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Two months had passed since Aether had found out about Zhongli‘s true identity. That the man was no ordinary funeral consultant and was actually the Vampire Archon of Liyue. While the traveller was still slightly annoyed at Zhongli for hiding such a fact while making him go run errands for his own funeral and fight a powerful, deceased Vampire God that was the shape of a serpent to protect Liyue, he knew that contracts were important to the Geo Vampire Archon. Everyone needed to play a role to make his death believable enough, and Aether’s was to wander around Liyue with his fae companion and almost die. The blond had already gone up against the Anemo Vampire Archon’s dragon, so upgrading to a Vampire God bigger than Liyue Harbour made sense for his ‘heroic’ journey, he supposed.
At least I’m getting a break now, Aether thought while wandering the wilderness with Paimon and a new guide of theirs: A treasure-seeking Seelie. It did a good job upholding its name as him and the fae found another chest, Paimon giggling at the riches inside.
“Paimon’s starting to mind less that this is our new guide for the moment! All this mora will get Paimon so many meat skewers!”
The blond rolled his eyes as he crouched down and took the loot, putting it in his inventory. “I never said I’d buy you food with the mora we found.”
“Don’t be mean to Paimon.” She huffed, watching as the Seelie wandered off to find more treasure. “Oh well, Paimon’s sure you’ll get her some food anyways, let’s keep going.”
The traveller nodded in defeat and stood up, eyebrows furrowing upon hearing a noise. While Paimon went off with the Seelie, Aether turned towards the noise, tilting his head at seeing a familiar person in between the many trees of the Liyue forest they were in, who admittedly seemed a little flustered at being spotted as he stared back at the blond. It was Zhongli, of all people.
Aether looked over at Paimon before looking back at the funeral consultant. Upon seeing the tall man had remained where he was, he walked over to him. “Is there a reason you’re watching me and Paimon?”
“… Yes,” Zhongli murmured. “I’ll be honest, I wasn’t expecting you to see me so soon. I haven’t quite figured out what to say to you yet…”
“About what?” Aether’s question went unanswered, the traveller flinching upon hearing his fae friend start yelling, panicking about losing her friend while seeming a little too focused on the fact the Seelie had also found their treasure.
Although the blond was slightly conflicted on where to go, he quickly went to Paimon after Zhongli gestured in her direction as a sign of permission for the traveller to leave.
Paimon sighed upon seeing Aether approach through the thick trees. “Ah, you had Paimon so worried…” She smiled with a calm sigh, smiling more as she looked at the person behind Aether. “Oh, hello Mr. Zhongli!”
Aether turned to face Zhongli, slightly surprised to see he had followed after seeming so nervous about revealing himself initially.
“Good evening, you two,” said the former Vampire Archon. “I see you are using a Seelie to find treasure? While I have seen the both of you following Seelies to statues and obtaining a chest for doing so, it seems as if this Seelie is happily finding treasure for you without you having to take it to a statue.”
Paimon quickly explained to Zhongli how her and Aether had obtained the treasure-seeking Seelie, meanwhile the traveller collected the goods from the chest located by the Seelie, eyebrows creasing together as he felt a certain someone’s gaze melting into his back.
Aether stood after placing the treasure into his satchel, with his fae friend smiling gleefully at him. “That was the last chest the Seelie could find in this area! Now what should we do?”
“We could… go back to Liyue Harbour?” He phrased the suggestion as a question as he looked at the funeral consultant, who smiled in response while nodding.
“Yes, that would be best. There’s plenty to do in the city.”
Paimon cheered. “Then let’s go!”
The fae became less cheery after arriving in the city and being told by the traveller to occupy herself at Wanmin Restaurant, though upon Aether adding that she could get Xiangling to cook her meals while him and Zhongli were gone, Paimon seemed to be less worried that Aether would be absent for awhile.
The easiest part of the situation was out of the way — making sure that Paimon couldn’t hear what Zhongli had to say to Aether. Now he just had to figure out what the former Vampire Archon wanted from him.
