A few months had passed. Many things had changed since then.
First, Etoma was now living with Diluc. As expected, knowing Etoma, she had refused at first—but eventually gave in.
Second, Diluc had begun going out more often. He claimed he was investigating something, though he never stayed away for long. No matter how busy he was, he always returned to spend time with Etoma before leaving again the next day.
At the same time, his relationship with Kaeya deteriorated day by day. And not just Kaeya—Diluc had also grown openly hostile toward the Knights of Favonius. Though he never explained why, Etoma chose to trust him. She believed there must be a deeper reason behind it.
Meanwhile, her bond with Eula had deepened. Whenever Eula had free time, she would seek Etoma out. The two often carried out reconnaissance missions together.
And lastly—Etoma had made a new friend.
"Yahho!" a green-clad young man waved.
"Oh, Venti! Yahho~!"
"Ehe~" The two exchanged their signature greeting.
"Bestie, are you ready for today's show?"
"Fufu~ say less!" Etoma replied, holding up the tools.
.
At the plaza near the Favonius Cathedral, in front of the statue of the Anemo Archon, a crowd had gathered. Two performers stood before them. One held a lyre. The other, a flute—with a small drum set at her feet.
Venti and Etoma.
Ever since hearing Venti play months ago, Etoma had fallen in love with music. She began learning, practicing endlessly, until she could finally perform alongside him. Soon after, she invited Venti to form a duo—and he accepted with a smile.
Surprisingly, they quickly became well-known throughout Mondstadt, earning admiration for their performances.
As the music ended, the crowd erupted in applause, tossing mora onto them. Venti burst into laughter like a maniac, already imagining how much alcohol he could buy.
Later, the two sat down for lunch at Angel's Share. Without hesitation, Venti ordered drink after drink, downing them as if there were no tomorrow. Etoma simply chuckled, eating her meal at a leisurely pace.
When it came time to pay, she wasn't surprised. Venti's earnings from earlier performance had vanished completely, gone to dust. Nor was she surprised that the tavern didn't charge her anything. With a sigh, the two stepped outside and began a quiet evening walk.
And just like that… Years passed.
Diluc had ended his investigation and taken his place as the owner of Dawn Winery—the head of the Ragnvindr family. Next to his name, he added Etoma's which followed by her protest and red face flushed with embarrassment. But Diluc ignored her completely, in one ear and out the other.
And so— Etoma's name officially became Etoma Ragnvindr. A name that came with yet another "Etomato" moment. Ah, this time, "Etomato Ragnvindr".
.
.
Starfell Lake
"Huh? W-WHOA!" A blonde girl struggled as she reeled in something from the water. A big fish, no wait, not a fish, a weird looking, creature?
"Hngghhh!" With effort, she finally pulled it out.
.
.
"And just like that, the god took away my brother. Some kind of seal was cast upon me and I lost my power. So while we used to travel from world to world, we are now trapped here." The girl spoke. Her name is Lumine.
"How many years ago was it, I don't know... but I intend to find out. When I woke, I was all alone, until I met you two months ago." The woman glanced at the flying creature beside her.
"Yeah... Paimon really owes you for that. Otherwise, Paimon would likely would have drowned. So Paimon would do her best to become a great guide!" The flying creature, Paimon put both her hands on her waist.
"Anyway, let's get going!" Paimon urged her.
Lumine then stood, following Paimon who leading the way.
.
Later, they encountered a green-clad young man in the forest. He seemed to be speaking to a dragon—until their sudden appearance startled it, causing it to flee. The man vanished just as quickly.
Not long after, they met Amber, the Outrider of the Knights of Favonius, who brought them to Mondstadt. Just after they entered the city, a disaster struck.
A dragon attacked the city. Citizens panicked as violent winds tore through the streets. Dark storms raged overhead which threw them even more panicked.
Unfortunately Lumine was caught and swept into the sky by the Dark Storm. As she deployed her wind glider, a mysterious power awakened within her. A voice echoed in her mind.
Guided by it, she fought back—engaging the dragon in the air. After successfully driving it away, she landed safely.
Soon after, Lumine was invited to the Knights of Favonius Headquarters, where Jean, the Acting Grand Master, granted her the title of Honorary Knight.
Jean explained that the dragon—Dvalin, also known as Stormterror—had been terrorizing Mondstadt for some time.
Lumine then asked to participate in the investigation which Jean agreed happily. With that, Lumine left the knight of Favonius headquarter.
.
"So the dragon's name is Dvalin… It's the same one we saw earlier, right? Traveler." Paimon asked.
"Mm," Lumine nodded. "There's no mistake, it's the same dragon"
"Which means our next goal is to find that green-clad guy right! he must known something." Paimon grinned. "Hehe, Paimon is smart~"
"Yes, you are," Lumine replied rolling her eyes.
"But first—food!" Paimon declared. "Paimon is starving!"
Lumine chuckled and led the way. After fending off the stormterror, Lumine not only just awarded with a title. She also got quite a high sum of mora by the knights.
"Oh, I think I found the food stall, let's go, Paimon,"
"Yatta!"
Soon both of them stopped at Good Hunter. After getting close, they realize the place is quite deserted. Likely due to the terror from the dragon earlier. Hence "Stormterror"(ba dum tss).
Luckily, the place didn't closed so they happily ordered the food and find a place to sit. Later, both of them surprised by a person eating leisurely like the earlier terror was not her concern. The person was wearing a red cropped hoodie with a white undergarment.
The red hooded girl soon notices them and looked at them with a serious expression. And suddenly, she stood and walked to them.
After standing in front of them, she spoke,
"How do you fly?"
.
.