Chapter 3
The Conqueror of Demons vs The Black Bull
2 days have passed since Asta arrived.
Cloud Retainer watched as her student and Asta sat down, conversing. They have been at it constantly since Ganyu left to start the paperwork for the new traveler. It was incredible what the adepti was seeing. Cloud Retainer had discovered Shenhe when she was just a young child, and what a discovery it was. Trapped in a cave with a rampaging beast the poor girl fought to survive and fight she did. In doing so she escaped with her life but has become traumatized. The red ropes were needed in order to suppress the homicidal impulse to come to Shenhe and the slightest aggravation.
And while the red ropes did their job, they left Shenhe feeling indifferent to those around her. The young woman yearned to rejoin the rest of society. Unfortunately, Cloud Retainer would be of no help in that scenario. She is an adepti, a being who has lived for thousands of years watching over the city of Liyue. She taught Shenhe the way of the adepti arts and raised her like her own daughter but she could not give Sheneh what she really wanted.
But now…seeing Asta converse with Shenhe. Seeing him treat her like a regular person, talking to her and helping her. She is learning much about their new guest. Suffice it to say, one of the things she's learned about him so far is that this young man has a very energetic personality.
"Alright! Time for some more training, are you ready Shenhe?!" Asta said at the top of his lungs, with this being his 2nd day with the young woman he was starting to get a much better feel of her ki. Doing so made it easier to plan conversations to have for her to get better.
"Yes." Shenhe was ready, and sat down with complete focus.
"Alright, your up Liebe!"
"...Why do I have to do this again Asta?"
"Liebe! Shenhe can't be just talking to me, if she wants to get better at talking then she needs to talk to a variety of people, and you are the only other person here."
Currently, Asta was trying to get his brother to participate in training that is going on right now. Asta still had to take it easy, the wounds that he suffered from battle needed more rest. Times like this made him miss Mimosa back home, her healing powers were something else. Able to restore someone in just a few minutes. Still, he was not going to complain, these people were nice enough to treat his and Liebe's wounds and so he would make sure he found a way to repay them.
"Fine." Liebe was only doing this because his brother asked him to. He wasn't too fond of Shenhe for her treatment of Asta at the beginning. "Okay, how are you doing?" He asked in a monotone voice.
"I am doing fine." Shehe responded back with the same monotone voice.
"Wonderful weather we're having."
"I suppose so."
Asta watched on the sideline with sparkles in his eyes. "You got this Liebe and Ms. Shenhe." The young man was cheering time on despite the awkwardness of the situation which caused Liebe to sigh at this idiot.
"Y-You wouldn't know how to get to Liuye would you?" This was so embarrassing for Liebe.
"I would not." Shehe said.
"Psst, Ms. Shenhe, ask him why he's looking for directions." Asta whispered to her.
She nodded.
"May I ask why you are asking for directions?" She then turned to Asta after completing her sentence, who responded by giving her a thumbs up.
"I-I'm new here and want to visit the local area." His face was turning red every time he turned to see Asta's cheerful expression.
"I see." Shenhe turned to Asta again. He mouthed something to her and she nodded. "Perhaps we can go together and chat along the way. I am unfamiliar with this area too."
"Thank you." Liebe finished it off.
"That was awesome!" Asta cried out with tears of joy. His sincere honesty made it all the more embarrassing for Liebe, who hid his diminutive face from his brother so he wouldn't see. "You did great Ms. Shenhe. You turned that dead silence into an opportunity to get to know someone!"
"I see, thank you Asta." She responded in her monotone voice, yet Asta did not mind.
"One sees that you are getting along with my student."
The trio stopped to see Cloud Retainer coming to join them.
"How goes your training Shenhe?"
"It's going well, Master."
"One is curious about how you approached this Asta?"
"Oh, that's easy! I was planning it like I would a regular workout!"
"O-Oh?" Cloud Retainer was not expecting that given the surprise in her voice.
"Yup!" Asta said before nodding proudly. "When starting out with the basics you need to take it slow before moving onto tough workouts or else you'll damage your muscles. Ms. Shenhe is just starting out so for now, it's just small conversations. But once she masters it will move on to more energetic conversations!" He finished it off by raising his fist in the air triumphantly, leaving a confused Cloud Retainer, an embarrassed Liebe, and a straight face Shenhe.
"O-One sees your point…Well, one is happy to see Shenhe getting along with you. She is a dear child and one is happy to see she is making friends."
Asta and Liebe smiled at hearing that, it warmed their heart to a see mother figure expressing their love for their child.
