Disclaimer: I do not own Genshin Impact and RWBY. All rights go to MiHoyo and Rooster Teeth.

- Prologue: Memories that shall never leave -

Windrise, Mondstadt

On a breezy moonlit night, under the swaying branches and fluttering leaves of the Symbol of Mondstadt's Hero, a boy in green played his lyre as one with nature. A slow song, which attracted the ears of birds and animals to gather and listen, calming down from its notes, as the bard plucked his strings. So mesmerizing was this song, that the world stood still, forgeting its problems, and the wind takes away all the worries, letting all listen to this peaceful yet sad ballad.

The boy was fair skinned, has aqua green eyes and short blackish-blue hair with short twin braids on both side of his face that fade into aqua blue. He was wearing a frilly white top surrounded by a corset, along with gold embroided teal shorts and a matching cape held by a deep blue and gold bow, he also wore white stockings with three gold diamond shapes along each leg and a teal beret with a cecilia. Also, on his belt was a Mondstadter Anemo vision.

Say My Name, as it was called, a song written by a bard whose name has been lost to time, and played by said bard in that ruined city to sooth the mood of the people, to bring hope that they might be unshackled one day from their tempestuous cage, and live freely from the tyrant's rule. That wish may had came true, but at what cost, for many had fallen as the great tower crumbled, and amongst the dead, laid the body of the bard, who led the charge against the God of Storms.

No one in the new city remembered the name of that bard of elder days, not even the church, which held the lore of their archon, Barbatos, and the stories of their liberation. But not this bard, for Venti remembers, although he may not show it, behind his smile, he had been grieving for his friend's sacrifice to this day. From his birth as a wisp amongst a thousand winds, to today's free Mondstadt, the lord of anemo had experienced the grief of loss and suffering, as he listened to the winds which carried the voices and spirits of the people they have grazed upon.

As he finished his song, the bard gazed upon the animals that were still gathered around him, and smiled at the patience of his new companions. Then the critters scatter, birds fly, rabbits rush, foxes run, and boars charge away. Venti looks further away, and he notices, heading towards the Statue of the Seven, are the figures of two, that of a tall red headed man dressed in dark, and a tall blond lady in white and a blue cloak.

"Hoho, another date for the grand master and the wine baron, eh?" Venti said out loud, raising the attention of the two, who then turned their heads towards the bard, as he floated down in front of them from the rock pedestal he was sitting on.

Diluc replied coolly, "Don't get the wrong idea, we are here on formal business."

Jean added with a slight blush on her cheeks, "A-and we are just here to have a rest, after having finished a mission to stop an abyss threat."

"Oh? So Master Diluc has decided to rejoin the Knights of Favonius?" the bard asked playfully.

"As I have said many times before, and I will say it again, no, I do not have any plans on rejoining. I just tagged along with the acting grand master to sabotage the Abyss Order's plans along the way."

"Intriguing, mind if I ask how it went? Perhaps I could write song or poem using it as inspiration," Venti inquired.

The pyro vision user flipped his eyes and sighed, "Well, since you asked..."

As the two described their situations, Venti listened contently. Ever since the Stormterror incident and the summer at the Golden Apple Archipelago, Jean and Diluc had gotten closer. During the day, they were still just acting grand master and the wine baron, busy with their work and daily duties, but sometimes at night, when most of the city is asleep and she had no more work to do, the dandelion knight would secretly go to Angel's Share to have a drink and chat with the secretive Darknight Hero, drinking Dawn Winery's finest grape juice, of course.

"...And after igniting the pyro slime barrels, we ran through the escape route before they explode and destroying their hideout," Jean finished recounting their mission.

Venti said nodding, "Mmm, interesting, so much action, vigor and subterfuge, I could write a hero's poem with that. Actually, now that I think about it, Aether is currently in Fontaine and I heard that in the Fontinalia Film Festival, his team won the Furina Award, perhaps they could use your mission as a basis for a new film."

"You're right, Venti. I read that day's Steambird and saw the picture of the victors of the competition, and Aether and Paimon were there, maybe we can send him a letter to ask for their producer's opinion on it. What do you think, sir?" Jean asked her senior about the idea.

Diluc replied unenthusiastically, "Personally, I don't quite like the idea of putting myself in the spotlight like that, especially on a silver screen, but since it is Aether and Paimon, I will just let it slide once, also Jean, stop calling sir, again."

