Chapter 2

The Secretary of Liyue

"Wow…this looks awesome!"

Asta shouted his thoughts as Liebe and he left the recovery room and followed Shenhe outside. Seeing the floating rock platforms and bridges made of light was something else, not to mention all the clouds below him.

"Is this your master's home?" asked Liebe.

"Yes." was all Shenhe said.

"Is this where you did your training Ms. Shene?" asked Asta with excitement. The young man's eyes sparkled with curiosity and amazement at what he was seeing. The young woman paused from his question for just a moment before answering.

"Yes, part of my adepti training was done here." She said, not providing any more info. "I do not see my Master anywhere…."

"Would it be better if we flew?"

Asta's offer dumbfounded the silver-haired woman.

"Fly? How so?" She was clearly confused but also curious in her tone.

Asta said nothing, instead, he pulled out he is demon slayer sword and laid it gently on the ground. He then stood on top of his sword and, using the anti-magic in it, made it hover over the ground. Shenhe's eyes actually became quite wide at seeing this, her reaction caused a smirk to appear on Liebe's face as he rested on Asta's comfy head.

"So not only can you pull swords out of your catalyst but you can also ride your sword through the air? How?" She honestly asked.

"By using the Anti-Magic in my sword. Heh heh." Asta said proudly. "I can use it to ride through the air, along with other stuff as well." It took him a lot of training to reach that point so the young knight was very proud of himself for how far he's come.

"Anti-Magic?"

"It's-"

"Something we can explain later." Interrupted Liebe, earning a disapproving frown from his brother and a harsh glare from Shenhe. "We should find Shenhe's master before we start getting into a bunch of explanations. Anyways, is taking to the air gonna help?"

"It will not. I suppose I should explain to both of you where you are exactly. This is Cloud Retainer's abode, where she and I live."

"I figured it was something like that…we must be really high if we're above the clouds." Asta stated in awe as he looked at his surroundings. "Guess your master likes heights."

"We're not above the clouds nor are we somewhere high in the mountains. Think of it like a…different realm. Where you wouldn't find it on any map."

Shenhe's explanation only caused confusion to Asta and Liebe, who looked at her with lost faces. The poor woman was not the best when it came to explaining things, she also wasn't the best when it came to traditional etiquette either so this made things difficult for her.

"W-Well what I am getting at is, there's no point to take through the air. If my master was home she would have sensed us looking for her and come to us. She must have stepped out for some reason. I suppose we must wait now."

"Okay…" Asta wasn't happy with that but knew nothing could be done. Plus he didn't want to be rude to his host. The young man had some questions to ask and will just need to wait. Impatience doesn't solve anything! He needs to calm his mind, and do something else. Mediate, work on his ki. His body is still too sore for physical training and since he will be waiting for some time then…

"All right!" He yelled before promptly folding his legs in a sitting position and beginning to clear his mind. Liebe, already knowing what his brother was up to, simply made himself comfortable on his head. Shenhe watched with mild interest, curious as to what the grey-haired young man is doing. She did not bother to make conversation though, she took a seat on a rock that was some distance from Asta.

Her eyes did not leave his right arm though. She was curious about what caused his arm to become that and if it was anything similar to the red ropes she wore. She wanted to ask but simply did not know how, as she said before traditional conversation was something she struggled with.

Time passed as Asta began to train his mind and ki. He tried to sense this abode that he was in, and indeed it was weird. Being born without magic, Asta could not sense or feel magic like any other wizard would back from his home, but he made up for that by sensing ki. Everything gives off ki, both people and natural objects. He knows what his home feels like, what ki it gives off, it's something he's come to recognize with these months in training.

With that being said, as he felt the ki around him in this abode he very much realized that this isn't nature he was sensing. The trees, the clouds, the water, everything didn't feel real if that made sense. The ki it all gave off wasn't the same ki that his natural surroundings would give off back home. Asta is begging to understand what Ms. Shenhe meant when she called this a different realm. Whatever this place is, it's definitely not natural.

"Wow…" All in all, despite this not being real in a sense it was still incredible.

That was enough ki training for right now, taking a more relaxing position the young man released a heavy sigh. It was all he can do to make this crazy day go by…

He looked back to Ms. Shene, he wanted to say something to her but he just didn't know what to say. Being quiet was never something Asta was good at, his whole personality could be described with one word, explosive. He wanted to speak with her, and learn more about her but how…

Of course!

