The World Traveller

by Astral Kairos

Aether is separated from his sisters and begins a journey to find answers to the truth. Massive harem story with genderbent characters and overpowered traveller.

1. A New Beginning

Hey everyone. So this is the first fanfic which isn't danmachi related.

There are two reasons why I'm writing this:

1 - I love genshin and have been playing a lot recently so I'm hyped for it.

2 - The MC pisses me off to no end. Lives for millennia yet he is the dumbest character in the game after Paimon. He alwys gets one shot, destroyed and then saved by someone else. Sometimes that is understandable but it can't happen every time and his character isn't portrayed well in my opinion. Now as a fanfic this obviously means I will make him very powerful and he will be shipped with a lot of characters.

Now I know to some this is blasphemy but I'm gender bending Diluc, Childe and Venti to pair them with Aether. Ships will also include lots of NPC's and I will not rule out the tag of rape. Now before anyone says anything, the only rape cases I might include are Aether 'defiling' some of his enemies like cicin mages and the mirror maidens. Maybe if I feel twisted make a monster rape a random NPC. I apologize about all of this in advance, if you're not comfortable I will make notices for anything that is M rated, but if you feel too uncomfortable please just drop the story. The fanfic is for people to enjoy after all, well and for me to unleash my creativity.

The World Traveller

Chapter 1 – A New Beginning And Arrival In Mondstadt

The lands burnt as the heavenly principles destroyed what was once a great nation built by mortals, without the guidance of the Gods of Celestia. Horrified by the scene before them, a pair of twins spread their wings before taking flight. The two, had bared witness to countless atrocities across their eternal life. They were aware of the ugliness of this world, the Archon War had showed that to them. But few were as dreadful as the calamity ensuing and the Archon War's hideousness paled before the scene. They, despite being mighty powerful could do nothing to save the people now condemned to face doom, and so they flew towards the starry sky, to leave and never return to the land of Teyvat.

That however was not to be. Surprising them and barring their way out of this world, three red stars tore the fabric of space, out of the central star came a mysterious entity. The twins wondered if she were to be an ally or a foe as the two stepped onto Celestia on their way out of the world.

A pair of fair white feet wrapped in bandages emerged first. A golden light rippled across the sky beneath her, as the foot came down on the empty space, like a drop falling on water. Her divine form following soon after.

"Outlanders, your journey ends here."

The God spoke with a melodic yet cold voice and staring at them was a gaze that held no emotion but contempt. Despite that, she had a divine figure and the most beautiful face the two had seen in centuries. If not for the fact that she was clearly hostile, she was a truly charming figure.

"Who are you?"

Lumine, the younger twin, demanded of the unknown entity with narrowed eyes. Her intentions were clear and the two twins hid none of their hostility towards the God.

"The sustainer of the heavenly principles. The arrogation of mankind ends here."

As she says that a red cube appeared in her hand. The same power that had destroyed Khaenri'ah, a nation the two had watched rise since its foundation many millennia prior to now. So they realized, the heavenly principles destroyed Khaenri'ah. Celestia was responsible.

The squared area beneath the twins turned red just as the small yellow cube in the unknown God's hand grew bigger and bigger. The two twins, however, were quick to react. Aether followed by Lumine just after, jumped up and out of the way as a cube formed where they previously stood.

Twirling midair after jumping up, the two twins materialized their wings and golden swords before charging at the unknown God. The entity raised her hand and streaks of red cubes shot towards the twins, who up and down, left and right, dodged them while still flying towards their attacker. Like they had seen missiles in other worlds do, the cubes kept homing in on them as they flew around.

The twins split ways and after dodging the cubes once again, made a dash towards the Unknown God for a final strike. Arriving from two directions the twins swung at the entity causing an explosion from their divine strength. But as their vision was restored, they saw the God had blocked both of them by manifesting a colorless barrier on each hand.

The silent only lasted a pair of seconds as the entity's eyes focused on Aether. The blonde traveler immediately backed off as he saw cubes sprout out of her arm and reach out to him. Lumine on the other hand wasn't as lucky and was caught by the cubes that spread from her sword to her arms, then her entire body.

"Lumine!"

She looked at Aether one last time before being completely covered by the heavenly principles. Then the thousand cubes that covered her all returned to the Unknown entity's hand compressing into a single small golden cube.

The entity was observing at the golden cube when, with blinding speed, Aether appeared behind her, charging his power in the form of a golden light in his hand. He thrust his hand forwards and struck the divine woman just as she turned. The ensuing explosion was massive, enough to shake all of Celestia and blow of the peak of a mountain.

But he was shocked when he saw that the heavenly principles had encircled the explosion completely shielding the entity, save for a scratch on her face. She touched the spot and let a small smile appear on her face, but just as quick as it arrived, it was gone. She eyed the traveler before extending her hand and commanding the cubes to shrink.

The explosion shrunk along the cube and returned into Aether's hand, it was as if time was being turned back. But as the cubes all shrunk to one singular cube, Aether realized his mistake. His hand was inside it, he had been caught. And just like Lumine the God enveloped him in cubes. Aether didn't notice at the time but the eyes of the entity looked at him sadly, hurtfully but at the same time with happiness and glee. With a sigh she trapped Aether.

"Wait. Don't go! Give my sister back!"

.

"And just like that, the God took away my sister. Some kind of seal was cast upon me, and I lost my power. So while I used to travel from world to world, I am now trapped here."

"So … you're telling me that you fell here from another world? But when trying to leave and move onto the next world your path was blocked by an unknown God?"

"That's right."

Aether made surprisingly beautiful drawings of what he remembered in the sand below using a wooden stick.

"I lost my power, my ability, my wings, my weapon and most importantly my sister. How many years ago was it? I don't know but looking at the peaceful world that is Teyvat now, I'd say that several centuries have gone by. However, I intend to find out the truth about the God and their intention."

A small floating figure was next to Aether, listening to his story.

"When I woke up, I was all alone – until I met you two weeks after."

The floating girl nodded.

"Yeah, Paimon really owes you one for that. Otherwise Paimon would have likely drowned."

The peculiar floating girl now named Paimon recalled how two days ago, Aether, ended up fishing her out of the pond before she could drown.

"So Paimon will do her best to be a great guide! We should head off. Let's get going!"

Paimon was truly an interesting and peculiar being. She had the face of a cute little girl, white hair and a black pin on the top front left of her head. A pink crown floated above her head and her outfit was no weirder than his.

A white outfit with an upside down pink triquetra as well as pink metal bands around her wrists and upper thigh. The outfit exposed her left leg while the right had a sock that reached above her knee. A pair of identically styled boots covering from feet to ankle. The most notable thing about her outfit was the scarf. It was a deep blue with white dots resembling constellations, making it really look as if you were peering into the starry sky.

The three most notable things about Paimon were the fact that she can fly, how she speaks in third person and the fact that when she flies or moves anywhere she leaves behind white dots connected by lines almost like constellations.

Following little Paimon, the two made it off the beach. Just as they were about to keep moving, Aether stopped as he sensed something. Paimon curiously followed Aether as he looked at an empty spot. But as he raised his hand a blue light began glowing from the ground, a beacon rose out of the earth.

"What's going on?"

"The ley line here is very powerful. I reckon that I can teleport here no matter where I am."

"What? Really?!"

The blonde traveler nodded. Being able to teleport was one of the few abilities he had left, but it only worked when there was an incredibly strong energy source made from the ley lines. Moreover, he can't teleport to it unless he had been there before.

"Well, let's move on then!"

