"Durandal Sis~ Happy Windblume Festival~"
Just as Durandal finished eating, she heard a cute voice. Klee, holding a bouquet of fresh flowers, ran towards her.
As one of Klee's important people, Durandal was naturally also a recipient of Klee's flowers. To avoid being grounded by Jean, she had been very well-behaved during this period. It had been a long time since she could give flowers to Durandal on this day.
"Mhm, thank you, Klee. Happy Windblume Festival."
Durandal took out a bouquet of Dandelions from her spatial inventory and handed it to Klee, which counted as returning the favor.
She would give Cecilia to close individuals and Dandelions to friends. This was a decision she had made earlier, and her storage space contained many prepared bouquets.
Klee happily accepted the bouquet and, as she usually did, intimately hugged Durandal's arm, asking her all sorts of questions.
Although they communicated remotely every night through Diko, and Klee heard all sorts of things from Durandal daily, none of it compared to talking face-to-face.
The last time Durandal came to Mondstadt, Klee spent a lot of time in solitary confinement for causing trouble. She couldn't make the same mistake this time. She had to endure until Durandal left Mondstadt before she could go fishing with bombs. She would just have to bear it for a while.
"Is this also one of the Windblume Festival activities? Playing the lyre? Isn't that something only a Bard would do?"
Venti always took out his lyre when he played. Durandal was quite familiar with this instrument; although she hadn't touched one, with a little study, she could play it... Don't underestimate her learning ability.
"Because Mondstadt is also the City of Poetry, 'Song of the Wind' is also a traditional Windblume Festival event. If you play well enough, you can get a lyre for free from here, which can be considered my thanks for your continued patronage."
Marjorie, the owner of Good Hunter, smiled. Lumine and her companions usually supported her business, so this was a way to reward customers.
"How about it, Durandal Sis? Can you play? If not, Klee can teach you."
"You can play this?"
"Of course, Klee is very smart. This isn't very difficult, much easier than making Jumpy Dumpties."
Klee took the lyre and easily played a cheerful tune, proving she wasn't lying; she really could play the lyre.
It must be said, this little one was truly clever. If she wanted to, she could certainly become an excellent Scholar.
But she preferred to research bombs, and coupled with her young age, she wasn't very interested in tedious knowledge, so becoming a Scholar was likely out of reach.
"Then I'll leave it to you."
There was no need to overthink things when with Klee. Durandal didn't hesitate to let Klee teach her how to play.
It took about ten minutes. Under Klee's joyous gaze and Marjorie's astonished eyes, Durandal perfectly played a piece that wasn't overly difficult, but certainly not something a novice could play.
"So good! So good! Klee knew Durandal Sis was the best."
"That's amazing, only ten minutes. I really don't know how you did it. Is this what they call a genius?"
Ten minutes ago, she had personally seen Durandal know nothing about playing the lyre, yet ten minutes later, she could play proficiently.
If she hadn't witnessed the process herself, she would have suspected Durandal already knew how to play. No one could learn an instrument that quickly.
"Then, as we agreed, this lyre is yours. I hope you can use it to play Mondstadt's music in other nations. Some Mondstadters far from home will surely feel nostalgic when they hear you play the lyre."
Automatically filtering out the latter half of the sentence, Durandal took the lyre and plucked it a few times. The music played by the lyre was quite light and cheerful, easily infecting listeners and helping them relax.
Having obtained the desired lyre, Durandal moved with Klee. They went outside the city and found a very strange person.
Next to this person was a very special portal. This portal led to a special Domain, which would randomly generate several different stages, like a game of progression. Only by passing one could they enter the next.
This was originally a somewhat difficult Domain, but Durandal and Klee were not ordinary people; this Domain was like a playground for them.
They had nowhere to play, so they entered the Domain under the guise of investigation, beginning their so-called "investigation."
That person was right; there were indeed three different stages waiting for them. These stages had a certain level of difficulty and also some entertainment value, at least Klee had a lot of fun.
There were a few times she made mistakes and almost fell off the platform, but Durandal intervened in time to catch her, otherwise, who knows what would have happened.
After successfully passing the previous stages and arriving at the last room, several Ruin Guards appeared before them.
This excited Klee. She was itching to use her Jumpy Dumpties, and she didn't expect to have an opportunity to vent so soon.