"Ms. Shenhe!" He yelled out with a respectful tone. "Can I make a request?"

"A request?" She looked at him oddly. "I suppose so."

"Would you be willing to spar with me?"

Asta's request surprised both Shenhe and Liebe.

"You wish to spar with me?" His request really baffled the silver-haired woman. She was not expecting that.

"Asta, what do you think you're doing? Did you forget that you're still hurt?" Liebe was not amused at all with whatever his brother was planning.

"I'll be careful, plus I don't want this opportunity to slip away!" He said with a smile.

He's…not telling the whole truth. Liebe has been with Asta ever since the ash-haired man got his grimoire and as such, knew a few things about him. Still, Liebe trusted his brother enough to have faith in whatever plan that was cooking in his head. Whatever this idiot is planning to do, Liebe won't press on about it. Not yet at least.

"Why would you like to spar against me, Asta?" She said, finally using his name.

"Because I want to learn your techniques!" He stated honestly. "You use ice magic, which isn't anything new to me, but the way you use it with your spear is something I've never seen back from my home." The closest thing he could compare Shenhe's fighting is to his Captain Yami or Mereoleona. Captain Yami uses his dark magic combined with his sword skills, most of the other knights don't fight like that. Mereoleona's combat was also very up close and physical. Shenhe's fighting reminds Asta of them if only for how much physical combat she used during their fight. "I hope that by sparing against you I can learn something for myself." Asta finished his sentence with a confident smile.

"I see." Shenhe did not match that smile, however, she did get off her rock and summoned her spear. "In that case, I have no problem in sparing with you, there are a few things I would like to learn myself." This works well for her, conversation was not her strong suit, but fighting? Yes, Shenhe can most definitely fight and perhaps she'll learn something about his right arm in this spar.

Liebe only sighed and flew a distance away, not wanting to get caught in this sparing match. The two took their stance before the fighting began.

Cloud Retainer stood outside her abode, soon to enter if only her guest would hurry up.

"One does not have all day."

"Yes, Cloud Retainer. I'm coming, but coming out of the blue to my work and asking me to come with you isn't exactly easy. There's so much paperwork I need to fill out, not to mention-"

"One would expect a bit more understanding from the girl she raised. Oh, one fondly remembers your life as a child. You were so plump back then and you love having your horns caressed. Oh, how you've changed Ganyu."

"Cloud Retainer! Can we please not bring up stories of my childhood!"

The poor woman cried out in embarrassment over Cloud Retainer's words. She is a young-looking woman with light blue hair that got darker as it trailed down her back. She wore a black body suit outfit that was similar to what Shenhe wears but with a few differences with a bell hanging from her neck like a necklace. Her eyes shined in a multicolored purple that seemed to change color in certain lights. Yet, perhaps the most defining feature of this young-looking woman was the red black horns that bend back on the top of her head.

This woman's name is Ganyu. She was currently coming up the mountain alongside her master Cloud Retainer, who had come to her during work and asked for Ganyu to come with her regarding something important.

"Hmph, they are all like this." Cloud Retainer said in a grumpy voice. The mysterious bird and horned woman entered the abode of Cloud Retainer. "Now, the young traveler must have woken up by now. One left Shene to keep watch in case he woke up. Now, where would one find…"

Ganyu watched with a small confusion as her master's sentence died down as the sound of fighting began to echo throughout the abode.

"Cloud Retainer, what is that sound?"

"Unbelievable." Was all that Cloud Retainer said before she flew into the air, annoyance ever clear in her voice.

"Cloud Retainer!?" Ganyu cried out helplessly, she sighed before making her way to the source of the sound. Without the ability to fly, it was definitely more tedious for poor Ganyu to make her way over there...

Asta collapsed in just 1 minute. The young knight fell flat on the floor, the wind knocked out of him and his swords lay just a few feet away.

"Holy cow, you sure are strong Ms. Shenhe." Yet the young man thanked his opponent with a hearty voice and an energetic smile. Shenhe simply stood there with a blank face, a little winded but not a single scratch on her.

"Told ya this was a bad idea. How are you feeling?" Asked Liebe, as he floated over his brother with an I told ya so look. The diminutive brother was not surprised with Asta laying down on the floor. He's definitely not ready to fight with his wounds still healing.

"Feeling great!" He cheered out. Asta's cheery demeanor earnt a defeated sigh from Liebe and a confused look from Shenhe.

