The moment we entered our room, I immediately locked the doors and windows, closed the curtains, and surrounded the entire room with a silencing barrier.
"Being extra careful, are we?"
"I went outside to have a quick conversation with an alchemist and ended up meeting the one person I've been avoiding like the plague, so forgive me, princess, if I am a bit paranoid right now."
Placing both my bag and hat close to the bed, I took off my mask and placed it on the nightstand before collapsing on top of the bed.
Now that I have some time to reflect on what just happened, the realization of what I just did back there hit me like a truck.
"Fucking hell, I shouldn't have went off on her like that. That was so stupid of me."
"I gotta admit," sitting on the edge of the bed, Lumine lifted one of her legs and began to take her shoes off, "it was surprising seeing you like that. I always thought you were more of the calm and collected type, but you proved me wrong."
"'Calm and collected?' I wish. The only reason I'm not a walking bundle of nerves most of the time is because I have this."
Grabbing the vision strapped on my chest, I lifted it up for her to see. "Without this, I honestly don't think I'd be able to survive in this world."
'The knowledge sure helps the most though. But without the power to take advantage of it, it'll just be collecting dust in my mind.'
Taking the vision from my hand, Lumine inspected them closely before giving it back to me. "Do you really need to use a vision to control the elements though? I can use them just fine after touching one of the statues. And since I'm an otherworlder, shouldn't it stand to reason that you could as well?"
"There's a fundamental difference between your situation and mine."
"And that would be?"
Stewing over my thoughts, I tried to think how to best describe this without giving away too much unnecessary stuff.
Sitting up from the bed, I leaned myself on the headboard. "Basically, you are here as your own being. Meaning that you willingly traveled into this world as yourself, unlike me.
"I was… hmm… basically, I was brought from my world to this one without my consent. Not quite sure how that happened, but it did. And unlike you, this body I'm using is not exactly mine."
"I see. So you're basically a clone of this Scaramouche person?"
"As far as I was able to confirm, other than some minor differences, we're pretty much the same. But who knows, maybe the similarities are just the product of some cosmic joke the universe is pulling on me. Or maybe we really are one and the same."
For a while, there was no more question coming from her. Eventually, I felt a weight bearing down on the left side of the bed. Putting one of my hands under my head, I turned my body towards her and saw golden eyes staring back at me.
"Let's go with something easier, then. How long have you been living in this world?"
"Before meeting you? Two weeks, probably."
"So it's been, what, not even three weeks?"
"Sounds about right."
"Then how come you know so much about this world?"
Ah, the million dollar question. Thankfully, this one shouldn't be too hard. I could just attribute it to some god or whatever. After all, that's how people explain unknown phenomena way back when, right?
"I just have it crammed into my head. Perhaps the powers that be, the one who sent me here, decided to take pity on me. Of course, I don't know everything, but I know enough to get by."
Letting out a hum in response, she grabs my free hand and places it on top of her cheek, a sigh escaping her mouth. "What else… what else…." Closing her eyes deep in thought, it takes a while before she opens them once more. "Do you have any information on a god that calls herself 'Sustainer of Heavenly Principles?'"
Uh oh.
"Uhh…"
"Do you know something?"
"Well… Not really? I mean, I know that there is a Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, but other than that, I don't really know much about her. I have my own conjecture though, if you're interested in that?"
"Sure. I don't care even if it's just speculation, I need to find her."
With a determined look I've seen several times before, I could only sigh at the thought of the things she has to go through. Fighting against an ancient god to protect an entire harbor, only to be rewarded with missing posters being put up; Visiting an isolated nation to ask a question towards the God of Eternity, only to end up assisting an entire rebellion; and Sumeru is an entirely different can of worms.
'Well, at least the pay off in Sumeru was worth it. So much information… Buer is the best archon hands down.'
"Well, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed then."
"Why? You don't know where she is?"
"I have a guess as to where she is. But that's all it is, a guess."
"It's fine, please tell me."
"Well." Caressing her cheek with my hand, I took some time to organize the information in my head. "Okay. Basically, from what I know, the most likely place you'll be able to find her is in Celestia. It's the floating island you see in the sky, in case you don't know."
"Celestia, huh? Why that place?"