The Dandelion Knight chuckled while the God of Freedom laughed, causing the Darknight Hero to groan in annoyance. Then suddenly, three red fiery demonic heads materialized behind each of them, and were quickly noticed by the red-headed bar owner.

"LOOK OUT!" he shouted to the others, he and Jean leapt away while Venti summoned wind currents and floated into the air before the heads could spew fire at them. And after five blasts, the heads disappeared as if they were never there.

Knowing such an attack must had came from an abyss mage, the three of them looked around for the culprit. And with his height advantage, Venti pointed and called out, "Over there!"

Jean and Diluc turned to where Venti was pointing, and in the grassy plain, floated a fiery red pyro abyss mage with its flame shield around it. Seeing as its targets were unharmed, it charged towards the three of them.

The former knight of Favonius then materialized his claymore, Wolf's Gravestone, and swung it at the enemy, hitting the shield and knocking the mage to the right. But the pyro shield withstood the counterattack, allowing the abyssal creature to quickly stabilise itself and send out a wave of flames towards the two on the ground. But Jean reacted quickly, stood forward and materialized her sword, Aquila Favonia, then through her vision, launched a miniature windstorm from her sword to blow out the flames.

Venti then landed back on the ground and took out his lyre, through his power, he turned it into his bow, Skyward Harp, and gathering the wind currents he summoned earlier, he fired off an arrow at the abyss mage, trapping it in a stormeye while the winds slowly withered away its shield. Due to the shield, the abysssal fiend itself remained unharmed, so it clutched its mask and after chanting four unintelligible words, it teleported out of the storm. However, seeing a glowing spot in front of him, the bard summoned a sky blue sigil beneath it, and just as the mage reappeared, a wind column was created the split second before the enemy could reform its shield, causing it to be blown into the sky.

Taking their chance, both Diluc and Jean charged at their opponent, with the former igniting his weapon with his vision while the later focused the wind around her sword with hers, they sent the abyss mage flying back into the wide stem of the giant oak in a miniature fire storm. The abyss mage then slid down the rough bark of the tree, and as it tried to gather itself, the Darknight Hero jumped above it, holding his flaming claymore up high, and shouted, "Time for - Retribution!" And swung his weapon down powerfully, sending a circular blast of fire around him as his great sword impacted on his foe.

As the flames settled, the bar owner stood up, still holding his weapon, with the abyss mage lying on the ground, it tried to stand up but could not, therefore as its last bit of strength left its body, the abyss mage lied there motionless and its body dissipated into black ashes.

Jean and Venti then ran up to Diluc, and the bard remarked, "Wow, that's one powerful blast of fire."

The acting grand master asked her senior, "Do you think it was a straggler from our raid?"

The redhead replied, "Undoubtably, the Abyss Order rarely ever appear in Windrise, due to constant guarding on the road between here and the city by the Knights of Favonius, this abyss mage must have been following us from that cave earlier, waiting for a chance to appear, and retaliate for our sabotage of their plans."

"Well, glad that it's over now," Jean said, then turned to the bard next to her, "Also Venti, sorry for dragging you into this."

The bard then swiped his hand down casually and replied, "Eh, it's fine, it's been a while since I have to fight like that, I might even be able to think of some new songs, singing about the heat of battle, if you know what I mean," he winked and slightly stuck out his tongue, and continued, "besides, I'm Barbatos, nothing's gonna take me down so easily."

All of a sudden, a portal opened on the stem of the great oak tree, and a shadow leapt out of it and towards the three in a spinning motion. Reacting quickly, Diluc rushed in front of the others and swung Wolf's Gravestone to parry the attack, and Jean thrusted her sword at the figure, but the figure jumped backwards and the strike missed.

As moonlight shown on to the entity through a gap in the leaves, its appearance became clear, it had a tall black figure with blue highlights, and four dark straps that fell downward like a suit; on its arms were two blue blades, in its chest was a glowing blue orb surrounded by a black eight-pointed star, and four downward pointing spikes that glows a darker shade of blue sprouting from its shoulders; on its nape was an dark blue thin appendage that looked like a downward ponytail, and above on its head was black sideways pointing crest with a blue gem in the middle.

"I have never encountered an abyss monster like this one before, that attack and this power, it must be one of the higher members of the abyss," Diluc murmured to his companions.

"Foolish god, feeble humans, to think that you could stop the advance of the abyss, your hubris is over your minds," the creature said in a distorted voice.