Paimon lead the way until they arrived at a dead end.

"The path ends here. Guess we'll just have to climb."

"I will climb you'll fly."

The little girl gave him a sheepish smile.

"True."

Paimon floated her way up and watched as Aether skillfully climbed up in only three movements.

"Good, now let's go to one of the statues of the seven."

"Any reason?"

The blonde traveler turned to his companion as he questioned her.

"Well the tower of the seven have a statue of the God of the respective nation. You might recognize them through the statue and on a more instinctive note, I get a feeling that something good will happen if we do go there."

"Speaking of Gods, are there only seven left?"

"Not at all. There are many Gods still around Teyvat, but most have either died or currently reside in Celestia. That's why the number of Gods that are actually on Teyvat are few. As for the seven, they are the Gods that won the seven thrones of Celestia and each have a nation. These seven Gods are the Electro, Dendro, Cryo, Pyro, Geo, Hydro and Anemo Archons.

Some people have their will recognized by the Gods and they are granted visions, which allows them to control the elements. But the visions allow a person to control only one element and the available elements are only of those of the seven Archons."

"So there is no one who has a vision that can control light or darkness?"

"Nope."

The traveler grabbed his chin while absent mindedly following Paimon. He knew of visions from staying in Teyvat for a long time, but the way they worked had changed since then.

"Oh wowww!"

Paimon's exclamation brought the blonde boy out of his thoughts. He followed Paimon to the edge of the cliff they were standing on and was greeted with a beautiful landscape full of lush green trees and in the distance he could see a massive walled city.

"That's a statue of the seven!"

Looking at where Paimon was pointing towards, his gaze lowered and in the middle of a large pond was a statue that had been erected on a piece of rock, big enough to allow ten people to stand on it.

"There are a few of these statues scattered across the lands of each nation. This is to show the seven's protection over the world. Among the seven Gods, there is one that controls the wind and that statue there represents him. That also means that we are in Mondstadt, the land of anemo and freedom. Paimon's not sure if the God you're looking for is the anemo God, but it can't hurt to try."

Aether nodded and proceeded to follow Paimon as she showed him the path. On their way down, Paimon explained to him more about Mondstadt.

"As we all know, poetry and language flow like the wind. There'll be definitely someone there who knows about your sister. At least that's what Paimon thinks! Whether or not the Gods actually answers you is a different story. Many Gods are arrogant and petty, but there are just as many who are kind and benevolent, as such we won't know until we try."

Following Paimon down the path, Aether descended the cliff until they reached the pond. Weirdly enough, the path led straight into the pond before coming to an abrupt end.

"You can swim right over!"

Aether turned to look at Paimon as she floated her way to the statue.

'Is she kidding me? I need to swim?!'

With a sigh and a roll of his eyes, the blonde traveler resigned himself to his fate and entered the chilly water of the pond before swimming over to the single rock stamp upon which the statue of the seven stood. After swimming his way over to the rock, the traveler stood before Paimon soaked from head to toe, his stare at Paimon was less than amused. Thing which caused Paimon to nervously giggle knowing that her clueless behavior was not appreciated.

"Paimon is sorry."

Aether's attention turned from Paimon to the statue. Looking at the anemo God Aether knew that he was definitely not the God he was looking for. He then approached the tower and placed his hand on the statue hoping that something would happen. And something did happen. A golden light spread from his palm before the orb that was held in the hands of the God's figure began glowing an azure blue color.

Little specks of azure and golden light started flying towards it as if sucking them in before a particle with the anemo symbol in it popped out of the sphere and flew towards Aether. The anemo orb entered Aether as he began feeling a new power flow through his body. Not only that but a map of the region formed in his head and he immediately noticed that the area where could teleport to was marked on the mental map that was in his mind.

"Ooh! Did you just feel the elements of the world? Incredible, just by touching the statue you got the power of anemo! As much as they want it, people of this world can never get a hold of elemental powers as easily as you. You also don't appear to need a vision."

"Well I'm pretty sure I know why that is."

"Of course, it's because you're not from this world. Now, if we keep heading west from here, we'll eventually reach Mondstadt, the city you saw from the cliff, the city of freedom. As they worship the anemo God, it is named the city of wind. Perhaps you may find answers to your questions there. There are also a lot of bards in Mondstadt maybe they saw or head of your sister or stories about her. The elements of this world have responded to your prayers and Paimon thinks that's good news."

As if on cue, a group of red slimes appeared behind them.

"Watch out Aether, pyro slimes."

The traveler turned around and hesitated. He really wanted to test his powers out but he always had a soft spot for slimes since he was little. They were just so cute! But he had no choice, regretfully and painfully he conjured his anemo power.

He extended his palm and a vortex of wind began pulling the small slimes in, cutting them up with wind blades before blasting all of them away. The only enemy left was the large pyro slime, which Aether used his sword to cut it in half.

He had discovered soon after he woke up that he still retained his storage ability that allowed him to carry an infinite amount of items around. In there he found a plain regular sword to use, unfortunately not his old legendary one.

"That was the anemo power you got from the statue of the seven. And I have to say you're pretty good with your sword."

The traveler turned to Paimon and showed her a slight smile.

"Well it would be weird if I couldn't properly wield a sword after living for so long, though I have been sleeping for several centuries, so my skills are a little rusty."

The little fairy however stomped her feet on the air.

"Still, Paimon's so jealous! Why didn't I get cool fighting powers like you?!"

"Hehe, come on Paimon let's go."

"Ugh, fine."

The two then set themselves back on the path towards Mondstadt, picking apples and sunsettia fruits as he learnt from Paimon and stored them in his inventory. He also cut down a few trees to get the wood from them. You never know when they might come in handy and since he knew he'd be spending a lot of time here, he might as well stock up on all kinds of different materials and items.

.

Their journey so far had been uneventful. It was only a couple of hours after they began walking towards Mondstadt that something happened. The wind picked up as gusts disturbed the duo. Just then a massive shadow moved over them causing the two to look up and spot a blue dragon flying past them.

"Wow! What is that?! There's something huge in the sky."

"A dragon. Aren't they common?"

"Absolutely not. Anyways, it's headed towards the heart of the forest. Let's proceed with caution."

Aether nodded and proceeded into the forest that separated him and Mondstadt. The forest was large and there was no doubt that it would take most of the day to cross it. Luckily, whilst experimenting with his anemo power, Aether found out that he could use it to give himself boosts and propel himself forwards, making the trip much faster.

"Huh?"

With their increased pace, it only took another thirty minutes of following the road to reach the heart of the forest. That's where Aether spotted a large figure. He slowed down to a normal walk before approaching the figure he had seen.

"Look at that!"

As Paimon pointed forwards, Aether heard the rumbling growl of a large creature. Grabbing Paimon, the traveler rushed behind a tree before quickly peaking around. To his surprise there was the dragon that the two had seen before, but there was also someone else. Wearing green and white, they seemed to be conversing with the winged beast.

"Don't be afraid. It's alright now, I'm back."

"Is he talking to a dragon?"

Paimon was utterly confused by the scene when suddenly the jewel, which had turned azure after he received the power of anemo, on Aether's outfit began glowing stronger. It grew brighter and until the light gathered burst lightly before dying down to its previous glowing azure state.

The dragon however had noticed and did not seem to be pleased by the presence of the two travelers. It roared before swiping with its claw at the person wearing green. The person was looking away as the dragon roared and turned back just in time to spot the claw. With a gasp he jumped back to dodge the lethal weapon before turning to see who was around.

"Who's there?!"

