Things were really weird at the moment,
With the space itself starting to distort all around,
Constantly blinking from their current "shape" and to a different one...
*It felt as if for a few seconds, it went back in time, before returning to the present...
...
The space wasn't the only one that was weird, but some people were too,
With them "glitching" between their current forms and different one:
Venti into his Wind Spirit form, Diluc, Seamus, Frederica and Varka into slightly different forms of themselves,
As Albedo and Emilia turned to what appeared to be humanoid chalks and Kaeya...
...
He was truly native to Khaenria'h...
...
...
".̷͚̫̖̯̼̻̜̳̠̋͆̈́̃̿̋͗̓͆̍͜.̴̩͍̿̔̈́̃̐͒͘͘͝͝.̷̼̻͐̏̍̐͑͘P̷̱̈́̀͠ͅa̴͇̫̼͛̀͑̓î̵̜̩̘͆̂͂̈́͂́m̷̺͓̐͆͘ờ̸̥̩͈̩̯̯͎̿̀̈́͛͘n̶̡̞̺͖̈͝͠ ̷̻̬̹̲̼͕̠͚̀̎̃͜ḭ̶̛̰̹̰̣̓͛̇͜s̶̛̙͓̯̞̔͑̐́͘͜ ̶̡̜̥̖͇̲̅͜s̶̠̗̭͉͍̫̞̭̩͑ṭ̵̱̯̱̞͈̝̫͍̗̆į̷̛͙͔͉̙̹͙͔̰̀̂̅͝l̸͎͇̪̭̻̦̝̐l̴̛̤̜̫̮̿̈͆͒̽́̉̕ ̴̖̓̀́̍P̶̧̯̠͠á̸̠̤͕̜̤͎̝͒i̸̯̟͈̺̹̟̲̗͔͂̄̉͆̚͠m̸͇̣̪̳̦͚̺̲͌o̶̥̮͇̩͂̃̒̌͌͂̏̚͜n̷̖͍͇͂,̶̧̫̞͚̹̞͋̓͗̆̍̓͌̐̄̌ͅ ̶̲͙͂̆͆̒́̋̒̇̂ͅr̵̩̟̥̣̮̕͘i̷̺͓̙͖̞̼̘͑͗̐͗g̴̱̼͎̤̤͔̈́͌̈́̏́̔̈ͅh̸̢͔͇̬̰̳̳̻̎̄t̶͉̹̼̩̼͔͚̰̐̾̂̋͗̒̾.̶̛̙̺̺̔̃͑̀͑͠͝.̸̯͂͆̾͝.̴̧͔̖̯̽̆͒̕͠?̵̨̧̞̣͉̀̓͝
.̷̛͕̩͍̞͈͓̤̞̻̯̗̜̰̻͕̘̞̞̫̙̳̀́̆̇̈́̍́͘͝͝.̷̗̔͛.̶̧̞̗͎̒͒̎͂͌͐̓͐̐́͌̐̂̚͘͝B̶̖̲̘̬̆́̔͒̋̋́̅̎̈́̍̈́͛̿͘͘͠ų̸̛̺̜͔͎̲̖́̒͐̍̋̐͊͑̇́̔̏̂̑̓̃͑̋̿̀͐͘͠ț̸̡̢̮͕̞̞̞̗̦̌́̔̉̂̓͋́͑̽̕͘͝͠͝͝ ̶̧̧͉̜̱̣͉̗͓̝͈̙̟̞̺̪̩͒͛̑i̸̢̝̯̘̲͉͙̣̲͎̲̭̼̲͍̙̙͙̞̤̳̞̥̗̫͑̎͂s̷̲̟̦̠͉͓̝̞̰̥̤͚̭͔̈̈̈́͗̈́͑̋͐̈́̃͌̽̕̚̚͝ ̷̡̧̲͔̦̪̟͕̪̑͛̀̈̔̈́́͌̀͒̎̚̕͝͝P̸̢̫̹̲̤͈̲͉̱͎̦̲̪̪͕̤̬̼̝̆̾̒̚͜a̷̡̡̭̥̩̭̥͎͇̖̦̱̹̪͈̞̙̭͗̽̃̀͛̉̂̓̂̀̎͝͠i̵͓̥͚̬̣͖͂͊̀͛̅̈̀̚͜͝m̸̨͔͓̯̯̰͚̖̞̠̀̆͘͜ơ̶̢̧̗̮̗͍̹̰͈̹̣̱͖͔̤̙͎̼̟̞͚̍̈́̌́̒̏̅̏̂̈́̉̈̅̎͌͗͋͗̈͘͜͠͝͝ͅn̸̛̩̲̩͎̘̝̳͇͓̣̗̩̠̯̹̫̰̒̋̂̌̃̇͊̍͒͗̄̃͑̂̆̉̿͛̽͘̕͝͠ͅ ̵̡̢̛̬̰̳̹̘̱͎̮͇̦̈́̓̃̍́̃͂̽̽̅̒̔͘͠r̷̛̖͍͍͇̎́͑̾̎͑̿͋́̈́̿̏̽̾̈́͛̊̓͆̏̒̇̚͘͠͝͠͝͝é̷̡̡̢̨͖̞̬̼̼̰̟͚̪̫͉̭̰̺̹̠̱̪̺̪̖̲̟͖̫̓́͛͌̓̌͆͗̈́̀͊̔͘̚͝ͅą̸̡̤͓͚̱͓̻͇̩̥͓̮̰̥̜̠͉̙̣̥͓͖͈͆͑̋̾͛͜l̵̢̨̧̡͖̭͎̤͎̮͍̼̯̝̮̭̤͇̻̹̪̯͉̞̤͐̋̃̍̇̋̈́̏́͊͛͑͆̑͆̾̅̾̾͊̇͌̃͗̾ͅľ̸̨̡̨̛̮͈̜͎̙̺͎͉̟̠͉̜͇̼͎̗͈̫̞̙̱͊̀̅̈́͂̆̄́̊ͅy̶̧̨̛̟͍̦̻̘̼̲͕͓̤͙̹̣̳̞͚̜͈̜͚̠͍̮̮͑͌͋̈́̊̎͊̄͌̅̂̈̑̔͋̒̀̽̆̉̄̔͝͝ ̸̢̨̛̹̹̫̗̬͕͉̫̭̫̲̬͉̣̰̖̻̩̖̼̮̪͙̍̃̿̔̿̾́͂"̷̨̗͍̬̤͔̮̲͇̖̙̿̆͒̍̌̐̈̑͐͊̆̌̄͊͗̌̕̕̚͝ͅP̷͎̻͈̝̻͗͐͋͑̒̍̽̓͂̄̏̂̌͘͝͠ǎ̵̛̤̃̔͊̓̇̆̾͌̀̽̽̈͒̉̃̂̐͛͆̾́̅̈́̄̓̓͝į̸̧͉̦̯̙̲̫͈̖͎̬̭̮̼͖̳͔̮̠̠̻͇̮͎̰̂̕m̶̢̢̨̱̱̺̮̣͍͔͔̩̰̥̙͓̮͕̀͋͛̐̅͒̔̃̇̅͐̒͐̋͘̕͠ǫ̴̨̖̬̘̙̅̃̆̽̌̃́̽̈́̌̑̄̂̅̋͛͗͋̈́̈́̀̔̎̔͌͘͝n̷͇̱̳͙̈͒̍͒̀̈́̊͆̃́̀̇͂̑́̀̾͘̕͝"̷̨̧̛̞͈̖̫̘̼̗̻̰̫͈̟͔͇̼̘͕͔̖͆̍́̏̎̌̐̈́͊̃̀̂̓̀̄̔͗̄̎̉̚͜͠͝.̵̢̫̤͍͈̙͖͇̦̙͈̻̫̗̼̖͖͚̖͖̹̤͌̎́̽̔͛͒̿͆͋͒͌̽.̷̡̧̨̨̛̛̼̗̦̞̖͎̹̙̝͉͔͍̤͍͓̖̠̣̲̝̯̱̲̑̾͋̒̽̊̓́͒̌̽̾̐̈́̀̓̆̓̇͒̿̽͂̕͠͝͠.̵̧̛͙͇̱̳̰̭̦͉͎̗̩̯̼̥̳͍̱͇̘̯̟̥̹͎̑̋̓̿͊̎̈́͋̋͆̔̊̈́̈́̿́̊͑̅͂͌̈́̄̅̌͆͘̚͝?̶̢̡̰̣͕̖̠̙̬̪̤͍̦̰̩͈̣͍̞̣͈̩̭͇̅̓̂̓̇̓̓̃͐̐̊͆̑́͆͊͛̓̐͘̚̕͠͝ͅ
...
...
The Traveler wasn't sure how to stop Paimon,
And wherever they could, even if they tried...
*But were they even trying at all...?
...
...
No, they were currently going through the memory lane,
Starting with the particular memory of them flying "Dvalin Airlines" in order to help Venti...
...
"Paimon, how are you feeling...? You were pretty quiet for a while now.