"Also, one has many fond memories of Shenhe as a child. Perhaps you would be interested in hearing them. One believes it shall make for a good conversation."
"T-There will be no need for that." Shenhe said, actually putting emotion in her voice.
"Nonsense. How does one expect to get closer to their friends if they do not know much about her?" Cloud Retainer said, much to the despair of Shenhe as her eyes became wide. Asta, for his part, didn't seem to mind.
"I wouldn't mind hearing stories of Ms. Shenhe. Growing up I had a bunch of little brothers and sisters, I always enjoyed telling stories about them to my friends." The young knight was raised at an orphanage with many kids that were younger than him. Just like Liebe, Asta considered them his family and siblings and loved talking about them. Unfortunately, his answer brought about despair in Shenhe, who had an expression that resembled panic as her eyes darted back and forth between Asta and Cloud Retainer. Much to Asta's oblivion and Cloud Retainer simply not caring.
"Very well, one recalls a time when she was just a young girl. Being taught in the way of the adepti, it was her first day and she-" Cloud Retainer came to a sudden stop, much to the confusion of her audience.
"Cloud Retainer?" Asked Asta.
"Apologies, it appears one has a guest who entered into one's abode unannounced. Please continue on, one shall return to pick up where one left off. " With that Cloud Retianer flew off.
"Um, is everything okay?" asked Asta.
"It should be, Master is powerful enough to deal with any unwanted intruders." Shenhe simply stated.
"Alright then, back to some more training then. Liebe!"
"Uh uh, I'm not doing that again. Too embarrassing, you take over Asta." Said the diminutive figure as he flew to his brother's should and began to rest.
"Okay fine but you need to help Ms. Shenhe out too from time to time, she didn't just help me." Asta's tone was similar to an older sibling scolding their younger one after doing something bad. Liebe became red with embarrassment and stuck his tongue at his brother before finally resting upon Asta's shoulder.
"Alright Ms. Shenhe, this time we're gonna try to practice against someone who's a complete jerk!"
"Very Well."
"Alright, you start Ms. Shenhe."
"I-..." She struggled for a bit before getting her bearings together. "Nice to me you, my name is Shenhe. May I ask for your name?"
Asta began to do a terrible impression of a rude person. His impression, which was going to be terrible, was drawn from the royals and nobles of the Clover Kingdom that treated him with disrespect. "Who said you could talk to me?" He said in the most terrible snotty voice he could muster. Liebe face palmed in embarrassment.
"I-I wanted to make conversation, I…I didn't mean to offend and-"
"Well, as you can see, I'm very busy now leave me alone!" Asta finished it off before dropping his terrible impersonation. He looked to Shenhe and began to focus, not on her, but on her ki. He could feel her ki rising, her anger, frustration, it was all so easy to read. All this from a simple conversation, Asta would be lying if he didn't find this a bit concerning.
"I see…perhaps you would be more inclined to talk once I smash your face into-" Shenhe caught herself before she finished that sentence. She looked to Asta who had a reassuring smile on his face.
"Hey, it's okay." He said casually before waving it off. "I can tell that it was bothering you from the get-go just in my tone."
"I apologize." She said with slight remorse.
"Don't be. It's been just 2 days Ms. Shenhe, it would be crazy to see progress in that short of time." Asta didn't want to discourage her, speaking from experience the young knight has seen what that can do to people who are earnestly trying their best. "The important this is to not give up!" He said with sparkles in his eyes. "Pushing past your limits isn't easy! If it was then everyone would do it! We gotta keep on trying Ms. Shenhe!"
"Yes." She said. Getting used to Asta's energy was definitely going to take some time. "Now what exactly do we need to push?"
Ah yes, Shenhe didn't really understand sayings or proverbs. Asta forgot about that. Well anyways back to it-
The young knight felt a ki creep up on him. He turned to where he sensed it and saw a figure standing before him. It was a male who looked very young. He didn't seem very tall, just a few inches above Asta. His hair was medium-length green and hung down just past his ears. He wore a white sleeveless shirt with purple pants and green tattoos that covered his arms. Gloves adorned his arms, with the one on his left having a pendant similar to Shenhe's only his shined green.
Asta was put on alert for several reasons. The first one was this man's ki, it wasn't human and it wasn't like Ganyu's. It is exactly like Cloud Retainer's ki which tells this black bull that in front of him was an adepti. His ki felt odd, different from Shenhe who has this feeling of hostility, Asta could make out from it but it was heavy.
"Uh, Ms. Shenhe? Would you know who this is?" asked Asta.
