Chapter 187

"???" Aether stared at Lumine, clutching his chest in disbelief.

He was furious! What kind of spell had this guy cast on his precious little sister?!

"GRAHHHHH—" Aether couldn't take it anymore. The Skyrider Greatsword materialized in his hand again.

"Aether!" Lumine snapped. "Who the hell are you trying to intimidate with that club?! Put it away! If you don't, I'll yank your ears off!"

"..." Aether's face darkened, but he obediently dismissed the weapon—because if Lumine said she'd pull his ears, she would, and it hurt like hell.

"Lumine! You shouldn't be with him!" Aether exhaled sharply.

"Why? Give me one good reason!" Lumine crossed her arms. "I love him, and that's final!"

"He's not a good person! Lumine, you know what we carry—the bloodied legacy of Khaenri'ah! One day, we will raise our swords against the Heavenly Principles!"

"You always talk about vague, lofty ideals, but you never explain anything!" Lumine's temper finally exploded.

"Didn't you tell me to seek answers through my journey?! Well, here's what I've found—from Mondstadt to now, the Abyss Order has left nothing but destruction in its wake!" She glared at him. "I always saw the Abyss as my enemy. And then you show up, suddenly its leader, without any explanation! Do you even care how that felt?!"

"You left me for years! I searched everywhere for you! And when I finally found you, you just threw cryptic nonsense at me and walked away!" Her voice cracked.

"If you had just told me the truth back then, we could have faced it together—or left this world! Did you ever think about that, brother?!"

All the resentment she had bottled up since their reunion at the inverted Statue of the Seven came pouring out.

"Aether! You're such a jerk!" she shouted. "You wanted me to travel and 'find the truth'? Fine! Well, in my travels, I fell in love with Akio, and there's nothing you can say to change that!"

"And one more thing—you told me to journey through the Seven Nations, right? Then don't show your face until I've done exactly that!" She stormed forward, gripping Akio's hand. "And stop messing with Akio! For your own sake!"

"Akio! Paimon! We're leaving!" With that, Lumine turned on her heel and marched toward Mount Yougou.

"Uh…" Paimon blinked, stunned. In all their travels together, she had never seen the usually calm and collected Lumine explode like this.

She threw Aether a pitying glance before quickly flying after them.

"..." Aether watched Lumine's retreating figure, silent for a long time before letting out a heavy sigh.

Didn't he want to reunite with her too? But there were things he simply couldn't say…

"Lumine…" His outstretched hand slowly dropped as a dark portal opened beside him. With one last lingering look, he stepped into the abyss.

---

"Are you okay, Lumine dear?" Akio asked softly.

He hadn't expected her to lash out at Aether so fiercely.

"I'm fine." She forced a smile, though it wavered. "I'm just… so mad!"

"I'm his sister. Shouldn't we share our burdens? But he still won't tell me anything! He's such an idiot!" she huffed. "Does he really think keeping everything to himself is going to solve anything?!"

Normally so reserved, Lumine ranted for a long while, and Akio simply listened.

Finally, she took a deep breath. "Akio… sorry for unloading all that on you."

"You don't have to apologize," he said, wrapping an arm around her. "You can tell me anything."

"Mhm~" She gave a small, genuine nod.

"Phew~ Lumine, you okay now? You really scared Paimon back there!" Paimon fluttered up, peering at her worriedly.

"Yeah. I'm alright." Lumine shook her head. "With you and Akio here, I don't feel so frustrated anymore. Not thinking about that jerk makes everything easier."

"Hehe, of course! After all, Paimon's your bestest travel buddy!"

"Hmph, flattery gets you everywhere." Lumine smirked. "Fine. This month's food budget just got another 100,000 Mora."

"WOOO! LUMINE, YOU'RE THE BEST!" Paimon squealed, hugging her face.

"..." Lumine deadpanned. This little glutton is so shameless.

"Ah yes, truly the best travel companion," Akio laughed. "Tell you what—I'll personally give Paimon 5 million Mora for snacks. How's that?"

"WAH—REALLY?!" Paimon's eyes sparkled as she flailed in excitement.

"Akio! You're the absolute best!" She zoomed around giddily. "Is it really just for Paimon?"

"Of course." He nodded.

Paimon had earned this. No matter how dangerous things got, she never once abandoned Lumine.

If Lumine could fight, Paimon cheered from behind; if Lumine was in danger, she dove in front.

"No way! You can't give Paimon that much! She'll eat it all in three days!" Lumine grinned. "Akio~ just give it to me instead. I'll 'manage' it for her~"

"..."

Akio paused.

…That phrasing triggered deep childhood trauma.

"NOOOO! Absolutely NOT!" Paimon flapped her tiny arms in protest. "That's Paimon's allowance! Lumine, don't you dare!"

"I'm not taking it! Just 'safekeeping' it~" Lumine teased.

"If my Lumine insists, who am I to refuse?" Akio sighed dramatically. "Ah, poor Paimon. Your Mora is doomed to vanish into Lumine's pockets."

"WAAAAAH! NOOO!" Paimon whirled in front of him, blocking his view.

"Paimon! I feed you, I house you—and you won't even trust me with five million Mora?!" Lumine arched a brow.

"Uuugh…" Paimon drooped. "Fine… but no sneaky spending!"

"Hahaha! Don't worry, little one." Akio flicked open a massive Mora pouch and handed it to Paimon. "Lumine was just teasing. You get yours, and she gets her own."

"YAYYYYY!" Paimon hugged the Mora bag like her life depended on it.

Heheh… Paimon is RICH now!

"Lumine dear, this one's yours." Akio handed her an equally hefty bag—another 5 million Mora.

"H-Huh? N-No, I—I can't!" She shook her head. She had always earned her own way. Even from Akio, accepting money felt… strange.

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