Dusk.
Lumine woke rubbing her eyes, remembering what Kaito had said before she fell asleep—
Venti could only get the Holy Lyre by stealing it.
The thought left a bad taste in her mouth.
Even if she didn't trust that bard… they did owe him. He'd been poisoned because of them.
"Paimon. Wake up." Lumine pinched her cheek.
"Mmph! Lumine—what's your problem?!" Paimon snapped, half-asleep and grumpy.
"Hurry up. It's dinner time."
"Dinner?!" Paimon shot into the air like she'd been struck by lightning. "Then we need to move!"
They climbed down from the loft.
Since Stormterror had been driven off last time, the dragon rarely appeared anymore. Traders and travelers had begun returning to Mondstadt.
Good Hunter was lively inside and out, full of noise and warmth.
In Teyvat, most places made you pay upfront unless you were staying long-term at an inn or hotel.
So Kaito didn't need to sit at the counter collecting money.
Sara handled orders and payment directly.
He was upstairs now, chin propped on one hand, quietly reading.
When he noticed movement from the loft, he looked up and smiled.
"Awake?"
"Mm."
"Kaito, what are we eating?" Paimon asked, eyes bright with hunger.
"Nothing," Kaito said flatly.
There were too many customers. He didn't feel like cooking.
"Aaah…" Paimon's whole body drooped in disappointment, but she recovered fast. "Then I'll graciously order Flaming Red Bolognese…!"
She hesitated, then added, "No—two."
"Two bowls?" Lumine considered seriously. "What if you can't move later?"
"It's fine! It's only two! I can eat ten!" Paimon patted her stomach like she was making a vow.
Lumine checked the Mora in Paimon's storage. They could afford to be a little extravagant.
"Then I'll have one too."
"Okay!" Paimon darted downstairs to place the order with Sara.
Lumine sat with Kaito and said, "Kaito—if what Venti said is true, we should help him."
If Venti could use the Holy Lyre to wake Stormterror's original nature…
Mondstadt's crisis might finally end.
"Of course," Kaito said calmly. "I'll go with you tonight."
In his memory, Venti's theft attempt didn't succeed the first time—the Fatui got there first.
After that, getting the lyre back became a huge time sink.
And this time, Kaito couldn't even be sure the Fatui would store it in the same place he remembered.
They were living people, not scripted NPCs.
A small deviation could change everything.
So the best option was simple:
Get the lyre before they did.
Lumine visibly relaxed. "Mm."
Kaito had no interest in the sweet-and-sour Flaming Red Bolognese, so he ordered a Mushroom Pizza from The Cat's Tail next door instead.
After they ate, the three of them got ready to leave—
When a sudden uproar erupted downstairs.
A group of men in black coats and masks filed into Good Hunter in formation.
"Fatui requisition this venue!"
"Everyone irrelevant, clear out!"
The voice was arrogant, commanding.
A Fatui guard positioned himself beside each table.
"Paying customers are guests," someone snapped.
Bang!
A sword-bearing patron slammed the table and stood, eyes cold. He didn't take their nonsense.
The Fatui guard only glanced at him through the mask—didn't attack, didn't argue.
He simply stood there.
Then two more stepped in.
Then three.
They surrounded the table like a wall—saying nothing, doing nothing, just making the air heavy.
If the patron struck first, the Knights would have no excuse to interfere—
and the Fatui would have plenty of room to "defend themselves."
"Tch. They've got guts."
"Picking a fight in Good Hunter?"
A local diner sneered, then looked up toward the second floor.
Mondstadt knew this restaurant had a powerhouse behind it.
Kaito frowned slightly.
He couldn't understand it.
The Fatui stirred trouble in the streets—that was one thing.
But storming into his establishment?
He dropped from the second-floor railing and landed in the hall with a soft thud.
Every gaze snapped to him.
Kaito's expression was unreadable.
He looked at the sword-bearing patron. The man's clothes and posture screamed Liyue—probably a guard hired by some caravan. Common enough.
Kaito clapped lightly twice.
"'Paying customers are guests.' Well said."
The patron narrowed his eyes. "And you are…?"
"The owner." Kaito spoke politely. "Please sit. If a guest follows the rules of my restaurant, then my restaurant has a responsibility to protect their right to eat in peace."
The patron paused, then sat back down—curiosity overtaking anger. He wanted to see how this would play out.
A Fatui envoy approached, stepping forward with a practiced sneer.
"So you're the ow—"
Thud!
A masked man slammed through the restaurant doors and flew out into the street.
Kaito flexed his fist once, bones cracking softly.
His eyes swept across the room like ice.
"You didn't even bother to ask around Mondstadt," he said coldly, "which places you can touch… and which places you can't."
Shing—!
The Fatui guards snapped weapons out, shock turning into hostility.
And in the heavy silence—
the whole restaurant held its breath.
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