The Ruin Guards here were stronger than those encountered outside. Fortunately, the previous stages briefly enhanced their combat power, allowing them to deal with these Ruin Guards more easily... mainly Klee's.
No matter how magical this Domain was, it couldn't enhance Durandal's combat power. If it could even boost the combat power of an existence like Durandal, then this Domain would be too terrifying.
What followed was almost Klee's solo show. This little one had grown quite a bit without Durandal realizing it, and her cooperation with Diko was much more synchronized.
Watching her become increasingly powerful, Durandal felt both relieved and worried. Relieved that she was becoming more independent, and worried about the destruction she caused.
She hoped Klee understood not to use her power indiscriminately, otherwise, the next time Jean punished her, besides grounding her, she might also spank her little bottom.
Amidst Klee's joyful laughter, the Ruin Guards were defeated, and at the same time, they were ejected from the Domain, returning to the entrance.
As soon as they emerged, the person guarding the entrance eagerly came over to inquire about the situation inside.
Upon learning that there was even a boss at the end of the Domain, his expression became serious.
If it were just Domains that could be classified as game stages, there would be nothing to worry about. But since there were also monsters here, the nature of it changed.
This Domain could not be opened to ordinary people. They had to report the matter of the Domain to the Knights of Favonius and have the Knights of Favonius send people to guard it, to prevent ordinary people from accidentally entering and causing unnecessary casualties.
He first asked Durandal and Klee to watch over the place; he would quickly have someone from the Knights of Favonius come. Before that, they shouldn't let ordinary people approach.
Durandal and her companions didn't wait too long. Soon, a Knight appeared. He seemed to be patrolling nearby and rushed over immediately after hearing the unpleasant news.
Since someone was helping to guard the place, they no longer needed to stay. They could go inside and continue playing... *cough* *cough* I mean, continue investigating the Domain's information.
After several rounds of investigation, they compiled information on many different stages and the bosses encountered in the final room. This information could help later Adventurers avoid many detours.
It was unknown how long this Domain would remain open, but during this time, it could be used as a training ground.
Knights could first gain certain buffs by passing the earlier stages, and then challenge the final boss, improving themselves through continuous training.
There were many Knights in the Knights of Favonius who wished to train but had few opportunities to do so. Now, they could all improve themselves through this Domain.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; they couldn't miss this excellent chance to improve.
Besides these diligent trainers, even those Knights who liked to slack off could be sent here for training.
Look at that round knight; I really don't know how he passed the Knights of Favonius assessment. With his physique, how can he fight enemies? By charging at them like a cannonball?
Seriously, you people in the Knights of Favonius shouldn't enjoy freedom too much. The freedom of the people is exchanged for your sacrifices of time. You need to work harder!
Leaving those guys aside, around evening, Durandal returned to Mondstadt City carrying a tired Klee on her back.
The little one had been wild all day and was sound asleep on Durandal's back. When Durandal handed her to Jean, Klee showed no signs of waking up, even snuggling into Jean's arms, which made Jean look at her with doting affection.
It was rare to spend a whole day with the little one. Although she was just playing with her, Durandal was quite happy.
Now there was nothing left to do, and it was time to go home and face those few people.
ε = ('ο｀*))) Ah~ It's her own home, so why doesn't she feel like going back at all?
She could fearlessly face the Adventurer's attacks back then, but now she was shrinking back, afraid to go home because she had to meet them.
"I knew it... I shouldn't have done so much during the day."
Scratching her head, she had suddenly left during the day, not giving Venti a chance to vent her emotions. She wondered if, after such a long time, she had calmed down or become even worse?
She was a little worried if she would scheme against her like last time. If she was as serious as last time... honestly, Durandal didn't know how to deal with her.
Or rather, she wanted to deal with her in her heart, but her body had no reaction at all, only allowing her to do as she pleased.
No! This time, she absolutely couldn't be at a disadvantage again! No matter what happened, the initiative must be hers.
"...Go home and see what tricks they're planning."
Note:
Happy Lunar New Year, everyone!
I wish you all a year filled with blessings, success, good fortune, and happiness!
Important Announcement:
I will be on Lunar New Year holiday starting February 15th, 2026, and will return on February 23rd, 2026. During this time, I will focus on resting and spending time with my family.
During my break, I will prepare some new chapters, which I will post regularly after the holiday ends. Please stay tuned — the following parts are very interesting!
Thank you so much for your incredible support. Wishing you a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year!