seeing Klee still staring blankly, Jiang Bai reminded her, "Close your eyes so the ash won't get in them."
Klee quickly squeezed her eyes shut.
Sitting by the fire, Scaramouche raised the brim of his hat slightly, dark blue eyes clouded with something indistinct.
"What an annoyingly heartwarming sight."
Jiang Bai didn't notice Scaramouche's mood. He continued manipulating the wind, carefully removing every trace of ash from Klee's clothes. It took some effort, but eventually, her outfit looked much closer to its original vibrant state.
While it wasn't perfectly clean, it was still far better than before.
After finishing, Jiang Bai took her down from the tree branch. "Alright, go wash your hands and face. Then you can have dinner."
"Yay!"
Klee cheered, scurrying off to wash up by the stream and quickly scampering back again.
Jiang Bai handed her a bowl of vegetable and meat soup. Sitting by the fire, Klee sipped her soup in small, careful gulps, cheeks puffed adorably, resembling a bright red hamster.
Scaramouche glanced briefly at her damp sleeves, darkening slightly, before scoffing softly to himself:
"What a fool."
Klee raised her head, blinking at him confusedly.
Before either could respond, he stood, draped his still-damp jacket over his shoulders, and stepped away from the warmth of the fire.
Seeing him stride away without looking back, Jiang Bai called after him, concerned, "Hey! Your clothes aren't dry yet! You'll catch a cold wearing wet clothes!"
No reply came from the darkness; not even his footsteps could be heard.
"That mister's really strange..." Klee mumbled uncertainly.
"He sure is. We never even got his name... Hope he doesn't actually get sick." Jiang Bai shook his head, deciding against going after him.
There was no reasoning with moody teenagers; once they decided to be stubborn, persuasion was useless.
He could only hope the strange boy had enough common sense not to really get sick.
Aside from encountering that odd stranger, the rest of Jiang Bai and Klee's journey to Starsnatch Cliff went smoothly.
Starsnatch Cliff towered high, pointing skyward. Klee eagerly dashed up the steep slopes ahead of Jiang Bai, throwing her arms wide into the wind and cheering.
Bathed in sunlight and fresh breezes, the cliff was lush and green. Klee raced through the grass, swiftly gathering up every Cecilia flower in sight, soon cradling a large bouquet.
Holding her abundant bouquet, she trotted back to Jiang Bai.
"A flower crown! Klee wants a big flower crown!"
Looking down at the bunch of flowers that almost entirely hid her face, Jiang Bai peered through the blossoms to find her eyes.
"You know how to make one?"
"Mama taught Klee, so Klee knows!" she replied proudly.
"Then you sit here and weave your flower crown. Don't wander off. I'll look around for any crystals."
Since the contaminated tear crystals repelled elemental energy, Klee couldn't get near them.
"Okay!" Klee found a large stone, sat down, and carefully began weaving her flower crown.
Soon, Jiang Bai spotted a red tear crystal hovering halfway up the cliffside.
He approached and took it into his hand. The crystal was warm to the touch, clearly fresh from Dvalin's eye.
He pocketed the crystal and noticed another further up the cliff, prompting immediate caution.
Given the warmth and number of crystals, Dvalin was likely nearby. Under the corruption's influence, the dragon's mood must be dangerously unstable—Jiang Bai would have to be careful.
He proceeded cautiously. With each step higher, the tear crystals grew hotter and hotter.
Eventually, near a recessed ledge toward the cliff's peak, he came face-to-face with a dragon.
A dragon hunched on the ground, trembling and weeping from pain.
Blood-tinged tears dripped from its eyes, crystallizing scarlet-red upon contact with the earth.
Its six wings curled inward, crimson spikes glowing ominously on its spine.
Hovering near the dragon was an Abyss Mage, its voice whispering ceaselessly like a demon's murmur.
"Poor dragon, why are you crying here?"
"Your Archon has abandoned you. The city you protected has cast you aside. Humans see you as a wicked beast, wishing only to eradicate you."
"What are you fighting for?"
"You've already ravaged their city. You and Mondstadt can never reconcile."
"Hate them. Hate your Archon."
"Hate them. Hate the city you once protected, hate those ignorant, shortsighted humans."
"Only rage, only blood can cleanse everything."
"Shut up!" Dvalin roared painfully, his voice booming and echoing through the air in powerful shockwaves.
His eyes had turned crimson with fury, yet a small sliver of rationality remained.
But even that final shred of reason might soon drown in madness.
Jiang Bai realized he couldn't simply watch anymore. He needed to act.
If the Abyss Mage was using words to fuel Dvalin's hatred toward Mondstadt, he'd use words too.
"The Anemo Archon hasn't abandoned you! The city you protected still remembers you. Even if some call you an evil dragon, others genuinely wish to apologize!"
Jiang Bai shouted, jumping down from the cliff above.
Standing before Dvalin, under the dragon's immense gaze, Jiang Bai felt as small as an ant.
But he carried no weapons, harbored no hostility. He simply looked resolutely into the dragon's enormous eyes, his own clear and unwavering.