Amber truly was Eula's best friend. Li Qiuzhi had merely shown his approval of Eula, and her Friendship had risen considerably.
His specialty, [Maiden Rescuer], must have played a part. It allowed him to touch Amber's heart more easily when they spent time together, naturally making her grow fonder of him.
Her Friendship level had already reached Lv.3.
As Li Qiuzhi understood it,
Lv.1 roughly covered the process from first meeting to becoming acquainted, Lv.2 meant ordinary friends, and Lv.3 meant familiar friends.
Reaching Lv.4 would make them close friends. Of course, that would still fall short of Amber's relationship with Eula. Using the story as a reference, Eula was probably close to the maximum level in Amber's heart.
The reverse was also true. Amber held an equally important place in Eula's heart.
Come to think of it, Li Qiuzhi hadn't known Amber for very long, so he was making pretty quick progress. Good, very good. Given enough time, Amber's "Lepus" would favor him sooner or later.
"Oh, Amber, Miss Eula, please have a seat."
Li Qiuzhi barely managed to find two wooden chairs with backrests in his sparsely furnished room and arranged them neatly side by side. He was about to pour them some water when he remembered that he had boiled it that morning, and it had already gone cold.
Surely he couldn't serve them cold water.
"Uh, sorry."
Li Qiuzhi looked at the kettle and gave an awkward smile. Lighting a fire and boiling more water now would be rather troublesome, and they would have to wait quite a while.
That would be terribly inconsiderate toward his guests.
Amber sat down on one of the wooden chairs. Snow-white skin showed between her belted shorts and white thigh-high boots, while her blazing red Pyro Vision hung from the convenient pouch at her left side.
She raised both hands to her chest and waved them to show that she didn't mind.
"It's fine.
"Let's get down to business first. Didn't I tell you yesterday that my good friend's family had affordable, good-quality houses for rent?
"See? Since I had some free time today, I brought Eula over. You can tell her what kind of house you're looking for."
Eula sat beside Amber with her right leg crossed over her left, her blue-violet metal shoe hovering slightly above the floor. It was quite eye-catching.
Her glossy, snug thigh-high leather boots beautifully outlined the curves of her legs. Like Amber's, her exposed thighs had soft, snow-white skin, though hers were a little fuller.
"I see. So you're the good friend Amber mentioned, Miss Eula?"
There was a hint of curiosity in Li Qiuzhi's gaze. Although he already knew, he couldn't let that show.
"Yes, that's right." Eula switched her crossed legs and folded her arms, her expression calm. "It's rare for anyone to want to rent a house belonging to the Lawrence Clan. I was simply a little curious."
[Eula has grown fond of you. Gained 30 Friendship points. Current Friendship level: Lv.1 (30/100)]
Looking at the Friendship notification that had suddenly appeared, he figured Eula's first impression of him was fairly good. Since he was also Amber's friend, she had naturally developed a little fondness for him.
Not bad. It was a very good start.
Hearing Eula's words, Li Qiuzhi put on a slightly puzzled expression and asked,
"Huh? Why do you say that?"
Li Qiuzhi felt he might have a shot at winning a best actor award. To avoid exposing anything unusual about himself, he had long since mastered the art of concealing his thoughts.
A trace of surprise appeared on Eula's fair face. Was there really someone in Mondstadt who hadn't heard of her Lawrence Clan's "illustrious reputation"?
She studied Li Qiuzhi carefully. Short black hair, an ordinary Liyue face. So that was it. She hadn't given it much thought earlier. Since he wasn't a Mondstadt native, it was only natural that he wouldn't understand what she meant.
"If you don't know, never mind." Eula had no intention of telling Li Qiuzhi about the "sins" her clan had committed a thousand years ago. Then she stressed again, "Even so, I will still have my vengeance for leaving us waiting outside for so long!"
Although Eula said one thing on the surface, she did care a little about Li Qiuzhi, who viewed her without prejudice, especially since he was Amber's friend.
[Eula has grown fond of you. Gained 75 Friendship points. Current Friendship level: Lv.2 (5/200)]
Uh... Looking at the Friendship notification on the Character Panel, Li Qiuzhi didn't know whether to be happy or not. Eula really did say the opposite of what she felt.
Could it be that every time she told her friends, "I'll remember this grievance!" or "Just you wait for my vengeance!" it was actually a sign that her Friendship was rising?
She really is... Haha, pretty cute.
"No, it's just that Eula's clan did commit some pretty serious wrongs in the past. But what happened a thousand years ago has absolutely nothing to do with Eula. It's just that the people of Mondstadt still can't quite let it go."
Amber lowered her eyes and rested her hands on her knees, which she held together, quietly defending her friend.
"Uh, since it happened long enough ago to be called history, why would that change my mind? After all, none of us can be sure whether one of our ancestors a thousand years ago was a Treasure Hoarder who terrorized the locals, right?"
With a few tactful words, Li Qiuzhi eased the awkward atmosphere.
Amber leaned forward and nodded, showing that she mostly agreed. Eula leaned back against her chair and gently swung her raised left foot, tapping her heel against the floor.
After a moment's thought, Li Qiuzhi returned to the matter at hand.
"Well, Miss Eula, I did tell Amber that I wanted to find a better place to live. Hmm, I'm not asking for much. Something affordable, with a little more space than this place, would be enough."
Eula frowned at that. She rested one hand on her thigh and stroked her smooth chin with the other, looking thoughtful.
"Um, is there a problem?"
Li Qiuzhi was a little stunned. Could even such simple requirements be impossible to meet?
"Ahem." Amber loosely covered her mouth and gave a light cough to draw Li Qiuzhi's attention. Her soft, thin lips parted as she explained quietly, "The Lawrence Clan may have fallen on hard times, but they were nobles, after all... No matter how far they've declined, they wouldn't have a house that would embarrass them like that."
"..."
Sorry, Eula. I was thinking too small. I actually made a request that put you in such a difficult position... Li Qiuzhi felt secretly embarrassed by his lack of worldly experience.
Could it be that he couldn't even afford to rent the Lawrence Clan's worst house?
Surely there wouldn't be such a ridiculous mix-up. After all, Amber knew his circumstances and that he didn't have much Mora to spare. Since she had brought Eula over, there probably wouldn't be a problem.
"All right, I've thought of one." After pondering for quite a while, Eula's lips curved into a smile.
She rose from her chair and said, "I remember that the Lawrence Clan has an unused house on Valberry Street. Let's go take a look now."
"Mm-hmm, you really are reliable, Eula." Amber clapped excitedly, then stood as well and said to Li Qiuzhi, "Is there anything you need to bring? We can help carry it over so you won't have to make extra trips yourself."
Li Qiuzhi hadn't expected things to go so smoothly. Having a friend like Amber really was wonderful. He took one last sip of cold water and nodded.
Many thanks to all the dear readers who bookmarked, recommended, and kept up with the story. May you all win your next 50/50! ╰(*︶`*)╯
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