"Ah, there you are, Traveller."

To his surprise, Aether looked back to see none other than the Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing herself, approaching him ever so elegantly. He had been busy putting up missing posters as part of his "reward" for helping Liyue deal with the crisis that the death of their deity had left, and he was sure that the ceremony would've been the last of his ordeal with the Liyue Qixing. Safe from the small amount of millelith that had been assigned to aid him on putting up the posters.

Yet here she is, looking as if there's more for her to do on his behalf.

Maintaining a respectful posture, he had to remind himself that he's still dealing with one of the most powerful individuals in Liyue, and tried his best to remain as courteous as he could be.

"Lady Yuheng, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

She raised a hand to stop him from bowing. "Please, it's just Keqing." She turned towards a nearby millelith who had a small stack of posters in his hand, "I'll take it from here. Go on and rest, you've done a good job today."

The soldier in question was slightly taken aback but was grateful for the early dismissal, "Much obliged, Lady Yuheng."

Aether watched as the millelith went about his way, before turning his attention back to the young lady in front of him, who seemed to be appraising the poster.

"So, I assume this is the sister you've been looking for?"

Aether simply nodded, and even though he knew the she had come to help in her own accords, he still felt like he was simply troubling her more and more by having her take her time off of her busy schedule to help, which prompted him to alleviate that task from her. With Paimon already off to nowhere spreading those posters, he considered it a task that requires no more hands on the deck.

"I'm grateful that you've taken the time to come down here yourself," he began as she turned her attention to him, "But it's really no big deal, Paimon and I can take care of it. I'm sure you have other things to attend to."

Keqing merely stared at him for a few seconds before sighing to herself.

"I knew it…" she said softly, looking at the posters before gazing back at him, "You really didn't know what to say when we put you on the spot, didn't you? So, you come up with such an impromptu answer that you didn't really mean?"

Aether looked at the ground sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck having caught red-handed. The truth is, he really wasn't expecting any sort of reward. He is, after all, a traveller. An outlander who travelled the worlds simply helping others go about their day. So, when he was put on the spot to ask for such a reward, his mind had drawn blank.

"Well… that's half the truth, but… guilty as charge."

"Spare yourself from the guilt, I foresaw it anyways." She followed with an understanding tone, "I was actually a bit hesitant about announcing your deeds without your consent, but Ningguang had the utmost insistence that we publicly express our gratitude for your assistance. Important for the people's comprehension or whatnot."

"Hence the mundane task." Aether replied, gesturing towards their pile of posters, "And I mean it when I say that it's no big deal. We can handle it-"

"And I also meant it when I said that you should've told me in private." She cut him off. A look of sincerity glazing her eyes, "I know how it feels like to be long separated from family. I'll do what I can to help."

Without further preamble, Keqing began making her way towards the plaza. Leaving the stunned traveller almost frozen in place, before he regained his bearings and trotted over.

Fearing that he may have offended the young woman, he stayed relatively quite as they went around and both stuck the posters to billboards and passed them on to areas of interest where it would garner more attention. All the while, Aether kept trying to form a sentence that wouldn't start him off on the wrong foot, with him assuming that he'd already let that ship sail from his earlier remarks.

Eventually, she ended up being the one to break their silence, just as the last of the posters were dropped off.

"It's been quite a day, why don't we rest up somewhere?" she suggested, "I know a good restaurant to wind down."

Aether remained in contemplative silence, not wanting to take anymore of her time. Yet, she seemed to have seen right through him.

"Come on now, it's my treat." She beckoned for him to follow, not even waiting for a response, "It's the least I can do for you."

You've done enough. Was what he wanted to say. Despite it all though, he felt himself weirdly indulging her requests, as if he'd been naturally gravitating towards it.

With a shrug, he followed suit without much more of a fight, which she reacted to with a satisfied smile.

They soon arrived in a rather modest-looking restaurant. A bit surprising in his mind as he presumed that the Yuheng herself might've preferred to eat in one of the fancier restaurants like other nobles do, but he found himself mentally cursing his presumptive thought process and simply tailed the young woman.

Paimon's gonna have to deal with her own payment in Wanmin if Xiangling isn't there.

Even though it wasn't quite the class that Aether was expecting, it certainly had the crowd that he foresaw. All the bustling as the customers seemed to have had an eventful day due to the first ever Rite of Passing that they had to attend in honour of their prime deity. A part of him however, had an inkling that they won't exactly be within the midst of all the noise of the space ahead of them.

