Chapter 10 - The First Curse

A/N: Bit of a longer one. I did my best.

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As the sun gradually fell toward the horizon, Ivan scaled the final steps of Mount Yougou. At the top, he stepped to the side and sat on a nearby rock to rest and catch his breath. 

Surprisingly, he scaled the long stairway without encountering many issues aside from tripping on a stone that rolled under his foot mid-step at one point. He figured most of his bad luck focused on drawing in enemies for Thoma to fight earlier and gave him a temporary reprieve during his trek up the mountain. 

While resting, his eyes landed on the familiar floating structure nearby. The gemstone in the middle of the hovering metal device glowed red like crystalline blood. None of the Shrine Maidens maintaining the grounds nearby paid it any heed. 

'I should have tried activating this thing earlier.'

Chiding himself internally, Ivan stood up with a tired grunt due to his sore legs. He ignored the soreness and walked over to the teleport waypoint. A few minutes passed while he quietly studied the structure. He observed it with his eyes. He touched the gemstone on top of it. He touched all of the metal parts. In the end, though, nothing changed.

'How do I activate this thing? The Traveler does it so easily in the game. I don't need to wait for him to appear before activating these, do I? Or maybe her. I don't know which one will show up, or even if they will show up at all.'

Lost in thought, he failed to notice a pink-haired fox woman wearing shrine maiden attire who just reached the top of the stone stairway. 

Carrying a small box in her hands, Yae Miko almost failed to notice him as well since he sat so quietly next to the waypoint that served as part of the everyday scenery of the Grand Narukami Shrine. Upon noticing the man's small movements out of the corner of her eye, however, her purple eyes focused on his back. She watched him quietly for a few seconds. Then, her lips curled into a subtle smirk.

"What are you doing?"

Ivan flinched instinctively in response to the sharp question. He turned his head and saw Yae Miko standing there with a playful smirk.

"Oh, hi, Ya- Erm… Lady Yae. I was just studying this thing a bit out of curiosity," Ivan honestly explained, pointing at the teleport waypoint.

Briefly glancing at the floating pillar-like object, Yae Miko hummed thoughtfully before saying, "It is unusual to see somebody so curious about these structures. At this point, they are just normal objects in the scenery for everyone since nobody could figure out their purpose."

"You've never seen somebody use them before?" Ivan asked. He knew she had lived for a considerably long time, but perhaps not long enough to see the days of the Archon War or the Cataclysm. Remembering timeframes was never his strong point, after all.

Yae Miko narrowed her eyes a little at the way Ivan worded his inquiry. She studied his facial expression briefly before saying, "Perhaps, but perhaps not."

"Oh, I see."

A strange silence fell between them for a few seconds until Yae Miko tapped the box in her hands with a finger and asked, "Were you able to gather the necessary Sea Ganodermas?"

"Yeah. Thoma helped me out. Probably would've died if I had gone alone, to be honest."

Smiling in a distantly pleasant manner, Yae Miko said, "Good. Follow me inside so I can begin the removal process."

Ivan nodded and followed her over to the main shrine building. His legs felt like jelly, but it couldn't slow him down due to his excitement toward the prospect of getting rid of his bad luck.

Inside the main room, Yae Miko set the box down on the table. Then, she quietly observed Ivan in a probing manner which made him mildly uncomfortable.

"Something wrong?" Ivan asked in a slightly hesitant tone.

In response, Yae Miko sighed lightly and rested her hands on her hips. Then, she shook her head slowly and said, "For the most part, it will not affect you. However, I said I will remove your curses, so I spent some extra effort to prepare something for you as a precautionary measure."

Puzzled, Ivan raised a brow.

In answer to his confusion, the fox woman opened the box. Inside sat a large purple gemstone as well as some documents. When Yae Miko grabbed them and handed them to him, he started to get an inkling of understanding about what she was referring to.

