I told both of them that we will search for another inn, I thought it would be easy after the storm is gone, but the reality is so cruel after all.
"Eeeeh! The inns are still full with merchant?" Paimon shout that near me ear.
"Yes, I am sorry." the inn receptionist said that with a flat expression, he is not really sorry isn't he?
"Let's go, we just need to search for another inn." Lumine calm Paimon down.
"Gununu~ but Paimon really want to take a bath!"
"Did you really need one?" I asked her.
"Of course! Paimon really like herself to be clean and neat."
"Hee, I thought you don't really need one because you seems sparkling everyday."
We search the inn in another district but the result is the same. I wonder if the barricade is already cleared off or not, so we going to the bridge of Mondstadt.
There is a lot of pigeon on the way, when we tried to go past the pigeons, all of these fella are flying away.
"Ahh! What are you doing! You scaring the pigeons away!" huh, the kid get mad just over the straw pigeons?
"Well, that's not our fault, it's the main road to go and out of Mondstadt, just go to the empty road that no one will walk over if you want to feed the pigeons."
"B-but the pigeons are fly away! What if they didn't come back!" like hell I care.
".....Just like daddy." he play that card huh.
"So, with that reason you can blame us blatantly like that? Are you a kid or something? Wait, you are still a kid, my bad."
"Uwaah, so ruthless."
"Kazuma, that's a bit too far."
"I will tell mommy! Uwaaaaaaaa~ Mommy~!" the kid ran away with a bundle of wheat.
"What? Just because he is a kid it doesn't mean he can't get scolded by other people, a self important kid like that need to be taught a lesson or two, so he won't be a haughty self important or arrogant person later."
"He will tell his mommy you know~"
"Bring it on, Getting all cocky just because he is a little kid. Being a most hateful person in the city is nothing new to me."
"I know that you are scolding him for his own right, but no need to be that hars okay?" how kind is this girl, she is the kind that let herself get blammed for other.
Let's leave the matter with the little kid aside, just from this distance I can see some barricade still there.
"Good morning, Amber" said Lumine.
"Good morning, what are the three of you doing here?"
"Of course this is a date."
"Eeeh?! You two are going out?!"
"This is the first time Paimon heard it!"
"He is just playing around, he said he already has a lover right?"
"Now that you mentioned it, anyway, master Jean wants the tw- three of you come to HQ later, she said something about rewards."
"Oh nice, at least I can buy some equipment and make a customized bow later." and some food ingredients of course.
"C-customized, c-can I see it later?" she really curious huh.
"Hng? Of course, be my guest."
"Ehehe, thank you." what a precious girl.
"So Kazuma, are you using bow as your main weapon?" said Paimon curiously.
"It depends on the situation, to be honest I prefer to be a little flexible, I wonder if I can make that banned weapon."
"Banned weapon? Something like that exists?" asked Lumine.
"Kusarigama, it's something like a sickle with a very long small iron chain with a buckle of iron at the end of the chain." I explained that to her.
"Though it's kinda handy but practically it's hard to use if the enemy is more than one. I think I will stick to short sword and bow."
"Why? Paimon want to see it~."
"Then, how about crossbow? Most people don't use it because the fire rate is almost 3 times slower than the usual bow, but the range and the damage inflicted by the arrow is far greater than bow." Amber know her stuff huh.
"That's quite a goid idea because I can shoot from a far distance and using [Far Sight] for more precise aim. For the crossbow I can make a lever for the bow string if I'm not wrong it called latchet, so I don't really need much effort to pull the string back and make the fire rate far faster, can I make a magazine as the quiver?"
"He is deep in his thoughts, and his idea is scarily amazing."
"Kazuma~, please came back~ Oiii~."
"Hmmm? Oh, my bad, then we'll go straight to Knights HQ. See ya later Amber."
"Bye bye Amber, next time Paimon want to eat in peace."
"Bye bye."
"Ou, See you all later."
