Use charm on her![4k]

"Speaking of which, you don't have your eye on that kid, do you?" The system's voice rang out, teasing the girl like a faint electric current.

"Huh? Which kid?"

Gabrielina's gaze landed on Klee nearby. The little girl was watching them with bewildered eyes, clearly still lost.

Uh, the system probably didn't mean this "kid." That would be way too criminal... I'd end up in prison.

So she looked toward Lumine beside Klee... then at Noelle beside her.

The girl seemed to be trying to look displeased, doing everything she could to make Marjorie recognize how she felt and stop making jokes like that.

But her anger came across as little more than a helpless pout.

"What if I really fall for Noelle?" the Angel thought mischievously. "She really is adorable."

"That's nothing to do with me. Lumine is going to become your master."

...You really are awful!

"I just want to watch you win Lumine over. I don't care who else you fall for. Besides, relationships between girls are a selling point in works like this, aren't they?"

System: Watching a show like this would make even dying worth the price of admission!

"Come on, stop being so dishonest all the time~ Go make some progress on your little da~te~~"

Sighing inwardly, Gabrielina stepped forward and explained why they had come to Marjorie.

"Oh... so you're choosing a gift for Bea to give Quinn..." Marjorie propped up her chin, considered it briefly, then said, "In that case, I have two new items here: a Special Ice Bottle and a Squirrel Wood Carving."

"The Special Ice Bottle is a fine drinking accessory. It keeps wine refreshingly chilled for a long time. As for the Squirrel Wood Carving... well, it might make an interesting little ornament?"

Marjorie carefully introduced the products. Once she dropped her frivolous act, she actually looked like a reasonably dependable adult.

"Well... which will it be, the drinking accessory or the ornament?"

"The Special Ice Bottle?"

"The ice bottle."

Gabrielina and Lumine answered in unison.

They turned to look at each other. After a moment of surprise, both smiled at once, while Paimon blinked repeatedly beside them.

Noelle nodded gently in agreement. "A drinking accessory... that would be perfect for Mr. Quinn, one of the Four Drunken Kings!"

They still remember what I said back then... That's wonderful!

Noelle pressed her lips together to keep them from curling upward, unable to suppress her secret delight.

Once she learned their choice, Marjorie efficiently wrapped the finely crafted drinking accessory and tied it with a lovely bow.

Before they left, she leaned over and whispered something to Noelle again. This time, however, the girl did not blush, merely casting a barely perceptible glance toward Gabrielina.

Gabrielina deliberately moved farther away. She had no interest in listening... it was surely just more pointless gossip anyway.

A few minutes later, the girls delivered the package to Beatrice.

"It's so cold. Is this... a vessel for wine?"

She carefully ran her fingers over the ice bottle's smooth curves, a delighted smile gradually blossoming on her face. "It really does look like something he'd like... You've been such a help!"

Gabrielina folded her arms across her chest and grinned wickedly. "Miss Bea, you could keep him guessing a little... Something like, 'If you want your present, you'll have to go on a date with me first'?"

"I-is that a good idea?" Paimon blinked in confusion.

"...As long as it helps~"

"Hmm... that sounds like it might work? Anyway, thank you all so much! With this present, he'll... he..."

As though she had remembered something terrible, Beatrice suddenly reeled backward.

"Oh no!"

"What's wrong, Miss Bea?" Noelle asked with concern. "Is there something wrong with the gift?"

The girl hugged the package tightly to her chest, her voice growing quieter. "N-no, it isn't the gift. I was so focused on going on a date with Quinn... I never thought about where we'd go!"

"You can't be serious..."

Under everyone's stares, Beatrice's face grew redder and redder.

"Well, I've never succeeded before!"

"Noelle... could you help me with that too...?"

Clearly, even someone as experienced as Noelle was profoundly shocked by such scatterbrained behavior.

The Gundam looked troubled.

She had thought it would only be a few small favors, but now... the more she helped, the more work there seemed to be! At this rate, the rest her senior had urged her to take would go out the window, and even her training...

"Noelle," Gabrielina suddenly said, "it looks like Miss Bea can only count on you."

"Huh?"

Noelle turned and met the Angel's smiling gaze.

Beatrice hurriedly nodded as well, coaxing her. "Yes, exactly! With Noelle here, everything will be fine."