True to his judgement, they were escorted to the roof of the establishment. The noise of the customers dying down ever so slightly as they recognized who had just entered the space, beading eyes falling upon him as if they were appraising him.

Soon, they arrived at a balcony similar to the one where he had conversed with Xiao in Wangshu Inn, only with a comfy table and a view of the harbour being the difference. They settled in their respective seats and he began to look at the menu, only to put it down ever so slightly as he noticed that she didn't spare a glance at the menu and simply ordered her fill right away.

Not wanting to keep her waiting, he ordered a modest meal that he had ascertain to cost just about enough in order to not be too expensive, yet respectable enough to not offend her offer of treating him.

A thread of silence befell them once again. This time, he took the opportunity to further take note of his surroundings, or at least, that's what he had initially intended. But with the wind gently caressing them, he found his attention slowly diverting unto her relaxed features as she seemingly took the breeze in herself. Her lavender hair swaying ever so gracefully, it made him blush as he realized that he'd been staring at her for a bit too long, prompting him to clear his throat and began diverting his attention.

"So, lady- I mean, Keqing," he corrected himself as a sharp glare launched itself as soon as he barely began addressing her the usual way, "Come here often?"

"My favourite place," She began answering. Her eyes once again lighting up with that fond glaze, "They make the best Golden Shrimp Balls, and I've been a regular for quite a long time."

"I gathered…" Aether muttered, judging from the secluded location that they have, "I suppose that reservations are out of the question?"

"You have a keen eye, Tra- Hold on, before we continue…" she leaned in with a curious stare, "What is your name? It might've fleeted by earlier by I didn't quite catch it. I'd feel rude to be addressing you as Traveller the entire time."

"It's Aether." First name basis, he could live with that.

"Aether, huh?" she murmured, hand on her chin as if she's appraising his name. "Fits the bill, I'd say."

"How so?"

"Aether is mostly associated with the sky, or the general presence of space itself." She explained while looking at the sky, "Often considered limitless, and considering the things that I've seen you to be capable of, it's quite the name to describe it, no?"

Aether hummed in amusement. It's interesting to see someone's take on something as simple as a name, associating it with his very own potential, and considering the fact that he is a being of otherworldly powers, it does seem to have a poetic fit to it.

"However, that's just exactly what I'm curious about." She continued, her stare now having a different sort of emotion underlying it, "Why are you here, Aether? Apart from the fact that your sister had gone missing, there are plenty of places that she could be, and with your potential, I can hardly see you be constrained to one location."

Aether grimaced, not really wanting to review the events that had occurred up to that point. "It's… a long story."

"Well… the night's still young." She stated straight out, pausing to smile in gratitude at the waiter that just brought her food, before grabbing a pair of chopsticks to finally start her meal, "And it's been a while since I've listened to the tales of an adventurer, much less of one that does not belong to this world of Teyvat."

It took Aether a little moment before he realized what she was implying, and simply smiled bashfully, "That obvious, huh?"

Keqing merely scoffed, "In all fairness, you weren't exactly hiding it. The way you fight is unlike any kind of style that I've seen across Teyvat," she picked up twirled her chopsticks and pointed it at him, "And not only were you able to utilize the elements without a Vision, don't think that I haven't noticed your ability to also wield two different ones at the same time."

"You know," Aether began, now fully leaning to his chair, "I'm surprised more people don't notice that."

"Well, just so you know," Keqing replied, pausing to take another bite of her shrimp balls, "The Tianquan has her suspicions, but she's too busy thinking about the reconstruction of her Jade Chamber to give it anymore thought, and Ganyu simply thinks that you have some sort of hereditary infusion like she does." She leaned forward, hand covering one side of her face as if to whisper, "So don't worry, your quote unquote, secret is safe with me."

A small laugh escaped Aether's lips, small bits of his wit beginning to leak through with it, "Thank you for your kind and considerate sacrifice, O'Great Lady Yuheng."

Feigning a glare, Keqing gave him a good shunt on the shin, prompting a pain-ladened chuckle from the blonde.

"Someone's finally getting comfortable…"

"Well…" he began replying as he recovered from his burst of chuckles, "You're gonna have to do the same, if you want to hear this from start to finish that is."

"Let's not waste any time then." Leaning forward, head tilting sideways as she leans on her fist, "Regale away…"

And regale his story he does. The Unknown God, losing his sister and ending up in Mondstadt, fishing Paimon, meeting the Knights, seeing Stormterror, uncovering the Abyss influences, planning the battle against them with Diluc, Jean, and Venti, battling Stormterror. Keqing transfixing her gaze on him ever so slightly everytime he unveils a new section of his Mondstadt journey. He decided to leave out the Venti-is-the-Anemo-archon bit in order to save it for some other time they decided to have another chat.

