Zephyr said, "My name is Lumine."
Lumine gave a silent cry of protest—how dare he run around using her name like that?!
"What a lovely name, cutie. I heard you came from another world?" Lisa asked sweetly.
Zephyr nodded.
Paimon gasped, "Eh? Miss Lisa, you're not surprised or skeptical about that at all?"
"Hmm, not really," Lisa replied casually. "Visitors from another world aren't exactly common, but they do exist. It's just that most people don't know about them. Luckily, I'm not most people."
Suddenly, Lisa leaned in with interest. "By the way, cutie, can I take a look at your Vision?"
"My Vision? Uh… I don't have one."
"You don't?"
That genuinely caught Lisa's attention. "But I heard you've used Anemo powers before."
"I can use elemental powers… but I don't have a Vision."
Lisa's eyes immediately lit up like she was looking at a rare species. "No Vision, but you can use elemental powers… and you're from another world. Cutie, you're getting more and more fascinating."
"What… what are you trying to do?"
Zephyr instinctively backed away. Was this 1000 Elemental Mastery, 14k Overload damage woman thinking some unholy thoughts about him?
Let it be known, he had already decided to dedicate himself to the noble five-star Pyro Hu Tao!
Don't ask why. Let's just say—he had loved and lost.
"Don't look so nervous, cutie~ I'm not going to eat you~" Lisa purred.
Zephyr blurted out, "Sorry, my noble five-star Pyro queen just gave me a task—I need to go now!"
"Tasks never end, you know. Why not stay a bit and… chat with me?"
Good heavens, the classic line.
"Next time, I promise!" he shouted and darted away.
Watching him flee, Lisa leaned against the doorframe, arms folded, and smirked. "Such a cute little knight. I'm getting more and more interested in you."
Unlike many others in Teyvat, Lisa's journey to obtaining a Vision was nothing short of legendary. While most others earned their Visions through endless effort and desperate yearning, Lisa had simply thought, "Hmm, this thing seems useful," and then… poof, she got one.
After receiving her Vision, Lisa did indeed gain the knowledge she sought—but she also discovered the hidden, ominous truths behind that knowledge. The gods, for reasons unknown, gave people the key to change everything… but never disclosed the price.
It made Lisa wary of the truth. The Vision hanging from her neck felt less like a gift and more like a sweetly scented abyss, always lingering.
So occasionally, Lisa would share her insights with people she found interesting. Maybe, deep down, she was hoping someone would one day uncover the truth behind the Visions.
And now… such a person might have appeared.
…
After leaving, Zephyr suddenly remembered—he hadn't done his daily round of "100,000 Whys." So, he opened his inventory and began.
> Q: Why do mosquitoes like people who wear dark-colored clothing?
"…How would I know that? I didn't even know mosquitoes preferred dark clothes."
> Answer:
Mosquitoes prefer dim light. They dislike both complete darkness and intense brightness. Due to differences in species, some mosquitoes, like the Aedes, are active in daylight, while Culex and Anopheles are active around dusk or dawn. Regardless, they all tend to avoid strong light. Dark-colored clothes such as navy, brown, or black reflect less light, making them more suitable for the mosquitoes' preferences. Light-colored clothing reflects more light and can repel them. Thus, people wearing darker clothes are more likely to get bitten.
"Learned something new—leveled up my brain cheese." With that out of the way, Zephyr arrived at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor—cough, no, the Branch Hall of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
"You're finally here!" Hu Tao puffed her cheeks in annoyance.
He wasn't joking when he said Hu Tao had something for him—she had actually contacted him earlier.
Zephyr said, "Hey, not my fault! It's Paimon's—she insisted on exploring the Knights of Favonius' second floor, and that got me yelled at by Jean."
Paimon: ???
"You're the one who wanted to go upstairs!"
Hu Tao sighed. "I can't tell if you two get along or not. Sometimes you're so sticky you're practically glued together, and other times you bicker like rivals."
Paimon huffed, "Traveler and Paimon get along great! But with this guy? Ugh, he always makes Paimon mad!"
"Hey! Lumine and I have a good relationship too!"
So… who was the real problem?
Zephyr and Paimon slowly turned their eyes to Lumine. (T/N: Huh, How???)
