Yichen dusted off clothes that weren't actually dusty and dismissed the treacherous Black Gold Ancient Blade back into his Vision.
Hands on his hips, wearing an expression that screamed this is the one, he pointed decisively at the villa with the training yard.
"This one. I'm taking this house!"
After a brief rest, Yichen and Eula pushed open the heavy, carved wooden doors of the long-vacant villa together.
The hinges let out a drawn-out creeeak, like a sigh from years of abandonment.
Sunlight pierced through the dust-covered windows, forming hazy beams in the air that illuminated drifting motes of dust.
The interior was indeed spacious, with high ceilings, but it was steeped in an unmistakable sense of age.
Heavy, dark velvet curtains. Intricately carved, dark wooden furniture. Faded yet ornate wall patterns.
Everything exuded the suffocating solemnity of old nobility—a lingering oppression that clung stubbornly to the air.
Eula surveyed the space, familiar yet distant, and frowned slightly as she spoke again.
"I'll say this one last time,"
"Choosing to live here means enduring the strange looks and endless gossip from certain people in Mondstadt. The Lawrence name is an original sin here."
Yichen waved dismissively.
He strode to the window and yanked a section of the heavy curtain aside, letting sunlight flood in and illuminate the dust trails on the floor.
"I don't care what people say."
"Humans are just like pigeons anyway. Once one pigeon flies right, the rest follow."
He turned back toward her, backlit by sunlight.
"So they can talk all they want."
He scratched his head, a little embarrassed.
"As long as you, Eula, don't find me annoying or troublesome, that's enough."
"Your opinion matters more than the entire pigeon flock—uh, I mean, more than everyone else in Mondstadt combined."
Listening to his clumsy yet disarmingly sincere words, Eula looked at the bright silhouette outlined by sunlight.
It felt like he himself was glowing, chasing away the chill that had settled in this house for years.
This blockhead… usually so ridiculous it makes you want to punch him… but sometimes, what he says is actually… kind of nice.
She lowered her head slightly, pretending to adjust her gloves to hide the warmth creeping up her cheeks—and the smile she couldn't quite suppress.
"Hmph… sweet talk. I'll remember this grudge."
The habitual line carried no threat this time—more like awkward approval.
Clearing her throat, she straightened, returning to her usual proud, commanding posture, though her eyes had softened.
"Then it's settled."
"I'll have the servants come clean the place thoroughly later."
"As for you, go handle the paperwork with the Knights and the city administration—ownership transfer, permits, all that."
She spoke as if this were her own affair.
"Once everything's done, pack up your… belongings, and move in."
Yichen nodded repeatedly, but at the end, he blinked and pointed around at the heavy furniture and decorations.
"Huh? No renovation?"
"These things feel like they could be sold at an antique market—or chopped up for firewood?"
Eula crossed her arms, lifting her chin with a refined, aristocratic smile.
"Oh? Are you suggesting your aesthetic taste surpasses centuries of noble heritage?"
"Well… no…"
Yichen shrank back slightly, muttering,
"I don't really get noble aesthetics… it's just that… this style feels kinda scary at night? Like something might jump out of the shadows when you go to the bathroom. Don't you think?"
He gestured exaggeratedly at the thick drapes and dark corners.
Eula followed his gaze, looking at decorations she'd grown up with but never truly liked.
She fell silent.
Sunlight outside was bright, yet inside the villa felt dim—too much dark wood and heavy fabric weighing the space down.
"…It is a bit… suffocating sometimes."
She paused, then seemed to make a decision.
"Fine. Since you'll be the new owner."
"The structure stays—for now. But the furniture, curtains, tapestries… all these eyesores can go. Redecorate however you like—bright, open, breathable."
As if completing an important task, Eula turned and walked toward the door.
"Hurry up and handle the paperwork, idiot. Don't dawdle."
But as she turned away, Yichen thought he caught a fleeting, genuine smile at the corner of her lips.
Perhaps breaking old, oppressive things to welcome something new and bright wasn't a bad thing—
For the house.
And for certain deeply rooted beliefs.
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