The classroom at Haizhou Academy was as noisy as ever before class.
Lu Chen placed his bag on his seat, a slight frown on his face—something strange had just happened.
When he passed by Naomi Zhao's desk, their eyes met briefly. But she looked away like she'd seen a ghost.
Am I really that scary? I thought I was getting more handsome lately...
Lu Chen looked at her retreating figure. Come to think of it, he hadn't seen much of her lately, even though they were in the same class.
She seemed to be deliberately avoiding him, fading into the background more and more.
Lu Chen remembered she used to be quite lively and popular in class. But at some point, she just... vanished. Like an invisible person.
He usually didn't care about people unrelated to him, so Naomi Zhao's change wasn't something he paid much attention to.
But this might have something to do with Ei...
Thinking back, it was after that day he and Ei went to see Venti's audition that Naomi Zhao started acting so strangely.
Lu Chen frowned. Ei hadn't told him anything. Did she do something behind his back?
The occasional breeze through the window and the early May scenery outside did nothing to catch Lu Chen's attention. He stared at the empty seat beside him, visibly distracted.
Her bag was there—but she wasn't.
She's not even attending homeroom? The fencing team's training isn't that intense lately, right?
Thinking back to this morning, even someone as dense as Lu Chen had to realize—Ei was avoiding him.
Was she feeling shy? Too embarrassed to face him?
That shouldn't be it. They'd already developed feelings for each other back in Inazuma. By now, they should be all sweet and lovey-dovey—even if not like an old married couple.
Instead, they were exactly like what Yae Miko said: a pair of clueless, innocent idiots...
Lu Chen quietly pulled out his phone and opened Ei's WeChat profile.
Teyvat's Most Handsome: Not going to English class either?
Teyvat's Most Handsome: Busy with training?
Teyvat's Most Handsome: Ignoring me now?! (Image: crying cat emoji)
...
No reply.
Lu Chen suddenly felt a little irritated and tucked his phone away.
Thinking about Raiden Ei the whole time, Lu Chen was completely distracted in class. His ever-attentive homeroom teacher shot him repeated glares.
Kenshin Zhou, trying to nudge him back to reality from behind, nearly jabbed his fingers numb.
The moment the bell rang, Lu Chen was out of his seat. He followed the long, tree-lined path to the gym.
Sure enough, that tall figure was there.
Raiden Ei looked troubled, clearly preoccupied. Normally, she would hold back her real strength—but now, she was struggling to restrain herself.
The teammate sparring with her was having a hard time. Their mask had already been hit several times by her steel sword. Each point she scored came with a heavy metallic clang, making the other team members watching flinch.
Ei's strikes were far too intense, as if each one was meant to kill. The coach's eyebrows twitched nervously, worried she might pierce her opponent's mask if things went unchecked.
When Lu Chen arrived, both the coach and the unlucky sparring partner visibly relaxed.
If someone didn't calm Raiden down soon, this training match was going to end in injury...
"Uh... Raiden, maybe take a break... L-Lu is here to see you..."
"Raiden...? Miss Raiden?"
Silence.
Everyone could sense the atmosphere shift—and tactfully made themselves scarce.
Raiden Ei turned and saw the smiling boy walking toward her. His gentle expression was like a spring breeze, filling the tense gym with warmth.
Lu Chen always had that effect. Wherever he went, even the bleakest places seemed to burst with color.
He rarely looked serious. Whenever he appeared, it was with a faint smile that lifted people's moods for no reason at all.
Sometimes, just to cheer her up, he'd tell some exaggerated story or crack a joke that only he found funny.
"Ei... I know you didn't do great on your English test, but don't take it out on your teammates!"
"Want me to tutor you tonight?"
"Hehe."
Just like now.
Raiden Ei took off her mask and smoothed her messy purple hair. She said nothing and headed straight into the locker room.
Lu Chen couldn't read her expression, but she didn't seem angry—just still unwilling to talk to him.
But now that he'd found her, he wasn't about to let her keep avoiding him. So he followed her into the locker room.
When Ei opened the door, Lu Chen glanced inside—and froze for a second or two.
A chorus of girls' screams rang out...
Lu Chen awkwardly backed out and waited for Raiden Ei at the gym entrance.
A few minutes later, Ei reappeared, quietly walking up to him in her school uniform skirt. Lu Chen grinned and walked beside her under the canopy of trees.
Summer was near. Branches were heavy with green leaves, and the harsh sunlight filtered through the gaps overhead.
Couples passed by, laughing and teasing each other.
Lu Chen and Ei looked like they were mid-argument—totally out of sync with the lively atmosphere.
But Lu Chen knew it wasn't a fight. Ei was just thinking.
She walked with her head down, staring absentmindedly at the cobbled path. Lu Chen gently took her hand.
She didn't pull away, letting him hold on tightly.
"What are you thinking about?" Lu Chen didn't ask why she'd been avoiding him.
"I'm thinking about us..." Ei's voice was barely a whisper. "Are we family now, or... lovers?"
She went quiet again after that, continuing to stare at the ground like it held some secret pattern.
Lu Chen gave a helpless smile. Even he could finally guess what was on her mind.
Was Ei having trouble accepting how close they'd become? Feeling guilty? Afraid of losing what they had?
To be honest, Lu Chen had wrestled with this himself.
In his past life, he'd lived carefree, never lacking in romantic opportunities. But when it came to the three of them, he'd been unusually cautious and protective.
There was always something sacred about their relationship. He'd always seen the sisters as family. Though feelings were there, he never dared to cross the line.
They'd grown up together, eaten together, lived together, played together—like family. The idea of suddenly becoming lovers was hard to adjust to.
So at the time, everyone just wanted to keep things simple and carefree—forever...
But then came separation, and death. And now, having met Ei again in this new world, Lu Chen was finally ready to face it.
What he wanted wasn't just a sister.
He wanted to be Ei's true partner.
He'd already made peace with that. He just hadn't expected Ei to still be stuck in the past, chasing ghosts that no longer mattered.
"Of course we're lovers!" Lu Chen said firmly, squeezing her hand so tight he nearly left marks on her pale skin.
Ei looked at him, her violet eyes flickering.
"We're also family," Lu Chen added.
Ei looked a little stunned. Lu Chen reached out and poked her forehead.
"Have you been reading too many of that fox's novels? Or just sappy romance trash?"
He slipped back into his usual cheeky grin. "We've lived for over a thousand years. Do you really think rules and norms can hold us back? Who's gonna stop us?"
Ei blinked and stared seriously at his face.
"No matter what, no one can pull us apart. Not unless the world ends—"
Lu Chen added with a smirk, "And even if it does, we'll die together, turn into ashes, and mix into the same pile. Happy now?"
Ei chuckled. "Don't say weird stuff like that. Mixed ashes? That's gross."
"It's a metaphor, alright? You get what that means, right?"
Ei suddenly smiled like a field of blooming flowers. She tightened her grip on his hand and mimicked his tone.
"I'm not good at language."
"Then learn!" Lu Chen grinned mischievously. "I'll give you some private tutoring tonight!"
"You're hopeless." She rolled her eyes—but kept smiling.
Lu Chen smiled too. The light filtering through the leaves bathed their faces in warmth.
On that tree-lined path, their tightly held hands moved forward together.
Lu Chen hoped this road would never end.