Looking over the entity's appearance, Jean remembered a report from the Honorary Knight, an abyssal elite with skills and power honed to the pinnacle, and direct servants of their leader, she responded to her senior, "That is an Abyss Herald, Aether mentioned to me and the others about one that he encountered almost two years ago, they are high ranking servants of the Abyss and rarely anyone has ever encountered such an opponent before."

The acting Grandmaster then decided to ask an important question, "Tell me! What was all of the explosives from earlier about?"

"Jean, don't," Diluc warned, she replied, "I'm sorry sir, but I must know."

"Hehehehe, all part of the plan of the abyss to burn away the people's hope in their gods."

Though vague, the three were able to deduce the Order's plan, based on the aim, location of the hideout, and their current location, Venti then inquired, "So you seek to burn down Vennessa's tree?"

"Correct, seeing the Symbol of Mondstadt's Hero burn, the people will know that you are no longer their protector and their faith will fall, God of Freedom," the Herald hissed.

Jean and Diluc then stood firm, priming their weapons, "You may try all you want, but this is our city and we will protect it no matter what!"

"Then so be it!" the entity then said, before charging up a blade and lunged at the three.

Meanwhile, Liyue Harbour

Liyue Harbour remained as bustling as it did during the day, and at Third-Round Knockout, people gathered for a drink as well as to listen to the stories told by Iron Tongue Tian. And among the crowd listening, at one table sat a single man, who frequented the tavern whenever he's free.

The man had a tall figure, fair skin, amber eyes with diamond shaped pupils and red eyeliners on the lower lids, his hair was short and dark brown with a waist-length low ponytail and fringes that are amber like his eyes; in attire, the man was elegant and form-fitting, wearing a beige dress shirt, brown and amber waistcoat, a long dark brown tailcoat with special draconic scale pattern and a diamond symbol on the back black slim trousers, dress boots, and gloves with twin silver archer rings on the thumbs; he also wore a white tie pinned with an amber gemstone, on his left ear was a jeweled tassel earring, and on the small of his back, hung a Liyue Geo Vision embedded on a chain.

As the gentleman took a sip of tea, Iron Tongue Tian retold his story on their Archon, "Rex Lapis witnessed countless wonders as he journeyed through the world, and many more he saw in the landscape of his dreams. One such dream led him to a most mysterious realm."

"'Intriguing!' he said with a smile," the storyteller continued as he opened his draconic fan, "then strode forth assuredly into the veil of mist. A birdsong rang out in the darkness. Gazing afar, Rex Lapis saw golden birds singing, all perched upon a sky-piercing divine tree. To its side, stood a mighty envoy, whose very appearance inspired awe, standing majestic, presiding over a solemn ceremony. It was at that moment that the clouds parted, the brilliant sunlight shone down upon the land, and the people gave out a joyous cry. The ceremonial site was lined with many rare masks, their eyes and ears trained, and their noses sharp and jaw strong. Perhaps watching, listening, so as to protect the creatures of the land. As the sun set, the villagers lit their fires, and smoke began to rise. A joyful sight met his eyes, of people who sat around the hearth, with peace in their hearts."

"Rex Lapis knew it to be a dream, yet he was gladdened still to behold this humble but merry scene, so he raised a leaf to the skies, and blessed the land with fair winds, gentle rains, peace, and prosperity. Thousands of miles fly by in a dream, and a thousand years like a racing steed, thus was the wonder that Rex Lapis encountered in this dream," as Tian concluded his storytelling, he asked his listener among the seated, "Haha. Well, Mr. Zhongli? How would you rate my latest work?"

The gentleman put down his teacup and remarked, "Most interesting. Hmm, your tale would suggest that Rex Lapis possesses the ability to travel through dreams?" To which the storyteller replied, "W-well, I don't see why not...?"

"I see. Ancient sites are home to many a mystery, this place you speak of certainly invites fascination. Heh, should I find myself unoccupied, I'd like to go see it personally," Zhongli added.

And the night progressed forward, as time becomes late, the crowd scattered, and the tavern finally closed for the day, Zhongli walked along Feiyun Slope, to enjoy the silence of the late night, since his employer, Director Hu Tao of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, had told him that all the requests had been completed, and she herself had left earlier that day for Wuwang Hill with her friends, to find any wandering spirits that needed to be exorcised or buried. Although this was a secret he kept mostly to himself, as the Geo Archon Morax, he had the duty of protecting its citizens, but now that he knew that they can take care of themselves following the incidents with the reawakened sea god Osial and his mate Beisht, Rex Lapis finally felt confident to renounce his position, and gave away his gnosis to the Fatui.