"Keep in mind that this is all a conjecture, okay?" Seeing her nod in understanding, I continued my explanation. "The Heavenly Principle is a set of rules that are established and enforced by the divine towards the inhabitants of this world. No one aside from Celestia and perhaps the archons know what it is exactly.
"Since she refers to herself as the Sustainer, then it is safe to assume that she is either one of the enforcers, or even the one directly responsible for overseeing the entire thing, making sure that everything and everyone acts in accordance with the Heavenly Principles. Either way it stands to reason that she would be in Celestia, don't you think?"
"I understand your reasoning. Then, do you know of a way to go to Celestia?"
"There's only one known method, and I'm pretty sure it's not what you're looking for. Even if it is, you can't really use it anyway."
"How so?"
"Because you don't have a vision."
A yawn escaped my mouth all of a sudden. I rubbed my eyes, trying to combat the sudden fatigue. It's not really surprising though. After the unexpected encounter with Signora, my nerves are pretty shot at the moment. The late hour of the night certainly didn't help either.
"We can stop if you want, you know. We can continue this conversation some other time."
"No." Covering my mouth, I let out a second, much longer yawn. "I'd rather we get this out of the way as soon as possible."
"If you say so, Yuu."
"Hmm, where was I? Oh, right. Basically, the only known method to get to Celestia is by way of ascension. That is, being acknowledged by Celestia for your heroic deeds and achieving godhood.
"Of course, you have to have a vision beforehand, since only a human with a vision has the potential to achieve godhood in the first place. And otherworlders can never acquire a vision because… well, they're not from this world. Admittedly, my case is extremely special, so I am probably the sole exception to that rule."
"So… it's impossible to go there?"
"Well, I don't really know. There may be some other way that I don't know of. If you're trying to look for your brother, you're better off exploring Teyvat on your own. Information regarding Celestia is scarce. I don't think the archons would answer you even if you asked them about it.
"And… that's all. I think? Fwah… no, I'm pretty sure that's all."
Digging deeper into my memory, I tried my best to remember any information I could give her. "Maybe–"
The soft sensation of her lips on mine stopped me from talking any further.
Moving my hand to the back of her head, I grabbed a handful of her blonde hair before pulling her closer. It started simple, but by the end of it, we were in a full-blown make out session. Honestly, after experiencing it the first time around, I can't seem to ever get enough. Not that I mind. And, if the way her tongue kept fighting for dominance over mine was anything to go by, neither did she.
After god knows how long, the two of us finally had enough and slowly backed away from each other.
"Let's stop the conversation here, okay? You're clearly tired, so we'll continue some other time."
"...okay."
"Fufu, you're blushing again."
"That's it, I'm sleeping with the mask on."
"No, you're not."
Trapping me with her arms, she brought me closer and placed her head on top of mine. "I never would've thought the ever so reliable Yuu would be such a blushing mess like this. I like this version of you a lot better."
"Because you can make fun of me some more?"
"Well, that and it's nice not having to see you like you're walking on eggshells all the time." Feeling her burying herself on my hair, I let out an involuntary giggle at how ticklish it is. "Granted, I understand the reason now, but you really should relax yourself once in a while."
"I am now."
"Yes, you are, thanks to none other than this princess right here."
Humming in response, I bury myself deeper into the crook of her neck. Tightening her hold on me in response, I let out a sigh of contentment at the comfortable warmth enveloping my entire body.
"What should we do tomorrow, princess?"
"I was thinking we could go do some commissions, preferably the fighting kind, but looking at you…." She paused, gently brushing my hair in the meantime before continuing. "It's probably better if we do something less strenuous. And I have just the perfect activity in mind."
"What's this? You, being considerate? Who are you and what have you done to Lumine?"
"Shut up!" Giving me a light smack in the back of the head, she laughed at my accusation. Once she settled down, she rubbed the spot where she hit me, as if trying to ease the nonexistent pain. "I can be nice, I'll have you know."
"That seems to be the case now. Looks like I managed to drill something into that thick skull of yours."
"Maybe."
With that, both of us went silent, content with simply enjoying each other's embrace. Feeling my eyelids getting heavier by the second, I stopped resisting and closed my eyes, feeling the control of the elements surrounding the room slipping away from me.
"I love you, Kamiyama Yuu."
It took me a while to realize what she said, but when I did, I felt my heart practically beating out of my chest, despite supposedly not having one. It's amazing how such simple words can have a profound effect on you.
