With the help of the Seven Stars of Liyue, the residents of Liyue Harbor finally calmed down, understanding the trouble their actions caused Durandal, and stopped bothering Durandal and her companions.
Although most of the problems had been dealt with, there were still Children running to find Durandal, asking her about the details of that day, which was annoying.
These kids, she would reduce their candy by a few pieces in the future, to make them understand that doing so was wrong and caused trouble for others.
"Oh my, oh my, isn't this the great hero of Liyue Harbor? What brings you to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor? Are you here to introduce business?"
As soon as she arrived at the entrance of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, she saw the quirky Hu Tao standing there, looking at a notice, doing who knows what.
Noticing Durandal's approach, she asked with a slightly teasing tone.
"Such things, you don't need to ask every time we meet. Besides, I'm the one who causes you trouble. After all, many people have been pulled back from the brink of death by me."
Durandal's act of treating illnesses, in a sense, was also competing for business with the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. Without her intervention, the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's business would probably have been busier during this period.
It was precisely because Durandal had cured those who suffered from incurable diseases that the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor became so deserted.
"What are you talking about? Even if the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is in the funeral business, I couldn't possibly wish for people to die quickly. The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor generally receives customers who have lived a full life or died unexpectedly. Of course, occasionally there are some guests who pass away due to incurable diseases, but the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor would never harbor such ill intentions."
The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor was established to provide a resting place for people and would never wish for others to pass away for the sake of business.
Durandal's actions did indeed cause the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to lose many clients, but many of those people were unable to accompany their families due to illness, or their families were impoverished due to illness.
Durandal helped them, rekindling hope in their lives and bringing light back to their future. This was a good thing, so how could she be angry?
"Hmph, as expected of a businesswoman, such pretty words are her forte."
Durandal reached out and grabbed Hu Tao's cheek, gently kneading it, making it impossible for Hu Tao to speak properly, only able to make strange noises.
Seeing that Durandal was joking with her, Hu Tao didn't struggle. Besides, such intimate gestures were only for friends.
Durandal's willingness to interact with her in this way meant she considered her a friend she could get along with, and she was more than happy about it.
"Alright, you can't just touch a girl's face."
"Hmm? Isn't that rule for boys? I'm also a girl, so what's wrong with a girl touching a girl's face?"
All this time, Venti and Lumine had said that this was a way for girls to show intimacy, and that rule was only for boys.
She was also a girl now, so logically, this rule shouldn't apply to her.
"(⊙o⊙)... That's true, I suppose."
Hu Tao scratched her head. Because of Durandal's special identity, she almost forgot that Durandal was also a girl.
Hmm~ Although she was a girl, treating Durandal like an ordinary girl was still a bit too difficult.
"...Never mind, I'm going to touch your face too!"
Hu Tao, emboldened by mischief, felt she couldn't lose face here. She pounced forward, grabbing Durandal's cheeks and kneading them.
After being nervous for a while, she saw that Durandal wasn't angry, and only then did she relax, her movements gradually becoming natural.
"Oh~ So soft, your skin is so soft. Hehe~ Softer than an ordinary girl's, is this what they call baby skin?"
As people age, their skin gradually loses the suppleness of infancy; this is uncontrollable.
But Durandal was no ordinary person. While ordinary people's skin would become stiff with age, Durandal's would not.
At this moment, Zhongli walked out from inside the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. He was going to find Azhdaha and invite him for tea and storytelling.
As soon as he opened the door, he saw his Funeral Parlor Director boldly kneading Durandal's cheeks, with a happy expression on her face as she did so.
Zhongli was silent for a moment, then finally retreated, planning to go out a little later.
"That's enough, no need to pinch anymore."
Shenhe, who was watching from behind, saw that Hu Tao still didn't intend to let go of Durandal. She stepped forward, took Hu Tao's hand away, and looked at her warily.
Facing Shenhe's gaze, Hu Tao smiled indifferently, signaling her not to be too nervous, that she was just experiencing it briefly.
"Alright, did you two come to ask me something this time? It's the Lantern Rite Festival soon, and the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor doesn't have much going on. If you want to invite This Funeral Parlor Director to do something, This Funeral Parlor Director has time, oh."
"No, we just wanted to ask you about the Lantern Rite Festival, nothing else."
"Hmm? Matters of the Lantern Rite Festival? I thought you were going to invite This Funeral Parlor Director to spend the Lantern Rite Festival together. I didn't expect it to just be about asking such questions, how disappointing."
