Watatsumi Island, Sangonomiya.
Everyone was in fairly high spirits after retrieving the Bloodbranch Coral, holding the Watatsumi Goryou Ritual, and successfully curbing the land's "Holy Soilification."
Since they had also settled numerous cooperative arrangements with Inazuma City that day, they took the opportunity to hold a celebratory banquet.
After Li Qiuzhi attended the banquet, Kokomi brought him to her office.
"Thank you so much for today. Without you, retrieving the Bloodbranch Coral wouldn't have gone nearly as smoothly."
Sangonomiya Kokomi looked relaxed.
Even leaving aside the Abyss Lector who had come to Enkanomiya looking for a book, she would have struggled to deal with the two Bathysmal Vishaps guarding the place.
"Do we really need to thank each other?" Li Qiuzhi held Kokomi's hands and smiled into her ocean-blue eyes.
"...W-well, no matter how close we are, I can't just let you help for nothing."
Sangonomiya Kokomi blushed and lowered her gaze slightly. Instinctively withdrawing her hands and avoiding Li Qiuzhi's eyes, she said softly:
"In any case, I'll pay your commission fee."
"Who would turn down Mora?" Li Qiuzhi readily accepted, leaning toward the delicate ear beneath Kokomi's coral-colored hair.
"But a commission fee alone isn't enough. If I could get a kiss from Lady Sangonomiya, that would really make the trip worthwhile."
"Honestly, you..."
Sangonomiya Kokomi's fair cheeks reddened further, but she remembered that Li Qiuzhi had already kissed her in Enkanomiya.
Having experienced that feeling before, she was not as shy now as she had been then.
She glanced around and, seeing no one nearby, quickly touched her lips to his.
She pulled away so quickly that Li Qiuzhi barely had time to feel it. Kokomi pressed her lips together, looked aside with a faint blush, and said:
"Th-there. You should be satisfied now..."
"With just a