The question was left unanswered though as the dragon, clearly agitated and mad, spread its wings. The person wearing green only caught a glimpse of gold and slowly backed away from the dragon before their entire figure glowed light blue and disappeared. The dragon too soon took off leaving Paimon and the traveler alone.

"That was close. Paimon almost got blown away! Luckily Paimon managed to grab onto your braid! Thanks."

That caused the blonde traveler to sigh.

"Please don't pull my hair out."

"Hehe, sorry about that. But what was that? I thought he was gonna eat us. It definitely had something to do with that weirdo who was talking to the dragon."

"Either way, it's been a while since I saw a dragon."

"You don't seem worried. Have you met many dragons during your adventures?"

"That I did."

Paimon's attention, however, was quickly diverted to something shining with a blood red color. The light seemed to come from where the dragon had been previously.

"Oh. What's that? There's some kind of shiny red thingy on the rock there. Let's go take a closer look."

The last sentence was said with so much seriousness that it was truly out of character for the goofy Paimon, so much that it made Aether's brow quirk.

"Be careful! Paimon doesn't have a good feeling about this."

The two arrived at the scene where they were presented with a red tear shaped crystal.

"Paimon's never seen a crimson stone like this before, so Paimon can't tell what it is. All Paimon knows is that it's dangerous. Best we take it with us and keep it away for now."

Paimon turned to the traveler who gave her a nod and safely placed it into his dimensional storage.

"Alrighty, now that we have that. Let's get out of here."

"Couldn't agree more with you Paimon. I think we deserve some rest."

The two then resumed their way towards the city of freedom, hoping to get there before it turned dark. They didn't have any camping equipment and the idea of sleeping on a tree didn't quite appeal the two. The presence of the dragon didn't help but add another reason to avoid camping outside.

.

"Hey you! Stop right there!"

The two traveling members turned around as they heard the quick footsteps of someone running. The figure jumped from the elevated position down to their, landing with a roll before adding a small hop to stabilize their balance and prevent themselves from tripping forwards. As their dramatic entrance came to an end they turned around and stared at the traveler.

The person who had stopped them was a girl no taller than Aether. She had long brown hair and bright yellow eyes. She wore an interesting red, white and brown outfit consisting of thigh high skintight stretch boots, gloves, shorts that barely reached her upper thigh and a shirt that left her cleavage exposed. On her right side she kept a pouch as well as a pair of goggles around her neck. The most notable feature, however, was the ribbon that stood upright like a pair of bunny ears.

"May the anemo God protect you, stranger! I am Amber, outrider for the Knights of Favonius."

'Holy shit he's handsome!'

The girl saluted as she put her feet together and held her fist horizontally over her chest before bringing her arm down diagonally with fingers stretched out. The moment her eyes landed on his figure her eyes had widened in surprise and internally squealed. The man before her could easily be mistaken for a God of Celestia. She felt like a young girl looking at her idol, which to be fair she was only eighteen.

Aether in the meantime also took some time to think. He didn't say aloud but the salute coupled with her proud look was somewhat hilarious, at the same time he allowed his eyes to zero in on the small, exposed gap between her pants and tights, which showed her thick meaty thighs. Luckily the girl broke the awkward silence once again trying her hardest to stay professional.

"You don't look like citizens of Mondstadt. Explain yourselves!"

"We're not looking for trouble!"

Paimon waved her tiny hands in front of her. Not the greatest way to start a conversation, not that the girl called Amber seemed particularly polite either at first glance.

"That's what all troublemakers say."

"I'm Aether. We are travelers and were on our way to Mondstadt."

Her eyes found his and for a moment she stopped just to stare.

"I see. Certainly doesn't sound like a local name to me. And this … mascot what's the deal with it?"

"She's my emergency food."

Paimon was shocked and began comically stomping the air.

"Hey! That's even worse than being a mascot!"

Aether chuckled before patting her head causing Amber to see his smile and feel her heart swell.

'Oh dear archons, he's not good for my heart.'

"So to sum it up you two are traveling companions, right? Well look, there's been a large dragon sighted around the city recently. Best you get inside the city as soon as possible. It's not far from here, I can escort you there."

"Oh? Aren't you here for some other reason?"

The girl put her hands on her hips as she answered.

"I am. But not to worry, I can keep you both safe while doing that too. Besides … I'm still not sure I can trust the two of you just yet!"

"Is this how all the Knights of Favonius are?"

"Oh, ahh … I'm sorry. Probably something I shouldn't say as a knight. I uh, give you my apologies, uh … strange yet … respectable travelers."

"That sounded so fake!"

"Excuse me?! Do you have something against the type of language usage prescribed by the Knights of Favonius handbook?!"

'Oh boy not this again.'

The blonde traveler held his head as a sigh escaped his lips.

"Please don't fight you two."

Amber turned to Aether and blushed, his proximity making her feel hot, before coughing in her hand.

"So, suspicious travelers, what are you doing in Mondstadt?"

Paimon decided to take charge and explained the reason for their traveling.

"Aether here got separated from his sister during a really, really long journey. Paimon is his travelling buddy, helping him to find his sister."

"Oh, looking for your family."

Amber's attitude towards them seemed to have completely changed after discovering that.

"Okay! Let me finish some other stuff, then I can help you put posters around the city."

Paimon tapped her little chin and turned her head to the brown haired girl.

"What exactly do you need to finish doing first?"

"It's simple, you'll understand in a moment."

The girl spoke as she began walking again, followed by the traveler and Paimon. So back to walking it was. For an hour they walked back towards Mondstadt, it was surprising how close to the forest the city was located. However, rather than turning right towards the city, they were led leftwards by Amber.

On their way there Aether momentarily stopped as he spotted another strong surge in the ley lines, a place to which he could teleport. Amber looked curiously as he worked on the waypoint, never having seen someone tampering with a ley line. The ground sprouted as a beacon appeared much to the girl's shock.

"Alright, we can go."

Amber was curious but decided not to pry, so she nodded and resumed leading them just as they spotted a creature walking away from them.

"Ah! A hilichurl!"

As soon as Paimon pointed it out, Amber quickly began sprinting.

"Quick! Get it!"

Aether shocked Amber when he dashed forwards with unseen raw speed. Though his powers were sealed, most of his body's original strength, speed, endurance and stamina remained. The traveler shot forwards and materialized his sword to cut down the hilichurl, red blood spraying forth.

"Wow."

Amber just stood staring at the blonde boy.

"Is this why you were out here?"

"Eh? Ah yes. These monsters have been getting too close to the city recently. So my task is to clear out the camp of hilichurls."

Following the trail that the hilichurl was taking they walked forwards and turned the corner to find a small camp of hilichurls. The area was fenced off and within its perimeter was a tower on which were two archers, while on the ground there were five regular hilichurls going on about their day.

"Well since we're here we might as well help you out. Unfortunately, Paimon can't fight so Paimon will leave it to the two of you."

Amber thanked Aether and charged forwards while she shot one of the archer hilichurls, killing it with an arrow to the head. Aether jumped over the fence in between two hilichurls before slashing at the one on his right. The hilichurl on the left witnessed its companion's lifeless body fall and used its club to attack Aether.

The traveler however dodged the swing and drove the blade in the hilichurl's neck. He then turned around using his anemo power to suck in two hilichurls before the vortex exploded sending the two bodies flying to the ground. The archer on the tower aimed for Aether but an arrow hit its head before it got the chance. The last hilichurl charged at Aether and rapidly met its demise.

"Heh, nothing to it. Though I've gotta say you really surprised me with how strong you are. How'd it feel?"

