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The village looked different from what she remembered.
It had been years, after all, since she had seen it last, and her memories of the place were far from pleasant. Her mother, dead from disease. Her father, driven to madness in his grief—the kind of madness that almost left her dead.
A cursed child, now grown, but still bearing the curse of calamity, Shenhe survived being sacrificed to an evil god. Since then, so much about her had changed. She couldn't blame the village for being nearly unrecognizable except for faint traces of familiarity, because after all, she was the same way.
Standing at the periphery of the village, Shenhe took one step forward before hesitating. She was acutely aware of how different she looked from the local populace, her white hair a stark contrast to the black hair of the majority of Liyue. Not to mention the multitude of red ropes that adorned her body. A strange sight indeed for a quiet old village by the foot of Mt. Tianheng.
But she was already here, far away from the mountain where she lived with her mentor Cloud Retainer. If she turned back now, she would have travelled all this way for nothing.
And so Shenhe walked into the village. She peered around, digging deep into her memories to figure out where she was going. But perhaps those memories were too far back, as Shenhe soon found herself walking in circles around where she thought her childhood home would be, but it wasn't there.
"Excuse me, ma'am?"
Shenhe turned around to face the source of the voice, but did not answer. The voice belonged to a middle-aged man she did not recognize, but even if she did, she doubted he would recognize her.
"Are you looking for something here?" The man continued despite her silence. Shenhe noticed that he used the formal form of "you" to address her.
A moment later, Shenhe decided to speak. "There was a house here."
The man blinked. "Pardon? Are you referring to the house that was demolished a while ago? I'm surprised you can tell there used to be a building here, with how much the greenery has covered the land..." He scratched his head. "Well, I suppose it's not that surprising for an adeptus to be so knowledgeable."
An adeptus. That explained the formal pronoun. Shenhe was reminded of the civilians who occasionally wandered into the mountains. This man seemed to lack the reverence most others had for her. She supposed that was good, since after all she was only human.
"Why was the house demolished?" Shenhe's reason for coming to the village had disappeared.
"It was pure bad luck, that house." The man sighed. "What with the tragedy of the family that lived there. The whole incident was cursed, I say."
"Cursed?" That word caught Shenhe's attention.
"The couple who lived there, the wife died from an illness and the husband hanged himself not long after. And their little girl—" He shook his head. "She's been missing for years, so it'd be a miracle if she was still alive. The family belonged to a clan of exorcists, too. I wouldn't be surprised if it was some evil spirit that did them all in."
Not far off. Shenhe thought back to the many nights she spent in that cave with the creature her father summoned. Her father, who she just learned had killed himself years ago. Her father was dead.
Her father was dead, and Shenhe just stared at the man who told her, revealing nothing on her face. Then she turned around to walk away.
Much to her surprise, however, she saw that she had attracted a small crowd around her.
An elderly woman stepped forward and gave Shenhe a bow. "Great adeptus, we welcome you to our humble village. This place is quaint, but how are you finding it when compared to Jueyun Karst?"
Shenhe stopped to look at the woman, who she recognized but who did not recognize her. She looked away, peering at the others who had joined her.
And then another person stepped forward. "Oh great adeptus, my family and I would like to extend an invitation for you to rest in our home, with a hearty meal to nourish you after your long journey. We ask kindly that you accept our humble invitation."
It was true that Shenhe had not eaten since leaving the mountain. But this person's invitation was offered to an adeptus, which Shenhe was not.
"Adeptus, if I may ask, what brings you to our humble village?" And yet another person had spoken.
Shenhe stared at each one of them, deep in thought. Not about their inquiries, no, but instead she was thinking about what she had just learned that day.
Her father was dead. Her father, who loved her mother more than her, was dead. Her father, who sacrificed her to an evil spirit, was dead. Her father, who had left her to die in exchange for her mother's life, was dead. Her father was dead, and Shenhe was sure she felt something about this fact. She felt something, but it was blurry and difficult to make out. She felt not a strong pang of emotion, but merely a dull thud against her heart.
No matter. Her father was dead, yes, but she was alive. She was alive, and she was far away from home.
And so it was time for Shenhe to go.