ミ☆

a few days had gone by since (y/n)'s training at the jade chamber. the city had been buzzing about the rite of descension; a ceremony that celebrated the geo lord coming down from the heavens to bless the people with next year's good fortune. during all this excitement, the funeral parlor had been busier than usual and had a lot more on their hands than just memorial services.

one thing (y/n) noticed was how strange zhongli had been acting for the past few days. he was seemingly more distant, and oftentimes, she caught him deep in thought and unaware of his surroundings. such as now, where he stood with his arms behind his back, gazing out the window as he had been for the past ten minutes.

since inazami was off somewhere else at the moment, it was only (y/n) and zhongli in the parlor's lobby. she finished cleaning up the ferrylady's desk and brushed her hands together with a proud huff of air. turning her attention to her employer, the girl quietly moved to stand beside him, her arm lightly grazing his in the process.

he jumped, startled.

"oh, dear, i didn't see you there," he murmured, relief coursing through his chest as he cleared his throat. (y/n) bent forward a tad, tilting her head up to take a good gander at him.

"you've been pretty distant lately. penny for your thoughts?" she gently tapped him on the nose. his lips parted momentarily, expressing how he was hesitant to answer.

"you're a perceptive one, aren't you?" he already knew that, though. nothing ever got past (y/n). sighing, he fiddled with his glove, emitting an off-putting aura. "let's go on a walk. i believe the sun is beginning to set, and i would hate to miss it."

she nodded in agreement. a short while later, the pair found themselves taking a quiet stroll along the harbor, admiring the gentle waves in silence. it was never an uncomfortable silence, though, rather the kind you could only share with someone with who you have the closest of bonds.

reluctantly, (y/n) chose to break the silence by prodding him again. "so, z, what's on your mind?"

"it's simply the rite of descension and the workload that comes with it. director hu brings it upon herself to come and dictate all our business for the week. let's just say she's... a handful."

it was strange hearing zhongli speak about another person in such a manner. he was always so nonchalant, so upon hearing this, (y/n) faltered slightly. is director hu really so difficult that even zhongli is put off-kilter?

"i see," the girl let his words sink in as she pondered what to say next. fortunately, he took up the slack and spoke once more.

"worry not, it's nothing i can't handle. all challenges are learning experiences, is that not correct?" zhongli put a gentle hand on her shoulder, a small, reassuring smile on his face. however, she sensed there was more to the story.

"that can't be all, right? you know you can always confide in me, i'll do my best to listen or offer advice, whichever you need most," she pointed to her ears and mouth as she spoke, ending her sentence by jutting that same finger to her companion's chest. his amber eyes searched her face briefly before he busted out in hearty laughter. it wasn't a ridiculing laugh, but a genuine one.

"little miss (y/n), you really haven't changed in the slightest," he wiped sprouting tears from the corner of his eye and reached down to pat her head. "i shouldn't concern you with everything on my mind, you have your own things to deal with at the moment."

he loved to be mysterious, that's for sure. while she wished he would let her help, she decided not to overstep his boundaries. she let out her own unenthused laugh, slouching slightly as he rubbed her head. "ah... of course,"

as his amusement simmered back down, and as she gained her posture once more, she fell into her own thoughts. as the orange rays of the sun reflected off the ocean waves, the duo came to a halt to watch the last of the light disappear behind the horizon. faint snippets of conversation followed the breeze, and the area smelt of a combination of the imported spices wafting from the nearby vendors and the salt that naturally hung in the harbor air.

(y/n) pondered her endeavors at the jade chamber and her own practice sessions since then. she knew she picked up pace very quickly, she wasn't completely dumb; the girl knew she had to have had some sort of experience in the past to have mastered it so quickly. it had been almost a full week since zhongli fetched her from that domain, and she still knew hardly anything from before.

"say, zhongli?"

"yes, dear?"

"i was wondering... when can i start exploring outside of liyue? i've been doing well with my training, so if i encounter any enemies i know i'd be okay! especially since i've made so much progress with this electro vision," she jabbed at the air a few times to show him what she was made of. one of his eyebrows quirked as he watched the performance.

"are you asking my permission..?" zhongli said curiously, noticing how she scrunched up her face while in an imaginary battle. "our contract was that you work as my assistant. nothing in it stated you needed to consult me before choosing your own path, you can do whatever you please. i am merely a pillar for you to depend on as you see fit."

her hands slowly unclenched, hovering palms up as she studied them intently. "whatever i please?"

this was news to her. he wasn't wrong, though, it's not like he was her father or something. she was an adult that had the right to do adult things. but... where should she start? other than the domain she woke up in, she had no other leads to discovering more about herself. she doubted ganyu would say anything after her and zhongli had that talk, and he definitely wouldn't be fessing up anytime soon. in all honesty, she had no idea what to do.

as the girl went through a silent crisis, zhongli let a breath of air escape his lips as the night finally began to set in. the stars had begun to show up one by one, glowing dimly in contrast to the vast navy sky.

"you know... there is one place i have in mind for you to explore."

it took no hesitation for (y/n) to snap her head towards him. "where would that be?"

he closed his eyes thoughtfully and turned on his heel, beginning to walk towards the way they came. she followed right on his tail.

"not far from liyue harbor, there are some ancient ruins between jueyan karst and the infamous wangshu inn. just recently i've heard rumors of artifacts around the area. perhaps even from millennia ago," he gave her a side-eye as he gauged her reaction.

"so you think they might be of some importance? like, related to me?"

"perhaps. there is no way of knowing unless someone investigates. are you up for the task?"

at this point, anything would help. it's not like she had any better options. excitement bubbled in her chest at the thought of going on such a journey, but then shifted to anxiety when she realized she would be going alone.