"Not a problem."

"Now that you mention it, how is it the hilichurls are so close to the city? These creatures don't appear to be the type to set up camp so close to a city."

Amber nodded, agreeing with Paimon's statement.

"Exactly. Hilichurls aren't exactly stupid so they know it would be dangerous to get too close to the city. As such they normally form much larger camps far out in the wilderness. But lately they started making small groups and moving closer to the city due to the dragon's, Stormterror, appearance.

Not only that, but its appearance caused our orchards to be destroyed and the local market to be affected. With the storms hitting the city constantly, there a lot of people who get injured and as a result the Knights of Favonius have been occupied with doing their best to defend the area around the city."

Paimon's hands went to her hips as she gathered more information.

"So the hilichurls have been moving closer and closer to the city?"

"Exactly. With that being said, despite this being a small camp, clearing it has helped make the area around here safer for the civilians. Anyways, come with me! A responsible knight must make sure to see you to the city safely."

The two traveling companions soon found themselves before the gates of Mondstadt's massive stone walls. The city was strategically positioned in the middle of a massive lake and had only two entrances. The walls were tall and sturdy making it impossible to break through them and the gates were guarded by several Knights. Though security was probably tighter than usual due to the presence of the dragon.

Aether and Paimon passed through the gates without problems thanks to Amber's presence and soon found themselves inside the fortified settlement, to be greeted with the marvelous sight of the city. Hundreds of houses had been erected behind the protection of the walls. Windmill towers could be seen here and there. The building that stood out the most however, was the one at the back of the city. Where there normally would be a keep or a castle, there was a massive tower of the anemo God with an even greater cathedral behind it.

"Allow me to officially introduce the city of wind, dandelions and freedom. Travelers under the protection of the Knights of Favonius, welcome to Mondstadt!"

Paimon then turned to Aether with an excited look in her eyes.

"Finally no more having to camp outdoors! But … the city folks don't look too cheery."

Looking around Aether noticed that the streets were filled with knights and the few people he could see on the road or from the windows of their houses all wore grim expressions.

"Well, everyone's been put out of place by Stormterror recently. But everything will turn out fine as long as Jean's with us."

"Jean?"

Paimon asked with a slight tilt of her head.

"Acting Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius, Jean Gunnhildr, defender of Mondstadt. With her on our side, surely even the vicious Stormterror will be no match for us."

Aether's eyebrow scrunched up.

'Sound like someone pretty impressive.'

"But before I take you to the headquarters of the Knights of Favonius to help you out, I have a present for you traveler. Think of it as a reward for helping me out with the hilichurl camp."

"H-Hey! Why doesn't Paimon get a reward?"

With a sigh Aether answered the question.

"Because Paimon, you greedy little fairy, did nothing during our fight."

Paimon turned to Aether and pouted but made no remarks knowing that it was true.

"Besides, this reward is useless to you Paimon."

Amber added, making Aether wonder what the reward she speaks of is.

"But I will treat you to a traditional Mondstadt delicacy – a sticky honey roast."

Paimon's eyes shone brightly as she repeated the name, her mouth watering as she imagined the delicacy. Meanwhile Amber returned her attention to the traveler.

"Come with me, we'll head to the city's ahh … high ground."

Aether then followed the bunny girl through the entire city, during which he noticed that Amber was very popular amongst the people of Mondstadt. Slowly they arrived at the courtyard before the enormous statue of the anemo God. Overall the city was noticeably big, probably having more than a hundred thousand inhabitants, but it was hardly a large city by Aether's standards due to his vast experience.

"So the present I want to give you is … ta-da! A wind glider! Outriders use them to ride the wind and use its agility to support the knights. Though many civilians use them as well, just for the fun of it. The reason I brought you all the way up here is so that you can try it straight away."

"Oh, you're really excited about these wind gliders, huh!"

Amber turned to Paimon and explained the cultural significance.

"That's because the wind is the heart and soul of Mondstadt! Alrighty then, enough talk! Let's give it a whirl!"

Aether looked at the glider and couldn't help but remember his wings, the ones he used to fly around the world of Teyvat with. The wings he used to travel from world to world, with which he soared the thousand skies along his sister. A memorable yet painful reminder of what he lost.

"Just hold onto my hand."

The blonde traveler gently took Amber's hand in his own eliciting a slight blush to form on the girl's cheeks as he prepared himself to spread them and glide down to the lower levels of the town with Amber's guidance. That however was interrupted when the winds started to pick up all of a sudden. The gentle breezes turned into violent gales and the clear sky became cloudy.

"The sky."

Amber and Aether gazed at the grey sky and they along with the citizens of Mondstadt saw not the danger that flew towards them from the valley that opened into the lake. With incredible speed, the dragon crossed from one side of the city to the other, announcing its presence to the people of Mondstadt. It circled around before making another low pass, not missing its chance to strike and knocking down a tower.

Everyone in the city began running for cover and screaming for help as the knights scrambled to the walls ready to defend their home and people. Aether was the sole being who did not even flinch as the dragon struck the tower that was nearby, only following the dragon with his eyes.

It flew up above Mondstadt, in the clear view of everyone in the city. It stared at the city for a moment before unleashing a ferocious screech that summoned the winds in the form of whirlwinds. Three large twisters crashed into the city damaging the houses and streets.

Amber, Aether and Paimon saw one of the spiraling towers approach them and began running in an attempt to avoid the tornado but the duo of travelers was unfortunately too close. The two were dragged away by the windstorm and sent flying up, hundreds of meters above the city.

'This doesn't look good.'

He equipped the wind glider on his back, which unfurled and spread its wings wide open. From his vantage point he watched the situation of the city as buildings were torn apart. Paimon groaned in discomfort as she latched herself tightly to the traveler's braid once again. Aether was going to complain when he spotted the dragon flying towards him and pulled himself backwards to dodge its maws. He then closed the wind glider as he dodged the massive wing before activating the wind glider again as the beast completely passed.

"Huh? How are you staying afloat like this with just a wind glider?"

"I'm preventing your fall with the power of a thousand winds. Concentrate, see yourself grasping the wind. Harness its energy."

Paimon looked around as a mysterious voice answered her question. Aether however followed the instructions as he felt become stronger and his comprehension over the anemo power increase. With better control and a stronger power of anemo, Aether condensed energy into darts before shooting at the dragon.

The dragon tried to dodge but the thousand darts that continued to hit its back began to deal damage and wound it. With a loud screech it suddenly picked up speed and flew off higher than what the force sustaining Aether could manage and out of range of his attacks.

With the dragon gone and the winds keeping him afloat weakening Aether glided his way down back to the plaza where the statue of the anemo God was erected. He made the glider vanish and gently landed back on solid ground.

"A-are you hurt?"

Amber rushed up to him checking his body for injuries. Aether was surprised by her kindness but reassured her with a soft smile that made Amber's heart skip a beat. She wasn't expecting that of him, only having seen his serious look, frown or aggressive glare as he thought the hilichurls. She wasn't ready to see such a gentle and warm expression.

The little reunion however was interrupted as another person approached them. The slow clap giving away his position. Through his expression one couldn't tell if he was impressed or wary of the newly arrived traveler.

"You've actually got the power to go up against the dragon. Are you a new ally … or a new storm?"

Aether was indifferent to the man's attitude but Amber quickly jumped in between them.

"Wait, he's not an enemy. More importantly Stormterror is attacking Mondstadt itself! Kaeya, Aether let's hurry, we mu-"

"Hold on Amber. Are you perhaps forgetting to introduce us?"