Which for some reason, he felt as if they'd have much more occurrences such as the one that they are having at the moment.

He settled with simply telling her that they had a brush with the 8th Harbinger herself.

Eventually, he reached to the time where they finally reached Liyue. Only to find that the Rite of Descension had gone terribly wrong, getting chased by the millelith, while ultimately, and ironically, receiving help from another one of the harbingers to escape the guards.

"In defence of our loyal soldiers…" Keqing began to interject, "You see a weirdly dressed traveller trying to sneak off of a potential crime scene-,"

"I know, I know…" Aether relented, "In hindsight, it probably wasn't the best course of action that we could've taken."

His admission elicited a small giggle from the Yuheng, while Aether himself could only follow through with a grin of his own before getting back to his story, "So anyways…"

He continues, telling her about meeting Zhongli, having the task to proceed with preparations for the Rite of Parting, meeting the adeptis, fixing the Guizhong ballista due to a weird request from a zombie child, prompting more laughter from Keqing. Eventually, he came to the part where Ganyu extended an invite from Ningguang to visit her Jade Chamber, while not knowing where to go for the entrance.

"And then we found ourselves in the behest of your Majesty herself."

"While in the process, getting into trouble with the millelith once again." Keqing added, she sighed in mock-exasperation, "If you hadn't saved them from a literal ocean god, I don't think they'd like you any more than they tolerate me."

"Eh, you liked me enough, that's what mattered in the end."

"Oho, confident, are we?"

A bright flash of violet suddenly engulfed Aether's vision, and as he finally adjusted to the shimmering brightness, he raised his hands as realizes that a lightning stiletto is floating just mere inches from the tip of his nose while the young girl across of him wore a menacing smile.

Supporting his sheepish grin, he meekly replied, "I-If it's of any consolation, we liked you…too…?"

Knowing that he was pushing the limits of their comfort zone a tiny bit, he had expected further hostile reaction, only to notice that she had a slight blush on her feature, with eyes pointing downwards, avoiding eye contact.

"We, is not exactly the word that I'm looking for there…" she mumbled under her breath.

Which immediately brought a rush of heat to Aether's feature as well.

"I-I mean…if I were to be blunt, I wouldn't be sitting here eating dinner with you, if I didn't like you in the first place."

"W-Well then…" she stammered, clearing her throat as the blush on her face starts to dissipate, with a pensive stare slowly taking its place, "That's…good…"

It was then, did Aether finally realized, that he was probably dealing with someone who rarely has the time to indulge herself on these nightly downtimes. Someone who probably doesn't even know how to really conduct herself during such times.

"Do you… rarely…do this sort of thing?"

Registering his comprehension, she decided that there was really nothing left to hide.

"That obvious, huh?"

A bit of guilt crept up on Aether, "You didn't have to force yourself to treat me this way, if you weren't that comfortable with it."

Her eyes widened immediately, "N-No, I'm not forcing myself at all! If anything, I'm just hoping that you really are having a good time."

"Are you joking?" Aether said, gulping more of his food while gesturing to the scenery, "Great food, great scenery, and great conversations. What's not to like?"

Keqing smiled at his gesture, "I'm glad you thought of it that way." She began fiddling with her chopsticks, seemingly treading around her words, "Social hangouts are not exactly my forte… but when Ningguang caught me heading back to my office, she forced me out, saying that no one should be back working when they've just about finished fighting a deity."

"You should listen to her more often." Aether cheekily remarked, waving the short glare that she shot at him, "Is that why you said that the soldiers barely tolerated you?"

Nodding in affirmation, she continued after a sigh, "I've always viewed that people tend to waste too much time. That some delay their tasks on the basis of procrastination, without realizing that opportunities may have slipped through their fingers when they decided to push their duties back."

"I'd say you learned from experience…" Aether remarked, hesitation lacing his tone, "But you don't exactly sound enthusiastic about it."

A sad smile now dons her feature, "You're perceptive, I like that about you."

He had expected her to continue, only for her to remain silent and stuck within a contemplative atmosphere. It was then, did Aether finally remembered the short sentence she had mentioned about family, earlier in the night.

"Does this have something to do with what you said about being separated from family?"

She visibly tensed, averting her vision even further down, "It's a… long story."

"Well, the night's still young." He finished the last of his food and asked, "But before that, I want to show you something. I'll settle the bill?"

