After the group left, Starfell Lake remained—
a basin of raging pyro and devastation.
A strange wind passed across the ruined waters,
as if mourning the wind statue that once stood here.
A flash of turquoise light rippled through the breeze.
Carried by the faint Freedom wind, a deep-green figure shot out from Mondstadt,
heading straight toward the lake.
It was the newly sobered Venti.
"Sigh… I really can't relax when it comes to that guy."
The anemo winds floated beneath his feet, carrying him forward.
"Did something happen to you, Farmas?"
His mind drifted back to a thousand years ago.
Back then, he had also followed a trail of violent pyro—
arriving late,
and never finding so much as a trace of Farmas' remains.
"…No way."
Venti suddenly panicked.
Such an enormous burst of pyro—
Farmas must have encountered danger.
Otherwise he would never—
The bard, who had been leisurely admiring scenery moments ago,
began flying faster and faster.
Almost the entire anemo flow in Mondstadt bent toward him,
dragging him forward like a suddenly awakened storm.
The gentle, peaceful winds of freedom warped—
turning wild and chaotic, tearing at everything along his path.
If Farmas were here to see Venti now,
he would certainly complain:
"So he WAS slacking off.
Who flies like a weakest god? This is a category-five hurricane."
Finally, Venti's boots touched the ruined shore of Starfell Lake.
"…What happened here?"
His first thought wasn't that Farmas had deliberately blown up the lake—
but that he had encountered something unstoppable.
Until—
Venti noticed the still-smoldering campfire,
the scattered fish bones,
and the single lingering trace of pyro among the ruins.
"Natlan's old aunt hasn't visited Mondstadt in ages,
and she definitely wouldn't sit here eating grilled fish with Farmas…"
Calming down, Venti thought carefully.
"So the only person who constantly declares war on this lake is…
Klee."
"Klee and Farmas were locked up together."
A horrible realization crept into Venti's mind.
"…No way.
Did Klee and Farmas blow up Starfell Lake together?"
Venti stared at the ruins—
the wind statue shattered so thoroughly that even its pedestal had disappeared.
He clenched his teeth
and dove into the murky water.
Half an hour later,
Venti resurfaced with a small fragment of the wind statue.
"…The wind rises."
A glow shot out from the fragment,
projecting the entire destruction of the statue.
A figure blazing with pyro fell from the sky—
instantly obliterating the island and the idol along with it.
The figure's identity was unmistakable:
Farmas.
And from the movement of his mouth during the attack…
Venti could clearly read the words:
""blowing up fish."
"Far—mas—!!"
Venti gritted his teeth so hard the air trembled.
"You are DEAD!"
Meanwhile…
"A-choo!"
Hidden in tall grass, Farmas sneezed—
startling Xiangling, who immediately slapped a hand over his mouth,
afraid he would scare off the herd of wild boars ahead.
She pressed a finger to her lips, signaling everyone to stay quiet.
In the forest, dozens of boars were foraging.
"Keep it down! Don't scare away our dinner!"
Paimon, still hungry, nodded feverishly.
Xiangling wiped her mouth, crept toward a plump target,
and at the perfect distance—
threw her polearm.
It shot out like lightning.
The boar died before it realized it had been hit.
Xiangling clapped her hands in satisfaction,
pulled her spear free,
and carried the boar back to the group.
"How is it? I picked the plumpest one!"
"Whoa! Amazing!"
Paimon gasped.
"Clean and efficient. Very impressive."
Lumine agreed.
Farmas only curled his lip.
With a light stomp, several pillars of flame burst beneath the remaining boars—
roasting them instantly before they could even flee.
"Wow! Farmas big brother is amazing too!"
Klee hurried over to drag one of the charred boars back proudly.
As the group debated how to process the mountain of pork,
a young hunter approached.
His name was Allan, a regular hunter from Springvale.
Draff, veteran Adventurers' Guild member, had been keeping an eye on Xiangling ever since she arrived in Mondstadt.
When she neared the forest, Draff immediately sent hunters to observe her.
Allan had been dispatched to invite Xiangling
to help Springvale promote their meat products.
He arrived to find a field of dead boars
and a cheerful group chatting around them.
Nervous but determined, he rushed forward.
"You—what do you think you're doing?!
This is a wild boar habitat! Hunting is forbidden here!"
Xiangling immediately rubbed her head in embarrassment.
Seeing that she was easy to sway, Allan continued pushing.
"Do you know you might scare all the boars away?
If they run off, what will we do?
That's the very definition of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs!"
To his surprise, Xiangling nodded earnestly.
"Ahh, I get it, I get it! Only the perfect environment produces the best meat…
I'm so sorry! I didn't know I was causing so much trouble!"
Allan almost choked.
He hadn't expected her to be that gullible.
Everything he said earlier was nonsense.
Scare the boars away?
These boars would sooner abandon their children than abandon Springvale's lush grasslands.
In reality, Springvale hunters came here all the time—
the constant chase kept the boars' bodies strong,
preventing them from becoming flabby domestic pigs.
Good terrain plus regular exercise was the real secret to delicious boar meat.
Since she bought the story,
the rest would be easy.
Allan tried to make himself look weary and helpless.
"Sigh…
Go apologize to Mr. Draff.
He's the leader of all Springvale hunters, and he values hunting rules greatly.
If he hears about this, he'll be furious!"
Xiangling, convinced she had committed a grave sin,
immediately agreed.
She looked reluctantly at the others.
"We'll all go," Farmas said.
Familiar with this part of the plot, he shook his head,
took Klee's hand with his left, Lumine's hand with his right,
and headed toward Draff.
Allan excused himself, saying he'd run ahead to warn Draff—
and hurried away after telling Xiangling where to find them.
~~---------------------------
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