"Kujou Sara did not make things difficult for you? That is truly wonderful. I thought she would not let Master Masanori leave."
Inside the Komore Teahouse, Ayaka knelt beside a small table, a complex light flashing in her eyes. She had initially thought the matter would not end so simply. She had already gathered a portion of the Shuumatsuban ninjas outside the prison, disguised as Treasure Hoarders. She never expected Kujou Sara to release Master Masanori so easily.
"I think that Kujou Sara is a really good person. To make up for the torture Master Masanori endured, she even gave him a sum of Mora when he left."
On the way back, Su Bai had told Paimon and the others quite a bit about Kujou Sara, so Paimon had a very favorable impression of her. Besides, Kujou Sara was a high-ranking official in Inazuma. Building a good relationship with her meant she might just look out for them if anything went wrong in the future.
Ayaka nodded slightly. Undeniably, Kujou Sara was a highly trustworthy person. Despite her high position, she never put on airs. If she were not so excessively loyal to the Raiden Shogun, the Kamisato Clan would have loved to pull her into their resistance against the Shogun.
"Lumine, what are you so happy about? You have been staring at your phone this whole time. Is someone treating us to a meal?"
"Paimon, can you think about anything other than food for once? Look at the phone yourself."
[Hu Tao: Oh my, is this Director's memory failing? I clearly remember sending this little boy's ghost to the afterlife. How is it that after eating a little something, he showed up again?]
[Hu Tao: Could it be that Inazuman ghosts cannot be exorcised using Liyue methods? That cannot be right either. The other ghosts I sent off have all disappeared. Aaaaah, this is so annoying.]
[Paimon: I never expected there to be a ghost that even Hu Tao could not handle. That is unbelievable.]
[Zhongli: Generally speaking, based on rationality, some sort of power must be interfering. If we investigate thoroughly tomorrow, we should discover some clues.]
[Zhongtuo: The signal on Tsurumi Island is terrible. I cannot even send messages. If we head back from Tsurumi Island now, we will not reach Inazuma City until the middle of the night, will we? I really want to eat something.]
[Yae Miko, Embodiment of Wisdom and Beauty: To our three friends from Liyue, if you do not mind, you are welcome to come to the Grand Narukami Shrine for a meal. We have food prepared here for the shrine maidens working the night shift.]
[Zhongli: Thank you for your kindness, Guuji Yae. However, the Grand Narukami Shrine is too far from Inazuma City, so we will not trouble you with our presence.]
[Su Bai: Well, Hu Tao, if you guys do not have a place to stay, you can stay at my place. I have already sent you the location privately. I bought a house in Inazuma City a while ago, but instead of appreciating in value, it ended up being worth a lot less...]
[Yae Miko, Embodiment of Wisdom and Beauty: Oh my, little Su Bai has his own secret base now? You truly surprise me. There is an idiom in Liyue about keeping a lovely lady in a golden house. I wonder who little Su Bai is planning to hide away in there?]
[Su Bai: ... Thoma is calling me to eat. We will chat later. Miko, I will not be returning to the Grand Narukami Shrine tonight. I need to go clean up that house.]
[Su Bai: Little Zhongtuo, I will buy some food and leave it at the house in a bit. Aside from not eating seafood, there is nothing else you dislike, right?]
[Zhongtuo: That is right. I heard Inazuma's Tricolor Dango is very famous. Just get me a few extra skewers of dango.]
...
"Dinner is served, dinner is served! Young Lady, what are you looking at so intently?"
Carrying a hot pot, Thoma walked in and saw Kamisato Ayaka leaning close to Lumine, staring fixedly at a small glowing box. He found it a bit strange, as such behavior was somewhat improper for the young lady of the Kamisato Clan. Just as Thoma was about to open his mouth to remind her, Su Bai pulled him back.
"There are no outsiders here, so there is no need to worry about etiquette. Besides, do you not think this is exactly how a girl her age should be acting?"
Thoma paused. He felt Su Bai made a valid point. Ever since the drastic changes in the Kamisato Clan, the Young Lady only showed her youthful side when hanging out with Su Bai. At all other times, she was almost entirely focused on maintaining proper decorum.
However, if he had known the Young Lady was this interested in the small box, he would not have come in right now. The hot pot, freshly brought to a boil, was burning his hands! Thoma gave a bitter smile.
Well, even if the hot pot is burning my hands, I will endure it for the Young Lady's sake.
"Thoma, can you not just put the hot pot on the floor? Why do you have to keep holding it?"
Looking at Thoma's slightly reddened hands, Su Bai did not quite understand why he did not just set it down. Thoma was not exactly stubborn or inflexible. Hearing Su Bai bring it up, Thoma glanced at the wooden floor and gave a bitter smile.
"Forget it. The boss of the Komore Teahouse is Taroumaru. If we scorch the floor, he will definitely be unhappy. Besides, the hot pot is too hot. Placing it directly on the wooden floor could easily start a fire."
Su Bai raised an eyebrow and coated Thoma's hands with Geo energy to insulate them from the heat. Thoma thanked him and then hid behind the folding screen to wait, holding the hot pot. With nothing else to do, Su Bai took out his phone to check the various messages in the group chat.
At first, Thoma had been somewhat dismissive of the phone. He did not think this small glowing box was anything special. It was not until he noticed the various messages popping up on the screen that he realized just how wrong he was.
Come on, a little gadget that allows remote communication is incredibly cool.
"Ahem. Thoma, you are here."
"Ah, Young Lady! I was just talking to Su Bai and forgot to bring the hot pot over. I am truly sorry."
Thoma's words brought a faint blush to Ayaka's cheeks. Clever as she was, she naturally knew exactly why he had said that. Paimon sniffed the aroma in the air. It was a bit different from the spicy hot pot in Liyue. Inazuman hot pot seemed to use a seafood-based broth, and the unique umami flavor made Paimon look forward to it immensely.
"The Komore Teahouse is finally lively today. Let us play the Hot Pot Game."
"Huh? What is the Hot Pot Game?"
Paimon was curious but still very excited. Lumine, having just arrived, was also confused by the Hot Pot Game, but figuring it might be an Inazuman specialty, she did not ask too many questions. After Thoma explained the rules, everyone decided to give it a try.
After a round of the game, Thoma clutched his stomach in agony. He felt like his stomach was protesting, almost as if it were planning to run away from home.
"Can someone tell me what kind of logic goes into throwing cake into a hot pot? Also, why did I taste something so weird in the broth? That flavor is truly indescribable."
"Oh, that was probably the Ghostly March I threw in. That is a dish made by Hu Tao, the Director of our Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. The taste is quite unique, is it not?"
"It is very unique indeed. I think I just saw my long-lost father..."