"Huh? You're actually charging me?" Makoto blinked in surprise and looked at Lora, clearly caught off guard. "I thought with our friendship, you wouldn't ask for payment."
"Friendship is friendship. Payment is payment. I even charge my own daughter—why wouldn't I charge you?" Lora replied matter-of-factly.
Ei nodded in agreement. "That makes sense."
"Ei! Whose sister are you, exactly?" Makoto protested with a playful glare. She turned back to Lora with a bright smile. "Well… Lora, you know our family situation isn't exactly great… so about the money… it might be a little…"
Lora frowned. The words sounded oddly familiar.
"Did you pick up bad habits in Liyue? Who taught you that line?"
"Zhongyue taught me," Makoto said earnestly. "I think it works pretty well when you don't want to pay."
"You still have to use it in the right situation," Lora said helplessly. "Do you think I don't know your family's situation? The entire Inazuma belongs to your family!"
"Well, the entire Fontaine belongs to your family too!" Makoto shot back. She patted Lora on the shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry, you won't lose out. I just don't have any money on me right now. Once we get back to Inazuma, I'll have Miko settle the bill for you."
Lora looked at Makoto's smiling face for a moment, then said:
"Then how about you give me Miko?"
Makoto froze.
"I meant Miko would pay you," she clarified. "Not that Miko herself would be used as payment."
"Just lend her to me for a few days," Lora continued calmly. "I won't break her."
"Well…" Makoto hesitated, studying Lora's expression. "That… would depend on Miko's opinion. I can't decide that myself. If she doesn't mind, then you could borrow her for a few days."
"Deal."
Lora raised her hand, and the two sealed the agreement with a high-five.
Not long after, Makoto noticed the ship's speed suddenly increase—it was obvious Lora wanted to reach Inazuma as soon as possible.
...
After several days at sea, Lora guided the large ship into Ritou Harbor.
By controlling the water to support and guide the vessel, she performed a flawless docking maneuver—something even veteran sailors with decades of experience at sea might struggle to accomplish. The officials at Ritou Harbor watched in astonishment.
But what surprised them even more were the people stepping off the ship.
"Th–The Shogun…?"
The Kanjou Commission officials had originally approached to conduct routine questioning. But when they saw Makoto and Ei step down from the ship, they froze in shock, hurriedly putting away their papers and brushes before rushing forward to bow.
"Don't block the harbor. Go back to your duties," Makoto said, waving them away.
Once the Kanjou Commission officials dispersed, Lora finally took a moment to look around.
Decorations for the Irodori Festival filled the entire harbor. This was the first grand celebration Inazuma had held since lifting the Sakoku Decree, and the whole nation clearly took it very seriously.
Coincidentally, as Lora followed Makoto and Ei through the streets of Ritou and arrived at the Five Kasen Plaza, they ran straight into the blond Traveler and a certain floating companion.
Albedo was standing beside them as well.
"Uh…"
Lora looked at the two of them, somewhat baffled.
Did they teleport here?
"Oh? It's you two. What are you doing here?" Makoto asked, noticing them and walking over with a smile.
Hearing the voice, Lumine turned around.
Paimon immediately waved enthusiastically.
"Hey! Long time no see, Lora! And Makoto and Ei too!"
Lumine introduced both sides.
"Lora, Makoto, Ei—this is Albedo, also known as the Chalk Prince. He's a painter from Mondstadt who was invited here to create illustrations for the Five Kasen."
"Albedo, this is Lora, an Adeptus from Liyue. This is Makoto, the former Electro Archon of Inazuma, and this is Ei, the current Electro Archon."
Albedo: "...?"
"You really do have an astonishing social circle."
Lora greeted Albedo briefly, then turned to Lumine.
"We only left the Chasm together about half a month ago. When did you two get to Inazuma?"
"Right after we reported the Chasm incident to the Adventurers' Guild!"
Paimon explained eagerly.
"We had just turned in the commission when Katheryne gave us another one! It was a commission from Inazuma, and it specifically requested the two of us. So we set off immediately!"
"No wonder we didn't see you in Liyue," Lora said in realization. "Who gave the commission?"
"Yae Miko," Lumine answered. "She asked us to help prepare for the Irodori Festival and deal with unexpected situations."
"She complained that the Shogun doesn't understand this kind of work, so everything has to be handled by her and Ayato. She said she's exhausted…"
"Oh dear, she's worked so hard," Makoto said with a smile. "We should reward her with some extra fried tofu later."
Ei was silent for a moment before saying, "I will improve the Shogun's capabilities for handling festivals like this."
"Maybe don't," Lora said, looking at Ei. "If the program is already running, it's best not to touch it. What if you introduce new bugs?"
Ei fell silent.
"…You're right."
"So what are you doing here now?" Makoto asked. "Preparing to paint the Five Kasen?"
Lumine shook her head.
"Not exactly. We're actually investigating the disappearance of a light novel from Yae Publishing House—A Legend of Sword."
"The novel disappeared? What happened?" Makoto asked curiously.
Paimon explained the situation, then added,
"They caught a suspicious person at the warehouse. We're about to go check it out. Do you want to come with us?"
With Lora and the Raiden sisters around, even if the suspect turned out to be some terrifying monster, there'd be nothing to worry about.
"Alright! I'd like to see who's bold enough to disrupt the Irodori Festival," Ei said immediately, agreeing before Lora or Makoto could respond.
And so the group formed a lineup powerful enough to rampage across all of Teyvat and headed toward the warehouse.
Paimon and Lumine were responsible for the "rampage."
...
When they arrived at the warehouse, they saw a green-clad youth standing in confrontation with Kujou Sara.
"Uh…"
Lora, Makoto, and Ei all fell silent at the exact same moment.
Paimon stared in disbelief.
"Y–You… you… why are you here?"