...Paimon? Paimon?! PAIMON!"
...
"...Sorry traveler, Paimon was distracted and didn't notice you talking to Paimon.
...Paimon still feels weird...Paimon doesn't like this feeling...But Paimon is not sure why Paimon feels this way...
... Paimon wishes Paimon knew...But Paimon can't remember…"
…
Later on when they finally arrived to Mondstadt...
"We have arrived, traveler .
I would have landed further in, but considering the poor state of the city, I fear that my presence would only make things worse. It wouldn't have been a problem if only I could take a smaller form...
For the Abyss Order to attack so suddenly, I am ashamed to admit that I didn't notice it sooner. If only I arrived earlier, Barbatos and his people wouldn't have been harmed so much .
...You will help him for me, won't you, traveler from another world...?"
...
"We will help Venti and everyone else. Don't you worry, Dvalin.
I will never abandon my friends."
"Paimon agrees with the traveler. Paimon will help as much as Paimon can, too.
... Paimon feels that if Paimon won't, Paimon is going to regret it so much that Paimon won't be able to eat tasty food ever again..."
...
Then when Paimon somehow saved Venti,
After their own purifying power was not working…
*When in a letter from Sumeru it was suggested that...
"This letter...An interesting and unexpected solution I must say. They suggest for Paimon to try bringing his emotions back.
...Since the ones suggesting this are researchers from the prestigious Sumeru Academia, it would be wise to follow their advice."
...
Wait, who was it that actually wrote this letter...?
Could it have been Samir, Nahida(through Katherine) or someone else...?
*Or was it truly someone from the Akademiya, perhaps even a member of the Temple of Silence...?
...
Either way, it didn't matter at the moment,
After following the suggestion in the letter, Paimon...
"...Paimon is not sure how Paimon can help, but Paimon will try...
...
...Paimon is going to try it now.
... Paimon will do her best. As a friend."
...
...
...
"...Paimon is not sure...What Paimon did...
...But, Paimon is glad...That Barbatos...Is back now..."
She managed to save Venti,
Falling unconscious as she did so...
*Did they remember it wrong, or did she call him "Barbatos"...?
...
...
And later, when Paimon finally woke up...
"Why is Paimon in Mondstadt?! When did Paimon get to Mondstadt?! And why can't Paimon remember anything after the fight with that jerk?!
WHAT HAPPENED TO PAIMON?! IS PAIMON NOT PAIMON ANYMORE?!
...WAS PAIMON EVEN PAIMON ALL THIS TIME?! IS PAIMON REALLY A TYPE OF FISH?! IS PAIMON GOING TO BECOME MONDSTADT GRILLED FISH?! IS PAIMON GOING TO FINALLY GET EATEN BY THE TRAVELER?!"
