Mr. Zhongli, we can't slack off anymore!

Behind her, Inazuma's silhouette shrank continuously on the vast sea, eventually turning into a faint, wisp of cherry blossom pink on the horizon.

Before my eyes, the vast and boundless sea was spread out by the light of the rising sun, an endless expanse of molten gold foil, leaping and dancing with fragments of gold.

The sky was azure, dotted only by a few wisps of thin clouds.

The seabirds circled briefly atop the mast, emitting clear, melodious calls.

The salty sea breeze caressed the traveler's face and hair, bringing a sense of joy.

On the giant ship, the Death Star, the travelers did not experience the slightest seasickness.

"That Toma kid, he knows how to take care of people." Captain Beidou's cheerful voice rang out from beside her. She had appeared beside the traveler at some point, leaning against the ship's railing. Her single red eye swept over the exquisite food box in the traveler's hand with a knowing smile: "Knowing that the grilled fish and cured meat on the ship get boring after a while, you even prepared a meal for me. It's a pity that when it comes to winning a girl's heart, this alone isn't enough."

The traveler lifted the heavy food box, and the faint aroma of food wafting from under the lid made her lips curve into a slight smile: "I quite appreciate that about him. Boss, want to eat together?"

"Haha!" Beidou laughed and waved her hand, "I can't take advantage of this! They made it especially for you; it's a rare gesture, so please enjoy it." She suddenly narrowed her eyes and asked, "Your 'liking' is limited to liking a friend, isn't it?"

"Boss!" Beidou's words made Traveler Game feel embarrassed: "Why are you suddenly bringing this up..."

"Haha, I was being nosy." Beidou changed the subject: "I'm curious, you're so famous in Liyue and Mondstadt, so why is it that when you come to Inazuma's territory, all I hear are 'gossip'? I haven't heard much about your real adventures?"

Who else could it be because of? It's all the fault of that company magistrate!

The traveler sighed helplessly: "Alas, people are afraid of becoming famous, just like pigs are afraid of getting fat. I never wanted to be some 'chosen one' in the spotlight. Now that I'm in Inazuma, I can stay safely behind the General and avoid a lot of troublesome matters."

"Oh, I see." Beidou nodded knowingly, then said seriously, "Alright, we can talk about this later. There's someone who's been waiting for you for a while, just to apologize to you in person. Also, there's something important I need to tell you in advance." She pointed to the seemingly calm blue sea ahead of the bow: "The fastest route from Inazuma straight to Sumeru Port involves navigating a sea area perpetually ravaged by storms. The ship might rock a bit at night, so be prepared." With that, Beidou patted the traveler on the shoulder and strode towards the command post at the bow.

As soon as Beidou left, a tall, slender figure quietly emerged from behind the thick mainmast.

Kaedehara Man'yō lowered his head slightly, a faint blush appearing on his usually calm and gentle handsome face: "Um... Miss Lu Ren." His voice was a few decibels lower than usual.

Hehe, so he's apologizing for his "outburst" while drunk that night!

"Eh? My lord... how come you're here? I'm so blind, I didn't notice you in time. Please forgive me, my lord." The traveler bowed slightly as he spoke.

"Uh..." Wan Ye seemed to freeze at the sudden address, and a blush instantly spread across his face: "Th-that day..." He stammered, not daring to meet the traveler's gaze.

It's so much fun to bully others, hahaha.

No wonder some people always like to bully me.

"Please speak, my lord..." the traveler persisted.

“Miss Lü, please… don’t do this. It was my fault that day, I think…” His ears were now red.

“What ‘Don’t do this’? Does my husband want to sever ties with me today? But that day… when I begged him not to do this, you didn’t let me go? Now you want to sever ties? Is this what people call ‘starting a relationship and then abandoning it’? Waaah…” She covered her face, her shoulders shaking slightly, as if she was truly heartbroken.

"Hey! What's going on over there?"

"Huh? Miss Lü and Brother Wanye? What's going on here?"

The busy sailors on deck were drawn to this dramatic scene and cast curious glances.

"Huh?" Wan Ye was struck dumb. He suddenly raised his head, his usually gentle eyes now filled with shock and panic, and his voice changed: "That, that day...did I...do...do..." He was too ashamed to say the rest.

"Hmm." The traveler peeked at his face through his fingers, suppressed a laugh, and nodded seriously: "I've done everything."

"This...this..." Wan Ye seemed instantly overwhelmed by a tremendous sense of responsibility and helplessness: "Miss Lu Ren...I...I am a wandering ronin, with no fixed abode, and nothing to my name...I'm afraid...I can't immediately give you a place to stay." He explained with difficulty, his face full of guilt: "But..."

"Waaah..." The traveler cried even more "sadly".