"What? No!" Keqing stopped him from calling the waiter over, "Dare to pay a dime and I won't speak to you ever again."

"Alright then, milady." Aether raised his hands in surrender, watching as she called the waiter over, got her mora out, and settled the bill. The two stood up, before Keqing turned to him.

"Where to now?"

Aether merely smirked, "Hold my hand."

"Are you looking to get smacked?" She replied whilst crossing her hand.

"Just trust me."

"Ugh, fine…" After a slight hesitation, she placed her hand firmly in his. Barely hiding the tinge of red that's threatening to paint her cheeks, while not all failing to realize the calloused yet smooth texture of his skin.

"Alright, buckle up."

"Wait, what?"

In a flash, Keqing felt as if her feet were off the ground for the slightest of moments, only to softly land on what appears to be a stone floor. She felt the breeze turning a tiny bit colder, before taking a look around to realize that they are no longer on the balcony of the restaurant, instead finding that they have teleported to what she recognized as Qingyun Peak. She took the time to take in the surrounding, before Aether called out.

"Hey, let's not lag behind here!"

She looked up to the peak of the hill that they are on, where Aether stood next to a monument of sorts. Sidling up next to him, she looked at the monument, curios over what exactly was he trying to show her, "You wanted to show me this?"

"Not quite," he replied with a smile, "Pardon my intrusion."

"Pardon your what now?"

He didn't give her a chance to process anything, instead, he immediately pulled her close, securely holding her by the waist, before seemingly activating the monument, generating a huge gust of wind from right below them. With a small yelp of surprise, she felt a slight tug before noticing that her feet had once again left the ground, only this time to see that Aether had deployed his wind glider, slowly elevating them towards another structure that's floating right at the levels of the surrounding mountain.

During their ascend, she was close to reprimanding him for suddenly holding her without any further warning, but that intention slowly phases away as the higher they go, more of her attention is diverted towards the growing scenery, trapping her vision as it demanded her full and undivided scrutiny.

She barely registered it when she felt her feet planting back on solid ground, letting her hold of Aether as she stepped forward to further marvel at the scenery presented to her, where she can see as far as the horizon goes.

"What a breath-taking view." She said, almost breathlessly.

"It is, isn't it?" Aether affirmed, taking a seat on the edge of the platform, "After Cloud Retainer allowed Paimon and I to traverse freely, I decided to come back over here all by myself." He gestured towards the view, "Sometimes, travelling so often can cause you to forget to appreciate that which stands still."

Keqing hummed in understanding, "You come back here often then, hm?"

"Whenever I have time to myself for the day, I try to come back here." He explained, sighing in relaxation, "Helps take the bearing off for a while."

He kept his eyes forward as she settled next to him, letting the scenery entrance him as it usually does, while comfortable silence nestles within the atmosphere between them.

It remained that way for quite a while, with the breeze whispering to their ears while the moon showers its light. Time seemed to slow down for the two of them, until Keqing's voice cut through the air, like a hot knife through butter.

"I last saw my family about seven years ago."

Aether turned to her, only to see that she had kept her gaze on the horizon. He kept his thoughts to himself and proceeded to let her sort out her words.

"Ever since I was little, I'd always strive to compete and be the best at anything, and though some might exaggerate when they say stuff like that, I held that standard to anything and everything." She began her tale, clasping her hands together as she lightly fidgets, "Initially, it was all just a ploy I had made for myself to create a twisted form of motivation to always do my best. But then, my parents got into it, and decided to push me for more. Which, in hindsight, was a recipe for disaster for any family whose members barely communicate with each other."

She paused for moment, exhaling a trembling breath before recomposing herself, "Being born a noble didn't exactly help with it either. Expectations were already high in the first place, and with the brand "perfectionist" now bestowed upon me, it all went downhill soon after."

Aether watched on, not exactly knowing what to think of it, seeing as he had lived most of his life as someone who was never chained down by expectations, especially from family.

"Soon enough, I was barely twelve when my mind developed the obsession of accomplishing everything, in the shortest amount of time as possible, regardless of what I had to do to attain said completion." She continued, sighing as she continued to delve into her past, "Slowly, I started to leave people behind. Acquaintances, rivals, friends, and eventually… family."

"Keqing…"

"I remember the last words my father had said to me." She said, followed by a dry chuckle, "This he says before leaving me behind at the Ministry of Civil Affairs."

Aether unconsciously held his breath.

"If you value your accomplishments so much, then good luck wasting your life for it."