Was what she said, as she was flying all over the place in a panic.
...
...
"Paimon finally found you, Traveler!
Paimon is not sure how Paimon got here, but it doesn't matter! We have to go back to Mondstadt and fast! Barbatos has gone completely crazy and it makes Paimon sick with worry!"
Back then when they were kidnapped by their Twin,
Paimon was the one who found and got them out...
*How did she even find the place back then...?
And was she calling Venti "Barbatos", once again...?
...
...
"Traveler, are you sure that you want to keep that book with you...?
...Paimon is not entirely sure why, but Paimon feels like something horrible will happen if anyone finds out about it..."
...
Right, this memory, too,
It felt so weird.
*Paimon's reaction at the time was very weird,
When they were reading the "Before Sun and Moon" book.
...
This book that described events of the past, those that Celestia didn't want anyone to know about...
*And the book they made sure to cruelly punish Orobashi for reading...Which led to its death by Ei's hand.
...
...
Did Paimon have something to do with it...?
Was that why she gradually became more and more afraid of it...?
*If so, then...Wasn't she someone from those times, even if she didn't remember...?
...
Every time, no matter where they went,
Paimon didn't seem to be affected by any "harmful aliments"...
*As if she was completely immune...Which wouldn't be possible if she was a normal person.
...
...
...
Paimon was the first person they meet after separating from their Twin,
She was their companion on this journey through Teyvat...
...
And she was also weird, they couldn't deny that...
...
...
But the Traveler was sure that whatever Paimon actually was, she was still on their side,
She was their good friend who tried to help out as much as she could,
Even if she barely remembered anything about herself...
...
Other than her own name:
PAIMON.
...
...
