"This, this is Sumeru's cuisine..."
Philgoated looked at what Soraya held in her hand, her expression somewhat complex.
To be honest, she had never seen Sumeru's cuisine before. After all, she was a Mondstadter, and after marrying into Liyue, she spent most of her time living near Stone Gate.
Sumeru was still too far away from these two places, so let alone Sumeru cuisine, even Sumeru people like Soraya were rarely seen.
Therefore, when Soraya came up with a large pile of Panipuri and a bowl of green juice, she was greatly shocked.
This stuff didn't look very appealing, and most importantly, these crispy balls needed to be eaten with that green juice.
The method of eating was neither dipping nor pouring, but rather poking a hole in the fried crispy ball with a finger, then reaching in to pour the soup into the crispy ball.
To be fair, although Soraya's hands looked very clean, Philgoated still preferred to eat with utensils.
"Well, Miss Star, please have a taste."
Soraya placed the Panipuri, which had just been filled with green juice, to Star's mouth.
Star didn't find anything wrong with it. After all, she and Soraya knew each other inside out; she had even tasted the juice on her body, so she wouldn't care about such a small matter.
So Star directly bit the crispy ball into her mouth and also slurped Soraya's finger.
Of course, this action was very quick, and even though Philgoated was so close to them, she still didn't notice anything amiss.
"Mmm..."
Star slowly savored the crispy ball that had been soaked once in the green juice, her expression also a bit strange.
"How should I put it, the taste is alright, but there seems to be a very strong Mint flavor, which is a bit odd."
Actually, the taste was really good, not as bad as its appearance and eating method suggested.
"Hmm, because there are some Spices native to Sumeru that aren't available here, the taste is slightly different from the authentic version."
Soraya nodded, then made another one for Star.
Actually, authentic Panipuri has a faint peculiar smell, but Soraya felt that non-Sumeru natives probably wouldn't be able to get used to it, so even if she had those Spices, she probably wouldn't add them.
"When Miss Star goes to Sumeru someday, I'll treat you to a proper Sumeru feast."
Soraya said with a smile.
Although her study tour experience hadn't been long, she had eaten quite a few Liyue dishes, and the taste was undoubtedly excellent, especially those made by the head chef of Wangshu Inn, which were truly exceptional.
However, no matter how delicious, it was ultimately not the taste of home.
Now that she had met someone worth entrusting her life to, she also wanted to let that person taste the cuisine of her homeland.
"Alright, when we go to Sumeru someday, we'll definitely come find you."
Star nodded, naturally having no objections to this.
The only problem was that their next stop was Inazuma, so it was uncertain when they would be able to go to Sumeru.
"Then it's a deal."
Soraya smiled happily.
...
The meal was quickly finished. Although it was called a celebration banquet, it was actually just Philgoated treating everyone to a good lunch.
Naturally, everyone would go about their own business next. Star also said goodbye to Philgoated and Soraya, stating that he had some matters to attend to.
If nothing unexpected happened, he might not be able to return even by night…
"Speaking of which, Miss Star's commission probably can't continue now, can it?"
Philgoated saw Star to the door and asked casually.
"The commission… Yes, Bao'er has been locked in the darkroom, so this commission will probably have to be canceled."
Star sighed helplessly.
Although he hadn't expected to earn much from this commission, the unexpected incidents truly caught him off guard.
"Locked in the darkroom…"
Philgoated found this phrasing a bit strange but didn't pay much attention to it.
"I mean, your commission this time can be directly transferred to us. As a Reward for helping us catch Bao'er, we will pay you a certain Reward."
"Oh? Really?"
Star's eyes lit up instantly.
To be honest, he had been freeloading at Wangshu Inn for days and felt quite embarrassed. As for taking their money… it wasn't impossible.
He deserved it!
"Of course, it's true. Once we confirm Bao'er's situation, we will hand the money to you immediately."
"Still have to wait for Bao'er's situation, huh…"
Star rubbed his chin, then nodded.
Then, when he punished Bao'er later, he would also have to interrogate him for some information.
"I understand. See you tomorrow."
—
Returning to the Serenitea Pot, it was still deserted.
Everyone had their own things to do, and generally, they only gathered here in the evening.
Of course, not everyone chose to rest in the Serenitea Pot every night.
"How is he? Is he obedient?"
Star walked into the house, and the first thing he saw was Yelan still sitting on the sofa, sipping tea.
It was exactly the same scene as he had seen this morning, except this time Yelan was fully dressed.
Star felt a slight regret that he didn't see the scene he had imagined.
"Perhaps. Anyway, even if he's not obedient, he'll just gasp a few times."
Yelan put down the teacup and said slowly.
"But he should still be energetic right now. I just took a look, and there was a lot of water."
"Cough, cough, well, then, let's not rush…"
Star coughed twice, then sat down next to Yelan.
"Huh? Are these his clothes?"
Star then noticed a pile of unfamiliar clothes next to him. Clearly, these didn't match Yelan's size.
"Yes, this Damselette dresses very simply, and it's easy to take off."
Star picked up a pair of white stockings with several holes in them.
They were probably accidentally torn when he captured him earlier.
"It seems the quality of these clothes isn't very good…"
Star remembered Barbara's socks of the same color; he had to use a lot of force to tear them.
This one just rubbed a little, and such a big hole appeared.
"It doesn't matter. He won't need them anymore anyway."
Yelan reached out and pulled Star into his arms, bringing his mouth close to Star's ear.
"Since you're not in a hurry to deal with him yet, why don't we play a game of dice first, how about it?"
"What's so fun about that…"
Star felt his body slightly warm up, but he didn't refuse.
To put it plainly, it was just a game of guessing high or low, but Yelan always enjoyed this game tirelessly.
But since he wanted to play, Star might as well play with him. After all, there was plenty of time.
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