The two nodded and made their way back into Sumeru City.
Watching them go, Dunyarzad spoke softly. "If… this really is a dream, then maybe I can finally see Nilou's Dance of the Flower God?"
"You will," Nahida said gently, meeting her gaze. "You'll see it… with me."
As night fell within the dream, Lora and Nahida accompanied her to the Grand Bazaar. By then, Lumine and Paimon had already helped Nilou come to terms with the truth—this world was nothing more than a dream.
"If it's a dream…" Nilou murmured, a faint smile touching her lips, "then maybe the final Dance of the Flower God… can be even more beautiful."
Above the Grand Bazaar, light flowed like a luminous tide, while crystalflies drifted from her fingertips, rising as though carried by an unseen breeze. She stood at the center of the stage, her gaze sweeping across the crowd.
"Thank you for waiting," she said softly. "Allow me… to offer the Dance of the Flower God to our Archon."
Music rose, rich with distant, unfamiliar tones. As she moved, every gesture unfolded like a living poem, her will shaping reality itself within the dream.
Lora raised a hand, and aqua-blue crystals ascended into the sky, merging with the flowing light until the heavens became a river of stars, shimmering and alive.
Paimon gasped. "It's so beautiful!"
Dunyarzad clasped her hands to her chest, eyes shining. "Lesser Lord Kusanali… did you see? This is the birthday celebration we prepared for you."
"I did," Nahida replied softly.
As the dance continued, the dream itself began to unravel. The city dissolved into streams of light, its form breaking apart like a fading illusion. Dreams, after all, eventually give way to reality—yet in this moment, this was theirs.
"Happy Birthday, Lesser Lord Kusanali."
...
When the cycle of the Sabzeruz Festival finally came to an end, everyone returned to the real world.
Because Nahida and Lora had sustained the dream with their power from the very beginning, what the sages harvested was only a fraction of their mental energy. Even so, that small portion was already equivalent to the combined mental strength of the entire city.
Lora found herself dwelling on a strange thought. Scaramouche had used the sages to harvest dreams in order to become a god—yet those dreams had been sustained by her and Nahida's power. If you thought about it… didn't that mean they had, in a way, helped create him?
Then when Nahida "redeemed" him in the future, perhaps another name should be added to that story.
Lesser Lord Lora.
The thought made her smile.
…Interesting.
"Ahh… being out of that loop feels amazing!" Paimon stretched lazily as she floated between them. "Honestly, I'm starting to feel a little scared of the Sabzeruz Festival…"
"Don't worry," Lumine said with a small smile. "We're all here."
Paimon nodded. "That's true. With a Liyue adeptus around—and… ahem, Nahida too—we should be safe."
As they walked, a small fortune-telling stall came into view ahead.
"Huh? That kid is running a fortune-telling stand?" Paimon blinked in surprise.
"I know her," Nahida said quietly. "Her name is Nabiya. I met her once while using that Snezhnayan puppet to move around."
"Come on, let's get our fortunes told," Lora said, a hint of interest in her eyes.
"Huh? You want to do that?" Paimon looked at her, puzzled.
"It doesn't hurt to try," she replied casually. "Might as well."
As they approached, Nabiya stood with her back turned, her voice low, as though performing some mysterious ritual.
"The wisdom of the gods often whispers in my ears. If fortune favors you today… perhaps I can guide you through your confusion."
"Alright, alright. We've all got divine favor," Lora said flatly.
Nabiya turned to face them. Beside her, a black cat and a white cat froze completely still, their eyes fixed on the group, their expressions oddly solemn.
"Oh my. Quite confident, aren't you?" she smiled. "I offer two paths: health or love. Which would you like me to divine?"
"Health."
Lora answered without hesitation.
Nabiya immediately began the reading, but as it went on, her expression slowly stiffened. Her brows drew together, and her gaze lifted toward Lora again, disbelief creeping into her voice.
"This… this is strange. How can such a fate exist?"
"I see a life that stretches on without end… yet it's fractured. Interrupted. Always shifting. Thousands of years… then suddenly only decades… then back again…"
She shook her head. "This doesn't make sense. It shouldn't be possible."
"Maybe your reading's off," Lora said lightly.
But she knew it wasn't.
Those decades belonged to the "Lora" she had once been. The millennia belonged to Egeria.
And what remained now… was something else entirely.
Neither one.
Yet both.
Nabiya's expression darkened.
"Um… maybe we should go somewhere else?" Paimon suggested awkwardly.
"Wait." Nabiya raised a hand sharply. "My divination is never wrong. But… given how unusual this reading is, I won't charge you."
Her gaze fixed on Lora.
"Miss, allow me to offer you one piece of advice."
"Advice?" Lora tilted her head slightly, intrigued. "Let's hear it."
"In the near future, your life will shift again. Another fracture."
Her voice dropped. "But beyond that point… I can't see anything. The future becomes unclear. I can't guide you past it."
"A new fracture…"
Lora absorbed the words. There was a flicker of surprise, but no fear.
"I understand. Thank you."
With that, she turned and left with the others.
Behind them, Nabiya glanced at the two cats. "What do you think? Who is she, really… to carry such a fate?"
The black and white cats let out soft meows, their tails swaying slowly.
As they walked, a sudden wave of dizziness washed over Lora. Her steps slowed, then stopped, and she drifted slightly behind the group.
It didn't go unnoticed.
Lumine turned back at once. "Lora? What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Nahida stepped closer, concern clear in her voice. "Is it because of the reading just now? It might not be accurate. Don't take it too seriously."