Amber entered the restaurant kitchen.
Noelle was at the sink, helping wash dishes.
Amber ran over with a smile. "Noelle!"
Noelle quickly turned. "Amber, Knight! Did you need something from me?"
"No, no! I'm just here on an errand. Here, this is for you."
"This is… a food box?"
"That's right! Mr. Xia said you couldn't come to lunch, so he packed some delicious dishes for you."
"Mr. Xia…"
As a maid of the Knights of Favonius, she was always the one looking after others. It was rare for someone to think of her first.
Warmth bloomed in Noelle's chest.
She wiped her wet hands, took the box, and said, "Thank you, Amber."
Amber waved it off. "No problem! I've got patrol duty, so I'll get going."
"Alright. Goodbye."
Noelle watched Amber leave, carefully placing the food box into the kitchen's insulated pot before returning to her washing.
Only after she'd finished did she take the boxes out.
She opened the top one—smelled wonderful.
Just as she was about to open the second, someone entered the dining hall.
A noblewoman.
"Noelle, is there any food left?"
"No, Knight Eula, the kitchen's out, but I have plenty here. If you don't mind, you can share with me."
Eula smiled. "Why would I mind? As long as it's hot, it's fine. Out in the field, we make do with dry rations."
She might be a noble, but she was surprisingly down-to-earth.
"Please wait a moment, I'll get you a bowl and spoon."
Eula sat at the table. Only one box was open, but the smell was already incredible.
Even someone raised in nobility like her felt she'd never eaten anything that smelled this good.
Not wanting to just sit idly, she decided to open the rest herself.
Second box—smelled amazing.
Third—smelled even better.
Fourth—heavenly.
The last one…
When Noelle returned with the tableware, she found Eula frozen mid-motion, box open, staring in a daze.
Startled, Noelle reached out and pushed her lightly.
The touch snapped Eula out of her trance. She looked at Noelle and asked, "Did you get all of this from that shop?"
Noelle shook her head. "No, it was… a friend who gave it to me."
"Friend?"
Eula looked disappointed, though she supposed it made sense.
Food like this—if it could be bought—would cost a fortune.
"Noelle, here's your bowl. Eat before it gets cold."
"Oh… By the way, Noelle, could I try just one bite from that last box? Just a small bite…"
"If you want to eat, help yourself."
"Really?"
"Mhm."
Eula reopened the box.
This time, Noelle caught the unbelievable fragrance herself, leaving her equally stunned.
Fortunately, Eula kept her word—she only took a small spoonful, closing her eyes to savor it slowly.
Noelle also took a small bite, feeling utterly content and happy.
In that moment, the image of Xia Zhi surfaced in her mind.
---
All the food boxes were empty now, leaving only a cup of soggy instant noodles sitting forgotten on the desk.
Jean leaned back in her chair, wearing a deeply satisfied expression.
So this was Mr. Xia's true culinary skill?
No wonder he'd said instant noodles were just an emergency food…
It seemed she had been far too narrow in her understanding.
Jean narrowed her eyes, her whole body sinking into a lazy reluctance to move.
She reached for a file—only to find her mind drifting.
Forget it.
She set the document back down.
She was starting to feel drowsy.
But she absolutely could not fall asleep now.
If she nodded off and no one came to wake her, she'd probably sleep until evening, then have to work late into the night. That would completely wreck her schedule.
So—no sleeping.
Maybe she could read something else instead.
There was an unfinished romance novel on her bookshelf.
But the bookshelf was so far away.
And her body… absolutely refused to move.
What to do?
Was there something closer she could read…?
Oh, right.
Jean suddenly remembered the book sitting on her desk—one Amber had accidentally left behind earlier.
It was a Liyue cultivation novel.
She stretched out her arm, pulled the book over, and flipped it open.
It would pass the time, at least. And she could treat it as practice to sharpen her fluency in the Liyue language.
The opening chapter—A broken engagement?
Hmm. Interesting.
A ring that could house an Adeptus?
Even more interesting.
…
Before she knew it, she'd reached a rather heated scene.
Jean's cheeks flushed.
This…
These descriptions…
This Liyue author was… something else.
The writing was so vivid, so intense—it put the overly sentimental romances she'd read to shame.
She loved it. Absolutely loved it.
Just two more pages…
Only two…
When Jean finally resurfaced from the book, she realized two whole hours had vanished.
What the—?
A dangerous book, indeed!
---
After the guests left, Xia Zhi gathered the huge amount of leftover dishes he'd prepared and headed for the woods outside Mondstadt.
He took out his guqin and idly plucked a few notes.
Before long, a strong gust of wind swept through, and Dvalin descended carefully in front of him.
The dragon let out a low rumble, sounding a little downcast.
"Sorry," Xia Zhi said with a smile. "I've been busy these past two days, so I couldn't come visit. But today, I've brought you a lot of good food."
At the mention of food, Dvalin's drooping mood instantly lifted.
Still a child at heart, really—such big mood swings.
Xia Zhi began taking the dishes out of his inventory, feeding them to Dvalin one by one.
It was the first time Dvalin had eaten anything so refined and delicious—many times better than the roast pork he'd had before.
He felt utterly satisfied.
If only he could eat like this every day…
Soon, Xia Zhi reached the last dish—a large jar.
He patted Dvalin's cheek. "This last one's the main course. I saved half just for you—didn't even let one of your seniors steal a bite."
Dvalin's eyes fixed expectantly on the jar.
Xia Zhi lifted the lid, releasing the distinctive aroma of [Gods' Temptation].
Although Dvalin was a dragon and not a god, the trait on system items didn't just target Archons—it applied to anything at Diamond-tier and above.
Dvalin's progress bar was Diamond-tier, meaning it would affect him too.
Xia Zhi poured the contents into Dvalin's mouth, but the dragon didn't move.
"What's wrong? Can't bear to eat it?"
"It's fine. Go ahead—next time, I'll make you more."
Dvalin finally ate the [Gods' Temptation], then nuzzled Xia Zhi affectionately.
"What?" Xia Zhi chuckled. "Want me to ride you again?"
Dvalin gave a small nod.
"Alright."
Xia Zhi vaulted onto the dragon's back.
With a sweep of his wings, Dvalin soared into the sky, heading north.
Before long, they landed in a wide, open area.
Xia Zhi hopped down, glancing around curiously. "This is where you live?"
In the center was a pile of ashes from burnt wood, and nearby lay some charred, spoiled meat.
Dvalin rumbled lowly.
"You tried roasting meat last time," Xia Zhi translated, then laughed, "but it turned out awful?"
"How did you cook it?"
"You just washed the meat and held it over the fire?"
"That won't do. Just rinsing it like that won't get rid of odors, and you have to marinate it for flavor. And you can't overcook it…"
As he spoke, Dvalin lowered his head, letting out a small, embarrassed sound.
"It's alright," Xia Zhi said, patting him. "You'll get the hang of it. But with a body your size, it's not easy to handle cooking tools."
Dvalin gave a small questioning growl.
"You're asking how you can take on human form? Well… there are lots of ways. The simplest is to take a Transformation Pill. But you're at Diamond-tier—you'd need a Diamond-quality pill for it to work. Those are… expensive."
Cloud Retainer had needed a Gold pill to rebuild her body, Durin a Platinum one for her rebirth. By that pattern, Diamond made sense for Dvalin.
The dragon didn't really understand his explanation, only nuzzling Xia Zhi again in a plaintive way.
"Alright, alright," Xia Zhi said with a laugh. "I'll think of something for you. Hasn't Barbatos told you how?"
Dvalin shook his head.
"That guy… not very responsible, is he? Well, since I'm here, how about I renovate your place a bit?"
Xia Zhi walked over to Dvalin's sleeping spot—nothing more than a rough dirt pit.
"Dragons usually like sleeping on gold, right?" Xia Zhi mused aloud. "Probably because they're so big, they need the metal to help dissipate heat faster…"
He stretched out a hand and used [Midas Touch].
The shabby pit instantly became a gleaming, golden bed.
Dvalin curiously stepped in, lay down, and reported that it felt pretty good.
There wasn't much else to fix—Xia Zhi just leveled out the uneven rocks, making the area look neater.
In the center of the clearing was a lake—likely where Dvalin bathed and drank.
He was a clean creature—his scales shimmered like gemstones.
Xia Zhi sat by the lake, took out his guqin, and played him the Ballad of Azhdaha.
Listening to the epic tale of his elder, Dvalin seemed thoughtful, lost in his own mind.
When the song ended, Xia Zhi put the guqin away, lay back on the grass, and stared up at the sky in companionable silence.
----
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