Chapter Text
"Thank you for letting us join your quest in Liyue, Ms. Lumine, Paimon!" an excited voice echoed throughout a small place in Guili Plains, someone beside him nodding, seemingly stoic but excited at the idea of getting to explore Liyue which is not only known for its Archon, Rex Lapiz, but also their exquisite cuisine.
A soft laugh followed, "The pleasure is all ours, Bennett. I'm sure you two will enjoy Liyue, there's a lot of wonderful places there too so let's stop by shortly in some of those before going back to Mondstandt after the commission." Lumine told them, recalling her past experiences in exploring places like Mt. Tianheng, Lingju Pass, and even Qingxu Pool, helping people look for something and even playing hide and seek with someone.
"Their different cuisines are delicious too! Paimon already tasted both the Li-style and Yue-style cuisines and both are scrumptious! We have to stop by the stand that sells the Zhongyuan Chop Suey, their specialty is just one of the best I've ever eaten!" With the mention of food, both Bennett and Razor actively listened and asked Paimon about the different specialties to be served.
"Stop by food?" Razor tilted his head when he asked, making Lumine almost want to squish the boy's cheeks but she stopped herself, for now, as she nodded.
"Yup, yup! After the commission though," Both the boys and Paimon excitedly chatted among themselves on what delicacies they had to try when they got to Liyue Harbor.
A few more hours of walking, taking rest in between, defeating some stray slimes and even encountering an Eye of the Storm along the way, before they reached the place of the commissioner. Some stumbles were made through their small journey and not unfamiliar with the adventurers, but those experiences made the new visitors of Liyue look forward to more things to come. Bennett may have randomly almost tripped over misplaced roots or Razor almost slipped in a slope but those experiences are what makes up experience. Thankfully they all have each other to rely on with Razor and/or Lumine catching Bennett before he trips or Bennett gripping Razor's hand before he could slip and have Lumine and even Paimon stumbling to catch them. Good times.
When they reached the house of the commissioner, someone named Mo Dao who lived by the Qionghi Estuary, she tasked them with defeating an Eye of the Storm who was causing a ruckus and not only her small business but also her neighbours' are being disturbed. By luck maybe, when they reached the place Mo Dao pointed them to, it was a place they had already passed earlier and well, needless to say, they already defeated it.
"Oh wow! What luck this is," Bennett grinned, his eyes shining before turning to his companions. Razor sniffed the air and roamed his eyes around before giving them a nod.
Paimon let out a cheer with the confirmation, exclaiming for them to head back and get their rewards.
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"I'm really sorry, Ms. Lumine!" Bennett yelled, bowing his head in a really respectful way as Lumine waved this off.
"No worries, Bennett, it's cool," Lumine smiled gently at the boy, patting his bowed head with Paimon still wiping a combination of whopper nectar and the sand from the Geovishap Hatchling remains.
"At least we're close to Liyue Harbor," Lumine attempted to soothe the boy for something that was probably not even his fault, it was just bad luck that they ran into several Pyro whopper flowers with the Geovishap Hatchling suddenly appearing and making probably one of the most ickiest combination with the whopper nectar being sticky and the ash from the defeated hatchling bursting and to make matters worse, a harsh wind blown that resulted to this. It is kind of a windy morning unlike yesterday when they did the commission.
"Paimon thinks that it's fortunate that Razor is still looking for some berries for our snacks!" Paimon also attempted to soothe Bennett who was slowly raising his head. When Paimon said that, a rustling was heard as Razor's head popped out from the bushes and soon his body was also carrying a variety of berries for them to eat.
"Smell sweet and heard lots of noises earlier. What happened?" Razor furrowed his brow when he faced the female traveler, Lumine waved her hands.
"Well," she started when Bennett bashfully cut her off, telling Razor the whole story.
"Oh. Apologise for not coming," he said, turning to Lumine and Paimon who were still wiping some of the things off.
"Nah, it's cool, it's just a little thing," Lumine told them, "No more apologising okay? Everything is good and nobody got hurt badly," she sternly told them, her eyes piercing both of them. Both of the boys nodded.
"We're close. I'm sure you two would like to explore more of Liyue Harbor so I'll head to Wanmin Restaurant and ask Xiangling if I could shower while you two explore, okay?" Lumine suggested, the excited gleam on both of the boys' eyes are now back with the prospect of wandering Liyue Harbor.
Lumine wasn't lying when she told them when they were close. Just a few more minutes and they reached the bridge and the Millelith welcomed them to the ever bustling and alive Liyue Harbor. Bennett audibly gasped at the sight while Razor stood wide eyed at the bustling city.
"Come now guys, I'll introduce you to Xiangling and you guys could start exploring," Lumine giggled, happy that the boys look very much amazed at Liyue Harbor and slightly relieved that they're seemingly enjoying their small trip.
'I'm excited for them to see Liyue Harbor at night too,' Lumine nodded at the thought before looking behind again.
Bennett and Razor caught up to Lumine while still admiring the city, noticing that some of the citizens were waving at Lumine and Paimon as they returned the gesture. After climbing a set of stairs, they reached Wanmin Restaurant to be greeted by an energetic young girl excitedly waving at them. After instructions, Bennett and Razor were left to their own devices, promising Lumine and Paimon to meet at night. Bennett confidently tells them that Liyue Harbor is big so Lumine could also show them around again tomorrow, kind of easing Lumine's worries.
and with that, they split off.