Genshin Impact's Incense Burner Of Liyue [624]

Eula turned and led the way. Gu Sanqiu followed without hesitation.

There wasn’t any trace of Abyssal energy on her, and her speech and mannerisms were unmistakably Eula’s—so there was nothing to worry about.

Even if Lumine decided to send another one of her "Grace Brothers" to ambush him again, did she really think that man sitting in the tavern was just a decorative piece?

As a god capable of getting drunk, Venti had merely sealed his power in order to savor that fleeting mortal haze of intoxication. Otherwise, with his strength, he could probably drink every drop of wine in Mondstadt and still feel stone-cold sober.

Going to the bathroom would be more likely.

...

The night was still and silent on the banks of Cider Lake. Eula stood with her hands behind her back, gazing up at the sky. Gu Sanqiu leaned against a tree, a mint leaf between his lips. Neither said a word.

“Hey, isn’t this the part where you’re supposed to ask me ‘Why did you bring me here?’ or something?”

Eula turned her head, unable to hold back her irritation. “You haven’t said a single word this whole time.”

“If there’s something you want to say, you should just say it directly. Waiting for someone else to break the silence? That’s a huge disadvantage in social situations.”

Gu Sanqiu chuckled. The cool sharpness of the mint spread down his throat and throughout his body, and the clarity it brought to his spirit made it feel like his internal seal had stabilized a bit.

Could just resting and relaxing really be an effective form of therapy?

“Hmph. I like being this way—is that a problem?”

“Alright, alright. I’ll start, then.”

Gu Sanqiu went straight for the jugular. “So… the reason you dragged me out here at this hour—was it to confess your feelings and throw yourself into my arms?”

Clang!

He activated his shield just in time to block Eula’s blushing slash.

“Don’t joke around! That’s another grudge—I’m not forgetting this!”

“Be my guest. In fact, if you want to hold onto it for life, I won’t stop you. That way, at least there’ll be one more person in the world who remembers me.”

Eula sheathed her Song of Broken Pines with a huff. “With that kind of talk, I’m sure you’ve tricked plenty of girls back in Liyue.”

“If I were that good at it, I wouldn’t be single now, would I?”

Gu Sanqiu shifted to a more comfortable position. “Alright, I’ll be serious. What’s this about, O Spindrift Knight? Why call me out here?”

“I just wanted to thank you.”

Eula said it plainly, without hesitation. “I don’t know how you did it, but thank you.”

“While sorting squad matters today, quite a few people started talking to me on their own. That change you made to the plan—it’s really working.”

She gave a small smile. “It’s not that I care what others think of me, but being acknowledged beats being ignored for no reason.”

“Environmental influence,” Gu Sanqiu replied. “Makes sense. Who doesn’t want to work in a comfortable environment—aside from masochists.”

“Exactly.”

Eula kept her gaze on the sky. “The Lawrence Clan… probably won’t be stirring up grand ambitions again anytime soon.”

“The so-called ‘glory of the past’ was just the delusions of our predecessors. The closer you get to that era, the more people crave that unrealistic fantasy.”

“There were other young people in the Lawrence family who disagreed with the clan’s policies—but I was the only one who resisted. The others chose to yield.”

“But now, everything’s different. I’m the head of the family. And because of that, a new light of freedom has started to shine in their hearts.”

She turned to look at him, her tone sincere. “So thank you. You gave me a rare opportunity.”

“I was just the catalyst. You earned that opportunity. If it weren’t for your resolve, that turning point might never have come at all.”

Gu Sanqiu chewed the mint, swallowing it down. “You should be thanking yourself for pulling through. The path ahead won’t be as lost or lonely—and with your personality, I doubt you’ll keep running away.”

“Hmph. Me? Run away? As if! Do I look like someone who’d ever back down?”

Eula lifted her chin proudly.

Sensing her fingers tightening on her weapon again, Gu Sanqiu wisely chose to say nothing.

Uh-huh. And the person who nearly cried in Amber’s arms in the garden? Definitely wasn’t you, right.