…

With the events of the path few months still extremely fresh in his memories, Aether himself can only wish that he had never gotten separated from his sister in the first place. To hear that a father had willingly abandoned her daughter, just seems to be out of his logic.

And he can only do nothing but to feel for the strong young woman next to him, who looked like recollecting those memories had almost killed her, which prompted him to blurt out his only thought.

"That's so unfair to you…"

"Yeah, I…" Keqing had thought that she needed to defend herself from another person who would try to lecture her on respecting their elderly, before she fully processed what he had just said and sharply turned towards him, "Wait, what did you say?"

"I think that it was incredibly unfair to you." He restated, leaning back with assurance, "You didn't know any better. You've said it yourself; it was a recipe for disaster. But it was a disaster that could've easily been averted had your parents actually guided you on how to achieve, instead of what to achieve."

Keqing's brows furrowed for a split second, before raising them in curiosity, "Do enlighten me?"

Aether leaned forward, sparing a glance at her, "It's something that my old man taught me and my sister." He started, gazing towards the horizon himself in recollection, "He never told us about what we should or shouldn't want. But when we do find something that we desire, he will always give us advice on how to achieve it."

"But isn't that rather risky?" Keqing challenged, "What if you ended up having some absurd desires? Wouldn't your father worry that you'd end up becoming a terrible person, or you'd turned out to be a travelling hermit of some kind?"

"First of all, ouch," He jokingly addressed the latter part of her humorous jab which she reacted to with a small giggle, before going back to her initial question, "Second of all, that's how he built our moral compass." He shifted his position while his expression grew wistful, "From what we wanted to do, he'd describe what would happen if we went on with it, and we'd find out how our actions would affect others."

"And that just… works?"

"With the mindset of a child with no experience in life, it surely shaped our principles." He added with a shrug, "It helps to understand the importance of considering the ways and whys towards a result, instead of simply considering what the result might be."

Keqing went into silence as she contemplated his philosophy, seeing as she had never been taught to consider alternatives other than the very best when it comes to achieving anything, it became a concept that was entirely foreign to her thought process.

"I've never even tried to consider such a thought process."

She looked at him to see an expression that she had rarely seen from anyone who had initiated a conversation with her before. It was a smile that wore genuine compassion, which bears no semblance of pity anywhere within it.

"That's why I said it was unfair to you." He said softly, leaning a little closer to emphasize his point, "If I was in your position, I'd also be terrified if they tried to change the one and only thing that I've known my whole life. Which in your case, just so happens to be the urgency of accomplishing everything in the fastest and most efficient way possible." Aether briefly placed thought of his words with a hand to his chin, "If anything, your parents should've realized the errors in never truly guiding you."

In a way, the world seemed to change for Keqing.

For once, she had finally met someone who tried to understand how she viewed things first, before judging her based on the reputation that she had unconsciously built around herself.

But then again, her mind and memories will never let her get past the fact that she had left behind, and hurt so many people, in her journey of accomplishing great many things for the future of Liyue, and her dreams of the new Liyue.

"Thank you…" she said earnestly, but regret still glazing her eyes, "However, there are many who would beg to differ with your opinion."

"They just haven't taken the time to know you yet." Aether replied with ease, "You're a good person, Keqing. I know for a fact just from our recent short experiences together."

Keqing smirked, "Seems like you got me all figured out, huh, flyboy?"

"Not really." Aether remarked, crossing his arms while a coy smile crept up his face, "Wouldn't mind delving a little bit deeper though."

Stunned by his straightforwardness, she could barely keep her words under control, "W-Wha-," she cleared her throat then, "Aren't you a cheeky one…"

"Hehe." He chuckled gleefully, before his gaze softens once again, "In all seriousness though, I've had a fun time. Fighting alongside you had also been a great treat."

Keqing beamed, "As it was for me." However, she followed it with a sigh, "However, I do apologize, ruining the night with such a sob story like that."

"Hey, none of that, missy." Aether placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, "From now on, whenever I have the chance, I'm going to teach you how to actually have fun and relax every once in a while."

A beautiful giggle rose through the air once again. A sound that Aether can only wish he would hear more often in his journey, with Keqing nodding and replying, "I'll hold you to it then."

Aether replied with a smile and a nod, before letting his hand settle back to his side, as they both went back to the comfortable silence that they had held before, soaking in the breeze and the scenery for what feels like the final time as the moon rose higher into the night sky.

And the final time it was, as just a few minutes later, Keqing rose up to her feet with a firm exhale of her breath.

