At that moment, when she heard Lord Rukkhadevata sweetly call him cousin, Collei's mind blanked.
Wasn't the former Dendro Archon the incarnation of Irminsul itself?
How could she have a cousin?
She looked nervously at the young man in black glasses. "May I ask… who are you?"
Xia Zhi smiled. "I'm Xia Zhi. For now, just a traveler. You must be tired after all that rushing about, Miss Collei."
Collei quickly shook her head. "Not at all—it was Mr. Xiao who brought us here."
"Us?" Xia Zhi asked curiously.
"Miss Kirara came too," Collei explained.
Xia Zhi chuckled. "So Kirara's here as well? Haven't seen her in a while. Where is she?"
Xia Ci looked over the shelves. "She said she had a few deliveries left. She'll come back once she's done."
"Then when she returns, we'll all go out for dinner," Xia Zhi said.
Xia Ci nodded. "Mm."
After the brief introductions, Xia Zhi moved along the shelves, selecting books—while secretly absorbing their knowledge through the [Scholar's Ring].
Collei peeked over the top of her book, watching him pick up and set down volumes, confused about what he was doing. After a while, she returned to struggling through her own children's tale.
Kirara's delivery rounds didn't take long. About an hour later, just as Charlotte came back from taking photos, Kirara bounded into the Library, happily greeting Xia Zhi.
Soon after, the group headed out for lunch together.
On the way, Kirara raised her hand proudly. "Thanks to the ring Mr. Xia gave me, I can carry tons of packages now!"
Ying'er asked, "And did Komaniya Express give you a raise for that?"
Kirara grinned. "They did! I'm a gold-ranked courier now!"
Zhu Zi tilted her head. "How much of a raise?"
"They doubled my base pay! Plus commission based on deliveries!"
Mona asked, "So about how much a month?"
Kirara beamed. "I calculated—around twenty to thirty thousand Mora!"
Chi Yu shook his head. "Sounds decent, but that's all thanks to your Space Ring. And you still have to run across nations—it's hard-earned money."
Charlotte mused, "What if you turned courier routes into trade routes? You could earn more."
"Eh?" Kirara blinked.
Charlotte explained, "Say you come to Mondstadt. Buy some wine here cheap, store it in your Space Ring. Next time you deliver to Fontaine or Natlan, sell Mondstadt wine for a high price. Profit."
Kirara's eyes went wide. "That's genius!"
Mona muttered, "That's just being a traveling merchant."
Charlotte nodded. "Exactly. But with spatial storage, your transport costs are negligible."
Kirara's eyes sparkled. "You're so smart!"
Charlotte chuckled.
Fischl, walking nearby, glanced at the Space Ring on Kirara's hand, then at the others' rings, envy flickering in her gaze.
Collei trailed quietly behind the lively group, feeling out of place.
With a soft sigh, Xia Ci walked over and gently took her hand.
Collei flinched again. "Lord Rukkhadevata…"
Xia Ci soothed her, "Don't be afraid. Everyone here is kind."
Collei lowered her head. "Mm…"
At the restaurant, they booked a large private room and ordered a spread of dishes.
When the food arrived, Collei picked up her knife and fork. Suddenly her hands began trembling. She tried desperately to steady them, but the utensils slipped from her grip, clattering against her plate with a sharp sound.
Everyone turned to look.
For someone with social anxiety, the sudden attention was terrifying.
Collei's face went pale. She bowed her head and stammered, "S-sorry, I'm sorry…"
"It's fine, no need to apologize."
"Did you hurt yourself?"
"Want me to get you chopsticks instead?"
"What's wrong with your hands?"
…
No one blamed her—their words were full of concern.
Collei instinctively hid her hands under the table. "I'm fine…"
Through his God's Eye view, Xia Zhi saw her bandaged hands trembling uncontrollably.
It was clearly a flare-up of [Eleazar].
He'd planned to treat her later that evening.
But since symptoms had already worsened, he'd do it now.
Xia Zhi stood. "Miss Collei, I'm a doctor. Let me examine you."
Collei shook her head. "No need… it'll pass."
Xia Ci intervened. "Cousin's medical skill is excellent. Collei, let him check."
Collei had seen countless doctorss. None could cure her strange illness, and she'd long since abandoned hope.
But since even Lord Rukkhadevata said so, she dared not refuse.
Obediently, she rose. "All right… I'll trouble you, Mr. Xia."
"Come with me."
The private room had a small adjoining chamber.
Xia Zhi led her inside.
"Sit."
"Okay."
"Remove the bandages."
"…All right."
With trembling hands, Collei slowly unwound the wrappings, revealing arms covered in gray-black scales.
A heavy aura of [Forbidden Knowledge] seeped into the room.
Xia Zhi frowned slightly.
Collei looked up just in time to see it.
Her heart sank.
She thought—just like every other doctor—he was repulsed by her monstrous, ugly hands.
Her eyes dimmed. She whispered, "Ugly, aren't they?"
"Hm? What's ugly?"
"My hands."
"Your hands?"
Xia Zhi's voice carried genuine confusion. He reached out and gently took her hand.
The first thing Collei noticed was how warm his hand was. Then she realized what he'd done, panicked, and tried to pull away. "Mr. Xia…"
Xia Zhi's expression was serious. "Don't move. I'm diagnosing you."
"Is… is this how you diagnose?"
"Of course. I'm blind. This is the only way I can."
"Eh?"
He listened carefully to her pulse before releasing her.
Then, almost casually, he removed his black glasses—revealing gray, sightless eyes.
Collei froze.