Shenhe, for her part. Didn't seem too concerned about this man's arrival. She spared the green-haired man a quick glance. "
"That is Xiao, he is an adepti like my master. He must be here to see her." With that Shenhe broke her gaze away from Xiao and back to Asta. "Shall we continue with our lesson?" The cryo woman was not bothered by this man's arrival.
"Um, hi! My name is Asta, it's a pleasure to meet you!" Well, first impressions are everything, perhaps Asta just needed to make a proper introduction, and then-
"I do not care for your name."
Ah…well then. Wasn't the first time Asta had been ignored when introducing himself.
"You." The adepti named Xiao pointed, not to Asta, but to Liebe who seemed confused. "Do you really think you would be able to hide from me in here, demon?"
Demon?
"What?" asked Asta. "I don't know what you're talking about but Liebe's not a demon, he's a devil and he's my-" Asta did not finish his sentence because he felt the adepti's ki turn aggressive. In a quick motion, the youthful-looking adepti extended his hand a summoned a spear that looked to be made out of jade. The adepti then dashed towards Asta, his spear coming right a Liebe with the intent to pierce him!
Asta reacted quickly, pulling out the demon-dweller and demon-slasher from his grimoire and parrying the adepti's attack.
"What the heck is your problem!?" Asta yelled out in shock while Liebe immediately took cover behind his brother.
"Move, I have no intention of fighting a human. My target is that demon that is hovering over you."
"That 'demon' is my brother!"
"Brother?" His words made the adepti pause for a bit. "Ridiculous, whatever lies he fed you seems to be working."
"That isn't true! First of all, can we talk about this!?" Asta asked in desperation. The first attack that came at him was fast, incredibly fast. This guy was way stronger than Shenhe, Asta can already tell. Not good when your body is still recovering from damages.
"I do not need to discuss anything with you human." Xiao extended his palm towards Asta and then a large burst of wind came at the grey-haired knight. Anemo, Cloud Retainer mentioned that. So this adepti's vision grants him anemo abilities? Asta grew a wicked grin on his face, he slashed his swords at the wind blast coming right at him. Both the demon dweller and demon slasher released slashes of anti-magic that cut through the wind with absolute ease. Xiao, surprised at this, would have gotten slashed had he not moved out of the way using the anemo to move at increased speeds.
"What was that?" Xiao asked his eyes in disbelief over what he just saw.
Asta said nothing, he merely took his stance and waited for his opponent's next move. Memories came flooding to the black bull, training of his brother and rival Yuno who wielded a grimoire that granted him the element of wind. How many times have they sparred? How many times had Yuno blasted him with a giant wind attack out of nowhere causing Asta to act at a moment's notice? A grin appeared on the young knight, and a boost of confidence began to creep up on him.
"Hmph, don't want to talk then? Good, that suits me fine."
Xiao launched at him again, thrusting his spear at Asta and firing a blast of wind from the tip of his spear. Asta retaliated by firing more anti-magic slashes at his open that cut through the wind with ease and erased it with ease. Xiao merely scoffed at used the wind to move through the air and come behind Asta. However, the young knight read Xiao's ki and could already tell what he was trying to do, he was trying to get behind him to attack Liebe. Asta did a 180 and clashed his swords with the adepti's spear.
Once again, the adepti was surprised by Asta. He wondered just how this grey-haired boy was able to anticipate his attacks. Xiao did not ponder too much about it, he kept trying to impale the demon in front of him but his opponent clashed against him with his black swords. Asta summoned his grimoire to put away his katana and swapped it out for his great sword.
"What is the purpose of that? That big sword will make it slower to swing."
And the opponent began to prove that point by increasing the speed of his attacks.
Yet Asta was not worried, not too much at least. Cause he was reading the adepti's ki and his opponent was being true to his words. This Xiao person was actually not trying to cause harm to Asta. He wasn't fighting to kill, not him at least. But he was fighting to harm his brother and the young knight will not stand for that.
It was getting difficult to parry his strikes. This guy definitely strikes a lot faster and it's not like Asta's had much experience against spear combat. His blows came fast and hard, but used his shorter sword to parry them and fire several more anti-magic slashes.
Xiao, due to being so close, had to cease his attack and use anemo to elevate his jump so that he would avoid those slashes. Since he had the higher ground the adept fired a concentrated wind blast at Asta.
This time, the young knight was ready. Grabbing his greatsword with both arms Asta turned to the flat side and reflected the wind attack right back at the adepti. Just like with Shenhe's attack, that attack was now doubled in power.
