immortality • childe

chap. 17

He did it sooner than (y/n) expected.

After coming back to her beloved home, she returned to her usual routine: walking around, looking out for lost mortals, listening to the wind as it whispered to her.

But only a few weeks after the incident, she heard of the breaking news; the death of Rex Lapis. The one who told her about it was none other than her younger Adeptus friend- Xiao.

—

"I can't believe him..", he growled and clenched his fists in frustration. An irk mark appeared on his forehead as he walked around in circles; visibly angered.

(y/n) looked at him from aside and sighed to herself. It was a huge step for Liyue- maybe too sudden. But she trusted in Zhongli's decision and knew that the Yaksha did too, even though it didn't look like that at the moment.

The female got up from the rock she was sitting on and turned around to stare at Xiao's golden eyes for a brief moment. "Do you want to go to Liyue Harbor with me? I'm curious how the people are acting right now"

Xiao shook his head and closed his eyes, while rubbing his temples. "I don't care", he muttered and disappeared in front of her. A soft chuckle escaped her lips, of course he would say no.

—

(y/n) stepped through the gates of Liyue Harbor, carefully looking around. Some people were clearly confused and irritated because of the sudden death of their God.

"I wonder what could've killed him..", she heard an older man say in a sad tone, as she walked along the streets.

Zhongli decided that the yearly Rite of Descension would be a good time to fake his death- the day where he would usually talk to his people from Liyue. His corpse was now hidden in the Golden House; away from all the citizens.

(y/n) continued her stroll, seeing many people with a worried expression on their face.

"(y/n)? I didn't expect you to come here so soon", a deep voice said, causing the female to hum quietly after recognizing it. Zhongli stood in front of her, giving her a gentle smile as he looked down to her.

"Childe is here. And he brought a.. traveller with him", he informed the girl while looking at the clear sky.

Under normal circumstances, children would be running around Liyue Harbor right now and elders would happily chat with each other while watching people pass by.

"I'm sure he would be happy to see you", the Archon added and peeked at the girl with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

She shrugged her shoulders in response and sighed. "Let's go then"

—

The two of them walked towards the Wangmin Restaurant, as Zhongli asked the female a question about the current situation.

"Do you think it was a good decision?". The Geo Archon was rarely unsure about his decisions, but this time it was about his land and his own people. (y/n) hesitated and furrowed her brows.

"It doesn't affect me in any way, so my opinion doesn't matter. I'm just worried that something will happen to Qiqi and Baizhu". The goddess found a liking to the small zombie, not wanting anything bad to happen to her.

Zhongli chuckled and let a smile rest on his face. He knew that it was his task to rule over Liyue; but sometimes he wished that (y/n) could give him her genuine opinion on his decisions instead of saying that she doesn't care.

"Welcome at the Wangmin Restaurant. Do you have a reservation?", a black haired waiter greeted Zhongli and (y/n) when they arrived at their destination.

The Archon nodded and gave the waiter the needed information, while (y/n) silently stood beside him.

"Please allow me to guide you to your room"

—

They settled down on the table that was filled with a variety of dishes. "Childe should arrive soon", Zhongli said and patiently crossed his arms. (y/n) quietly sighed.

She just wanted to take a look at Liyue Harbor, knowing that she would meet Zhongli; but she didn't expect to end up in a restaurant with him, Childe and a traveller.

A familiar voice interrupted her thoughts.

"This is Zhongli, and- (y/n)?", the Harbingers eyes widened in surprise when he recognized the female sitting next to Zhongli.

She shot him a short smile and turned her attention towards the traveller. He had blonde braided hair and wore simple white clothing. She curiously looked at the floating fairy next to him. Her memories were a bit rusty, but she had never seen a creature like that before.

The blonde boy stared at her with a baffled expression for a few seconds, not being able to say something.

He quickly shook his head afterwards and turned away. "Hello! I am Paimon and this is Aether", Paimon introduced herself and her friend with a high pitched voice.

Aether quietly cleared his throat and smiled for a moment. Childe looked at the smaller male from aside, slightly furrowing his brows.

"It is a pleasure to meet you. Please call me Zhongli. And this is (y/n)", the Archon said calmly and started to smile warmly.

Childe, Aether and Paimon settled down on the table. (y/n) chuckled at the sight of the tiny fairy stuffing all the food inside her mouth as soon as they sat down. Aether sighed, a little embarrassed of his companion and started to eat as well.

Of course they talked about his missing twin sister and how he wanted to ask the Geo Archon for help. Zhongli quietly listened while (y/n), on the other hand, stared out of the window, lost in thoughts.

Childe noticed and grinned, overly happy to see the girl again. He was a little disappointed when he didn't see her at the last day of the Lantern Rite Festival.

His blue eyes flew over her figure, carefully studying her features.

The person in front of him was abnormally gorgeous. He couldn't get his eyes off her; the way she smiled, the way she walked and even the way she stared out of the window, it all made him forget to breathe for a moment.

Her hair looked fluffy, making him want to run his fingers though it. The sun made her skin glow a little, causing it to look soft and clear.

Overall, she was painfully beautiful. To the point where she didn't even look like a normal human anymore.