At the Good Hunter Restaurant, Su Bai was savoring the honey-glazed carrot with pan-fried meat that the young rabbit girl had recommended. The sweet sauce paired with the sizzling, juicy meat made his appetite spike.
"Su Bai, thank you for agreeing to explain things to Eula. She's been in a bad mood ever since this incident, always talking about finding the mastermind behind the Treasure Hoarders. She hasn't had a proper rest in days," Amber said.
"You should thank little Klee instead," Su Bai replied. "If she hadn't told me that Eula and I are good people and begged me to become friends with her, I wouldn't have bothered coming out to explain."
Amber chuckled. At least Su Bai was willing to come explain. Klee was such a good child—she knew Eula didn't have many friends and had deliberately encouraged a friendship. But soon, a flicker of worry crossed Amber's face.
"Su Bai, you shouldn't have given Klee so many explosives. If Acting Grand Master Jean found out, she'd definitely scold you."
Amber took a bite of carrot from her plate. Eating something so greasy early in the morning was unusual for her, and as a Knight of Favonius, she couldn't eat too much anyway.
"Kids need to exercise their brains," Su Bai said casually. "I have a friend who only ever played mindless games like bug catching as a child. Now he's a complete idiot."
He didn't take Klee asking for materials seriously. A child couldn't possibly make anything truly dangerous—she wouldn't be building a cannon or something.
"By the way, Amber, do you want to eat more? This meal is on Kaeya, so don't worry about saving money."
"No, thanks. Su Bai, we should hurry to find Eula. If we go too late, we might run into the other Lawrence family members," Amber replied.
She checked the sun and calculated that if they didn't leave soon, those troublesome Lawrence relatives would be up and causing trouble. Even lively and energetic Amber felt a little powerless around them—they always greeted people with strange formalities, like pledging loyalty, and their superior attitude made Amber uncomfortable.
"Oh, that doesn't sound urgent. What kind of dragon's den does the Lawrence family live in that has you so anxious?" Su Bai teased.
"It's… well, you'll see when we get there," Amber said, giving up on trying to explain the other family members. Clearly, she needed to read more books to understand human behavior.
"Alright, alright. I won't make it difficult for you. Nobles can be arrogant and overbearing, I get it."
"But Amber, do you know what happens if you disrespect an adeptus?" Su Bai said, wiping his mouth and standing up. The honey-glazed carrot meat had been delicious; he could come back for another serving later. But Amber had no appetite left—her grandfather was from Liyue, and she knew that disrespecting an adeptus was a serious crime.
"Relax, relax. I'm only joking," Su Bai said, noticing Amber's muscles tense. He wasn't a petty adeptus.
But if the Lawrence family dared insult Liyue or its adepti in his presence, it looked like only the young lady Eula could continue their bloodline. Of course, Su Bai didn't really believe they'd be foolish enough to do that in front of him.
Following Amber, Su Bai soon arrived in front of a magnificent building—or perhaps "magnificent" didn't even cover it anymore.
"Huh? Amber? You came looking for me? You didn't notify me in advance—I'll remember this slight," Eula said, surprised.
By luck—or perhaps the Lawrence family's fate—Eula had been preparing to leave for a mission just as Su Bai and Amber were about to have a guard summon her.
"Um, Eula, this isn't the place to talk. Let's go somewhere else," Amber said, pulling her hand to guide her away. Su Bai took a deep look at the Lawrence estate and sensed the presence of Fatui. Clearly, this family was no ordinary household.
"Interesting… the Knights of Favonius will have headaches with these guys in the future," Su Bai murmured.
After Amber explained why Su Bai had come, Eula brandished her Claymore, ready to go confront the Treasure Hoarders' boss herself.
"Uh… Eula, does this have anything to do with me? If not, I won't interrupt your fun," Su Bai said.
"Impossible. Do you know how valuable this sword in my hands is? If I hadn't bought it that day, things could have been much worse!" Eula exclaimed, swinging her weapon angrily.
Su Bai looked at it—a standard Noblesse Blade. In Liyue, even Keqing's family had a Noblesse longsword in their collection.
"Forgive my poor eyesight, Eula, but isn't this just an ordinary Noblesse Blade? They're rare, yes, but you can buy them on the market," Su Bai said casually.
"This was the sword of the first head of the Lawrence family! The name of the head is engraved on it! You're telling me this is just a regular Noblesse Blade? I will never forget this grievance!"
Eula grew more and more worked up. As a child, she had heard countless stories about the first head of the Lawrence family. While the elders often boasted about how he ruled Mondstadt, Eula had been more fascinated by his unmatched swordsmanship, which had driven her to complete the family trials at a young age.
Now, the sword of her childhood idol had almost been stolen by Tomb Raiders. Anyone would be furious. Su Bai, for his part, could only shake his head—he had said something casually, and the idiot actually went and bought a tomb-raiding book.
"But this really isn't my fault, Eula. You have to be reasonable," Su Bai said.
"If it wasn't for you, would the Treasure Hoarders have bought the book? If they hadn't bought the book, would they have raided the tomb? I will never forget this grievance," Eula said firmly.
Talking sense to an angry woman, especially a tsundere, was nearly impossible. Su Bai rubbed his forehead.
"Eula, you can't put it that way. If someone slashed a melon seller in the street, could you blame the knife seller? That's just unreasonable."
Perhaps venting her anger helped, or maybe her intelligence returned—Eula considered carefully and realized he had a point. The matter couldn't really be blamed on Su Bai.
Su Bai sighed. He had promised little Klee he'd befriend Eula.
I suppose I'd better eat a rock then… Well, eating a small rock should count as 'Geo food,' right?
For a moment, the three of them fell silent. Eula had thought it through, but her pride made it hard to apologize first.
"All right, all right. Since it's a misunderstanding, Eula, let's be friends," Su Bai said.
Having spent many years with Keqing, Su Bai already knew how to deal with tsundere personalities. By giving Eula a way to step down gracefully, she accepted it.
"On Amber's account, I admit you are a friend of Eula Lawrence. But I will never forget this grievance today," Eula said.
Amber watched the two of them chatting like old friends, a warm smile spreading across her face. With Eula's status, she lacked nothing—Mora, good food, fine clothes—but friends were rare. Amber sincerely hoped Su Bai could become a genuine friend to Eula.
Seeing how well they were getting along, Amber suggested, "Eula, you invited me the other day to help investigate who the 'Dark Night Hero' really is. I haven't had time these past few days, so why don't we let Su Bai help you instead?"