“Do not worry,” Zhongli said, as if reading the traveller’s mind. “I know this is quite sudden, randomly appearing in the forest and getting you to be away from Paimon, but if you allow me to take you to my place of residence, I promise I will elaborate on the situation.”
Before Aether could speak, they appeared to have reached their destination as Zhongli’s walking pace slowed: A reasonably large house on the outer edge of the residential area in Liyue Harbour. “This is your home?”
“Yes,” Zhongli replied simply.
“… So you forgot to set aside mora to use in the future, but not to buy yourself a luxurious house?… I can’t say I’m surprised.”
“Well… When I planned on ‘settling down’ in Liyue Harbour, when I spotted this house, I could not resist such a purchase. It sold for a rather good price.”
“When you’re buying something with an unlimited amount of money, anything seems like a good price.”
Zhongli smiled sweetly. “That is a fair conclusion to come to.” He unlocked the door to his house, stepping inside and holding it open for the blond. “Come in. I will pour you a drink.”
Aether stared in bemused amusement at his glass of apple juice, which Zhongli had poured into a well-decorated wine glass. “Fancy,” the traveller complimented, picking up the glass to take a sip of his drink.
“Thank you. These glasses are actually three hundred years old, crafted by an expert glassblower in Liyue Harbour.”
“Even what you use to dine with are artefacts. I can’t say I’m too surprised,” he said while looking around the luxurious living room. Even the couch he was sitting on, while well maintained, its style made it clear it was actually quite old.
“I wouldn’t call these artefacts. The word artefact suggests historical or cultural significance. While the glassblower was especially skilled at his job, these are just ‘fancy’ wine glasses. Perhaps if more time passes these will be considered artefacts, but as it stands today, I think a better word would be antique.”
Aether just took another sip of his drink and nodded. Others would find the consultant’s ramblings and corrections annoying, but the blond couldn’t help but enjoy the funeral consultant’s voice going on about whatever topic was being discussed.
He watched as Zhongli poured an orange liquid from a black, round bottle into his own wine glass before sitting down next to his guest.
“Osmanthus wine?” Aether asked.
“You are correct. I have not had it in awhile; I often saved drinking Osmanthus wine for meeting with other gods, but I believe that now is a worthy time to drink this beverage.”
Aether watched the ex-archon drink the Osmanthus wine before putting it back down on the table. “.. Speaking of this meeting, why have you invited me into your home suddenly? Especially if you think it’s worthy enough of a get together to have a drink you have with other gods.”
“I have something extremely important to discuss with you that lies outside the bounds of our contract, and even outside of the bounds of our friendship. I have a request, and if you choose to accept it, I would be most grateful.”
Aether’s eyebrows furrowed, immediately put on guard. “… What’s your request?”
Zhongli smiled sheepishly. “Before I say it, I must preface that if you wish to decline, you may, and it will not affect our contract nor our current relationship.”
The traveller nodded. “Noted.”
Zhongli straightened his posture and turned his body to better face the blond. “As you are aware, I have resigned from my position as Vampire Archon. When I was still a Vampire Archon, I would receive generous offerings of blood from the citizens of Liyue, which gave me strength and generally made me able to… function properly. Vampires need to consume the blood or energy of other beings to be able to live, as is the case with humans and consuming food and water. Now that I have stopped being a Vampire Archon, the offerings of blood have begun to significantly dwindle. They have not ceased; there are those who still wish to worship me and do so by leaving blood offerings, but I have noticed myself getting weaker as months go by. I can’t help but worry — months are a short timeframe for immortal beings, yet I am already feeling the side effects.”
Aether frowned. He had seen blood — often put in small vials — be used as offerings for the Anemo Vampire Archon, but had never considered what would happen to Venti if his people did not offer that blood to him. “I’m sorry to hear that, but.. what does that have to do with me? Do you want me to try to increase the blood offerings?”
