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‘What did she mean by what she said?’
‘Why am I still putting up with everything, even though they know I haven’t seen her in so long?’
‘It’s ridiculous.’
‘Maybe she was right.’
‘I just want to reunite with my sister…’
And in the dead of night, the Honorary Knight vanished.
~
Bennett walked around the city of Mondstadt in confusion. Everything seemed so moody. The vibrant conversations amongst the townspeople have been reduced to hushed whispers. There weren’t crowds in the plaza like normal. Good Hunter wasn’t bustling with people. The general goods store’s owner had a worried look on her face. Even the skies were cloudy but not gray enough to warrant rain. It’s as if Barbatos himself was in a bad mood. Just what was going on?
A simple look a little bit down the street gave him his answer. The normal crowd in the Mondstadt plaza shifted to the Adventurer’s Guild bulletin next to Katherine. Even the seemingly always smiling Katherine was seemingly losing her composure.
Thankfully, the crowd made space for any adventurers that had to talk with Katherine for their daily commissions.
That’s not what Bennett had on his mind today, though.
“Hey, Katherine, what’s up with the town today? Everything feels so… down in the dumps.”
“You didn’t hear…? The Honorary— I mean, Aether, vanished last night.”
Bennett’s heart dropped. “W…What are you talking about?”
“He seemingly just left the city in a daze. This wouldn’t have been such a big issue if it weren’t for that dangerous commission that was posted on the bulletin board this morning…”
Bennett didn’t have to hear any more. He left Katherine’s booth, ignoring her calls to stay and listen to the full story, and pushed through the crowd of people eyeing the board. As he uncharacteristically shoved his way past the herd of people, he finally arrived at the board. His eyes then zeroed in on a dangerous commission; one that had a client he knew all too well.
Title: Please Find Him!
Client: Paimon
At that, Bennett did a double take. Paimon? As in… the little fairy thing that followed Aether around wherever he went? That Paimon? Wasn’t she technically an adventurer?
‘Can adventurers even put up their own commissions…?’ Bennett wondered. However, he kept reading.
Description: The Traveler suddenly disappeared… Paimon has no idea where he could’ve gone! Paimon asked around in the morning, and nothing! He always says where he goes before he leaves so Paimon can go with him but this time no one knows where he went! Please help!
Reward: Anything you want from Paimon!
Danger Rating: Unknown
Bennett took the commission down from the board, getting the attention of the people surrounding him. They all huddled in to keep looking at the commission, with the hushed murmurs heightening in volume. Without hesitation, he fled from the crowd and asked Katherine for his bag that he recently had her store for safekeeping. Normally Katherine wouldn’t do any favors like this, but she took pity on Bennett that day. However, before he could leave, Katherine gave him a bit more information on the commission he just rashly accepted.
“Bennett, before you go, please listen: an anonymous witness last sighted the Traveler at a dangerous Domain that had its entrance covered in Abyss Mage patrols. There is a high chance higher-ranking Abyss Order soldiers might be lurking within the Domain itself. Are you sure you want to take this commission alone?”
Bennett nodded firmly. “Benny’s Adventure Team is just me, anyways. I have to do this alone.”
Before Katherine could say anything else, Bennett already was running off. Bag in tow, he fled the city as he made his way to the location where Aether was last sighted.
Problem is… he didn’t stay long enough for Katherine to actually tell him where that Domain was.
Bennett sprinted around all of Mondstadt for what felt like hours, as he kept searching for any possible crack that could be the entrance to a Domain. He remembered that Katherine mentioned Abyss Mages were supposedly protecting the entrance of the Domain, but he hasn’t even seen one. This wasn’t normal even by regular standards, as he was prone to meet at least a few Pyro Mages with his cursed luck. Those were always a pain for him to deal with.
Since the Abyss Order and this commission were seemingly connected, he couldn’t possibly chalk this up as a lucky break, as much as he desperately wanted to. He kept his eyes peeled for any Abyss Mage at all but… nothing. Any other adventurer would be cheering, but this only made Bennett even more anxious.
Continued searching on his own bore no fruit. He felt like giving up as he could tell that the sun was starting to set, as he was making his way towards Mondstadt. But that’s when he finally saw one. A Hydro Abyss Mage, heading straight towards him.
It was so strange, he wasn’t too far from the trail; actually, he was standing right on it! He was very close to the city’s entrance too and Abyss Mages don’t attack in the open like this all alone, so what was—
But as Bennett’s thoughts were rushing through his head as to what could explain the mage’s curious behavior and his sword was ready in his hand, the mage did something even more curious.