But that left one problem, with no other duties, he had all the time for himself, and right now he knew not what to do. He could visit his friends within the adepti in Jueyun Karst, for as Rex Lapis, he was also the Adeptus Prime, therefore they would be willing to acommodate him. However, they mostly only meet up during festivities as adepti, and nowadays, they rarely leave their domains, not like in the elder days.

Suddenly, he remembered earlier that night of Iron Tongue Tian's story, and was reminded about the sites of Liyue's ancient past. Therefore, he thought, 'Perhaps a walk to old places could placate this sense of loneliness.' Then he took off and left the city for the place of return and depart.

Walking along the main path of the Guili Plains, he passed by the recognisable ruins of the great civilization in his glorious past. And looking at said ruins, he remembered her face, that joyful smile, long flowing grey hair which fade into cerulean-blue, and her pearl-like blue-grey eyes, compared to his plain, expressionless poker face back then, his oldest and dearest friend Guizhong, the God of Dust Haagentus, was full of expressions, and the two of them once ruled this place in the ancient past, the Guili Assembly, named from the two characters in their names which meant 'Return' and 'Depart'.

In the assembly's era, he was known as the protector while she was the sustainer, for he was the brawn to her brains, with his ruthlessness as a war god and her unmatched genius, and along with the help of his adepti and Marchosius, the God of the Stove, the civilisation was one of the most prosperous in the known world.

As he walked into the largest ruin, he walked passed four iconic stone tablets at the four corners. On each was etched a phrase, though in an older script and was barely legible, it didn't matter to Zhongli, for he had memorised what was written on the slabs a long time ago,

"To unite in ambition is to be steadfast and immocable for all time."
"Wisdom is like water, it nourishes all those who receive it and in it is a reflection of the truth."
"Fortify the bones, that movement be supple when the time comes."
"Virtue grows tall like a tree, though there be shade it will flourish forever."

As these four phrases were the four basic laws established by Guizhong when the Guili Assembly was still in its infancy. And it was these four commandments that he still follow to this day that guide his path.

He then departed for the cliffside on the other side of the plains, which overlooks the plateau wetlands of Luhua Pool, where according to legends, that this ancient garden was filled with a deep, pure affection that created the brightly-coloured pools this location was known for. It was also in the centre of Luhua Pool, where a ruin still stands, that Guizhong built her Realm of Clouds, which she used as her workshop for her personal research in mechanics and artifacts.

As memories floated in his mind, Zhongli took out a cube-like device which floated within his hand. It resembled a six-piece burr puzzle, and had a glowing golden core. The Memory of Dust as it was known, it was created by Guizhong here in Luhua Pool, and gifted to him on their first meeting on the field of glaze lilies in what is now Dihua Marsh millenia ago, when he received this gift, she also issued to him a challenge, which marked their pledge to bound themselves together in ruling the lands around them, but even to this day, he still haven't managed to open it. As he was about to continue his short trip, he noticed a familiar flower blooming on a nearby shore, a lone glaze lily, and the sight of it nearly brought the stone-faced man to tears, as it reminded how important his dear friend meant to him, perhaps they were more than that.

After gathering himself, he continued on his walk through old places and entered the basin that is Cuijue Slope, where the air is covered by a dense cloud that blocked out the moonlight and nine pillars stood to contain what was hidden there. Entering this place has also brought back memories, of their final meeting.

It was during the height of the Archon War, over 3,000 years ago, when hell broke loose all over Teyvat following Celestia's announcement of a full battle royale amongst the Gods to fight for the seven thrones in heaven. He, Guizhong and Marchosius, alongside the adepti, fought together to protect the Guili Assembly and its human inhabitants, and after successfully repulsing their attackers, they would then perform a strategic counter-attack, bringing down the enemy and sealing away their grudges in the process. Their plannings were impeccable and always resulted in a flawless victory, but on one occasion, it didn't.

He and his forces were stuck in a grueling battle against an onslaught of enemies, and Guizhong was cut off within the basin along with their opposing god. And after finally dispatching the last of the enemy forces, Morax led the remaining adept to reinforce his friend, but when they arrived, they only found grief, for lying on the ground was a grievously wounded Guizhong, while the enemy standing over her with only a few wounds. For despite being well-known for her mind, Haagentus was not physically strong and would easily lose to someone stronger like Morax, and yet she still fought courageously, as seen with her sword, Primordial Jade Cutter, still in her hand.