The newly arrived man interrupted Amber. Completely opposite of Amber, Kaeya wore a dark outfit, with black pants, a golden leather belt, from which his vision hang and a black and blue shirt with white sleeves. On his right side he had a thick white fur connecting to a mantle and making his appearance striking was his black eyepatch, covering his right eye.

"Oh right. This is Kaeya, our Cavalry captain. These two are travelers from afar, Aether and Paimon."

'From afar? Is that all we know of them?'

Aether could hear the suspicious thought from a mile away, not that he blamed him for that, particularly considering the current emergency the city faced.

"As Amber said, I'm Aether and this is Paimon. I'm currently traveling in search of my missing sister. We got separated long ago and Paimon here is accompanying me to help me find her."

"I see. Welcome to Mondstadt, or so I would like to say but as you can see, you haven't arrived at the best of times, I'm afraid. I understand the anguish of being separated from family. First and foremost, on behalf of the Knights of Favonius, I would like to thank you for your help against the dragon.

Your fight against the dragon was high above the city, but it was witnessed by no small number of citizens. The Acting Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius is also very interested in meeting you, and formally invites you both to our headquarters."

Aether nodded and followed Kaeya and Amber to the center of the city, where a massive and majestic keep, with a large symbol of the Knights of Favonius on its gate, stood. While the streets and walls had dozens of knights, the amount Aether could count at the keep were in the hundreds.

As they saw Kaeya and Amber arrive, the guards opened the gates for the group of four to enter. Aether took a moment to look at the knights and noticed that the knight's uniform consisted of black clothing with white and golden armor that covered feet to knee, shoulders, chest and the back of the thorax, to the exception of the vambraces that were black and gold.

Walking across the vast hall, they went up the flight of stairs and reached the end of the corridor. The office of the Acting Grand Master presumed Aether. Kaeya opened the door and walked in followed by Amber and lastly by Aether and Paimon.

"Jean I brought them."

Aether looked at the two women inside, who were admittedly gorgeous, not the most beautiful but definitely high in the list. Their outfits did little to hide their beauty, but Aether almost immediately ignored that. After his first few thousand years of life, he had lost interest in committed relationships, they never lasted anyways.

Kaeya recounted their fight against the dragon as well as the reason for their presence here in Mondstadt. With the explanation over, Aether presented himself before the two women introduced themselves as Jean, the Acting Grand Master, and Lisa, the resident librarian.

While Jean seemed like a gentle yet uptight and hardworking person, Lisa seemed a lot more carefree. Not only that but she was quite flirty with Aether, referring to him as 'sweetie' right from the start, though he got a feeling that if angered she'd be one of the most terrifying people in Teyvat.

They then proceeded to explain the current situation with Stormterror as well as the effect it has had on the city since its appearance. Lisa in particular seemed troubled by Stormterror due to it causing the ley line energy around the city to go haywire. With her being a mage it meant that she felt it more than anyone else in the city.

Jean expressed her wish to aid him with his quest to find his sister but is currently unable to due to the crisis the city is facing. The blonde knight then asked Aether to stay in the city while dealing with the dragon all the while they help him find his sister. The traveler knew that as of right now Mondstadt could do little to help him, but that just meant that he had to do something.

"Then I believe I can help you out as a means to repay you for your help in my search."

The members of the Knights of Favonius seemed happy to receive help and began forming a plan.

"With Stormterror now directly attacking Mondstadt, we may have an opportunity to cut this problem off at the source. Lisa has revealed the sources of Stormterror's power with her detections magic."

"Is that so?"

The purple clad mage nodded.

"They are located in the abandoned four winds' temples. His ability to whip up these kinds of storms can be attributed to it drawing power from the temples."

"Our objective is to deal with three of the four temples. Time is against us. The storm is rampant and there is no point in maintaining a defensive position. We need to take initiative and act before the situation escalates."

.

"This is it. One of the deserted temples of The Four Winds. These temples have been left to waste for years now. The people of Mondstadt almost never come here. As such there is a chance that there's a monster nest or a hilichurl camp inside. Even Stormterror has given up on its own temple."

Paimon curiously looked at Amber as she led them to a large white temple.

"Did you just say its own temple?"

"Um, I find it hard to believe … but Stormterror was once one of The Four Winds."

"Ehh?! No way!"

"Yep, you heard me. Anyways do you feel that?"

"You mean the wind here?"

Amber looked at Aether and nodded.

"The dragon's power is disturbing the area around here."

With that Amber opened the doors to the temple and ran in, followed by Aether and Paimon. The two travelers were surprised to find that the inside of the temple was much larger than the building itself, to which Aether concluded that it must the work of the Gods' power.

The entrance was blocked by vines but luckily for them, Amber whose vision was a pyro one, used her power to burn them away. Their way towards the heart of the temple had been mostly quiet until the last few rooms, which were filled with hilichurls. During the many fights they got into, Aether was able to see Amber's specialty in action. Her explosive puppet 'Baron Bunny!'

It truly accentuated her bunny like appearance and the puppet was pretty cute as well. It danced, attracting the attention of the hilichurls before exploding. It was a shame to Aether that it exploded but it did make for an excellent weapon as well as bait.

Aether however didn't lag behind and showed his increased mastery over the anemo power. The hilichurls stood no chance against the wind blades and the Aether's swordsmanship. He also experimented by trying to imitate the dragon's attack and creating a twister out of anemo energy. The attack sucked the hilichurls in and continuously damaged with its sharp wind blades, he also discovered that the power of anemo had the ability to combine with other elements such as creating fire tornados when near a torch or a source of pyro energy.

Their fast pace was momentarily interrupted when they arrived at a ledge that led nowhere. Meters above them, the two spotted the entrance to the last room but there seemed no way to reach it. Nothing other than a totem that was placed by the ledge. One which Amber should have known about from her studies and one that Aether had seen millions of times.

"What do we do now?"

"Amber light the pyro totem."

"Eh? How?"

Aether gave her a 'are you serious?' look.

"Do you not know what an elemental totem is?"

Her face flushed but tried to play it off.

"A-ah, yes of course. I've heard about … them, b-but they're rare things. They're not things that are taught to the knights, I only know of them … b-because of my further studies. Hehe."

As she activated the totem, a column of wind began shooting up between them and the last room. Using their gliders, the three flew up to the last room. As they entered the much smaller room, a large azure stone was found in the middle of the room. Wind swirled around it and as soon as Amber saw it her eyes went wide.

"Dragon's breath! Is that where the power is coming from? Let's smash it."

With a strike of his sword, Aether shattered the glowing rock.

"Phew, I'm tired. But at least this way we helped Jean. In the past, all we could really do was to defend the city and keep the people safe. That, however, was mostly due to Jean's efforts. But now that Stormterror is attacking Mondstadt directly and leaving the temples undefended. 'The winds change, so too should our tactics.'"

Aether looked at Amber impressed.

"How wise."

"Haha, it's what Lisa likes to say. Speaking of which, if you wish to learn more about the history of this place as well as The Four Winds we were talking about earlier, then you can ask her about it. Ah, that being said, I'm not saying I don't know our history! It's just … I mean … a librarian is supposed to be more knowledgeable than an outrider, right? Anyways, leave the rest to me, you should meet up with Kaeya and help him clear out the other temple."

.

Aether followed Amber's instructions and helped Kaeya clear out the second temple. As the anemo stone was destroyed and the power of the dragon lessened Kaeya, Aether and Paimon took a moment to relax. With the temple cleared out, Kaeya decided to send the traveler to Lisa.