"We did not spare for long, unsurprisingly your body is not ready for combat. Did you really learn something in those few minutes?" she asked.

Asta sat up with the utmost seriousness, his legs crossed, his eyes serious, the young man looked Shenhe dead in the eye and said- "Nope, not a thing!" He then proceeded to scratch the back of his head sheepishly as Liebe dug his face into his palm and Shenhe looked utterly confused.

"I don't understand?"

"I know, it sounds silly but thank you for the spar Ms. Shenhe. It wasn't combat-related but I did learn something and can relax a bit more." Asta finished his sentence with a relaxed and friendly expression that was directed toward Shenhe.

"I see…" She didn't, it was very confusing but before Shenhe could press on what it was Asta learned a familiar person made it's way to the area.

"Unbelievable, one would expect the young man to rest. Not sparing against her student. One would also expect her student to keep an eye on them in the room one left them in." It was apparent in Cloud Retianer's voice that she was annoyed with what she was seeing.

"My apologies, master." Shenhe said.

"Oh, sorry about that Ma'am!" Asta said while bowing his head. "Thank you so much for treating me and Liebe's wounds, we really appreciate it." Liebe simply nodded his head in agreement.

"Hmph, one hopes you will express your gratitude and not run away like last time. That was very rude of you." Asta could only look away in embarrassment at his previous actions. "Still, you are welcome. Now, as one said before there are a few questions one would like to ask. Seeing the look on your face, one can assume that you also have a few questions. Ganyu, now do you see…Ganyu?"

Cloud Retainer called out for someone named Ganyu, earning a sigh from Shenhe and a confused look from Asta and Liebe. After just a few seconds the sounds of footsteps could be heard. The young knight turned only to see a blue-haired woman approaching them.

"Cloud Retainer!" The young woman cried out in annoyance. "Please keep in mind that I can not fly as easily as you."

"Hmph, perhaps if you did not slack in your adepti training this would not have happened."

Asta looked in confusion at the new person named Ganyu that appeared. Blue hair, clothing similar to Shenhe, and 2 horns coming from her head. Ganyu came in defeat, looking slightly annoyed at Cloud Retianer but sighing in defeating and holding her tongue. That all went away though when she moved her gaze away from the talking bird and onto Asta. Specifically, onto Asta's right arm.

"My word…" All the frustration that this woman had earlier seemed to have vanished as her eyes locked onto Asta's right arm. She began moving closer and extended her arm to try and touch it. She did, and it felt no different than touching any other arm. She got even closer, examining it and putting her face right next to it.

"Um…are you almost done?" Asta asked, Ganyu turned and came face to face with the young knight. Their faces were mere inches apart. The young man keep cool and didn't see any issue, the blue-haired woman on the other hand got startled and backed away in embarrassment.

"Where are my manners!" She cried out with red cheeks. "Forgive me, I didn't mean to do that so suddenly." She bowed her head towards Asta.

"Nah, you're fine. You don't have to apologize but who are you?"

"My name is Ganyu, it's a pleasure to meet you." That was all she said, for now, the young woman continued looking carefully at Asta.

"No…" Ganyu said before turning towards Cloud Retainer. "I know I'm the forgetful type but even I would remember someone whose right arm looked like this."

Asta looked confused as Cloud Retainer merely hummed in thought.

"One had brought Ganyu to see if she would recognize you. As the Secretary for the Liyue Qixing for over hundred of years, one would know that Ganyu is very informative of Liyue and its people."

Wait….what did she just say?

"So one would thin-"

"Oh! Oh! I have a question!" Asta yelled out in with his hand raised up, looking like a kid on his first day in class.

"Yes?" said Cloud Retainer.

"You said hundreds of years? Just how old is she?" Asta's question made Ganyu look as though she had been stabbed.

"If one remembers correctly, Ganyu should be around 3000 years old."

"C-Cloud Retainer!" Ganyu instantly became red-faced, looking absolutely embarrassed over the info being released like nothing. She turned to the guest and saw Asta with sparking eyes looking right at her.

"3000! Wow Ma'am, you're really old! You must know a lot of stuff!" Asta meant that as a compliment. Unfortunately, Ganyu took visible damage after hearing the word ma'am. The poor blue-haired woman merely stood there in embarrassment, her cheeks getting redder by the second.

"Y-Yes well, ahem, enough about that." She moved past the subject ever quickly. "As Cloud Retainer was saying, she thought that you were a resident of Liyue that made their way over here but I don't think I've ever seen you around at the city."

