So after that absolutely "wholesome" meeting with the Harbingers — seriously, how does anyone sit in a room with that many psychopaths and just... live? — we finally headed out. Fresh air. Freedom. Life without a slice of potential death served cold.
Lumine glanced at me, arms crossed. "Where should we go next?"
I smirked, feeling like an absolute boss. "Obviously, to finish our quest. You think I'm gonna die of anxiety before I get my paycheck? Nah."
Paimon floated beside us, throwing her hands up dramatically. "Shigeru, you don't even have a paycheck!"
"Details, details," I waved her off like a majestic king.
We headed toward Yujing Terrace because, y'know, official hero business and all. When we got there — boom — confetti — okay, not really — loud announcements, and all the Qixing gathering like it was Teyvat's Got Talent.
Madam Ningguang stood front and center like the queen she was, announcing the big news — that Rex Lapis was, uh... no longer available for customer service inquiries.
"Rex Lapis may have departed," Ningguang spoke with that calm, scary boss-lady voice, "but we, the Qixing, shall move forward."
The crowd clapped. Paimon sniffled like it was a funeral. I casually wondered if anyone brought snacks.
Then — plot twist — they actually mentioned us.
"We also owe thanks to the heroes of this incident."
And right there, like stars on a budget red carpet, Lumine and I got all the attention. Not gonna lie... I did a slow, majestic nod like those anime characters who know they're hot.
Keqing herself approached us. Her hair swished. Her eyes gleamed with a deadly kind of sincerity. And she actually — get this — thanked us.
"As a token of gratitude," she said, arms behind her back, looking way too serious for this, "please, request any reward you wish."
My brain: Don't be stupid. Don't be stupid. Don't be stup—.
My mouth: "I mean, I would ask for your hand in marriage, Cat Lady—"
Keqing blinked. HARD.
"—But," I added quickly, "I already have someone in mind."
"Instead," I coughed, "could you help put up a missing person poster? It's for my partner's brother."
I swear Lumine smiled. Like, actual smile. Feels like the "you're an idiot, but at least you understand my feelings" kind. Like a real, sunshine-smile. Bro, my heart.
Keqing gave the faintest twitch of her cat ears — they're real, I know it. That hair is hiding her cat ears and the human ears are fake, or so my brain decided — and nodded. "Understood."
Mission: SUCCESS.
After that, I noticed a familiar tall figure at the edge of the terrace.
Zhongli.
Standing there, hands behind his back, staring dramatically at the horizon like he was in some high-budget cinematic trailer. The golden light of sunset draped him like a living painting—timeless, immovable, like the last pillar holding up a world that had already begun to crumble.
Paimon immediately flew over, waving both arms. "Hey, Mister Zhongli! Everyone's all emotional about Rex Lapis disappearing forever, and you're just — super chill about it!"
Zhongli chuckled, a low, steady sound that felt like ancient rocks shifting under the earth. "How could I not feel at ease? After laying down a burden I have carried for 3,700 years?"
I blinked. Bro, that's older than half the legends in anime combined. Even my high school trauma felt like a toddler compared to that.
Lumine smiled gently, her voice soft. "What will you do now?"
Zhongli turned, and in that moment, with the evening sun framing his silhouette, he looked less like a god and more like a man — someone who had finally stepped off a battlefield that no one else even remembered anymore.
"I shall walk among the humans," he said, voice full of quiet conviction. "Enjoying peaceful days free of duty. Observing, learning... living as they do."
Then — he looked straight at me. Right into my poor mortal soul, like he could see every dumb decision I'd ever made and was choosing to forgive me anyway.
"And you," he said slowly, "will fulfill our contract, correct? For once, I have broken my own — for your promise."
I gave him a two-thumbs-up, grinning like the absolute menace I am. "No worries, old lizard — I mean, Zhongli. I got you. Pinky swear."
Lumine stifled a laugh under her breath. Even Paimon giggled.
"We should get moving," Lumine said, stepping forward. "Thank you, Zhongli."
"And good luck," he said warmly. "I assume you head to Inazuma next?"
We all nodded.
