At Good Hunter, the group was enjoying their meal when they were suddenly interrupted by an explosion. For some unknown reason, the grilled fish in Bennett's hand had actually exploded. The blast was so close that the Electro protection barrier from the Omamori hadn't had time to deploy.
Amid Sara's repeated apologies, Su Bai left Good Hunter with a black face—literally black this time. Caught completely off guard, Su Bai's face was covered in soot from the explosion. As for Bennett, he had already been taken by a passing nun to see Barbara.
Su Bai had just used his adeptal energy to examine the fish and discovered traces of the alchemical materials Klee used in her Jumpy Dumpties. He didn't need to guess—over the past few days, whenever Yae Miko and Klee experimented with new bombs, the failed prototypes must have been eaten by fish in the river.
That fish was incredibly lucky to have survived ingesting so many alchemical materials without dying. This incident also gave Su Bai a deeper appreciation for Bennett's terrible luck. Of all the fish available, he just had to pick that one.
"Hmm? That peeping feeling... again?"
Su Bai frowned. This person following him was extremely cautious. Even when Su Bai used his adeptal energy to sense their presence, he couldn't discern anything specific.
'But I've pretty much mapped out all of Mondstadt by now. I've placed teleportation talismans in several locations. Let's see just who you really are.'
Circulating his adeptal energy, Su Bai sensed the general direction of his stalker and sneered. Fortunately, there was one of his teleportation talismans not far from their location.
"Looks like luck isn't on your side this time."
With a whoosh, Su Bai vanished from his spot. The person who had been tracking him froze mid-note, then immediately fled.
Unfortunately, their reaction was still a step too slow. A flash of green hair was the last thing Su Bai caught before they disappeared. Su Bai mentally noted this characteristic, surprised at how cautious and decisive this peeper was.
'Judging by their reaction, they've done this kind of stalking before. Their movements were incredibly smooth.'
'Well, they got away this time. I should head to the Cathedral and check on Bennett first. Even though the explosion wasn't too powerful, Bennett just recovered from his injuries. Who knows if there might be complications.'
Inside the Cathedral, Barbara had already treated Bennett's wounds. Even the injuries inside his mouth had been healed by her gentle Hydro abilities.
However, the explosion had been powerful enough to knock out several of Bennett's teeth. Now, whenever Bennett spoke, there was a noticeable whistle.
Barbara was helpless regarding Bennett's teeth. She was just a healer. She might know a little about pulling teeth, but making them grow back was far beyond her abilities.
Looking at the unconscious Bennett's mouth, with only a few good teeth remaining, Su Bai felt powerless as well. He might be an adeptus, but adepts weren't omnipotent. If they were, he would have already turned Hu Tao's flat chest into rolling hills long ago.
"Um, Su Bai... you might try finding Miss Sucrose. Problems that medicine can't solve might be fixable with alchemy."
"Miss Sucrose specializes in bio-alchemy. If anyone can help Bennett regrow his teeth, it's probably her."
'Alchemy... that's worth a shot.' Su Bai nodded thoughtfully. Alchemy was almost more absurd than adeptal arts—mixing random materials together could produce all kinds of奇妙 potions.
He'd wanted to learn alchemy before, but unfortunately, Liyue and Inazuma lacked any skilled alchemists. That idea had eventually fizzled out.
This trip to Mondstadt might be the perfect chance to pick up that old ambition. Even if he couldn't find a good teacher, getting his hands on some alchemy textbooks to study wouldn't be bad.
"I'll go find Miss Sucrose then. Barbara, Bennett's in your hands."
"If he wakes up, tell him to stay in the city for the next few days. Once I find Miss Sucrose, I'll bring him to get his teeth fixed." (A/N: The sound of a dental drill... I never want to hear that again in my life... Why do cavities have to exist in this world?!)
Having spent the entire day tracking down information about Sucrose, Su Bai sat resting in a chair. The setting sun offered its last warmth to the people of Mondstadt. The soft light fell upon his face, bringing an indescribable comfort.
Gazing at the sunset in the distance, Su Bai felt poetic inspiration stir within him. After mulling it over for a while, his limited literary talent ultimately produced only one line:
"Ah... the sunset is so beautiful."
'If only Kazuha were here. I have to admit, his poetry skills are solid. I wonder how he's doing traveling with Captain Beidou.'
'He's such a worrywart.'
'And Itto—before I left, I made arrangements with several restaurant owners in Inazuma. If they had any food delivery work, they'd give it to the Arataki Gang. I wonder if my connections still hold any weight.'
Before Su Bai could finish lamenting how none of his friends were worry-free, another explosion interrupted his train of thought. Su Bai followed the sound... Hmm, that seemed to be coming from his place.
Wait... his place? Su Bai's eyes, which had been half-lidded, flew wide open. He'd only been gone for one day! What had those two troublemakers cooked up now?
'Great. Here I am worrying about everyone else, and the biggest troublemakers are right under my nose.'
'Wait... something's not right. That intense Pyro energy... is that an Overloaded reaction? Has Miko gone insane, triggering Overload in the middle of Mondstadt and blasting away one of Klee's bombs?'
As it turned out, Yae Miko was innocent this time. She had only placed an Electro barrier on Klee to protect her from getting hurt. She never expected it to trigger an Overloaded reaction, sending Klee's newest Jumpy Dumpty flying.
'Well... judging by its trajectory, it's heading outside the city. Small mercies, I suppose.'
Su Bai looked up, watching the golden-glowing Jumpy Dumpty trace a perfect arc through the sky before landing outside Mondstadt. He breathed a sigh of relief... but before he could finish exhaling, a massive explosion chilled his heart.
Mechanically, he lifted his head again, staring at the second sun rising in the distance and the enormous mushroom cloud blooming in its wake. Su Bai opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
'This thing can still be called a bomb? I seriously underestimated the destructive power of those two troublemakers.'