Zhongli shook his head. “That may be a good alternative, but I had another idea in mind. While blood offerings are sufficient, the consumption of blood through directly drinking from a person is what gives Vampires the most energy. They can last several months without needing to feed again if they drink from a direct source — multiple sources are unnecessary. If I’m able to find a direct source, I can give the blood offerings for me to my fellow Vampire Adepti instead until my blood offerings cease, meanwhile I’ll have my own stable source of blood to help me survive… This is where you come in.”
The traveller’s eyes widened, the brunette’s last words solving Aether’s confusion. “… You want me to be your… direct source?”
“You don’t need to phrase it like that — you are still my friend. I understand this is a lot to ask from you, but I promise you that the process of me feeding from you is not painful, nor will it take a long time.”
“… Why do you want to feed from me? ”
“Quite a few reasons. One, there are not many that know of my true identity, but you are one of them. Secondly, from the people I am close to, there are not many of them I’d like to or even have the ability to feed from. The Vampire Adepti are beings I cannot feed from, nor are other Vampire Archons — Vampires cannot feed from one another. While there are mortals I do know and are relatively close to, I feel as if the power dynamic brought on by me — a Vampire Archon — feeding on a human would be too major. It makes me feel odd just thinking about it, let alone the person I’d be feeding on.
“Because of all this, I believe you are the best candidate for who I should feed on. You know my true identity, you are not another Vampire, and yet you’re also not quite human. Perhaps I’m speaking out of line, but you feel like a rank above humans, and therefore the power imbalance is not so extreme.”
“… How close am I to you in ranking?” Aether asked.
Zhongli laughed. “When I said you are a rank above humans, I suppose I didn’t quite phrase it correctly. I simply meant to say I see you more as my equal than I do with the people. They’re my subjects or the subjects of other Vampire Archons, meanwhile you are my friend who worships no Archon.”
The traveller stared for a moment before nodding slowly, looking off at nothing as he became lost in thought.
“All of that being said,” the ex-archon continued, “do remember there is no pressure to do what I have suggested. I will simply find an alternative; what you suggested before — encouraging the people to offer more blood — is a good idea.”
“… I’ll do it,” Aether said as he looked at the Vampire Archon. “You said it wouldn’t hurt or take long, and we don’t need to do it often. Although…”
“Yes…?”
“What do I get out of this?”
“… Complimentary drinks?” Zhongli smiled sheepishly.
The blond stared at the brunette blankly.
“Well… Not just drinks, but food too. After I feed from you, I’ll make sure to get you food to give you energy. Losing blood unfortunately has some setbacks.”
“… Alright, but make sure the food is good, and… probably make extra for Paimon. She’ll feel left out if she notices I got food without her.”
Zhongli laughed and nodded. “Of course, of course.”
Aether stayed on the couch as per the ex-archon’s instructions as the ladder stood up and left the room, returning not long after with a slightly damp cloth and a couple of cotton balls laid on a small tray.
Zhongli sat back down next to Aether, picking up the cloth. “The best spot for me to feed from would be your neck, but I have no preference on which side, so you may choose.”
The traveller looked down at the scarf around his neck, trying to determine which side would best cover the mark that would soon be on his neck. Aether froze as Zhongli gently pressed his gloved hands against his scarf before pushing it to the sides of his neck, then retracting his hands to look at the scarf before looking Aether in the eyes.
“The right side of your neck.. Your scarf has an easier time covering that side,” Zhongli assisted.
“... Right,” the blond mumbled, not being able to help but let out a chuckle as he reflected on the absurdity of the situation. A Vampire Archon was really about to feed from him. Not because he worshipped the immortal – the opposite. Zhongli wanted to feed from him specifically because he did not worship him and the ex-archon even stated that he was Aether as an equal. After not even knowing him that long, even by Zhongli’s standards as previously mentioned. ‘Months are a short timeframe for immortal beings.’
Zhongli tilted his head down, looking almost sheepish. He gently pushed the right side of Aether’s scarf aside, pressing the damp cloth against the other’s neck. “I am ensuring your neck will be clean to feed from, for both myself and you.”
