Genshin Impact: Watch me turn the tables and kill my servants at the start!

By the time Fanes' ship docked at Liyue Harbor, it was completely dark, and warm yellow light shone from the stone lanterns along the pier. He stepped over the gangplank, clutching the bundle of fireworks he'd brought all the way from Inazuma, and before he could even steady himself, he saw a familiar figure crouching beside the mooring post on the shore.

Yakoda had her hair tied in a neat ponytail, goggles hanging around her neck, and the crystal panel in her hand was still lit. She stood up abruptly when she saw Fanes disembark from the ship.

"Boss! You've finally arrived!"

Fanes switched the fireworks to his other arm, walked over, and looked her up and down: "What's going on? Does someone dare to cause trouble on my turf?"

Yakoda waved her hand: "It's not that. The internet cafes and food supply in Liyue are operating normally, and no one is causing trouble."

Fanes looked down at the bundle of fireworks in his arms, then looked up at the layered rooftops of Liyue Harbor in the distance: "That's fine then. I've prepared all the fireworks. Let's finish up the Anemo Archon's birthday celebration first, and we'll talk about other things later."

Yakoda walked a few steps beside him, opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end only replied, "...Okay."

The nights at Dihua Island are usually quiet, but tonight is clearly different.

As Fanes walked along the stone path by the reeds to the open grassy slope on the riverbank, he saw several figures scattered around the old banyan tree in the distance.

Hu Tao was squatting next to the tree roots, throwing pebbles into a bucket. Xing Qiu was sitting on a rock next to him, flipping through an old book he had pulled out from somewhere. Chong Yun was sitting far away downwind, holding a large thermos, watching the smoke from the campfire warily.

Xiangling had already set up a portable grill on the spot, arranging a row of skewers of meat on the wire mesh. Next to her, there was a spice jar she had brought with her and a plate of sliced ​​lemons in a basket.

Rosalyn wasn't here. Before Fanes arrived, he received a message from her saying that she was currently on the top floor of the Goethe Hotel, gazing at the night sky in the direction of Liyue, and wouldn't be coming in person. She also added, "If Venti goes back and gets drunk and acts crazy again, just beat him up. Don't worry about saving face for me."

On the branches of the old banyan tree that stretched towards the river, Wendy was hanging casually from a thick branch, her hat brim askew, revealing messy dark blue hair. The bottle in her hand was empty, and a thin blush floated on her cheek.

He sat up, causing the leaves to rustle for a while. He tilted his head back, drank the last mouthful of wine, and casually placed the empty bottle on a nearby tree branch.

Fanes stood on the grassy slope, holding the bundle of fireworks. He glanced at everyone present, then squatted down and untied the fireworks tubes one by one from their bindings, arranging them in order on the flat grass.

Jakoda came over and helped him remove the outermost layers of packaging paper, muttering something under her breath, but Fanes didn't listen carefully. He was busy adjusting the angle of the fireworks tubes to make sure they wouldn't hit the roof tiles of the distant residential area when they landed.

Xiangling peeked over the grill and asked, "Fireworks?"

Without looking up, Fanes replied, "Yes. It's for that person's birthday over there."

Wendy had clearly heard him. He sat up a little straighter on the branch, his blue-green eyes under his hat brim lighting up as he held up the empty bottle in their direction. Walnut came over from the base of the tree, still clutching a handful of pebbles he hadn't finished throwing: "Hey! Boss, when did you get back?"

Xingqiu closed his book and came over. Chongyun looked at the arrangement of the firework tubes that Fanes had placed on the ground from a distance, and after confirming that they should not splash sparks near the grill, he took two steps closer with the thermos in his arms.

Wendy leaned over a tree branch and looked down: "This year's look a whole size bigger than last year's."

Fanes squatted down and straightened the fuses one by one: "Last year's was too small, not impressive enough. Let's try a bigger one this year."

Fanes looked up at the tree branch and added, "I suggest you get down from the tree first, because the canopy will block your view when we take off."

Wendy thought about it and agreed. When he flipped off the tree branch and landed, he stumbled and tripped over a protruding tree root. Xingqiu reached out to help him up. After brushing the broken leaves and grass clippings off his sleeves and regaining his balance, Wendy nodded to Xingqiu and thanked him.

Xiangling brought over the grilled meat skewers and distributed them around. Hu Tao took two skewers and then retreated towards the tree roots. When Chongyun took one of the skewers, he carefully examined the distribution of chili powder, then chose a piece with the least amount of chili powder on the edge and tried it first. Xingqiu placed the old book on the stone, took a skewer, and sat down to eat slowly.

After connecting all the fuses, Fanes stood up and stepped back to a safe distance. He took out a tinderbox, lit a spark, and bent down to approach the end of the outermost fuse. The moment the spark ignited, a hissing sound followed as the fuses burned one after another.

The first firework streaked across the deep blue sky with a thin golden trail. It exploded at its highest point, scattering into a shower of silvery-white sparks. Then came the second, the third, in quick succession, painting the night sky layer by layer with different colors over the next half-cup of tea.

The golden tassels cascaded into stardust as they hung in mid-air, while the azure disc unfolded at the highest point and then transformed into countless tiny specks of light that drifted slowly down.

The purple trails lingered longest on the sky, their lines weaving into a fleeting net before fading away.

Wendy craned his neck to watch from beginning to end, holding the glass of wine he had just taken in mid-air without drinking it. Only when the last few white lights completely disappeared into the night did he put down the glass. He didn't say anything, but just sat on the grass warmed by the fireworks and continued to look at the night sky.

As Fanes collected the last empty canister and piled it aside, Yakoda walked around to stand in front of him, looked up at him, and said, "Boss, about what you kept telling me—Wendy secretly boarded our ocean liner a while ago. He accidentally pressed some button and damaged a critical component of the engine. It can be repaired, but it will keep us out of service for at least half a month."

After Jakoda finished speaking, she took a step back, leaving the conversation to Fanes.

Fanes stood there, still clutching the tinder he had used to light his cigarette, the warmth of his fingertips seeping through the metal casing. The wind swept across the river, dispersing the last embers of smoke on the grassy slope, while the embers of the campfire flickered softly in the darkness.

After a moment of silence, Fanes put the flamingo into the leather pouch hanging at his waist, then walked over to the cleaned grassy area in the center of the hillside. He stopped between the people sitting and standing, and called out, "Come, come! I'll invite you all to watch the fireworks."

Wendy visibly perked up when he heard the word "fireworks," but before he could speak, Fanes quickly added, "That batch was for warming up the crowd."

After saying that, Fanes turned and walked toward the other wooden crates piled up under the camphor tree on the outer edge of the reed island—those crates were much larger than the bundle he had brought, and the painted edges were still printed with registration codes left when they were stored in a warehouse in the port of Inazuma.

Fanes bent down and untied the topmost tube. When he lifted the lid, he found a row of firework tubes that were a size larger than the previous ones. The fuses were thicker, and the stickers on the tubes were much more intricate.

He took out two more and weighed them in his palm. With his back to the crowd watching from the other side of the grass, he said, "Let's talk about the repair costs after this batch is released."