Sumeru, Bayda Harbor.
After a brief but necessary rest in Aaru Village,
Shao Yun, Lumine, and Paimon finally arrived at this bustling port.
Since they had eaten sand for far too many days in the desert—plus Jeht mentioned that the so-called Nagajurna Group did not welcome outsiders—the group instead traveled to Bayda Harbor on the northern side of the Sumeru rainforest.
It was perfect: they could take a ship comfortably, with no more sand in their teeth.
At this moment, sunlight poured over the glittering surface of the sea, reflecting dazzling beams.
Boats of all shapes and sizes were moored along the piers, gently rocking with the waves.
Paimon's big eyes darted around curiously at the many vessels docked in the harbor, her mouth muttering nonstop.
"Lumine, do you think we might run into Captain Beidou's Alcor here?" After speaking, she looked at Lumine with sparkling anticipation.
Lumine also surveyed the ships carefully, but in the end she shook her head softly, replying with some disappointment, "I don't think so…"
Seeing that the Alcor was nowhere in sight, the two exchanged looks. They seemed stuck for the moment.
However, right then, as if struck by an idea, Paimon's eyes lit up. She turned toward Shao Yun, who had been quietly standing aside.
Her face held a mischievous grin as she asked sweetly, "Oh right, Shao Yun, do you have anything you need to take care of right now?"
Lost in thought about their upcoming plans, Shao Yun was startled out of his focus by Paimon's sudden question.
He blinked, then quickly shook his head. "No, why? What would I even have to do right now?"
Hearing he had nothing to do, Paimon immediately deflated, muttering in disappointment.
"Ugh… then this is a disaster." She scratched her head anxiously.
Shao Yun stared at her strange behavior, utterly confused.
"Paimon, what do you mean? Why is it a disaster if I'm not busy?"
Paimon took a deep breath, puffed out her chest, and explained righteously, "Aiya, Shao Yun, did you forget? Back when we were in Sumeru—every single time we ran into trouble, all you had to do was say you had 'something to take care of.'"
"Then a while later, the problems just magically solved themselves! So, if you have nothing to do now, doesn't that mean no one's gonna fix the trouble for us?!"
She finished with her hands on her hips, shaking her head helplessly.
Shao Yun froze, then burst into laughter.
So Paimon saw him as some sort of wish-granting charm? He deliberately teased her: "Paimon, I'm not a wishing bottle. You should be making wishes to Liloupar instead."
But the moment Shao Yun mentioned Liloupar, Paimon's lips immediately puckered in complaint.
"Liloupar's consciousness already went back to Gurabad! And besides, Liloupar isn't some random wish-granting magic bottle you can just use whenever you want!"
"If she were here and heard you say that, she'd be furious!"
Seeing Paimon's puffed-up pout, Shao Yun couldn't stop laughing.
He quickly waved his hand and said with a grin, "Okay okay, don't be mad. I was just joking to lighten the mood."
After easing the atmosphere, Shao Yun leaned his gaze toward the boats resting quietly in Bayda Harbor.
He rubbed his chin, muttering to himself, "Hmm… maybe we should just pick any ship at random. It can't compare to Beidou's Alcor, but right now we just need to hurry off to Fontaine for vacation…"
Standing beside him, Lumine thought about it for a moment before giving her opinion.
"Maybe… we could use our own boat."
At her words, an image flashed in Shao Yun's mind—back in Inazuma, when a wounded Lumine told him to close his eyes, and when he opened them again, she had conjured a Waverider out of nowhere.
"Oh, you mean your little Waverider? But… isn't that boat a bit too small?"
Shao Yun frowned. "If we run into rough waves, that thing might get flipped."
While they were still discussing what ship to take to Fontaine, an unexpected figure appeared.
Yanfei approached from afar and immediately spotted Shao Yun, Lumine, and Paimon chatting at the pier.
At first, she wasn't certain she recognized them; the coincidence seemed too absurd.
But as she got closer and confirmed with her own eyes, she was sure: it really was Shao Yun and the others.
She waved vigorously and called out loudly.
"Hey! I wasn't seeing things—didn't expect to run into you here!"
Paimon exclaimed with surprise and joy, "Yanfei! I can't believe we ran into you in Sumeru!"
Yanfei answered cheerfully, "Yeah, I never thought I'd run into familiar faces in a foreign land. Looks like my luck is great today!"
Paimon nodded eagerly, then asked curiously, "Yanfei, what brings you to Sumeru?"
At her question, a bit of embarrassment appeared on Yanfei's face.
Scratching her head, she replied, "Well… actually, I was planning to go to Fontaine…"
Hearing that, Paimon became even more curious. If Yanfei's destination was Fontaine, why was she in Bayda Harbor?
"Then why did you end up here in Bayda Harbor? Don't tell me you crossed The Chasm on foot just like we did?"
Yanfei waved her hands repeatedly in denial.
"No, no! It's because Port Ormos is undergoing some kind of construction work right now, so it's temporarily closed. I had no choice but to sail to Bayda Harbor first. Then I'll head to Fontaine through Romaritime Harbor."
"My ship was already at Port Ormos, and then I suddenly got the news. So now I have to switch ports again… it really wasted a lot of time, and I have to re-plan my travel expenses."
Hearing that Yanfei actually needed to carefully budget her travel expenses, Paimon asked curiously, "Wait, Yanfei—you're going to Fontaine for work, right? Doesn't the Yuheng General Affairs Office reimburse your travel fees? That seems so unfair!"
