"Similarly, these ascension materials are certainly precious in the hands of most people, but to a botanist, their value is actually quite low," Chloris explained.
Paimon scoffed, "Wow, she actually called herself a botanist. Paimon have never seen someone so shameless."
Chloris replied, "If you want to know why, it's because I know where these plants grow in large quantities—there's no end to them. So to me, these materials aren't a big deal at all. Sister, just take them."
"Well, in that case, I'll accept them," Lumine said.
Free stuff—no reason not to take it.
Paimon puffed up her cheeks and grumbled, "Then why did you sell them for such outrageous prices earlier? One flower was worth enough to eat at Golden Arches ten thousand times over!"
"Golden Arches? What's that?" Chloris tilted her head, then said seriously, "Anyway, it's perfectly reasonable to sell them at that price. Ascension materials are inherently rare and expensive. If I sold them cheaply, wouldn't that mess up the whole market?"
"…That actually makes sense. I didn't think a kid like you would think that deeply."
"You're a kid too!" Paimon shot back.
Chloris crossed her arms. "There's also another very important reason. This is the wilderness. Prices in Mondstadt City and prices out here are completely different."
Paimon raised an eyebrow. "What kind of reasoning is that?!"
Chloris explained, "A cup of water might be worthless in Mondstadt, but in the desert, it's priceless—people would even give up everything they own for that one cup."
"Uh…"
"Besides, anyone wandering the wilderness alone must be strong—and wealthy too. If I don't take this chance to charge them extra, wouldn't I be the one at a loss?"
Paimon's eye twitched. "Yeah, see? That last line is the real reason!"
Lumine patted Chloris on the head. "You're only sixteen, how do you think about so much?"
"Thoughtfulness has nothing to do with age! I, Chloris, the botanist of Mondstadt, am determined to lease the entire Windrise region for scholarly—"
"For land ownership," Paimon cut in.
Chloris gave Paimon a sharp glare. "...What was I gonna say again? Ugh, I forgot. Dammit."
Zephyr asked, "Aren't you scared being out here all alone?"
Chloris replied confidently, "Hmph, Chloris isn't scared at all. First, this area isn't too far from Mondstadt.
Second, with Stormterror around, the Knights of Favonius have been patrolling the wilds more frequently.
And lastly… I'm not telling you the last reason."
Paimon pouted, "Fine! Stingy!"
Zephyr sighed. "Seriously, which of you two is the actual kid here?"
"We're heading out now. Are you staying here?"
"Yeah, I'm not going back until I figure out whether this is really a Sweet Flower or not."
"Do you have food?"
"Yup."
"What if you run into danger?"
"I'm not afraid."
"Do you need us to take you with us?"
"No need."
"Alright then, we'll get going. Bye!"
"Mm, bye-bye."
Zephyr waved goodbye and dragged along a still-fuming Paimon, who clearly wanted to argue with Chloris for three hundred more rounds.
But just a few steps later, Chloris suddenly lunged forward and hugged Lumine tightly, her voice soft and filled with reluctance.
"Don't go…"
"…What are you doing now?" Zephyr asked.
"You're just going to leave a poor little girl alone in the wilderness? Doesn't your conscience hurt?"
"You literally said the opposite a second ago!"
Zephyr was completely speechless. This girl wasn't a typical tsundere—she was the classic contradictory type. And that kind of personality… was the most troublesome of all!
"Alright then, I've got nothing better to do today. I'll stick around and see what exactly you're up to."
"Really? Thank you, Sister Lumine!"
Lumine paused slightly, then smiled. "Ah, so cute~ Say 'sister' a few more times."
"Sister Lumine, Sister Lumine~"
"Waaah~ So adorable~"
Zephyr muttered in his heart:
"Could Lumine be a little sister-con? Come to think of it, she does act kinda... sentimental when it comes to her sister. Don't tell me she's upset because she's a little sister herself and not the older one?"
As the sky darkened, Zephyr stayed and helped her study the plants. And he had to admit—Chloris actually knew her stuff. Her title of "botanist" wasn't just self-proclaimed; she was genuinely skilled.
Following her around turned out to be surprisingly beneficial—he ended up learning quite a lot.
Of course, no way would he ever say that out loud. Admit he learned a bunch from a little loli? Over his dead body.
"Hmph! As long as you stick with the great Lady Chloris, I promise that once I buy Windrise, you'll be the second-in-command!"
Lumine played along, "Lady Chloris, I shall be your most loyal subordinate!"
"Muahaha~!"
Paimon snapped, "Hey, Traveler! Don't you have any shame!?"
"It's not me, it's Zephyr… well, okay, maybe I am a little tempted…"
"You… you… you guys—"
A figure slowly approached them. Heavy armor, scarred from battle—it was a knight.
Zephyr blinked. "Huh, there really is a knight out here."
Chloris' eyes sparkled. "Wow, another animal—I mean person! Today is really my lucky day!"
Zephyr gave her a flick to the forehead. "Can you not talk like that? No wonder people find you annoying."
"I am not annoying!" she pouted.
But the knight didn't even glance at them. He passed by like they didn't exist.
"What was that about?" Zephyr asked, puzzled.
Chloris shrugged. "I dunno. This is actually my first time running into a Mondstadt knight in the wild."
"Whatever, if he's ignoring us, we'll ignore him. It's not like we know him anyway."
The sky gradually darkened. Zephyr said, "It's getting late. Let's head back."
"Just give me one more hour—just one more hour, please…"
"You're really calm about this. Aren't you afraid of monsters at night?"
"Chloris isn't afraid at all! I'm not like that coward Jack!
"He always says he's going on adventures, but all he does is wander around a bit and go home before sunset. Sometimes he doesn't even come out if it's windy or raining!
"He's so timid, and yet always goes around calling himself 'Manly Jack'—what a joke! It's embarrassing!
"I'm nothing like that coward!"
Zephyr's face twitched. Do you really have to roast Jack this hard?
He actually knew the Jack she was talking about—that wimpy guy who always showed up in reputation quests.
And yeah, she wasn't wrong—Jack only appeared during the day. At night? Gone.
Zephyr had once thought the quest was bugged… until he realized the guy literally just went home.
"Guuuuurrrgle…"
Chloris' stomach growled. Her face flushed, and she quickly rummaged through her backpack and pulled out a flatbread.
Zephyr asked, "Chloris, that's what you're eating?"
"Mm-hmm."
She took a bite of the dry flatbread and offered it. "Do you want some, Sister? It's really tasty."
It was Mondstadt flatbread—the most basic kind. Dry, bland, filling at best.
Absolutely no healing effect.
//END
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