"That's because I'm not from Liyue, I'm from the Clover Kingdom." Asta looked at their expressions of confusion, which only confirmed what he thought. He must have somehow got sent to a distant land like Yami. But how? Asta still doesn't understand how he was sent to a faraway land when he wasn't anywhere near the sea during their fight at the Spade Kingdom.

"Clover Kingdom, Is that a city from Mondstadt?" Asked Ganyu.

"It's not," Liebe said. "We're not from around here, I don't know we got here. Neither of us remembers but were not from what you call Liyue or Mondstadt and-hey!"

Liebe was cut off when Ganyu extended her hand and pinched his cheeks.

"I didn't even see you, who are you and why are you so small?" The blue-haired woman asked as she continued to grab Liebe's cheeks without any shame. Eventually, Liebe broke free and flew behind Asta's head so that the horned woman wouldn't be able to reach him. He stuck his tongue at her as well for good measure.

"This is Liebe, he's my brother."

"Brother?" Both Cloud Retainer and Ganyu said at the same time. Shenhe said nothing, she just continued to watch from afar. Ganyu proceeds to reach out and grab Asta's cheeks, pulling on them without any shame. "Incredible, brothers yet you look nothing alike. Are you both adepti as well? That might explain the arm and your brother's tiny look."

Asta tried to answer but could not as Ganyu kept pulling on his face all while Liebe snickered at his brother's suffering.

"Ms. Ganyu can you please stop pulling my face?"

"Oh! Forgive me, I got distracted."

"Ganyu has always been like this." Cloud Retainer spoke up. "One would think that after her years of working as a secretary she would be more attentive yet that doesn't seem to be the case. Her age is the cause for her ditziness and forgetfulness"

"Cloud Retainer…" Ganyu spoke as a child would when a parent is telling embarrassing stories. "Still, you are not an adepti are you?" She asked Asta.

"What that's?" Asta's confusion was answer enough.

"No of course not, brother's not by blood but by something else then if one were to guess. Still one must ask then what exactly is your companion."

"Oh, Liebe is a devil. We were both raised by the same mom, which is why he's my brother." Asta said that so casually that he didn't realize what effect it would have on them.

"What?" A question that was asked by all 3 women. They all looked confused at this statement. "A devil? What's a devil?" Ganyu asked.

"It's what Liebe is." Asta said plainly. Liebe gave a small sigh at what he was seeing. It seems like these people don't know what a devil is. That's not surprising, back at the clover kingdom only a few knew what devils actually were. The majority of the people saw devils as simple stories to tell their children to behave. Only because of the Spade Kingdom and their actions have devils started to gain infamy among the people.

Even then, that was all back at the Clover Kingdom and surrounding kingdoms. To a distant land like this, which doesn't even have grimoires, Liebe doubts that any of these people knew what a devil is. Which begs the question…

"You don't know what a devil is?" Liebe asked Ganyu.

"N-No I don't, why do you ask?"

"Because you are over 3000 years old. Figured you might know something."

"*Hrk!*" Ganyu said.

"Liebe, that's not nice to say."

Liebe shrugged at his brother's words. He knew that was not nice to say, but in his defense, that's because his reason for asking was a lie. He didn't ask Ganyu if she knew about devils because of her old age. He asked because of her horns, back home black horns are a sign that someone tampered with forbidden stuff and dealings with a devil. Ganyu horns aren't black so that might be the giveaway but Liebe still wanted to ask.

"What's a devil?" Shenhe spoke up, drawing everyone's attention as she has been quiet.

"It's what Liebe is…" Asta finally realized that his answer was not what they were looking for. "Ah sorry! How to explain it…" The young man began to think, which was not his strong suit. Liebe decided to take a different approach instead of letting his brother explain it.

"Maybe it would be better to show instead of tell, Asta."

"Liebe?"

Liebe flew towards the 3 women and began to change his form as they all watched with interest. His body grew until it was the same height as Asta. As it did, most of his body was still coated in a black substance with the exception of his face and neck, which were pale white skin. His wings grew, as did his horns and tail. What stood out the most though was his right arm, it looked like it didn't belong to his body. All 3 women looked at Liebe's right arm and then Asta's and tried to figure out what this meant.

"Keh keh keh…" Liebe gave a unique laugh as his voice became rougher. "This is a devil, otherwise known as pieces of shit! Satisfied?"

