In the afternoon, Collei and Ying'er came back unusually early.
Normally, patrolling the forest took quite a while—they wouldn't return until the sun went down.
Yet today they had clocked off ahead of schedule.
When Ye Xi asked about it, Collei let out a soft sigh and said, "Earlier today, Master Tighnari was summoned to the Akademiya by Mister Cyno."
"When he came back this afternoon, he suddenly said a rainforest had appeared in the desert, and that the Lord Lesser Grass King wanted Master Tighnari to go serve as a Forest Ranger over there."
"Master Tighnari wants me to go along with him, and told me to start getting ready."
"But how could a rainforest just suddenly appear in the desert?"
The moment she said this, Dunyarzad, standing nearby, burst out laughing.
"Collei, this was Master's doing."
"Ehh——!?"
A look of utter disbelief instantly spread across Collei's little face.
After hearing Dunyarzad's explanation, Collei's expression turned to one of pure admiration.
"That's amazing!"
Ye Xi smiled and pinched Collei's smiling cheek, asking, "But judging by the way you looked just now, you don't seem very happy about it."
"Uh... it's because if I go to the rainforest over there, I won't know how to get home anymore."
Collei sighed. "What if I can't make it home at night!"
In the Avidya Forest, every day she would return to the original Ye Family Compound, and then use the portal there to come back.
But if she went to the new rainforest, there would be no portal—so naturally she wouldn't be able to come back.
Ye Xi couldn't help but chuckle. "You're upset over such a trivial little thing?"
"How can you call it trivial!"
Collei put her hands on her hips and said in a small voice, "If I can't go home, I won't be able to see you. And if I can't see you, it'll feel like the sky is falling!"
This answer left Ye Xi's heart utterly satisfied.
Hearing such heartfelt words from Collei—how could he not be happy?
He pulled Collei into his arms and comforted her, "Don't worry. If you're going to that rainforest, it'll definitely be centered around Aaru Village."
"Isn't there a door over at Aaru Village?"
"And if that doesn't work, I'll just open another one for you, so you can come straight home!"
Hearing this, Collei's face lit up instantly with delight and surprise. "Really!? That's wonderful!"
As she spoke, Collei happily peppered Ye Xi's face with little kisses, like a chick pecking at rice.
Perhaps because they'd been like an old married couple for so long, Collei had gradually stopped being shy about such affection.
In the past, just a single kiss would have made her blush.
Just as everyone was making merry in the courtyard, a door suddenly appeared outside.
That door bloomed with a dazzling radiance, drawing the attention of everyone in the courtyard.
"Eh!? Wh-what's going on?"
Ye Xi gestured for everyone not to worry. "It should be Amber and Eula returning to Mondstadt—they're opening the door over there using the tool I gave them before."
Collei's heart leapt with joy, and she nodded quickly. "Going by the time, they should already be back!"
Just as she said this, the door bloomed with light once more, and then two figures emerged.
Amber and Eula walked in together, looking ever so cautious.
Upon seeing the familiar surroundings, both Amber and Eula let out a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness, we really made it back!"
"I thought it might teleport us off to some strange place!"
The truth was, they hadn't been entirely sure whether the door could really bring them back to the Serenitea Pot.
The moment she saw the two girls, Collei excitedly waved and ran out.
"Amber, Eula!"
After two days apart, Collei had missed them dearly.
"Collei?! You're home so early today!"
"Mhm!"
Amber struck up a conversation with Collei.
Eula, meanwhile, came over to stand before Ye Xi.
"Was the trip smooth?"
Hearing Ye Xi's question, Eula sighed and remarked, "Thanks to the transportation you gave us, when we got back to Mondstadt City, we nearly scared the gate guards to death."
"You have no idea—the panicked look on their faces when they saw a Ruin Hunter appear at the gates of Mondstadt City!"
Ye Xi couldn't help but laugh out loud.
It did indeed seem rather terrifying.
A Ruin Hunter's destructive power was extraordinarily fearsome—without several knights, they'd hardly stand a chance against it.
Eula suddenly thought of something and spoke up. "Oh right, in a bit I'll head to the tavern and buy some Dandelion Wine, then bring it back tonight so you can all taste the delicacies of Mondstadt!"
As a Mondstadter, she naturally took immense pride in talking about wine.
All these days she'd been drinking Liyue wine and Sumeru wine, and she'd long been itching to show off some Dandelion Wine.
Ye Xi felt a little puzzled. "Then why don't we just go to Mondstadt City to drink? You promised before that you'd treat me to a drink."
"Eh?"
"Ahem.... never mind, let's... let's just forget it..."
Eula said a little awkwardly, "My reputation in Mondstadt isn't very good... if we went to the tavern together, we definitely wouldn't be able to drink in peace...."
"And it'd bring you a lot of trouble too...."
Whether it was the Cat's Tail Tavern or the Angel's Share, she'd been to them all.
But no matter where she went, someone would always come to harass her, until she couldn't even drink her wine in peace.
She had no wish to drag Ye Xi down with her.
Seeing how reluctant Eula was, Ye Xi didn't press her. "Alright then, but you'll have to make it up to me later."
Thinking it was just a polite remark, Eula agreed.
"By the way, is the door hidden in a discreet enough spot?"
"Since I happen to have some free time, I could go meet your Grand Master Jean and discuss the matters concerning Mondstadt."
Hearing Ye Xi ask this, Eula nodded. "We put the door inside the wardrobe!"
A wardrobe was a very private place; even if someone came in, they wouldn't go rummaging directly through the wardrobe.
Ye Xi considered it for a moment, then suggested, "How about we go right now?"
In truth, the plans for Mondstadt were quite simple and wouldn't take long to lay out.
Since he had the time anyway, it was better to go now—in a couple of days there'd be plenty to keep him busy in Inazuma!
Eula nodded, having no objection, and went to have a quick word with Amber.
"Eh? We're going right now?"
"Sure! It just so happens Grand Master Jean gave us the whole afternoon off for rest!"
"Master Ye Xi, I'll treat you to some of Mondstadt's Sticky Honey Roast! It's super delicious!"
Amber gave a beaming, cheerful welcome, then looked over at Collei to one side. "Collei, you come too!"
"Okay!"
And so, the three girls led Ye Xi through the portal.
Sure enough, the other side of the door was indeed a wardrobe.
This was Amber and Eula's dormitory, and it was very clean and tidy inside.
Ye Xi glanced around. The room wasn't big, with two beds both pushed against the corners of the wall.
Clearly, one was Amber's bed and the other was Eula's.
Just then, Eula gave a soft snort and leaned in. "What are you looking for?"
"If it's our little undergarments, we've already put them away!"
Ye Xi's mature face instantly flushed red, feeling rather embarrassed.
Eula crossed her arms, not angry in the slightest—rather, she wore a tsundere expression. "Hmph, you lecherous wolf, I'll remember this grudge."
In truth, they had just casually tossed their little undergarments into the bedding earlier, to make it easier to install the portal.
Thinking back on it now, it was a good thing they'd hidden them away—otherwise it would have been utterly mortifying.
At this moment, Ye Xi suddenly realized a problem.
"Wait a second—this is a girls' dormitory. How am I supposed to get out?"
...
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