Operation: Make Zhongli Smile Forever

Part 11 - Do you yield?

As planned, Childe approached Zhongli at the main gate at precisely five in the afternoon; the sun was beginning to set, the western coast of Liyue basked in a faint glow while magenta and golden clouds rolled in from the east. Zhongli was completely stiff, arms crossed over his chest as he stood in anticipation for their fight; Childe almost skipped towards him, battlelust coursing through his veins- after all, he had waited for this moment since he found out Zhongli was the Geo Archon.

"You ready, old man?" Childe snickered as he approached his friend, hands in his pockets and a wide smile spreading across his face; Zhongli's eyes fell upon him as soon as he heard his voice, a fond grin present on his lips.

"Absolutely. Come, we shall spar where we left for Mondstadt a few days ago," the Archon stated, turning on his heels once Childe joined him at his side, "how was work today?" Childe stopped for a moment, slightly startled at the question; Zhongli seemingly never found interest in his work.

"Mostly paperwork, reports, letters- you know, general bank business. Plans from the Tsaritsa and the other Harbingers I read through. Seems that I'm staying in Liyue indefinitely; apparently my involvement with the bank is doing well for the economy," he explained, listing things off as he went along; he could swear Zhongli smiled a bit more upon announcing that he'd be staying in Liyue, "how's the parlour?" Zhongli chuckled.

"Hu Tao is being as destructive as ever; seems she has an affinity for catching frogs and releasing them in my office. And oh- she sends her regards to you. Your 'unconventional' methods of dealing with debtors is good for business," the Archon told him, smirking slightly at the man beside him; Childe's face turned red, embarrassment evident on his complexion.

"Tell her I say... thanks? I'm really not sure what to say," the Harbinger chuckled awkwardly, scratching his head a little; Zhongli only laughed in response.

After just a few minutes of walking, the two men reached the are from which they had left for Mondstadt; it was flat enough to be comfortable to fight on, yet the uneven nature of Liyue's landscape made for interesting challenges and innovative techniques. They stood a few metres away from each other and readied their weapons; Childe opted to start out with a hydro spear as he saw Zhongli materialise his polearm.

"We shall set out some rules before we begin. The end goal is not to hurt the other party, merely incapacitate them; the battle ends once one of the members surrenders. Should one of us go too far, we will yell a safeword," Zhongli boomed across the distance between them, eyes focused deeply on Childe's own, "choose a word, Tartaglia."

"Hmmm.... how about starconch? I like them a lot," Childe responded, slightly taken aback by Zhongli's use of his full title.

"Then it is decided; starconch shall be our safeword. You ready?" Zhongli smiled once more, something slightly primal blaring in his cor lapis eyes; perhaps, it had been a while since he was really challenged.

"Of course!" Childe shouted back, charging forward and twirling his spear in his hands, aiming to hit Zhongli in the shoulder; much to his surprise, Zhongli expertly blocked the attack with some sort of forcefield. A shield, in fact. Zhongli had a shield.

"Hey! That's unfair!" Childe chuckled as he summoned his bow to his side, drawing an arrow infused with Hydro. Zhongli laughed as he summoned a pillar right behind Childe, throwing him out of balance and causing him to fire straight into the air.

"Do you yield?" Zhongli asked in his deep tone as he knocked Childe to his knees, holding his polearm to his throat; the man below him only smirked before hitting the weapon away with a newly summoned Hydro dagger, rolling away from Zhongli.