Without a shield, without its weapon ready, it was fleeing. It didn’t even care to give Bennett a passing glance. It was like it was running from something. Running in terror.
He must be getting close.
Bennett sprinted down the trail heading toward Springvale. The small village didn’t seem like it had anything of note going on, so he sped past it into the forest that the trail continued into. Why did it feel like he would be venturing way out of his comfort zone today? Was this something he really should be doing when it was nearing sunset?
He figured it didn’t matter. For all he knew, Aether could be in huge trouble with the Abyss Order. Aether was his role model, he couldn’t just let him suffer like that. Not in an unknown place where even Paimon couldn’t for the life of her tell you where it was.
Speaking of Paimon… where even was she? Bennett hadn’t seen her in Mondstadt at all… was she looking for Aether all on her own? Again, questions for later, Bennett figured.
All Bennett could do was continue following the trail. With how quickly he was running, he would probably pass by Dawn Winery in a few minutes time.
~
Well, a few minutes turned into an hour. He passed Dawn Winery long ago, and much to Bennett’s dismay, he has already crossed the boundary between Mondstadt and Liyue and is now way out of his element. He isn’t familiar with the land of Geo’s environment at all, and it is such a contrast from his home region. He decided to keep following the trail onwards, his confidence remaining stable as he saw some semblances of civilization peppered throughout the trail. Checkpoints, they seemed to be, although he couldn’t see any soldiers around of any kind.
As he continued down the path, it split into two. He could continue going straight down the path, or take a right into what seemed to be some mountains. However, he deemed it’d be too unsafe to wander around the mountains of an unknown region alone in the dark. The sun had already set, and it was starting to get too dark to continue running around outside. Furthermore, he could see a towering building in the distance, straight down the path. He figured it’d be a nice area to stay and rest until the next morning so he could continue his search for Aether.
~
Some more time passed until Bennett finally made it to the building. Wangshu Inn, it was apparently called. There were stalls at the floor of the building, with some tables set on the area up the wooden stairs. As Bennett climbed up the stairs, he didn’t see any clerk or anything resembling a check-in so he could get a room for the night. However, he did see an elevator to the left. He decided to ride it up, heading further into the inn.
However, the inn seemed less like an inn and more like a restaurant, with no rooms anywhere. The elevator left him at the entrance of another area of the inn that had a roof. He breathed a sigh of relief. He went down the stairs to speak to the only clerk he has seen since he arrived at the inn, her name being Verr Goldet.
“Um… hi, can I stay here for the night?” Bennett asked, shyly.
Verr Goldet gave him a pitiful smile. Bennett must’ve looked like a wreck, running all around Mondstadt and then rushing into Liyue all in one day. “Well… you can stay anywhere you like. No charge, you really look like you need it.”
Bennett didn’t question the woman’s hospitality, and thanked her. He went back up the stairs and out into the terrace of the inn, where he pulled out the commission that he ripped from the bulletin board. The commission itself wasn’t making much sense to him.
He began muttering to himself. “Am I in the right place…? Would a Mondstadt commission really have me go all the way to Liyue…? Aether… where are you?”
At the mention of Aether’s name, Bennett felt a presence suddenly appear behind him. He quickly turned around, and saw a male with green hair and tattoos on his arm. His eyes were frightening, with his pupils being similar to a cat’s pupils and yellow irises. Bennett wasn’t sure if he was a friend or a foe, so he kept his guard up, but he could tell just by appearance alone that he would not win in a one-on-one fight should it come down to one.
“You spoke the name Aether. Who are you?” The male spoke.
“O-Oh I uh… the name’s Bennett. I’m an adventure… adventurer from Mondstadt…” Bennett couldn’t help his shaky stuttering as he spoke.
“Mondstadt… this doesn’t explain why you’re looking for him.”
“U-Um… Aether is the Honorary Knight of Mondstadt…” Bennett took a deep breath. He couldn’t keep shaking. He had to tell it like it is. “…but he suddenly disappeared last night, and not even Paimon knows where he went.” He handed the commission over to the green-haired man, who took it and read its contents.
“I see… I am an adeptus of Liyue. I am Adeptus Xiao. The Traveler was a great boon to us during the fight against Osial. I have heard of his achievements in Mondstadt, and news has spread that he has also made similar strides in the region of Inazuma as well. The Traveler truly has been a great help for all of us.”