Cloud Retainer, Ganyu, and Shenhe were immediately put on edge by Liebe's sudden appearance.

In his diminutive form, Liebe's presence is no bother to anyone as he is suppressing the very nature that a devil gives off and his own anti-magic energy. In this form though, his natural form, there was no masking the presence a devil naturally gives off. Asta watched the three begin to shudder at Liebe's presence. He didn't blame them, he did the same thing when he encountered Liebe for the first time, though now he's gotten used to it.

Thought seeing all 3 of the shudder proved that they truly do not know what a devil is. Had they met one before then this would not have been their reaction.

Thankfully, Liebe did not do this to torture and make anyone uncomfortable. He merely wanted to show them what a devil was rather than have Asta explain it. After a few seconds, Liebe returned back to his familiar form and flew back to his brother's shoulder.

"So yeah, that's a devil." Liebe said casually.

For a moment the 3 said absolutely nothing.

"I think you broke them." Asta whispered to his brother. "Also, did you have to be so rough on yourself?" Liebe gave a half-hearted shrug.

"Maybe that was a bit much…" The young knight could only agree with his brother's words. Asta turned and glanced at Ganyu and Shenhe, the two women seemed to have composed themselves but looked at Liebe with wary eyes. The young knight could only sigh at that, Liebe is a good person and he didn't want people thinking ill of his brother.

"One must say, that was something one wasn't expecting." Cloud Retainer was the first to speak and flew closer to Asta and Liebe. "One has been a watcher here in Liyue for many years and has seen many things…but not something like this." She then turned her attention to Asta's arm. "One noticed that your brother's right arm did not seem to match the rest of his body, does that have anything to do with your right arm."

"It does. Some things happen during a fight and I had to make an agreement with my brother. I don't regret it though."

"Finally, your catalyst. One asks that you show it to Ganyu."

"You mean my grimoire?" Cloud Retainer nodded at that. Asta picked up his grimoire and handed it to Ganyu. The blue-haired woman opened the book and began to go through the pages. As she did Asta could see the confusion on her face.

"What is this writing?" Ganyu asked. "I've never seen a catalyst like this before." Ganyu looked to Asta. "You called this a grimoire? May I ask what that is?"

"A grimoire? It's a special book made from mana, though I don't have any mana…" Asta mumbled that last part. "It lets users due specific spells and attacks. For me it lets me pull out different swords." The young knight demonstrated that by pulling out 2 different swords from his grimoire, all while Ganyu and Cloud Retainer looked with fascination.

"Incredible, I can't read any of this writing. At first, I assumed it was a catalyst but now I'm not so sure." Ganyu said as she closed the grimoire and handed it back to Asta. "Clover Kingdom is what you called it correct? I'm curious as to what type of place it is. This is all so fascinating."

"I have a question."

The sudden voice came from Shenhe, who has stayed quiet until now.

"During our fight, I used my cyro vision to subdue you. Yet when you touched it with your swords you erased it, completely and when I fired an ice storm you reflected it back at me. How?"

"It's because of Anti-Magic." Asta answered. The three women looked lost at his response.

"Anti Magic?" Cloud Retainer repeated.

Learning from Liebe, Asta decide that it was quicker to show rather than tell.

"Ms. Shenhe, you called it a vision right? Can you use it on me?"

Shenhe nodded and walked up to Asta. She placed her hand on his arm and began to slowly use her cryo to cover Asta in ice. Once enough had been done she stepped away. Asta then grabbed one of his swords and tapped himself just once. The ice was instantly undone and erased completely.

"I'm not sure what a vision is, but it seems to be a lot like the mana used back in my home. My swords are filled with anti-magic, any spell or mana thrown at me I can cut and erase!" He didn't want to go into detail about each of his 4 swords and what they could each do or his devil union. Nice people, they seem to be but that doesn't mean Asta is going to give out all his moves and skills.

Shenhe didn't seem too impressed with this info, she simply nodded and walked back to her spot. Ganyu on the other hand had a much different reaction. She looked at Asta's swords and his grimoire much more carefully.

"One is…unsure of what to say." Though their reactions pale in comparison to Cloud Reatiner. "Visions are gifts that are bestowed to citizens of Teyvat who have been recognized by the gods. There are 7 of them, geo, pyro, cryo, anemo, hydro, electro, and dendro. With it, the user can harness the power and use the element energy to perform a variety of skills, and yet you seem to possess the power to erase it. Deny it."

