"Oh my, I'm a little jealous of you, Lora. Your familiar treats you really well!" Venti exclaimed after reading the letter.
"Indeed." Ei nodded and said to Lora, "Although I've never met this new Hydro Archon, I've heard she isn't very good at taking care of herself and often relies on others for help. For someone like her to make these pastries for you must have taken a great deal of effort."
"You'd better not let Furina hear you say that," Lora replied helplessly. "Otherwise she'll cry and throw a tantrum."
"Oh, right. The Chief Justice also asked me to pass along a message," Zhongli added. Since returning from Fontaine, he seemed to have become something of a messenger.
"He said he will handle Fontaine's affairs for the time being. Personnel have already been stationed to monitor low-lying areas such as Poisson around the clock, so there's no need to worry. Lastly, he asked me to tell you to take care."
"He seems quite concerned about you, Lora," Venti said with a teasing smile.
Hearing the teasing in his voice, Lora rolled her eyes before turning to the others.
"Want to try Furina's cooking?"
"Huh? Are you sure? She made this especially for you," Makoto said in surprise.
Lora nodded.
"It's fine."
She opened the pastry box and handed the small cakes out to everyone. Even Zhongli received one.
"Go ahead and try them. Tell me what you think," she said.
"Mmm! Delicious! Goes great with wine!" Venti said immediately. As usual, his thoughts somehow circled back to alcohol.
Makoto only took a small bite before nodding.
"Not bad! Much better than Ei's cooking… Actually, that's not quite right. Ei doesn't have cooking skills—only martial skills."
"Sister!" Ei protested from behind her, sounding embarrassed.
"Hm… The cake is soft and delicate, with a faint mint fragrance," Zhongli said thoughtfully. "For Furina to reach this level is quite impressive."
Even he couldn't help feeling a little surprised that Furina had personally cooked for Lora.
Especially since she still didn't know Lora's true identity.
"Thank you!" Lora said happily, looking rather proud—like a parent whose child had just succeeded.
After setting aside the topic of Furina, Zhongli asked, "You all came to Liyue for the Moonchase Festival, correct? How did you find it?"
Makoto smiled.
"It was a lot of fun! This was my first time attending Liyue's Moonchase Festival," Makoto said.
Ei nodded as well. "Yes, my first time too. It was very interesting—especially the food. It's delicious."
"Oh, then your experience can't compare to mine!" Venti laughed. "I've attended many of Liyue's festivals! If you ask me, the atmosphere of Liyue's festivals nowadays is very different from how it used to be."
For once, Zhongli didn't argue with him. Instead, he nodded in agreement.
"Indeed. Liyue today is very different from what it once was—both in society and in how festivals are celebrated. Though this kind of change was something I expected."
"Hearing you say that makes me curious about what Liyue's festivals will be like a hundred years from now," Makoto said with a smile.
"Then let's gather here again in a hundred years," Lora suggested.
For those present, a hundred years was hardly a long time.
"Agreed," Makoto said, glancing at Lora before turning to Zhongli.
Zhongli nodded. "You will be most welcome."
"That's perfect! I'll go bury a few bottles of good wine right away, and we can open them when we meet here again in a hundred years!" Venti added enthusiastically.
As the sky gradually darkened, the gathering of old friends came to an end.
Before leaving, Lora turned to Venti.
"Are you heading back to Mondstadt tonight?"
Venti gave her a mysterious smile.
"Of course not! Don't worry—I've got plenty of places to stay."
"Indeed," Zhongli said calmly. "For a great bard like him, mountain paths or tree branches in the forest make perfectly suitable places to sleep."
Lora: "…"
Here we go again.
"Well then, I won't keep you two any longer. I'm heading off." Lora waved at them before leaving with Makoto and Ei, heading toward the Jade Chamber.
After the Moonchase Festival, Lora kept her promise to Lumine and Paimon and went with them to investigate the situation in The Chasm.
Apparently, the Adventurers' Guild had also issued a commission regarding the situation, so Lumine conveniently accepted the request as well.
That way, they could receive payment from both the Liyue Qixing and the Adventurers' Guild.
A win-win.
The three of them set out from Liyue Harbor and followed the road toward The Chasm.
After passing inspection by the Millelith stationed along the outer perimeter, they finally entered the Chasm itself. Seeing it in person, Lora couldn't help but marvel at its immense scale.
Lumine led Lora and Paimon to a miner named Yuehui and explained why they had come.
"Could you tell us what strange things have been happening in The Chasm?"
After thinking for a moment, Yuehui replied,
"A while back, one of our men was resting when he suddenly saw several hilichurls wandering past in a daze. Those hilichurls didn't even glance at him—they just kept walking straight toward the depths of the Chasm. After that, he started paying close attention and realized it happens quite often!"
"Huh? Hilichurls entering the Chasm doesn't sound that scary," Paimon said, confused. "Aren't there already lots of hilichurls around here?"
Yuehui shook his head.
"That's not the important part! What my brother noticed is that the hilichurls who go into the Chasm… never come back out!"
"W-What? They never come back?" Paimon shivered and quickly hid behind Lora. "Lora, you're strong. Protect me!"
Lora: "…"
"Could something deep inside the Chasm be attracting those hilichurls?" Lumine said as she gazed toward the depths.
Beneath the enormous dark opening stretched a vast underground world.
What exactly was hidden down there?
"Instead of standing here guessing, why don't we go take a look?" Lora said to the thoughtful Lumine. Then she turned to Yuehui. "Please tell us where those hilichurls were seen. We'll investigate."
"Ah—yes! Of course!" Yuehui nodded quickly and told them the location.
Without wasting time, Lora immediately led Lumine and Paimon toward the place Yuehui had described.
The three of them ventured deeper into the Chasm and soon arrived at the spot where the miner had reportedly seen the hilichurls.
There, they witnessed a scene both shocking and deeply unsettling.