“Y-Yes… that’s why I’m looking for him, sir.”
Xiao grunted at the formality from Bennett. “All on your own?”
“I don’t really have anyone else to count on on my team… it really is just me.”
Xiao crossed his arms and hummed. “…I shall lend you my assistance.”
“H-Huh?”
“There is a disturbance in the air. It’s been bothering me since this morning. If what you say is true, the disturbance and the Traveler’s disappearance could be connected. Of course, that is too little information to go on to truly connect the two. If you cannot bring yourself to kill— speak my name. Adeptus Xiao.”
Bennett nodded frantically. However, Xiao wasn’t finished.
“However, under no circumstances should the Traveler perish. Not by your hand, and not by mine.”
Bennett understood completely. He wasn’t looking to kill him, anyway. He meant too much to him.
As the adventurer made his promise to the adeptus, he vanished as quickly as he came.
When he looked around for Xiao after he disappeared and saw no semblance of him, he took a deep breath. He felt like his heart was racing the entire time during that conversation, and he finally had a moment to actually breathe.
“I hope not everyone from Liyue is that intimidating…”
Bennett couldn’t explain why, but he felt like he’d have to sleep with one eye open tonight.
~
The blond traveler sighed as he walked down the empty halls of the Domain. He was already here before, and it seemed like the traps had been deactivated. Even still, there was no shortage of Abyss Mages at the entrance. With the powers of Anemo, Geo, and Electro combined, he didn’t have much issue in handling them, but it was a nuisance every time.
Unexpectedly, the inside of the domain didn’t have any Lechters or any higher-class members of the Abyss Order… much less the Princess herself. Aether should’ve known better to expect her to come back to this Domain, when her work here was basically already done the last time they met in this same place.
Hillichurls have long since fled the area, and now the halls were lifeless and boring to pass through. He knew that part of the reason that it was so quiet was that Paimon wasn’t accompanying him this time. He felt a tinge of guilt for leaving her behind in Mondstadt like that, but he knew she would’ve constantly advised him to get out of the Domain. That’s just something he didn’t want to deal with today.
He didn’t want to deal with that today… and didn’t want to deal with anything Teyvat’s people had in store for him today either. He sighed heavily again as he continued making his way down the halls into the heart of the Domain.
~
Bennett woke up to a ray of sunlight beaming onto his back. Liyue wasn’t too hot a region, so he wasn’t waking up sweaty or anything like that, thank the Archons. It took him a second to remember where he was, but once he did, he very quickly arose from his sleep and made his way downstairs to eat something before heading out. What he wasn’t expecting was Xiao sitting there at a table, as well, seemingly waiting for his meal.
“M-Mr. Xiao. You stay here, too?”
He nodded without opening his eyes. Bennett figured he was probably meditating or doing something cool like that. “This inn helps me carry out my duties as an adeptus. The owner may not look the part, but she is actually part of the Liyue Qixing.”
“Liyue chi… eh?” Bennett wasn’t too up to date on the situation of other nations that weren’t his own. He had a confused smile on his face, as Xiao sighed.
“Forget it.”
“W-Well um… I’m gonna try to get a bite to eat before heading out again. I hope to see you around!”
Xiao merely nodded. “Mhmm.”
Bennett smiled at Xiao and gave him his signature thumbs up, which he knew Xiao didn’t have his eyes open to see. It’s the thought that counts, though.
~
After Bennett had his meal and was happily stuffed, he made his way out of the inn to walk back up the path he came from. He figured he should start back at the crossroads he found last night, as it would probably lead to a Domain or two in the mountains.
He made his way back up to the crossroads again. Once there, he made the turn to go into the mountains, and kept walking. There were some Treasure Hoarders walking around the area that Bennett did not really want to deal with, so he stealthily (and by stealthily, that means tripping over rocks and twigs every time he tried to avoid confrontation which ended up in him being spotted by said people be was trying to avoid confrontation with) made his way past the narrow pathway of the mountain.
He took a right into a small opening in the mountains, which led him to a shore. He figured this was better than traveling in the mountains alone, so he continued this way. This path wasn’t devoid of monsters though, as there were some Geovishap Hatchlings and Whopperflowers along the coastline. He had seen Whopperflowers before and the Cryo ones weren’t too big an issue, but Geovishap Hatchlings. Those made him not want to ever return to Liyue again after this.