"What?" That was all Xiao said before he was blasted right off the floating rock platform they were battling on and down into the clouds.
"Yes!" Asta said before taking a knee, completely out of breath.
"Asta!? Are you okay?" Liebe asked.
"Y-Yeah, just need a breather. This guy sure is tough. Hey Liebe, if I need to do you think-"
"No, union or your black form is out of the question. Your body won't handle it."
It's only been two days, and the wounds he suffered from Lucifero were not so easily healed in that short time. Asta had great strength but that didn't mean he had accelerated healing. Using his transformations now would just put too much stress and end the fight even more quicker.
"Ok, time to think of a plan. How do we convince him you're not a bad guy? Ms. Shenhe! Any ideas?" Asta and Liebe turned to where Shenhe should be sitting, only to see she was no longer there. "Oh boy…" That was all Asta could say. He was too busy and tired to focus on her ki to find out where she went.
Soon afterward Xiao made his way back onto the platform, with an annoyed look on his face. The attack that Asta hit him with didn't seem to do any sustainable damage. Which is not a good thing for the young knight. Is that what adepti's are like in battle because they are really strong if so.
"Well, that was an interesting trick you just did. I don't see a vision on you, so just how did you pull that off? Xiao asked with an annoyed look on his face.
"Um, If I tell you will you stop attacking my brother?"
"I will not stop till I exterminate that demon."
"But he's not a demon! He's a devil!" Asta yelled at the top of his lungs. That yelling soon turned into an awkward silence as both Liebe and Xiao stared at him.
"Is there a difference?" Xiao asked.
Asta opened his mouth to say something before realizing he had nothing, so he turned to Liebe who in response shrugged his shoulders.
"Um…maybe?" That was all the young knight said before he was hit with a blast of wind that knocked him right on his back.
"This whole thing has been a waste of time. Give up."
"Not gonna happen. My magic, is never giving up!" Asta said as he slowly began to get back up on his feet, using his sword as a support. "I don't care what your reasoning is, I'm not letting you hurt my brother."
"That thing is not your brother, Human." Xiao said as he readied his spear.
Asta readied his sword and came charging at Xiao. The adepti readied himself and matched his opponent's action. Using the anemo to increase his speed at an alarming rate. Yet, before these two could clash again a wall of ice came between them and stopped them dead in their tracks.
"What?" Asta asked.
Xiao, on the other hand, looked simply annoyed.
"Why are you interfering, Cloud Retainer?"
Asta turned to where Xiao was looking and saw Cloud Retainer, along with Shenhe and Ganyu on a separate platform above them. Both Shenhe and Ganyu seemed to have been responsible for the wall of ice that came between them.
"Because one does not approve of your actions, Xiao. Especially in ones on abode. Ganyu, Shenhe, please tend to Asta."
"Yes, master." Said both women before jumping from an incredible height and down to Asta's location.
"Are you okay Asta?" Ganyu said as she moved underneath his arm to support him before he collapsed to his knees.
"Yeah, thank you for the help."
Asta was going to say more before Cloud Retainer flew down to meet her fellow adepti.
"Xiao, one allowed you to witness this boy and his companion for oneself. Not take to action and nearly exterminate him. One understands that you are the conqueror of demons for a reason yet, this is my adobe which means they are my responsibility." Cloud Retainer said in a respectful voice. Xiao merely sighed in disappointment but besides that did seem angry at Cloud Retainer's words.
Asta watched as both Cloud Retainer and Xiao made their leave to a secluded place. It seemed like they were going to discuss it in private. The young knight breathed a sigh of relief that he didn't know he was holding in before crying out in pure agony.
"Ow, ow, ow, ow!" Said Asta, as his muscles began to cry out once the adrenaline wore off.
"Let's take you back inside." Said Ganyu and Shenhe made her way to open the door with Liebe following them.
"Thanks again you for the help Ms. Ganyu and Ms. Shenhe."
"Your welcome Asta."
Shenhe merely nodded toward Asta.
"Hey." said Liebe. "Who was that guy and why was he after me?"
"That is Xiao, an adepti like our master Cloud Retainer. As for why is a bit of a long story. Let's place your brother down on the bed first."
They made their way to the temporary room that was given to Asta and Liebe. Once there Ganyu carefully laid Asta in his bed where the young knight finally was able to get some rest.
"Oh man! That guy was strong!" Exclaimed the black bull. "I thought for sure I had the advantage in this fight." Asta was no stranger to wind. After all his rival, Yuno, utilized wind and he would always spar with him growing up at the orphanage. Then again…this was different…
Asta was starting to realize something.