Seeing the scene of his dear friend lying there dying, Morax charged in holding his spear, Vortex Vanquisher, with a never before seen fury, while the adepti followed into the battle and attempted to assist Haagentus. The engagement was long and hard-fought, but in the end, they managed to triumph over the enemy. However, it was not over yet, for Guizhong was breathing her last breathe, and none there were able to treat her wounds, Rex Lapis dropped his spear and rushed to his friend and comrade's side, so that she could tell him her final words.

Even now 3,700 years later, Zhongli still remembered clearly what she said.

"Guess I lost our bet, I'm sure you know to do now," she said weakly.

Morax then said urgently, "Don't say such nonsense, Guizhong! Keep your strength!"

"You and I both know our journey is coming to an end," then she coughed up some blood, some of it staining her friend's face and clothes.

"No! I forbid it! I cannot lose you!" He shouted, as tears started to fall from his eyes. Seeing this scene, she giggled

"You know, Morax, this is the most expressive I've ever seen you be," as some of his tears near her eyes and she reached her hand to rub his cheek., she continued, "although, I wish... it wasn't such a sad expression."

Hearing her say that, he didn't know how to respond as he was so stricken by grief. Haagentus, then in her final breath, made one final request, "Morax, Zhongli, remember that stone dumbbell I gave you, on our first meeting?"

Rex Lapis nodded and said, "Yes, what about it?"

She smiled and responded, "I want you to forget about it. For it is our pledge and my challenge to you, all my wisdom is hidden within it, if you can unlock it-"

Before she could finish, her last breathe left her body, her now dead corpse began petrifying, and then she crumbled into a dark dust that would evetually fog up the basin around them, leaving a grieving Morax, and the surrounding adepti, also grieving for the loss of their godly friend, with Cloud Retainer and Streetward Rambler being the once who cried the most, as despite being rivals in mechanical creations and music, deep down they also loved their friend. And to prevent any contamination of the land, Morax and his special unit of adepti, the Yakshas, raised the Nine Pillars of Peace all around the basin, and sealing away any remains of the deceased gods inside.

Such a sad scene had passed, Rex Lapis was filled with one resolve, he would finish the ongoing war in Haagentus' place, and after years of conflict, calamities and tragedies, he won the seat of the Geo Archon, but the cost to him was great, his lands were destroyed, his people was forced to flee, and the loss of his friends, it brought him no joy, only grief.

As the flashbacks end, Zhongli was about to end this trip and head back to Liyue Harbour, when he suddenly noticed something had changed within the ruins, in that the entrance of the temple erected for Guizhong had been opened. A worrying sight, as he had sealed it up ages ago in honour for his friend. Fearing for tomb raiders desecrating such an important site, he decided to enter and investigate, with someone following him, which remained unnoticed.

Narukami Island, Inazuma

The moon rose up high over Tenshukaku in Inazuma City, the tallest building of the nation and the residence of the Raiden Shogun, the Almighty Narukami Ogosho.

Her stern purple eyes watched over all the islands of Inazuma, upholding her idea of 'eternity', in which the nation would remain the same and unchanging for all time, and striking down on any threat to her belief like a bolt of lightning. But after the events that transpired 2 years ago, the Traveler's arrival, the civil war, and the overturning of the Vision Hunt and Sakoku Decrees, the Electro Archon had changed her view on how 'eternity' should be pursued, thanks to Aether's way of breaking through to her. And to that end, she had become more open to the world outside and had became more involved in the daily administration of the nation.

"That should be all the affairs that needed to addressed, your Excellency," said Kujou Sara, the tengu general of the Tenryou Commission.

"Good, you may return to the Tenryou Commission to continue your duties, General Kujou," the Shogun said to her loyal warrior sternly.

The tengu saluted and replied, "Yes, and have a good evening, your Excellency," and then left the building for the commission headquarters.

With the day almost over and being in private now, the duty of the Shogun could be at rest, and it was time for her to come out. The Electro Archon stretched her arms into the air to relief the stress with her joints, both for her body as well as herself, having spent most of the day meditating in the Plane of Euthymia, but occasionally appearing to direct the nation's path.

