"Old Gong?"
A raspy female voice called out, and Gong Qu instinctively responded.
"Uh, honey?"
"A certain retired deck scrubber, who quit after failing to pull Hu Tao's Staff of Homa. Check out the blue mod, I'm Kamisato Ayaka's devoted pup, I'll always love Miss Nilou, I'm super cute, and Honkai: Star Rail is really fun..."
Without emotion, the girl rattled off a string of shameful gaming nicknames.
"Stop! Don't say those embarrassing handles again! I know who you are!"
Gong Qu would rather fight ten Geo Churls than have someone dredge up his cringe gaming history.
Through the dissipating smoke, he caught sight of a blonde girl whose hair had lost some of its luster.
"Should I say long time no see, or nice to meet you?"
"But I didn't want to see you here. I'm only here to find Paimon. I don't ever want to see you again."
Saying this, Lumine turned to leave.
Yet she paused for several seconds, waiting.
Waiting for someone to rush over, hold her tight, and beg her not to go.
When no one did, she raised her sword, the Primordial Jade Cutter, and pointed it at Gong Qu.
"You're not even going to stop me?!"
"Hold on, I haven't even processed this yet! At least give me ten seconds before you say something like that!"
In Gong Qu's mind, the image of his sweet Lumine was completely shattered.
This girl, she's such a gremlin! ×2
Both of them thought the same thing.
Lumine put away her sword and slowly approached Gong Qu.
Sensing something, she gave a barely noticeable smile.
With that shapely chest pressed close, she stood just a hand's width away from him.
Looking up at Gong Qu, her long lashes trembled, and he could smell the faint scent of wine on her breath.
"You… what do you want?"
"I want."
"??"
Lumine rose up on tiptoe, gripping his shoulders as she leaned in, rubbing her face against him, her teeth lightly biting his ear.
A shiver ran through Gong Qu's body. He quickly pulled her away and pressed her arms down.
"What are you playing at? We were never like this before."
"Hehe… no, we weren't."
"Then why are you acting like this? Are you… that kind of woman?"
"No."
She took his hand and pressed it to her cheek.
"I just… missed you so much. Only after you were gone did I realize how important you are to me, how intense these feelings are… I kept thinking, if I ever saw you again, I'd finally say it out loud."
As she spoke, she guided his hand lower, letting him feel the heat in her chest.
Whoosh!
Gong Qu yanked his hand back, his gut telling him that this was teetering on something dangerously obsessive.
I only stopped playing for a few months… how did things end up like this?
No, wait!
Suddenly, Gong Qu noticed something strange.
He reached out and took Lumine's hand.
"It's so hot!"
He pressed the back of his hand to her forehead.
"Damn, what's going on? Are you sick? How could someone like you get a fever?"
A wide, mischievous smile bloomed on Lumine's flushed face.
"Hehe, I've been looking for Paimon for so long. I think I overused my elemental power."
No wonder there were Geo Churls in Mondstadt, and leyline disruptions in the Whispering Woods.
So she's been burning through her energy like a demon god run amok?
"Listen, Lumine, Paimon's safe now. I found her at Starfell Lake and took her back to the Adventurers' Guild."
"Starfell Lake, hehe… that brings back memories. Remember how I swam out too far, got too tired, and you had to save me? That was the first time you saved me."
"Are you sure this is just elemental exhaustion? Or is it… something else? Should we get a doctor in Mondstadt to take a look?"
Lumine's eyes went cold.
"Oh? 'Something else'? Is it that game, Honkai: Star Rail? Did you leave Teyvat to chase after pretty girls there too?"
"You're making stuff up! Let's just get back to Mondstadt first!"
He took her hand, ready to leave.
But she dug in her heels, her lips pouting.
"I want you to carry me!"
"You can walk just fine! Where'd all that strength you just had to fight me go?"
"I don't care! I want you to carry me!"
The way she whined was almost unfair.
With a pang of guilt for having abandoned her for that other game, Gong Qu finally relented.
"Fine, but I'll only carry you to the gates of Mondstadt. Once we're in the city, you have to walk by yourself. Otherwise, it's way too embarrassing."
"Okay~"
Lumine wrapped her arms around his neck, her face lighting up with the sweetest smile.
In that moment, she looked like any other lovestruck girl.
He thought back on everything she'd been through:
Her family vanished, she wandered alone, always caught up in major events wherever she went. Paimon was basically useless, and despite how peaceful the game's world seemed, danger lurked at every turn. She'd survived countless life-or-death crises, and all that pressure fell on her shoulders alone.
Before, at least Gong Qu, the "player," was there to help her.
But once he left, it was like the final straw that broke her.
Damn it, Mihoyo!
The more he pitied Lumine, the more he hated the devs for putting her through this.
Love stabbing us with angst, huh? One day, I'm gonna storm your headquarters!
"Can I call you hubby from now on?"
"I used to go by 'Old Gong' as a dumb pun, but that'd probably get misunderstood. Better pick something else."
"I wasn't talking about your name, Gong Qu~"
Her sweet, innocent voice made Gong Qu's heart skip a beat.
Oh man… she's so good at this!
He shook his head, banishing any weird images.
"Just call me A-Qu, like Keqing and the others do."
"Keqing?"
She repeated the name softly, tilting her head as the light drained from her eyes.
Shit! I let that slip!
Lumine's mood was already unstable. If she found out that he and Keqing had already crossed the line in Liyue while she was searching for him, she might as well be a full-blown yandere.
"Tell me, hubby… what's going on with Keqing? Were you in Liyue with her these past few months, doing who knows what, while ignoring my messages?"
"It's… complicated. But I really wasn't in Teyvat for most of that time. Keqing and I only met recently."
Lumine fell silent.
On one hand, she had always been close to Keqing, almost like sisters.
On the other, she saw Gong Qu as something more than a friend.
And now… the two of them had been together behind her back for a whole month, and she'd never even known.
The sudden sting of betrayal made her want to throw herself into the abyss and burn the world to ash.
"You okay, Lumine?"
But Gong Qu's gentle, caring gaze softened her anger.
That tenderness… she wanted to possess it completely, forever.
If that's how it is, then don't blame me for doing whatever it takes!
Lumine's eyes sharpened, cutting past Gong Qu's face to the girl hiding behind the tree. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned in, lips parting.
Mmmph~
She kissed him, fiercely and passionately, as if she wanted to meld her soul into his, stepping willingly into the prison of love.
Their breaths mingled.
Gong Qu, who had tried to resist, found himself slowly weakening, responding, and eventually… completely losing himself in the kiss.
Even the wind seemed to blush at the scene.
…
Behind a tree,
Keqing covered her mouth, trying to stifle her sobs.
The sound of their shared breaths was like a blade to her chest.
She couldn't stop the quiet tears.
She regretted following Gong Qu so impulsively, but she couldn't bring herself to turn away.
So she crouched down, hugging her knees and burying her face.
As if that could shut out the entire world.