Lumine's eyelid twitched. Why me? I'm speechless.
Hu Tao clapped her hands. "Alright, enough. Let's get back to work. Just one more week of prep and we'll be ready to open."
"A whole week of work?!"
Why was he doing chores in real life and doing them in-game?! Was this some tragic multi-layered suffering?
"Oh? Got a problem with the noble five-star Pyro?" Paimon gloated.
"Hah! I'm still a noble five-star Anemo! I'm not scared of her. Besides, you're just a one-star sidekick. What are you bragging about?"
"Paimon is not one-star! Paimon is a noble six-star Archon!"
"I believe you. Almost."
"Ugh!!"
That afternoon was full of busywork. Even Paimon didn't escape, flitting up and down between floors to deliver things.
"Traveler, Paimon don't think this is sustainable…"
"Paimon, your thoughts?"
"Paimon think… we should run."
"If we run, we'll probably get beaten up tonight by the noble five-star Pyro."
"No worries. Just call in your four-star Pyro from home and have her battle it out."
"Seriously? She's just a four-star Pyro! How's she supposed to fight a five-star with top-tier artifacts?!"
"Uh…"
Paimon took a deep breath. "At times like this, Paimon think it's time we tested that Mondstadt rumor."
"What rumor?"
"They say… if you shout 'Noelle!' in Mondstadt, a magical maid will appear to help."
Zephyr's face turned odd. "You're seriously calling Noelle over to help with your chores? You good with that?"
"W-Well… Paimon is thinking about you! Isn't this a great way to trick—uh, I mean contract a free character for your team? Paimon is doing it for your sake!"
"When you put it that way…" Zephyr inhaled deeply.
"Noelle!"
"I'm here."
A figure suddenly plummeted from the sky, crashing into the ground and leaving a crater. From the dust emerged a young girl in a full maid's armored outfit.
"May I ask—are you the one who called for me?"
"P-p-p…"
Paimon stared at the hole in the ground, trembling and tongue-tied in shock.
*
"Ah—!"
Noelle's cheeks flushed red as she hurriedly apologized. "S-Sorry! Did I scare you? I didn't mean to—I was just cleaning the city wall when I heard someone call my name. I panicked and rushed over… lost control of my Wind Glider and accidentally fell."
Paimon stared at the huge crater on the ground in utter shock. That was an accident?
Noelle, Mondstadt's All-Purpose Maid—sometimes even Liyue's All-Purpose Maid. Level 30.
Zephyr was a little surprised and looked concerned. "Are you hurt?"
"Thank you for your concern. I'm alright…"
"No, let me take a look." He grabbed her small hand.
"E-Eh!?"
Noelle's face instantly turned bright red.
Zephyr said, "I'm really sorry, Noelle. Because of us, you fell from such a height."
"It—it's fine! Look, I'm not injured at all!"
Paimon asked, "Um, can Paimon ask you something?"
"Of course!"
"Why are you dressed like that? Are you… a maid?"
Paimon had heard rumors before, but this was her first time meeting Noelle in person. Her outfit was kind of like a maid's uniform—but also looked like knight's armor. Very curious.
"Yes, I'm the official maid of the Knights of Favonius," Noelle nodded. "Why do I dress this way? Well, to me, being a maid is the freest role there is.
Chef, gardener, warrior, guide… whatever you need me to be—I can be it."
Paimon was left speechless. So that's why the maid outfit is armored!
Noelle took a deep breath and calmed herself. "Now then, is there anything I can help you with?"
Zephyr smiled awkwardly. "Sorry, actually… not really."
"Eh?" Noelle blinked in confusion.
"Huh?" Paimon was dumbfounded.
"It's just that my… companion wanted to test out that rumor about Mondstadt, and suddenly shouted your name. We didn't mean to trouble you."
Paimon: ?
"No—no worries at all!"
"No, I feel bad about it. You said you were cleaning the city wall, right? Let me help you clean as an apology."
"Eh?! No, no! That's my job!"
"I insist. If I don't help you, I'll be up all night guilt-ridden and unable to sleep!"
Paimon couldn't take it anymore. "Hey! What are you talking about?! Our actual goal was—"
Zephyr quickly covered her mouth.
