Klee stared at Qiu Bai, too stunned to speak.
"Big brother, you're amazing!"
"No wonder you could beat that giant sea monster!"
She rested her chin in her hands, eyes sparkling with admiration as she looked up at him.
"Hehe, come on, Klee."
"Didn't you say you wanted to eat fish?"
Qiu Bai gently lowered the swirling vortex of water from above his head, letting it hover just a centimeter above the ground.
Klee's eyes widened. She scampered over and leaned in close, curiously peering at the fish spinning inside.
"Wow..."
It was the first time she had ever seen something so magical.
One fish in particular had its back turned toward her, swishing its tail mockingly. After a moment, it swam back and swished its tail again—directly at her.
Qiu Bai's mouth twitched.
Looks like these fish had a grudge against Klee—and for good reason. One minute they were swimming peacefully, the next, bombs rained from the sky.
"Klee, have you decided which one you want to eat?"
Qiu Bai glanced over at her. She was still staring wide-eyed at the vortex, only snapping out of it when he called.
"This one!"
"Klee wants this one! It looks like it really likes me."
She pointed at the same fish that had been taunting her. Unlike the others, it kept swimming closer.
"Haha."
"Alright, but one fish won't be enough, right?"
Qiu Bai smiled and flicked his finger, pulling the chosen fish from the vortex. It floated beside Klee.
With another flick, a few more fish were drawn out at random.
Qiu Bai waved his hand, and the vortex—with the rest of the fish—gently sank back into the lake.
"Yay! Thank you, Qiu Bai!"
"Klee's going to find firewood!"
She grinned at him, then darted off into the nearby forest with her short little legs.
Qiu Bai chuckled as he watched her go.
Then, with both hands, he picked up a rock and set it on the ground. With a wave, all the dust and dirt vanished from its surface.
He turned to the fish still floating in the air.
With a simple gesture, their scales and innards dissolved into wisps of black mist.
He laid two fish carefully on the cleaned stone.
...
"Uh-oh! I'm in big trouble!"
Klee's voice rang out from the forest.
Qiu Bai frowned and instantly vanished.
In the next moment, he reappeared behind her.
"What's wrong, Klee? Are you hurt?"
He scanned the area. Up ahead, several trees were ablaze, and the fire was quickly spreading.
Animals—squirrels, boars, and more—were fleeing in all directions.
"It's you, Qiu Bai... Klee's in so much trouble…"
"I was gathering firewood. It looked damp, so I tried drying it with my Vision... but then, I lost control..."
Tears welled in her eyes. She lowered her head, rubbing at her cheeks like a child who knew she'd messed up.
"It's okay, little Klee."
"Don't forget, big brother here beat the giant sea monster."
Qiu Bai knelt down and patted her head gently.
"You have a plan, Qiu Bai?"
"This is all Klee's fault..."
She looked up at him, eyes red and watery, as he smiled.
"Of course."
Qiu Bai smiled faintly, raising a hand to point toward the distant lake.
The surface of the lake rose like a massive sheet, floating into the air.
People walking the roads of Mondstadt rubbed their eyes in disbelief.
"Am I dreaming?"
"Water's floating in the sky?!"
"Pinch me."
"Okay."
"Ow! Why so hard?! That hurt, you jerk!"
"Well, now you know you're awake!"
"Hey! Oww!"
Klee also stared wide-eyed at the vast sheet of water hanging in the sky.
It was like something straight out of a storybook.
With a flick of his finger, Qiu Bai sent the sheet of water cascading down onto the burning forest below.
Ssssssh—
The flames were smothered instantly.
Before Klee could even react, Qiu Bai pointed again.
A soft white glow enveloped the scorched trees and grass.
Within the glow, greenery began to sprout, and in moments, the forest was fully restored—like the fire had never happened.
"Big brother... that was amazing."
Klee was speechless, staring at the newly grown trees.
She walked over and gently touched one of the trunks that had been charred only moments ago.
Then she turned around, smiling brightly up at Qiu Bai.
"Hehe, of course. I am a Celestial Lord, after all."
Qiu Bai chuckled and squatted down beside her.
"But little Klee, you really need to practice better control of your elemental power."
"Mmm... Klee still loves bombs though."
"But since Qiu Bai said so... I'll practice more, okay?"
She scratched her head, a bit embarrassed, and squirmed shyly.
"Alright, let's go back and grill that fish."
"I've already got the firewood ready."
Qiu Bai looked at her fondly as he spoke.
"Okay!"
"Grilled fish! Grilled fish!"
Klee bounced happily at the idea.
Together, the two of them headed back to their cooking spot.
"Qiu Bai, where's the firewood?"
"Klee doesn't see any..."
She tilted her head, looking around in confusion.
"Hehe..."
Qiu Bai glanced toward a nearby Hilichurl camp.
More than a dozen Hilichurls stood there, each holding a big wooden club.
One particularly large Hilichurl held a massive club, several times bigger than the rest.
Qiu Bai grinned, waved his hand—and all the clubs flew from the Hilichurls' hands into the forest.
Left weaponless, the Hilichurls shouted unintelligibly, flailing their arms in frustration.
They looked pretty angry as their sticks floated away.
"There you go, firewood's delivered."
"Top-grade stuff. It'll make perfect charcoal."
Qiu Bai laughed and sat down on a stone. Klee sat across from him.
"Qiu Bai, these look like Hilichurl clubs..."
Klee tilted her head, puzzled.
"They are Hilichurl clubs,"
Qiu Bai said calmly as he watched her.
"Qiu Bai, you're amazing!"
"Water, fish, even Hilichurl clubs—you can make anything happen!"
Klee beamed at him with wide eyes.
"Hehe, let's eat, Klee."
"Go ahead and light the fire."
Qiu Bai nodded with a smile.
Klee nodded back, and her Pyro Vision gave off a faint glow.
A massive fireball launched from her weapon, making Qiu Bai instinctively step back.
The pile of sticks ignited instantly, burning down to charcoal in no time.
Qiu Bai and Klee each grabbed a twig, skewered the fish, and held them over the coals to roast.
Klee then took out a bunch of seasonings from her backpack and sprinkled them generously over the fish.
Once it was done, she couldn't wait any longer and took a big bite.
"Mmm! The fish is still so good!"
"Klee loves it!"
Her little legs swung back and forth as she sat on the stone, happily hugging her giant grilled fish.
"It really is delicious."
"Klee, your seasoning mix goes perfectly with grilled fish."
Qiu Bai smiled warmly at the adorable Klee.