Then Eula smiled softly. “Forget it. I did run away—that’s the truth. I should learn to accept the version of myself that once did, just like I’m learning to accept my colleagues now.”

“The one who ran away was me. The one who fought back was also me. That’s the complete Eula Lawrence.”

Whether colleagues would eventually become true comrades… well, that would depend on what came next.

“Well said. Should I applaud to set the mood?”

“No need!”

Eula shot him another death glare. “You’re such a lunatic.”

“It’s rare to enjoy Mondstadt’s night sky with such peace of mind.”

She gently placed her weapon to the side. “So just… watch quietly, would you?”

“I love to dance,” she continued, “but all the burdens I carry made me give up that hobby. Even when I do practice, it’s always when no one’s around—sometimes up in Dragonspine.”

“Because this is the dance of a sinner. No matter how graceful it may seem, surely it must still be ugly.”

She stepped into the moonlight, backlit by lake and city.

Moonlight shimmered. A thousand winds whispered through the trees.

This isn’t a sinner’s dance. This is the dance of Eula Lawrence.

Gu Sanqiu smiled, sitting cross-legged with his chin propped in his hand, quietly watching Eula dance in the moonlight.

There was no burden in her movement—only the elegance of a breeze made flesh. You could see the chill in her footwork, and also the flawless clarity of a gem stripped of its grime.

The bitter frost of eternal permafrost had been transformed into a warm, radiant gem of ice and flame.

This had nothing to do with romance. It was simply the form she had taken after her rebirth. Her first dance offered not to a lover, but to the world itself—a beautiful, unclouded offering without any trace of resentment.

Boundless malice had never come from the world itself—only from the complexity of the human heart.

Eula smiled gently, hands falling to her sides, then slowly opening like a flower in bloom.

She bared her true self to a world that meant her no harm.

When the dance ended, Gu Sanqiu clapped loudly, joined by several applause-clapping hands he conjured from Geo energy. What had been a quiet night became an impromptu open-air performance.

“You just had to ruin the mood.”

Eula gave him another piercing glare. “That’s another grudge added to the list!”

“You might want to get more notebooks.”

Gu Sanqiu stood and dusted off his clothes. “Wanna go to Dragonspine? I can take you. With my speed, we’ll be there in no time.”

“Not tonight. I still need to manage the family.”

Eula smiled. “Once things settle down, I’ll go. I want to dance freely beside a frozen lake… then take a long, freezing cold bath.”

Gu Sanqiu raised an eyebrow. “Can I watch?”

The image of a beauty bathing—it didn’t matter who you were. That kind of mental picture had universal appeal.

“Keep dreaming! You lunatic from Liyue!”

“That’s regional discrimination, hey! I’m not a lunatic, and Liyue people aren’t either!”

The two bickered all the way back to Mondstadt.

And once they were gone, two figures crouching in the grass finally emerged from hiding.

“Sigh… Eula is so hopeless,” Amber puffed out her cheeks. “I really thought she liked Sanqiu! And it just… ended with one dance?!”

Albedo, ever composed, nodded. “It’s not just Eula’s problem. Sanqiu’s not exactly the sharpest, either. If we’re being technical, he’s a slow-witted lunatic from Liyue.”

Eula’s excuse of “urgent business” hadn’t fooled her best friend one bit. Naturally, Amber had followed her—and when she saw that Eula was heading straight for Sanqiu, she immediately knew something juicy was about to happen.

She’d dragged along Master Albedo to help mask their presence, hiding in the bushes to secretly watch it unfold.

But the result?

Letdown. Complete letdown. It felt like a story that started strong, promised drama, and then fizzled out at the end.

Seriously, that was it?! Not even a hug?!

---

T/N: SO TRUEEEE IM WITH YOU!!! BUT ITS PROGRESS??? ITS LITERALLY THE FIRST TIME I SAW A HINT OF ROMANCE!!! THE LAST TIME WAS WHEN HE SAID I LOVE YOU TO RAIDEN SHOGUN

This is a fan translation of 原神之璃月奉香人 by 淡白蛋清. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!