"of course! i can definitely handle myself out there, alone, in unfamiliar terrain..." she trailed off slowly, an unreadable look glittering in her eyes.

zhongli sensed the change within her and put his hand on the top of her head. she looked up at him, finding immediate reassurance in his kind countenance. warmth spread through her chest, to which she responded by clenching her fist and holding it in that spot.

"i'll make it back in one piece, i promise,"

he chuckled softly. "i have faith in you, little miss (y/n),"

(y/n) thus decided to take off the next morning, sparing no time in getting home and going straight to bed. zhongli had walked her home like the gent he was and proceeded to go off on his own somewhere. as she drifted off, she wondered about the things that would await her outside liyue's gates. that night, she dreamt of mysterious people she had never seen before, finding comfort in their solace as she wandered the scape of her own mind.

‑ˋˏ◈ˎˊ‑

after stopping by the parlor to hug inazami and zhongli goodbye, she had gone to purchase cooking ingredients from a nearby vendor and snagged a map from another. the girl munched on a sunsietta as she inspected her map, eventually making her way past the final millelith post and into the wild. surprisingly, the area zhongli had mentioned wasn't that far away. she could make it by sundown if she kept up this pace, and he did mention there was an inn nearby. perhaps she could stay there for the night.

as she trekked on, she came across a large set of stone stairs. a large statue caught her eye off to the side, and she couldn't help but stare up at it for a few moments. a plaque near the bottom of the statue labeled it as "rex lapis, the geo archon."

rex lapis was depicted slouching lazily on a large throne made of pillars, and while his hood covered most of his face, she could tell he had his eyes on the cube in his grasp. the sun's rays outlined the structure as if it was admiring the same as she, making it appear more ethereal the longer she looked at it.

after a few moments, she tore her gaze from the statue and carried on her way. the people here respected rex lapis—morax—more than anything, it seemed. he had watched over liyue for thousands upon thousands of years and was one of the oldest of the archons. he and mondstadt's ruler, barbatos, were apparently the only two original archons left since the end of a war that took place millennia ago, which was the beginning of teyvat's nations. all the others were mere reincarnations of the former ones, according to zhongli's extensive knowledge.

she was curious about this new world she had woken up to. it had so much to offer, and she couldn't wait to see it all. as (y/n) made her way through various ruins and mountains, she even came across a few other travelers, even helping one escape from a ticked-off geovishap.

it was surprisingly difficult to take down, even with the katana ningguang lent to her. however, once she figured out that it could be stunned, she used that knowledge to her advantage and took it down with electric shocks that zipped through its thick armor. the traveler she saved thanked her over and over again, even offering what he had left of his mora as a gift. she did not take it, insisting that her kindness need not be repaid.

as the sun leisurely drifted across the blue sky, she took note of a large tree in the middle of the marsh, with structures built around the wooden branches that reached the canopy. she identified this as wangshu inn, but kept on going since she had time to kill while it was still daytime. (y/n) found herself walking along the sandy shores of the outskirts of jueyan karst and begun keeping an eye out for any sign of what she was searching for. she could tell she was getting closer, and making impeccable time, at that.

the girl made her way into a low valley, noticing a strange structure in the center of the area. curiosity got the best of her as she came closer to inspect it. there was a strange blue stone resting on top of a pillar, and the pillar itself was surrounded by three triangular holes in the ground nearby. she almost missed the inscription on the ruin tablet in the middle.

      "bosacius, one of the yakshas, followed the geo lord to fight against and contend with pestilence. yet though the yakshas had great might, they were bound by their duties and stained by them...

     liyue is now at peace, but of their number, none but alatus and bosacius remain. as for the latter's fate, bosacius has been subdued to a near-lethal state.

     their belongings i leave here, sealed by my arts. if you are destined to return to this world once again, feel free to take them as you please..."

the yakshas were something zhongli had not mentioned before. if this inscription was true, and they followed the geo lord into battle, then why wouldn't he have brought them up too? perhaps it slipped his mind, (y/n) wouldn't be surprised if it was a minuscule detail that he had simply skipped past. the belongings it mentioned did pique her interest, however.

upon a nearby hill was a slightly damaged building with a gate blocking the entrance. it didn't appear to have a keyhole, so how would she get in? it would be far too heavy to lift, so the only option would be to search the area for any clues. the girl scoped out the area, perceiving how the pathway split into three different areas. the first one she followed led to a glowing shape hovering up and down in the center of the platform. she had never seen anything like this, so she decided to approach with caution.

nothing out of the ordinary seemed to happen. once she was within an arm's length from the mysterious object, she slowly reached out her hand to touch it. as soon as her fingers made contact, it expanded and eventually burst, leaving various light particles in its wake. she took a sharp gasp of air as it did so and took a few steps back. out of the corner of her eye, she noticed it had reappeared behind her, and she spun around wildly to try and shake it off, her attempts unsuccessful.

after a few moments of panic, she determined it wasn't a threat to her after all. the most it did was follow her trail wherever she went. as (y/n) made her way back to the blue stone to follow the other paths, the mysterious shape began to pulsate the closer she got. she got the feeling that perhaps she needed to bring it to the stone in order for something to happen.

her hypothesis was right. as soon as she stepped near it, the shape left her backside and sped towards one of the holes in the ground, sending out a beacon of light as it settled into its spot. the light actuator—which is what the whole contraption was, she established—flashed briefly before returning to its dormant state once again. since there were three holes, one being occupied already, she calculated that there were two more keys to find before the actuator would activate.

using every corner of her brain, she assumed that she needed to follow the other two paths in order to find what she was looking for. this was a start, she reassured herself, putting a little pep in her step as she began heading on the eastward path.

surely this would yield results useful to her.

★彡

to be continued.

next up; four: part two