"There are outsiders here! Leave me some dignity, would you? And what's wrong with me treating someone? It's not like I'm as stingy as Pulcinella."
Lora put her hands on her hips and looked sternly at Xianyun, Focalors, and Furina.
The two girls exchanged a glance. Both looked as though they wanted to say something, but neither knew where to begin.
Xianyun said, "It would be fine if you didn't always send the bill to someone else."
Lora immediately replied, "Then where's the fun in that? Besides, I'm using Northland Bank's money. That's justice."
After hearing that, Xianyun thought for a moment, then said, "I would not mind experiencing this justice myself someday."
"You will." Lora nodded with absolute seriousness.
After finishing their discussion, everyone prepared to set off. This time, Lora really did not put anything on someone else's tab. Along the way, whatever Yuandai wanted to eat, she paid for it from her own little treasury.
"Oh, looks like you're rich now," Xianyun teased after seeing how generous she was.
Lora snorted. "Of course! Do you even know what my status is now?"
Who was she?
Fontaine's head of state!
The former Hydro Archon!
She had even served as Celestia's acting administrator for five hundred years.
At this point, her little treasury was practically impossible to count.
"Then help me renovate Mt. Aocang later," Xianyun added.
Lora: "..."
"Mt. Aocang..." Hearing that name, Yuandai briefly fell into a daze.
Seeing this, Furina quickly asked, "Did you remember something, Madame Heroine?"
Yuandai shook her head blankly. "I'm not sure. It's just... the name Mt. Aocang. I feel like I've heard it somewhere."
Shuyu held her hand and said, "There are legends that adepti live on Mt. Aocang. Grandma probably heard it from someone telling stories, right?"
"Maybe..." Yuandai could not say where she had heard the name, so she could only nod at Shuyu's explanation.
Only Lora and Xianyun exchanged a glance and sighed helplessly.
Everyone soon arrived at the Feiyun Commerce Guild and met Xingqiu.
"Oh my, isn't this Cloud Ret—"
The moment Xingqiu saw Xianyun, he almost called out her adeptus name. Then he noticed Yuandai, Shuyu, and the others behind her and quickly changed his words.
"Miss Xianyun and Miss Lora? What brings you to the Feiyun Commerce Guild today?"
"So this is Miss Xingqiu?" Furina looked at the young man standing ahead and asked Focalors in confusion. "Are you sure?"
Focalors looked him up and down. "I think so?"
Both of them turned toward Lora.
Xingqiu had also heard them. He looked at Lora blankly and asked, "What... is going on?"
"Nothing! Nothing important!" Lora quickly shook her head. "We came to ask you about something today."
"Ask me something? That's easy enough." Xingqiu nodded.
Everyone told him about Yuandai. After thinking for a moment, he said slowly, "There are indeed some stories about wandering heroines in Liyue. Considering this lady's age, one comes to mind: the story of the Nameless Heroine."
"The Nameless Heroine?" Furina immediately stepped forward. "Young lady, tell us about it!"
"Young lady?" Xingqiu froze and blinked.
"Ah, don't mind her. My child says strange things sometimes." Lora quickly covered for Furina, then said, "Just tell us about that Nameless Heroine."
Xingqiu did not suspect anything and began telling everyone the story.
"...This Nameless Heroine was once famous in her early years, but later disappeared without a trace. I believe the story is quite similar to Madame Yuandai's situation."
After he finished, Furina looked at Yuandai with eyes full of excitement. "Amazing! I never thought Madame Yuandai was that kind of heroine!"
"Do you know where she often went when she was young?" Focalors asked.
"Places she often visited?" Xingqiu thought for a moment. "In the novel, the Nameless Heroine mostly appears around Wangshu Inn, Qingyun Peak, and the area north of Jueyun Karst."
"What places are those?" Furina looked blankly at Lora.
Meeting her gaze, Lora shook her head. "I'm terrible with directions. I know the names, but I don't know how to get there."
Of course, flying was another matter.
When flying, she did not need to know the route. She only needed to know the direction.
"I know the way. I can lead," Xianyun sighed. "There's no time to lose. Let's set off."
Xingqiu looked at Yuandai and asked, "Wait... I have a presumptuous request. If Madame Yuandai truly is the Nameless Heroine from back then, I hope that after you recover your memories, you might answer a few of my questions. Would that be possible?"
"If... I still remember, then I suppose so." Yuandai looked at him and remained silent for a long while before answering.
Xingqiu smiled and bowed. "Thank you."
Everyone prepared to leave. Furina quietly said to him, "Hey, Miss Xingqiu..."
"Stop. What do you mean, Miss?" Xingqiu frowned and looked at her strangely.
"Uh..." Furina blinked. "Aren't you the second young lady of the Feiyun Commerce Guild?"
Hearing that, and remembering Lora's expression from earlier, Xingqiu suddenly understood.
"I'm not the second young lady of the Feiyun Commerce Guild," he explained. "I'm the second young master."
"Second young master..." Furina looked at him in surprise, then turned toward Lora up ahead.
She blinked.
"That really..."
She did not know what to say.
Oh no.
She had been tricked.
This was a little embarrassing.
Furina's expression immediately turned sheepish. Xingqiu, however, comforted her. "You're one of Miss Lora's children, right? Looking at your age, you're not that different from me. Don't be so formal. Just call me Xingqiu."
"All right, Xingqiu. I'm really sorry about earlier," Furina said awkwardly.
He waved it off, then asked, "Was there something you wanted to tell me?"
"Oh, since you know so many stories, are you interested in coming to Fontaine sometime? Also, where do you read all these stories? Are they from Liyue storytelling gatherings?" Furina asked several questions in a row.
Apparently, tricking people into going to Fontaine was an inherited talent among Hydro Archons.