"Then," he said, voice like a prayer carried by the wind, "may fortune favor you in your future endeavors."
We turned to leave, steps light, but just as we reached the stairs, Zhongli's voice called out again.
"Shigeru."
I stopped. Looked back. Motioned for Lumine and Paimon to go ahead. This felt... different. Like a boss battle cutscene you couldn't skip.
Solo chat time.
He faced me fully now, his posture regal, but his eyes — those golden eyes — held a depth that even time itself probably got lost in.
"It seems you have spoken with Barbatos," he said. "About Khaenri'ah. About the Abyss. About the war... 500 years ago."
I shrugged, keeping it casual even though my heart was suddenly doing jumping jacks. "Well... Barbatos never really said anything. Just vibes. But you... you're still under contract, aren't you? Lips sealed?"
Zhongli's face twitched. Barely. But it was enough. Like I'd poked a sleeping dragon right in the snout.
He let out a quiet chuckle, deep and a little weary. "It seems you do know much."
He stepped closer. Each step felt heavier, like gravity itself decided to thicken around him. Around us.
"How much do you know?"
I met his gaze without flinching. Because bro, once you've stared down Harbingers and unpaid debt collectors, nothing fazes you anymore.
"A lot," I said quietly. "But not everything."
I counted off on my fingers, slow, deliberate. "The Abyss. The Archons. The Five Sinners. The Primordial One."
Zhongli's expression darkened. His whole presence shifted — the friendly old man mask slipping, revealing something older, sadder, infinitely more powerful underneath.
He sighed, the sound almost too heavy for one man to carry.
"Then it is right I say a few words," he murmured. "Shigeru. Prepare yourself."
Gone was my usual joking mood. Something about his voice — the weight of it — pinned me in place.
"Something big is coming. What you know now... will not be enough."
He looked up at the sky, where the first stars were beginning to blink into existence, tiny lights in a vast ocean of darkness.
"I will place my trust in you. And our contract. Save Teyvat, so that if she returns — she will see the beauty of this world… without war. Held her hands and said, we made a great place for our people to live on."
The way he said she... it wasn't just history anymore. It was personal. Painful.
A silence fell between us. Heavy. Final. Like the closing of an ancient chapter only we could hear.
I smiled faintly, lifting a hand in a casual salute. "I will," I said simply. "After all... this is my home now."
But.
Curiosity gnawed at me.
"One question, old man," I said, cocking my head.
"Are you... a Descender?"
The question floated between us like a feather — light, but impossible to ignore.
Zhongli didn't answer immediately. He just stood there, the twilight deepening around him, until it was impossible to tell where the man ended and the myth began.
His eyes, deep and ageless, stayed locked onto mine.
Silent.
Unmoving.
I grinned wider, feeling a weird sense of triumph.
"Figures."
I stretched out my hand, offering it not just for a handshake — but for a promise. A future.
"Let's meet again, Morax — no, Zhongli."
He smiled then. Slow, fond, almost... proud. He took my hand firmly, the handshake sealing something older than contracts.
"We will."
And just like that, the old world faded behind me.
The new world spread out ahead.
And somewhere in between?
A whole lotta chaos with my name on it.
Bro, I swear, being the main character is exhausting.
***
Fresh Liyue air, baby. Nothing beats the smell of ocean breeze mixed with overpriced grilled fish and a lingering existential crisis.
We walked down from Yujing Terrace, the streets buzzing with life as merchants yelled out deals that sounded like scams, old ladies haggled with terrifying ferocity, and kids ran around wielding sticks like they were greatswords.
You know. Normal, peaceful life.
Lumine was walking beside me, arms swinging a little. She suddenly tilted her head and gave me that suspicious squint.
"You seem to have a knack for talking to Gods about... important things," she said. "And you even made a personal contract with Zhongli? What's that about?"
I chuckled.
Like, actual chuckled.
The kind of chuckle where you know juicy drama's about to spill, but you're trying to act mysterious so you look cooler.
"Well," I said, flashing my best "trust me, bro" grin, "you guys are my partners, so of course, I'll give you an idea."