Barely staying awake, I tried to formulate my response as best I could.
"I love you too, Lumine."
The sleep I had that night was arguably the best one I had in my entire life.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Under the trees near the edge of the cliff on Cape Oath, the three of us are sitting down on top of a picnic blanket, with Paimon holding up the book I own about the Teyvat script and is currently in the middle of teaching me and Lumine on how to properly read and write simple sentences.
'Never in my life would I ever expect to see Paimon, of all people, to act like a proper teacher. Her role as a guide was basically sidelined most of the time so I kind of forgot how knowledgeable she really is about this world.'
This entire session has been going on for several hours with short breaks in between, which was mostly spent by enjoying the calm atmosphere and snacking on some of the food I bought. We also bought some lunch for when we finished.
'Maybe that's the reason she's so serious, eh? I promised to treat her in return, after all.'
Throughout this entire thing, I had to put some serious effort to not fall asleep in the middle of it. It reminded me so much of sitting down in a classroom, listening to the professor drone on about the subject of today's lecture.
The minority that somehow made their lesson interesting are the best, though most are content with reading from a powerpoint and my fucking god, there really is no faster way to make me want to fall asleep.
'We ended up sleeping through the lecture and simply asked for the file in the end anyway. Could've spent that time going back home and actually sleeping on a proper bed.'
If not for the constant pain from being hit on the sides by a certain blonde traveler, I would've passed out on the ground right about now.
Having read through my notes so far, it's safe to say that my writing looks like absolute garbage. Even chicken scratch would put this writing to shame. Why are the alphabets so complicated? Why can't it just be normal?
'It's a good thing that all nations use the Teyvat script, otherwise I might have to learn some isekai variation of Russian by the end of it.'
Finishing the writing exercise that Paimon cooked up, I dropped the quill back into the ink pot and turned it in for her to check.
"Hmm…."
Looking closely at my work, Paimon had an uncharacteristically serious look on her face. On one of her hands is a smaller version of the pen I was using, occasionally tapping against the paper while she's deep in thought. Moving from answer to answer, she marks them with either a checkmark or a cross next to them.
Thankfully, this time there seems to be more checkmarks than crosses.
"Good job, white mask! You've improved!"
"Sure doesn't feel like it."
"It might be a small improvement, but it's an improvement nonetheless!"
Humming my response, I stand up and begin stretching myself. Hearing the familiar cracking of my back, I look towards the blanket, making sure that I don't accidentally have my mask under me before laying myself down.
"Tapping out already?"
"Mhm. You seem very into it though, princess."
"What can I say, I like learning new things."
"Hmm. Would you say that you find studying fun, then?"
"I suppose."
"Would you look at that?" Getting up from my position, I sit next to her and observe her working through Paimon's exercise. "I managed to find the one person in existence within this vast universe that actually enjoys studying."
"Come on," rolling her eyes in response, she never stopped her hand from writing down the answers, "that has to be an exaggeration. Surely there are a lot of people out there that enjoy studying."
"I like to think that they are simply living in denial, refusing to come to terms with reality."
"And what would that be?"
"The fact that studying is boring, and sleeping is infinitely more enjoyable."
"You sound like a natural-born procrastinator."
"Oh, you have no idea."
Looking through her answers, it's amazing how good her writing is from only several hours of learning. If I could absorb lessons and understand them quickly like she is right now, university wouldn't be such a struggle.
Maybe then I could afford to be lazy.
"How come your writing is so good? Mine doesn't even begin to compare."
Flashing me a smug smile, she put down her pen and handed the paper to Paimon. "That, my dear, is the difference between us. I like to call it 'skill issue.'"
"Fuck off." Giving her a light shove, I lay myself back down on the blanket, waiting for Paimon to finish grading Lumine's work.
Soon after, Paimon drops her pen and starts to float towards the laughing blonde on the ground. "Here you go, Lumine! Perfect score across the board, Paimon is so proud of you!" Happily giving the blonde her result, Paimon flies herself close to her head and begins giving her a head pat.
"Fufu, thank you, Paimon."
Watching the role reversal happening in front of me, it still baffles me how… I don't want to say useful, but that's probably the correct term for this situation. In any case, it's weird seeing her like this.
