Hours later...
After going through that countless repetitive process, Lumine finally tried on all the clothes and collapsed weakly onto the bed.
"I can't believe it... this is a form of torture..."
I should be a little gentler to Ying from now on...
"Hehehe~ You truly don't know what you have until it's gone. This is something many people dream of."
Lumine gave Yae Miko a glare.
"Then why don't you enjoy it yourself?"
"Well, that's because I'm not among those many people~"
e
"Mmm... Because of the energy within me, I can't muster any strength right now."
Lumine clenched her fist as she replied, her current situation indeed making things difficult.
Seeing Lumine's state, Yae Miko shook her head helplessly.
"Unfortunately, though I tried to help you remove it, I unexpectedly failed. If I'm not mistaken, this energy was specifically developed by that fellow, Scaramouche, to target you."
"Thank you... But there will always be a way, as long as I can find that fellow Scaramouche," Lumine nodded in response.
Actually, going back to ask Venti or Zhongli might also work... But I can't teleport anymore...
Meanwhile, elsewhere...
Looking at the still boundless sea, Paimon couldn't help but ask happily,
"Ying, how much longer do we have to fly? I feel like my illusory wings are about to break..."
"Uh... While I'd love to tell you we're almost there, in reality, we probably still have at least another 8 hours..." Ying shook her head helplessly.
"Huh?! This is going to be the death of me..."
"Alright, alright, just hold on a little longer. Once we reach the shore, I'll get you something delicious to eat~"
Just as Ying was comforting Paimon, a teleportation gate suddenly appeared not too far in front of them.
"W-w-what?!"
Ying tried to brake desperately, but due to inertia, she flew into it.
"Ying?! Ying, are you okay?!" Paimon, who was behind Ying, managed to brake in time and called out fearfully from outside.
Meanwhile, inside the teleportation gate...
"Ouch, ouch, ouch... Why did a teleportation gate suddenly appear while I was flying just fine..."
Ying, who had fallen onto the grass, got up and scratched her hair in pain.
"Did you fall hard?"
"How could I not? ...Huh?"
Ying replied instinctively, then suddenly felt something was off. She quickly looked up towards the direction of the voice.
"Aether?! What are you doing here?!"
Aether smiled and ruffled Ying's soft hair.
"Hahaha~ What do you mean? This is my private room, why wouldn't I be here?"
"Huh?"
Upon hearing Aether's words, Ying quickly looked around and realized that this was the place Aether had brought her to last time.
"Uh... In that case, that teleportation gate that suddenly appeared... you didn't create it, did you..."
Aether nodded.
"Yes. Because all the Abyss Mages I sent out to find you have gone missing, I sped up the process. After finishing the preparations last night, I came to find you immediately."
"After all, it was my carelessness that brought you here. I would definitely feel guilty if I did nothing~"
Of course, the most important thing was to prevent Lumine from settling the score with me later...
"Oh? I didn't expect you to be so considerate."
Ying nodded with satisfaction. From Aether's words, she understood why Tore had rushed to get rid of those Abyss Mages before she arrived. It turned out it was to prevent her from realizing they were specifically looking for her.
"Hahaha~ Alright, tell me where you want to go. I'll set up a teleportation gate for you (^_^)"
"Really?! That's wonderful!"
Ying happily clenched her little fists. Then, she suddenly thought of something and quickly said,
"Ah, wait a moment. I'll go get Paimon too. She might be scared if she's alone."
Saying this, Ying slowly walked towards the teleportation gate. Just as she was about to step through, the gate suddenly became brighter, and a familiar voice reached Ying's ears.
"Ying, I'm here to save you!!"