"Cough, cough... Boreas, Yae Miko. Long time no see."
"Lord Barbatos, long time no see. I didn't expect to encounter you here."
Yae Miko covered her mouth with a hand, feigning surprise. Paimon sniffed the air, picking up a scent she had never encountered before. It smelled so good.
Seeing Paimon's greedy expression, Yae Miko wasn't stingy. She grabbed a large handful of sunflower seeds and stuffed them into Paimon's hands. Paimon, delighted by Yae Miko's generosity, immediately flashed her a big smile.
"Thank you, Fox Sister!"
"But... how am I supposed to eat these?"
Paimon was troubled, with both little hands full of seeds with no way to eat them. Having such good things right in her hands but being unable to eat them made Paimon spin frantically in the air with frustration. Yae Miko watched Paimon with a hand over her mouth, smiling. This little one didn't seem too bright.
Just then, Paimon's best companion and designated wallet for emergency food stepped forward. With a grand sweep of her hand, Lumine snatched away more than half the seeds in Paimon's hands, freeing up one of them.
CRUNCH~
"Mmm, this thing is really good. Eat up, Paimon. Why are you staring at me?"
Lumine imitated Yae Miko's technique, cracking open a seed. The rich fragrance of the kernel spread across her tongue, instantly conquering Lumine, who had rarely experienced snacks in Teyvat.
Paimon stared dumbfounded at the greatly diminished seeds in her hands, then looked at Lumine, whose mouth hadn't stopped moving. Only then did she realize—Lumine had stolen her food!
"Hey, Lumine! Those are MINE!"
Yae Miko watched the two little ones squabble with amusement. She had teased Su Bai like this countless times when he was small. But as Su Bai grew older and made friends, he no longer seemed to enjoy playing with his older sister as much.
'Sigh. Those Kamisato siblings claim sending that little tanuki to be by Xiaobai's side was to facilitate information transmission. Hmph. As if. The real goal was to create chance encounters.'
Thinking of this, the smile gradually faded from Yae Miko's face. If she remembered correctly, that shrine maiden named Nana was that little tanuki's superior, wasn't she? Since she loved passing messages so much, she could have that little tanuki run laps around Inazuma City every day for some exercise.
"Hmph, Barbatos. I thought you were going to keep watching the show. What's wrong? Feeling sorry for Dvalin?"
Boreas and Barbatos were of the same generation, so they weren't afraid of Barbatos. In fact, Barbatos held great respect for Boreas, who had exhausted his power driving away the snowstorms from Mondstadt.
"Hehe, Boreas. How did Dvalin manage to offend you? Why such anger?"
"Hmph. Dvalin nearly killed one of my cubs. You tell me—should I settle accounts with him or not?"
"Let me tell you, Barbatos, if it weren't for your sake, given that Dvalin bullied Razor, I'd have castrated him long ago. You think I'd let him keep yapping here?"
Razor was the one Boreas had favored most over these years. In Boreas's heart, Razor was no different from his wolf children and grandchildren—all his offspring.
Venti had initially assumed Dvalin had simply run wild in Wolvendom and Boreas had come to settle the score. He hadn't expected the situation to run so deep—Dvalin had actually bullied Razor, relying on his superior strength.
Jean looked at the imposing Boreas, then at Dvalin beneath his paws. Mm... she'd better remain silent. Diluc, nearby, stared at Boreas with dead fish eyes. When he got back, he absolutely had to draw Boreas's likeness. He would tell his descendants—the Wolf King really did exist.
Wait. If the Wolf King truly existed, then the legendary greatsword, Wolf's Gravestone, must also exist. Thinking of this, a glimmer of light appeared in Diluc's dead-fish eyes. Perhaps he could visit the Wolf King in Wolvendom sometime.
"While you two are catching up, could you ask that woman over there to stop the lightning? It hurts so much."
Dvalin, enduring the pain, interrupted the reunion between Barbatos and Boreas. He felt that if this kept up, he would eventually become a lingering soul just like Andrius.
"Ah-la-la, my apologies. I was eating sunflower seeds and nearly forgot the Sesshou Sakura was still active."
Yae Miko patted her head, wearing an expression of sincere apology. Though her words said one thing, her hands made no move to dismiss the Sesshou Sakura, as if she had genuinely forgotten.
Diluc considered for a moment, then silently stepped back a few paces. According to rumors, the Guuji of the Grand Narukami Shrine in Inazuma was a fox youkai of immense power, unfathomably deep. It's best to leave these troubled waters to Lord Barbatos.
In the end, it was Venti, pitying Dvalin, who personally interceded on his behalf. Only then did Yae Miko stop the Sesshou Sakura. Though Dvalin was freed from the pain, Boreas's claws remained firmly on him, preventing flight for the time being.
After hearing the full story, Boreas finally understood why Dvalin had attacked Razor. So it was the corrupt blood driving him insane.
"How embarrassing for a dragon. Dvalin, if you felt unwell and couldn't find Barbatos, couldn't you have found me? Had to tough it out alone, and now look at you—you've become Stormterror."
Boreas's tone of frustration at Dvalin's failure made the dragon feel deeply ashamed. Temporarily restored to reason, Dvalin was filled with regret over his previous actions. If he had known it would come to this, he would have sought Andrius's help instead.
"Alright, alright. Now that we know it was a misunderstanding, let Lumine help purify the corrupt blood in Dvalin's body."
"This matter isn't over yet. When Razor grows up, who knows—besides the title of North Wind Knight, he might also gain the title of Dragon Knight."
Under Venti's mediation, Boreas snorted coldly and released his grip on Dvalin. Dvalin breathed a long sigh of relief. Thank goodness—he had survived.
But before Dvalin could celebrate for long, Venti used wind to deposit Lumine directly onto Dvalin's head. Lumine touched the corrupt blood on Dvalin's skull. A strange power flowed within the tainted blood, and its dark red color actually began to fade.
"This little one's constitution is quite special. I wonder if she can purify the filth in Inazuma."
Yae Miko watched Lumine atop Dvalin's head with keen interest. When she first saw this little one living in Su Bai's house, she had thought her just an ordinary girl. Only after witnessing Lumine control Anemo without a Vision did Yae Miko begin to regard her seriously.
"Finished."
The corrupt blood dispersed into motes of light in the air. Lumine dusted off her hands and jumped down from Dvalin's head. Dvalin felt unprecedented ease. Just as he flapped his wings to soar into the sky and let out a long cry, three thick bolts of lightning descended from the heavens, striking the newly airborne Dvalin back to the ground.
"Oh dear. I forgot the Sesshou Sakura releases lightning when it disperses. My apologies."