“What about you?”
The funeral consultant raised a brow.
“How do I know your fangs are clean?”
Zhongli’s eyes widened, though he quickly smiled in amusement. “I assure you that I clean my teeth, including my fangs. Especially my fangs. You have nothing to fear.”
The Vampire Archon put the cloth back down onto the tray before moving the tray to the coffee table close by and turning to better face Aether, placing a hand on the blond’s shoulder. “While you should not face any pain – something akin to a needle injection at most – if you do feel like you’re experiencing pain, let me know. Preferably tell me verbally instead of shoving me away. You will definitely hurt yourself if I retract my fangs from your skin without care.”
“Alright,” Aether responded, tilting his head to give Zhongli better access to his neck and closing his eyes.
Zhongli’s gaze furrowed on the designated spot on Aether’s neck, placing his other hand on the traveller’s left shoulder before lowering his mouth down close to it.
The Vampire Archon whispered a quick ‘thank you’ before opening his mouth and finally inserting his fangs into Aether’s neck.
Aether did not react much. He assumed this was another reason why Zhongli thought he would be a good candidate for feeding on. He was strong, at least compared to the average person for sure. Having what was comparably two needles in his neck was far from the worst feeling he had experienced. He would hardly call it pain, just the feeling of his blood being carefully and slowly extracted from his body.
It was still odd to him though. Usually the only thing that would feed from your blood were mosquitoes. Something you quickly had to swat at and then groan at the annoyance that is an itchy bite. But what was feeding from him now was not an insect, and not something to push away or be annoyed at. It was an immortal being. A Vampire. And more recently, his friend. A friend who was hungry and seeked help.
Others would call it pitiful. It was almost comical how such a strong being showed how weak they had become. But Aether didn’t view it in that way. He was glad Zhongli was like this. Not in pain, but the fact he was showing his vulnerability. Aether had never appreciated those who were immortal, certainly not getting a good impression of them when he encountered the Unknown Celestial God when first arriving to this world. However, he started to not be so bothered by immortals when meeting the Anemo Vampire Archon, Venti, and now with Zhongli, who he was glad was humble enough to do something like this despite his apparent ignorance in relation to mora.
Aether let out a sigh, beginning to relax of all things in response to this experience.
It did not take long for Zhongli to carefully pull his fangs out from the other’s neck, staring down at the blemished skin before grabbing the two cotton balls on the tray, pressing each against where two dots of blood now formed.
“Thank you,” he said, more clearly this time. “That was.. quite nice, actually… How are you feeling?”
“Tired,” Aether said with a smile, opening his eyes to look at the brunette. “And, uh, a little sore, to be honest. Like you said, it feels like a needle injection.”
Zhongli frowned, wilting as he looked at the blond. “I am truly and deeply sorry.”
The traveller laughed. “You told me to let you know if it hurt, and I didn’t say anything because I was fine, and I still am despite feeling a little sore. Don’t worry so much.”
The Vampire Archon hesitated before nodding. “Alright, if you insist.” He eventually took the now partially bloody cotton balls off of the other’s neck and placed them on the tray. “I will get to cooking food for you now.. and Paimon.”
Aether leaned his back against the couch. “As long as it won’t take a day to make.”
Zhongli paused, staring off into the distance before nodding again and standing up. “Right. Thank you for reminding me.”
“And hey,” Aether quickly interrupted, stopping Zhongli from walking off straight away. “If it makes you feel better, I actually quite enjoyed having you feed from me, so don’t worry.”
Zhongli stared quietly at the traveller with wide eyes. “I’m glad.. I quite enjoyed this too. Again, thank you. I look forward to doing this again a few months from now.”
The blond shook his head with a grin as he watched the embarrassed ex-archon walk away, closing his eyes once more and crossing his arms as he let himself sink into the couch.
Maybe this wasn’t such a bad arrangement after all, Aether thought.