...No, you're the last person who gets to say that. You hopelessly lovestruck NPC, you're even worse than Marjorie!

With everyone's encouragement, the girl's restless heart finally settled. She took a deep breath, a faint light shining in her eyes. "All right. Leave it to us."

"If we're choosing a location, splitting up to scout should be more efficient." Gabrielina rested a hand beneath her chin, already reviewing Mondstadt's map in her mind. "I'll use Sky Shift to check somewhere farther away. Who wants to come with-"

"No!" Lumine and Noelle objected in unison.

"???"

Gabrielina: What just happened?

Seeing her astonished expression, Lumine opened her mouth, then awkwardly turned her face aside. "Even though Dvalin won't attack for now, th-there are still plenty of dangers in the wilds around Mondstadt..."

Noelle stammered in agreement. "Sh-she's right! Besides, staying together makes it easier to discuss things. Um... don't you think so, Klee?"

"Klee wants to stay with Gabrielina!"

As the little girl threw herself straight at her, Gabrielina hurriedly caught her and resignedly folded away her wings.

"All right, all right~ Where do you think would be good for a date, then, Noelle?"

"A date location... should probably have lovely scenery and a peaceful atmosphere." Noelle's eyes lit up. "Cape Oath would be wonderful. It also has some beautiful, moving legends!"

Cape Oath... romantic or not, it's definitely pretty far away. How did Lumine and Noelle run all over the place in the original story...?

The girl gently set Klee down, calmly raised her head, and looked at the others as they approached.

"If I can't use my ability, you can walk there yourselves."

"...Oh."

After who knew how long, the group skirted the monster-infested Dadaupa Gorge and finally reached the edge of a scimitar-shaped cliff, on a stretch of land that thrust deep into the sea.

Time seemed to stand still in the sunlight streaming down from above, while the ceaseless breeze carried the ocean's gentleness.

Just then, an inexplicably sonorous voice rang out beside their ears.

"Eastward I came to Jieshi, to gaze upon~ the boundless sea!"

Ha! How am I any different... from that scoundrel Cao Cao?

As Gabrielina inexplicably burst into poetic inspiration, the panting girls all chose to sit down and rest first, apart from Paimon, who was likewise floating in the air.

The sunlight stretched their shadows long, almost reaching into the distant valley.

"Phew... I think... if even our senior is tired after walking here, wouldn't Cape Oath... be a little too far for Miss Bea?"

Looking down at the flushed, breathless girl beside her, and at her slightly trembling legs wrapped in sheer black stockings, Gabrielina gave a couple of timely, quiet coughs.

"Yes, but the view here is pretty good. Is that place over there called Falcon Coast?"

"Hey, you've stolen all my lines as the guide!" Paimon stomped angrily.

"...I'm sure Miss Bea can manage. Let's take a picture first." Lumine stood as she spoke, and a Kamera appeared in her hands.

Yet everyone else acted as though they had seen nothing unusual about this object appearing out of thin air, as if it were perfectly natural.

Well? Amazing, isn't it, Traveler?

"Gabrielina!"

"Hm?"

The Angel turned at the call, just in time to hear a soft click.

After fiddling with the Kamera a little more, Lumine smiled and handed over the freshly developed photograph:

In the picture, Gabrielina stood half-turned toward the lens, her wings spreading into translucent curves in the sea breeze. A few strands of cherry-pink hair brushed her slightly startled face, while behind her, the sunset scattered across the sea like flecks of gold.

All in all, the subject herself thought the picture looked quite nice, though her expression was a little silly.

"Well, well, how dare you take a sneaky picture of me~" With one hand on her hip, Gabrielina feigned anger and reached out to pinch Lumine's warm earlobe.

"Mm... let's take a group picture!"

Dodging her hand, the girl pointed toward the horizon, her voice brimming with unmistakable embarrassment. "If we wait any longer, we'll miss the prettiest sunset."

Under Lumine's direction, the girls arranged themselves at the cliff's edge.

Klee stood at the front, hugging Dodoco tightly, while Noelle stood somewhat nervously on the Angel's left, her posture a little stiff. When Lumine naturally took her place on Gabrielina's right, the enormous wings suddenly curved gently into a heart, sheltering the three beneath their warm feathers.

"Taking the picture now-" Paimon made one final check of the Kamera, called out, then immediately flew to Lumine's side.