The fact of the matter is, back home most of his fights were against opponents that used nothing but their grimoires. No one in the clover kingdom, aside from a few, did close combat. In a fight once Asta closed the distance and nullified their spells he was able to defeat them with his strength and swordsman skills. But here? The people use their mana with their weapons, and they don't shy away from physical combat. Not to mention, they're all really physically strong. Shenhe hit like a boulder and this adepti had incredible physical strength too…
Asta wondered if he would be able to pick up a few things while he was here…
"Asta?"
"Huh?"
So deep was his thinking that Asta did not hear Ganyu calling his name.
"I'm sorry Ms. Ganyu, I wasn't paying attention. What did you say?"
"I was simply agreeing with what you were saying. Yes, Xiao is strong."
"Do either of you know him? Who is he?"
"I do not know much about him." Said Shenhe.
Asta turned to Ganyu, who seemed to be deep in thought.
"I'm not exactly close to him, so I can't really provide any specific details if that's what you're looking for. Xiao is an adepti like Cloud Retainer and has lived as long as she has."
"Whoa. So he's even older than you?" Liebe said that and he meant no disrespect, he was simply shocked to hear that and so was Asta.
"E-Eh, ahem…Yes." Unfortunately for poor Ganyu, it did inflect verbal damage as her cheeks became a bit red from embarrassment. "He is a adepti who has been in many battles, called the Conqueror of Demons. Calling him strong is an understatement. Still, you did pretty well to hold up against him and protect your brother. Your pretty strong yourself Asta."
Ganyu then handed Asta a package that was wrapped in paper.
"Here. The clothes are prepared for you, open them. I believe the measurements should be correct."
The young knight did just so and his eyes began to sparkle at what he saw.
"Oh wow!" He said out loud. "Thank you so much Ms. Ganyu. I really appreciate it."
"You're welcome, now why don't you try them on? Go ahead."
Asta was just about to do that. When he said both Shenhe and Ganyu stared at him expectantly.
"Um, Ms. Ganyu and Ms. Shenhe. Can you please leave so I can change?" The poor knight asked again as his brother only face palmed at what they were seeing again.
"Oh!" Ganyu, to her credit, understood her mistake and blushed a bit in embarrassment. "Sorry about that, I was curious as to what you thought of them. We'll wait outside."
"Again?" Shenhe said, not understanding but still getting up from her seat and leaving the room. "I still do not understand why this is necessary."
Once the 2 girls finally left, Asta released a deep sigh. A sigh that drew concern from his brother.
"Asta…I'm sorry, I don't-"
"Don't worry about it Liebe." Asta said, with a reassuring smile. "I don't know what that jerk's problem is but I'm not about to let him hurt my brother."
The 2 of them had a moment of brotherly affection for one another, until…
"Your body is probably aching right now? Isn't it?"
"Yes!" Asta screamed out, his body shaking and aching all while Liebe simply shook his head in defeat.
Shenhe sat outside, waiting for Asta to come out and show his new gear to Ganyu. Speaking of which, from the corner of her eye Shenhe could see Ganyu also waiting. The two sat there in complete silence. Despite both of them being raised by Cloud Retainer, the two of them knew very little about each other. It is no surprise, Ganyu is a 3000-year-old adeptus while Shenhe is still human. By the time Cloud Retainer discovered Shenhe and took her in Ganyu was in Liyue serving the people as their secretary.
Her master has told her a bit about Ganyu but it wasn't much.
Still, it's only been two days but perhaps now would be the time to put their training to work. She has been going through multiple conversations with Asta. Perhaps she can try it now here.
"Wonderful weather we're having." Shenhe began.
"Hmm? Oh, uh, yes? It is nice inside Cloud Retainer's domain." Ganyu responded back but it soon fell into awkward silence. Shenhe began to think of something else to say. Anything else?
"Would you like to exchange strength training tips?"
"Strength training? O-Oh, uh, no Shenhe I don't really have anything to exchange and I'm not really interested in anything like that."
Another conversation was shot down, this was very difficult. Shenhe took a deep breath, this was weighing down on her emotions, is it because she is having to initiate the conversations? Her practice with Asta was so much easier. Talking with Asta was so much easier, the young man was filled with energy and could carry a conversation. Shenhe finally gave up, and began wishing for Asta to hurry up and come out so they could talk some more.
The door opened and the two women turned their heads to see Asta coming out, his new outfit fitting him nicely. Black pants that were kept in place with a large leather belt. A white long-sleeved shirt with a collar and a small v-cut that showed just a small window of his muscular chest. His right arm was covered in a brown arm brace, hiding it's corrupted view from any outsiders. Yet what stood out the most from Asta's new outfit was the black headband along with the black and gold-lined cape with the symbol of a bull that hung from his left shoulder.
