"Sorry, today's boars are completely sold out. I'll bring back more tomorrow. Please come again then!"
Kael smiled warmly as he spoke to the two girls standing at the shop entrance.
He honestly hadn't expected business to be this good — over a ton of wild boar meat from eight boars, gone in a flash.
He had originally thought it would take at least a full day to sell, maybe even prepared himself for some of it to go to waste.
After all, the main goal of hunting boars was to gain Attribute Points; making money was just a bonus.
It would be a bit of a shame to waste the meat, sure, but he couldn't lose sight of his priorities.
Kael had set himself a goal: earn at least 100 Attribute Points every day.
If he hadn't found that particular herd in the forest today...
He definitely would've hunted even more boars.
Still, he honestly hadn't thought they'd sell out in just a few short hours.
The two girls blushed furiously at Kael's smile, hurriedly raising their hands to cover their reddening cheeks.
"O-Okay! We'll definitely come back tomorrow! You're so handsome... ah, no, I mean, your boar meat is just so good!"
"I'll be looking forward to seeing you again tomorrow."
After seeing off yet another batch of girls who had come more to gawk at him than to shop, Kael closed the shop door and headed upstairs.
It was already close to noon, and Mona still hadn't gotten up.
But thinking about her profession — an astrologist — it made sense. Of course she had to stay up all night stargazing.
Not being able to get up early in the morning was perfectly normal.
Kael pulled out his money pouch, sat down in the living room, and started counting today's earnings.
...........
Mona had just woken up, her eyes half-lidded with sleep, and stumbled out of her room — only to be immediately entranced by the glittering piles of gold in front of her.
"Mora... Mora... so much Mora..."
Hearing the commotion, Kael looked up and saw Mona with her long hair loose, wearing a black bodysuit that looked a little like her usual outfit — but without her signature black stockings.
Her deep violet hair cascaded down her shoulders, giving her a kind of sultry, indescribable allure.
Kael stared a little longer than he intended — he hadn't expected that without her twin tails, Mona could look this enchanting.
Mona's eyes were glued to the mountain of Mora on the table, her gaze completely frozen.
"Where did all this Mora come from?!"
"Aren't you an astrologist? Can't you just divine it yourself?"
Mona's face instantly turned solemn. "How could I possibly sully the greatness of astrology by using it for something like this? And besides, didn't I already tell you? I can't clearly read your star chart. Anything related to you — people, events, or objects — is beyond my ability to deduce."
"Alright, alright. I shouldn't insult the greatness of astrology. I made this by selling wild boar meat today."
Mona's eyes went wide with shock. "What?! You made this much in just one day?!"
Lowering her voice, she muttered bitterly, "Ugh... I really want to make money too... Recently, Liyue released a limited-edition Astrological Sphere... I want it so badly..."
Just as she finished speaking, her stomach rumbled audibly.
"Grrr～"
Mona clutched her stomach with both hands, her face burning red.
"Hungry? Good timing — I made some good money today. Let's go. I'll treat you to a meal at Good Hunter."
Seeing the smile in Kael's eyes, Mona's face turned even redder.
"Since... s-since you're so eager to treat me... I-I suppose I'll allow it, just this once..."
----
The Good Hunter restaurant was located right on Mondstadt's Commercial Street, just a short walk from Kael and Mona's home.
It took about fifteen minutes to get there on foot.
"Sara, could you help me place an order? I'll have one Cream Stew, one Flaming Red Bolognese, and a Calla Lily Seafood Soup."
"Alright. You two can have a seat over there, your food will be ready soon."
Kael skillfully found the table with the best view and waved Mona over to sit with him.
"Just hearing the names of those dishes is already making me hungry..." Mona wore a dazed, blissful expression, but quickly caught herself and cleared her throat. "Ahem... B-but, I've traveled to many countries before, you know. I've had my fair share of fine cuisine."
Seeing how hard she was trying to maintain her pride, Kael graciously played along without exposing her.
"Of course. Miss Mona certainly looks like someone with worldly experience."
"Hmph, naturally."
Sara quickly brought out their dishes, and the two of them began to dig in.
In all his life, Kael had never seen someone combine elegance and wolfing down food so seamlessly.
Mona's eating posture made it obvious she had been trained in etiquette — every movement was graceful and pleasing to the eye.
And yet... the speed of her hands and the rate at which she devoured food was nothing short of terrifying.
Before long, the table was completely cleared.
And the majority of it had been eaten by Mona!
Only when she noticed Kael frozen in mid-air with his fork did Mona finally realize what she had done.
Her face instantly turned beet red.
In a voice so soft it was barely above a mosquito's buzz, Mona mumbled, "I... haven't eaten in two days. It's really your fault... If I hadn't rushed to Mondstadt to find you, I wouldn't have had to go hungry for two whole days... So... you have to take responsibility."
"Alright, it's all my fault."
After spending the past few days together, Kael had already figured out the best way to deal with a tsundere like Mona: just go along with her.
No matter what she said, never argue back.
"Did you get enough to eat just now? If not, I can order a few more dishes?"
Mona whispered shyly, "Just one more dish... should be enough..."
"Sara, could we get one Mondstadt Grilled Fish, please?"
After confirming that Mona was truly full, Kael went to settle the bill.
On the way home, Mona was uncharacteristically quiet, like she was deep in thought.
Kael assumed she was calculating something with her star charts again, so he didn't bother her.
In silence, the two made their way back to the house.
The moment they stepped inside, Mona seemed to have finally made up her mind. She summoned her courage and spoke up.
"Kael, can I work for you?"
"...Huh?"
Kael hadn't expected that all the deep and mysterious contemplation Mona had been doing was about this.
"I'm living in your house, and lunch cost so much just now... I owe you too much already. You might not have noticed, but I'll be honest with you — I have no Mora left."
You're overthinking it. I noticed a long time ago.
Everyone who plays Genshin knows you're broke.
"I don't have anything else to offer you... and I also need some living expenses if I'm going to stay in Mondstadt. I could help you hunt! I can also help you collect money. I'm telling you, I'm amazing at math! If I can calculate the most complex fates, there's no way I'd mess up simple payments. Please don't rush to refuse—"
Before she could finish, Kael cut her off. "I accept."
Mona's eyes lit up with surprise. "Really?! That's great... Ahem! I mean, good, you're smart enough to recognize my talents."
When Kael agreed to let Mona move in with him, he had already mentally prepared to support her.
If she could help him out while she was here, even better!
Later on, when he left Mondstadt to travel elsewhere, it'd be good to have someone trustworthy watching over his place.
"Since you're going to work for me, from today onward, you can't call me by name anymore. You have to call me Boss."
"..." Mona bit her lip and reluctantly muttered, "Boss."
Kael secretly grinned to himself.
He really enjoyed seeing the proud Mona forced into doing something she clearly hated but had no choice about.
Kael pulled 200,000 Mora out of his money pouch and handed it to her.
"Since you're calling me Boss, I won't treat my employees poorly. Here's 200,000 Mora — consider it your advance salary for the week. You haven't had a chance to properly enjoy Mondstadt yet, have you? Go out and have some fun."
Mora!
Mona clutched the heavy pouch in her hands, her eyes sparkling with joy.
Even though it still wasn't nearly enough to buy the astrological tools she dreamed of...
It had been so long since she'd seen this much Mora all at once!
She could finally go enjoy some delicious food again!