"Hmm? Are you talking about Sister Glory?" Klee suddenly joined their conversation. "Sister Glory says she likes to listen to the sound of the wind alone, so Klee didn't say hi. You shouldn't disturb her either!"
Kaeya asked curiously, "Klee, you know her too?"
"Yes, Klee and Sister Glory are good friends!"
Klee bit her finger, pondering. "Sometimes, Klee plays here with other kids, and Sister Glory tells us many stories from other countries. She said Liyue is by the sea, with a huge port where massive ships as tall as buildings dock—hundreds of times bigger than the little boats on Cider Lake!"
"She also said we can't go to Inazuma now because a very big, very angry person is there. Any ship approaching Inazuma is struck by powerful lightning, as scary as Lisa's lightning magic!"
"She even told us about Sumeru…"
Klee excitedly shared Sister Glory's stories, unaware that the other three already knew this information. She simply wanted to share her joy.
"But Sister Glory has never left Mondstadt. How does she know these things?" Amber wondered.
"Because Brother Godwin always writes her letters! They're very good friends, just like Klee, Brother Shen, Brother Kaeya, and Sister Amber. If we were far away, Klee would write letters to you too!" Klee said earnestly.
Shen Qin smiled at her. "Yes, Klee is a very good friend to us."
"Godwin is her beloved in the Knights of Favonius," Kaeya explained to the others. "As far as I know, he often sends her letters."
Amber frowned. "But news from the expedition team is limited and comes through official channels. Personal letters from Godwin…"
"Shh!" Kaeya made a silencing gesture, wearing a peculiar smile. "Sometimes, knowing too much isn't necessarily a good thing."
Shen Qin glanced at him, wondering if he truly knew the truth behind it all. After all, Kaeya always managed to remain mysterious.
"Klee even helped Sister Glory!" Klee declared, sliding backward on her skateboard and striking a proud pose.
"Sister Glory asked Klee, 'Klee, can you help me pick some dandelions?'"
Klee mimicked Glory's gentle tone, then imitated her own response: "Of course! Klee will help! But why do you want dandelions, Sister Glory?"
"'Because dandelions carry people's thoughts far away on the wind. I have so much I want to say to Godwin, but he didn't leave an address in his letters. So I tell the dandelions what I want to say, and they'll carry it to him.'"
"So Klee picked a few dandelions, and Sister Glory told me not to eavesdrop on her whispers to them! Then Klee took the dandelions to a high place and blew them away!"
Klee burst into giggles, as if recalling something funny.
"What's so funny, Klee?" Amber asked curiously.
"Klee also tried whispering to the dandelions like Sister Glory. But as soon as I opened my mouth, I accidentally ate them! Heehee!"
"Hahaha, Klee, how silly of you!" Amber laughed heartily, bending over with Klee as the two red-clad figures giggled uncontrollably.
Shen Qin didn't find it particularly funny but remembered doing something similar as a child. He had tried blowing dandelions farther, only to suck them into his mouth by mistake.
As they walked away, Shen Qin turned back for one last look at the girl quietly sitting on the bench.
He knew the truth behind those letters, thanks to his memories of the game.
In the game, the Traveler met her and helped her with the same tasks Klee had done. Later, the Traveler encountered Godwin near Windrise outside Mondstadt.
Godwin revealed that he was supposed to leave with the expedition team but had missed their departure after losing a keepsake Glory had given him. Unable to rejoin the team, he stayed behind.
Godwin couldn't return to Mondstadt because he had promised Glory he would travel the world with the expedition and send her letters and gifts from distant lands.
Unable to face the Knights' scrutiny or let Glory know he hadn't even left Mondstadt, he wrote letters pretending he had traveled to far-off places.
Shen Qin didn't judge. Everyone had their choices.
Would Glory be happy to know her beloved had visited so many places? Maybe. But she had also asked the Traveler when he might return.
Perhaps what she truly wanted was for Godwin to appear before her right now.
The dandelions had failed to carry her longing to him. If Godwin knew, would he make a different choice?
"What are you thinking about?" Kaeya's voice brought Shen Qin back to reality.
"Nothing. Just wondering how to help Miss Glory."
"The Knights have always supported her. They never neglect the families of expedition members, especially someone like her."
"Maybe she'd prefer to be treated like everyone else?" Shen Qin smiled, recalling a modern saying ─Every person with a disability is an individual.
He also remembered a famous author who had jokingly assigned his disabled friend as the goalie during a soccer match, daring the opposing team to kick the ball at him. (T/N - Stephen King maybe?)
Kaeya froze, contemplating this. After a while, he said thoughtfully, "Maybe you're right. The Knights have helped many people with disabilities, but most aren't very enthusiastic about us. We've never understood why."
"That's a valuable perspective. Do you want to research it further?" Kaeya teased.
Shen Qin rolled his eyes. "I'm an alchemist, not a sociologist."
"Why not? Some scholars at the Sumeru Akademiya research the oddest topics!"
"Even in the Akademiya, I'd be a pure scientist solving problems with logic, not humanities!" Shen Qin retorted.
But his own words sparked a fleeting inspiration that disappeared before he could grasp it.