Luo Li: "Who is this guy? Never seen him. Kick him out."
Venti: "
Venti froze for a long moment before finally exhaling a deep breath.
Even after five centuries, seeing one of the original Seven Archons again was… a genuine surprise.
"I suspected it might be Luo Li," he admitted, "but I didn't expect it to really be you two—Baal."
Fischl blinked.
What do you mean, you already knew each other?!
And here she'd been agonizing over whether bringing him here was appropriate.
Perhaps because seeing an old friend put him in an excellent mood, Venti craned his neck and asked:
"Where's Luo Li? Hurry and call him out."
"He hasn't returned yet. Come inside and wait."
The moment Makoto spoke, Fischl felt it—
Her usual gentle, approachable aura vanished, replaced by that sacred, overwhelming divinity from the very first day they met.
A presence so profound she could hardly look at her directly.
Venti simply grinned.
"Hehe, then I won't be shy."
For someone visiting for the first time, he looked even more relaxed than Fischl, who visited constantly.
Paimon was dizzy.
"W–What is going on?!"
She exchanged looks with Lumine, neither daring to comment.
But they couldn't stay at the door forever—so, hesitantly, they followed Venti inside.
Dragonspine — at the same time
Luo Li, meanwhile, was completely unaware that his survival was now public knowledge.
He stood before a seemingly lifeless, silver-white ancient tree.
Compared to five hundred years ago, the once-dead tree now pulsed faintly with veins of red, surrounded by scattered crimson ore.
Though encased in ice and deathly still, Luo Li could clearly sense a delicate thread of life quietly growing within.
"So it is going to revive."
He had come to Dragonspine because beneath its snow lay the remains of an ancient civilization:
Sal Vindagnyr.
Luo Li hoped to uncover more about why Celestia destroyed this ancient kingdom.
In truth, the civilization shared its origin with Mondstadt.
Three thousand years ago, unable to endure the rule of the tyrant king Decarabian, two tribes fled with their people.
The first became the Gunnhildr clan, founding what is now Mondstadt.
The second built Sal Vindagnyr on Dragonspine, which was then a flourishing paradise of fertile land and birdsong.
Generations prospered.
A princess was born, blessed by the silver-white tree they revered.
Until one day—
A Nail of Cold descended from Celestia and crushed the tree's life force.
Cut off from ley lines, Dragonspine withered.
Snow buried the land and its people dwindled.
At the end, only one warrior remained.
He carried the princess's blessing, searching for a way to save the homeland.
Yet when he returned, the kingdom was gone—
and the princess, long dead.
With bitter resignation, he buried the Snow-Tombed Starsilver Greatsword and wandered alone to Mondstadt.
All records came from the kingdom's last scribe Ukko.
Now, Luo Li's gaze rested on the distant Frostarm Lawachurl
the very monster Ukko had become.
"When the princess died, Sal Vindagnyr had only one person left.
And even he was cursed by the gods, turning into what he is now."
Luo Li wasn't overcome by sorrow
After thousands of years, tragedy was no stranger to him.
Only a faint melancholy remained.
"Judging by the timeline… Sal Vindagnyr perished just as Khaenri'ah was being established."
Too many riddlers surrounded him; he preferred piecing together the truth himself.
After a while
"Great. Yet another day wasted."
Stretching lazily, unaffected by the freezing air, he gave Ukko a final glance.
He had no intention of ending the creature's curse.
"Time to go."
And with that thought came another
Makoto was waiting at home.
And if he went back now, he might hear one of those lines he loved so much:
"Eat first?
Shower first?
Or… eat me first?"
Just imagining it made him eager to return.
Dragonspine lay nearly a thousand miles from Mondstadt,
but it took Luo Li barely a minute to cross the distance.
"Hmm… looks like nothing's changed in Mondstadt today."
After a few flickers through space, he arrived directly at the Windrise Plaza.
Mondstadt had flight restrictions, after all; spatial movement was simply more convenient—and impossible for anyone to detect.
Yet today, something was off.
The house seemed… livelier than usual.
"Besides Fischl… who could it be?
Barbara?
Noelle?
Sucrose?
Klee?
Surely not Eula…"
He mentally sorted through the girls who were familiar enough to visit casually.
Still puzzled, he pushed open the half-closed door.
And saw a completely unexpected guest.
"Yo! Long time no see, Luo Li!"
Venti—unchanged from five centuries ago—sat grinning brightly.
Beside him were a blonde girl with a white flower in her hair, and a floating emergency ration curiously eyeing the homeowner.
Paimon felt a flicker of disappointment.
He looked nothing like the towering warrior she imagined.
In fact—
He was really tall, very handsome… actually the best-looking guy she'd ever seen.
Luo Li blinked, then looked toward the kitchen, where Makoto—having sensed him return—was coming to greet him.
"Who is this person?
Why'd you let a stranger in?"
Makoto's lips curved upward as she smoothly played along:
"I thought you knew him.
If he's a stranger, then throw him out."
Venti was stunned.
Completely stunned.
"HEY! Don't you two pretend you don't know me!
I swear I'll tell Baal that the two of you are still alive!"
At that
The first person to react was not Luo Li.
It was Makoto.
"If you say a word…
you die."
She said it with a smile
voice gentle, tone soft.
Yet every living thing in the room felt a chill crawl down their spine.
Paimon immediately hid behind Lumine.
"Why do I suddenly feel so scared…?"
Lumine swallowed.
She agreed.
At that moment, she didn't even dare ask the question she originally came for.