The Kamisato Clan and the Kaedahara Clan were once very close. They shared a tight bond of friendship, one that was built upon decades of trust. When one clan was in need, the other stood in to help without an ounce of hesitation.

One day, the head of both clans came together and formed an agreement. Specifically, a betrothal agreement between the two youngest children from their respective main family lines, Kaedehara Kazuha and Kamisato Ayaka. The betrothal was meant to be a pact that brought the clans closer together and truly united them as one; a sign of their friendship and everlasting bond they shared and will share for years to come.

And it wasn't some unjust marriage proposal forced upon two innocent, naive children. No, these were childhood friends who grew up together from when they were toddlers, always in the company of one another, never apart. And while it may have seemed all sunshine and windows, a lot of more sinister happenings going on in the shadows forced them into this circumstance.

"Ayaka!" Kazuha called to the white haired girl training in the courtyard. Lately, she had been practicing her swordplay more and more often. It was a mesmerizing sight indeed. "Your father and my father called us up to meet them! They said to come quick."

Currently, he was on one of his various 'playdates' with his best friend. Every weekend, they would go to one estate or the other to hang out. Sometimes, if either Ayaka's older brother or another guardian was present, they'd even be allowed to venture into the city together.

"Coming!" Ayaka responded. Quickly, she put away her sword, ran off to the changing room to change, and joined up with Kazuha.

"Father, you called us?" Kazuha said upon entering the room.

"Yes, now please you two, take a seat. We have much to discuss."

The two children looked at each other questioningly, then they both shrugged their shoulders and sat down. The head of both clans observed the two children with critical eyes. They sat shoulder to shoulder, legs swinging back and forth at the same pace, their closeness very apparent. It was common knowledge that the two were always glued to each other. Kazuha always looked forward to the weekends and so did Ayaka.

When the prolonged silence and tense atmosphere became too much for the children, Ayaka and Kazuha both looked each other in the eye as if having a silent conversation. It would be rude for the both of them to be whispering to each other in front of the clan heads. But they didn't need to talk to be able to convey their feelings to each other.

In the end, Kazuha came out on top.

"Excuse me for asking father but, why is it that you called us here?" Ayaka finally spoke up. She had drawn the short straw in their silent conversation.

Both clan heads sighed wearily. Unbeknownst to the children, they were both running dreadfully short on sleep or rest as indicated by the deep bags under their eyes. Someone was tearing the whole political landscape of Inazuma apart. Prominent clans across the country were falling one after another and they believed both their clans were next.

In fact, the Kaedehara clan remained as the only one of the five Raiden Gokaden left.

"We brought the two of you here to discuss your futures and a potential marriage contract…"

They talked about the future plans of both clans to the two children. While it was no surprise that both Kazuha and Ayaka were more than happy to agree - "we'll be together forever!" "Yeah! No more only visiting each other during the weekends!" - it was still a relief to hear. The first step to protecting both their families had been achieved, the ceremony set to be in one month.

Unfortunately, it would also be their last step.

Two weeks later, the Kaedehara clan was betrayed. Kazuha's Grandfather died that day. So did many other members and employees of the Kaedehara clan. His father survived initially, but died not long after due to the injuries sustained.

Their absence left a massive power vacuum. One that no one could fill.

Over on the Kamisato side of things, a mass assassination plot had both Ayaka's mother and father killed while they were on a business trip.

This forced the older Kamisato sibling, Kamisato Ayato, to become head of the clan, at a much too young of an age. When he took the mantle, he swore to never make the same mistake his parents did, even going so far as to instate his own group of covert assassins.

"I swear, I don't know anything about the man you're talking about," the figure before me heaved out between pained and labored breaths. "If I knew anything, I would have told you by now."

"Tch," I said, irritated, stabbing one of my multiple knives roughly against the desk before me. It's been almost an hour, and I've made no progress. "I had a source tell me you were connected to him. That accursed harbinger. The one who ruined my family. You must know something. Anything."

"Sorry to say, but your source is wrong," he said, a hint of amusement in his voice. "I've said it many times now, kid. I know nothing. Now if you'd so kindly untie me."

"So it's another dead end then, huh?" I muttered quietly. Torture and interrogation yielded no results, leaving me with few options. If at first you don't succeed, stab, stab again. Eventually, they'll cave. I had experience to back that up. But right now, I had neither the patience nor the time for that. "Guess I'm left with no choice but to kill you. Such a shame, I just got around to cleaning my blades."

