Chapter 425: Ch 425 : Don’t come any closer!
Aether and Paimon held each other and cried for quite a while before gradually calming down...
Aether knew very well—those vivid memories in his mind, that piercing pain—there was no mistake.
He had truly died once, and then come back to life with his memories intact...
Just like what had happened back in Fontaine!
Aether couldn’t help but revisit his suspicion: could it be that Su Yuan also possessed a similar ability?
Su Yuan had said he would definitely save Paimon, that he could make everything start over again—was that his method of saving her?
And as for all the intel Su Yuan had gathered—could it be that he, too, had obtained it through countless trials and errors?
"Aether, Paimon, are you two alright? Do you want to see a doctor once we get back to Mondstadt?" Su Yuan asked.
"I’m fine, Su Yuan. Let’s keep moving forward!"
Aether responded like this.
Though he had many things he wanted to say to Su Yuan, based on his experience back in Fontaine, whenever certain hidden topics came up, they would twist into strange words...
Aether didn’t want to go through those awkward situations again.
Saying more was pointless.
As long as he retained the memories of the previous loop, he could act at the critical moment and turn events away from a bad ending!
Su Yuan, Aether, and Paimon continued heading toward Mondstadt, and before long, they came across Draff and Alan resting on the grassy roadside.
"Well, well, if it isn’t the Traveler and Paimon! You’re on your way back to Mondstadt? What a coincidence, running into you out here!"
Draff greeted Aether with a smile—but the next second, his expression suddenly shifted...
Because he sensed that the Traveler and the man standing beside him didn’t exactly seem friendly...
"Mr. Draff, have you been sneaking drinks again? Diona has warned you countless times not to. It’s for the sake of your health and safety!" Su Yuan said bluntly.
"What? I just had a sip—it’s not poison. I’m not going to drop dead from it. How could that possibly endanger my life?" Draff asked in confusion.
"And you—who are you, kid? Do I even know you? What’s with that attitude, lecturing me right off the bat?"
Su Yuan ignored Draff and instead turned to Aether, saying: "Aether, I should’ve mentioned this to you on the way here. You understand what I mean, right?"
"Don’t worry, Su Yuan, I was thinking the same thing!" Aether also showed a smile.
Draff, seeing that Su Yuan and the Traveler seemed to have reached some kind of sinister agreement, suddenly grew uneasy and said:
"Wait, Traveler, what do you mean by this? Are you teaming up with this young man to do something to me???"
"It’s nothing," Su Yuan said, word by word, "we just want to pry open your mouth, let the Traveler pour Hydro into you continuously, and give you a stomach cleanse!"
"And then, we’ll give you a bath, change your clothes, and wash off the stench of alcohol..."
"You... You two, don’t come any closer!!!"
However, Draff’s resistance and wails were of no use.
Under Su Yuan and Aether’s forceful, thunderous methods, everything was quickly carried out.
Meanwhile, Alan, faced with this sudden turn of events, was so shocked that he couldn’t utter a word, his brain crashing as he stared blankly at everything unfolding...
After it was all done, Paimon floated over to Draff’s side, sniffed with her nose, nodded in satisfaction, and said:
"Okay, that’s it! Now there’s not even a trace of alcohol smell on Mr. Draff!"
At this moment, Draff looked at Aether with a face full of grievance and said:
"Traveler, as the Honorary Knight of the Knights of Favonius, is everything you’re doing now the will of the Knights???"
"In Mondstadt, alcohol is banned, I can’t buy wine, and Diona won’t let me drink either. I could only take out a bit of my private stash and sneak outside the city to drink..."
"What did I do wrong? I just wanted to have a drink!!!"
"I was just craving a little, so I snuck a sip. It’s not like I violated the Heavenly Principles! Why are you treating me like this???"
"Eh? Dad, Alan, you’re here!" At this moment, Diona’s voice rang out from not far away.
"Oh wow, it’s the Traveler and Paimon! Didn’t expect to run into you two here!" Diona said in surprise.
Diona then walked over to Draff’s side, sniffed the air, and said in disbelief:
"Eh? Dad, you don’t have any trace of alcohol on you at all?"
"I thought you were just using hunting as an excuse, when in fact you were sneaking off to drink. But turns out you really didn’t drink?"
"Looks like I wrongly accused you. I shouldn’t have doubted you, Dad!"
Seeing Diona suddenly appear here, Draff was also a little surprised.
Then he glanced at Aether and Su Yuan...
He thought to himself, could it be that the Traveler did all this because he already knew Diona was coming, and was just helping him cover up—so that he could maintain his strong image in his daughter’s eyes?
If that’s the case... maybe he had misjudged the Traveler?
"Well then, since it’s such a coincidence, Diona, let’s head back to Mondstadt together!"
Aether smiled at Diona and said:
"Mr. Draff still needs to keep hunting with Allan, so let’s leave them be!"
And so, after saying goodbye to Draff and Allan, Su Yuan’s group followed Diona back to Mondstadt.
On the way back, Su Yuan and Aether also explained to Diona about the Eerie entities, as well as the conditions under which she herself might undergo Eerie transformation...
Though the truth was somewhat cruel for her to accept, it was something she had to face in order to prevent an even greater tragedy.
"Traveler, Su Yuan... you’re saying that the alcohol ban in Mondstadt, and the missing drinkers, were all caused by me?" Diona’s expression froze; the massive amount of information had clearly overwhelmed her, and she hadn’t quite processed it yet...
"Diona, none of this is your fault. It’s not because of you, so you don’t need to feel guilty or sad about it!" Paimon quickly comforted her.
"If you have to blame someone, blame the Eerie forces polluting and controlling you—they’re the real bad guys!"
"Thank you, Paimon." Diona calmed down a little, expressing her gratitude for Paimon’s comfort.
Then she continued: "It’s lucky that my father, Draff, really did come out here to hunt this time..."
"If he had sneaked out to drink, then according to what you said about the Eerie transformation rules, I would’ve probably fallen into an Eerie state and cruelly killed him, right?"
"My dad... did he actually come to his senses this time, or did he just get lucky enough to save his own life?" Diona muttered softly, "Either way... it’s really a relief..."
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