"Seriously? I'm exhausted, and you're just lying here sleeping like a king, Koji!"
After learning from Jean where Koji had rented a house, Lumine dragged her tired body back—only to see him sprawled comfortably on the bed, sound asleep.
Instantly, her heart filled with indignation.
"—Crow Takes Flight!"
Lumine leapt straight at him, intending to crash down and give him a very rude wake-up call.
But Blessing of Evasion triggered, and instead she landed beside him, stunned. Wasn't she supposed to land right on him?
[Blessing of Evasion: Long-range attacks cannot hit you]
Her "Crow Takes Flight" had been registered as a ranged attack.
"Mmm…"
Koji turned over in his sleep, draping an arm and a leg across her. His warmth and breath washed over her, and Lumine's face immediately went bright red.
At that moment, no words could have been more powerful than her blushing face.
Paimon covered her eyes with her little hands, but peeked through her fingers to watch.
"Koji, you're awake, aren't you?"
Lumine suddenly realized something and stared at him with a deadpan expression.
"Heh, you smell really nice, girl." Koji opened his eyes and pulled back his arm and leg. Lumine's beauty was the kind that became more attractive the longer you looked.
"Of course I do. I'm a sweet-smelling girl."
Lumine didn't deny it. That was the natural scent of a maiden.
(Aether: …Maiden?)
"So, you finished handling the Four Winds Temple stuff?" Koji asked.
"Yeah, all done. Running around left my feet sore though. Come on, give me a massage." Lumine plopped her feet into his lap without hesitation.
A little reward.
Koji massaged with practiced precision. His technique was disturbingly professional.
"Good bro, same blanket," he muttered.
"Mmmh~"
As his pressure hit just the right acupoints, Lumine let out a soft, catlike sound. It was embarrassingly effective—the fatigue seemed to melt away.
"Ahem. Very good. I'll go wash my face now."
Blushing, she scurried off to the bathroom, unsettled at how sensitive her feet had been.
Koji smirked. Even if he hadn't known how, he could've just created another blessing for it.
[Blessing of Massage: Your massages relax people completely.]
"Slimes?"
Later, Koji explained to Jean that he wanted to bring slimes into Mondstadt. Her face immediately showed hesitation.
Though not strong, slimes were still monsters. Many ordinary citizens feared them. Mondstadt had no precedent for something like this.
"Can they really be tamed?"
"Jean, I think we should go see for ourselves," Lisa suggested, intrigued. "If they're in the city, they at least can't be allowed to run loose in the streets."
After all, slimes were low on intelligence. Taming them was thought nearly impossible. Usually only hilichurls kept them in camps.
"…Alright then. Koji, take us to see them first, and we'll decide."
In Whispering Woods—
"Amazing. I never thought slimes could avoid attacking people." Jean watched the colorful blobs bounce happily and couldn't help being amazed.
They were docile—far too docile for slimes. Normally they would've already charged by now.
"There's no force binding them… they're just genuinely attached to you, Koji," Lisa confirmed after a check. That was a relief.
"…Koji, can you guarantee these slimes won't cause trouble?" Jean pressed.
After all, seven different elemental slimes meant potential for constant reactions. An Overloaded or Bloom could easily take a house sky-high.
"Relax. They won't bump into each other," Koji promised, thumping his chest.
"…Very well. I'll trust you this once. But you can't parade them openly in Mondstadt. I'll inform Lawrence and Swan at the gates to let you pass with them."
"Thanks for the help."
"If you feel guilty for troubling us, maybe tell us how you tamed them?" Lisa asked with a sly smile, her curiosity piqued.
She had studied in Sumeru's Akademiya—her thirst for knowledge about the unknown was strong.
"Blessing of Beast-Taming. It increases the affection of other creatures toward me."
"…Another blessing? Just how many do you have?"
Lisa sighed in exasperation. His "Flight Blessing" alone already put most people to shame.
"Not many. A few dozen." Koji replied calmly.
If he wanted a blessing, he got it. The ones he had now were only those he'd thought of so far. There would be more.
"…Braggart." Lisa rolled her eyes.
How could anyone have that many? What was he, a god?
Koji just shrugged. Even when he told the truth, no one believed him. Whatever—time would prove it.
"By the way, Jean, where's Klee right now?" Koji suddenly asked.
"…Confinement room." Jean answered with a weary sigh.
For now, that was where Klee had to stay. Once the dragon crisis ended, they'd go back to turning a blind eye. But not now.
"What a pity. Jean, someday we'll take Klee to blow up a really big fish. You won't mind, right?"
"…That's something you'll need to ask Klee herself. And Lady Alice." Jean blinked in surprise.
Taking Klee to bomb fish on purpose—what a novel idea.
Jean was her guardian only within Mondstadt. For anything beyond, they needed her mother's consent.
Even if Alice couldn't be contacted, at least Albedo would have to be consulted.
"…Klee doesn't have a father, does she?"
Koji's curiosity slipped out. In the game, only Klee's mother Alice was ever mentioned. Her father? Practically nonexistent.
Klee even had a line about her father being an adventurer—but maybe that was just a story Alice invented for her curious daughter.
Did Lady Alice even have a husband?
"…"
Jean and Lisa exchanged a glance. They were curious too. They'd seen Alice. Never Klee's father.
"We've never seen him. Perhaps…"
If she did have a father, maybe he had already passed away. After all, Alice was an elf—an immortal. Mortals and immortals didn't share the same lifespans.
And the reproductive customs of elves were something beyond their knowledge.
Koji had raised a question they couldn't answer. It was outside their realm of expertise.
(End of Chapter)
[Check out my Patreon to read 20+ chapters ahead]
[[email protected]/Zukooo]
[Thanks for your support!]