"That'll be 5000 Gold!"
"Here's 3000. Thank you very much, I really appreciate this!"
"Heh, alright…I see how it is. The customer is always right after all."
The customer, a adult male, let out a very childlike smile. It was almost cute how the seller just attempted to swindle him like that. Of course, he knew the up-charge was not meant to be taken seriously…or at least, if he still wanted to do business with the Kamisato household, it better not be. Speaking of which, with the purchased item now in hand, it was time to return home after another long day. Leaving his supplier behind with a wave, the blonde then crossed a thick wooden bridge back to , but not before looking out to a nearby landmark and slightly grimacing.
A giant statue of an archon, likely some variation of the Raiden Shogun. Not a day goes by where there aren't people praying to Her Excellency, and of course today was no different, as despite the sky turning orange there are Inazuman citizens lined all around the statue's ramps. Every time he passes by the area and see prayers, the man's mind can't help but run the same two thoughts again:
One is don't you know what your god just did? while the other is thank the Archons that you don't know what I did in response. The answer to question one, he assumes, is "probably not". After all, enforcing the Vision Hunt Decree only applied to so many people, so removing it wouldn't even be a blip on the normal person's radar. There might even be some individuals among today's crowd that were disappointed the Decree vanished. It's not like the order didn't have ANY supporters, considering how Visions are said to be "favor of the gods", jealousy and envy of course followed. It's entirely possible that the people he was watching were in fact, praying for the order to be restored, right in front of a genuine Vision-holder.
A small sigh escaped him. That's a bit of an ugly thought. People being jealous of his Vision…man, were they happy to see it get taken away from him? Of course, that brought him to his second thought…surely if they saw him lose his Vision, they'd know what he had done just moments later. The horns sticking out of his blonde hair, the red-and-black combo outfit he frequently wore, there was just no mistaking him for another. No, no one here knew about him, his Vision, or his profession as a housekeeper for one of Inazuma's most famous families.
"….Ah, I'm gonna be late to Mio's shop!" The man shook out of all the extra wonders and ran back to town.
-0-
After taking care of his business, it was time to head back to the Komore Teahouse. He just has to check in on Taroumaru at least once a day, especially since it's so close to the main street where he buys everything he needs. Of course, he's made sure to buy enough ingredients and supplies for a week already, but you never know when any shop is hosting a last-minute sale right before closing time. It's good to be prepared, Paimon might stop by any day. Smirking to himself, he begins his nightly perusal of the stores dotted along the city, only stopping when hearing a high voice that swiftly cuts the quiet of near-nighttime.
"I'm telling you, that girl had a wild appearance! Who has hair pointing up?! And what about those collars around them?! All spiky and dangerous! And what is that attachment on her back? Some kind of weapon? A piece of equipment? What could anyone like her want with the Milleleth? Does that tool tie into it? Do they need some external help for something? What could-"
"Please calm down, Ms. Sumida." The second voice was much calmer and flat in tone, as if she already knew precisely what the first lady was going to ask already. "I assure you there's no reason to be alarmed. I happen to know the person in question."
"But it's just so strange! First we have that traveler and his fairy friend, and now her. It's too odd to be a coincidence, I can feel a story here I just know it!"
"Is that your writer's intuition?" He reached the source of the voices, Katheryne and Sumida. Well, it was clear it was more Sumida who was talking to the Adventurer's Guild receptionist while she just listened. And boy, it was a good thing Katheryne was patient (a bit unnaturally so, he would admit) because Sumida definitely had trouble staying on topic.
"Ah, good evening Thoma." Katheryne greeted him with the standard welcome and bow, probably grateful for someone else to talk to. Meanwhile the writer quickly turned to him with a shocked look across her face, completely lost in her conversation.
Reciprocating their acknowledgment of his existence, he continued on. "What's this about another traveler arriving in Inazuma? I would hope this one wouldn't reject requests at least." He chuckled, pleasantly reminiscing on Aether's flat refusal of him when they met in Ritou. Of course, it wasn't such a funny thing when it actually happened, but considering everything since then, it was fine to look back.
Sumida proceeded to offer up an explanation, even as she kept derailing herself over and over again with side tangents about other stories, most notably her expeditions of Tsurumi Island down south. Through her and Katheryine's (thankfully much more concise) accounts, Thoma summed up the "problem" for himself.
Apparently someone had stopped by Inazuma City to ask for directions to the Tenryou Commission. This stranger was talking on and on about something called an "Iridescence Tour", which Thoma had never heard of before. When he informed Katheryne about that, she grew concerned since the person in question only had a temporary visa for the month.
Thoma cocked his head. He was certainly sympathetic to their plight, in more ways than one, but there was something he didn't understand first. "How did they even get to Inazuma in the first place? The Sakoku Decree is still going on…"
To his surprise though, Katheryne wasn't hesitant to answer that question. "Exactly the same way as Aether, Beidou let her come on the Alcor."
Thoma knew right then what to do. If Beidou of all people allowed this person come aboard her ship, then they were either a friend, someone trustworthy, or both. And knowing the Crux Captain like he did, it was definitely both. Therefore, to just abandon them in their time of need was even more of an insane idea. He got out of his own mind and spoke up, interrupting another one of Sumida's off-topic tangents.
"Katheryne, where did they go again?"
Looking pleased that Thoma was hopefully going to sort this whole mess out, she pointed in the direction of Tenshukaku, the same area he has just come from at that. Did he perhaps run into this new traveler already? Maybe when he was finishing up the transaction, they were passing over the bridge above… Even though he was heading into what could be classified "enemy territory", Thoma grew an easygoing smile as he walked away from the Adventurer's Guild. There was just something that told him this was going to be interesting…
-0-
If the Pyro-user was at all concerned that he wouldn't be able to find this new person, those fears were allayed almost right as he looked around Tenshukaku. His ears reacted before anything else again, picking up the sound of people talking. That alone was pretty suspicious, as the guards stationed around Tenryou HQ didn't appear to ever be in the mood for chatting. But unlike with Katheryne and Sumida, it sounded more like an argument was going on, presumably about the so-called "Iridescence Tour". With no delay, he went east to the source and prayed he wouldn't run into Kujou Sara, that would just make things complicated.
Rounding the corner, Thoma was shocked at what he saw…who he saw here, to be specific. This HAD to be the "new traveler", there was no other possibility. It was a girl, dark-skinned with raven-black hair. True to Sumida's description, she had two giant spiked bands that assisted in her hair forming two twin buns, and her outfit was equally unique. More black and red, more spikes all around the ankles and that…thing that was on her back. Thoma had never seen anyone else even close to her style, either in Inazuma or in Mondstadt. That brief thought reminded him of why he wanted to help out, he knew what it was like to be in unfamiliar territory…
"Hello there miss, what's the problem here?"