Suddenly, as if realizing something, Paimon jumps in the air in giddiness before grabbing Lumine's face excitedly. "Oh! Does that mean we're finished? We are right? Can Paimon have her reward now?"
'There's the fairy we all know and love.'
"Fufu, of course." With a wave of her hand, all kinds of food are placed on top of the blanket: Sweet Madames, Sticky Honey Roasts, and Mushroom Pizzas amongst other things, alongside several glasses of what looked like the Signature Mix from Cat's Tail.
'Scratch that, isn't this the real deal?'
"Is this?"
"Yep, Signature Mix. Margaret did say everything was on the house, and what kind of person would I be if I didn't accept her kind gesture?"
"So you robbed her blind?"
"No, I didn't go overboard if that's what you're thinking. Since you said that we already ate when we came in, I had to wait an hour or two before ordering some food.
"Of course, since I'm not actually hungry, I stored them for the future. Drinks were a little less restrictive, but I had to order a glass at a time since you were asleep. Oh, and just so you know, the plates and glasses were not Margaret's. I had some lying around."
I should've expected something like this from someone like her, but hearing it from the person herself is still surprising. "Is that the reason why the drink was still cold when I woke up back then?"
"Yep. See? I told you I can be considerate."
"You are so unbelievable."
"Fufu, praise me more."
"That's not… you know what? Whatever. Take it however you see fit."
Not giving her the satisfaction of seeing my reaction, I silently controlled the utensils conveniently placed in front of me with anemo, and grabbed the plate full of bacon, ham, and sausages.
As per usual, Paimon is hyper focused towards the food in front of her, and, without delay, starts to consume them with gusto.
'One minute she's a teacher, and the other she became the embodiment of a vacuum cleaner with how fast she's eating.'
"Oh, I've been meaning to ask, actually."
"What is it, princess?"
"Can't believe I forgot about this, but," cutting the slice of pizza with her knife, she stabs it with her fork before eating them, "is Kamiyama Yuu your actual name?"
"...why does it matter?"
Hearing her question, I couldn't help but be reminded of the old me, the kind of person I was before. Such a disappointment, I was. I hate it.
"From what Paimon told me, your name sounds Inazuman, but you're from another world, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"So. Is Kamiyama Yuu your actual name?"
Using anemo to cover some ham and bacon with the lettuce, I stabbed them with my flying fork a bit harder than I meant to before taking a bite out of the discount wrap. "No. No, it's not."
"Will you tell me your real name?"
Feeling the growing irritation inside of me, I tried my best to suppress it.
"Nope."
"Why?"
"Because Kamiyama Yuu meant something in this world, while the previous me is just a useless deadweight that will contribute nothing to society. My old name is nothing but a harsh reminder of who I was and always will be, a nobody."
Hearing a sudden snapping sound, I turned towards the source, only to see the fork I was controlling being snapped in half, dropping the food along with it.
'Shit.'
Realizing my mistake, I was suddenly very aware of the stares I was receiving. Looking towards the two, I can see that Lumine's eyes widened in surprise. Even Paimon stopped eating, and that's no easy feat.
"Sorry."
Although surprised, Lumine was the first to snap out of it. "It's okay, Yuu." Giving me a small smile, she turns towards Paimon. "Everything's fine, Paimon. You can continue."
"Are you sure, Lumine?"
"Yep. It's fine. I'll handle this."
"...if you say so."
Although she looked a bit hesitant, Paimon eventually returned to her food. And just like that, she was back in her own little world, not paying attention to whatever happens outside of it.
Seeing Paimon focusing on her food, Lumine stood up and made her way next to me. As she was sitting down, she grabbed the knife under my control and put it down on the plate before wrapping an arm around my shoulder.
"Sorry, Yuu. I didn't mean to ask something so sensitive."
"...it's fine. You didn't know."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"...not really."
"Okay. But remember," not putting up any resistance, she pulled me closer and gently placed my head on her shoulder, "if you ever need to talk about something, I'll always be here for you, okay?"
"Mm. Thanks, Lumine."
"Of course. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I can't even make my boyfriend happy?"
I couldn't help but laugh at her somewhat dramatic reply.
'...boyfriend, huh. That sounds nice.'
Feeling the weight of her head on top of mine, I let out a sigh of content. Such a simple gesture, yet so very reassuring.
Slowly, the painful feeling in my chest started to fade away.