Idly twirling a knife in my hand, I got up from my chair and slowly walked up to the bound figure. He looked up at me, surprise, panic and fear appearing in his pain riddled eyes. "Huh!? Wait! Kill me!? You serious? You're just a kid, no need to stain your hands with blood. We could talk about this!"

I said nothing as I walked towards him menacingly. This was my final attempt at extracting any information about him and his stupid face, stupid hat, and stupidly powerful abilities. People tended to talk when faced with the prospect of death. No one liked the thought of crossing over to the other side.

"There's no need to resort to murder. We can work this out - I have info about other stuff that might interest you. Got money too-"

I threw a knife at him, missing him by a hair's breadth. His rambling was becoming beyond bothersome. "Shut it. If you don't have information about him, then you're worthless to me."

"Seriously, we can talk about this," he said, eyes wide, voice panicking and unsteady. There seemed to be something wrong with his head as he continued his endless blabbering. Perhaps I hit him too hard in the head while trying to extract information from him? "I can be useful-"

I threw another knife at him. This time it just barely connected with his cheek, leaving a thin trail of red behind. "I said shut it. The next knife is going straight through your throat. We clear?"

He wisely said nothing in response.

"Glad we could come to an understanding," I said, leaning against the wall, arms crossed. "Now, if you really want to be useful to me, tell me anything and everything you know about him. Tell me now, or die."

A simple ultimatum really. No tricks to it, yet people always find a way to beat around the bush and annoy me.

The man gulped, before speaking his response. "Look man, I-I've said this multiple times already…"

He's going to say 'I know nothing'

"...I know nothing," he responded, voice quiet and meek, a wide contrast to his confidence from before. Even if I was expecting it at this point, after all the other false leads, I still couldn't help but be disappointed.

"Is that so?" I quietly muttered to myself, frustration building up within me. "So you really know nothing?"

The man nodded slowly. Fearfully.

I let out a long sigh. "What a waste of time," I said, voice laced with displeasure. Using a surge of anemo, I obliterated the wall next to me. While destroying things was cathartic, it wasn't enough.

I turned my attention towards the bound figure.

"Please!" the man begged, realizing my intent. He knew that he didn't have much longer to live, so he didn't hesitate to throw his dignity out the window. "I-I'll do anything you want! Just please, please, please, don't kill me."

There was desperation in his voice as he pleaded for his life. I wonder how many people he himself got begging like this only to offer no mercy, killing them mercilessly.

I offered a cold smile in response, still twirling the knife in my hand, sauntering slowly towards him.

"Relax, it's not like anyone will miss you," I said in a soft teasing tone.

"N-No! I'll miss me," he said. I ignored him.

Bringing my knife close to my face, I licked it slowly, savoring the metallic taste. "You know, I've been feeling a lot of displeasure lately, from all my false leads and setbacks. I mean, I came all the way out here in the middle of nowhere, hoping you'll be the one. Oh how wrong I was."

"H-Hey, you know," the man managed to stutter out in desperation. Clever of him trying to find a scapegoat to redirect my pent up rage. "Maybe you should set your sights on the person who tipped you off instead of me. He's an unreliable source."

I let out a laugh. One that was a bit more on the manic side. "Ahahaha! Don't worry about that! I already killed him."

"Huh?" was the only response he could come up with.

"Killing him brought so much joy to my heart," I said, remembering the satisfying sound of his neck snapping under my hands. "It was completely deserved with all the false leads he gave me. You know, he kept promising over and over, 'this one's the one boss. This time for sure.' But every single time he proved to be wrong. And something tells me I think I'll enjoy killing you just as much."

Somehow, the man visibly recoiled despite being tied down. "Look kid, I'll give you everything. All my money, all my goods, valuables. Anything I receive in the future. Whatever you want, just take it! You'll enjoy that much more than killing me! It's a better investment - I'll do anything you want! So please, just spare me. Please. Please, just let me live."

He tried pleading for his life desperately with an offer that might have been tempting to anyone but me.

"Your incessant begging disgusts me. I wonder. What happened to your cocky attitude from earlier - when we first met?"

He whimpered in response, eyes facing downward. Tears were flowing freely from his eyes. Pathetic. Utterly pathetic.

Grabbing a fistful of his hair, I roughly jerked his head upwards, forcing him to make eye contact with me. My cold red eyes stared into his. I could see the fear consume him - the prospect of death was staring at him straight in the eyes.

I brought the knife close to his throat.

"P-Please…" he barely managed to utter.

