Within the silent ruins, countless monsters lay hidden in the shadows. Their crimson eyes reflected a small, weak, pitiful, and helpless figure. Some of the more vicious hilichurls had even begun setting up pots and lighting fires, clearly preparing a meal.
"Su Bai, are you sure this method can lure out an Abyss Mage? It feels like all we've attracted is a swarm of monsters."
Using adeptal arts to conceal himself, Su Bai gave Lumine a reassuring look. Abyss Mages—greedy and wicked by nature—would never pass up the little trinket he had slipped to Paimon.
"By the way, Lumine, Paimon's acting is surprisingly good. I honestly didn't see that coming."
Not far from them, Paimon hovered in midair, legs trembling as she stared at the monsters below. Even so, for the sake of the so-called "adeptal treasure" Su Bai had promised her, she stubbornly refused to flee.
"…Is there a chance that Paimon isn't acting at all right now?"
"And also—aren't you deliberately enjoying watching her panic?"
Faced with Su Bai's mischievous streak, Lumine complained weakly from the side. Su Bai, however, responded with a perfectly serious expression.
"Lumine, don't say nonsense. Paimon and I are the best of partners. How could I possibly set her up?"
"Then put the Kamera away before you say that, you jerk."
"Ahem."
Without changing his expression, Su Bai calmly stored the Kamera back into the space of his Vision. He had gotten too excited earlier and completely forgotten that his adeptal arts didn't make objects he took out invisible.
"Setting that aside—Lumine, have you noticed something? These monsters keep staring at Paimon, but not a single one of them has attacked."
"Huh… now that you mention it, you're right. Usually when I run into monsters in the wild, they rush me like they've gone mad. Why aren't they attacking Paimon this time?"
Prompted by Su Bai, Lumine also sensed something off. Right—why weren't they attacking? Did monsters also judge their prey before acting? What in the world?
"Time for a little knowledge lesson."
"Don't let the Abyss Mages you meet in the wild fool you—they may look dumb, but the smarter ones can actually control hilichurls and other monsters."
"Think about it. Every time you encounter an Abyss Mage, don't they usually have a few hilichurls tagging along as lackeys?"
With that, Lumine immediately understood. Indeed, every Abyss Mage she had encountered always had hilichurls following close behind.
"So you're saying… there's an Abyss Mage inside these ruins controlling all these monsters?"
Realizing this, Lumine sucked in a sharp breath. If an Abyss Mage really was manipulating everything from the shadows, she could very well end up trapped here.
"Honestly, if Diluc were here, we probably wouldn't be dealing with this much trouble. He would've already investigated the ruins thoroughly. With him around, finding that Abyss Mage wouldn't take long."
"But I didn't want to bother him, so Paimon has to suffer a little. And besides, wasn't Paimon something you fished up, Lumine? That makes this 'fishing operation' quite fitting for her."
Lumine shot Su Bai a glare, clearly unhappy about using Paimon as bait. Su Bai scratched his head helplessly—he didn't have much choice. With their level of strength, if he or Lumine acted as bait, the Abyss Mage wouldn't fall for it anyway.
"Su Bai, you know Paimon is my dearest companion. My best partner."
"You're exploiting her like this—you'll need to pay extra."
She said "pay extra" with absolute conviction. Su Bai froze for a moment. Pay extra? Seriously? Was he, Su Bai, actually getting extorted now?
Looking at Lumine's somewhat slender figure, Su Bai ultimately swallowed his refusal. He gently patted her golden hair.
"Alright then. I'll give you a portable cooking pot. I don't really need it anyway."
"No, no, that's not necessary! I was just joking! Why are you taking it seriously?"
Seeing that Su Bai truly intended to compensate her, Lumine hurriedly waved her hands. She had only meant it as a joke and never planned on taking anything from him.
"It's fine. If I'm giving it to you, just take it. Look how thin you are—at least with this, you'll be able to eat hot meals while traveling in the wild."
If Su Bai had initially regarded Lumine as merely a friend, then after spending these past few days together, that relationship had quietly shifted. In his heart, Lumine had gone from friend to little sister
(a certain at-least-five-hundred-years-old Lumine: Meow meow meow?).
"Su Bai…"
Lumine was genuinely moved. Ever since she awoke, only Paimon had cared for her like this. She never expected to meet someone else who showed her such concern. Yet deep down, a voice reminded her that she did not belong to this world—and perhaps this warmth was not something she should cling to.
"Shh—the fish has bitten."
Nearby, Paimon was nervously scanning her surroundings, completely unaware that behind her, a Hydro Abyss Mage was slowly approaching.
"Little one, why are you all alone here? How about letting me take a look at the treasure you're holding?"
That strange, unmistakable tone sounded behind her. Paimon jolted, immediately hugging the talisman Su Bai had given her and darting away.
"Y-you-you—you stay back! Paimon—I-I—I'm really strong!"
"Hehehe… let me see."
"No! Help! Help! Su Bai! Lumine! Hurry and save me!"
The Abyss Mage let out a sinister chuckle. It had observed for quite some time—those two strong ones were probably lost somewhere in the ruins. Otherwise, they would've shown up already.
As for this tiny sprite that couldn't even beat a wild boar, she was likely nothing more than emergency food the others carried along. They wouldn't bother coming back for her.
"Go ahead. Scream all you want. No one's coming to save you."
"If you obediently hand over that treasure you're holding, I'll give you a quick end. Otherwise… hehehe."
Those eerie words sent chills all over Paimon. Before the Abyss Mage could continue, she spun around and bolted, with the Abyss Mage momentarily stunned before hurriedly giving chase.
"So, Su Bai, this is what you call a 'smart' Abyss Mage?" Lumine said, watching the aerial chase. "I feel like it's even dumber than the ones in the wild. At least those know how to use elemental attacks on Paimon."
Su Bai didn't know how to respond. Left with no better option, he reached out and gently patted Lumine's head, changing the subject.
"Lumine, remember this for future fights. Paimon might have a mysterious ability that lowers the enemy's intelligence to her level."
"When the enemy gets dumb enough, that's when you stab them in the back."
Watching the Abyss Mage flit about in the air, Lumine nodded thoughtfully. Perhaps… she really should learn some backstabbing techniques from the Fatui Debt Collectors.