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Chapter 83 - Chapter 83: Lucian, Just You Wait!

Upon learning that her brother already knew the truth, Lumine stopped dwelling on the issue and instead raised a new question.

"By the way, Lucian, you're also an Outlander. Can you use those Teleport Waypoints?" Lumine asked.

Lucian shook his head. He couldn't use those Waypoints—he could only use the ones exchanged from his system.

"Really? I heard from Mona that you can instantly travel between Fontaine and Liyue, so I thought you could use those Waypoints too."

Only then did Lucian realize that Mona had also encountered the Traveler this time.

...Speaking of which, Mona probably didn't badmouth me, right? I've been so good to her, even telling her about the future. She wouldn't hold a grudge, would she?

"The Waypoints I use are different from yours. We can't use each other's," Lucian explained.

Wait a minute— Lucian suddenly realized that while Lumine couldn't use his Waypoints, he could take her along when teleporting.

Didn't that mean she could unlock the Fontaine map early? An unexpected path!

Though Fontaine was peaceful right now, and there wasn't much to do there. At most, it'd just mean obtaining Hydro powers ahead of schedule.

The matter of the Waypoints wasn't like the earlier topic of Khaenri'ah—it wasn't something he'd hidden from Hu Tao or Navia in the first place. So Lucian openly shared this idea.

Lumine immediately agreed. Getting a head start on unlocking the map was naturally the best option, especially since she could always use the Waypoints to return.

With their business settled, the group began chatting casually, and Lumine decided to stay at Lucian's place for the time being.

Lumine hadn't obtained the Serenitea Pot yet, so her current lodging method was staying at inns. Saving money by staying at Lucian's place was something she wouldn't refuse.

The money saved could buy Paimon an extra treat or two.

They weren't in a hurry to go to Fontaine immediately either. They could wait until Lucian finished his business in Liyue—there'd still be time.

Now that she knew her brother was safe, Lumine wasn't in a rush to continue her journey. As Venti had said, it was better to take in the scenery along the way.

Lucian would be returning to Fontaine later anyway, so he could just take the Traveler with him then.

The matter Lucian needed to handle was the appointment he'd already made with Ganyu—to visit Cloud Retainer the next day.

Come to think of it, wasn't his new book also set to release tomorrow?

In fact, during that previous month, Lucian had already written all of Mondstadt's Story Quests before coming to Liyue and submitted them to The Steambird.

After arriving in Liyue, he'd also handed them over to Wanwen Bookhouse, though the release order had been arranged by Lucian in advance.

The next day, Lucian woke up early—after all, he had an appointment with Ganyu.

Navia and Lumine were still asleep in the guest room, and Lucian didn't disturb them.

Ganyu arrived early as well. When Lucian opened the door, she was already waiting outside.

...She'd probably been drinking dew out there earlier.

"Good morning, Mr. Lucian," Ganyu said with a gentle smile.

"Shall we set off, then?" she asked.

Lucian nodded, and the two headed toward Jueyun Karst.

Ganyu was an Adeptus, and Lucian had spent 100,000 Emotional Value to boost his strength. The monsters along the way posed no threat to them.

As they made their way to Jueyun Karst, Lucian's new book was released as scheduled.

This time, it wasn't Act III but two Story Quests: "Astrolabos Chapter" and "Trifolium Chapter"—Mona and Klee's Story Quests, respectively.

Lucian had intentionally released their stories together.

This was to clear Mona's name a bit—the one who could trick Mona wasn't just any ordinary little girl. She was "Mondstadt's Strongest Combatant"!

As for the story Lucian had written, Mona's reaction was: Lucian, just you wait!

Don't let me catch you, or you'll regret it!

If you'd written this story earlier and let me see it, I wouldn't have read that book! It's all because I trusted you too much!

After finishing the story, Mona realized that even without Lucian, she would've ended up reading that book through sheer coincidence.

"Ah... Fate truly is unalterable," Mona sighed.

This was why astrologists didn't want to see their own futures.

Because even if you saw it, you couldn't change anything. Worse, you might see an unfavorable future and try to prevent it—only for your attempts to become the very cause of that future coming true.

That kind of thing was just too mentally taxing, enough to shatter one's resolve.

In Teyvat, fate was predetermined, and there weren't many ways to change it.

One method was to act in a blind spot of the Heavenly Principles' gaze, making changes like Focalors had.

Another was to disrupt things as an Outlander—since Outlanders weren't part of the divine plan, they could influence predetermined fate, like Lumine.

A third way was to outright overthrow the Heavenly Principles and shatter that predetermined fate, like the Cryo Archon.

Of course, you could also go the Khaenri'ah route and just fight the Heavenly Principles head-on!

But no matter which method, none were easily achievable.

"Wait... Lucian is also an Outlander..." Mona suddenly realized.

Lucian was an Outlander too—he also had the power to disrupt fate.

Stopping her from reading her master's diary was such a simple matter for him, wasn't it?

"That damn Lucian! He totally tricked me on purpose!" Mona gritted her teeth as she closed the book.

Though furious, this was still a book of prophecy about her own fate. She had to keep it safe—who knew what else she could learn from it?

For Mona, who was in the know, this was the case. But for those unaware, Mona's Story Quest was actually quite interesting.

Because from the very beginning, people had been speculating—who was this "Heir to an Ancient and Esteemed Legacy" that Mona spoke of?

Many in Mondstadt guessed it might be Albedo, or perhaps Sucrose?

Aunt Lisa was a graduate of the Akademiya, so she probably had nothing to do with the rival of Mona's master, right?

With all sorts of curiosity and speculation, people continued reading.

And then they saw Mona pointing at Klee and saying:

["It's her! The Heir to an Ancient and Esteemed Legacy!"]

["I am the astrologist who has glimpsed the secrets of the starry sea! You must have foreseen my arrival as well, right?"]

People couldn't help but cry foul—the Heir to an Ancient and Esteemed Legacy was actually little Klee!?

She could barely recognize all the letters in the alphabet, let alone inherit some grand legacy! Might as well let me do it!

[Klee tapped her finger against her lips, her expression full of confusion. "Starry sea? What's a starry sea? Are there fish in the starry sea too?"]

To this, Lucian remarked: Silly, Kokomi is the ornamental fish.

Meanwhile, the people of Mondstadt were utterly baffled. Where was the Heir to an Ancient and Esteemed Legacy? Surely it wasn't Klee, right? Tell us it's not!

...Unless making bombs counted as part of some grand legacy. Then yeah, she'd inherited that.

Coincidentally, the next book was Klee's story—"Trifolium Chapter." Let's see exactly what grand legacy she'd inherited.

And so, people began reading Klee's story.

Well, to be precise, before reading it, most ordinary folks wouldn't know it was Klee's story just from the title.

They were simply finishing one story and moving on to the next out of habit.

The book told of a popular topic circulating through Mondstadt's streets and alleys:

Who was Mondstadt's strongest fighter?

To the people of Mondstadt, the answer was undoubtedly their Anemo Archon, Barbatos.

But if they excluded the gods?

Thus, the final candidates were: the Dandelion Knight, the Darknight Hero...

And Paimon's vehement nomination—the Honorary Knight, Lumine.

===✧✦✧===

Character Voice-Over: Mona – About Lucian III

"The next time I see him, I won't let him fool me again!"

 

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