Those words came out heavy. Cloud Retainer's tone went from simple curiosity to wariness.

"Excuse me." Ganyu spoke up. "May I hold the sword?"

The young knight nodded and handed Ganyu the demon slasher katana sword. The moment Ganyu grabbed it she almost dropped it.

"Heavy!" She exclaimed. Shenhe walked up to it and grabbed it as well, the women's eyes wide in surprise as she felt her strength leave her and almost dropped the sword as well.

"It is heavy." Shenhe stated, yet she was able to eventually pick it up and wield it.

"How, a sword that size should be of no issue. Especially for you Shenhe." said Cloud Retainer.

"It's hard to explain." Shenhe swung the sword for a bit. "This feels odd…wielding this sword." She didn't provide any more words, she handed the sword back to Asta who in turn placed his swords back in his grimoire.

"Hmmm…if one were to be honest, this has created more questions than answers. However one shall not press on any further. The fact that you are still here in one's presence with no negative effects is incredible as well."

Asta and Liebe looked confused at Cloud Retainer's words. It was then that Ganyu spoke up.

"Cloud Retainer is a full-blooded adepti. Humans can't remain in their presence for long because their adepti energy will overwhelm and fatally harm them."

"Seriously?" Asta said. "But we're doing okay? Ms. Shenhe doesn't seem affected either."

"That's true, Shenhe has a high constitution which is why she is able to be here. It seems like you do as well. So either you possess a high constitution like Shenhe or it's your anti-magic as you call it. Either way, Cloud Retainer is right, this raises more questions as we get to know more about you Asta."

The grey-haired knight wasn't sure how to respond to that.

"One's business is concluded with you. You have given this one some answers and one has treated your wounds, that seems to be a fair payment or it would have had you not been foolish enough to spar with one's pupil."

"Wait!" Asta cried out. "I have some questions, well really just a few. Do you know how I can get back to the Clover Kingdom? That's our home and I need to get back, do you know of anyone that can help us?"

"I might," Ganyu spoke up. "In Liyue Habor, there is a woman named Captian Beidou. She's captain of the Crux, they go on multiple voyages throughout the ocean. It's possible she might know of the Clover Kingdom and how to get there."

"Seriously!?" Asta cried out as he and Liebe's eyes began to be filled with hope. The young energetic knight closed the distance between him and Ganyu. "When and where can I meet her?"

"Not for another month or two but it would be in Liyue."

And just like that both of their spirits were crushed.

"My apologies for getting your hopes up. Captain Beidou was recently here in Liyue but had left for another voyage. She won't be back for some time, but this is a good thing." Ganyu's statement left the two of them confused. "Captain Beidou isn't someone I would call generous. She is an incredible person, however, she doesn't give out free rides to everyone. I'm not sure how far this Clover Kingdom is but I imagine you would need a sizable amount of mora for it."

"Mora?" Asta asked.

"That is the currency of Teyvat, that land you are in."

"Argh, so much info!" Smoke began to emit from Asta's head as he fell to the floor. Visions, mora, teyvat, all this info was coming at him so fast!

"Don't mind him, he's an idiot 90% of the time." Liebe said. "No surprise that our currency isn't accepted here. So then we need to start making money before your friend arrives. Would you have any ideas"

"I do…now listen closely…"

Adventurer's guild.

That's what Ganyu called it.

Apparently, it's an organization that serves as a quest for hire. You have to apply and do some paperwork but once that's taken care of people can do various quests for mora. It reminded Asta of his duties as a magic knight and getting paid at the end of the week for all his work. Ganyu said she would handle the paperwork and then come back within a few days. She also said that she would bring him some new clothes as well.

"I wonder why she's doing so much for us." Asta asked

"That's a good question," replied Liebe.

The two were currently back inside the room that Cloud Retainer provided. After the conversation was over the talking bird stated that it would be fine for Asta and Liebe to rest up here until Asta's wounds full heal. That also surprised the young knight. While he was happy that she did so they were both under the impression that Cloud Retainer did not want them in her home for much longer.

"You don't think it's fishy, Asta?"

"I don't think so, I was reading their ki and it didn't feel bad or anything."

"Yeah…but neither Cloud Retainer nor Ganyu are human. You told me that their ki is different from a human and devil."

"Yeah, so?"

"So what if that affects your ki thing, huh?"