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!!!"

With the soft click of the shutter, that instant was preserved forever.

Lumine carefully ran over to put away the Kamera, and Klee immediately joined her. They crouched together on the ground to look through the pictures they had just taken.

"Wow, Gabrielina's hair... how did it turn into a rainbow?"

"Her hair has always been beautiful..." Lumine replied softly, the corners of her mouth lifting of their own accord.

Meanwhile, watching the two excitedly studying the photograph, Gabrielina gave a little huff and deliberately tossed the long hair draped over her shoulders.

"Speaking of which..."

Noelle added from the side, "Starsnatch Cliff is another high place with beautiful scenery, but it's famous for its nighttime views."

Paimon puffed out her cheeks and said nothing.

"But..." Noelle looked worriedly at Klee, who had her head together with Lumine's as they examined the pictures. "If we go to Starsnatch Cliff to see the night scenery, won't little Klee get home too late?"

"Um... N-Noelle, I'm doing a mission with everyone. Master Jean won't be angry, will she?"

Jean: furious and ferocious!

Looking at Klee's crestfallen little face, Lumine gently patted her head. "It's not just because you need to get home on time, Klee. Gabrielina and I have something to do tonight too~"

"Yes, though it isn't anything particularly important," Gabrielina agreed casually.

Right, we're just going to steal Mondstadt's greatest treasure. A quick little errand.

"Is it an operation for the Knights of Favonius?" Noelle asked with concern.

"No... Master Jean deserves a break too, doesn't she?" Gabrielina sighed softly, looking at the girl before her, whose eyes kept darting away. "Speaking of which, someone else was supposed to be getting a proper rest too."

"S-sorry... mm?"

Noelle instinctively apologized, but before she could finish, a warm finger gently pressed against her lips.

She looked up, straight into those smiling golden eyes.

"Though I say that... somehow, if you learned to slack off, you wouldn't be Noelle anymore, would you?"

Looking at Gabrielina's helpless expression, Noelle suddenly felt a moment of dazed familiarity-she remembered how Master Jean always looked at her the same way whenever she wanted to take on more work.

But... this feels so strange. It isn't the same as with Master Jean...

The girl felt heat rapidly rising into her cheeks.

She unconsciously clenched her armored skirt, the creaking growing louder and louder as her voice grew weaker. "I... I'm not... always... busy..."

"You're pretty good at flirting after all... Got a thing for younger girls?" the system demanded coldly.

"What nonsense are you talking about??? This is a pure-romance fanfic. I just want her to get some proper re-"

"WOW!"

Gabrielina exclaimed and stumbled half a step. Before she could turn to see who had ambushed her, someone seized her shoulder from behind.

A familiar voice rang out, accompanied by a faint tug. "Gabrielina, you can invite Miss Noelle out again tomorrow, but if we wait any longer... you don't want to carry four people back, do you?"

"Of course not. Little Klee, let's run..."

Watching Gabrielina hurry away with Klee by the hand, the others left behind froze for a moment, then hastily chased after them.

"Noelle, you really should change into a lighter skirt," Gabrielina called without turning around as she flew ahead. "...You clank and jangle when you run!"

"But... but in combat..."

"I'm wearing so little, and it hasn't affected my fighting!"

"Yes!"

"White stockings are better than black ones. A maid should wear white stockings..."

"Yes..."

The Angel was about to say more when an unidentified smoking object suddenly bounced out of Klee's backpack, bursting into a tiny firework on the beach.

The girls' startled cries and laughter drifted away on the wind, while behind them, the sunset descended like an ocean tide.

The enormous sun had already touched the sea, as though the whole world were mourning its departure. Tens of millions of tons of seawater gently surged beneath their feet, the waves breaking into white spray beneath the black cliffs.

The gentle west wind swept through tens of thousands of hectares of forest. From afar, the evening woods looked like a sea as well, a dusky crimson ocean, with countless treetops swaying in the wind to form wave upon overlapping wave.

As a Flügel, Gabrielina could see very, very far. She saw the lights of the town, the city upon the lake, and even the rolling mountains in the distance.

The clouds in the sky burned the color of flames, and in the deepening night, her golden eyes shone brighter than ever.

Behind her, the sun sank below the horizon, and all-encompassing darkness was about to sweep across the world.