She had a tall pale figure, purple eyes with light blue pupils that glow and long braided dark-violet hair that faded into a lighter tone. Her attire remained unchanged as usual, consisting of a dark purple bodysuit under a short lavender kimono, which had an assortment of patterns in different shades of purple and crimson with a shorter left sleeve that only covered her upper arm, on the back, she wore a crimson bow with tassels. She also wore dark-purple thigh-high stockings with small diamond openings at the top and high-heeled sandals. Ornament wise, she had a hairpin with pale violet flowers and a fan-shaped piece on the right side of her head, a pauldron on her left shoulder, a pinned bow on her right waist and a small golden fan on her waist at the back, with the latter three having a purple Electro symbol on them.

"What a day...it is getting busier now that foreign affairs has become more prominent after abolishing the Sakoku Decree," Ei said to herself, "although, it is rather interesting, from what the Yashiro Commissioner had reported. The cultural exchange between Inazuma and Fontaine surely would take off following their success at that festival."

Thinking about what the Kamisato patriarch had mentioned in his report, she became curious, "Although I wonder, what is a film? Miko did tell me once that it was a kind of entertainment where a sequence of images were taken of people acting, so is it like a photo taken by a kamera?"

Suddenly, a growling sound echoed through the silence of Tenshukaku, the purple haired shogun looked down, and felt a rumbling in her abdomen. Despite having an artificial bionic puppet body, Ei still required food to sustain her bodily function, and right now, she was in a mood for her favourite, sweets. However, thinking of her friend earlier, she also seeked the companionship of the kitsune lady. And thus, the Electro Archon also departed her residence and into the commercial district of the city to acquire some desserts.

Later, she reached the foot of Mt. Yougou, and took the rocky steps to the top of the tallest mountain in all of Inazuma, where the Grand Narukami Shrine stood. As she ascended the mountain, she passed by the cave that hid a torii gate which would lead anyone to the realm of consciousness of her late twin sister, Raiden Makoto, the former Electro Archon Baal.

Feeling a sense of courteousy, she decided to leave some offerings by the torii gate in the form of some tricolor dango and a bottle of milk, as despite being opposites of each other, they both shared a liking to sweet foods, and would often enjoy a few sittings back in those days, sometimes even go on picnics with their friends Kitsune Saiguu, the oni Mikoshi Chiyo and the Great Yougou Tengu Sasayuri.

After paying her respects to her sister, Ei left the cave and continued up the mountain.

Once she reached the top, she was greeted with the beautiful sight of sakura blooms blown all around the shrine. By the chozuya, Inagi Hotomi, one of the shrine maidens, saw the God of Thunder and hurriedly trotted over to greet her in accordance to shrine etiquette, "Almighty Shogun, it is a great blessing of you for visiting our shrine, your Excellency."

Seeing the girl's calm yet uneased expression, she spoke gently, "I wish to see the head priestess for a private occasion, can you inform her?"

"Of course, your Excellency, Lady Guuji is inside right now, please follow me."

Following Inagi into the main shrine building, the shrine maiden slid open the sliding door, a feminine voice spoke, "What's the occasion, Inagi?"

"Guuji Yae, the Almighty Shogun wants to see you," she responded nervously, to which the head priestess simply said, "Let her in, and let us be."

"Yes, Lady Guuji," Inagi then turned around and bowed to Ei before heading back to her post, leaving Beelzebul to enter the room at her own discretion.

Sliding open the door, the purple-haired warrior saw her friend, Yae Miko, a pink-haired woman with vulpine ears and purple eyes, wearing a modified version of the standard shrine priestess outfit with special golden ornaments and headpiece laden with purple gems which signified her rank.

"Hmm, I wonder what has encouraged the Electro Archon to personally visit the Grand Narukami Shrine?" the head priestess asked mischevously.

Ei closed the door behind her and replied with another, "Why wouldn't she want to come when she wants to see a good friend?"

"I don't know, out of duty, or perhaps you just want to see me," Miko said turning her head to take a glance at the Raiden Shogun, revealing a smile.

"Guess you saw through me," the warrior smiled as well and reached into her right sleeve, taking out a bag of what she bought earlier, then proceeded to the other side of the table the fox lady was sitting at.

From the bag, Ei took out a few servings of tricolor dango, 2 bottles of milk and a covered plate of fried tofu. Seeing the fried tofu, Miko chuckled, "So you do remember my taste."

"I specially asked the boss of Uyuu Restaurant to make it, knowing preferences of course."

"Then, itadakimasu," and the priestess used a pair of chopsticks to eat the tofu, which stimulated her taste buds.

Enjoying their meal, they decided to talk about life lately, Miko asked her friend, "So, how has it been lately? Still spending much time in that inner world?"

