Inside the Good Hunter restaurant, Lumine and Su Bai were enjoying the after-meal coffee, while Paimon lay sprawled across the seat with absolutely no regard for her image.
Su Bai glanced at the empty plates on the table, then at Paimon's round, bulging belly. With the cleverness of a fox, he still couldn't figure out how such a tiny stomach could hold that much food.
Seeing Paimon behave so shamelessly made Lumine a little embarrassed, too. She'd only just begun her journey and still couldn't really let loose. How did Yae describe it with that fluffy pink fox of hers? Oh, right—she wasn't "feral" enough yet.
"Um… Su Bai, maybe I should pay for this meal. Paimon, she... uh..."
"No need. I said I'd treat you, so I'll pay. But could you tell me why you ended up separated from your brother?"
Su Bai didn't take the Mora seriously. What he was curious about was why this girl had set off on her journey. Lumine didn't hide anything and told him everything she knew.
"So you're saying a strange female god took your brother away… and sealed your power?"
Lumine nodded, her eyes showing a trace of expectation as she looked at Su Bai. After thinking for a long while, Su Bai finally frowned and slowly asked:
"… Was that strange female god beautiful?"
"Huh? It's not about whether she was beautiful—she was… different. Wait—Su Bai, what kind of question is that?!"
Lumine pressed a hand to her forehead. Why were the people around her always like this—looking reliable but actually completely unserious? Paimon was like that, and now her new friend Su Bai was too.
"Haha, the atmosphere felt a little gloomy. Just trying to lighten things up."
Su Bai chuckled. After spending some time with Lumine, he'd already figured out her character: kind, strong, always willing to help others. Bust size about 75, legs longer than roughly 64% of girls… yep, better figure than Hu Tao by quite a bit.
Even though Su Bai's mind was wandering to some ridiculous places, he still reminded Lumine not to reveal everything about herself too easily.
"You have to know—the most dangerous thing in this world is the human heart. Telling me is fine, though. I'm a fox, not a human."
Lumine nodded as if she half understood. Having lost much of her memory, she was basically a beginner traveler right now. She tucked Su Bai's warning deep into her mind.
"Lumine, we need to head out! If we don't go soon, Amber's gonna be waiting forever—we're supposed to finish the last temple before noon!"
Paimon patted her round belly while urging Lumine. Because she was so bloated, her flight direction control was terrible, forcing her to wobble sideways through the air like a crab on a beach.
"Amber said after we help her clear the last temple, she'll treat us to Sticky Honey Roast! I can't wait!"
That jogged Lumine's memory—Amber was waiting for her. After quickly saying goodbye to Su Bai, she grabbed Paimon by one tiny leg and hurried out of Good Hunter. Watching Paimon bounce helplessly along, Su Bai bowed his head in a moment of silent sympathy.
"Boss, check please."
"Sir, your total is 6,020 Mora. I'll round off the small change for you."
"Well now, you Mondstadt folks sure are generous. Here—602 Mora. Keep the change."
Sara stared at the Mora pouch Su Bai tossed onto the counter, completely stunned. Rounding off the small change meant removing the last digit… right? Did "rounding off" in other countries mean deleting an entire zero?!
By the time Sara snapped back to reality, Su Bai was long gone. She sighed and felt like the whole day's work had been for nothing. She wanted to throw the pouch and stomp on it, but after thinking about it, she still put it away—money was money.
"… Wait. That weight feels wrong."
Years of dealing with Mora told her instantly—this pouch weighed exactly like 6,000 Mora.
Opening it, she found the full amount neatly inside. Realizing Su Bai had teased her, Sara couldn't help but laugh.
"So our fox mister likes jokes, huh? Next time he comes, I will give him a special welcome."
Back in his room, Su Bai was in an excellent mood. Although Dvalin still troubled Mondstadt's skies, sunlight was finally breaking through the clouds.
"Sayu was right… a good nap after a good meal really is one of life's greatest pleasures."
Just a few minutes after lying down, right as he was drifting off, persistent knocking dragged him awake. Curious—he didn't really know anyone in Mondstadt. Who could it be so early?
Opening the door, he found Six-Fingered Jose sweating heavily at the entrance, carrying a reeking burlap sack on his shoulder. The white stockings sticking out of the bag instantly told Su Bai exactly who was inside.
"Brother, I brought the person you wanted. Took a lot of effort to get him drunk. If there's nothing else, I'll be going now."
As soon as Su Bai nodded, Jose bolted. If the Knights of Favonius saw him doing something like this, he'd have no way to explain himself.
Inside the room, Su Bai locked the door and tossed the sack onto the floor. Seeing it remain completely still, he said irritably:
"Stop pretending, you mangy mutt Barbatos. With the tiny bit of Mora Jose has, he can't buy enough alcohol to get you drunk. That amount wouldn't even moisten your throat."
"Ehe~ Little Su Bai has grown so much in a few years! But I think you were cuter as a kid. I'm called Venti now, by the way."
Barbatos—no, Venti—pulled off the sack and took another swig of apple cider, filling the room with the sweet scent of apples.
Watching this idiot still drinking, Su Bai felt his temperature—and rage—shoot upward. If Baizhu were here, he'd probably call it a medical miracle.
The grudge between Su Bai and Barbatos dated back to Su Bai's first birthday, when he was still a white fox and hadn't taken human form yet. The Geo Archon Morax wanted to celebrate, so he gathered the Adepti on Mt. Aocang.
Everything started normal—until Barbatos, the damn freeloader, showed up midway carrying two bottles of wine.
It was a joyous day, and because Barbatos and Morax were on good terms, no one minded him joining.
That was when the mangy mutt struck. Under the pretense of giving Su Bai a "blessing of the Anemo Archon," he managed to take baby-fox Su Bai from Cloud Retainer's arms.
Then he did something Su Bai held a grudge over for eighteen years.
That day, Su Bai understood something important:
He might not be human, but Barbatos was definitely a dog.
Not only did Barbatos flick Su Bai's forehead, he even fed him a sip of his precious apple cider while the Adepti were still reacting. That one sip dazzled little Su Bai completely.
Later, Cloud Retainer said Morax's face turned pitch-black. He hung Barbatos up in Jueyun Karst to blow in the wind for three months. Ganyu, doting on Su Bai, used Barbatos as a target for bow practice—several times aiming directly at his crotch.