Shenhe gave no reaction, as she was not sure if this was considered fashionable or not.
Ganyu was giving a small clap with a smile on her face.
"It seems to fit you well, what do you think?" She asked.
"It's awesome!" Asta cried out with tears of joy as he ran to Ganyu and bowed his head in gratefulness. "Thank you so much Ms. Ganyu for making me these new clothes and a new robe!"
"You're welcome, with this you will now be able to traverse Liyue with no issue. Your right arm would have definitely caused some confusion so please wear the brace whenever in public."
"No problem Ms. Ganyu! It feels great and I can still move comfortably with it."
"Of course, I had it designed in Liyue with the purpose of not slowing you down in combat. Speaking of which…"
A paper appeared in Ganyu hands and she handed it over to Asta.
"I've finished your paperwork with the Adventure's guild in Liyue, you are now registered and able to take commissions from the board. There is a map of Liyue in there as well. With that, you'll be able to guide yourself to Liyue Harbor and meet the guild representative there to begin."
"Awesome, then I can start making money for Captain Beidou to take me home. Got it, thank you so much Ms. Ganyu! For this and my new clothes!" He said with sparkling eyes filled with gratitude.
Shenhe watched as Ganyu chuckled at Asta's thankfulness. The two seemed to be going back and forth so easily…that bothered her for some reason. Shenhe knew it's only been two days but Ganyu has known Asta for an even shorter time and yet, they seemed to get along much better than here and Asta. Huh, she felt something odd in her chest…
"Your welcome Asta, I'm glad they fit you. Was the robe to your liking?"
"Yes, it is! I must have lost it when coming here but I'm super glad I have a new one to replace it!"
Shenhe's head popped up, this would be a good time to ask what that robe meant. A good way to start a conversation between her and Asta.
"What does that robe mean anyway's Asta?" Unfortunately for Shenhe, Ganyu beat her to the punch.
"Back at the Clover Kingdom, we had squads called Magic Knights that protect the kingdom and its citizens. I'm in the Black Bull's and this robe represents that. I never thought I would get into a squad back home so this robe really means a lot to me."
Those words came out with an expression of gratitude as Asta looked at his robe fondly, yet underneath that look lay a sadness. The sliver-haired woman looked at Asta and wondered why he bore such a sad look. Neither of the two women got a chance to ask as their guest had regained his usual energetic expression and sat down on the porch.
"I'm gonna lie down for a bit now…my body still aches."
It seems that in the young man's excitement to wear his black bull robes again, he had forgotten about his injuries. Which were now starting to pop and make his body ache. Asta's body truly can not catch a break…
"Where did you find this human?"
While the conversation between Asta, Ganyu, and Shenhe was happening. Cloud Retainer was currently speaking with Xiao, away from prying ears.
"One did not, the young man stumbled upon one's abode in a heavily injured state. After some convincing, one was able to bring the young man to her abode for treatment and learn more about him. First of all. Asta states that he is from a foreign land called the Clover Kingdom."
"Clover Kingdome? I've never heard of such a place."
"Nor has one heard about it either. The young man stated that he is not from Tevyat and that he does not know how he got to Liyue."
"I find that hard to believe."
"As one should, one felt the same way. However, after asking a few questions one is willing to believe his story."
"Oh?" Xiao was now a bit curious. He and Cloud Retainer have known each other for thousands of years. Both have taken it upon themselves to look after Liyue as stated in the contract they agreed upon with Rex Lapis. Xiao does trust Cloud Retainer, even though he may not admit it.
"Indeed. Listen closely…"
Cloud Retainer began to tell Xiao all that she knew about Asta. About his corrupted right arm, about his grimoire that neither she nor Ganyu was able to read. Of his brother Liebe. How, despite an average human, is able to be in close proximity with an adepti and not sustain any injury. How he seemed completely lost as they informed him about Teyavt. But what caught Xiao's attention the most was Asta's swords and the abilities that they had.
"His swords can negate visions?" Xiao repeated to himself.
"And apparently reflect as well. One saw as he used his large sword to reflect your anemo vision back at you. One remembers seeing him do the same thing to Sheneh, he reflected her cryo vision back at her.
"What else can he do?"
"One is not sure, one saw no reason to press any further."
"Cloud Retainer."
