Seeing Noelle standing there without moving, Lin Feng suddenly realized that he had accidentally taken hold of her hand.
Scratching his head, Lin Feng hurriedly said, "I'm so sorry, really!"
At the same time, he let go of her hand.
Feeling the lingering warmth on her fingers, Noelle felt a strange sense of loss in her heart for some reason. She didn't understand why her heart felt so flustered—such a thing had never happened to her before.
*Could I be sick?* Noelle thought to herself.
"N-no, it's fine." Caught up in self-doubt, Noelle forced out a smile.
"What's wrong?" Seeing that Noelle's expression seemed a bit off, Lin Feng asked with concern, "Are you not feeling well?"
"N-no, I'm fine." Noelle patted her own cheeks, forcing herself to calm down.
"Good to hear. Noelle, where do you think I should stay? I don't really like noisy environments."
At that, Noelle thought of her own home. Relatively speaking, it was far from the city center and usually quite quiet—a place where one could get a good rest.
"How about coming to my place? There's a spare room."
The moment she said those words, Noelle regretted them. They had only met today, yet she was inviting him to her home. Wasn't that a bit too improper? Would he think she was an inappropriate person?
Unexpectedly, Lin Feng nodded and asked happily, "Is that really okay, Noelle?"
"Mm." Noelle nodded, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of her dress.
Because getting close to Noelle was going far too smoothly, Lin Feng even wondered if he was dreaming.
...
Arriving at Noelle's house, Lin Feng discovered that she actually lived alone.
"Where are your parents, Noelle?"
"They went traveling recently, so it's just me at home right now."
Lin Feng inwardly marveled that the stars, the earth, and the people were all on his side. *Could I be the protagonist? What a dreamlike treatment.*
Noelle led Lin Feng on a tour of the house. Pointing to a room on his right, Lin Feng asked, "Whose room is this?"
"That's my bedroom."
"Can I take a look?" Lin Feng asked tentatively, curious about what a girl's bedroom looked like. Ah, the innocent curiosities of a single man.
Noelle nodded.
The moment Lin Feng pushed the door open, Noelle suddenly opened her eyes wide as realization struck. "W-wait, no!"
But Lin Feng had already pushed the door open. He glanced inside and immediately closed the door again. He felt like he had seen something he shouldn't have.
At this moment, Noelle's face was flushed crimson. When she went out this morning, she had been a bit flustered and seemed to have left some personal items unputaway, casually tossing them onto the bed.
"I didn't see anything at all!" Lin Feng immediately promised.
Noelle stared at Lin Feng's face, her little expression practically saying, *Do you take me for a fool?*
Lin Feng locked gazes with her for a moment, then calmly remarked, "You're really cute, Noelle."
Hit squarely by Lin Feng's direct compliment, Noelle's face flushed with shyness.
"I-I am not!" she stammered, her voice growing flustered.
Just then, Noelle remembered she didn't even know his name yet! To think she was only now asking for his name—she really was so impolite.
"Um, I still don't know your name. Could you tell me?" Noelle's hands were clasped behind her back, twisting nervously.
"Ah, sorry, I forgot to mention it. My name is Lin Feng."
Even though Lin Feng's current body was empty, he had no intention of calling himself Aether. He would walk across Teyvat using the name he had back on Earth.
And just like that, Lin Feng and Noelle became friends. Lin Feng learned that Noelle would be taking the Knights of Favonius examination again in a week.
That evening, Noelle cooked dinner herself, preparing a meal with distinct Mondstadt flavors for Lin Feng.
Lying in bed, Lin Feng pondered how to get Noelle to join his faction. The Abyss Order was universally acknowledged throughout Teyvat as the villains, with a reputation even worse than the Fatui. Wanting to coax a kindhearted girl like Noelle into joining was obviously no easy task.
To achieve this, Lin Feng decided the first step was to change Noelle's impression of the Abyss Order. He found pen and paper and began to write a story.
The story was about the Abyss Order, a tragic tale concerning Khaenri'ah and the curse inflicted upon it by the Heavenly Principles. This was a piece of untold history; apart from the Seven Archons, most people knew nothing about it, and even some newly ascended Archons who changed frequently might not be aware of it.
After quite a while, Lin Feng finished writing the story—or rather, recording this history on paper.
"Open transmission."
The next instant, Lin Feng's figure appeared just outside the front door of Noelle's house. He slipped the letter into the mailbox by her door and then teleported back.
...
Early the next morning, Noelle got up to do chores and make breakfast. Her daily life was exceptionally disciplined: she rose early, finished her tasks, and then went to work at the Knights of Favonius.
Lin Feng, however, was still asleep in bed. It wasn't that he was lazy; it was simply that Noelle's bed was far too soft and comfortable. It wasn't until Noelle knocked on his door that Lin Feng woke up with a start.
"Good morning, Mr. Lin Feng. Breakfast is ready," Noelle called out politely while tapping softly on the door.
Lin Feng executed a carp kipping motion, quickly dressed, and opened the door.
"Noelle, I think you can just call me Lin Feng, no need for 'Mr.' From now on, I won't call you Miss Noelle either. How does that sound?"
Noelle had always felt that addressing someone by their bare given name was impolite, something reserved only for people who were very close. Hearing Lin Feng put it this way, she stammered and nodded, "Okay, L-Lin Feng."
After breakfast, Noelle went to work. She only needed to work half a day at the Knights of Favonius today instead of her usual full day, because the head housekeeper of the maids knew Noelle was preparing for the knightial exams and had specially granted her the afternoon off to practice wherever she liked.
At noon, Noelle returned home to have lunch with Lin Feng. Listening to Noelle talk, Lin Feng couldn't help thinking of Acting Grand Master Jean.
The person constantly blocking Noelle from joining the Knights of Favonius was none other than Acting Grand Master Jean. Jean's reasoning was that she wanted to protect Noelle; besides that, she felt that Noelle still had lingering weaknesses within her heart and wasn't ready to face the outside world yet.
Yet Lin Feng felt that Acting Grand Master Jean was being overly cruel. A young girl whose goal was to join the Knights of Favonius had worked hard for years—even over a decade. She had failed seven consecutive examinations.
If Lin Feng were Acting Grand Master Jean, even if he refused Noelle's entry into the Knights, he would at least make the reason clear. For instance, promising Noelle she could join once she reached a certain age or achieved a specific goal, or pointing out what aspects she still needed to practice.
As for Jean's excuse about inner weakness—did she expect Noelle to mature only after suffering the loss of both parents? The Knights wouldn't give Noelle the chance to grow through guidance, yet expected her to mature on her own. Were they asking Noelle to wound herself in order to grow? Shouldn't they let Noelle join the Knights and then have senior members lead and help her grow step by step?
...
That afternoon, Noelle practiced with her good friend Eolyn. Eolyn was also a young girl whose goal was to join the Knights of Favonius. She didn't possess a Vision, but she worked just as hard.
Carrying afternoon tea and snacks, Lin Feng walked over to the area where Noelle and Eolyn were practicing.
*I have to admit,* Lin Feng thought, *watching young girls sweat in the sunlight is truly a wonderful sight!*
Lin Feng coughed softly twice to catch the attention of Noelle and Eolyn.
"Who are you?" Eolyn asked, not recognizing Lin Feng and looking at him in confusion.
Taking small steps, Noelle hurried over to Lin Feng's side and began making introductions.