"Not as much as before, just in between when some affairs need my personal attention, the rest is done by the puppet."

"That's good progress," the fox lady said, taking another bite of tofu, "So anything interesting happened?"

Ei swallowed a piece of dango, replied, "Earlier today I received a report from the Yashiro Commissioner about his progress in Fontaine, that he has talked with the chief justice and established cultural exchange channels between both nations," then ate another piece, and continued, "he also mentioned that his sister was featured in a local film."

"Mhm, I heard about that last part, and it sounded like a fun time, but knowing him, I bet that Yashiro rascal would have decided to do his own work and miss his sister's filming sessions."

"Miko, the descendant of the Kamisato Clan has been diligent in his duties since his father's passing, I'm sure you know that he would put his duties as priority."

The priestess giggled, "Of course, but he should also take some time off to observe his sister's performances, you know how much I like watching the Yashiro girl dancing, Ei."

Later, after the two finished their meal, they went for a stroll, first to the Sacred Sakura, where memories about that long duel were brought up in Ei's mind, to which the violet warrior closed her eyes in reminiscence.

"Remembering that centuries-long duel with the Shogun, are you?" Miko asked, teasingly.

Ei responded, "That, and Makoto's last words." Her friend then teased, "Oh? So you still can't let go of her."

"Something just can't be let go, although I have already accepted her departure from the world, she is still my sister and the true God of Eternity."

"If that's what you think," the vulpine lady looked at the night sky, and turned around before continuing, "just so you know, it's getting late, I'll be waiting at the chozuya."

Then, the pink fox left the shogun alone, who stood under the fox-shaped sakura tree for a bit longer. Until she felt its time, Ei began to turn around, but halted when a sakura petal broke off from the branches towards her, so she held out her hand and the petal floated into her palm. She looked at it and held it tight, before stowing it in her kimono and turned to leave the shrine.

As she rejoined her friend, they continued their conversation as they made their way down the stairway towards the bottom of the mountain. But as they neared the cave that Ei passed by earlier the night, she noticed something's different, and stopped in her tracks, "That's strange."

"Hmm? What's wrong?" Miko asked, to which the shogun replied, "There's something glowing in the cave."

The fox lady said dismissively, "Could just be the luminous mushrooms growing in there."

"I know but, when I passed by earlier, the glow was dimmer, much dimmer," the narukami said as she reapproached the cavern, while the priestess followed. Entering the cave, nothing seemed out of the ordinary to the duo, except the dangos and milk Ei left next to the torii gate found missing, leaving only an empty plate.

"Huh, I'm sure I left some food here as an offering to Makoto earlier," the Raiden Shogun said.

And the priestess guessed, "Maybe it was just an animal or yokai that ate it all, you know there are a few bake-danukis living on the mountain."

"Perhaps," Ei said and approached the plate, attempting to pick it up, but unexpectedly, the torii gate that leads to Makoto's plane of euthymia, which had remained dormant since Ei exited it after her 500-year duel, activated for no apparent reason, attracting both ladies' attention

"Weird, this portal shouldn't open after you finished your duel," Yae said with a slight sense of caution, and the warrior replied, "Yeah..."

Irminsul

Within the great tree of all knowledge, someone was working hard, searching for information held in its core. The individual had the figure of a short man, with indigo eyes framed with red eyeliners, inazuman complexion and short dark blue hair. He was wearing a tight black turtleneck bodysuit covered with a white large furisode sleeved kimono with cyan highlights, black hakama shorts with a thick black and indigo obi belt, decorated with a large black bow with indigo tassels in the front; he also sported a pair of knee-high white gaiters with black toeless knee-high socks underneath, and a pair of black geta sandals; but most obviously, he was wearing a large circular navy blue hat with golden details and resembled a lotus from the top, with a pair of light cyan strips dangling from the back, as well as a patterned blue half-cape that hung over his left shoulder, where a gold ornament containing a Sumeru Anemo vision was pinned alongside a singular golden feather.

Ever since the events that had transpired just a year prior, as well as those that had supposedly happened for nearly five centuries, this individual, formerly the Fatui Harbinger, Scaramouche the Balladeer, now known mainly in the Akademiya as the Hat Guy but to close ones as Manato, had became a ward to the Sanctuary of Surasthana, working under the God of Wisdom, Lesser Lord Kusanali. Following his erasure of himself but later recovery of old memories in his current self, he had dedicated himself to better himself and his view on humanity as a whole, through both delving into Irminsul as well as studying in the Akademiya as a student of the Vahumana Darshan, though with some success, he still held that misanthropic worldview, unkind and arrogant personality like his former self.