Yanfei shook her head, patiently explaining, "It's not like that. I'm not traveling for official business this time."
"I'm going because someone entrusted me with a private matter, so naturally I have to pay for this trip myself."
Paimon nodded understandingly, respecting Yanfei's privacy, and dropped the subject. Instead, she asked another question.
"Ohhh, I see. So, did you find a ship heading to Romaritime Harbor?"
Yanfei sighed helplessly. "Ugh, don't even mention it. Not yet. Romaritime Harbor is way too far from Bayda Harbor. Small boats can't travel that distance…"
"And the large ships won't set sail just to carry one person. It's such a headache!"
Yanfei's predicament was exactly the same as theirs. Everyone was basically stuck.
Seeing this, Shao Yun finally stepped forward.
With a bold wave of his hand, he declared, "If that's the case, I'll just charter an entire ship! Then we can all sail to Fontaine together. Problem solved!"
But the moment he said this, Yanfei's eyes widened in panic. She frantically waved her hands.
"That would cost a fortune! That's way too extravagant!"
"You three work hard doing commissions every day for your travel money—you shouldn't waste it like that!"
Her misunderstanding was natural. The last time she saw Shao Yun was in The Chasm, when he was working under Yelan—just some capable adventurer.
At that time, Lumine and Paimon were constantly running all over Liyue doing commissions.
So of course, Yanfei assumed the three of them weren't wealthy—just high-level working adventurers.
Shao Yun shrugged calmly, responding casually, "If I don't spend money, is it going to lay eggs in my pocket? Might as well use it."
But Yanfei continued persuading him earnestly.
"Mr. Shao Yun, are you sure? What if you end up not even being able to afford proper lodging?"
"I can't just watch you sleep on the streets! But we can't squeeze into a single-bed inn room either, that'd be too inconvenient!"
Shao Yun reassured her, "Relax. I really have plenty of money."
Thus began a long back-and-forth.
Yanfei insisted, "Don't put on a brave face just to look rich."
"You work hard for your commission pay! If you spend it all chartering a ship, what will you do in Fontaine? You should plan your travel costs carefully!"
Shao Yun, getting a bit annoyed from her nagging, muttered carelessly, "If it's that serious, I can just rob—"
But before he could finish the word "rob," Lumine and Paimon reacted instantly, covering his mouth as if he were about to summon a disaster.
Lumine looked tense and awkward as she said to Yanfei, "Ahaha! I almost forgot—I have a small boat. We don't need to spend our precious travel money on this!"
She even tapped her head lightly, as if scolding herself for forgetting something so important.
Paimon nodded furiously beside her.
Lumine then turned to Yanfei with a bright expression. "Right! Yanfei, if you don't mind, come with us to Fontaine! That way you won't waste more time waiting for a ship."
Yanfei originally found Lumine and Paimon's action of covering Shao Yun's mouth very puzzling—but hearing there was a boat and a free ride waiting for her, she was instantly overjoyed.
"Really? Thank you so much! Without you, I truly wouldn't know what to do!"
Being someone who understood courtesy well, Yanfei added, "Wait here! I'll go buy some snacks as thanks!"
…
After Yanfei walked off to buy food, Lumine and Paimon slowly released their hands from Shao Yun's mouth.
Shao Yun stared at them—the tall one and the small one—and asked, confused, "What on earth were you two doing? Why did you cover my mouth?"
Lumine shot him an exasperated look, clearly displeased.
"Shao Yun, how could you be so reckless? Saying you'd rob a bank right in front of Yanfei!? What were you thinking?"
Shao Yun blinked blankly. "What? Would Yanfei really get angry just because I joked about robbery?"
Lumine nearly lost it.
She crossed her arms, narrowed her eyes, and said solemnly, "She might not hate you for it, but you completely underestimate how seriously Yanfei takes the law."
"If you anger her enough to make her burst a vein or collapse from stress—then we'd be in big trouble!"
"Yanfei is my good friend! Can you stop putting me in a position where I have to choose sides!?"
In other words: Just don't let Yanfei find out.
Shao Yun hadn't expected it to be that serious. Seeing Lumine's earnest expression, a pang of guilt struck him.
He hurriedly apologized, saying, "All right, all right—I get it. From now on I'll keep my mouth shut and won't say anything reckless, okay?"
…
Yanfei returned, carrying a big bag of sizzling, fragrant skewers, smiling brightly.
But the moment her eyes happened to fall on the tiny Waverider by the shore, she froze.
"This tiny boat is supposed to fit the four of us?" Yanfei stared wide-eyed at it in disbelief.
Then she looked toward the endless, wave-tossed ocean. Her heart tightened, and she swallowed nervously.
At this moment, Yanfei absolutely did not want to rush anymore.
But she had no choice. There were no other ships bound for Romaritime Harbor, and she had already wasted enough time.
So, with no alternative, she squeezed herself into Lumine's cramped Waverider.
As the little boat pulled away from the shore and headed for Fontaine, everyone on board suffered miserably.
Shao Yun was practically tortured; he couldn't stand straight, couldn't sit down, and had to stay bent like a shrimp the whole time.
The sea was anything but calm. Wave after wave hit the boat, making it bounce and jolt nonstop.
Yanfei huddled pitifully in a corner, clutching her bag of skewers.
She had absolutely no appetite left—her face was the picture of soul-crushed despair. Eating was the last thing on her mind.
===BREAK===
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