Asta shook his head and gave a reassuring smile to his brother.

"It will be okay Liebe, don't worry." He flashed his brother a confident smile. "They don't seem like bad people. We just have to make sure we pay them back somehow."

"I guess…by the way, why did you want to spar with Shenhe?"

"It was her ki, when I first met her it felt angry…"

"Angry?"

"Yeah, kind of. It's hard to describe it honestly cause I've never felt anything like it. I thought at first it was pure anger or animosity. It's easier to read a person's ki when their moving or fighting. During my spar with Ms. Shenhe I was able to read into her ki a bit more and…" Asta paused, as he tried to find the right words. "Honestly Liebe, I don't know how to describe her ki, she's human but what she feels is hard to read but I don't think she's a bad person either."

Liebe stared at his brother while in deep thought over those words.

"They're not bad people Liebe, just like you."

"...fine." Liebe looked away as he didn't want Asta to see how happy those words made him feel. "I'll trust you on this but I hope you know what you're doing."

"I do."

Suddenly, the sound of a stomach growled throughout the room. Two stomachs to be exact. The two brothers looked at each other and realized that they were in need of some food and water.

"Remember, Cloud Retainer said we could stay here till Ganyu comes back but she wouldn't be providing any food for us." Liebe said to his brother.

"Right! Which means we need to go get our own food!" Sitting down all day was going to make Asta crazy anyways. He was shown the exit door and was free to come and go until Ganyu had returned. The young knight made his way to the door, and as he opened it he came face to face with Shenhe.

"Ms. Shenhe?" Asta asked, surprised that she came to see them.

"I assumed you would be hungry, so I brought something to eat for you and your brother." She said with a straight face as she handed Asta a basket. The young knight looked in the basket curiously and was greeted with the sight of…flowers? He picked one up and looked at it with confusion.

"It's medicinal herbs, that is what I eat here in the mountains."

"Is it safe to eat?" Asked the diminutive Liebe with caution.

"Of course."

Asta seemed to hesitate for just a moment before he realized that it was rude to do such a thing. Ms. Shenhe came here to bring them something to eat, Asta was raised to not waste food as back in the church there wasn't much to go around. "Thank you Ms. Shehe!" Asta yelled with gratitude before taking a bite out of the flower. He munched and munched all while Liebe watched with an apprehensive face, waiting to see what face his brother makes.

"Huh…" Asta said calmly. "It's bitter but that's it."

To Liebe's surprise, Asta began to sit down and some more flowers. Shenhe joined him by sitting a few feet away and also began to eat the same flowers with no visible reaction.

This is so weird.

When offered a flower, Liebe took a bite and instantly made a displeasing face.

"Asta, how are you able to eat this?" He asked in pure confusion. What Liebe didn't know was that growing up, Asta ate nothing but tatoes. A very bland and dry-tasting type of potato that sucks the moisture right out of your mouth. Compared to that, these medicinal herbs weren't that bad once you pushed past the bitter taste. With no choice, Liebe kept eating them and tried to imagine it was something else.

They ate in relative silence, for the most part. Asta could see from the corner of his eyes Ms. Shenhe glancing at him.

"Ms. Shenhe, I've noticed that you kept staring at me. Do you need help with something?" Not one for subtly the young knight decides to ask in a forward yet polite manner.

"I…would like your help with something." Shenhe asked awkwardly. Asta, confused but wanting to pay her back for treating their wounds, was eager to help her out.

"Sure thing!" He replied with a big smile. "What can I do?"

"I want to have a conversation."

Eh?

"You just want to talk?" The young knight was definitely confused. He wasn't sure what to expect but it definitely wasn't that.

"Yes." Shenhe said with absolute determination. "You lead." She turned to him with full attention.

"Oh, okay." Asta wasn't sure where this was going but if that's what Ms. Shenhe wanted then he will be happy to help. "Hmmm…what to talk about?" The young man said as he pondered greatly while Liebe decided to rest. "Oh! I know! We can exchange strength training tips!" His eyes shined brightly as he said this.

Shenhe, to her credit, did not find this odd at all. She merely nodded.

"Very well."

"Awesome! How do you start your day? What exercises do you do? I always start with an epic training of push-ups and then after warming up I follow up with sword swinging! After that, I have some of my homemade protein shakes to bulk up!" He finished it off with a proud smile, which is no surprise as Asta is proud of his muscles.

