After discussing the "Mondstadt Special Drink" with Diluc and Venti for a while, Lu Chen pulled out more Slime Condensate.
He had plenty—there were countless Hydro Slimes that had met their end along the beach. He never thought it'd actually come in handy one day.
With the bar now covered in all kinds of sticky, colorful cocktails, Lu Chen found himself getting hooked. He and Venti went drink after drink.
"But I'm starting to have doubts," Venti said, swirling the vibrant liquid in his glass.
"Can we still call this a 'Mondstadt Special Drink'? The base liquor is rum I bought here, and all the other ingredients are from this world. The only thing from Teyvat is the Slime Condensate."
"Yeah..." Lu Chen frowned. He had the same suspicion—no way the system would approve something like this.
He turned to Diluc. "What else do you need?"
Diluc answered without hesitation. "Grain or fruit for brewing—and most importantly, a proper water source."
"That... might be tricky." Lu Chen scratched his head.
While the three of them puzzled over the issue, Ei approached, curious.
She looked at the row of colorful cocktails on the bar, then at Lu Chen, eyes gleaming with interest.
"You want to try one too?" Lu Chen asked, surprised.
"Mm..."
Ei hesitated. Her conflicted look—clearly wanting a drink but too shy to ask—was absolutely adorable to Lu Chen.
He handed her one with the lowest alcohol content.
Then silently cursed himself: You spoil her way too much!
"Just a little, alright? No refills."
Ei happily sat down at the bar, cradling the cocktail and sipping slowly.
Venti stared, even more shocked than Lu Chen.
"What's with her? Since when does she like drinking this much?"
"All your fault!" Lu Chen shot him a glare.
Ei's alcohol tolerance had been rising alarmingly fast. Lu Chen was genuinely worried Venti was going to turn her into a full-on drunk.
After finishing her drink, Ei seemed like she wanted more—but didn't ask.
Instead, she looked toward Lu Chen and asked, "What are Miko and Barbara doing? It's been so long."
That reminded Lu Chen—he had asked Miko to give Barbara a style makeover, but had it really been that long?
Just as he was starting to wonder, Miko appeared on the second-floor landing, dragging a clearly reluctant Barbara along.
"Ta-da! Everyone, feast your eyes! Our future idol superstar—Miss Barbara!"
Everyone looked up. Barbara stood awkwardly on the upper floor in a new outfit.
She wore a warm red sleeveless blouse with a high-waisted khaki skirt, paired with a white belt and a small handbag. The entire look gave her a chic, sophisticated vibe.
Miko twirled Barbara around proudly and then looked down at everyone, waiting expectantly.
"Well?" she asked.
"Looks great!" Venti applauded enthusiastically.
Miko smiled in satisfaction and turned her gaze to Lu Chen.
"It is pretty," Lu Chen clapped, then frowned slightly. "But... isn't that kind of your usual style? It feels a bit too mature for Barbara."
Barbara was clearly aiming for that sweet, innocent school-idol image. Sure, the outfit looked great—but it didn't really suit her. It lacked the essence of Barbara.
"She's not... too old-looking, is she?" Miko narrowed her eyes at Lu Chen.
He quickly raised both hands. "No, no! It just doesn't match her vibe. Can you help her try something else?"
"Tch, so demanding." Miko grumbled, but she gave Barbara another careful once-over and had to admit—Lu Chen wasn't wrong.
So she and Barbara returned to the bedroom for round two.
...
Back downstairs, everyone turned their attention elsewhere until Ei suddenly raised a practical concern.
"If Barbara's going to be a campus idol... shouldn't she actually be enrolled in school?"
It was a good question—one that had stumped Lu Chen and Ei before. But now, Lu Chen had connections. He immediately called Director Zhang at Haizhou Middle School.
After explaining the situation, Director Zhang laughed and agreed without hesitation—"That's easy."
Thanks to the system update, summoned characters were no longer undocumented nobodies, and enrolling Barbara would be straightforward. She'd even be placed in the same class as Lu Chen.
"But what about her studies?" Ei pressed.
Lu Chen paused... then clapped Ei's shoulder solemnly.
"As the brilliant, top-performing science genius you are, I'm officially assigning this responsibility to you!"
Ei's violet eyes widened. "You want me to tutor her?"
"Exactly."
"But I'm still training in martial arts! I don't have the time..."
She grumbled just as the sound of footsteps came from upstairs again.
"Ta-da! The unbeatable school idol Barbara is here!"
Everyone looked up.
Barbara's look was completely different from before.
She wore a dark blue sailor-style school uniform with a pleated skirt, a light blue scarf tied at the chest, and a large red bow on the back of her hair. With a little school bag slung over her shoulder, she looked absolutely adorable.
She turned away shyly, mumbling, "Is... is this okay?"
"Perfect!" Venti gave a thumbs-up. "You look just like a student from our school!"
Ei nodded too. Barbara totally nailed the academic aesthetic—but she looked more like an elementary schooler than a middle schooler.
Miko basked in everyone's praise. Compliments for Barbara meant praise for her fashion sense.
But Lu Chen was still frowning.
"What now?" Miko asked. "Don't tell me it's still not good enough."
"It's not that," Lu Chen said. "It's just... we're planning to take her to Starlight Company. Wearing a school uniform might seem too plain, and a bit too obvious."
Miko finally lost her patience and crossed her arms with a snort. "You're impossible! I'm done!"
"Wait, wait, wait!" Lu Chen immediately put on a bootlicking grin.
"This is something only someone as beautiful and brilliant as you can handle. You, with the most impeccable sense of style—you're perfect to be Barbara's image consultant!"
Miko crossed her arms again and looked at him skeptically.
"Go on."
"Uh..." Lu Chen turned to Ei, who looked like she was barely holding in laughter.
"Ah!" he realized. Miko just wanted to be praised.
So he launched into a barrage of shameless flattery.
"The greatest editor in Teyvat…"
"The most legendary shrine maiden in history…"
"The unrivaled beauty whose charm outshines even the heavens! Flowers bloom wherever she walks—Teyvat's number one goddess!"
...
"Stop it..." Ei finally put a hand to her forehead. "She's already gone."
Lu Chen looked up—sure enough, Miko and Barbara had vanished.
He let out a sigh of relief. Good thing Miko loved this kind of thing.
But when he turned around, he found everyone—including Ei—covered in goosebumps, all looking at him in disgust.
Lu Chen grabbed a cocktail, stuck in a straw, and casually took a sip—pretending nothing happened.
Truthfully, he had goosebumps too...
...
Finally, Miko returned, pulling Barbara along—this time dressed in a simple floral sundress.
Everyone's attention snapped to them instantly.
Barbara looked at the group, no longer shy. She spun playfully, her skirt twirling like petals in the breeze.
Lu Chen felt like he was watching a daisy bloom under a clear sky. At last, he gave Miko an approving smile.
"This is the one!"
Miko let out a breath of relief.