But was it truly a name,
Or some kind of acronym instead...?
*And if it was the latter, an acronym for what…?
"Paimon apologizes for what happened before. Paimon is okay now.", the Pixie said what felt like ages later, even though it was somewhere between seven and eight minutes, looking and sounding quite regretful, "...Paimon still feels a little weird, so Paimon would rather the Traveler continued the retelling...At least until Paimon no longer feels like Paimon is not really Paimon..."
She added in a sad mumble, while looking towards the Traveler,
Before she quietly turned her gaze to the "Viewing Window", her expression thoughtful now...
*It was clear to everyone watching that she was now deep in her own thoughts,
Albeit what she was currently thinking, no one else truly knew...
...
Venti wondered if it had something to do with what Paimon said earlier,
Right before the space itself became weird, as he and some others started "glitching in and out"...
...
".̷͚̫̖̯̼̻̜̳̠̋͆̈́̃̿̋͗̓͆̍͜.̴̩͍̿̔̈́̃̐͒͘͘͝͝.̷̼̻͐̏̍̐͑͘P̷̱̈́̀͠ͅa̴͇̫̼͛̀͑̓î̵̜̩̘͆̂͂̈́͂́m̷̺͓̐͆͘ờ̸̥̩͈̩̯̯͎̿̀̈́͛͘n̶̡̞̺͖̈͝͠ ̷̻̬̹̲̼͕̠͚̀̎̃͜ḭ̶̛̰̹̰̣̓͛̇͜s̶̛̙͓̯̞̔͑̐́͘͜ ̶̡̜̥̖͇̲̅͜s̶̠̗̭͉͍̫̞̭̩͑ṭ̵̱̯̱̞͈̝̫͍̗̆į̷̛͙͔͉̙̹͙͔̰̀̂̅͝l̸͎͇̪̭̻̦̝̐l̴̛̤̜̫̮̿̈͆͒̽́̉̕ ̴̖̓̀́̍P̶̧̯̠͠á̸̠̤͕̜̤͎̝͒i̸̯̟͈̺̹̟̲̗͔͂̄̉͆̚͠m̸͇̣̪̳̦͚̺̲͌o̶̥̮͇̩͂̃̒̌͌͂̏̚͜n̷̖͍͇͂,̶̧̫̞͚̹̞͋̓͗̆̍̓͌̐̄̌ͅ ̶̲͙͂̆͆̒́̋̒̇̂ͅr̵̩̟̥̣̮̕͘i̷̺͓̙͖̞̼̘͑͗̐͗g̴̱̼͎̤̤͔̈́͌̈́̏́̔̈ͅh̸̢͔͇̬̰̳̳̻̎̄t̶͉̹̼̩̼͔͚̰̐̾̂̋͗̒̾.̶̛̙̺̺̔̃͑̀͑͠͝.̸̯͂͆̾͝.̴̧͔̖̯̽̆͒̕͠?̵̨̧̞̣͉̀̓͝
.̷̛͕̩͍̞͈͓̤̞̻̯̗̜̰̻͕̘̞̞̫̙̳̀́̆̇̈́̍́͘͝͝.̷̗̔͛.̶̧̞̗͎̒͒̎͂͌͐̓͐̐́͌̐̂̚͘͝B̶̖̲̘̬̆́̔͒̋̋́̅̎̈́̍̈́͛̿͘͘͠ų̸̛̺̜͔͎̲̖́̒͐̍̋̐͊͑̇́̔̏̂̑̓̃͑̋̿̀͐͘͠ț̸̡̢̮͕̞̞̞̗̦̌́̔̉̂̓͋́͑̽̕͘͝͠͝͝ ̶̧̧͉̜̱̣͉̗͓̝͈̙̟̞̺̪̩͒͛̑i̸̢̝̯̘̲͉͙̣̲͎̲̭̼̲͍̙̙͙̞̤̳̞̥̗̫͑̎͂s̷̲̟̦̠͉͓̝̞̰̥̤͚̭͔̈̈̈́͗̈́͑̋͐̈́̃͌̽̕̚̚͝ ̷̡̧̲͔̦̪̟͕̪̑͛̀̈̔̈́́͌̀͒̎̚̕͝͝P̸̢̫̹̲̤͈̲͉̱͎̦̲̪̪͕̤̬̼̝̆̾̒̚͜a̷̡̡̭̥̩̭̥͎͇̖̦̱̹̪͈̞̙̭͗̽̃̀͛̉̂̓̂̀̎͝͠i̵͓̥͚̬̣͖͂͊̀͛̅̈̀̚͜͝m̸̨͔͓̯̯̰͚̖̞̠̀̆͘͜ơ̶̢̧̗̮̗͍̹̰͈̹̣̱͖͔̤̙͎̼̟̞͚̍̈́̌́̒̏̅̏̂̈́̉̈̅̎͌͗͋͗̈͘͜͠͝͝ͅn̸̛̩̲̩͎̘̝̳͇͓̣̗̩̠̯̹̫̰̒̋̂̌̃̇͊̍͒͗̄̃͑̂̆̉̿͛̽͘̕͝͠ͅ ̵̡̢̛̬̰̳̹̘̱͎̮͇̦̈́̓̃̍́̃͂̽̽̅̒̔͘͠r̷̛̖͍͍͇̎́͑̾̎͑̿͋́̈́̿̏̽̾̈́͛̊̓͆̏̒̇̚͘͠͝͠͝͝é̷̡̡̢̨͖̞̬̼̼̰̟͚̪̫͉̭̰̺̹̠̱̪̺̪̖̲̟͖̫̓́͛͌̓̌͆͗̈́̀͊̔͘̚͝ͅą̸̡̤͓͚̱͓̻͇̩̥͓̮̰̥̜̠͉̙̣̥͓͖͈͆͑̋̾͛͜l̵̢̨̧̡͖̭͎̤͎̮͍̼̯̝̮̭̤͇̻̹̪̯͉̞̤͐̋̃̍̇̋̈́̏́͊͛͑͆̑͆̾̅̾̾͊̇͌̃͗̾ͅľ̸̨̡̨̛̮͈̜͎̙̺͎͉̟̠͉̜͇̼͎̗͈̫̞̙̱͊̀̅̈́͂̆̄́̊ͅy̶̧̨̛̟͍̦̻̘̼̲͕͓̤͙̹̣̳̞͚̜͈̜͚̠͍̮̮͑͌͋̈́̊̎͊̄͌̅̂̈̑̔͋̒̀̽̆̉̄̔͝͝ ̸̢̨̛̹̹̫̗̬͕͉̫̭̫̲̬͉̣̰̖̻̩̖̼̮̪͙̍̃̿̔̿̾́͂"̷̨̗͍̬̤͔̮̲͇̖̙̿̆͒̍̌̐̈̑͐͊̆̌̄͊͗̌̕̕̚͝ͅP̷͎̻͈̝̻͗͐͋͑̒̍̽̓͂̄̏̂̌͘͝͠ǎ̵̛̤̃̔͊̓̇̆̾͌̀̽̽̈͒̉̃̂̐͛͆̾́̅̈́̄̓̓͝į̸̧͉̦̯̙̲̫͈̖͎̬̭̮̼͖̳͔̮̠̠̻͇̮͎̰̂̕m̶̢̢̨̱̱̺̮̣͍͔͔̩̰̥̙͓̮͕̀͋͛̐̅͒̔̃̇̅͐̒͐̋͘̕͠ǫ̴̨̖̬̘̙̅̃̆̽̌̃́̽̈́̌̑̄̂̅̋͛͗͋̈́̈́̀̔̎̔͌͘͝n̷͇̱̳͙̈͒̍͒̀̈́̊͆̃́̀̇͂̑́̀̾͘̕͝"̷̨̧̛̞͈̖̫̘̼̗̻̰̫͈̟͔͇̼̘͕͔̖͆̍́̏̎̌̐̈́͊̃̀̂̓̀̄̔͗̄̎̉̚͜͠͝.̵̢̫̤͍͈̙͖͇̦̙͈̻̫̗̼̖͖͚̖͖̹̤͌̎́̽̔͛͒̿͆͋͒͌̽.̷̡̧̨̨̛̛̼̗̦̞̖͎̹̙̝͉͔͍̤͍͓̖̠̣̲̝̯̱̲̑̾͋̒̽̊̓́͒̌̽̾̐̈́̀̓̆̓̇͒̿̽͂̕͠͝͠.̵̧̛͙͇̱̳̰̭̦͉͎̗̩̯̼̥̳͍̱͇̘̯̟̥̹͎̑̋̓̿͊̎̈́͋̋͆̔̊̈́̈́̿́̊͑̅͂͌̈́̄̅̌͆͘̚͝?̶̢̡̰̣͕̖̠̙̬̪̤͍̦̰̩͈̣͍̞̣͈̩̭͇̅̓̂̓̇̓̓̃͐̐̊͆̑́͆͊͛̓̐͘̚̕͠͝ͅ"
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And then, what followed was…
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uoɯıɐԀ sı uoɯıɐԀ sı uoɯıɐԀ sı uoɯıɐԀ sı uoɯıɐԀ sı uoɯıɐԀ sı uoɯıɐԀ sı uoɯıɐԀ
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P̸̡̡͈̳͙̪͕̙̍̍̓̉̄̂̐̀̄̔̐͗̆̇̽̍̆̅̀͊͗̅̈́̔̓̽͘͠ͅa̸̡̨̛̖̣̝͉̞͇͇̟͉̖̔̈̌̄̽́͑͌̀̅͋̿̋̚͝͝í̷̧̛̼͖̼̹͈͙̻̺́̌̿̆͂́͗͛̈́̀̍͗̔͆̔͊̓͛̔̄̈̚̕m̸̨̠̪͈͇͇̹͇͍̜̤͚̫̩̠̬͂̇͂̇̌̎̈́̈̅̃͗͐͌̈́͑͌̒̑̌̚̕͜͝ͅǒ̶̡̭̺̖̜͓̗̳̣̰̩̮̜̦̫̯̮̳̼̠͈̗̎̈́̅̍͑̐̌͌̈́͐͒̍́͛͐̂͂͒̚̕̚͝n̶̹͛̑ ̶͙̹̣̹͔̱̣̳̪̲̯͓͊̏͛͋͒̓̓̈̇̎͊̿̊͊͗͑͐̎̇͒̚͘̚͝͝i̸̪̞͚̯̦̮̜̮̱̪̳͇̹̞̕͜͜͜͜ṣ̸̢͙̖͖͓̤͉̬͕̥͈͇̥͚̎̂̓̎̈͑̔̍̌͒͌͒̍̔̏̐͛́̚͝ͅͅ ̸̩̈́̅̉́̋͑̆͊̂̉̏̇͗̍͂̋̾̈́̀̑͆̕͘͝͝P̵̯͚̫͂́̇͋̅̎͊͊́́̈͛̒̐̏͒̕̕̚a̴̢̨̢̨̛̞̪̞͖̼̗̟͉̲̳͕̞̜̟̤͑͗̊̓͂̌̂̂̊̀̅̌̓̋̈̌̊̉͐̑̃̊̎͒̕̕͠͠ͅi̶̞͑̑m̷̨̢̨̧̢̮̮̦̥͚̥̻͖̻͉̙̬̝͙̼̖̠̪̘͈̖͇̟̗̈́̉̀͌̓ơ̵̢̢̛̻͔̤̗͔̳̦͈̜͕̝̱͖̱͔͚̺̲̣͖̯̥̣̱̗̋̇̑̌̊̽̇͗͋̉̈́̐͗̽̓͂̔̃͊͋̂̌̽͆́͗͘͠ñ̵̙̈́̽͝ ̸̢̻̞̺̪́͒͋͆͝ì̷̡̢͎͈̳͉̹̫̺̟͓̐̉̄̔̑̃͘s̶̛̹̪͖̭͖̠̥͔̝̮̆̆̀̃͋́̊́̇̈́̎͒͆̒̽́͒̄͋̚͠ ̴̨̛͔̻̘̼͚͓͊̌̔̃̈́̇͗͂̾̉̄̊͗̔̒́̇̾̆̿̃̓̚͝͝͠P̴̙̆̑̃͐̿̽̓̋̒̉̃̄͑̊̚ḁ̴̲̯͓̰̗̬͔̹̫̰̖̰̦̮̪̰͚̫͑̆͌̔́͗̃͋̈́̃͑́̀͗̌̄́̇̍̊̓͠͝͝ị̵̢͍͕̼̱̰̗͓̲̩̞̼̖̝̹̻̰̤̪̣̫̝̰͉̇̓͜m̴̧̨̰͓̞̣͖͇̗̼͔͔͍̯̯͕̼̭̪̟̈́̈́̆͂̈́̽̅̔̽̆͐͐̈́͋̆̚͘͝ͅơ̵̢͇͎̼̮͓̞̬̘͓̙̣̭̮͚͔̠͍̟̱̝͇̥̮̱̘̞̲̬̔͂̑̄̎̀̉̂̎̀̀́͐̑͊̇̋͘̕͠͠ņ̵̨̺̭̬̗̱̻͇̮̻̗̯̰̼͇̣̻͇͓̠̝̞͍̭̫̩͉̜͗̉͒̌̈̍͌̌̏̕͘̕ ̸̼̾͌͆̿̌̋͑̄̆̕͝͝͝i̵̢̡̛̩͇̣̮̹͍̩̬̬͍̬̰͉̰̥̳̹͙̙̹̼͌̆̓̿͑̐̃̿̍̏͛̆͜͠͝͠s̵̟͙̺͎̭̏̅̎͋̆͛́̇͋̾̅̌͒̆̊͛͘̚̚ ̸̨̧̧̢̟̺͖̻̩͈͓̥̮͖̰̙̗̳̖̟̗̠̙͍̫̳̬̭̩̅̊̅́͒͑̓̓͛̈́̉͐͗̓̍̊͝͝ͅP̶̡͈͍̤̘̳͓͈̫̟̠̮̤͓̯̫̪͊̌̿͂̎͆͋ͅͅa̶̧̢̛͈̯̻̠̜̬͌͛̈́̍͋͝͝i̷̡̯̼̖̖̼͕͚̫͕͙̹͚̬̞͚̟̳̙̱̺̊̓̐̈͋̇̈́̑́̿̉̇̓̾̕͝ͅͅm̸̛̦͂̄̈͒͛̀͐̈́͛͒̒̂͆̏̍̽͐̐̊̾̽ǫ̷̢̧̢̛̫͈̮͓̲̹̯̻̼̠͉͓͚̘̥̙̗̠̹̦͉̏̌̋͑̈́̕̚͝͝ͅͅn̶̢̨̨̨̛͈̘͍̟̬̗͕̫̮̹̬͔̻̯͇̳̪̫̭̰̦̲͉̻̮̉̄̃̃̔̀̏͆̎̽͐̄̑͘̕͘ͅ ̶̡̞̯͎̘̦͙̹̲̩̦̙̏̽͑̀̈́͋́͐̂͒͛̍i̵̩̪͌̐̔̍͂̄̊̂̉̑̏̈́́̀͌̒͒̚ş̷̡̨̰̣̟̞̗̱̻̲͍̫̺̥̣̥̪͚̼̟̞̺̈́̀̽͆̎̉͂̽̔̊̀̇̈́̿́̿̎̈́͘ ̴̢̢̨̼̲̫͎̺̗͇̹͉͇̰̺̳̼͔͕͈̙̫̹͎͖͇̾̋̂̇̔̌͒͊͋̒͒̆͊̾͂͒͑̋͗́́̕͘͘͜͠P̶̺̹̞̮̙͔̝̤̈̐̽̓́͑̂̽̓̃̈́̓́͆̾̈̉͆̏̍̽͆͑̅̾͊̽̚͠a̶̢̬̩̙̹̝̬̙̳͈̭̖̙̳̝͍̭͔͑̔͗͆̈́̐͑̄̈̈́̓̈́̊̄́̔̕̕͘̕̕͠i̵̺͂̔̐̅͗̒̑̓̐̄̑͆̈́̊̍̓͊̐́̂̈͗̎̽m̵̟̖̠̱̗͕̞̣̖̰̙̰̎ỏ̸̢͉͉͙̝͇̩͉̮̮̻̱͍̣͙͇͈̳̥̠̱̗̜̩́͛͋͊̆̂̾̔̈̍́̃̇͝͝͝͝͝n̸̛͕̟͇͍̰͉̘̖̜̽̃̇̉͊̒̃̓͗͋̈́̆̇͂̿̽̅́̈́̐̓̃͛̔͑̈́͆̚͝ ̷̡̢͓͙̺̭̮̟͉̩̞̰̺̟͈̺͖̝̞͉̹̟̠̺͈̍̓̀̾̍͒̆̽̌͗͒̔͐̚͘̚͝i̷̢̢͙̝̻̦͕̥͍̜͎̳̖̎͑͆̓̈́̈̓͒͑̏̓̋̿͗̅̑̉̃̇͊̈̍̈́͗͘͘̚͝͠s̴̛̥̩̦͖̘͉͂̐̅̓͗̈́͋̍̒̔͐́͂̿͆͜͝͠ ̴̨̛̰̼͇̲͚͖̮͚̞̻̪͉͈̹͉̤͕̪̎̽͑̈́͒̈́̍̂̄̽̕̚͝͝Ṕ̵̡̢̧͉̖̮̖̖̭̲̲̳̤̙̮̖̑͌̉̿̈́͊͜͠ą̷̧̡̛̛͓̦̣͕̯̙̱̪͔̞̲̞̙͈̩̬͎̱͓͈̣̭̺̯̪́̀̀͆͑̂̾̎̇̄̽̾̀̋̐̄̋̐̓̓͌͂̆͘͠ĭ̸̱̹̣̟͓̬̗̩̗̘̯̩̹̗̩̺̝͆̀̈̅̚̚͜͠m̵̢̨̹͚̳͎̜̜̤͚̼̝̳̻͚̮̫͕͚̱̑́̑̆̍̓̋̎̒͑̓̄̚͜͜͠ơ̵̧̢̪̠̱̲͙͚̳̘͖̹̱̹̻̬̼̼̼̦̪̲̮̫͍̦̻̩̦̿̆͆͒̋͌͆̈̆͋͒͘͜͝n̴̢̗̰͖̱̪̥̦͈̩̪̳̪̦̮̱͖̱̰͚̤͓̹̐̀̍̒͌̇͊̎̂̈́̋̿̔͌̏͒͒̽̑̊́͋̅͛͝͝͠ͅ ̷̨̡̛̝̼̫͍̱͈͙̲͎̗̺̳̘͍͇̲̳̳̩̳̳͕͈͕͓̒͆̎̇̈́̿͒̏͘͝͝͝i̴̡̧̨̨̘̠̞̪̰̺͈͚̥̹̩̩̲̳̩̞̒͒̇͐̏͗̇͗̓͑̋͋͐͒̀̐͘̚͜͜ͅs̸̨̡̛͇͖̗̳̗̹̪̲̬̗̘͓̲͔̲̰̖͔̟͚̈̓̒̃͊̃̈́̆̓̾͝ ̴̨̨̟̳̘͍̯̱̙͈̟̻͕͓̤̪̭͓͇̣̞̹̲͗̅͋̏͑͂́̀͆̓̈̅̾͘͜͜͝͝Ṕ̶̧̢̡̟͓̪̪̼͈̲͇̤͉̘͈̳͙̥͇̗͉͚̂͌̄̔̽̏̿̅̒͑̄͂̚a̷̢̼̗̭̤͎̙̹͉̭̺̩̖̫̙̖̦̗̝̞̥̎̒̌̒̊̾͋͐̄́̾̌̒͊͒́͐̃͗͒̎̂̽̚͘̕͝͠ͅi̸̢̡̛̦̬͕̫͕͇̠͎͙͓̞̭̺̗̜͚͙̣͇̩̱̳̿̂̐̍̃͐̑̕͜͝m̸̨̛̱͙̙̥̠͎̻̼̺̮̙͔̈͐̾̾̔̆́̾̈̌̄̿̃̏̀̄͂͗͌́́͐̈́̚͝͠ó̸̢̡͇̯̲̯͍̘̬͈͍͚̥͔̱͙͚͈̂̓̈́̋̌̔̀̇̋̿͌̓̑̀̐̀͑̋̍̊̄͒͐̾̀͘͜͝n̷̛̛̛̛̺̥̪͓̅̾͑͋́͆̅̽͛̂̓̄̽͊̐̐̈́̄͘͜͠͝ ̴̨̨̫̤̭̮̲̫̙̦̻͖̞̖̝̺̫̱͙͖̭̺̯̫̀͋̊̇̅͗̀̌́̇̀̀́̈́͒̑̑̒̎̈́̿̓̚̕͜͜͝ͅį̶̡̤̝̼͎̯̭̥̮̒̆̇̈͆͂̐̈́̎̕͘s̸͉̝̭̲̘͓͈̥̙̗̰̬͋̂̍̍̀̊́͑̾̍͋̾̇̃͑͋̂́͘͝ ̶̢̡͖̭̼͎̪̼̰͚̖̠̯̮̦̫̥̦̎̌̌͋̅̔̓͜͠͝͝ͅP̵̨̨̺̟̘̬̠͇̯̤͇̤͇͍̫̪̗̺͇̬̩̲̎̈́̑̊̌ă̴̧̧̡̦̝̣̦̫̲͓̜̼̗͕̱̬̮̥̳͉̬̖̾͆͑̎̏̔̐͂̊͒̃̋͛̔̔̃̓̄͑͜͜͝͝͝ͅi̸̛͈̬̝̜̮̖̜̜̻̖̙̾̅̌́̇̀͑͛̒̾̒̿̎̐̇̽̄̅̂̅͆̚͝͝m̸̡̧͙̞̭̙̭͉̬̥̙̯̼̮̣͈̪̯̖̙̈̓͆͋̇̀̍̂͌̂̄͒̑͘͜͜͝ȍ̸̟̳̟̱̲͉̭̝̝͇̫͓̥̈́͛̏̑̒̎̔̄̈́̒͒̅͂́́͋̊͘͘̚͘n̵̢̮͕̱͉͇͇͓͖͎͙͓̤̩̤͙̞͊̎͑̋͐
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"Paimon" was repeated 8 times,
While "is" was repeated 7 times...