"I can take care of the rest here. You go take care of other things while I'm at it."

"See you later then, bye-bye!"

Paimon waved before turning to leave with Aether. The traveler however, momentarily stopped and his eyes looked to the side as he felt a presence appear in the room. Knowing Kaeya was aware of this he decided to leave things to him and proceeded with the unknowing Paimon.

.

"Hey cutie. You're going to help me out too? How kind of you. Don't hesitate to come to me if you need anything."

And so Aether once again helped take care of the temple. During this time, Lisa saw how powerful the traveler truly was, just like Amber and Kaeya did before. Not only that but like Kaeya, she noticed that he carried no vision and yet could still control the elements. Moreover in the short time they were together she got to know his golden heart and was shown the kindness of the traveler, quickly spiking her interest in him.

On other hand, the blonde boy learnt much about the two members. Kaeya was a calm and collected person with a sharp and cunning mind. Though one had to be careful or the sly fox was going to use them as a way to lessen the burden of his own work. Either way, he turned out to be a friendly and humorous person who liked a bit of action. Though when the situation demanded it, Kaeya took to the front line without hesitation. Despite how he seemed to be, he cared about his fellow knights.

Lisa on the other hand was as carefree and flirtatious as before if not more. She had also taken the habit to call him cutie. She seemed playful and easy going, but Aether also learnt that it was hard to work with her due to how … lewd she was. Particularly when climbing, her moans were far too erotic in his opinion. And do not get him started on her ass and her thighs. They were meaty and jiggly, the way the swayed and her chest bounced when she walked made it hard for Aether to not gaze at them.

However, she was not a pushover either. As a librarian and mage, she was smart and very knowledgeful, not only that but her electro power also showed to be a power to be reckoned with. He also learnt of the dragon's true name: Dvalin.

"Let's head home, you must be tired after all. And don't worry I'll keep an eye on you."

.

Back in Mondstadt, Aether returned with Lisa. The sky over the city had cleared and the citizens had begun filling the streets once again. Mondstadt was back to being a joyful and lively location. Though Stormterror was not gone, the people now believed that the knights would truly deal with it.

"Here we are. You sure you don't need my help any further?"

Lisa stood behind Aether as she wrapped her hands around his neck, her face close to his right ear as she whispered soft words.

"W-what? Lisa, I'm fine."

No matter how old, Aether was always good old Aether. Serious and unmoving during crisis' and tense situations, stoic yet aggressive and merciless during fights, lively and gentle during carefree moments like when in the city and shy and flustered when suddenly approached intimately by a woman. Despite him not being interested in a relationship, that didn't mean he wasn't interested in girls. None of him had changed in the past few millennia and likely wouldn't change in the future either, it was just who he was. Though the loss of his sister certainly affected him.

"Really? It's a shame, I would have loved to have more fun with you. Oh well, I'm sure I'll get to see more of you around here starting now."

The librarian leaned forward and gave Aether a slow sensual kiss on the cheek before heading back to her library with a smile and a wave.

"See you around."

"Mmm, that Lisa."

Aether grumbled, not that he minded though. Paimon from her side was staring silently, far too shocked to scream like she usually does. It took Aether to knock on her little head to bring her back to reality.

"That librarian is crazy."

"Gotta agree with you on that one Paimon."

.

"Isn't that Jean?"

Paimon pointed at the figure of the blonde Acting Grand Master as she spoke with a black and purple clothed woman. As the two got closer they started hearing snippets of their conservation and it didn't seem like a friendly one.

"Which is what has brought us to this point in the first place. If you are unable to promptly deal with the Stormterror threat, then leave the defense of Mondstadt to the Fatui. We can put an end to Mondstadt's dragon issues, all we need to do is bring that monster to the-"

"Monster?"

Jean spoke with disbelief and her dislike for the Fatui showed as she looked down at the arrogant girl with disdain.

"Yes. What's your point?"

"I'd expect a more professional attitude from your diplomats. Seemed I overestimated the likes of you. Not only are you just a diplomat but you act so shamelessly within their territory before the acting leader of the nation you try to 'negotiate' with. It is a surprise you are still in this world. Yet you wish to put an end to one of The Four Winds of Mondstadt? I will not have any more of your nonsense before the Knights of Favonius nor the citizens of Mondstadt."

Jean was a humble person, Aether knew that, and knew she never flaunted her title or position. However, it seemed that the opposing organization really knew how to irritate people.

"Heh … hehehe … it's not as crazy as you make it sound."

"True, it's not."

Jean and the purple haired girl turned to the blonde traveler as he spoke, making his presence known.

"Oh Aether, you're back. And what did you mean by that?"

"It seems like someone understands how great the Fatui are."

Aether looked at the snobby girl and scoffed.

"It's not as crazy because if they were to try and fight Stormterror they'd only end up making an embarrassment out of themselves. They wouldn't be able to take down an adepti just like they don't have the strength to kill Dvalin. Not unless they bring more people, not that it would help. They wouldn't be able to defeat Mondstadt either."

The girl's smile turned into a scowl as soon as his words left his mouth.

"Alright. Enough negotiation for one day. I'll make sure to make thorough notes and to make you pay for that."

The girl then rushed back into the hotel, slamming the door behind her.

"Thanks for your help. Both with stabilizing the elemental flow and the situation with the Fatui. The aftermath of Stormterror's attack has been dealt with for now. However, as you just saw, the pressure from the delegation is becoming too big to be ignored."

"You mean that baddie from before?"

Paimon looked back at the door of the hotel.

"Yes. Snezhnaya. They follow the cryo Archon. Their envoys go by a particular name. The Fatui. Heard of them?"

"Oh them? They are super famous. Wait, infamous would be the better word."

"Killing Dvalin is not the right path and the cryo Archon has always tried to covet the power of the Anemo Archon. I don't believe they have Mondstadt's best interest at heart. Not that they ever had. It'd be more surprising if they did."

That's when Aether suddenly remembered something.

"Speaking of power. There's something I need to show to you."

"Let us head back to the headquarters for now. We shouldn't discuss those matters here."

.

After returning to the base of the Knights of Favonius, Aether, Paimon, Jean along with a clingy Lisa, made their way to Jean's office. There Aether showed them the red crystal tear. After not being able to tell anything other than the impurities present in the crystal, Lisa decided to inspect it further. Though she was surprised when the crystal reacted.

It was then that the group learnt that the crystal reacted to visions. And violently as well. Luckily Lisa wasn't injured, but she did make the excuse that she'd feel a lot better if the traveler could do something about it for her. That is how Jean learnt that the traveler had no vision and was further intrigued by this. The librarian in the meantime went over and smothered the traveler causing Jean to roll her eyes.

"Stop being so shameless Lisa."

"Fufufu. Anyways, it would seem like it'd be better to leave the crystal in the hands of my cutie here. It will be a pain to keep it with us. Both metaphorically and literally."

"Fascinating. Do you know what makes you special?"

For a moment Aether thought about telling them but decided against it. Paimon was an exception and knew he could trust her. For now he'd keep it a secret. The less people know, the better. So he shook his head and pretended not to know.

"Well then, Aether … On behalf of the Knights of Favonius I have a favor to ask of you. Please accept the title of Honorary Knight … and my gratitude as the Acting Grand Master."

Paimon was the first to react at that.

"Honorary Knight … of Favonius?!"

"Yes. In light of your contribution and strength we ask that you keep helping us and assist us in dealing with the current situation. Stormterror's rage and the strange crystal … Mondstadt's peace hangs on a thread. If you find anything or are in need of something you can come and find me in here."