We decided to go to Knight HQ and eat some sweet bread on the way. Where is the money came from? Of course I put the tab on Kaeya.
****
"You can't go inside the building without a prior letter of introduction."
And just like that, we can't get inside.
"You see, Amber said all of us were called by the acting Grandmaster to meet her."
"No one told me that, so go back or you want me to use violence."
"*sigh* Are you really sure you want to face us- no, just me alone is enough."
"How arrogant, there is no way a kid like you can beat the mighty knight if Favoni-"
[Back Stab] without any weapon of course, just barehand is enough to knock him out.
"-ghugh!"
"Hah. Let's go."
"Is that fine leaving the guard knight like that?"
"If you mean that incompetent guard then, yeah."
"Uwaaaah, so blunt, but Paimon approve it."
We go straight to Jean's office.
*knock knock*
"Yes, come in."
"Yo, we came, I heard from Amber that you want us to be here."
"Good morning, master Jean."
"Ah, good morning travelers *sigh*."
"You looks like a dead fish, are you even take any break since yesterday?"
"Honestly, not that much, thanks to the certain diplomats that suggest me to let them take care of Stormterror by killing it." really? Killing it?
"Let Paimon guess, from Shnezhaya? The Fatui?"
"You know about them buddy?" I asked her.
"Yeah, they are quite famous, or rather infamous would be more correct."
"Yeah, their aim is mostly they want Mondstadt owe them a favour or two."
"Sounds like a smuggler organization to me."
"You are not wrong though, I heard their nation want to expand their territory."
"That's not smuggler, that was more like invader." Lumine adds.
"Ugh, I want to rest but I can't, they always came to since I came back from the temples. I think coffee not effective like it should be." poor lady.
"Caffeine tolerance? Maybe your body is too used to have intake of caffeine, like a resistance against it."
"Maybe I really should take some rest." no shit sherlock.
"You should. did you not have any subbordinate to do some pieces of your works?"
"Well, Lisa is already full with her librarian works, Amber with her scouting around Mondstadt, Kaeya... I don't know why he is always gone from HQ, maybe at senpai's bar."
"Senpai?"
"Ah- I mean Mr. Diluc's bar."
"Oh the red haired grumpy uncle."
"U-uncle.... Pffffft, uncle Diluc- pffft hahahaha, yeah, that grumpy looking uncle- ahahaha- haaa, my bad, you know him?"
"Well, just a several times. Is he has any conection to this knight stuff?"
"Uhmmm, he is a former captain, because there are some issues he quit the knight order."
"Is that so, let's go straight to the point."
"Ahh right, traveler- I mean, Lumine, you said you want to talk with Lisa."
"Jean, you called?" where the heck Lisa came from?
"Not me but the travelers need something from you."
"Ara~ the cuties are? And Kazuma-boy, I won't let you escape."
"Jean-san, that onee-san want to sexual harrasing me, please help."
"Eh? You can't do that Lisa! He already have a lover!"
"I'm fine with that- I mean, I want to ask him about his magic." she is fine with what?
""You what?"" Jean and Paimon gasped.
"N-no, nothing, what do you want to ask me, cutie?"
"Did you know about this stone?" Lumine put out that red ruby-like stone from her inventory.
"Geh! Keep that shitty stone away from me!"
"What's wrong with him?" asked Lisa.
"Ah, his energy drained and make him pale as ghost when he touch this stone, Paimon think if someone without vision musn't touch this stone."
"Hmm, I'm fine with this stone because I have a vision? But I can feel a great ammount of impurities coming from this stone, I'm sorry I can't make a proper analysis at the moment. I'll take a look through the library's restricted section later."
"Okay, I'll leave the research to you then, Lisa."
"Understood, I'll notify you all if I make any progress." she continued.
"Though I wouldn't go getting your hopes up. These are quite incredible ancient text to- Ouch! Gosh, that's hurt." and she still going on.