"These are documents you will likely need in the future. I know you are not from here, but some upcoming changes here will undoubtedly affect you. Unfortunately, Inazuma will likely be less peaceful and open in the future, so these documents contain permissions for you to both live and travel here. That way, you can still come here for treatment even after traveling elsewhere to gather catalysts. The list of catalysts you will need are also in there."

Holding the documents in his hands, Ivan remained in silent thought for a moment. Her explanation gave him a lot to think about while also giving him a general outlook on the current timeframe. Then, he made firm eye contact with Yae Miko and said, "Thank you for the consideration. I really appreciate this more than you might think."

"I think I understand more than you might think," Yae Miko commented. Her lips curled upward into a small grin afterwards.

Ivan frowned, but to be honest, he didn't really care how much she knew. In fact, he wondered if she was just messing with him. He wouldn't put it past her.

"If you are ready, I can begin the removal process as soon as you bring the Sea Ganodermas over," The woman said, interrupting his thoughts.

"Sure."

Changing gears in his head, Ivan set the documents down on the table. He rubbed his chin and pondered whether or not to reveal his inventory in front of this unpredictable shrine maiden. Figuring she would be intelligent enough to figure it out at some point anyway, he no longer felt any need to hide it from her. Thus, he opened his palm and dropped a couple dozen Sea Ganodermas onto the floor.

While the glowing blue flowers thumped onto the wooden flooring, Ivan glanced at Yae Miko to see how she would react, but she didn't even flinch. She simply stood there with arms crossed as though this was an everyday occurrence.

'Figures.'

Since she did not react to his inventory at all, he scratched his temple while pulling the documents into his inventory. Then, he refocused on the task at hand.

"Will this be enough?" He asked.

Yae Miko nodded and said, "I only need fifteen of them. You can keep the rest. Now, give me a moment. I will grab the rest of the catalysts."

"Do you need help?"

"Outsiders aren't allowed in our storage room."

"Okay…"

Before long, the fox woman returned with a large wooden box half as tall as an average man held above her shoulder. She carried it with ease as though it weighed no more than a pillow, prompting a raised brow from Ivan. After setting it on the floor, she pulled off the lid and spread out the contents in a diamond shape. Each point contained different plants or ores of varying quantities while the large purple gemstone sat in the middle. All of the items were local to Inazuma, namely fifteen Sea Ganodermas, ten Naku Weeds, seven Sakura Blooms, and three Amethyst Lumps. 

'I'm surprised I remember the names of all these materials. Then again, I probably gathered hundreds of them over the years playing Genshin.'

Yae Miko pulled him from his musings by saying, "Sit down by the corner closest to the Sea Ganodermas with your back to them. I will begin when you are ready. Just remember that it may be a somewhat painful experience."

Ivan nodded and followed her instructions. He sat down cross-legged by the Sea Ganodermas, removed his shirt, and said, "Ready whenever you are."

Yae Miko nodded and pulled out her two Gohei. She immediately began the removal process.

Purple flashes illuminated the room in a magical glow. A buzzing sound pulsed into existence and echoed off the walls. The objects on the floor connected to each other through complicated threads of Electro-element particles and floated into the air. Like before, five purple spears stabbed into Ivan's back. 

Pain like that of being stabbed by railway nails forced Ivan to stiffen and suck in a sharp breath. He barely stifled a scream by gritting his teeth and clenching his fists to the point of breaking the skin of his palms.

Behind him, Yae Miko waved her two Gohei in a circular fashion for a few seconds, but then paused with one held straight out toward Ivan and the other closer to her chest. Then, she pulled back the former in a manner that made it look like she was yanking something out from Ivan's back. Along with that movement, the Electro-element spears attached to Ivan's back lurched backward. Black mist then spewed out from those five spots on his back.

The next moment, Yae Miko frowned. An unnerving feeling rustled her normally still heart. 

The black mist steadily spewed out from Ivan's back until it formed a cloud behind him. The purple glow of the Electro-element array illuminated it with an unpleasantly dark hue. The mist-like substance gradually coalesced together until it formed the rough outline of the upper half of a person. The outline floated with head bowed and hands folded in front of it. Misty chains connected the silhouette to Ivan's body.

