"So that's the Temple of the Lion of the South..."
Bonanus looked up and saw the worn-down stone gate not far away, covered in moss. It looked like it hadn't been maintained in a very long time.
"Don't the Knights send anyone to clean this place?" Bonanus asked Lisa, confused. If it was one of the Four Winds' temples, surely someone should be taking care of it.
"That's not my department." Lisa shook her head, indicating it had nothing to do with her. She was just a humble librarian.
"Fair enough. I'm exhausted from all that walking." Bonanus nodded and stretched. She hadn't walked this much in the wild for a while. Before this, she had just been flying everywhere.
"Haha, if it weren't for the strong winds, we could have taken a carriage." Lisa propped her hand on her cheek and nodded, though she didn't look tired at all.
"If we hadn't used elemental power to speed things up, we probably wouldn't have gotten here so quickly." Bonanus started walking toward the temple.
"Hurry up. The sooner we deal with this, the sooner we can clock out." Lisa crossed her arms, looking like she really wanted to go home.
Hearing that, Bonanus turned to Lisa with an amused expression. "Looks like you're not a fan of overtime, Sister Lisa."
"Of course not. I don't think anyone in Teyvat likes working overtime. Besides, don't you want to finish early and go on a date with Big Sister in Mondstadt?"
"We can do lots of things together, you know~"
Lisa covered her mouth and laughed, her tone dripping with charm. Of course, to Lisa, it was just a casual remark.
If Bonanus were a man, she probably wouldn't be able to resist.
Big Sister was too tempting. Even a casual glance could make one's imagination run wild.
Wait... why was she thinking about all these strange things? Did she have some hidden attraction to women?
But thinking about it differently, that was probably impossible. Deep down, she knew Xiao was number one.
She was overthinking things. She remembered being innocent before. She didn't know when she had become like this.
Seeing the cute little one's ever-changing expressions, Lisa felt a playful urge. "Anything you want, cutie. Even if it's..."
Lisa didn't finish the sentence, but those few words were enough to send anyone's imagination running wild.
Those words immediately broke Bonanus's composure. It felt like she was about to open a dangerous "new door."
No. She only loved Xiao.
Bonanus pressed her palms together like a monk and muttered to herself, "Emptiness is form, form is emptiness. If there's emptiness, there's form. Don't just think about form and forget emptiness. Wait, what am I even saying!"
She covered her face in exasperation. She was so pathetic. One little tease and she fell apart like this. She clearly needed more practice.
She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.
Seeing the cute one like this, Lisa found this Liyue girl more and more interesting.
She should visit Liyue sometime and talk to her family about letting her stay in Mondstadt.
"Alright, I'm done teasing you. Look at yourself. You're wearing your heart on your sleeve."
Lisa reached out and patted Bonanus's head. But in doing so, her hand accidentally brushed against Bonanus's two horns.
The moment she touched them, Lisa knew something was off. From the feel of it, these were definitely not decorations. It seemed this person had some secrets she wasn't telling.
Even though she had discovered Bonanus's secret, Lisa didn't press further or tell anyone else. There was no need.
Miss Fashui meant no harm to Mondstadt. On the contrary, she had helped them. She was trustworthy.
Bonanus, still enjoying Lisa's head pats, didn't even notice Lisa touching her horns.
The head pat was such a dangerous "mind control" technique.
To be honest, Bonanus was usually the one patting others' heads. Being on the receiving end felt pretty nice.
...
Before they knew it, the two had arrived at their final destination, the Temple of the Lion of the South.
"Get ready, cutie. This place has been abandoned for a long time. There might be monsters living inside." Lisa examined the moss-covered stone gate, narrowing her eyes.
"That's what I have you for, right?" Bonanus put on a pleading expression. In the lore, Lisa was a very powerful mage.
How powerful? Powerful enough to make the sky change color with a single E. She was an exceptionally strong Electro user.
"If you're scared, hide behind big sister. But don't slack off too much."
Lisa pulled a book from her satchel. That was probably her weapon, something like a magic tome.
The book floated around Lisa, and her entire aura shifted instantly.
After preparing herself, Lisa looked at Bonanus. "Let's go. Remember, safety first."
With that, Bonanus followed Lisa to the temple's stone gate. The two women pushed hard on either side, finally managing to open it after great effort.
The gate made a grating sound as it opened. Bonanus felt like someone was scratching a blackboard with their nails. It was torture on the ears.
"Next time, I'm bringing earplugs." Bonanus rubbed her ears. Did the monsters living inside have to endure this every time they opened and closed the door?
How terrifying.
"Good idea. But unfortunately, we probably won't be coming back here anytime soon." Lisa nodded. Even as a lady, she hated that sound.
It irritated her for no reason.
After composing themselves, they cautiously entered the temple. The moment they stepped inside, Bonanus was stunned. From the outside, it hadn't looked like much, but inside, it was enormous.
She had to admit, it was quite impressive. Even though it had been abandoned for a long time, it still made you want to marvel at it.
The temple wasn't completely dark. Some monsters lived here, so there were a few torches lit.
"The smell in here is awful." Lisa wrinkled her nose and covered it with her hand. The air was filled with dust, sweat, and blood.
Lisa was clearly disgusted by the smell, but Bonanus didn't seem bothered. She had gotten used to it from all her monster hunting.
"Looks like we need to finish this quickly. I'm going to need a long bath when we get back. Want to join me, cutie?" Lisa asked Bonanus.
Bonanus just gave an OK sign in response. What was wrong with girls bathing together? There was nothing inappropriate about it.
As they ventured deeper into the temple...
Along the way, they encountered many traps. Even though the temple had been abandoned for ages, the old mechanisms still worked.
They wondered how those dull-witted monsters managed to avoid them.
They reached a chamber filled with damp air and the sound of Hilichurls dancing and chattering.
Lisa and Bonanus exchanged glances. It seemed they had finally found their enemies.
Lisa smiled and put a finger to her lips, signaling for Bonanus to stay still and leave everything to her.
After all, with an Electro Vision, fighting in a damp environment was a huge advantage.