Eula's expression showed a flicker of surprise. She glanced to the left and right, noticing that no one was paying attention to her.
She hurriedly scooped up the letter and trotted all the way back to her home.
As soon as she stepped inside, she thought to herself: I haven't done anything wrong, why am I acting so timid?
Hmph, I won't forget this grudge.
Eula tore open the envelope, and the contents were as follows:
"Spindrift Knight, I am truly sorry about keeping my address a secret, but I don't want my current whereabouts exposed just yet.
I apologize for the trouble I've caused you.
I have already heard about what happened in Mondstadt; those people will get what's coming to them sooner or later, I swear it.
By the way, can we meet tomorrow?
Enclosed with this letter is one of my favorite flowers as a gift. I hope you like it."
Eula looked back down at the envelope and drew out an Intwaty, one of whose petals possessed a faint bluish tint.
In Teyvat, the Intwaty was also known as the national flower of Khaenri'ah.
However, Khaenri'ah had fallen many years ago, and no one remembered that name anymore.
Eula held the flower in her hand, a lovely curve forming at the corners of her lips before she even realized it.
According to the etiquette of the old aristocracy of Mondstadt, young men and women in the flush of new love would exchange flowers as tokens of their affection.
Hmph, if he wants to court me, it won't be that easy.
Her mother used to tell her that men like this were all scoundrels.
Eula put the flower away, carefully storing it safe.
Once she finished, she opened her wardrobe.
She pouted slightly, realizing it had been a very long time since she last bought herself any new clothes.
Since she was going to meet her mysterious pen pal tomorrow, she ought to dress a bit more nicely so as not to neglect proper etiquette.
……
The next day.
Eula arrived near Springvale as promised.
Just then, she spotted a man standing not far away who looked somewhat familiar.
She checked the position of the sun, and figuring she still had plenty of time, she walked over.
"Hello, may I ask..."
The man turned his head, looking at Eula with an equal measure of surprise.
"It's you!?" Eula blurted out in astonishment.
"Is that Miss Eula?" Lin Feng asked.
"It's me. Isn't Noelle with you?"
Eula thought of her junior and asked with genuine concern.
"Noelle should be teaching people how to be proper maids right about now."
Lin Feng had recently summoned a few more Abyss Mages. Considering that Noelle didn't have any subordinates yet and couldn't use Abyssal teleportation skills, Lin Feng had assigned these three Abyss Mages directly under Noelle's command, specifically to protect her and serve as living teleportation tools.
Having subordinates for the very first time, Noelle was obviously thrilled, and excitedly declared she would teach these Abyss Mages the proper ways of maidcraft.
Abyss Mage: I have already been molded into the shape of a maid.
"You didn't actually kidnap Miss Noelle into the Abyss, did you?" Eula took two steps back, eyeing him warily.
Over the past two days, the letters sent to her by the Abyss Prince had thoroughly analyzed this man named Lin Feng.
Abducting Noelle, framing Eula, and weakening the Knights of Favonius—all of it was supposedly Lin Feng's doing.
"You figured that out?" Lin Feng said, feigning surprise.
Eula froze for a moment. She had expected him to deny it.
Instead, he actually admitted to it just like that?
It was like preparing a thousand different tactical maneuvers to win a battle, only to discover that simply charging straight ahead was enough.
Before Eula could speak, Lin Feng introduced himself: "Allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Lin Feng, my pen name is Abyss Prince, and my occupation is Abyss Prince."
Eula's expression stalled completely, and her brain short-circuited on the spot.
It took her a good while to reboot before she asked, "You knew I was Spindrift Knight?"
"Uh... you described things in your letter in such detail, you might as well have written 'Eula' across your forehead," Lin Feng said sheepishly.
Eula froze once more. This scenario—where she was meeting an online pen pal only to find out he already knew who she was all along—made her feel extremely awkward.
"Give me a moment to sort this out, my head's a bit of a mess." Eula pressed a hand to her forehead, feeling utterly bewildered.
"First of all, your name is Lin Feng, and you're Noelle's boyfriend. Am I right about that?" Eula asked.
"Wrong. My name is Lin Feng, that's true, but Noelle and I are just good friends, not a couple," Lin Feng replied.
"Not a couple? Then why did Eolyn tell me you were?" Eula countered.
"No wonder Eolyn's reaction was so strange when Noelle and I left Mondstadt."
Thinking back to Eolyn's attitude toward him at the time, Lin Feng found it increasingly suspicious the more he pondered it.
"Next question, is your pen name really Abyss Prince?" Eula asked skeptically.
"Glacial Vengeance, Severing Soy Sauce! That's what you told me in your letter," Lin Feng recited to prove his pen name really was Abyss Prince.
"Urgh... it's Severing Deep Grudges, I got the words wrong. I won't forget this grudge," Eula said, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Final question, is your occupation really Abyss Prince?" Eula continued.
"Naturally."
Eula stared intently at Lin Feng's face, hoping to read something from it, but her efforts were destined to be in vain.
"Whatever, I'll believe you for now!"
Though she said that, she didn't believe a single word of it in her heart.
Some random guy pops up out of nowhere and tells you, "Actually, I'm the supreme villain boss"—nobody in their right mind would believe that!
Eula suddenly remembered how this guy had spent the other day analyzing how Lin Feng had framed her, and the more she thought about it, the more absurd the whole analysis sounded.
Who on earth reveals their own master plan to the victim?!
And to think she had almost believed it at the time, almost genuinely thinking it was an Abyssal conspiracy!
Hmph, I won't forget this grudge either.
In short, Eula had already concluded that Lin Feng was just an eccentric who loved making wild guesses and fantasizing about being the Abyss Prince.
……
Lin Feng and Eula strolled through the wilderness of Mondstadt, waded across a stream, and shared lunch together.
Later, they lay side by side on the grass to enjoy the afternoon.
That evening.
"Lin Feng, spending the day with you has made me feel a lot better. But really, you should stop calling yourself the Abyss Prince—you're going to get yourself arrested by the Knights of Favonius." Eula offered her advice with sincere earnestness.
At the mention of this, she suddenly recalled that there was also a damsel in the City of Mondstadt who loved calling herself the Prinzessin der Verurteilung; the two of them would probably hit it off brilliantly.
One loved calling himself the Abyss Prince, and the other loved calling herself the Prinzessin der Verurteilung. In a way, they were a perfect match.
"Alright then! I'll graciously accept your advice. See you next time." Lin Feng checked the sky and saw it was getting late; it was about time for him to head back for dinner.
Noelle was probably cooking up a storm with those three Abyss Mages waiting for him to come home.
Lin Feng raised his right hand and made a casual sweeping slash from top to bottom. A spatial rift instantly tore open before him, and with a single step forward, his entire figure vanished into the fissure.
Eula stood frozen to the spot, staring at the scene in a daze. Just as the rift was about to close, it finally dawned on her.
This guy actually wasn't lying to me?!
He really is from the Abyss?!
That spatial rift was identical to the ones made by the Abyss Mages, the only difference being that it was larger and much more stable.
So the things he analyzed in those letters weren't fake either?!
Suddenly, Eula had a mountain of questions she wanted to ask Lin Feng.
Just as the rift was about to vanish completely, Eula lunged forward with a fierce leap, determined to pass through the opening and find Lin Feng.
To her dismay, the rift closed a bit too fast, causing her upper body to slip inside while her lower half remained trapped outside, her firm, well-proportioned legs kicking wildly into empty air as they failed to find any footing.