Paimon and Lumine, watching Shao Yun in this state, couldn't help but feel a trace of worry.
Seeing him cough so violently, both grew tense, afraid something might be seriously wrong.
Shao Yun took a deep breath, then wiped the corner of his mouth. Looking at Lumine and Paimon's concerned eyes, he smiled and reassured them.
"It's nothing."
"I just choked on my own saliva while laughing, that's why I coughed so hard. You don't need to worry."
Hearing that Shao Yun had only choked on his own saliva, Lumine let out a long sigh of relief.
"Oh, that's good… a false alarm."
Then she asked, "But Shao Yun, why did you come here to Haypasia looking for me? Was there something important?"
Shao Yun casually shrugged, the corners of his lips lifting into a faint smile as he replied.
"Actually, it's nothing serious. It's just that I didn't see you all morning, and I missed you."
"And besides, I heard from Tighnari that you're no longer allergic to the Spirit Borneol Incense, so I came to see if that was true."
Seeing that Shao Yun wanted to confirm whether her allergic reactions had really disappeared, Lumine patiently explained.
"Mm, it's exactly like Tighnari said. I'm completely unaffected by Spirit Borneol Incense now."
"And according to his analysis, it's probably because when I first obtained the Dendro element, my control over it wasn't yet stable or precise enough."
After a brief pause, Lumine added, "Also, Haypasia told me that incense like this was originally used by scholars to communicate with Irminsul."
"Maybe that was why I had such a strange resonance with Irminsul back then, causing me to fall unconscious. But now, I've completely broken free of that problem."
As she spoke, memories of the past surfaced on their own.
Lumine couldn't help but recall the moment she first met Dvalin. A playful smile spread across her face as she teased, "This reminds me of when we first met Dvalin! Back then, my grasp of Anemo was just as clumsy, and poor Venti's plan to purify him ended up a total failure."
Sitting beside her, Shao Yun listened to all this talk of Irminsul and Dendro theories, completely unable to understand.
He shook his head helplessly, muttering, "Lumine, all of this is far too complicated for me. I really can't make sense of it."
Even so, he offered his own way of showing care.
"But no matter what, Lumine, if something like this happens again—whether or not we meet the Dendro Archon—we must leave Sumeru and head to the next nation. There's no room for negotiation."
…
[What! Then what about you?]
"Shut your mouth! I already promised Aether—everything is to be decided by Lumine. My situation isn't important!"
…
Hearing Shao Yun's concern, Lumine comforted him and insisted that she was no longer allergic to Spirit Borneol Incense.
To prove it, she deliberately inhaled Haypasia's incense—and indeed, nothing happened.
Then Lumine took Shao Yun by the hand, pulling him to sit on a tree stump. In a soft voice she said "Anyway, don't worry about me anymore. I've already prepared lunch. Let's eat together."
When Shao Yun saw the Sweet Madame and Radish Veggie Soup she handed him, he asked in surprise, "There's some for me too?"
Lumine nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, smiling brightly.
"Of course. How could I let you just sit there and watch us eat?"
…
During the meal, Haypasia kept her distance from Shao Yun. Every time she picked up a dish or chewed, she was extremely cautious, as if afraid of provoking unnecessary trouble.
Meanwhile, Lumine chatted enthusiastically with Shao Yun.
After swallowing a bite of delicious Sweet Madame, Lumine gently patted his arm and said, "By the way, Shao Yun, there's something I need to tell you."
Shao Yun quickly set his plate down on his lap, asking with concern, "What is it?"
Lumine first glanced toward the cave entrance in the distance, then turned back to face him. Lowering her voice, she said slowly, "Just as I stepped into this cave, I suddenly had a dream—a completely nonsensical dream."
Then she began to vividly recount that bizarre, surreal dream.
When she finished, Shao Yun thought for a moment before summing it up.
"So basically, in your dream you met an Abyss Lector… and it bullied you?"
Lumine nodded vigorously, puffing her cheeks as she complained in a slightly spoiled tone, "Yes! Even though I know it was only a dream, it made me so upset!"
"My brother and I have met so many times already, and yet that horrible thing dared to say in the dream that he abandoned me!"
Seeing Lumine's adorable yet angry expression, Shao Yun reached out to pat her head, promising, "In that case, the next time I run into an Abyss Lector, I'll make sure to teach it a lesson."
…
Shao Yun could already imagine the scene.
Abyss Lector: Why are you hitting me? I didn't do anything to you!
Shao Yun: Lumine dreamed you bullied her. You understand.
Abyss Lector: Hey! No, wait—help! Your Highness!
…
Meanwhile, in a long-forgotten ruin shrouded in gloom and dread…
The Abyss Lector, Wicked Torrents suddenly shuddered, letting out a sharp chill, muttering aloud, "Ah! This bone-piercing cold!"
Standing before him, the Abyss Herald Enjou gave his colleague a puzzled look.
"Wicked Torrents, what's wrong with you?"
Wicked Torrents whipped around, scanning his surroundings in alarm, but found nothing unusual.
Relaxing slightly, he explained in a trembling voice, "N-no, it's nothing… Just suddenly felt a wave of terrible cold, like Frost Fall had laid its hand on my shoulder."
Enjou found the sight strange—an Abyss Lector of Hydro claiming to feel cold before a Herald of Pyro was bizarre enough.
Especially when he mentioned Frost Fall.