...
...
...
Wait, what did it have to do with anything...?
*That sudden "glitching" must have done something to his mind,
Which is why he was thinking some very weird things now, right...?
...
...
That must be it...
*But is it, really...?
...
...
-...Ignoring what recently happened for the moment, we should really continue with the retelling now, right, Traveler...? -Venti decided to say a few seconds later, trying to look and sound as reassuring as possible, before he turned towards the now eerily quiet Pixie. -...Paimon, it's truly alright. You are Paimon and that's all that matters!~
He made sure to add with full sincerity, showing a warm smile as he did so,
In reaction to which Paimon was quiet for a few more seconds, before returning the smile with a small one of her own...
"...Well, as long as you are really okay now, Paimon...", the Traveler soon mumbled, so quietly that Venti was certain he was the only one who heard them, "...Venti, remember my Inazuma retelling and how chaotic things were for me back then...?", they continued moments later, upon turning to look right at the "Viewing Window", "...Yeah, Sumeru...It's truly on a completely different level...", they added with an awkward laugh, before their expression turned thoughtful for a few seconds, "...But I should probably start on the more "carefree" part of it...", they took a small pause, either to gather their thought or simply for dramatic effect, it was truly hard to tell, "First off, based on the reports that the Temple of Silence got from some "inside" people, Yanfei pretty much had Azar and his subordinates beat at the court and the only reason they were still "in power" was because of their Fatui allies.", they explained in clear amusement, "By the time we started our "save Sumeru and its Archon" plan, most of Sumeru city was protesting against the Akademiya and were pretty much about to "throw hands". The only reason they couldn't is due to the Fatui acting as Azar's and the other 3 Sages' bodyguards. Though those bodyguards still failed, since the mob got to one of them: Khajeh, the Sage of the Haravatat Darshan, which specialized in semiotics, the study of sign processes and meaning-making, and includes disciplines such as linguistics and ancient runes studies.", they explained some more, before their expression turned thoughtful, "I don't know all the details (it would be better to ask Tighnari for those later) but I do know that this Sage was punished quite hard and is now lying in a hospital bed, completely bandaged..."
-He had it coming, you should never use your position to oppress those "below you". -Frederica commented, looking and sounding quite disappointed.
"Yeah, so hearing this particular "news" felt more amusing than anything~ Everyone still remembers how he and the other two helped Azar with the "Samsara dream-loop" and other evildoings...", the Traveler happily agreed, a malicious smile soon showing on their face, "...Speaking of which, Dori also decided to help us out, by selling them mostly useless wares at extravagant prices. At the same time, she helped smuggle some "items" between our own allies, as per Shahzaman Homayani's orders."
"Paimon wouldn't be surprised if he paid her a lot of Mora for helping.", the Pixie commented, looking and sounding more thoughtful than anything, "...Though knowing how Dori is, she probably saw that our side is winning and decided to join it while she still could."
"...And have a lot of people in her favor later. Yeah, I wouldn't put it past her.", the Traveler added, looking and sounding quite thoughtful themselves, before they turned to look towards the Pixie in some concern, "...Paimon, if you are feeling better now, do you want to continue the retelling from here onwards...?"
They soon asked, getting silence in reply,
One that continued for a few seconds...
"...Paimon would like that, yes. Paimon came to like those "retellings" of ours...", the Pixie finally said, looking and sounding a little happier now, "Just give Paimon a few seconds to summarize the information in Paimon's head."
"Okay, Paimon is going to start now.", the Pixie said almost a minute later, her expression now looking very serious, "On the day of "the operation", it was decided that a small group(further split into pairs) was going to sneak into Sumeru city first, in case there's an alarm that will go off the moment Nahida is freed. So Paimon and Traveler, Candace and Dehya, Jeht and Tadhla, and Xiao and Cyno went through a secret passage usually used by the Temple of Silence! The exit was slightly away from the Sanctuary of Surasthana, though, so everyone made sure to hide as near as we could without getting seen! And then, a loud siren was heard all over the city and before long, a bunch of guards came!", she explained, adding dramatism at the end, "Samir has just freed Nahida and just as we expected a very loud and annoying alarm went off! Paimon was so mad that when everyone started fighting the guards, Paimon made sure to use her sword to bash them on the head! It worked very well and Paimon still thinks it's because of Samir's enchantment, even though Paimon is not entirely sure what this enchantment does..."
"From what I have seen, it has either a sleeping, a paralyzing or a weakening effect. Which would explain why they all fell so fast...", the Traveler supplied, looking and sounding thoughtful, before their expression soon turned a little annoyed, "...But I am still annoyed that the passage entrance was still so far from where we needed to go. Because of all the guards (most of which were Fatui) blocking the way, it was hard to see most of the building!", they added, pouting all the while, before they deeply sighed, "...Like, I get why it was built in such a way, when the Akademiya was first made, no one expected the Sages to jail their own Archon in the future. The Sanctuary of Surasthana was originally supposed to be Lord Rukkhadevata's meditation chamber, after all..."