"Ugh…"
Noelle hesitated for a moment. "Alright…" she finally agreed.
So the two of them headed toward the city wall. It wasn't far from the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's branch. In fact, the two locations were close, given the funeral parlor's remote location due to the nature of its work.
"Noelle, this is such a tough job… cleaning such a tall wall every day."
"It's no problem. As a member of the Knights, this is part of my duty."
Just then, Zephyr noticed his message feed lighting up—Hu Tao was spamming him. He glanced at it… and immediately turned it off.
He chuckled. She thinks I'm still the same as before? Now that I've got her, of course I'm off to chat up the next girl.
…
Meanwhile, back at the Wangsheng Parlor:
Hu Tao fumed, pacing angrily. "That bastard! He actually stood up the Head of the Hall Master!"
…
Zephyr looked puzzled. "But Jean wouldn't give you such a tedious task to do alone, right?"
"Jean?"
Noelle studied his face carefully, then suddenly gasped. "C-Could it be—you're the newly appointed Honorary Knight, Miss Lumine?!"
"Uh, news travels that fast in Mondstadt?"
"Of course! It's a huge event here!" Noelle said, flustered. "Ah—my apologies! I didn't recognize you as the Honorary Knight!"
"No worries at all. We've never met before—it's completely understandable."
"Oh, what have I done? I actually made the Honorary Knight help me with chores… I'm so sorry!"
Paimon said, "It's okay, Noelle. You don't need to be so formal. The Traveler's really easygoing."
Noelle looked at Zephyr—she didn't seem mad at all. That finally put her at ease.
"I'm so glad you're not upset. You know, this may be the first time we've met, but I've admired you for a long time."
"Hm?"
"I've heard all about the high-ranking adventurer who recently appeared in Mondstadt, helping people defeat tons of hilichurls, and even catching that Strange bird!"
Zephyr grinned. "Oh, that's just low-key stuff."
"And I also heard that you and Outrider Amber, just the two of you, wiped out an entire medium-sized hilichurl tribe, plus dozens of small ones. That's just amazing!"
"Oh, it's nothing, really."
Paimon: "You call that humble? Your nose is practically pointing at the sky!"
"I also heard you have a little floating spirit who can talk and helps people too. That must be you, Miss Paimon—I really respect you too!"
"Eh?! Really!?"
Paimon was over the moon. It was the first time anyone had ever spoken to her with such admiration. She was almost moved to tears.
"But it's strange. There are rumors floating around Mondstadt saying you're some kind of 'Holy Demon'… But now that I've met you, I see those are just rumors."
"Exactly! That's right!"
"..."
"Oh right, Noelle, you never answered me—are you really working all alone?"
"Well… strictly speaking, it's not my job. It's supposed to be done by another Knight. But I guess they were too busy, so they asked me to cover for them."
Paimon fumed. "That's so unfair!"
Zephyr nodded. "Yeah. I remember the Knights have a rule forbidding members from making Noelle do their work."
"Eh? They do? First time I've heard that."
"It's because everyone knows how kind you are. They're afraid people will take advantage of that."
"That's not true! It's just that everyone's so busy…"
Paimon pointed suddenly. "Wait, are you talking about that guy? Look—look over there!"
Not far away, a Knight was lazily napping under a tree.
Paimon clenched her fists. "That's outrageous! He made Noelle do all the work while he naps under a tree?!"
Noelle gently shook her head. "Maybe that Knight is just very tired and needed a short rest."
"He's got a pillow set up! That's not a short nap!"
Paimon zoomed over and gave the Knight an earful. The poor guy was so ashamed he kept apologizing until she finally returned.
"There. Now he can do the rest of the work himself."
"But… the sun is almost down. He might not finish in time. Maybe I should—"
"No maybes! That's an order from the Honorary Knight!"
"An order?! I—I understand!"
The two of them chatted happily as they worked. Zephyr even bought Noelle a drink, which made her flustered and thrilled.
After a moment, Noelle took a deep breath, her expression turning serious. "Miss Lumine, may I ask you a question?"
"Of course. Go ahead."
"How… did you become the Honorary Knight?"
*