I paused, dramatically, because duh, theatrical timing.
"Remember," I said, finger wagging in the air like a wise old sage, "why I stopped you from attacking Signora and let her take the Gnosis?"
Paimon immediately floated up between us, serious face on.
"Because she's pretty?"
I choked on my own spit. Coughing, sputtering, gasping like a dying fish.
Lumine tried so hard not to laugh. I saw her lips twitch.
"W-Well," I hacked out, wiping an imaginary tear, "that's one reason, I won't even lie, but actually, the main reason is..."
I tapped the side of my head, giving them my best "Galaxy Brain" look.
"It's for the Tsaritsa to continue her fight against Celestia."
Paimon floated there blinking. Lumine raised an eyebrow.
"Sooo...?" Lumine said, "what's that got to do with you and the Contract?"
Oh-ho-ho.
I smirked. Pulled an imaginary pair of sunglasses down my nose. Flexed my non-existent muscles.
"Well, you see," I said, voice dropping into my "cool anime protagonist explaining his master plan" tone, "there's a part in my contract with Morax that states... if ever the Tsaritsa fails, it'll be up to him, me, and maybe Venti—"
I paused. Grimaced.
"Wait. Yeah. We'll have to force Venti. Probably bribe him with like, a barrel of wine or something—"
Paimon nodded seriously. "That tracks."
"Anyway," I continued, "it's up to us to continue what the Tsaritsa started. But that's just a part of it."
I gave them a sly grin.
"There's a lot more to the contract than meets the eye."
Paimon and Lumine exchanged glances, clearly itching to grill me, but being the awesome patient partners they were, they let it slide.
For now.
Instead, Paimon asked, "So, what should we do now? Head straight to Inazuma?"
I crossed my arms, looked off into the sunset like a tragic, brooding hero.
"Yeah, that was the initial plan..."
Pause.
Dramatic wind blows through my hair. Okay it was probably just Paimon sneezing but shh, atmosphere.
I turned serious.
"But we're putting that on hold."
Both of them stared at me.
Paimon floated closer. "Why?"
I grinned. Sharp. Mysterious.
"Because," I said, lowering my voice, "we're about to meet him."
Paimon blinked. "Meet who?"
I grinned wider. A Cheshire Cat on maximum "I'm about to wreck your day" mode.
"The one I mentioned to you guys back in Mondstadt... the Bough Keeper."
Pause.
"Dainsleif himself."
Paimon's mouth dropped open so wide you could fit a hilichurl in it.
"THE DAINSLEIF?!" she screeched. "The one that you said traveled with Lumine's brother?!"
Lumine froze mid-step.
Her hand unconsciously clutched her chest for a moment, her face paling.
But after a few seconds, she straightened up, face calm. Steel in her golden eyes.
Respect, honestly.
I stopped walking. Turned to both of them. My goofy grin faded, replaced by something far more serious.
"Lumine..."
I looked her dead in the eye.
"From this point onwards, you have to steel yourself."
The air shifted. Heavy. Thick.
Even the noisy merchants around us seemed to fade into the background.
"You'll face someone... someone beyond recognizable," I said quietly.
Lumine's fists clenched. Paimon floated closer to her, worry written all over her tiny face.
I took a deep breath.
"I will try to change the course of the story," I said. "I will try my damn hardest."
I smiled, small but fierce.
"But you have to trust me. We will find Aether. Unravel Everything."
Another pause. Another breath.
"I will show you the truth of this world."
____________________________________
End of Chapter 30
Quest Completed:
*Reveal the True Purpose of the Contract
*Prepare for the Meeting with Dainsleif
*Explain Why Signora Got the Gnosis
*Post a Missing Poster for a Certain Blond Traveler
Rewards:
*+8000 EXP
*+120,000 Mora
*+60 Primogems
*+50 Curious Look from Paimon
Achievements Unlocked:
"Master of Divine Negotiations"
— Successfully made a secret contract with Zhongli that involves bribing Venti with wine.
"Pretty Privilege Believer"
— Convinced Paimon... unintentionally... that pretty faces = good decisions.