Chapter Nineteen

It was during dinner that evening that the next unwelcome surprise arrived. One moment they were all settled around an Eremite's campfire, passing plates of food around and murmuring quietly over the warm, rich steam wafting from the bowls. The next minute, Diluc was gone, vanished into thin air.

Kaeya shot upright, his Bamboo Shoot Soup crashing unheeded to the ground. "Diluc?!"

Regarding the empty spot that their leader had just been occupying, Albedo observed mildly, "It seems Lumine went to Dragonspine again. Or perhaps she encountered a Pyro puzzle."

An instant later, the fallen log was occupied by a tiny girl with lavender hair and a vacant stare. Accustomed as they were to Adventurer Teams and how they operated, the group just blinked at her. She stared back without moving the slightest bit. After a moment, Noelle stepped closer and knelt beside the little girl. Her voice was kind as she said, "Hello there! Welcome to the team! I'm Noelle, what's your name?"

The girl cocked her head slowly, studying Noelle as if deciphering the chipper maid's words. "I am… Qiqi." Nods were exchanged, and Noelle opened her mouth to speak again when the girl continued in an amazingly unconcerned voice, "I am… a zombie. And… I forget what comes next."

Noelle yelped and hastily covered her mouth, staring at Qiqi with huge eyes. Albedo leaned forward; his curiosity aroused. "A zombie? How did that come about?"

Kaeya was picking up the most salvageable pieces of meat from his spilled soup and remarked disgruntledly, "I'm just wondering where our fearless leader went." Then he looked up sharply. "He is coming back soon, right?"

Albedo's eyes sparked with mischief as he said, "Why Captain, you sound almost concerned for Master Diluc's well-being. Could it be that rumors of your feud were greatly exaggerated?"

Kaeya wrinkled his nose. "Feud? That's a strong word for when one brother periodically tries to throw his peaceful sibling out of his tavern and starts arguments every time said peaceful sibling opens his mouth." He snorted, then added, "I have no doubt Lumine is keeping him safe, wherever he is. No, I'm more concerned that the Adventurer's Handbook and our map of Sumeru were located in his pocket dimension. We could wander into the desert without proper knowledge!" He sat down hard next to Qiqi and concentrated on fishing out a bite of ham from his soup.

Noelle said to Qiqi, "I-I apologize for my overreaction! Would you like some Bamboo Shoot Soup?"

The little girl examined the proffered bowl for a moment before shaking her head. "Too hot. Qiqi… doesn't like… hot things."

"Oh, well, I can check and see if we have some cold food in our storage! So, how come Miss Lumine swapped you into our team?" Noelle started digging through her pocket dimension.

"I think it was… an accident. She said… she was tired of me showing up… when she meant to summon… Master Diluc." Qiqi shrugged vaguely.

Albedo remarked to Kaeya over the top of Qiqi's head, "I would be most worried about our intelligence level and observational skills should we wander from the rainforest to the desert without noticing."

When Qiqi shifted away from the fire uncomfortably, Kaeya absently produced an icicle from his Vision and handed it to the little girl. The distantly troubled look in her eyes vanished, and she hugged the icy crystal to her body with pleasure. Kaeya patted the stiff hat on her head and asked Albedo curiously, "Wait, isn't the desert technically still part of Sumeru? We will probably be able to get Dendro Sigils from there, too."

After taking a sip of his soup, Albedo nodded. "You are correct." His lightly accented words were relaxed as he added, "But I believe the desert is a fair way from here. I do not think it likely that we will cross the entirety of the rainforest while Master Diluc is absent. The Traveler seems to have a certain idea of who she wants on this team, and I doubt that his absence will be for long."

Qiqi vanished abruptly, taking Kaeya's icicle with her. A split-second later, Diluc fell into camp and crashed into the leaf-strewn ground, swamping the campfire with damp tree debris. Kaeya jumped up and strode over as his brother sat up, spitting grass out of his mouth.

"Don't ever allow Lumine to swap you out of her team when she's in a hurry," Diluc stated flatly. He accepted Kaeya's outstretched hand and rose smoothly to his feet. He started brushing off his shirt, but his movements faltered slightly, and he glanced at Noelle. "Lumine needed my help fighting Boreas, but we ran into some Rifthounds on the way there. Anybody have some Mondstadt Hashbrowns handy?" His voice was strained despite his attempts to downplay the incident.

Kaeya glanced at his brother's falling health indicator, and his heart leaped into his throat. "Noelle, quick!"

Ever efficient, Noelle yanked the selected meal from her inventory and passed it swiftly to Kaeya, who handed it to Diluc. The redhead disregarded his gloves and picked up a hashbrown without bothering about utensils. He took a bite of the pan-fried potatoes, chewed and swallowed. His tense face relaxed slightly, and he nodded to Noelle. "Your cooking skills are improving." He ate another bite, and Kaeya was gratified to see his health rejuvenating at a decent pace.

Noelle blushed and clasped her hands, looking away in embarrassed pleasure. "I-I'm glad you think so! I can do it without even thinking about it now."

Checking behind him, Diluc sat down on his log again and pulled a canteen from his pocket dimension. "Well, you seem to be getting quite proficient at it. All right, where are we headed next?" He set his plate down and brushed his gloves off, frowning at the oil staining the fingertips. Shrugging to himself, he opened his pocket dimension and produced the map and a fresh pair of gloves. He tossed the map to Kaeya and began tugging off his gloves.

Kaeya unfolded the map and studied it. "Too bad Mika isn't here. He would love exploring Sumeru's rainforests."

"Here, I can clean your gloves, Master Diluc," Noelle offered. Diluc passed them over with a quiet word of thanks.

Albedo finished his Bamboo Shoot Soup and set the empty bowl down. Leaning over Kaeya's shoulder, his moss green eyes flitted consideringly over the map. "It seems Gandharva Ville is just up ahead. Perhaps we should aim to spend the night there? Or we can continue searching for treasure chests in this area."

Noelle stopped scrubbing Diluc's gloves long enough to say shyly, "Well, I don't want to intrude, but… I'm quite excited to reach Sumeru City, and the Forest Rangers at Gandharva Ville might be able to help us get there faster."

Kaeya raised an eyebrow at her. "You've never been to Sumeru City, correct? Is that why you are so eager to visit?"

Noelle set a finger to her mouth speculatively. "No… well, I mean, yes, but that's only part of it. I've heard they have some splendid carpet designs, and I want to buy one for Acting Grand Master Jean as a thank-you for letting me go on this trip. And I'm also excited to try some traditional Sumeru dishes! Collei told me that they use a wide variety of spices, and I can't wait to taste some of them!" Her eyes were alight with eager anticipation, and Kaeya couldn't help chuckling.

"All right, we'll make sure to feed you something spicy at our next spot."

Diluc got to his feet. "Well, if everyone is in agreement… Let's head out. There are hundreds more Dendro Sigils awaiting us!"