A long time later...
"Wuwuwu... I'll never dare to mess around again...(t^t)"
Bruised and battered, Ying lay on the bed, covering her ravaged, red and swollen cherry lips. With teary eyes, she looked at Lumine, who was pressing down on her.
Seeing the fruits of her long struggle, Lumine nodded in satisfaction.
"Hehe~ Speaking of which, it feels like it's been a while since we had any close contact. I wonder if your figure has grown at all ๑乛v乛๑"
"Hmph... Big bad, even if I know, I won't tell you (￣へ￣)"
"Mhmm... Then I'll have to check myself~"
"Mmhmm?! Wait! You... you... Ah! You're still injured! Let's wait until you're better!"
"But this doesn't seem to have anything to do with being injured, does it?"
"Uh... Anyway, not now! I'm not used to being in a crowded place with poor soundproofing! ≥﹏≤"
"Oh~ So my little sister is afraid of losing control, I see, I see~"
"Pfft! I never said that!"
(Though the meaning is pretty much the same...)
"Hehe~ Alright, alright, whatever my Ying says goes. Since we've already had breakfast, let's take Paimon and go for a walk~ (^～^)"
"Mmhmm... That's true. By the way, what did you talk about with the Traveler just now? I was too focused and didn't hear anything," Ying said sheepishly, sticking out her little tongue.
"You... Let's go, I'll tell you while we walk."
Lumine helplessly rubbed Ying's little head and pulled her hand as they walked out.
Another period of time later...
"Oh? Scaramouche is actually planning to break into the prison... Should we tell the Millelith?"
"Mmhmm... But they were after us before. Don't you feel angry about that, Ying?"
"Ah, this... I don't think I've ever been angry about it..."
It wasn't that she wasn't angry at all, but so many things had happened during this time that Ying had forgotten about being wanted...
"Is that so... Alright, alright, ignoring things isn't my style. However, I don't think telling those Millelith soldiers will be very effective. After all, they can't make decisions, and we're not sure if they'll even take our words seriously and report them to their superiors..." Lumine mused after a moment's thought.
"Mmhmm, superiors..."
(Come to think of it, Ganyu should invite us to the Jade Chamber tonight. I can tell her then, right...)
Recalling the plot, Ying immediately relaxed.
"Hehe~ Let's not talk about that anymore. Tell me where you want to go, Lumine, and I'll lead the way (^～^)"
"Where do I want to go? Mmhmm... Ah! I want you to take me to see Hu Tao."
"No problem, you want to see Hu Tao?! Σ(|||▽|||)"
"Yes, she took such good care of you those few days, we have to thank her properly."
"Uh... This... This... It does make sense... but..."
(But I'm afraid that little devil will take the opportunity to trick me (t^t))
"Mmhmm... Do you two have something to hide from me?" Seeing Ying's hesitant look, Lumine asked suspiciously.
"No, no, no! How could that be? I'm not that kind of person... Haha... Ha..."
"Mmhmm, we really have nothing to hide from you~"
Hu Tao suddenly appeared from behind and hugged Ying, startling her greatly.
"Waaah?! Hu Tao?!"
"Oh? I didn't expect you to show up right after we mentioned you. What a coincidence."
"Hehe~ This Director was looking for customers on the street, and as I was looking, I suddenly saw a familiar figure in the distance, so I hurried over (^～^)"
"Phew... You're still as fond of scaring people as ever..."
"Ehehe~ What can I do? You're so easily scared, Ying. Xiangling isn't as easy to scare as you."
Damn it!
"Mmhmm... Seeing how close you two are, it's making me doubt what you just said, Ying." Lumine looked at Ying suspiciously, but she didn't feel jealous of their close relationship because she knew Hu Tao wasn't a bad person, and she was confident she could win against Hu Tao, well... mostly...
"Oh? Hehe~ You're overthinking it. Ying is so kind. She even offered to take photos for me in return for teaching her stick fighting! ๑乛v乛๑" Hearing Lumine's words, Hu Tao guessed the general idea and said with a mischievous smile.
"Oh? Ying, you'd rather take photos for someone else than be intimate with me?"
"Pfft... Cough cough cough... Lumine, don't listen to her nonsense." Ying quickly shook her head vigorously to deny it, then quickly collected herself and whispered to Hu Tao.
"Hey! Do you want me to spend the next few days bedridden, Hu Tao?!"
"Ah? But I'm helping you, aren't I? It gives you a good excuse."
"I didn't need an excuse in the first place!"
"Ah, this... So you didn't tell your sister about the photoshoot? Σ(|||▽|||)"
"How could I dare to tell her!"
"Uh... I didn't expect this Director to unintentionally cause trouble... Cough cough~ It's okay, let me handle it for you~" Hu Tao patted Ying's shoulder, then ran to Lumine's side and started conversing with her.
(Emm... You're the one who caused this whole mess, aren't you... Sigh...) Ying shook her head listlessly, silently praying in her heart.
(I hope big sister will be merciful and let me off this time... If not, a lighter punishment wouldn't be bad...)
A period of time later...
After chatting with Hu Tao, Lumine was unknowingly drawn from their little secret to the lunch gathering today. Soon, they agreed to have lunch together.
"Hehe~ Xiangling is busy with new recipes lately, and Qiqi's shop is also quite busy these days. I was worried lunch wouldn't be lively, and then you two just showed up~ (^～^)"
"You... you're still the same after a few days. You should at least change your clothes," Ying observed Hu Tao for a moment and patted her shoulder helplessly.
"Hehe~ This is my work uniform, how can I casually change it? Besides, wearing it allows me to expand my business while still having fun~ (^～^)"
"That's what you say... but it always feels a bit strange to see you wearing the same clothes all the time... And Lumine, you too, why don't you pick a different outfit to wear every day like me?"
"Hahaha, maybe because this dress has a special meaning to me, so I haven't changed it..."
"Mmhmm... Then if I asked you to change, would you agree to my unreasonable request?"