"Thank you Acting Grand Master Jean. I will gladly accept the title of Honorary Knight and help Mondstadt deal with Dvalin."

.

"You'll take care of me now, right cutie?"

Upon finishing their conversation Aether was quickly dragged out by Lisa, leaving a confused Paimon and a worried Jean.

"But you weren't injured were you?"

"True, but it stung me and I wouldn't mind receiving some comfort. Just a hug will do."

Aether hesitated for a moment but with a sigh he decided to play along with Lisa. He awkwardly opened his arms as Lisa closed in and embraced him, his arms closing around her back and hips.

"Hmm, this does feel nice."

Aether couldn't help but squirm a little as Lisa purposefully pushed her breasts against him and softly whispered in his ear. The adorable reaction quickly made the activity become her favorite hobby. Feeling an unexplainable naughty desire within her, Lisa decided to be even bolder. The traveler began feeling wetness on his ear as Lisa nibbled on it, while her thigh pushed in between his legs. Aether then squealed as her hands slowly moved down and grasped his waist firmly.

"Hi! I-I think that's e-enough for now L-Lisa. I'll see you around!"

Aether then took off, gently pushing the librarian back and running away from. Behind Lisa, a group of knights that were passing were stunned in place with a bright blush, both male and female members felt a little jealous that the traveler had piqued so much interest in Lisa. While the librarian had always been a playful girl, she never flirted with anyone other than Jean and Amber, much less get so touchy. Unknown to all, Lisa herself was pretty surprised with how far she went with him, but the pleasure and comfort she got was too much to pass on.

'Fufufu, if love at first sight is a thing then I am definitely experiencing it now.'

.

Paimon was waiting outside the keep as Aether came out with a slight blush on his face.

"What happened?"

"Nothing really. Nothing you need to know Paimon."

"Speaking of not knowing. There's something you didn't tell them. Other than the dragon and the crystal we also saw someone else."

Aether immediately remembered as to what the little fairy was referring to.

"About that, I don't think that the green guy was necessarily someone acting against Mondstadt. As such I intend to investigate that on my own. After reaching a conclusion we'll tell Jean about it."

"I see. But that guy wore some really weird outfit. Kind of like that guy down there."

Aether looked at the street below them and spotted the guy they were talking about walking towards the church.

"See? See? Wait … hold on a minute … that's-"

"Yes Paimon, the very person we were talking about."

"What are we waiting for, after him!"

As he walked, Aether closed his eyes as he focused on the elements of Teyvat. When he opened his eyes he could see the elements and their residual traces. Elemental sight. That's what this ability was called. He had almost forgotten that he could use this ability.

Tracking the traces of anemo energy, Aether followed the mysterious green figure. Little green footsteps lead the blonde traveler around the city, until they found themselves in the same spot where they had met Kaeya, right beneath the statue of the Archon.

The green clothed fellow stood at the feet of the statue, a lyre in his hand and a crowd of people surrounding him. More and more people gathering around as many noticed that a performance was about to begin. Aether slowly walked forward and joined the crowd. His fingers gently plucked the strings of the lyre, a melodious song was born from the instrument as a story was told.

"What is to be sung transpired in days of yore. When the divine Archons still walking the earth. A dragon cast his curious gaze on the world below, as he parted from the heavens that gave his birth."

The song continued to accompany his soft voice as an ancient tale he told and its history was spread to the people listening. Knowledge of an era long past.

"The dragon sought truth amongst common folk. But mortal trifles only fogged his mind. The windborne bard strummed his strings dolce. And the holy lyre answered his questions kind. The dragon was but a child full of wonder. And soared the heavens free of care. The bard's song invited him to sing along.

For he yearned to let all perceive him fair. Enchanting legends the bard and dragon were, the tides of despair soon engulfed the land. The lion fang perished and the falcon flag fell. As a vile dragon approached Mondstadt in lone stand.

Over the cathedral loomed death and his friends. Of the people's agony the bard soon sang. The soaring dragon heeded his grave calls. Amidst the windstorms a brutal war sprang. Blood of venom sent the sky dragon into slumber. It awoke only to be met with hated exile. Why do people in this age loathe me so?

But the holy lyre answered no more. Wrath and woe, vigor and venom. Poured from the dragon's bitter eyes. Consumed by hatred, the dragon's curse sprawled in deathly silence. The lyre however, no longer soothed his cries."

The tale came to an end, the people clapped and congratulated the bard before dispersing, leaving the traveler and Paimon the only two standing there. Aether carefully recalled details from the tale, quickly figuring out that the story was the history of the dragon. Tragic and dramatic.

"Wait, you guys are … oh that's right, you two are the ones that scared Dvalin away."

"Dvalin? Who's that?"

Aether looked at Paimon with a raised eyebrow.

"It's the dragon's name. Weren't you listening when Lisa told us?"

Paimon looked a little peeved as she recalled the history lesson Lisa had provided.

"Oh right. It's just most people now seem to call him Stormterror."

"Why do you call him that … are you two meant to be close or something?"

When she asked the question, Aether's eyes narrowed. He was no fool and with his knowledge, or at least what he could remember from before the fall of Khaenri'ah, he instantly connected the dots. But thinking about it, Aether decided to keep the thought to himself for now.

"Hey, Aether, Paimon thinks this guy has a screw lose."

Aether rolled his eyes at Paimon before turning to Venti.

"I'm sorry about Paimon. You are?"

"I'm Venti the bard. Three time winner of the most popular bard of Mondstadt to be precise. So what do you need from me?"

"Give you recognize us, Paimon doesn't believe we need to explain any further."

She crossed her arms to appear more authoritative.

"Of course its about Stormterror."

"Storm…?"

"Cut it with the Amnesia act!"

Paimon once again felt her blood boil at the bard's attitude.

"Just show him Aether."

Aether nodded and pulled out the tear crystal out of his dimensional storage. However, unlike expected, the tear was glowing a bright blue color instead of the previous blood red.

"Oh, isn't this-"

"What?! The crystal has been purified, but when?!"

"Weird, last time it was full of impurities."

"Dvalin. The anguish he feels brought him to tears."

The look on the bard's face turned solemn. His heart ached at the sight of the crystal."

"Tears?"

In response Venti materialized another red tear.

"He was once such a gentle child. Now so full of rage and suffering. I also came across a teardrop crystal."

As he moved his hand away, the crystal kept floating between him and Aether.

"Can you purify it?"

Aether placed his hand below the crystal. Affected by his unique constitution and the remnants of a foreign power, the red turned blue. The crystal was purified. Grasping the tear, he stored it with the other purified crystal.

"You really do have some wonderful abilities. Someone like you is going to end up getting written into a bard's poem."

Like that he began reciting a tale of him.

"Oh, a hero so bright, should he stand in the light. Though stand in the shade, and you'll be met by a blade. Alas … I've really not the time to compose a melody for you at this moment."

A sad look took over his face.

"Anyway, even if Dvalin is not taken down, his life will wither away in the breeze. He'll burn himself out in the flames of wrath. I really must thank you for purifying it. It has helped a lot, but I've already devised my own plan."

"Oh? And that would be?"

"Seeing this tear has brought to mind a friend so dear."

"Friend?"

"Hehe, one must be going."

"Hey where're you running off to?!"

"To the symbol of Mondstadt's hero. Bye-bye!"

Like that Venti ran off, leaving the duo on their own.

"What do you think of the bard?"