-The Akademiya has truly fallen low. -Seamus couldn't help but say in clear disgust, his expression mirroring his tone. -...Doing something so blasphemous to their own god!
"Yeah, those Sages are the worst! And Nahida still can't bring herself to hate them, even now!", Paimon agreed, looking and sounding very annoyed, "Anyway, while fighting against the "hordes" of guards and making sure to bash as many as Paimon could, Paimon also made sure to check on what everyone else was also doing. So Paimon turned around to look back at the city...And it was complete chaos down there!", she almost yelled out the last sentence, "Paimon can still remember it as if Paimon is seeing it now: All of our allies, including the Eremite clans on our side, the people Shahzaman Homayani gathered up, the Aranara and the normal Sumeru citizens who could fight AGAINST the Akademiya's allies, which included their own guards, the Fatui and some people wearing an Akasha earpiece who looked like they were in a trance. It was basically a full blown Civil War!"
"...Later it turned out that Dottore persuaded Azar that the best way to make sure that his control over the Akademiya and Sumeru as a whole stays unshakable, is to get rid of all the opposition. Which is what ultimately started the civil war.", the Traveler added, looking and sounding both disappointed and mad, "...And they even used the Akasha to take control of people and have turn them into their own "battle slaves".", their expression turned even more mad, almost enraged, "Thankfully Xiao teleported to the lower part of the city at that moment and managed to knock out all of those people, because if he didn't...I don't know what I would have done if I saw Azar or..."
-Dottore was in Sumeru at the time...? And he pulled the strings behind the scenes...? -Their enraged voice was soon interrupted by another, equally enraged one, one that was coming from a livid looking Diluc. -That...Motherf*cker is still running FREE TO...?!
-Diluc, please calm down, alright? -Kaeya soon interrupted him, as he was trying really hard to look and sound as reassuring as possible, already preparing to use his Cryo Vision if the need arises. -...I know well what that..."Person" did, but it's not the time nor place for you to seek revenge. Do you want to burn the place down with your Pyro Vision...?
He carefully asked, making sure to look at Diluc's Vision while he did so,
With said Vision clearly flashing now, just about to be used...
*Which was clear to everyone watching, including the redhead himself,
As Diluc quietly looked at it, before deeply sighing moments later...
...
-I apologize for the sudden outburst. -He soon said in as much regret as he could, while he clearly tried very hard not to think about a certain "Motherf*cker" again. Lest he gets his emotions out of control again and this time...-...Please, continue the retelling, Traveler, Paimon. -He told them, before turning his gaze to Kaeya, or rather the flashing Vision hanging from his loose belt. His brother already thought of the possibility. Good. -...Kaeya, if I lose control of my rage again, feel free to use your Vision to "cool down" my head.
...
"...Well, if you are really okay with this, Master Diluc.", the Traveler said in some awkwardness, before turning to their Pixie friend, "Paimon, want to continue the retelling now?"
"...Paimon...? Sure, Paimon doesn't mind.", the Pixie answered, looking and sounding equally awkward, "As everyone was fighting against the guards, we soon found out the reason why there were so many! Apparently, their plan was to kill Nahida and frame Samir for it, so that the "feud" between the Rainforest and Desert Dwellers not only continues, but becomes much much worse!"
-...They really don't know how Samir really is. -Venti couldn't help but say aloud, as he suddenly remembered a certain "sentence" the other god said. -...If they really tried to do as they promised, their days would have been numbered. If they would have still been alive at all...
He menacingly added, deciding that this vague explanation was enough,
But if he has to elaborate, well...
"...If not for my contract with Nahida, I would have punished Azar way more than with the "Itchy nuisance penance" I already brought on him.
...If he dares even imply I would hurt Nahida, I will make sure to find a way to break this contract and show him what it means to cross ME. And if he goes further than that, perhaps daring to hurt Nahida himself in order to place the blame on me...I WILL BREAK HIM LITTLE BY LITTLE. PIECE BY PIECE I WILL TEAR HIM APART, BODY AND SOUL. I WILL FIND WAYS TO MAKE HIM SUFFER IN ENDLESS TORMENT. I WILL INFLICT HIM WITH PROLONGED AND AGONIZING PAIN. UNTIL THE LIGHT LEAVES HIS EYES AND ONLY A SHELL OF A PERSON REMAINS. UNTIL HE HAGGARDLY DROPS AT MY FEET AND STARTS BEGGING FOR MERCY. BEGGING ME TO END HIS NIGHTMARE, TO END HIS ROTTEN AND WRETCHED EXISTENCE. WISHING THAT HE WAS..."
He remembered these words clearly...
...
"Well, those people are still alive, surprisingly enough...But the state they must be in right now...", the Traveler started moments later, looking both slightly concerned, as well as amused, "...I suppose I should just continue the retelling for now~", they soon added, sounding more amused than anything, "Sometime during the fighting, I noticed that everyone in our group got a power boost, which was a great help in beating all those enemies. Just as we were done with "the current wave", Cyno admitted that this must be Samir's doing, as he is sharing his power, by channeling it to us and our other allies."
"It was such a great power boost, Paimon felt like Paimon could defeat an Abyss Herald with one hit!", the Pixie added, looking and sounding very impressed, "But this was not the end for Paimon's surprise, as before long, we meet up with Samir and Nahida!"
She happily added and as soon as she did,
Sounds of uncontrollable laughter were suddenly heard...
...
Coming from the badly-heaving looking Traveler...
"Hahahahaha! S-Samir...! A-and Nahida...! Hahahahaha!", they managed to say between laughter, "T-the Bowling Ball...Hahahahahaha! O-of Destruction...! Hahahahaha! A-and the Illusory Mushroom...T-throwing Dancer...! Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!"