A young man sits atop the edges of the Alcor, musing himself with memories he had for the past couple of years he had at his homeland.

Many of them where moments that was engraved on his mind where he won't be able to forget.

Some of them were happy moments during his childhood all the way to his adulthood. A memory of holding his first sword, where in that moment he knew he was gifted to wield such a refined weapon. Long, slick , thin curved blade. A common weapon of his homeland. A graceful weapon to be sure, but, growing up within a family of a samurai clan, the Kaedehara, he sought to refine his bladework not from the teachings of a proper samurai, but to learn his very own style and way of the blade.

And so he traveled within his homeland to learn. He had met many new faces, some became acquaintances that would help him from time to time. Some of them gave him troubles during his travels. And some of them became his treasured friends.

One of them was an up and coming general of the western islands the nation of eternity. He was a friendly one, as long s no one slanders or made comments of their head shrine priestess.

Another one was a foreigner who hails from the city of freedom, who then became a samurai in to one of the most well known and prestigious clan of the land, and now serves the princess dubbed by many as the White Heron.

One was also familiar with the family of the nation's best fireworks maker. A man who has trouble of remembering things, for example his name, but still a nice person overall. Together with an eccentric daughter who has a penchant for making her fireworks bigger than the order of their clients, which sometimes causes fire hazards during festivals.

Those were some of the memorable one he could fondly remember. But the one who stood out was a ronin he met during the start of the nations Vision Hunt Decree issued by their Shogun.

He was overall nice to anyone he met. He was also one of them who finds his haiku speech endearing, even if he sometimes calls his speech weird. He just brushes them as one of his qualities that make unique among the people he had met.

For a time they have traveled together, one was seeking to improve his swordsmanship, and one was following along just to see his new found friend grow. They were even helping some of the people defend their vision during the decree.

But one day, him and his friend were talking about the current god of their nation, the shogun.

He didn't have any strong opinions for the shogun at the time, just that he was having trouble understanding why the shogun enforced the hunting of the vision. Questions like why would the shogun take back the gifts that were given to its people by the gods? Gift that made them worthy in the gods eyes. Was it the shogun sees that the power given by the vision was not meant for the people to wield? Or was it that there is something that they didn't understand about the visions, and that the shogun was only trying to protect them from it?

It surprised him that this friend of his doesn't see this vision hunting as a negative thing for them. He saw them as merely a test to see if they were truly worthy of the visions. And that this gave his friend an opportunity to test his skills if he was truly worthy of his way of the blade. Because all his life, he wondered if he could be strong enough to challenge the famous swordsmanship of the nation of eternity.

'Have you ever heard of the Musou no Ittotachi?' He asked him during their converstion.

Of course he knows of it.

Musou no Ittotachi.

The very own way of swordsmanship that their god, the Raiden Shogun, perfected. A style reminiscent to a lightning's strike.

A style that just like how the concept of a lighting never strikes twice in a single target, that one is enough to render the enemies to be defeated before the mighty shogun. It was also the origin of every single style of swordsmanship of the nation of eternity. A style that was taught long before the test of time to the people of the east, but could never replicate its glorious power.

His friend had a dream of one day to witness the lightning's glow. A dream to surpass it.

A month after their conversation, they move on their separate ways. They promised that if they meet again, they would share the story of their own journeys.

'See you soon.'

Those were the very last words he heard him say, never realizing that the next time they meet, it will be his friends last breath.

After entertaining himself with those memories, he grabbed something from the pocket of his clothes. Under the moonlight, even without its glow, the vision was still beautiful to eyes. A gem of unknown origin, decorated by the design of most vision found in the east. A design that tells anyone that it belonged to some one of that nation.

Comparing it to his own vision, his friend's vision looks lifeless besides his vision that glows of the color of the element, Anemo. He wonders why did he get the element of the wind, not his nation's thunder. Seeing them side to side made him remember of his late friend.

A sigh escapes his lips. He would only get depressed if he remembers the late friend he lost because of the Vision Hunt Decree.

And so he then again hid the glow-less vision unto his pocket, while his own was on display to his scarf. After that, he picks up his brush to write a haiku to brush away the solemn feeling of the night. But before he could start, he heard footsteps approaching him.