"The impurities is hurting me if I keep it near me like this. It seems it also react to Visions. If the normal person drained by the impurity, but the impurity repeled the elemental energy of Vision. You also have elemental energy but, it doesn't seems react the same way, why is it?"
"...." Lumine didn's say anything.
".... Just looking at it make me nausea again."
"Are you okay tra- Kazuma?" Jean seems worried.
"No" give me a lap pillow and maybe I'll feels better, tough I won't said that out loud.
"He want you to give him lap pillow, master Jean." Paimon adds.
"Don't read my mind oi!"
"L-lap pillow? F-from me?" look, now she is flustered.
""..."" Lisa and Lumine just gave us a blank look at us.
"It's better if you get hold of that stone for now."
"Okay, I will keep it." and Lumine put he stone inside her inventory, phew.
"... Fascinating, are you special kind of human or something?"
"...no?" doubt.
"Well, then. Dear travelers.... The Knight of Favonius have another favor to ask of you." I have a bad feeling from her way to ask a favor.
"Please accept the title of Honorary Knight..... and the gratidute of the Acting Grandmaster."
"Honorary Knight of..... Favonius!?" add Paimon.
"We asked for your continued assistance in finding some answer."
And she continued said something like the ballance of city or something, but the aim is to make us binded to Mondstadt and make our movement limited if we want to travel further, to be honest I don't really mind but, limiting my freedom in the city of freedom is very suspicious. I think she was ordered to do this by some higher ups of this city.
"How is it dear travelers?"
"Paimon think it's a good offe-"
"I refuse!"
""What?!"" Lisa and Jean surprised by my sudden answer.
"Why are you refusing it, Kazuma?"
"If we accept 'Their' offer, that mean we are restricted to go to the other city or nation, like we must have devotion and loyality to Mondstadt alone. You want to search for your brother aren't you?"
"You saw through it huh, to be honest, I really don't want you accept it but the Lord insist me to do this."
"I will accept it." Lumine said with a firm expression.
"Lumine!"
"I know, Kazuma. No need to worry, I really want to find my brother but, I can't let myself see the citizen suffering after the dragon's attack."
"You are too kind, goddamnit. Argh okay, it's all up to you. Master Jean, you can give the title to Lumine, but I still refuse it."
"No worry, I respect your choice, and thank you."
After that, we mostly just chit chat around and Lisa pestering me to tell her about my magic. And then something came to my mind and I really want to ask her too.
"By the way, Lisa-san. Is there any kind of magic item to store a lot of things inside, something like a magic storage or bag?"
"If for food there is one for common use, it is NRE (Menu 30), it can store 2 kind of food but no matter how much the food is as long as it's only 2 kind of food, it can store them without any problem."
"How about the other Items?"
"Hmmmm, for Vision user they can store most things by touching their Vision badge, for the common use, I think there is none."
"Lisa, you remember the things that Albedo and Timaeus create? That sling bag things."
"Ah that one, my bad, but that thing is, can't store many things, you can only store with capacity of medium sized wooden box."
"Can it at least store a crossbow and sword?"
"Hmm, I think it's possible, if I'm not wrong you can only store 10 claymore inside it." Jean added
"I think that;s enough for me, so, where can I get that bag?"
"You can order it from the alchemist of this city with a recommendation letter from me, their stall is near the water fountain across the 'Good Hunter' food hall, you will met Timaeus, Albedo, or Sucrose in there. You can ask one of them to make the storage bag."
"Alright, thanks."
After that small talk I recieved a recommendation letter from Jean and we recieved our rewards, 200.000 mora for each of us, Paimon excluded. We went outside of the HQ right after the rewards.
"Why did you need that bag? you can let me store it in my inventory you know?" Lumine asked.
"Yeah, Paimon don't understand why you need that bag."
"You see, it's not like you are always going around with me right? What if we separated by a sheer luck in the dungeon?"
"I see, I understand, that mean you don't want to hang around with me?"
"I really want to answer that but I feel some kind of misunderstanding will come if I answer that right now."