Alice wanted to take a look at the Astral Express's databank, but since she was not one of the Nameless, she did not make that request.
Besides that, she was also very interested in the Astral Express's structure. What powered it? What let it race across the sea of stars?
Of course, Pom-Pom definitely would not agree to letting her take the Astral Express apart just to have a look.
…
"Flaming Lance—Charge!"
On Mondstadt Bridge, Stelle launched a charge straight at the plump pigeons gathered there.
No one was around, and the birds were outside the city, so they had to be wild pigeons.
This really was not her fault. For some reason, the moment she saw those pigeons, she was overcome by an irresistible urge to charge.
Switching to the Path of Preservation, she ignited the tip of her lance and rushed forward without the slightest hesitation.
Boom!
Like a bomb going off, blazing energy instantly swallowed up the fat, juicy pigeons.
Murata Himeko and the others: "…"
They all felt a little broken inside watching Stelle launch a full-on charge at a flock of pigeons. Those birds were obviously being raised by someone. There was no way they were wild.
"Look, the meat on these wild pigeons is seriously nice and fat. And they roasted perfectly too."
Stelle came back with her spoils, showing them off proudly.
"Stelle… has it occurred to you that these might not be wild?" March 7th said on the verge of collapse.
The pigeons were right next to the city. No matter how you thought about it, they could not possibly be wild. This was basically damaging someone else's property.
She had thought this Trailblazing trip would go smoothly, but with Stelle around, it seemed doomed to go off the rails from the very beginning.
"Huh?"
"There was nobody around, and they were outside the city. Doesn't that make them wild?" Stelle asked in confusion.
Pigeons like these had to be wild. So there was obviously nothing wrong with catching them.
"Only pigeons raised by people get this fat. There are even traces of feed right next to them. Didn't you notice?" March 7th said helplessly, pointing at the ground.
Scattered across the ground was the pigeon feed the birds had not finished eating, now burned into ash by Stelle.
What, was the feed wild too? Or had the wind blown it over?
Could she not at least look around before doing something?
"…"
Only then did Stelle finally notice it.
She had caused trouble again.
How was she supposed to explain this one?
"Oh? So you people kill Timmie's pigeons too."
Lumine had just come back with Tiamat. One look at the scene, plus the pigeon meat in Stelle's hands, and she instantly understood what had happened.
"Too?" Stelle immediately caught the key word.
Kindred spirits.
They really did get along well.
"Let's go first. Timmie will probably be back any second," Lumine said with a nod, confirming Stelle's guess. But now was not the time to chat.
She had enough experience killing pigeons by now to know that Timmie would definitely come back. As long as they ran fast enough, he would not catch them. Besides, there were no surveillance cameras here.
Murata Himeko and the others broke into a cold sweat.
Lumine was way too practiced at this.
So she was a repeat offender too.
Forget it. They would just do as she said.
The group hurriedly left and headed for Whispering Woods.
Not long after they were gone, a child arrived at Mondstadt Bridge. The moment he saw the scorched feathers scattered all over the ground, his eyes instantly turned red.
"Damn it! Who killed my pigeons again?!"
Timmie threw his head back and let out a howl of grief, his voice full of heartbreak.
There was simply no way to find the culprit.
Too many people had already made moves on his pigeons before: the Traveler, that bard, and all those drunks.
The pigeons he raised were nice and fat, so plenty of drunkards would snatch a few to use as drinking snacks.
And so, in that moment, the world where only Timmie was hurt had come to pass.
"Is this really okay?" Murata Himeko asked, sweating awkwardly.
Judging from the voice, it sounded like a little kid. What kind of trauma was this going to leave on a young boy's heart?
Lumine waved her hand casually.
"It's not like this is the first time. Timmie will grow stronger."
She had no idea how many times she had killed Timmie's pigeons already. After all, the pigeons he raised always clustered together so nicely, and every single one of them was fat and meaty.
As for how many different ways Timmie's pigeons had died over the years, no one could answer that question.
"Delicious. The pigeons this kid raises are really tasty."
Stelle no longer felt any psychological burden and immediately began enjoying the delicious pigeon meat.
She had eaten pigeon before while traveling the cosmos, but the pigeons here seemed especially delicious. She simply could not stop eating.
No wonder she had instinctively opened with a big move. These pigeons were just too tasty.
"Want some?" Stelle asked Murata Himeko and the others.
"…Fine."
They had already been killed anyway. Since Lumine said it was not a problem, they decided to have a taste too.
At worst, they could secretly slip Timmie some Mora later.
The moment they took a bite, their eyes lit up.
The flavor of the pigeon meat really was extraordinary. It was incredibly fresh and delicious.
"Tasty, right? Timmie's pigeons are no joke. Every single one of them is fat as can be," Lumine said with a smile.
The flavor of wild pigeon was definitely no match for Timmie's pigeons.
By then, Koji and Alice had returned. Seeing everyone eating pigeon, mother and daughter both wore helpless smiles.
This really was a world where only Timmie got hurt.
Koji did not even need an explanation to guess where the pigeons had come from.
"They're Timmie's pigeons, right? I've caught them before too. They really do taste great," Alice said with a cheerful grin.
For outsiders, Timmie's pigeons were simply too tempting. Other than especially honest, well-behaved people, almost everyone would eventually make a move on them.
"Miss Alice, you've eaten them too?" Murata Himeko said, caught between laughter and tears.
Poor Timmie.
Just how many people had their eyes on his pigeons?
"Of course. You can't blame me. The pigeons blocked my way, so I had no choice but to kill them through my tears," Alice declared, shedding crocodile tears.
Everyone fell silent.
She could fly.
How exactly could pigeons pecking around on the ground block her path?
"Actually, Venti has caught pigeons plenty of times too, especially when he didn't have any money for food," Koji added.
"The Anemo Archon had no money?" March 7th stared in utter disbelief.
A god who had no money to eat?
What kind of joke was that?
"That's perfectly normal. If a god doesn't work, where is the money for food supposed to come from? Just wait for believers to hand over spending money? How many gods have skin that thick?" Koji said.
"And pigeon meat makes a pretty great drinking snack. Venti's a drunk, so there's no way he'd turn down something like that for an all-night drinking session."
Thinking about it, everyone had to admit that made sense.
But then they imagined Venti, a god, personally going out to hunt pigeons, and they all ended up wearing the same helpless, amused expression.
Unless something unexpected happened, Timmie, as a citizen of Mondstadt, was probably one of the Anemo Archon's believers too.
Would that Anemo Archon really feel no guilt at all about catching the pigeons his own believer had painstakingly raised?
(End of Chapter)
[100 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter]
[Check out my Patreon to read 20+ chapters ahead]
[[email protected]/Zukooo]
[Thanks for your support!]