"Was one supposed to force these secrets from him? We were contracted with Rex Lapis to protect Liyue and it's inhabitants, not demand and question anyone we see. Even you Xiao, would you use force and harm to extract answers from a human?"
Xiao stayed silent. He meant those words he said when fighting Asta, he truly had no intention or desire to fight or harm Asta.
"Whatever."
"Is that the tone you take when one allows you into their home? One allowed you to spar with Asta, nothing more."
When Cloud Retainer had left to meet with Xiao upon his entering her abode, the mystic bird allowed her friend to engage Asta in combat. But she made it clear that she didn't want Xiao harming either Asta or his brother.
"His swords and his 'brother'...it's all weird. What is your opinion on him, Cloud Retainer? In all honesty." Having known each other for thousands of years. Xiao respected the opinion of his fellow adepti.
"One is not sure yet, which is why one has allowed him to stay in one's adobe for this long. However if one had to say…" Cloud Retainer turned and began walking towards the edge of the platform that she and Xiao were on. She looked in the direction where her students and Asta were at. While she could not hear them, she could see them.
She could see Asta laying down on the porch of the small home Cloud Retainer made for him. She could see the young man smiling as he made conversation with Shenhe. She watched as Shenhe sat patiently next to him, listening attentively to him with a straight face. Her lips did not move nor did she make any gesture towards Asta. Yet the young man kept speaking to her and she kept listening attentively. That in itself is why Cloud Retainer decided to let the young man stay in her adobe, despite her distaste for guests.
Shenhe's background was tragic and because of it, her personality was greatly marred by it. Having to wear the red ropes to suppress those her violent urgers and becoming secluded as a result, Cloud Retainer wondered if her student would ever be able to merge back with society as she dreamed to. And yet, here was this young knight happily conversing with her. Being patient with her and agreeing to help her with her communication skills while he's here. Shenhe is a dear child to Cloud Retainer, and seeing Asta going out of his way to help her has made a good impression on the adepti.
"One is willing to give him a chance and even help him get home."
Xiao said nothing in response. Cloud Retainer has been alive for so long, she is no fool.
"Besides, one must point out that during your fight Asta never once went for a killing blow against you. An adepti that has come to kill his brother, yet Asta fought only to defend and kept wanting to talk things out. Does that not say anything about his character?"
Cloud Retainer waited for a response but never received one. She turned around and saw that Xiao was heading towards the exit.
"If you are willing to vouch for this human and his companion then I will yield. If no threat to Liyue is present then there is no reason for me to be here any longer."
With that the adepti left, leaving Cloud Retainer all alone.
"Honestly, he has not gotten any better in social interaction."
Asta felt the ki of Xiao disappear, guess whatever he and Cloud Retainer were talking about was taken care of. The young man still had so many questions. Like, why did Xiao keep calling Liebe a demon? He wasn't a demon, unless that's what they call devils here in this land? Also, he wanted to ask if he could provide any tips in close combat. Honestly, the way Xiao fought was really cool. He is sorely lacking in experience when it comes to close-quarters combat.
"It seems that Xiao has left." Said Ganyu as she got up from her seat.
"Are you going already Ms. Ganyu?" Asked Asta.
"Yes, I have a lot of work that I need to get back too. I'm very far behind now."
How much work does this lady have?
"Oh, my bad."
"Don't apologize Asta, I was happy to help. You probably won't see me as much in Liyue, given my work, but when Captain Beidou does arrive I will notify you." With that, the horned woman began to make her leave after saying goodbye to both Asta and Shenhe.
"Wow, she's really nice. I wouldn't expect a stranger to go this much out of their way to help someone else."
Asta felt Shenhe's ki flair up at these words. That snapped him out of his thoughts and turned to her, only for him to see Shenhe staring right at him.
"Uh, Ms. Shenhe?" Asta was confused, why did Shene's ki flair up all of a sudden? It was an angry ki too.
"I'm not sure but can we talk now, just me and you?"
"Oh? Yeah, sure."
And just like that, her ki went back down to what it was before. Oh! That must be it! Shenhe must want to get back to training, honestly, how could Asta not have known that? He remembers during the times when his workout routine was interrupted. While he was always happy to help his friends with whatever tasks they need it still bothered him a bit. It must be the same with Shenhe.
"Sorry, Ms. Shenhe! Yeah, let's get back to it!"
"Shenhe."
"Hmm?
"You don't need to keep calling me Ms. Shenhe. I don't like the way it sounds. Please, just call me Shenhe."
"Oh, ok. Shenhe it is then! That goes for you to Liebe!"
"Sure." Liebe casually said as he went back to napping on Asta's shoulder.