As the shoreline faded and the land became more mountains to traverse, something was making him feel like he was making headway. An Adventurer’s Instinct, maybe! Although any other adventurer would probably be quick to tell you that Bennett doesn’t really have any adventurer’s instinct due to his ability to attract trouble better than anybody else, but there was something different about this feeling.
“X-Xiao? You there?” Bennett hesitantly called out.
Xiao appeared right next to him, startling the young adventurer. “You called?”
“GAH!” Bennett yelped. “Y-You really came…”
“...Yes. I come when you call my name, as I said I would.” Xiao then looked as if he just remembered something. “The disturbance… it’s getting stronger.”
“So I am getting close…” Bennett looked around his surroundings, as if that would make the feeling any stronger.
Xiao however, could pinpoint the source of this ‘disturbance’ he’s talking about. As he focused on finding the exact location of the source, his Yaksha mask appeared on his face. It was as if he were preparing for battle. Bennett didn’t say it out loud, but the mask kinda freaked him out. The adeptus then quickly made his way forward, much more agile than Bennett. The white-haired boy followed the Yaksha, who was slowing down a bit so the adventurer could keep up. As the two quickly made their way past the valleys of Jueyun Karst, they finally arrived at the entrance of a Domain. One that Bennett has never heard of before, and one that struck Xiao as odd.
“The disturbance is coming from there. I do not feel any enemies inside… it’s as if they were already taken down before we arrived.”
“Aether…” Bennett muttered.
His resolve hardened, he entered the Domain, with Xiao disappearing behind him. If Xiao was coming with him inside the Domain or not, it wasn’t too important to Bennett. Since the enemies have been taken care of, Bennett figured Xiao thought it was okay for him to handle alone. If this was the case, he would have to thank the adeptus later.
The adventurer kept sprinting past the empty halls of the Domain, not bothering to take his surroundings into account. He had to admit that the area was incredibly creepy, full of a purple hue that could be found on the walls and floors of the hallways. The Domain was way bigger than he was accustomed to, not a single room with a wave of enemies or several rooms being connected with three pathways. This was like a whole labyrinth.
It took Bennett a while to feel like he was actually making progress, until he finally arrived at a chamber that was open in size, bigger than any other room he’s seen in the Domain so far. What caught his attention right away though, was Aether, standing in front of an upside-down Statue of the Seven of the Anemo Archon, Barbatos. He had his sword in his hand, as if he was fighting enemies shortly beforehand.
“A-Aether…?”
At the sudden call to his name, the Traveler turned around, shocked, his hand glowing with Geo energy ready to attack. Bennett closed his eyes tightly and prepared for an attack, but it never came.
“Bennett…” Aether let his hand drop to his side again, his energy fading from the same hand. “What’re you doing here?” He said as he turned back around to face the statue.
“I should be asking you that! You disappeared without telling anyone where you went! There was a commission that was made, looking for you!”
Aether winced, but shook his head. Bennett could tell he was arguing with himself about something.
“Aether… you’re upset about something. Please just—”
The Viator then turned around and raised his voice at the adventurer. “Yes, Bennett. I am upset. I’ve been looking around for ages for my sister, and it doesn’t feel like anyone in Teyvat really cares, even though I keep saving cities wherever I go.”
“H-Huh?”
“I didn’t ask to be part of the team to quell Stormterror, I just happened to have the power to purify his tears. I didn’t ask to get caught up in the battle with Osial, the military was literally trying to arrest me for the supposed murder of Rex Lapis! I didn’t even want any part of the rebellion against the Vision Hunt Decree at first but they basically guilt-tripped me to work with them to fight the Electro Archon! I’m tired, Bennett. I just want my sister back, and it feels like everyone here is making empty promises with me to get me to help them out, but all I get in return is a ‘sorry, I have no idea where your sister is’.”
At the sudden outburst from Aether, Bennett was stunned. “I-I didn’t know…”
“Of course you didn’t know, no one even told you… Why am I even yelling at you…” Aether turned back around and tightened the grip on his sword.
“No, you—” Bennett sighed but kept talking. “You saved my hometown. You fought back against Stormterror and it made you a living legend in Mondstadt. Xiao told me—”
“X-Xiao…?” Aether interrupted, quietly.
“He told me that the people of Liyue are infinitely grateful for how you helped them against Osial. I don’t know anyone from Inazuma, but I’m sure they’re happy that you helped them against the Electro Archon! It’s an Archon , Aether! Not many people can stand up to one, much less stand their ground against one!”