As a Liyue native, Hu Tao was already very familiar with the Lantern Rite Festival. Although every year's Lantern Rite Festival was the same, the experience varied depending on who she spent it with.
This year, Durandal and Lumine, two outsiders, appeared in Liyue Harbor. With them around, this year's Lantern Rite Festival would also become lively.
Hu Tao briefly explained the activities that would take place during the Lantern Rite Festival to Durandal. Besides lanterns, there would also be people organizing lively activities, and participating in those activities would give a chance to win rewards.
Rewards, Lumine should really like this kind of activity and would work hard to meet the conditions, taking all those rewards into her pocket.
"Speaking of activities, how about the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor also organizes some activities? This way, it can serve as promotion and also make the festival more lively."
Hu Tao's quirky spirit reappeared, but her words didn't arouse anyone's curiosity. On the contrary, even the young lady standing outside as if transparent wore a helpless expression of "The Funeral Parlor Director is at it again."
"What kind of activity do you want to hold? A haunted house?"
Durandal thought for a moment and felt that an activity she had read about in a book would be very suitable for the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
But was it really appropriate to hold a haunted house adventure during such a joyous festival as the Lantern Rite Festival? Was it really okay?
"You should just be a participant and happily enjoy the festival. Not only for yourself, but also for the festival experience of others."
"Ah? What kind of talk is that? Do you mean that if I organize an event, it will affect other people's experience of the Lantern Rite Festival? How mean."
What?! She made it sound like she was a Fatui. She just wanted to make the Lantern Rite Festival more lively. Was she the kind of person who would cause trouble? Was she?
Hu Tao indignantly wanted to argue with Durandal, but Durandal merely pressed her hand against her cheek to prevent her from getting too close.
How to put it? In this regard, she was somewhat similar to Venti, the difference being that she wasn't as lazy as Venti; she usually worked very hard... diligently promoting the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's business to others.
"Alright, all the questions that needed to be asked have been asked. We'll leave now; you go about your business."
"What? Using someone and then discarding them, you're really cruel, Durandal."
Hu Tao pouted, watching Durandal leave the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor with Shenhe, dissatisfied.
After she left, the dissatisfied expression vanished, and a cheerful smile reappeared on her face.
"What's wrong? Isn't this more human? Although her facial expressions are still a bit lacking, she's becoming more and more like a 'human.'"
Compared to the first time they met, when Durandal seemed out of place with her surroundings, the current Durandal had clearly integrated into human society.
Although she still had the identity of a God, she was increasingly exuding a human aura, which was a good thing.
Hu Tao eagerly looked forward to the day when Durandal could naturally express various emotions like an ordinary person.
Of course, she might also appear indifferent to others, like Shenhe.
"Hmm~ I saw something very good. What should I do next?"
Hu Tao stretched widely. This meeting with Durandal had put her in a good mood, and suddenly she felt motivated to do something.
"That's right! I wonder what Xiangling is doing right now, is she helping out at Wanmin Restaurant? Hehe~ I'll go meet her and see if I can scare her."
Xiangling was so interesting; every time she scared her, her reaction was particularly strong, and it was the same reaction no matter how many times she did it, making Hu Tao unable to resist scaring her every time.
However, doing so came at a price. If she bullied her too much, Hu Tao would take out extremely disgusting dishes to get revenge.
Recalling the last Slime dish, Hu Tao felt a wave of nausea.
She heard that every time Durandal visited, Xiangling would bring out her latest researched Slime for her to taste and listen to her opinions.
Regarding Xiangling's behavior, Hu Tao could only express admiration. Was she really not afraid that Durandal would one day be dissatisfied with her cooking and directly press her head onto the dish, making her taste it herself?
Others might not be able to do it because Xiangling, as a Vision holder, couldn't be beaten by those people, but Durandal had no such concerns.
Even Guoba couldn't help her, only letting her taste it herself.
However, given Durandal's temper, she most likely wouldn't do such a thing.
"Ah~ Next time, I'll actively go find them to play. They are often on the street, so I can go find them when I have nothing to do."
After parting ways with Hu Tao, Durandal and Shenhe walked around, wanting to see what new and interesting things would be sold during the period leading up to the Lantern Rite Festival.
"What are you looking at, Durandal?"
"Just looking for something new and interesting to buy... Hmm? Venti."
The one who suddenly greeted her was none other than the leisurely Anemo God who should have been in Mondstadt—Venti.
She smiled at Durandal, bending over, and said, "Oh ho~ I thought about it, and sure enough... I want to spend it with you. So, I came to find you, oh."
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