"Shhh, no need to be scared," I said, leaning in to speak directly into his ear. My voice was soft, and would have been reassuring had the circumstances been different. "Sleep is just the free trial of death. You've experienced it many times. Now, I'll be graciously gifting you the full version."

He struggled desperately under my grip to no avail as I slowly pressed my knife against his throat. His voice was gone, the only sounds he could utter were hacked sobs - something I found even more unpleasant than his endless begging. I swear I could have also heard a few cries to his mother, but that didn't bother me one bit. They always cry to their mother, or someone of equivalence, when they're one step away from death.

A slowly inched my blade into his throat, savoring every moment. The deeper I went, the more blood began flowing out. At one point, he began choking on his own blood as he continued to sob. His eyes were wide open, filled with fear and perhaps a bit of regret, as his life left his body.

Letting go, I quickly confirmed that he was dead. It didn't really take a professional to know that he ain't getting up with the way his head was severed from his body, but it was best to make sure. Demons, Yokai, and magic rocks existed in this world after all.

"Now then, I'll be taking all your valuables as payment. Enjoy your eternal sleep."

Carefully, I disposed of his bloody and mutilated corpse. As I was doing that, I couldn't help but admire my handiwork on his disfigured body - he sure had a high pain tolerance.

He was a small-time criminal Ronin - located on one of Inazuma's small but innumerable islands. Head of a small but well organized crime syndicate, he and his goons preyed on anyone roaming the unpopulated area - ambushing them and robbing them blind. Sometimes even capturing them and selling them off. Adventurers, explorers, lost pizza delivery employees, you name it.

Sometimes they set their eyes upon the occasional village. Small ones, far from any major cities. They were nothing but a bunch of small-time criminal scum the Tenryou Commission couldn't be bothered to deal with.

I was by no means cleaning out the trash for the Tenryou Commision like some sort of hero. No, I had personal motivations to be doing this.

Revenge.

I swore vengeance against the man who brought my family to ruin and I will stop at nothing to achieve it. Oh how desperately I want to wipe that insufferable smirk off his face. Break him, like he broke my family, broke my hopes and dreams. Burn his stupid hate like he burnt off my relationship with her, and send it to the pits of hell.

My heart ached for her everyday. To be reunited. Yet deep down inside, I knew she'd be disgusted by the man I had become. A man enveloped in revenge.

A certain source told me these bandits may have a connection to this man who brought the downfall of my clan. Of course, he and his gang knew nothing. They had no connection to the man I was looking for. In the end, it was another false lead, another dead end.

Honestly, I can't help but feel like each new potential lead always leads to another dead end. Sometimes, I get the urge to just go on a killing spree to vent all my frustrations. But I haven't fallen that far yet.

Given my new circumstances, progress has been slow and has become even slower day by day.

Oh yeah, I should probably explain.

You see, vision wielders are forced into attending a certain school - Teyvat High. Attendance isn't mandatory until a certain age; up until then, you could abstain from showing up. Unfortunately, I reached that certain age three weeks ago. As such, I've been constantly on the run.

Speaking of which, off In the distance, I could hear the distinct sounds of hurried footsteps. The sounds of multiple people marching on at a speedy pace, not bothering to hide their presence. My ears easily picked up their presence.

Time to go.

The people hunting me down were getting better at finding and tracking me - my quick, erratic and unpredictable movement no longer throwing them off as much. Sometimes I think there's a tracker on my anemo vision with how they always seem to find me.

Using my vision, I gathered anemo energy around my feet and leaped off into the trees, jumping from branch to branch. I was fast and light on my feet - those people stood no chance of chasing me down. For three weeks they have pursued me relentlessly and for three weeks they have failed to catch me.

Eventually though, I was going to get caught - they are an entire organization after all. But not yet. If I'm going down, I'm going down on my own terms.

It was at that moment that I ran straight into an ambush.

"Fuck."

I stopped mid step above a tree branch and plunged down towards the ground.

Stay focused.

The scent of multiple people surrounded me. Those people I originally heard were a diversion then, meant to chase me to this trap they had set up for me. That's why they were much louder and more noticeable than before.

Guess I'm going down on my own terms a bit sooner than anticipated. I don't plan to run forever; I do plan to eventually go to the school as there is a certain Harbinger I would like to talk to. The thing is, I'd prefer to chase that lead last. Going to the school would mean I'd be trapped there for however long until I graduate. My movements and search would be greatly hindered and restricted.

Oh who am I kidding. That Harbinger who's attending Teyvat High is probably the best lead I have - a person with a direct connection to him.

I just can't bear to meet her again after all this time. Especially after what I've become.