“It wasn’t just me, it was—”
“But it was because of you that everything was resolved. And… I’m sorry. I should’ve asked you how you were handling all these things by yourself…”
“Benny, I—”
“No, I… Lemme finish, please. I wasn’t there when you and the Knights fought against Stormterror. I wasn’t there when you fought Osial. I don’t even know what an Osial is! And I wasn’t there when you fought against the Electro Archon. Aether, I… I want to help you. Please, let me be part of your team to look for your sister, and I promise I won’t leave until we find her.”
Aether turned, shocked. With a tear in his eye, he asked, “D-Do you mean that…?”
“Of course I do. You’ve had enough, I can tell. I may have been really young when I lost my parents, but… I know how it feels to not truly have a family. I found my family with my dads in Mondstadt, but you don’t have anything like that.” Bennett stepped closer to Aether. “If you want, I can be your family… until we find your sister.”
Aether’s breath hitched. After a brief moment of silence that left Bennett worried he might have said the wrong thing, the blonde dropped his sword and rushed across the room to hug Bennett tightly.
“Woah, woah, you have a tight grip, Aether—”
Aether let him go and sniffled. “I-I’m sorry, I just…” Aether rubbed his eyes as he continued. “You’re the first one to really care about what’s really going on in my head… but Xiao, he… he also promised to always be there for me when I need him most… I do have a support system, I guess I just… needed to be reminded… I’m sorry, Benny.”
“No apologies necessary. Come on, we really gotta go and get you back to Paimon, she was worried sick.”
“Oh, Paimon… I left her behind in Mondstadt… I have to apologize to her…”
“Don’t worry about that for now, let’s just get out of this creepy place. This Domain really feels… off.”
Aether had something to say to that, but he kept himself quiet. The true identity of his sister would be kept a secret for a little while longer, but he was sure he’d tell Bennett eventually if he really was going to be with him until they found his sister.
~
The two made their way out of the Domain and started walking back to Mondstadt. Xiao already confirmed that Aether was okay, and that was good enough for him to return back to Wangshu Inn. The look that was on Aether’s face when Bennett told him that he also had Xiao on speed-dial like he did was priceless, but Bennett already let him know that he probably won’t count on Xiao too often. He doesn’t even live in Liyue, for starters, and he figured it was more like a temporary alliance to find Aether. Not so much a permanent promise like those two had. In a way, it made Bennett feel jealous.
Bennett huffed his chest as they were making their way into Mondstadt’s border. “If you cannot bring yourself to kill— call my name! Bennett!”
Aether chuckled. “You’re no adeptus, Benny. Also, if we’re gonna be traveling together from now on, why would I have to call out your name for help?”
“Heh, I guess you’re right about that.”
Aether snickered. “You totally waited until we got out of Liyue so Xiao wouldn’t hear you basically mock his promise.”
Bennett flushed. “W-Wha?! Don’t tell him anything about what just happened! He could actually kill me if he wanted to!”
“Oh I promise, I gotta protect you too, so I don’t think I’ll want to tell Xiao about anything you just said~”
“Hey! You’re totally making fun of me!”
~
As the pair finally arrived in Mondstadt, they were frantically greeted by the townspeople who were dying to know where the Honorary Knight had disappeared to for two days. Bennett basically was the wall separating Aether from the mob of people asking him tons of questions, as the two made their way to Katherine’s booth.
“Ah, Traveler. I’m glad to see you safe and sound. Seems like you handled the commission perfectly fine, Bennett.”
“I didn’t do it all alone, but I told you I could do it.”
“AETHER!!” The two turned to see Paimon hovering quickly towards them, with her bonking Aether on the head multiple times. “Where have you been?! Paimon was worried sick! Paimon even pawned off everything she owns for that reward! Granted, Paimon doesn’t own much, but—“ It took her a bit to then realize that he was with Bennett. “Eh? Bennett? Did you find him?”
Aether then huddled in Paimon and Bennett close. “Our family just got a little bit bigger, Paimon~”
Bennett flushed at the comment, but then Aether let go of the two of them to hold Bennett’s hands in his own. “Seriously, though. Thank you, Benny. For everything.”
Bennett simply smiled in response. “You don’t have to handle everything on your own. I’ll be here for you.”
As the two hugged in front of a confused crowd of people, Paimon’s confusion only grew. “Huh?!”
The two adventurers merely laughed it off. No one else had to know.