"So this is the Geo Archon?"
"So imposing!"
Staring at the Geo Statue of The Seven—so different from Mondstadt's—Lumine couldn't help but sigh in amazement.
Compared to the Anemo statue's free and carefree feeling, the Geo statue was far more domineering and unrestrained.
Atop the statue, a hooded man sat there with an air of authority, his face hidden from view, casually toying with a Geo cube in his hand.
This was Liyue's god—Rex Lapis, Morax.
"You think so too, right?"
"Let me tell you a secret—out of all the Statues of The Seven in Teyvat, he's the only one who's sitting."
"The rest are all standing solemnly."
Rowan also jumped down from the Golden Ark, smiling as he spoke softly into Lumine's ear.
Lumine's cheeks immediately turned red from his intimate gesture, but she didn't feel uncomfortable at all.
For Rowan—someone who also came from another world—Lumine's favorability toward him was very high.
Not quite to the point of being "more than friends," but he was definitely a close friend.
Plus, with how Rowan had been looking after her and Paimon along the way, Lumine had already stopped resisting the occasional closeness from him.
She couldn't help it—right now, she was basically a homeless, lonely kid.
With Aether not around, she really wanted a broad shoulder to protect her.
And Rowan just happened to provide exactly that—without trying to control her.
That made Lumine's fondness for Rowan climb even faster.
She was already thinking about inviting Rowan to travel through the other nations with her…
She just didn't know how to say it yet.
She was afraid Rowan would refuse, so she kept holding back.
"W-Wow, seriously?"
"You've seen the Statues of The Seven in other nations too?"
Paimon flew down and happened to hear that, immediately shocked.
Then she floated onto Rowan's shoulder, sat there, and asked excitedly.
"Of course. I can tell you very seriously…"
"That's exactly how it is."
Rowan smiled and reached out to poke Paimon's little cheek as he replied.
He hadn't seen Snezhnaya's statue yet, but judging by the other six nations, Snezhnaya probably wouldn't be an exception either.
Even Nod Krai's Moon God statue wasn't an exception—so Snezhnaya definitely wouldn't be.
"Alright, don't get hung up on the Geo statue."
"It's almost dark—we need to hurry to Liyue Harbor."
"Lumine, hurry and resonate. Once you're done, we've gotta speed up."
Seeing Paimon about to ask more, Rowan quickly cut her off to block her curiosity.
Otherwise, who knew how many questions this little thing would toss out?
They'd already wasted a lot of time—if they didn't hurry, it'd be hard to make it before nightfall.
"O-Oh! Right, right—let's hurry!"
"If we miss dinner time, that'd be bad!"
The moment food was mentioned, Paimon instantly stopped caring about curiosity and started urging them on.
Lumine nodded and walked up to the Statue of The Seven.
Just like when she touched the Anemo statue before, she placed her right hand on the statue's pillar.
The next moment—
A golden light flared from the Geo statue, and a Geo mark formed from that light, flying straight toward Lumine.
She didn't move, letting it enter her body.
Then a different power surged within her.
The power of stone.
It was… strangely reassuring.
Noelle had been right—the power of stone really did make you feel safe.
She could sense that if she wanted, that power could become a shield to protect her.
This was her second element—Geo.
Lumine lifted her right hand. Golden light burst forth as Geo gathered in her palm.
She raised her left hand as emerald-green Anemo gathered, a small whirlwind forming in her palm.
Wind and Geo!
Not only that—she could also feel the power sealing her original strength loosen quite a bit after obtaining Geo.
A lot more of her true power returned.
That was also why, even after learning Aether wasn't in the other seven nations, Lumine still wanted to keep traveling.
One reason was genuine curiosity about Teyvat—she wanted to know what came next, and why Aether insisted she reach "the end."
The other reason was that as she resonated with elemental power, her own strength kept recovering.
"Look, Rowan—I can use two elements now."
"Next time I run into that Stonehide Lawachurl, I can definitely take it down!"
Lumine still remembered being chased all over the place by that Stonehide Lawachurl…
She held grudges.
As Eula would say: this grudge will be remembered!
Now that she had power again, she wanted to go back and settle the score.
"Alright, alright—stop thinking about it."
"Let's go. If we don't hurry, we'll miss dinner."
Paimon didn't care what Lumine was thinking at all.
She only knew that if they didn't get to Liyue Harbor soon, they'd miss dinner.
Eating was the serious business.
Everything else was just clouds.
So, the Golden Ark set sail again, heading for Liyue Harbor beyond Mt. Tianheng.
Very quickly—before it got too late—
The Golden Ark appeared above Liyue Harbor.
A thousand sails gathered, and the lights burned bright through the night.
They had arrived.
Looking down at Liyue Harbor—identical to ancient Huaxia—Rowan's eyes flashed with emotion.
This was his second hometown.
Familiar bricks.
Familiar tiles.
Familiar architectural style.
Everything felt deeply familiar.
"Waaah, it's so lively!"
"I didn't think Liyue Harbor would be this beautiful at night!"
Floating in the air, Paimon spoke excitedly.
Night had already fallen, and Liyue Harbor was lit up.
From the Golden Ark, the entire harbor looked covered in warm lights.
Compared to Mondstadt… it was stronger by far more than a star or two.
If not for Rowan's help, Mondstadt probably wouldn't even have people daring to come out at night.
To compare Mondstadt to Liyue was just a fantasy.
"Let's go. Since we've reached Liyue, we don't need to ride this anymore."
Rowan lowered the Golden Ark at the entrance to Liyue Harbor, smiling as he called out.
"Alright! Let's get down!"
"Lumine!"
"Welcome, Knight King-dono, to Liyue. I am Keqing, the Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing."
After everyone came down, a beautiful young woman arrived before them with a squad of Millelith soldiers.
The purple "cat-eared" girl stepped forward and introduced herself in welcome.
"Hello. I'm the Knight King—Arthur. Rowan. Pendragon!"
"Just call me Rowan. No need to keep saying 'Knight King'."
(End of Chapter)
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