"Oh by the way Shenhe, I wanted to ask something about visions. Xiao's vision, that's anemo which is wind basically. Cryo is ice, and hydro I'm guessing is water right?"
Shenhe nodded at Asta's question.
"Ok, so electro is electricity or lightning and pyro must be fire. So then what are dendro and geo?"
"Dendor is basically trees and plants."
As so like Mimosa's grimoire back home.
"And Geo is earth and stone."
Shenhe's answers didn't provide much info but it was enough for Asta to paint a picture. It seemed like the abilities here were much basic compared to the mana back home. Sure there was lightning and water mana back home but there was also steel, trap, and darkness. All types of mana and grimoire abilities that the knights could do back at the Clover Kingdom. Guess things are just a bit different here.
"Wow. So I'm guessing everyone gets their vision at a certain age then huh?" Must be nice, to be able to wield those powers. Even to this day, a part of him is still bothered that he can't use any mana back-
"No, not at all. There are many people without a vision."
Wait…what?
Asta's face looked as if it was frozen. He turned to Shenhe, to make sure he was hearing her correctly.
"Wait, not everyone gets a vision then?"
"No, not at all." Shenhe said calmly, not noticing the look on Asta's face.
"So the people that don't have visions, how do they use the mana inside them?"
"I'm not sure what you mean by mana but without a vision, they can't. Only those who received a vision can use the elements."
"So that means…" At this point, Asta was mumbling to himself. "That means that there are hundreds of people here without mana?"
Shenhe did not understand what Asta was getting so riled up about. How could she? Back at the Clover Kingdom, mana was everything. Everyone was born with it. Whether it's large or small, every person in the Kingdom is born with mana and able to use it to complete a variety of tasks. Once they receive their grimoires then they can use specific spells but even without it the mana is still in them, able to be used. Asta was the only human from his home that could not use mana. He simply wasn't born with it.
He was ridiculed for it.
Looked down upon by most of society because of it.
And now…from what Shenhe is telling him. There are other people here who don't have any mana or vision and just carry on.
Asta didn't know what to do with this information in all honesty…
"Is something the matter Asta?"
He was broken out of his spur by Shenhe who had gotten closer to him to see what was going on.
"Y-Yeah Shenhe, I'm fine. Thank you for answering my questions."
"You're welcome, can we go back to conversing now?"
"Yup! Gonna need a few more days to recover so let's get to it while we can!"
So many questions, but they will have to wait. His body isn't at 100% yet, once it is and Cloud Retainer gives him the go-ahead Asta will be able to leave her abode and get to work on getting home.
For now, Asta sat next to his new friend and began conversing on whatever came to mind while she listened patiently.
To be continued…
Chapter 3 is done! I feel like I'm updating these pretty fast. At least compared to my previous time frame. Hoping to get one more chapter done before this year is over but we'll see.
Anyways, another chapter, and Asta got to fight Xiao. Hoped y'all liked it. I need to make it clear with something, don't get the impression that Asta is going to steamroll everyone here. After reading the recent manga chapters it's plain to see that Asta is actually weak against those who are just as physically strong as he is or who use close quarters combat.
And that makes sense!
Throughout the series, Asta mostly fought people who used spells from a distance. Once he got close and landed a good hit it was game over for them. The only exceptions are Lucifero, who was physically strong and Vento, who was also physically strong. Now Asta's training in the Yami's land and getting beat up because they're just using hand-to-hand combat and kicking his ass.
There are plenty of Genshin characters who can kick ass without a Vision. Hell, Beidou defeated a sea monster before she got her vision. Shenhe carried a giant boulder and Xiao's over 3000 years old!
Point is, there are characters here that don't rely on just their visions. They have other skills to rely on. Like Asta isn't just anti-magic, he's got sword skills, ki sensing, and super strength. The same is here for the characters in genshin. There are characters with enough skill and strength that would definitely give Asta a run for his money.
That being said…there are also characters that are going to have a hard time when coming against anti-magic.
Genshin isn't filled with just humans, they're are plenty of other things here. I have plans for the ones that fall under archon, adepti, and abyss. You'll wait and see.
Also, catalyst users will get absolutely s*** on against Asta in this story. I do not consider that a spoiler. They fight exactly like the characters in Black Clover did and Asta's got plenty of experience with that!
Sorry Lisa/Signora/Mona and every other catalyst user in-game :)
Also, regarding Asta's new outfit. If I did a poor job describing it I apologize. Just look at the cover image for this story, that's his new outfit.
Thank you for reading, see y'all next time.