It's the Maiden in the Lake Again

"Xia Lun, what do we do next? Are you going to give this idiot CPR?" Moke asked, pointing at the soaking wet, unconscious Liyana on the grass.

Aina's gaze narrowed slightly as it shifted between Xia Lun and Liyana, but it clearly wasn't the time to dwell on such trivial details.

"No need for all that trouble, let me handle it," Musen said as he stepped forward calmly and crouched down. He hovered his broad hand over Liyana's chest, and a soft emerald light suddenly flared in his palm. Like a living creature, the light slowly seeped into Liyana's body.

"Ugh... glug..." Liyana's body jerked violently, and she opened her mouth like a stranded fish. A thin stream of water spurted from her lips, much like a whale surfacing for air.

"Magic. Truly miraculous," Moke remarked with his arms crossed.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Liyana's chest began to heave. After a few violent coughs, her eyes snapped open.

"Ah!"

Liyana let out a loud shout and sat bolt upright as if propelled by a spring. She looked around blankly, panting heavily.

"What is wrong with you?" Moke couldn't help but ask. "How did you end up in the lake?"

"Ah..." Liyana's eyes were still a bit unfocused as she fell into a long moment of recollection. She shook her wet hair vigorously, sending water droplets flying everywhere. It took a while before her brain seemed to successfully reboot. "I remember now! I was half asleep, and I groggily got up to use the bathroom!"

The group exchanged glances.

"And then?" Moke pressed relentlessly, as this clearly had absolutely nothing to do with falling into the water. "Did you relieve yourself in the lake?"

"Of course not!" Liyana shot back defensively, before her expression shifted into something dreamy. "And then... right! I saw a gorgeous girl! Right there in the lake, and she was waving at me! That smile, it was just... I was so dazed that I just followed her!" She scratched her head in frustration. "Then my foot slipped, and splash! I fell into the water! I flailed around a bit, and then I blacked out."

Still shaken, Liyana patted her chest and sniffled. "Speaking of which, why do I smell like fish?"

Xia Lun nodded slightly. It probably happened exactly as Liyana described; he had indeed heard her yelling earlier.

"What the heck? Did you drink too much and fry your brain? Or did the water log your head?" Moke felt Liyana's forehead, but she didn't seem to have a fever. "Who else could possibly be out here besides us?"

"But I really saw her!" Liyana slapped Moke's hand away, raised three fingers, and swore solemnly. "There really was a beautiful girl!"

The group looked toward the center of the lake where Liyana had fallen in.

At this moment, the water was perfectly calm, without a single ripple.

"Where?" Moke asked, turning back to Liyana.

"She is really there! If I'm lying, may you and your little bunny never get to first base for the rest of your lives..." Liyana said with utmost seriousness.

Veins instantly bulged on Moke's forehead, and he cracked his knuckles loudly. "You bastard... believe it or not, I'll throw you right back into the lake to feed the fish right now!"

"Well? Did you notice anything?"

Xia Lun ignored the noisy bickering beside him. He lightly brushed the back of his hand against Aina's and asked in a low voice.

"There is an unusual magical aura," Aina said, her deep gaze fixed on the center of the lake.

The vast lake was fully visible under the moonlight. Fallen leaves and a few branches floated near the edge, and a dead tree was deeply embedded in the muddy lakebed, with a section of it protruding above the water.

"Is it hiding?"

Aina whispered. She slowly raised her staff, gathering powerful magic at its tip, and aimed it at the center of the lake.

Just as the magic was about to burst forth—

Splash!

A figure suddenly materialized in the middle of the lake.

"Iya! Iyaya!"

The water in the center of the lake swelled silently, and a slender silhouette instantly took shape. It was a young girl made entirely of crystal-clear lake water, standing upon the surface.

She cried out to the people on the shore a few times, her voice sounding somewhat anxious and aggrieved.

Aina stared at the maiden of the lake for a moment before slowly lowering her staff.

"Oh! Yes, that's her! I remember now!" Liyana jumped up immediately, pointing at the center of the lake and shouting. "This is the little fairy who seduced me! She made me fall into the water and almost drown!"

"That's a Lady of the Lake," Moke said, clearly recognizing the creature's origins. His tone carried a hint of realization. "A rare monster born in lakes rich with water elements... Usually, if you don't provoke them or destroy the lake's environment, they won't attack adventurers on their own."

"Iya!" Seeing Aina put away her threat, the Lady of the Lake seemed to grow a little bolder. She cried out a few more times, as if trying to explain something, before casting a highly wary look in Aina's direction.

"So it's a monster? Can we catch her and take her with us?" Liyana's eyes lit up.

The group's gazes toward Liyana turned a bit strange.

"Ahem... just kidding," Liyana coughed awkwardly.

"The Lady of the Lake's true body is the lake itself. She's a nature spirit born from the waters. If you want to take her away, you'd have to take the entire lake with you," Moke scoffed, dispelling Liyana's idea.

"Iya! Iya!"

The Lady of the Lake's voice remained urgent, as if she were desperately trying to defend herself, and her little hands gestured angrily in Liyana's direction.

"What is she saying?" Moke poked Liyana.

Liyana threw her hands up. "How should I know? I don't speak monster! Oh, speaking of monster language, Moke, why don't you try singing a song?"

"You piece of trash..." Moke's face instantly darkened like the bottom of a pot.

"But Liyana must have done something to make her act like that, right?" Musen said in a muffled voice, as the Lady of the Lake continued to excitedly babble in the center of the lake.

"I think it's definitely Liyana's fault," Moke concluded decisively.

Aside from the person in question, Liyana, the rest of them—Xia Lun, Musen, and even Aina—nodded slightly in agreement.

"Liyana, you should apologize to her," Xia Lun said to Liyana.

"Why! I'm your companion, aren't I?" Liyana couldn't help but argue. "I was clearly drunk at the time and had no idea what was happening! Besides, I'm the victim here!"

"Which is exactly why it's definitely your fault!"

Moke couldn't be bothered to argue further. He simply grabbed the back of Liyana's head and forced her upper body down, making her give a proper, deep bow to the girl in the center of the lake.

"Ugh—Moke, you barbarian! Your little bunny definitely won't like it when you use force like this!" Liyana struggled, her muffled voice drifting up from below.

"Iya..." Watching this scene, the Lady of the Lake's urgent cries ceased.

She tilted her head, seemingly a bit confused, but also as if she were accepting this clumsy apology.

Finally, she let out a light, short "Ya~". Her body instantly dispersed like melting snow, turning into a string of crystal-clear water droplets that fell gracefully into the lake, leaving behind only a series of ripples that quickly smoothed over.