"Well, as much as I'd like to stay," She stretched her tired muscles, "I'm sure there are plenty of work to be done tomorrow. So, I'm going to have to really pack it in for the night."

"If you say so, ma'am." He stood up alongside her, brushing off the bit of dust from his pants and proceeded to extend a hand out, ready to teleport back to the harbour. She gave him a short smile before placing her hand in his then closed her eyes. In an instant, she felt the familiar breeze of her feet leaving the ground, landing, and when she opened her eyes, they were back near Yujing Terrace.

The two then walked in silence as they made their way towards the centre plaza. The lack of sound from the usually bustling Liyue Harbour presents an opportunity for Aether to really soak in the sheer atmosphere that the city itself resonates, even when most of its people are tucked in bed for the day.

Having trailed her, he almost failed to register that Keqing had stopped in front of fairly majestic looking estate as she began to turn towards him.

"Well then, this is my stop." She said, almost achingly, "You didn't have to walk me all the way to my literal doorstep you know."

"What sort of a gentlemen would I be, had I done less?"

Keqing rolled her eyes in mock-exasperation, "Right, right… Straight out of Mondstadt courtesy. As expected from their Honorary Knight."

The two shared a laughter, both denying their internal gut of not wanting the night to end, which descended to a semi-awkward silence, before Keqing clears her throat.

"A-Actually, do you mind waiting for a short while?" She stammered out, "I got something that I want to give to you."

Aether merely shrugged, "Take your time."

She nodded in reply, turned to the doorsteps and hurriedly made her way inside. Just a few minutes after she disappeared, she came out of the door with an item in tow.

"Here, I'd like for you to have this."

She placed the item in his hands, and he opens it up to an intricately carved medallion which bears some sort of symbol.

"A medallion?"

"An insignia, to be more precise." Keqing explained, "Of the Yuheng's. If you ever find anyone that's trying to screw you over anything here in Liyue, show them this and they'll know not to mess with you." She proceeded to seem hesitant about continuing her explanation, but after taking a calming breath, she said, "And if you ever need to find me, just head over Yuehai Pavilion and show that insignia, the available assistants will know exactly who you're looking for."

Aether then realized what bearing the insignia must've held, and although he had butterflies in his stomach, he decided to mess with her.

"Hmm… and who might that be?"

"Haha, very funny." She made a move to grab the medallion back, "I might as well take it back from you right now."

"Upupup, no take backs." Aether pulled away in time, wagging a finger at her, "It's rude to ask for a gift back you know?"

"Alright, alright…" She faked in relenting to him, but then her gaze grew gentle, "Take care of it for me, alright? Take it as my token of appreciation for what you've done for Liyue, and…" she gestured to herself, "What you've done for me."

Entranced by her honesty, he took the time to appraise the medallion, and Keqing herself. Of course, he had realized that the insignia is of great significance to her, so he held it to his chest and bowed his head ever so slightly.

"I'll take care of it, I promise."

Sensing the pure sincerity of his tone, she nodded in reply, accepting his resolve. She turned towards the door, stepping halfway into the door, then looking back towards him.

"Have a good night, Aether."

Aether gave her on last smile.

"Good night, Keqing."

And just like that Keqing retreated to her domicile, while Aether stood on the streets, still admiring the insignia that reflected the moonlight beautifully.

"Beautiful and elegant, just like her…" He muttered to himself; eyes still locked on it as his feet began guiding him towards the location of the inns. Ready to retreat for the night.

Unbeknownst to him however, there were two figures who watched with him with interest from a nearby balcony, blending in with the shadows to just about avoid detection from the two unassuming targets.

"I assume that it can be considered as a success, Lady Ningguang?"

"It wouldn't be amiss to consider it to be more than that, Ganyu." Ningguang watched on with a satisfied smile, "That girl is finally starting to open up. Someone was bound to break through that tough shell of hers one of these days."

Ganyu then replied, a hint of worry evident in her tone, "But is it wise for Lady Keqing to entrust him with such an important item?"

"Whether or not it was wise to do so, will be up to them." Ningguang answered, wistfully looking up to the sky, "Such things can only be assessed through the passage of time, and only then will people understand the true importance of finding that one trusted individual in your life."

This time, Ganyu raised a curios eyebrow, "Is that from experience, Lady Ningguang?"

Ningguang merely smiled at the Qilin.

"Yes… you can put it that way if you'd like to."

She looked up to the night sky, gentle eyes scouring through the field of onyx.

"I still remember the fields of glaze lilies quite well…"