"He is more special than you think Paimon. For now let's keep an eye on him."

Paimon looked confused but trusted in his judgement.

"In that case let's go after him. The symbol of Mondstadt's hero is that huge tree over there!"

Looking at where Paimon was pointing he saw the lonesome tree, larger than houses and taller than the walls of the city.

.

Like that, they chased after the mysterious bard, finding him at the base of one of the statues of the seven, which Aether took advantage of the moment to touch the statue before going to talk with the bard. To his shock a locked area of his mental map suddenly came to life with colours, expanding his vision of Mondstadt. He focused back on Venti and asked questions about Barbatos and Dvalin, but their conversation was briefly interrupted by a rude guest. Someone was apparently unhappy with the bard's return, or so he said.

It was a weird creature which Aether had seen quite a few times. With single thrust he pierced the core of the monster killing it. With the monster gone, Venti explained the existence of the Abyss Order, term Aether was unfamiliar with. Not that he had seen a hilichurl before his outing with Amber either. And according to Lisa they've been around for centuries, confirming to him that centuries have indeed gone by since he was last awake.

It was then that the green clothed bard also explained the nature of Dvalin's hatred and rage. The black blood that flowed inside him, which had infected even Venti. Apparently due to being interrupted by the duo before him, causing the two to smile sheepishly at him.

"That's why to make up for it, the two of you are following me to the Cathedral."

"Why there?"

Paimon curiously asked, scanning for deception within the words of the bard.

"To claim the Holy Lyre der Himmel."

.

"So this Holy Lyre is …"

"Mondstadt's national treasure, it was used by Barbatos himself. With it I will help Dvalin draw his gentle nature back out."

Paimon couldn't but question the validity of the plan.

"Of course! I'm the best bard in this world. There's not a single song I do not know, whether its from the past, present or the future. Look me in the eyes, do you not find me trustworthy?"

Aether preferred not to answer, only staring at him with unamused eyes. Luckily the bard was saved from the awkward silence by Paimon who wanted to know how they'd get their hands on it. To which he answered that he had it all under control.

Aether and Paimon followed him into the cathedral where he proclaimed himself as Barbatos and miserably failed to get the Holy Lyre as a sister there denied him. After forcing Aether to make an attempt as well, by presenting himself as the Honorary Knight, they discovered the complicated process that is required to take the Holy Lyre. Though apparently it wasn't an unexpected outcome according to Venti.

"Very well. Looks like borrowing it is not going to be possible. We're simply going to have to steal it. Today we stand for free will! Any suggestions on how to steal it?"

"…"

"Come n-"

"I'm not stealing anything."

"I get it. But seriously you're far more suitable for the job than I am."

Venti then explained how no one would pay mind to his great injustice, should he be caught. Not that Paimon agreed. While Aether was the hotshot of the Knights of Favonius, who has made contributions to the city. Apparently that would allow him to get away with it, or so he said.

"Tonight the guards are off duty. Let us seize this opportunity and we will be having a smooth journey from here."

"Since you're a God I suppose we will have to go with it."

"Why does your decision hinge on whether or not I am a God?"

The bard couldn't help but be curious.

"Paimon will fill you in on the traveller's backstory later."

"Besides, I'd help Mondstadt and Dvalin anyways."

.

Late at night, Aether followed by Paimon returned to the cathedral. Using all of the skills he had mastered in the art of a shinobu from another world, he silently reached the opposite end of the building. Noticing the slight gaps behind the fountain he pushed one side to discover to his surprise, that the wall moved and gave way to a stair case.

"Well, well, well."

Not wasting another second he silently dashed in. As he reached the bottom, he was met with a vast room, filled with bookshelves.

'A restricted librabry?'

Deciding not to dwell on the matter, he ducked behind cover as dozens of knights patrolled the area inside. Swerving right and left, he dodged knight after knight and lurked like a shadow towards the Lyre, not in his sight.

He entered the room with the Lyre on a pedestal, but just as he approached it, a woman clad in purple clothes grabbed the instrument. She smirked and placed a finger on her lips to tell them to be quiet. Not intending to let her go, Aether tackled her, only for her to vanish with a bow as he got within arms reach of her.

"She disappeared?!"

The two were looking around when a knight appeared in the doorway behind them.

"Freeze! What are you doing here?!"

"Oh no! Run!"

.

Venti was sat on the edge of a stone banister, his feet dangling over the edge. Just then, the shouts of the floating fairy reached his ears. He turned to look back at the gate to the cathedral to see the two travellers running towards him.

"We're busted! Run!"

"Follow me!"

Venti jumped down and generated wind currents to allow himself and the traveller to use the wind gliders and fly away. Unfurling the wings on his back, Aether followed the bard across the city. The group of three landed right in front of a doorway that Venti immediately barged into.

"Master Diluc, this is this week's accounts."

"Hmm, the disaster has greatly affected business."

"Let's hope it ends soon."

Hearing the door open, the two people inside turned to look at the newly arrived guests.

"Hi, we'd like your ahh … least conspicuous table."

Aether made sure to make a mental note to never allow Venti to be the one speaking when trying to hide something. Answering his request was a tall beautiful woman with bright red hair pulled back in a ponytail and a stylish black outfit.

"Umm … the second floor has fewer customers, you'd be less conspicuous up there. But aren't you a bard? Why not sit at the front and center?"

"Haha, let's leave the paid performance for next time. We'll be heading up now, see you in a bit!"

While Aether, Paimon and Venti headed up the red haired girl turned to the bartender.

"Keep an eye on them. The bard is suspicious. I'll go ask around."

"Ask who exactly?"

"The protectors of Mondstadt."

The disdain she held for the name was clear.

"Ah master Diluc, have you seen two thieves around?"

Seeing the panicked knights and the almost desperate pleas, the woman named Diluc began getting curious. From inside she could hear and see the dozen knights searching the streets. Voicing her questions aloud, the knights quickly answered.

"Two thieves stole the Holy Lyre."

After making an unusual comment that confused the two men, Diluc pointed the knights in another direction. Having witnessed the scene from above, the fugitives waited a couple of minutes before making their way back down.

"Today I think I'll have a glass of …"

The red haired woman however, stopped him with words, making the bard put the bottle of alcohol he stole back behind the counter.

"Right. I want answers."

"Let me finish drinking, then I'll pay you … with a performance that is."

"It's not about the money. You seem too young to be drinking."

"No need to worry. When I started drinking-"

Before he could go on and reveal his identity Aether interrupted.

"How about you tell me who this is?"

"She is master Diluc the owner of this tavern and boss of the Dawn Winery. Her dandelion wine is one of my favorites. Though I can only often afford a bottle or two."

After discussing for a while and introducing Aether to Diluc, the traveler got to know her disagreement with the knight's way of doing things and her absolute hatred for the Fatui. Venti then proceeded to recite a performance. In the tale he recounted the story of Dvalin, enlightening a now very shocked Diluc.

"This is confidential information. Why share it with me?"

"Who knows, perhaps the winds are changing."

It seemed like the performance had piqued her interest. She organized to bring some trustworthy contacts and to meet back in the tavern later tomorrow. Though Venti had to stay inside in hiding due to his appearance being quite well known.

Spending the day registering as an adventurer and completing his first commissions after nearly a millennia. He had to admit that Katheryne was a unique character but a pleasant person to converse with. Aether returned later at night, close to midnight. He arrived alongside Paimon at the tavern, which had closed down an hour prior, and pushed the large wooden door opened to be greeted with a surprising sight.

"A-Aether?"

"Jean?"

~To Be Continued