"Miss Barbara, I've always had a question I wanted to ask."
"What question?"
"I've heard you say the word [idol] several times. Where did you learn it?"
"Oh, that. I saw it in an idol magazine."
"An idol magazine?"
"Mm. Aunt Alice showed it to me."
That was when Barbara first learned there was such a profession—working hard to be loved by everyone.
A great idol not only earned adoration, but could heal people's hearts through song and dance.
So Barbara began down the path of singing.
Xia Zhi thought for a moment. "Do you still have that magazine?"
"I do. Is Mr. Xia interested?"
"Somewhat."
"Then when I get home, I'll find it and bring it to you."
"Thanks."
Barbara waved goodbye and left.
Xia Zhi then called Jean, letting her know the cat had been found and the Knights of Favonius didn't need to worry anymore.
Jean congratulated him warmly.
Back home, the girls were curious about the white cat he brought.
Xia Zhi briefly explained, then handed it to Diona to take care of.
Diona's eyes lit up as she held the cat, even generously sharing her favorite dried fish with it.
Just then, Xia Zhi's phone buzzed with a message.
It was from Noelle—Eula Lawrence had completed her missions and was now working part-time at the shop.
With nothing to do that afternoon, they decided to head over and visit her, bringing along a phone as a gift.
On the way, they passed the Adventurers' Guild.
A boy with bright white hair and green goggles on his head shouted at Fischl.
She turned to see Bennett, smiling with his trademark enthusiasm. "Fischl! Haven't seen you here these days!"
Seeing him reminded Fischl of that time outside the city when she'd run into the Hilichurl.
There was no hard proof her misfortune came from joining Benny's Adventure Team… but the fact was, everyone who joined ended up unlucky. Hard not to believe the superstition she'd once scoffed at.
She hesitated before answering, "I've been busy lately."
Bennett didn't mind. He just grinned and nodded. "Got it. Take care of your stuff first. If you ever need my help, just say the word!"
From his god's-eye view, Xia Zhi studied the infamous unlucky team leader with interest.
He had a golden progress bar hanging over him.
From experience, that meant some unique fate or constitution.
Xia Zhi targeted him in the god's-eye view.
The system's voice rang in his mind:
"Use [Skill Steal] on target?"
"Yes."
"[Skill Steal] successful. Learned skill: [Forsaken by the World]."
"[Forsaken by the World]: Passive. Luck value is permanently fixed at 0. All your actions defy the will of the world, reducing the luck of those around you. The closer their relationship to you, the more their luck decreases."
Xia Zhi stared at the description, then at his own luck stat, now showing 0, and couldn't help but marvel.
Another luck-draining passive, but this one was harsher than Shenhe (reduces nearby allies' luck by 75%). How had this boy even survived, growing up with zero luck?
Just thinking about it was inspiring.
Xia Zhi immediately toggled the passive off.
His luck stat instantly shot back up to its absurdly high number.
He walked over. "Fischl, this is?"
Fischl quickly introduced, "This is Bennett, leader of the Adventurers' Guild. And this is my friend, Mr. Xia."
Bennett gave him a sunny grin. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Xia!"
Xia Zhi nodded. "Nice to meet you too, Mr. Bennett."
And just from that simple exchange, Xia Zhi's luck stat started dropping again under Bennett's influence.
Meanwhile, Bennett's golden progress bar began inching upward.
This bar was toxic. Better to leave it alone for now.
After a short chat, Xia Zhi and Fischl said goodbye.
Bennett scratched his head as he watched her leave, already worrying again about recruiting new members.
--
At the Dragon Potions, they found Eula Lawrence working part-time.
She wore the shop's uniform, which combined with her proud noble bearing made her strikingly eye-catching.
"Miss Eula!"
Eula looked up and saw them.
Her gaze lingered briefly on Xia Zhi, remembering the novel she'd been reading these past few days. A subtle flicker crossed her eyes.
After greetings, Xia Zhi handed her a new phone.
"What's this?"
"A special device—you can use for long-distance communication."
"Long-distance meaning…?"
"Anywhere on this continent."
"That's…"
"It's fine. Everyone has one. Yanfei too—you can call her after work. Jean, Kaeya, Noelle, they all have one…"
Eula hesitated, then accepted the gift.
As a squad captain, she knew all too well the importance of communication.
Having such a tool would be invaluable in protecting Mondstadt.
"Then I'll thank you, Mr. Xia."
"You're welcome."
Xia Zhi moved over to Noelle.
"How's it feel being the manager?"
"Pretty good."
"See? Not as hard as you thought?"
"Mm."
"So don't be afraid. You're already excellent."
Hearing that praise from him, Noelle's cheeks flushed slightly.
"Mr. Xia, I reviewed the finances today."
"How's it looking?"
"No problems. And Miss Ningguang has already paid for the first batch of potions. The shop has plenty of funds. I think we can start that renovation project you mentioned."
"Good. Make the plans yourself."
"Got it. Also…"
Eula stood nearby, watching Noelle speak with such poise and confidence. For a moment, her eyes grew distant.
In that instant, she saw a shadow of Jean in Noelle.
Noelle had always looked up to Jean as her ideal.
Becoming a strong, graceful knight like her was Noelle's dream.
And now, that dream didn't seem so far away.
Eula lowered her head, sighing softly in her heart.
Two Jeans… Meanwhile her family still clung to fantasies of old aristocratic glory. Honestly… they needed to wake up.