"Lately it's Frost Fall's turn to serve beside His Highness. How could you be sensing him?"
Wicked Torrents, embarrassed, shook his head and forced a calm tone. "It's nothing, maybe just my imagination."
"Anyway, don't dwell on it. Hurry up and tell me everything you know."
At the urging, Enjou snapped coldly. "You muscle-brained fool, what exactly do you want? Is it about the documents I found in Byakuyakoku? Be specific—what information do you want?"
Wicked Torrents quickly explained, "His Highness ordered me to learn from you, but he didn't say what exactly. So just tell me everything you know."
At first, Enjou was impatient. But hearing that it was His Highness's command, his attitude flipped completely.
"Tch, you really should've said that earlier! So, what reason did His Highness have for sending you to me?"
Wicked Torrents then recounted in full the events he had experienced in the ruins beneath The Chasm.
By the end, Enjou understood.
Wicked Torrents simply couldn't speak properly, and His Highness wanted him to learn.
But Enjou knew such things couldn't be taught overnight, so he gave the most practical advice.
With a light cough, he said, "Mm… It's simple, really. From now on, when you're at His Highness's side, and you happen to meet his kin—or his kin's lover—just keep your mouth shut."
After all, if you don't know how to speak, silence is eternal wisdom.
When the brother-in-law and sister-in-law are chatting, what right does a subordinate have to butt in?
…
Riding his horse, Shao Yun carried Lumine and Paimon away from Haypasia's meditation cave, back to Caravan Ribat.
At Tighnari's treehouse, the three of them began packing their meager belongings, preparing to head for Sumeru City.
Just then, they noticed a group gathered in front of the rangers' treehouse.
Approaching, they saw several scholars from the Akademiya speaking with Tighnari.
Two stood out in particular.
One, named Ghulam, wore a silver laurel crown woven from olive branches, giving him the air of a highly esteemed scholar.
The other, named Khajeh, wore refined half-rimmed glasses that immediately marked him as a man of vast knowledge.
The rest of the scholars stood silently, like background scenery.
At that moment, after hearing Tighnari's refusal to go to the Akademiya, Ghulam spoke sternly.
"Tighnari, don't you think the reason you've given is nothing but evasion?"
He paused briefly, then continued.
"We all know, as a forest ranger, purging the Withering is indeed your duty. But you must also realize that your current methods only treat the surface, not the root."
"The Withering grows worse each day, far beyond our initial expectations. The outbreak months ago, and the recent breach of Caravan Ribat—don't these stir any crisis within you?"
Ghulam's words grew increasingly fervent, his emotions rising.
He stepped forward, declaring passionately, "Sage Khajeh himself has stated that what you accomplish in Sumeru City could directly determine whether Irminsul can be healed! Given that, what reason do you have to refuse?"
His tone carried an urgent hope.
Beside him, Khajeh gently pulled Ghulam back, saying kindly, "Don't be so aggressive. We came to invite Tighnari back to the Akademiya, not to make enemies."
Tighnari, surrounded by their persuasion, felt helpless. First his master's letter, now all these scholars—it was exhausting.
Still, he responded respectfully.
"Sage Khajeh, for you to come personally is more than I deserve."
Then, solemnly, he added, "But precisely because the Withering is so severe, I cannot leave Caravan Ribat. If I were to go, and the Withering struck again, the result wouldn't just be a few rangers bedridden."
Could Collei possibly handle that in his absence? Impossible.
"And besides, I am only a forest ranger. I hardly seem fit to assist a great pillar of the Vahumana school such as yourself."
He had given Khajeh both face and courtesy. Surely that would suffice.
But unexpectedly, Khajeh persisted without the slightest weariness.
"Tighnari, you must look further ahead! Your master personally participates in this great project to save Irminsul. He urgently needs your strength to aid him!"
"If we succeed in this arduous task, it will be tremendous news for all of Sumeru! Perhaps even the Withering itself could be eradicated entirely."
"And then, your duties as a forest ranger will finally be lightened."
Hearing the matter circle back to the same point, Tighnari sighed, massaging his forehead.
"Why must we return to this again…"
"Very well, Sage Khajeh. If what you say is true, then may I ask: what exactly does my teacher require of me?"
At this, Khajeh instinctively glanced aside, a flicker of guilt on his face, stammering, "W-well… that… Once you arrive in Sumeru City, all will become clear."
Tighnari caught the unnatural shift in his expression. Crossing his arms, he pressed, "Then at least tell me—how long will I be required to remain there? I cannot leave Caravan Ribat only to return and find it consumed by the Withering, everyone dead."
Khajeh shook his head slowly.
"At present, there is no definite timeframe I can give."
Hearing that vague answer, Tighnari spoke firmly.
"So, even though you've come all the way here, you still cannot give me any concrete response to the questions I've raised with my teacher?"
"These excuses—about the Withering, about Irminsul—I've heard them countless times. I've asked over and over what subject could possibly demand such secrecy."
His gaze sharpened.
"I will not agree to take part in such a vague and evasive project."
Ghulam bristled at Tighnari's blunt refusal. "Tighnari, you—!"
But Khajeh held him back with a weary sigh.
"Enough. Our true mission was to deliver reinforcements to the rangers here. Persuading Tighnari was secondary. We've completed our task. Let's depart."
He knew dragging things further would only waste time. Better to return to the Akademiya.