Dainsleif turned to look at Lydia, his tone calm yet carrying an unquestionable certainty: "The purpose of having me lure them here has been achieved. Now, it is time to fulfill our agreement."
Hearing this, Lydia nodded gently.
She raised her hand to smooth the already neat, snow-white hem of her skirt, the smile on her face fading slightly as her expression turned serious.
"So it really was deliberate, luring us here!" Paimon exclaimed, her round eyes full of sudden realization. "No wonder you appeared on purpose and led us to the dense forest! It was all planned from the beginning!"
Lydia smiled with a hint of apology, a flicker of helplessness and guilt passing through her eyes: "I'm sorry, Lumine, Paimon, Venti."
"If we hadn't done this, we didn't know what other way we could get you here." Her figure swayed slightly under the moonlight, the white glow around her body visibly dimming, as if she would vanish in the next second. "Besides, my existence is very brief, and the time and place I appear are completely unpredictable. I simply couldn't go to find you on my own. I could only ask Mr. Dainsleif to help, to bring you here in this manner."
She paused, her gaze subconsciously glancing at the Sword of Festering Desire hanging at Lumine's waist.
Almost the exact moment her gaze fell upon it, the already slightly vibrating Festering Desire suddenly began to tremble violently.
The dark purple runes on the blade flashed more and more frequently, their light blindingly bright, as if the sword were trying to break free from Lumine's grip and fly directly to Lydia.
Lumine instinctively tightened her hold on the hilt, yet she could clearly feel the intense longing and resonance emanating from the blade, like a long-lost traveler who had finally found their home and was desperate to draw near.
Lydia's gaze remained fixed on the Festering Desire, her eyes filled with a hint of inquiry and anticipation as she said softly, "Moreover... this sword, which has a thousand and one connections to the Abyss, seems to allow my fragile soul to exist for a longer period of time."
The dark purple runes danced under the moonlight, and as they were reflected in her pure eyes, a rare seriousness actually flickered within them.
Lydia slowly began to speak, her voice a few tones deeper than before, and even the soft white glow surrounding her body dimmed slightly. "This Festering Desire was originally something I snatched from the Fake Albedo."
"Fake Albedo?" Paimon exclaimed instinctively. "You mean that imposter who caused all that trouble on Dragonspine before?"
Lydia nodded gently, her snow-white ponytail swaying slightly with the movement, a barely perceptible sharpness flashing in her eyes. "That's right."
"At the time, I had to put in a great deal of effort to seize the sword from his hands." She paused, as if touching that perilous memory, "Yet to this day, I still do not understand why it would recognize me as its master. I have absolutely no connection to the Abyss, and I have even stood against it from the very beginning."
Lumine's hand instinctively tightened on the hilt, and the vibrations on the blade seemed to grow more violent, as if responding to Lydia's words, or as if struggling.
She could clearly feel the complex emotions emanating from the blade: there was a resistance to the Abyss, a longing for Lydia, and a hint of indescribable fear, like a lost child.
Lydia's expression grew more solemn, and the white glow surrounding her body trembled slightly, her figure becoming a few shades more ethereal under the moonlight: "Only later did I vaguely realize that this was probably not unrelated to the Abyss..."
She deliberately paused, her gaze slowly sweeping across the three people present: "Or rather, it is not unrelated to that mysterious 'He' mentioned by the Abyss."
"He?" Venti finally snapped out of his daze from the reunion, his brow furrowed tightly, the gentleness from before fading from his eyes, replaced by vigilance and gravity, "You mean the true mastermind behind the Abyss? That being who appears in the monsters' delirious mutterings?"
He recalled the vague title the shadowy monster had muttered during their previous encounter with the Abyss monsters.
He had dismissed it as senseless ramblings back then, but hearing Lydia speak of it so solemnly now, he realized the situation was likely far more complex than he had imagined, and a chill silently crept up his spine.
Lydia nodded slightly, her figure growing even paler under the moonlight, her voice tinged with a trace of imperceptible exhaustion, as if maintaining her spiritual form had drained too much of her strength.
"I slept for a very long time, and my dreams were filled with pain, as if my soul were being scorched by countless chains, yet I also seemed to hear endless delirious mutterings."
"I could not understand it at the time. It was only when I opened my eyes to see the sunlight again and happened to sense the aura of the Abyss that I vaguely pieced together some clues. This sword seems to be a chosen medium of 'His', and I... perhaps I have simply happened to become its temporary host, a 'container' chosen by fate."
"So you need this sword now to uncover 'His' secrets?" Lumine asked hastily, her fingers subconsciously loosening their grip slightly.
The vibrations of the Festering Desire also subsided, as if it were silently awaiting her decision. The runes on the blade flashed with increasing regularity, as if responding to some kind of summons.
"It is not just about uncovering the secrets." Lydia turned her gaze to Venti, a trace of supplication in her eyes as her snow-white eyelashes trembled slightly. "'His' power is rapidly awakening. The disappearance of the Statues of The Seven is no coincidence. I fear 'He' is secretly gathering the power of the gods, preparing to carry out an even greater conspiracy."
"I need to borrow the power of the Festering Desire to maintain my spiritual form, and even more so, I need to use it as a guide to find a way to stop 'Him'."
"Venti, Lumine, Paimon, I know this request is very abrupt, and even a bit selfish, but Mondstadt, and even all of Teyvat, needs your help."
Venti looked at Lydia's increasingly ethereal figure, then at the restless Festering Desire in Lumine's hand, and the conflict in his heart instantly vanished.
He raised his hand to wipe away the remaining traces of tears from his face, a determined light rekindling in his eyes: "Rest assured, even without this sword, as long as it is for Mondstadt, to stop the Abyss, and to protect everything you cherish, when have I, Venti, ever backed down?"
Paimon also nodded vigorously, showing a streak of stubbornness: "Right! We'll help you! But... you have to promise us, you must be okay, don't let yourself vanish!"
Lumine took a deep breath, feeling the sword's hum vibrating in her palm as if she were saying goodbye to an old friend.
She slowly released her tight grip on the Festering Desire, her fingertips gliding over the cold blade with a hint of reluctance, but even more firmness.
The moment she let go, the Festering Desire transformed into a streak of dark purple light, flying directly toward Lydia. It circled her three times, as if offering an affectionate greeting, before gently landing in her palm.
The moment Lydia grasped the sword's hilt, the white light around her body suddenly grew brighter, dazzling yet not blinding. Her once ethereal figure also became much more stable, and even the folds on her snow-colored skirt became a bit clearer.
She looked down at the Festering Desire in her hand, then looked back at the three of them, a grateful smile appearing on her face.