If you tease him a little more, then stop and let him go.

“If Miss doesn’t mind…” Wan Ye closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again with an unusually firm gaze, as if she had made the most important promise of her life: “I, Feng Yuan Wan Ye, am willing to… take full responsibility!”

"Brothers! What are you all watching? Have you finished your work?" Beidou's voice rang out at the right time, carrying the authority of a captain, instantly dispersing the onlookers.

She strode over, looking at the two people before her with a furrowed brow. Especially after hearing Wan Ye's words about "taking responsibility," she looked at the traveler with a face full of confusion: "Taking responsibility? Taking responsibility for what?"

"Hehe..." The traveler finally couldn't hold back any longer, lowered his sleeves, and revealed a smile: "It seems... I made a slightly excessive joke..."

……

The traveler recounted in detail the events that occurred between his encounter with Manyo at the festival and his being taken away by Hokuto, to Hokuto and Manyo, whose face was still flushed.

"In short, it was my drunken outburst that night that caused you trouble. I'm truly sorry." After hearing this, Wan Ye not only didn't blame the traveler, but instead took the blame upon himself, his face filled with sincere apology.

"It's alright," the traveler waved his hand. "Anyway, I've already 'taken my revenge'."

Among my friends, there aren't many I can joke around with.

If the target were someone else... I don't even want to think about the consequences... They would probably immediately go with the flow and turn the charade into reality!

“From now on, I won’t be the one to mediate these kinds of trivial matters.” Beidou crossed his arms.

"I'm sorry to have troubled you, boss." The traveler said somewhat apologetically, tucking his hair, which had been ruffled by the sea breeze.

Just then, Wan Ye's expression changed: "Hmm? The sea breeze... is getting stronger. Boss, at the current wind speed and course, we may very well enter that storm-ravaged sea area before sunset."

"Tsk, a bit faster than expected." Beidou's expression turned serious, all traces of joking gone. He immediately turned and issued a command to the entire ship: "Attention everyone! The Death Star will be heading straight for a storm at sunset! Everyone, be on your guard! Reinforce what needs to be reinforced! Secure what needs to be secured! Prepare to face the storm!"

Sure enough, following Manyo's warning, the previously gentle sea breeze suddenly turned violent. It filled the huge sails and unceremoniously lifted the traveler's skirt, forcing her to reach out and hold it down.

"How do you know the wind is going to get stronger?" the traveler asked Man-yeo curiously.

“I can ‘hear’ the wind,” Wan Ye explained. “When that subtle, continuous humming suddenly becomes heavy and rapid, I know the wind’s strength is increasing dramatically.” He looked at the seemingly calm but actually turbulent sea ahead of the bow, his tone steady: “Although this route straight to Omos Port is the fastest way to cross the storm zone, there’s no need to worry too much. The captain has led the fleet back and forth on this route countless times and is very experienced. I can also buy the ship valuable warning time.”

"I wasn't worried at all at first. But after you and Captain Beidou reminded me today... I'm actually a little worried now."

"As long as you stay in the cabin, you're safe," Wan Ye reassured him gently.

"Yes, I understand." The traveler nodded and hugged the food box in his arms tighter.

……

However, the lie that "it's safe to stay in the cabin" was exposed when the entire food box, along with the exquisite pastries inside, was placed over the traveler's head.

At dusk, one second the sky was clear and blue, and the next second, thick, leaden-gray clouds instantly swallowed up the remaining sunlight.

The sky was pressed extremely low, and the heavy clouds seemed to hang at the top of the mast, within reach.

The sea was quickly dyed into a chilling, churning inky black.

Thick, twisted bolts of purple-white lightning occasionally burst from deep within the clouds, accompanied by muffled thunder that made one's heart pound.

Large raindrops pelted down, hitting the hull, deck, and bulkheads.

The wind propelled the massive, surging waves. The colossal ship, the Death Star, appeared as insignificant as a stubborn yet helpless autumn leaf, tossed and turned by the waves.

A massive wall of waves crashed onto the deck, the resulting white foam instantly engulfing the bow.

The crew on deck were extremely busy. They tied ropes secured to the mast to themselves, doing everything they could to keep the ship stable.

The traveler, who was comfortably seated in the relatively calm cabin, was opening his food box, preparing to enjoy the snacks that Thomas had carefully prepared, trying to dispel his slight unease about the storm with the delicious food.

However, just as the ship was being violently struck by a huge wave and began to tilt, an irresistible force suddenly blew the food box off the small table!

The exquisite food box was precisely placed on the traveler's head. Immediately afterwards, the valuable pastries inside were scattered all over her head.

The traveler, with a head full of remnants of pastries, stood frozen in place.

She suddenly remembered what Manyo had said: "It's safe to stay in the cabin."