"Lady Keqing, I am ashamed!" After the battle, the Millelith squad leader who had led the soldiers in the fight approached, his head slightly lowered, his face filled with guilt.
The Millelith soldiers had only managed to restrain a few Geovishaps, while Keqing and the traveler had been the ones to truly defeat them. This left them feeling deeply ashamed.
"No need for that. However, I'll have to trouble you to clean up these monster remains." Keqing sighed softly as she looked at the large number of monster corpses scattered around.
The Millelith soldiers were not weak overall. With their formations, they could handle most monsters. Unfortunately, this time they had faced Geovishaps, massive creatures against which their formations and techniques were less effective.
"Yes, ma'am!" The squad leader quickly left to carry out the task.
Keqing continued chatting with Lumine, and at this point, Paimon, who had been hiding far away during the battle, slowly flew over now that it was safe.
Thus, the conversation between two people turned into a three-way discussion.
"Keqing, did you know about us before?" Paimon asked, tilting her head slightly with a finger on her lips. During the conversation, she felt that the Yuheng seemed quite familiar with them.
"Yes, I heard about you from Ningguang. The traveler who helped Mondstadt resolve the dragon crisis, and her best companion." Keqing leaned against a tree trunk, one hand on her hip, a faint smile on her face.
"Hehe, Lady Keqing, you truly live up to being the Yuheng. You have such good judgment." Paimon's eyes curved into crescents as she basked in Keqing's praise.
Lumine, on the other hand, felt a bit helpless. Keqing's words were just polite formalities, after all.
"Just call me Keqing." Keqing shook her head. She wasn't fond of honorifics or unnecessary formalities.
"Okay, Keqing." Paimon happily repeated her name.
The group exchanged smiles, and the atmosphere lightened, completely devoid of the earlier tension and lingering scent of blood.
"Keqing, you're so strong! Those Geovishaps were defeated in an instant. But your moves seem familiar... have I seen them before?" Paimon scratched her head, feeling that Keqing's techniques were somewhat recognizable, though she couldn't quite place where she had seen them.
This wasn't Paimon's fault. After all, Keqing used a sword, while Yun Fan used a polearm. The same techniques executed with different weapons would naturally have some differences, so it was understandable that Paimon couldn't immediately recognize them.
"You've seen them?" Keqing was surprised.
Which technique was Paimon referring to? Stellar Restoration or Starward Sword? If it was the former, that was fine, but if it was the latter, did that mean she had met Yun Fan, her so-called master? The thought made Keqing's heart race.
"Some of the techniques I used were self-taught, while others were taught by my master."
'Taught by her master? So she and Yun Fan are indeed from the same school.' Lumine became even more convinced of her theory. The two were clearly master and disciple. As for the possibility that Yun Fan was Keqing's master, Lumine didn't even consider it. Yun Fan was so young—how could he already have a disciple?
"Have you met my master? He's an adeptus." Keqing asked, her eyes filled with hope.
"An adeptus? No." Paimon shook her head. After all, they were heading to Jueyun Karst to seek out the adepti. How could they have met one beforehand?
"I see." Keqing nodded, not having held much hope to begin with, though she couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.
"By the way, what brings you two out here? Liyue has been quite unstable lately. You should be careful." Keqing kindly reminded them.
"Well..." Lumine and Paimon exchanged glances, then nodded and told Keqing about their journey to Jueyun Karst to seek out the adepti. In their eyes, Keqing and Ningguang were likely in cahoots, so sharing a little information shouldn't be a problem.
"Seeking the adepti at Jueyun Karst..." Keqing rested her chin on her hand, deep in thought. Suddenly, she looked up and spoke to Lumine in a serious tone. "Lumine, I have a favor to ask of you."
"Keqing, you're too polite. Please, go ahead."
"Okay." Keqing wasn't one for beating around the bush. She got straight to the point. "When you go to Jueyun Karst to seek out the adepti, please help me find an adeptus named Fan. I'll reward you handsomely."
"Fan? No problem." Lumine agreed without hesitation. It was just a convenient request, and gaining the favor of a Qixing member was a great deal.
"Mm-hmm, we'll keep an eye out for you." Paimon also happily agreed.
After parting ways with Keqing, the two continued on their journey to Jueyun Karst. Along the way, Paimon kept giggling, which made Lumine curious. "Paimon, what are you laughing about?"
"Hehehe, Traveler, think about it! We're making a killing! We've got a reward from Ningguang, funding from Childe, and now a reward from Keqing for finding someone. We're doing one job and getting paid three times! It's like a dream come true!"
"You're such a little money-grubber." Lumine shook her head with a laugh, then her thoughts drifted back to what Keqing had said earlier.
'Yun Fan has Keqing's token, so they must know each other. Keqing's master is named Fan, a Liyue adeptus, and his name is just one character off from Yun Fan's. Yun Fan said he had a falling out with the adepti. Could it be...'
Lumine felt like she had stumbled upon a revelation. Was Yun Fan lying to her?
She had already suspected this earlier. All she needed to do was ask Keqing if she knew Yun Fan, and most of the questions would be answered. For some reason, she had inexplicably chosen not to ask.
"Sigh..." Lumine sighed inwardly.
I guess I still can't let go, can I?