𝚂𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚢 𝙰𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚃𝚑𝚊𝚝 [𝚐.𝚒 𝚟𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚞𝚜 𝚡 𝚐𝚗!𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛]

XXXI

Hiking up back to Liyue was a fairly quiet affair. Not much was said, not much needed to be said. You walked close to Aether, an arm slung over his shoulder and Paimon floating beside you. Zhongli walked to the left of you and Aether, his hands holding the glaze lilies with delicacy and a content smile was on his face.

Finally making it back to the entrance of Liyue Harbor, you all noticed a swarm of Fatui and Millelith crowded around. Quickly making your way over to one of the soldiers, your group inquiries about what's happening and Fatui agent informs you all that the Qixing and the Adepti are about to come to blows, the Millelith was ordered to keep eyes on the Fatui, and Wangsheng is caught up with authority.

Zhongli leaves with a serious goodbye and some vague words about finding the 'fuse' or whatever, something both you and Aether realized was Childe (though for different reasons). Instead of wandering around for more information, you see the determination in Aether's face and the three of you decide to go straight to Childe himself.

As the three of you jog to the Golden House, a sense of urgency in your movements but wanting to preserve most of your energy, Aether turns to you as much as he can. "Hey, where's Ariel?"

"He's back at the inn." You breathe carefully.

"What if things go wrong when speaking to Childe?"

"I didn't think about that, but we don't have time for the detour now." You really didn't given that the three of you were now climbing the steps to enter the Golden House. You sneak past whatever guards are there and slip through the doors.

Entering the Golden House was nothing like in the game. Sure, in the game, it was cool, but now? It was a wide, spacious area, of black wood floors and spires lined in gold. The actual mora twinkled under our feet like fallen stars and caused light to bounce off of every wall, creating shining fractals. It was mesmerizing and for a moment you could stop your mind from drifting off as you looked at the intricate carvings and designs in every line of the wood and twirl of gold.

"Wow!" Paimon's awe broke through your own. "It was impressive from the outside, but who knew it looked even cooler on the inside!"

Absent-mindedly you nodded, but nerves were starting to creep up on you. Childe was strong, you knew. He was even more diverse in weaponry than you, had a vision, a delusion, and his Foul Legacy transformation. You would have to fall to the back and utilize your bow (the weapon you were best at and the weapon Childe was the worst at) while Aether went in close with his sword and elemental abilities.

Paimon continued to ramble about the mountains of mora until Aether cut her off with an uncharacteristically serious look. "Something feels wrong. We need to check if the Exuvia is alright."

The three of you trek forward only to find multiple members of the Millelith, scattered around and knocked unconscious. Childe is nowhere to be found as the three of you walk up to the large golden dragon cocooned in a shimmering white light. Just like the Golden House, Genshin Impact did not do Morax's dragon form justice. The Exuvia was very long, covered in umber scales, the occasional gold shine beneath the surface. With a slim head and giant mane, a palette of several golds and light browns, the body looked incredibly regal. The only thing emphasizing that being the long, winding, deer-like horns that sprouted from the back of the head, a black base nestled in the mane fading to a brilliant yellow.

A voice spoke from behind, causing you to flinch slightly as you were even more entranced by the sight of the Exuvia than even the Golden House. "You've already fulfilled your tasks as guides, so why do you still linger here? Haven't you already seen enough trouble for today?"

The three of you turned to see Childe walking up the steps of the platform you were standing on in front of the dead dragon body. Though you already knew that Childe had no clue of the underlying plan, and that his efforts of destruction would never amount to anything, his uncharismatic face was strangely uncomfortable to see, and his stance was intimidating and frightening.