08. Meeting A Weird Girl

After writing them all down, Ryūhei handed the form back to Katheryne.

"Niwa Ryūhei, is it? From Inazuma. Your specialty is swordsmanship and sensing the flow of energy, there is no mistake, isn't it? Can you really tell the flow of energy?"

Ryūhei was hesitant to tell her about the Rikugan, so he had no intention of showing his eyes just in case.

Ryūhei smirked. Then he got closer to her before whispering to her.

"By sensing the surroundings, of course. In fact, I feel that you are very different from humans. Why is that?"

Ryūhei could feel something different from her body. It was as if the energy within her was kind of a battery with automatic charging by using unknown energy.

People who can feel the flow of energy weren't that rare in Teyvat. So, Katheryne wasn't that surprised when she heard his statement.

And Ryūhei's probe was on the mark as Katheryne put on a professional smile while replying.

"It seems you're capable of sensing the flow of energy. In that case, if there's anything wrong with the Ley Line, we can count on you."

The ley lines are a network of elemental energy and memories of everything that has lived in this world and link the whole world together, both on the surface and down in the Abyss.

Sometimes, due to an overwhelming elemental energy surge through the network, it causes the ley line disorder. And adventurers are required to revitalize the ley line disorder if that happens.

"As I expected, just like in Inazuma, people who can sense energy flow aren't that rare. Or perhaps I should say people who can sense the Ley Line disorder." Ryūhei said inwardly.

Katheryne recorded the data Ryūhei wrote down carefully. A little later, Katheryne offers Ryūhei to take four daily commissions. Each commission is rewarded with Mora and several items, one of which is Resin, an item used to revitalize ley line disorder. And if the four commissions are completed, Ryūhei will get a bonus reward from the guild.

"What kind of commissions do you want to take?"

"I prefer gathering herbs or something along the line since I'm still not familiar with Liyue."

"Note it."

Moments later, Katheryne picked up a book, then opened it, before showing the page to Ryūhei.

"Your first commission is this, collecting 20 Jueyun Chilis. This is Jueyun Chili, you can find it in the wild in Minlin, Qingce Village, and Stone Gate. The second one is collecting 5 Horsetails, you can find them at Dihua Marsh. The third one…"

Katheryne gave the commission and explained where Ryūhei could collect the materials. Ryūhei also didn't forget to ask about the places Katheryne mentioned earlier because he wasn't very familiar with Liyue.

After understanding all of Katheryne's explanation, he said goodbye to her. And Katheryne replied.

"Farewell, Adventurer, and thank you for supporting the Adventurers' Guild."

After walking away from the guild, he sensed Kazuha who seemed to be waiting for him to finish his registration at the guild.

"Oh, Kazuha, thanks for the meal. Anyway, we'll part from here. You're Beidou's crew, so it's better if you go back to your Captain."

"Well, I thought you would go about your business. But, why adventurer?"

"Hey, I don't have any penny now. Are you telling me I should be starved to death?"

"*Cough* That's not what I meant."

Ryūhei walked past Kazuha while saying, "Everyone's aim and purpose are different, including you and I. You decided to become a member of the Crux fleet. Therefore, your place is not here. Meanwhile, although I'm not gonna be here forever, I decided to set my first base in Liyue. When my business is smooth sailing, I'll go back to Inazuma or Mondstadt and set up the first branch. However, since I don't have Mora, I decided to become an adventurer to earn it." And then, he added in his mind. "Besides, I need to train the Limitless technique in a quiet place. There is no way I can train such a dangerous technique in the city, right?"

Kazuha could only see Ryūhei from behind walking away. He sighed because he felt quite nervous being with Ryūhei. Even though the two of them didn't really get along, Kazuha had known Ryūhei since childhood. He had wanted to form a friendship with Ryūhei for a long time. Unfortunately, the conflict in his clan got in the way of his intentions. As a result, Ryūhei developed a deep hatred for the Kaedehara clan. He wanted to help, but he was also helpless with the attitude of the elders in his clan. He thought it was just impossible to gain a friendship with Ryūhei because of that.

However, he was surprised that Ryūhei said that he didn't hate Kazuha, but only hated everyone who wanted to kill him. Hearing that, he wanted to form a friendship with Ryūhei from that moment on.