"I see…I…" Shenhe turned away and took a deep breath.

Asta turned away and watched the young woman. It looked like…it looked she was trying to restrain herself. Her arms seemed to shake as if in anger. The young knight took a moment to read her ki and indeed he felt that feeling of anger from her.

"Ms. Shenhe, are you okay?" Yet despite the ki he felt, Asta did not want to return that feeling or turn away from her. With concern for her in his voice, Asta actually managed to stay quiet as he waited for the young woman to say something.

"Yes…I…apologies."

"You don't need to apologize, but was it something I said? Do you not want to talk about strength training?" He asked disappointed as Asta was looking forward to exchanging tips.

"No, it's not that. I have these…" She paused for a moment, her gaze moving to Asta and then to his right arm. "Well, you've told us a bit about yourself so now let me return the favor. I have these impulses from something that afflicted me when I was a child. I am quick to anger, and when something bothers me I want to eliminate it in the most violent way possible. These red ropes that you see, they are meant to restrain these impulses."

The young knight stayed silent as he listened to Shenhe's story.

"Yet, despite these ropes and the adepti training, I have received…all I have become is indifferent. Nothing more than a cursed child." She looked up to the sky with a somber look. "I lived here since I was child, with nothing but my master and a few other adepti to keep me company. I do not want things to continue like this. I want to rejoin the rest of human society but I know I can not do that as I am now. I hope that by spending time with another person in conversation. I can become better at controlling my impulses."

She moved her gaze from the sky onto Asta.

"Will you help me…" She trailed off upon looking at Asta, who stared at her with tears and sparkles coming from his eyes.

"*sniff* Wow Ms. Shenhe, that's incredible!" To be honest, Asta didn't know what she meant by the red ropes or being a cursed child. However, he could tell by her ki that she was being genuine. And while he didn't understand much of what she was saying, Asta did get some insight into why her ki felt so different.

"You are not scared?" She asked.

"Of course not!" Asta rose to his feet with fire in his voice. As being born without magic, he kind of understood what it meant to be shunned, feeling left out. He was certain that his situation wasn't the same as Shenhe yet that didn't stop the young knight from wanting to help her the best he could. "I'll help you the best I can Ms. Shene! I'm super loud and energetic! If you can handle me then you can handle a conversation with anyone else, I know it!" He spoke honestly as Asta was well aware of his own explosive personality.

"Alright, so let's see this as training. Doing to much will strain the body, so having long conversations might not be the best if all it does is cause your impulse to flare up."

Asta said aloud as he began to think about this situation as if it were a workout regime.

"Alright, for now, we'll do small conversations and I'll keep my voice down as well. With time we'll move on to longer conversations and more intense emotions! Let's go Ms. Shenhe, it's time to surpass your limits!"

"Surpass my limits?"

"Oh..sorry." Asta said with an embarrassed chuckle. "It's what my captain would tell us. Anyways, let's get started!"

"Yes. Let us begin. "

If Sheneh found any of Asta's actions to be odd she made no mention of it. For now, the young woman gave her attention to the young knight, ready to begin their 'training.'

To Be continued…

Hey everyone, thanks for reading. I was happy to see such a warm response to the first chapter. I already have over 100 followers for this fic and that's great to see. I'm glad that y'all are interested in this idea of mine and I hope I can keep y'all along for the ride. I don't have anything else to add. I don't have much to add, next chapter won't be so lore-heavy. I feel like this chapter had a lot of info dumping which I apologize but I needed it for the characters to be brought up to speed.

The next chapter won't be so info heavy. You'll see Asta interact more with Shenhe and Ganyu as well as meeting another character before heading into Liyue and getting into the first main event of this story.

Also, I said in the last chapter that this story was going to be a harem. That hasn't changed but I gave a number of 3-4 as a rough idea. Yeah, having second thoughts about it, this game has too many waifus that I want to through at Asta cause he's my favorite MC and he deserves a harem. So I'm bumping it up to 5-6.

Part of me feels like that's too high and I'm digging myself a grave but I still want to give it a shot and if it doesn't work in my mind then back to 3-4 love interests. I feel adding too many will take away the seriousness of the story so that's why I don't want to go crazy and make every girl fall for him.

Anyways that's it for now. I also don't have all the girls cemented in mind. 2 of them are but the other 4 I'm still deciding so if you have any suggestions that you'd like to share I'm all ears.

That's it for now, thanks again for reading. See ya next time!