As he sifted through the infinitely complex archives of the great tree, a voice from outside talked to him, "Well? Did you find anything interesting to you?"

"Nothing so far, I've only been finding old investigated data," the puppet responded.

"Alright, give me a sign when you find anything out of the ordinary."

"Lesser Lord Kusanali, you don't have to tell me something that I already know," Manato complained, but the Dendro Archon giggled, "I know, just wanted to test your patience."

"I've already lived and wandered for nearly 500 years, and I still have all the time in the world, why would I even need my patience tested?"

"I just wanted to see how well you would tolerate annoyance, considering that you easily got annoyed when people call you by your alias Hat Guy both in Vahumana and the last Akademiya Extravaganza," Nahida said cheerfully.

Her ward groaned, "Can we just get over that, it has just been a dumb joke."

"If that's what you want, Hat Guy," the deity teased.

Manato scoffed and concentrated back on his browsing, after a while, he stopped, "Wait, what's this?"

A small dark purple sapling-esque object appeared next to him, unlike the rest of the data in Irminsul which took a blue colour, Kusanali asked, "What is it? What did you find?"

The Hat Guy inspected the formation in front of him, then replied, "I'm not sure, anomalous data? I guess..." he then tried to look into it, but was unable to access the cache, "but I don't seem to be able to open it."

"Strange, such kind of knowledge shouldn't exist in Irminsul, it can't possibly be forbidden knowledge, I'm certain I have completely removed every trace of it, so what could it be?"

"Well whatever it is, it is highly encrypted and appears to be very small, so what should we do about it?" the puppet asked his handler.

"How about let me take a look?" Nahida's voice spoke from behind Manato. He turned around and saw the short figure of a fair-skinned child with green-highlight white hair in a side ponytail, pointed ears, large green eyes and wearing a white dress decorated with green and gold details and short detached sleeves made of patterned green fabric.

Not expecting her to get involved personally, the puppet from Inazuma was taken offguard, "Are you sure it is a wise idea for you to investigate this piece of information personally?"

"We don't know what it is and you can't open it, I might be able to access it. Also I have weighed the risks, you said the data pocket is small, so there shouldn't be much risk in me handling it."

"If that's what you choose to believe," he responded coolly, then he handed the sapling like data node to the child-sized archon, allowing her to inspect it.

After taking a good look at the Irminsul sapling, she said, "Hmm, this data cache has an elemental encryption, specifically needing dendro power to unlock it, it also doesn't have the same signature as forbidden knowledge, but it still shows sign of abyss contamination though barely noticible."

"So do we dispose of it?" Manato asked, to which the Dendro Archon replied, "Let's see what it say first, I'm curious about what it contains, so let's step back a little."

The two of them stepped slightly away from the data sapling, with the former wanderer standing slightly further away, then Nahida held out her arm and released a stream of pure dendro energy, with the objective of opening the locked info.

Then all of a sudden, once the encryption was removed, a dark stream of data rushed towards the pint-sized deity and latched itself on to her arm. Panicking from her lapse of judgement, Nahida swung her arm around trying to get it off but to no avail, and the data started to spread on her body rapidly. And seeing how the situation has changed, Manato rushed to help her, "Lesser Lord Kusanali!"

The Dendro Archon held out her free hand towards her ward, and encircled him with a green energy bubble. The puppet banged on the bubble and shouted, "What are you doing!"

"We still don't know what it might do, but if anything happens to me, leave Irminsul and get help!" she instructed him, then the mysterious data mass completely engulfed her being, before collapsing into itself and disappeared in a spark, leaving Manato there in the energy bubble as it started glowing, and he called out, "NAHIDA!" as he was transported out of Irminsul.

A/N:

Happy New Year friends and readers, and welcome to a new xover, Archons and Sovereign in Remnant! As the title, description and opening disclaimer indicates, this is a crossover between Genshin Impact and RWBY. After planning for nearly a year, I am finally making it come true as I have teased it in my other work. Most of it is based on in game and show content, but there are some parts that are either original or inspired by other works. So I hope you all would enjoy it.

Taking place after the events in the 4.3 update of GIM, the 4 archons and the good monsieur finds themselves in a familiar yet strange world where shadow creatures and other evils lie, how will they blend in and what part will theu take in its conflicts? Let's find out.

Please favourite, follow and review!

To be continued...