"So there you are, Kazuha. " the familiar voice told him.

It came from the woman who accepted him to her crew after running away from his homeland. The captain of the ship that he was currently living.

Standing beside him, the woman placed a bottle of sake that she was carrying into the place that he was sitting.

"Care to join me for a drink?" She raised to small cups for them to share the drink that she brought.

He took a glance to his side, having pocketed the brush he was about to use. Taking one the cup from her hands, she poured sake for them to drink.

Sipping silently, he took the time to savor the flavor the sake brought by his captain.

"How can I say this, but, isn't this a little bit too sweet to a sake, Lady Beidou?"

"I told you don't add lady in my name, you're making it sound like I'm the same as that stuck up rich woman from Liyue. Just Beidou is fine, haven't I told you that?" The woman named Beidou said.

Try as she might, the young man could see that even if she talks like that about the Tianquan of Liyue Qixing, he can see through the facade of annoyance that she is giving that she is fond the person she was talking about. The smile was big give away.

A chuckle escapes his lips.

"I know, I know." He says as he takes another sip from his cup.

"But, where did you get this sake? Usually you drink those ill flavored one that you always give to me whenever you want some companion to sake with."

"Hey, don't call them ill flavored, its not my fault that your tongue is the same as the brats they still didn't hit their puberty. Those were top qualities too, if I might add." She took her own sip from her cup, downing it like water.

"And to answer your question, this one was a gift from the father of Liyue's finest young chef. He said his daughter got this as a reward from a cook off. Says it came from the city of Mondstadt's finest wine maker. I forgot the name,and let me tell ya, most of the wine from that city are some of the best I had during my travels. A shame though that I couldn't go to that city."

"And why is that?" The young man asks.

"Because my ship doesn't have a place to dock there. " Beidou says before pouring another drink. She sips her sake, again like she was drinking water.

"By the way, why are you all the way here alone, I thought you weren't the brooding type?"

"I am not brooding, just reminiscing the days of old."

"I see. Well, brooding or not, I was looking for you because I was going to ask you about your decision about that lifeless vision." She says to the young samurai.

He took a pause, looking at his half empty cup of sake. A second later, he quickly downed the sweet sake in one sip.

"I am." Was all that he said.

Looking at himBeidou carefully examined his expression. She could see he already made up his mind about this.

She just shrugs and sigh, as she then poured another round of sake for them. Smiling silently, the young man gracefully accepted the next sake to downed.

"Well, I won't force you to reconsider if you already made up your mind. This competition, they're might be someone who enters that could ignite the light within that vision. And hey, maybe we might be able to meet the fabled savior of Liyue."

"Oh?" This caught his attention. He'd heard about this famous person. Without any vision, he was capable of feats that vision holders could only dream of accomplishing.

"I heard from that Tianquan that there was a chance that we might encounter this person. And that if we ever meet them, she said that I should give them a hand. And judging by the praises that the tianquan have said about them, there is a hope that they might be the person to re-ignite the vision, because I've never heard her talk about someone like that."

"If that's the case, I might have to check them out myself, if they ever decide to participate in your tournament."

"Hoho, getting interested now are we?"

Who wouldn't? He told himself. Someone was out there, capable of matching the strength of an old god,saving the lives of many people of the city of contracts. He ponders that if there was someone like that, that lives in the east then maybe the tragedy that happened within the past year or so would've been prevented.

'And maybe he could've save his late friend' he wonders.

But no, he shakes his head. What happened cannot be change now. He can only hope for the best for the people within the land of the shogun not to suffer. Because try as he might, he told himself he was already an outsider the moment he abandoned his homeland. And even if he didn't, he had no power to stop it.

And so, both him and the captain of the ship, continue their drinks, planning for the events ahead. And hoping to meet this savior that they were talking about.

They did not know this person, but they were still excited to meet them if they ever decide show up.

'What was the name again?' He ponders for a second. His captain says that many didn't know their name, that they just to be called by something.

What was it.

'Ah, they were called the Traveler.'

Thats all he can remember from Beidou's story of Liyue's savior.

With the long night ahead of them, they didn't know that fate would give them the chance to meet this famous Traveler.

And that it was sooner than they they could ever thought of.