But he was nervous. Or perhaps, he was afraid. Afraid that he would lose another friend, just like how his friend lost and died in a duel against Raiden Shogun after she tried to catch Kazuha after initiating the Vision Hunt Decree.

Kazuha was burdened with his past. Especially because of how he was saved by his friend but ended up dying. He didn't want something like that to happen ever again. And unconsciously, Kazuha, who started to assume Ryūhei was his friend, was afraid that something like that might happen again.

Ryūhei, who had already walked away, stopped his track after feeling negative energy behind him. He turned around and saw Kazuha with uncontrollable negative energy, but Kazuha didn't realize it at all. Ryūhei knitted his brow and decided to approach Kazuha.

Due to his eyes, Ryūhei knew where the source of negative energy was. Negative energy comes from a person's negative emotions. And only a handful of people can control it.

Ever since Ryūhei got Rikugan, he had been training to manipulate his negative energy by letting it flow evenly throughout his body. Even though he had trouble at first, slowly his body was able to adapt. It was thanks to Ryūhei's precise control over his emotions. Due to his experience since childhood, controlling emotions was a piece of cake for him.

He patted Kazuha's shoulder while trying to absorb his uncontrollable negative energy.

Meanwhile, Kazuha was taken aback seeing Ryūhei beside him. But what surprised him even more was that Ryūhei's pat on his shoulder cleared his cloudy mind.

Then he heard Ryūhei say,

"I already told you. Don't think too much! You're already fine on your own. Live your life leisurely! If there's something you can't do yourself, depend on someone else! For example, Captain Beidou. Someone like her would be more than happy to help you since you're already part of the Crux fleet."

After saying that, Ryūhei walked away, leaving behind a dumbfounded Kazuha. Kazuha wanted to call him, but he decided not to do so.

"Not just your strength. Even your heart was stronger than mine." Kazuha muttered while looking at Ryūhei's back admirably.

— — — —

Liyue Harbor is divided into 3 points; Chihu Rock, Feiyun Slope, and Yujing Terrace.

Chihu Rock is the southern part of Liyue Harbor's lower areas. It is the lower-class district of the city, located on an island and connected via bridges to its surroundings: Feiyun Slope to the north and the road to The Chasm to the west. It was also the location of the Wanmin restaurant and the Adventurers' Guild Ryūhei visited earlier.

When Ryūhei crossed the bridge connected to Feiyun Slope, which is the entrance to the city when coming from the northern main road to Mondstadt and connects to Yujing Terrace, he heard a girl's voice, singing a weird song from his left direction.

"♪Silly-churl, billy-churl, silly-billy hilichurl. Frilly-churl, willy-churl, frilly-willy hilichurl♪"

The girl in her 19's with 156 cm in height has a fair complexion; bright scarlet eyes with white, blossom-shaped pupils, and long dark brown hair fading to crimson at the tips. Her hair is styled into two high twin tails parted with a zig-zag pattern. Her bangs are side-swept to her left, the layers framing her face curled inwards, and the layers behind curled outwards.

She wears a traditional red shirt with a mandarin collar, a brown coat with a darker collar and sleeve cuffs, black shorts with gold accents, and a black porkpie hat emblazoned with a wooden talisman, adorned with a red plum blossom branch in bloom. Her Pyro Vision is embedded in the back of her coat, along with long rectangular coattails, and golden brooches attached underneath her coat's collar and waist. She wears a pair of mid-calf length white socks, red straps with plum blossoms wrapped around the cuffs, along with low-heeled black dress shoes.

When she noticed Ryūhei who wore a blindfold, she lit her eyes.

"Oya, oya oya oya. Hey, you over there with a blindfold." When the girl mentioned a "blindfold", Ryūhei stopped his track and looked in the girl's direction. Meanwhile, the girl immediately approached him.

"You don't seem to be from here. But that doesn't matter. I'm the 77th director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, Hu Tao. By the looks of you, you seem to have a problem with your sight. How about I give you a proposal? I'll give you a 43% discount if you buy a coffin from me since you still look young. How is it, it's not a bad deal, isn't it?"