In the surroundings, a quietly overbearing yet slightly feminine voice whispered unintelligible words. The entire room trembled as though battered and beaten by the voice. Both Yae Miko and Ivan felt their ears burn upon hearing the whispers.

Eyes narrowing, Yae Miko refocused and gathered a storm of lightning around her two Gohei. The catalysts floating in the air also generated a powerful Electro element wave of lighting. Then, with a powerful wave of her hands, the storm of purple lightning that filled the entire room cascaded into the misty silhouette. Under the crash of lightning, the misty silhouette lost its form and dissipated like steam whisked away by the wind. At the same time, all of the catalysts disintegrated into ashen dust.

Sighing tiredly, Yae Miko wiped her brow with her sleeve. She hadn't expected to expend most of her energy on removing a single curse. The scale of it vaguely reminded her of the curse-laden Hilichurls. As such, her eyelids closed to slits while focusing on Ivan. What she saw caused her to raise her brows.

The moment the silhouette was destroyed by the lightning, Ivan's body trembled. The pain gradually faded, but in its place, his nerves tingled with a strangely electric feeling. His body twitched a few times due to the unfamiliar sensation. Then, purple sparks streaked around his skin in random places. The sparks arced back and forth around him with growing intensity. Eventually, a burst of purple lightning exploded from his body. 

Eyes wide, Yae Miko quickly reached out with her remaining energy to contain the chaotic Electro particles that gave off the feeling of wanting to run wild. In response to her mental call, the elemental particles slowly calmed down. Many of the floorboards sustained burns and exploded like a tree struck by lightning. In the end, however, she successfully prevented most of the potential damage. She inwardly decided to make the young man work off the repair costs, though.

Meanwhile, a deep sigh slipped from Ivan's lips. Several sparks still flashed around his body but gradually calmed and disappeared. Eyes sparkling with life, he quietly looked at his own hands. He smiled. Then, he laughed.

Slightly surprised to hear Ivan's laugh, Yae Miko blinked, and her ears fluttered a little. Then, her eyes widened. Right before her eyes, the man's dark blonde hair slowly changed to a dull silver-gray color at its roots. Most of his hair remained the same, but her strong perception could not miss that subtle change.

While she was distracted by the unnatural phenomenon, Ivan jumped to his feet. He turned around and looked at Yae Miko. Body filled with excitement and energy, he lost himself in the unfamiliar sensation and walked over to her with a happy grin on his face. 

In Yae Miko's eyes, however, it looked very different. The man moved at a speed that should not have been possible for his sickly body. Her eyes widened as he approached too quickly for her to react after tiring herself out. Although still confident she could fend him off, his arms wrapped around her, and he continued to laugh. In reaction, her Gohei raised slightly and sparked with purple lightning. 

Arms wrapped around the woman, Ivan's laughing slowly morphed into crying. Tears formed in his eyes and trickled down his cheeks.

"Thank you," Ivan mumbled in a quiet voice. "I… I've never felt so alive. Really… Thank you."

Yae Miko looked up at the man and quietly observed his tears. The purple sparks around her Gohei faded away, and she lowered her arms. Her stern expression quickly changed with her lips rising into a gentle smile while still pulled into a tight embrace.

Amid Ivan's quiet mutterings of thanks, a bird flew in from an open window, though neither of them noticed it at first. Only when its droppings fell on Ivan's head did they notice.

"Pft!" 

Yae Miko barely stifled a giggle. At the same time, Ivan came back to his senses and realized what he was doing. 

Quickly removing his arms from around the pink-haired shrine maiden, he stepped backward, smiled wryly, and said, "Sorry. I couldn't contain my excitement, I guess."

An amused smile on her face, Yae Miko raised her Gohei in front of her lips and replied, "It's okay. I understand. You should go wash your hair, though."

"Hm. Yeah. I'll be right back."

While watching his back, Yae Miko's expression changed a few times. Once he left the room, she mumbled to herself, "I suppose he's a bit fun."