GI Chapter 15: Princess?

Orion took another sigh before he muttered the name of his newest talent, “Ravenous Scholar.”

[Ravenous Scholar - Only scholars understand that Knowledge can be as equally corrupt as power. Wise King was a scholar before his journey to the throne, for his craving for Power and Knowledge was as endless as the universe. A perfect embodiment for those who seek Authority and Knowledge in this world.

Knowledge empowers your body.

Your strength grows with your understanding of the world.

He didn’t feel any change in his body despite the talent stating so. It was the same as when he came into this world. Everything was ordinary. He’d have preferred if there was any indicator of his progress.

‘I shouldn’t have gone for an easy kill.’

But he couldn’t hold himself back when Ursa was in such a defenseless state.

The new talent gave him another reason to satisfy his lust for knowledge.

Lydia’s response came as more shining letters in the book.

[This isn’t… good. You’re treading on a dangerous path, Orion. Many have lost their sanity in pursuit of the truth. I don’t want you becoming one of them… I know that I’m not in a position to say this after turning you into a god myself, but… I just want you to have fun until some drastic incident happens in Teyvat.]

She was still guilty for what happened in Celestia. How she recklessly made him a divine being without even consulting with him about it.

“Truth of the world? What even is that?”

Mona was also searching for the truth that was clouded like a mysterious fog, encapsulating Teyvat. Many scholars in Sumeru also had the same goal, or so the Ley Lines’ database told him. Nobody ever got close to discovering it, or those who did kept it to themselves.

[It’s the true nature of Teyvat… things changed after the Great Cataclysm… the entire Teyvat paid the price for one nation’s rebellion towards Divinity.]

The more he heard about the Cataclysm, the more his yearning for it grew. He wanted to lift the shroud off the divine secret of Celestia and this land of Teyvat. An insane desire grabbed a hold of his psyche. He got on his knees, his head in his hands. Whispers of the unknown scholars ravaged his consciousness. The knowledge flooding his brain from the Ley Lines only made things worse. The pain left him in no position to cut off the flow of his spiritual energy.

And the icy sensation came to the rescue, slaying the hideous beasts rampaging in his head.

He was freed, at least for now.

[Talent: A King’s Composure unlocked.]

How ironic, for the cure to exist in the same branch as the curse itself. The conflicting nature of the talents was absolutely bizarre. And since he experienced this talent nearly every day, he had a decent idea about its workings.

He sat with his back against the bark of the oak tree. The gentle breeze tried its best to cool his head and consciousness, reinvigorating him.

“A King’s Composure.”

[A King’s Composure - You are a King. The very personification of Dignity and Authority. Never let the world dictate your mentality. Those emotions are only yours to control, only yours to toss away.

Your emotions won’t run rampant in any situation.

“Wise King and Void God.”

He finally realized the truth behind the branches. Like the Ley Lines, the Void branch held the entire life experience of Void God. Likewise, the Wisdom branch carried the life experience of the Wise King. They were individuals of the past. With more and more familiarity with the branches, he’d retrieve more and more of their powers.

‘Then what is Heart Branch? Life experience of a God of Love? Void, Wisdom, and Heart.’

Orion felt an intense deja vu feeling. The heart branch might have come out from his own desire, he theorized. He was bemoaning the lack of romance in his life on that fateful day. It wasn’t just a coincidence he got the Heart branch. The Void and Wisdom must also represent something.

‘Wisdom could mean curiosity.’

He was always a curious child, otherwise, he wouldn’t have done things most sane people would never think of doing even in their dreams.

“Fuck, I don’t wanna fall in another curse loop.”

He put an end to his curious thoughts. Instead, he talked to his aunt.

[You solved your problems… My Orion truly became an adult… who’s cutting onions here?]

His aunt was getting emotional at weird things, again. Just like always.

“I have to leave now.”

[Take care and don’t trust anyone from Khenri’ah… we never know what they are up to in this age.]

“I’ll be careful.”

His spiritual energy was back to full, even though he used plenty of it just now.

‘Strange…’

As he was about to depart, he saw a violet streak wrapped in the power of electro, zapping currents frenzying about its wake, coming towards him. The blonde archer’s familiar came to fetch him up.

***

Meanwhile, in Springvale, Mona was resting on a chair near the windmill. Fischl, the blonde archer and Electro Vision user, stayed by her side. Honestly, Mona would have prefered solace over this chatterbox, whose language was more incomprehensible than the lost hilichurlian language. At least, there were some historical and theoretical means to understand some of the monsters’ gibberish, unfortunately that wasn’t the case for the blonde archer beside her.

“And so the dragon of wrath flew to the end of the world, where it clashed with the Blue Knight. Only the moon and stars witnessed the Blue Knight’s struggle. Alas, the Blue Knight—”

“Shut up!” Mona pumped her hands, while jumping on her feet from her seat, with a disgruntled look on her face. Her face was the very symbol of agitation and annoyance. “How many times do I have to tell you his name is Orion?! He is an adventurer, not a knight! Stop jinxing. He is going to be fine!”

Mona didn’t want to sit around when her only friend-cum-roommate was in grave danger. She had followed Orion until the dragon became a tiny dot in her sight. Her legs couldn’t keep up with a flying dragon even if she had a Vision. That was when Oz streaked past her at lightning speed.

“Worry not, Madame. I’ll bring back the gentleman.”

Mona wasn’t used to this feeling. Being tense and waiting for things to happen when she could predict the future with one move. Alas, Orion’s fate couldn’t be predicted.

‘Fighting the greatest adversary of Mondstadt on his first day as an adventurer. The outlanders truly are as special as the old hag said.’

“Fear not, Child Of Star. Ozvaldo Hrafnavins, the King of Ravens, once thrust opened the boundless skies with a slash of his beak. Rescuing the valorous knight is an easy task for my dear familiar.”

“Are you trying to reassure me?” Mona asked with a sharp look in her pale green eyes. “You can just say ‘my familiar will bring back Orion.’ Why over complicate it?”

Mona had never run into someone with such a strange way of speaking. She, who was blunt to an extreme degree, couldn’t understand Fischl and her fashionable language.

Fischl turned her face aside, her cheeks puffed in a pout. “Mere mortals cannot perceive the royal duties of the Prinzessin der Verurteilung.”

“Prinzessin der Verurteilung? I’m sorry, which nation are you a princess of?”

“I hail from a distant and long-lost land known as Immernachtreich.”

“The in-my-what reich?”

Fischl put a hand on her forehead. “Alas… only a few precious mortals know of the Immernachtreich.”

“Mere mortal? I’m a highly accomplished astrologist Mona, thank you very much!” Mona summoned her scryglass in a fit of anger. “Give me one second with my scryglass. We’ll see this homeland of yours in your personal history.”

“N-No!” Fischl waved her hands. Realizing she broke her character in a panic, she coughed in her hand and looked towards Noelle, who was helping out the villagers and the knights. “My retinue is seeking my aid in arduous tasks of mortals.”

Fischl dashed toward Noelle, escaping the probing eyes of the astrologist.

“Meow.”

Mona turned to look at the cat, whose presence was nearly forgotten. Makoto was lazing in the grass as though she wasn’t worried about its owner.

‘I beat the bad cat in loyalty.’

Orion had been her companion for less than a day, even so, she was worried sick. The cat, on the other hand, was bathing in the sun with zero regards for Orion’s safety.

Mona sprinkled water on Makoto’s head. The cat took her prank as a provocation of war and leaped at Mona’s face with a ferocious hiss.

Suffice to say, the astrologist had to use her Vision to escape Makoto’s demonic paws.