Lumine, who had just gotten up from the ground, wanted to simply clean her clothes. But for some reason, as soon as she touched Dvalin's blood, the dense Anemo energy concentrated around it would transform into a gust of wind blowing directly at her, strong enough to make her skirt fly up.
"Paimon, come help me wipe this off."
"Paimon? Paimon?"
Calling a few times with no answer, Lumine finally realized Paimon seemed to be missing. This made her panic. Had her emergency food been eaten by some other monster?
"Lumine! Help! I'm stuck on a branch!"
Not far away, Paimon was hanging upside down from a tree branch. Hearing Lumine's call, she almost cried. Finally remembered! Hanging like this, she felt like she was going to throw up everything she ate this morning.
Because she kept frantically wriggling to free herself—though she didn't know what was wrong with these branches—the more she twisted, the tighter they seemed to entangle her.
"Hold on, Paimon! I'm coming to save you!"
"I believe we should deal with our immediate troubles first before rescuing Paimon."
As an elemental being, Dvalin's tears were rich in Anemo energy, let alone its blood. Unbeknownst to them, Lumine and the others, drenched in dragon's blood, had been surrounded by a horde of Slimes drawn by the potent Anemo.
Diluc gripped the Favonius Greatsword tightly. The Slimes were closing in from all sides. If they didn't handle this soon, they'd be in real trouble, and this place might become a Slime paradise.
---
Far from Starsnatch Cliff, in a collapsed section of forest, Razor was carrying an unconscious Bennett, weaving through the trees. Razor couldn't understand. They had just opened an ordinary treasure chest. Why did it trigger such a terrifying trap that injured Bennett so badly?
Remembering the overwhelming wave of Anemo energy, Razor's body still trembled slightly. It was the first time he had come so close to death.
"Bennett... hold on. I take you... to find doctor."
For some reason, Bennett suddenly coughed up a large mouthful of blood, soaking the wolf fur at Razor's collar. Sweat mixed with blood trickled down Razor's neck into his clothes.
The scent of blood made Razor's heart pound with greater urgency. Suppressing his fear, he quickened his pace. He would not let Bennett die.
'Straight line between two points is shortest.' Lisa had taught Razor this. He never thought this lesson would come in handy now. Despite the strong scent of monsters ahead, Razor resolutely chose the shortest route and charged forward, head down. Time was running out.
"Pant... pant... Just cross... this forest... can see... Mondstadt."
"Bennett... you hold on."
Razor leaned against a fruit tree, gasping for air. Behind him, the purple wolf spirit hovered protectively over Bennett. A wound on Razor's thigh was steadily bleeding, a cause for worry.
This wound was from a Blazing Axe Mitachurl he encountered while charging through a Hilichurl camp. To reach Mondstadt as fast as possible, Razor had chosen to barrel straight through any monster in his path, not stopping even for the two Hilichurl camps blocking his way.
Sweat dripped into his wound. Razor winced slightly. The pain wouldn't slow him down, but continuous blood loss could make him collapse on the road before he got there.
Razor scanned the surroundings. No Wolfhooks for stopping bleeding here. Looking at the scattered Sweet Flowers, even this master of wilderness survival was stumped. If this continued, both he and Bennett were done for.
Sensing Bennett's breathing growing faint on his back, a look of determination flashed in Razor's eyes. He raised his hand, crackling with Electro energy, and forcefully pressed it against his own wound to cauterize it.
The heat generated by the volatile Electro element instantly seared the flesh around the wound to a half-cooked state. With this makeshift seal, the bleeding was temporarily stanched.
Facing such intense pain, Razor, dripping with cold sweat, gritted his teeth and didn't utter a sound. Perhaps in his heart, this physical pain was nothing compared to the agony of losing Bennett.
The ruthless tenacity of a wolf was fully embodied in Razor. In this moment, he seemed to carry a shadow of the Wolf Knight of old. Boreas would surely be pleased to see Razor like this.
"Bennett... I will save you. Will."
Razor's gaze, filled with resolve, fixed on the distant Mondstadt city. He lifted his foot and resumed the journey to save Bennett. He knew the sister in the city might be the only doctor who could save Bennett now.
Back in Mondstadt city, standing on the rooftop, Klee's eyes lit up the moment she saw the black mushroom cloud blooming over Starsnatch Cliff. She had never seen a firework that could create a mushroom cloud before!
Looking at the distant rising cloud, Su Bai opened his mouth but found no words. If that thing had exploded anywhere near him, he probably would have been turned into a plate of delicious roasted fox meat in an instant.
"Wow! So pretty, Brother Su Bai! Launching it at an angle really is prettier! Brother Su Bai, let's make another firework sphere like this, okay?"
"Uh... ah... uh... ah?"
Secretly relieved that a disaster had been narrowly avoided, Su Bai's heart sank upon hearing this. His worst fear had come true. Klee seemed to really like the mushroom cloud pattern.
Firmly deciding he absolutely could not let Klee make another one of those, Su Bai forced a smile and patted Klee's head.
"Little Klee... you've already set off a firework today. Shouldn't we go do something else?"
"If you always play with the same thing, you'll get bored really easily."
Klee blinked. Brother Su Bai seemed to make sense. Klee didn't like milk probably because she drank it too often before and got bored of it.
"Then, Brother Su Bai, let's go fish blasting! Klee wants grilled fish anyway."
"Those uncles fishing in Cider Lake never catch anything. Every time Klee goes fish blasting, they always trade some yummy snacks for Klee's fish!"
Klee had a good impression of these fishing uncles. Not only did they trade snacks for fish; more importantly, they never reported her fish blasting to Acting Grand Master Jean. They'd even cover for her, telling her to hide whenever Knights of Favonius came by.
Thanks to this tacit understanding, Klee used to sneak off to Cider Lake for fish blasting often. Sadly, fate was cruel. One clear, sunny afternoon, Jean, who was out dealing with a Ruin Guard, caught Klee red-handed. Forced to temporarily abandon that prime spot, Klee switched to the more distant Starfell Lake.
Hearing Su Bai suggest doing something else today, Klee immediately remembered. It seemed like she hadn't 'visited' Cider Lake in a long time! Excited, Klee hoisted her backpack, grabbed Su Bai's hand, and headed out.
Although Su Bai felt fish blasting was a somewhat risky activity, compared to that firework sphere capable of producing such a massive mushroom cloud... he much preferred Klee go fish blasting. At least if something went wrong with a fish-blasting bomb, he could still protect Klee in time.