"So… what do I do?"
The moment she agreed, Lumine immediately switched into mission mode.
Luo Li looked at her with mild exasperation.
You really are a professional tool-person, aren't you? Always thinking about how to complete someone else's commission.
Still, he couldn't deny he admired her sense of responsibility.
"You want Keijiro to reveal where he hid the ledger?" he said calmly. "That's simple. You only need a small spell."
"A small spell?"
Before Lumine could ask more, Luo Li lightly touched her forehead.
A faint glow flickered.
Something flowed into her consciousness.
Lumine instinctively closed her eyes, examining the new knowledge.
Moments later, she opened them—wide with shock.
"This is… a hypnosis spell that forces someone to speak the truth?!"
Paimon gasped dramatically.
"There's actually such an evil spell?! Wait—have you ever used that on us before?!"
She suddenly recalled a period when she'd been oddly sleepy and grew suspicious.
Luo Li flicked her forehead.
"If I wanted information from you, I wouldn't need hypnosis. I'd simply read your memories directly."
"…!"
Paimon froze.
…That's worse.
She slowly zipped her mouth shut.
Lumine, meanwhile, was fully focused on the spell.
"It only works effectively on ordinary people who cannot manipulate elemental energy," Luo Li explained. "Against Vision holders, its effectiveness drops drastically."
He wasn't about to let her think it was some universal cheat ability.
Lumine glanced mischievously at Paimon.
Paimon immediately panicked.
"Hey! Don't even think about trying it on me!"
She flailed through the air dramatically.
Lumine laughed.
She'd only meant to tease her.
Still—
With this spell, she no longer needed threats or complicated psychological traps. She could obtain the evidence directly from Keijiro without alerting anyone.
Her entire problem just dissolved.
"Additionally," Luo Li continued, "once you locate Harrison and the others, I can arrange for them to escape Ritou and join the resistance forces."
Lumine's eyes brightened.
The clouds parted.
Everything suddenly seemed solvable.
As expected—when Luo Li stepped in, the situation turned around instantly.
Honestly, she was half-tempted to abandon Thoma entirely and just let Luo Li handle introductions from here on.
She even voiced the thought.
Luo Li shook his head.
"No. Inazuma is your journey."
"Just like Mondstadt. Just like Liyue."
"You must see it yourself. Experience it. Form your own bonds. Face your own trials."
"The things that happen here—the struggles, the relationships, the difficult choices—those will become part of your understanding of this world."
"Do you remember what Barbatos and Morax told you?"
"Do not seek shortcuts."
"I'll give you minor assistance—but never enough to disrupt the bigger picture."
Lumine lowered her gaze.
Annoying.
But true.
Despite constantly complaining, her journey had shaped her.
Even now—while infiltrating the Kanjou Commission with ulterior motives—she had become friends with Hiiragi Chisato.
The poor girl was trapped in a political marriage arranged by her father, Hiiragi Shinsuke.
She loved the second son of the Kujou Clan.
But she was being forced toward another alliance entirely.
Chisato had even entrusted Lumine with a love letter—asking her to deliver it in Inazuma City if she ever managed to leave Ritou.
Yet Lumine couldn't even leave the island.
Everything felt stalled.
"…Alright," Lumine finally said. "If I run into trouble, I'll come find you."
Luo Li stared at her.
Have I become your emergency gadget cat?
Unaware of his internal commentary, Lumine sprang into action.
With her new spell in hand, she marched directly to the Kanjou Commission.
Because of her repeated visits and visible favor from the Hiiragi Clan, the guards allowed her to visit the injured Keijiro without suspicion.
She even claimed she carried Chisato's concern.
The guards, flattered and respectful, withdrew to give her privacy.
Everything was going suspiciously smoothly.
Paimon stood guard at the door while Lumine approached the bed.
Keijiro tried to sit up gratefully.
He didn't even get the chance to speak.
Lumine activated the spell.
Fifteen minutes later—
She had everything.
The evidence of his collusion with Werner.
The ledger.
The stash location.
Hidden beneath the base of a statue of the Raiden Shogun in his own home.
Clever.
No one would dare tamper with a statue of the Shogun.
Reverence for the Electro Archon was carved into Inazuman bones.
Paimon crossed her arms angrily.
"No wonder he's rotten inside. Even hiding dirty money under his own god's statue!"
Lumine remained quiet.
She had seen worse.
This wasn't pure evil.
But it was cruelty.
Slow suffocation.
"We have to punish him properly!" Paimon declared.
Lumine nodded slowly.
A mere foot soldier wouldn't dare act like this alone.
Someone higher up had to be complicit.
Going through Hiiragi Shinsuke directly felt risky.
Better—
"Let's give the evidence to Lady Chisato."
Kind-hearted as she was, she would ensure justice was handled cleanly.
Decision made.
Lumine and Paimon set off toward Keijiro's house.
If everything went according to plan—
The Wan'guo Trade Association would finally receive the justice they deserved.
And Lumine?
She had officially climbed out of one pit…
Only to step carefully toward the next.