Raiden Makoto and the Duties of a Wife**
Leaving the Ashen Sea was far quieter than Luo Li expected.
Hans tried several times to sneak a conversation with the mysterious and overwhelmingly powerful "couple" at the stern of the boat, but every time he opened his mouth, he lost his nerve.
Even though the two suppressed their auras, that innate, noble divinity radiating from their bones could not be hidden.
Makoto gently looked into Luo Li's eyes.
"What should we do next? Should we… go back to Inazuma?"
Only then did Luo Li remember—five hundred years had passed.
Everyone he once knew might long have returned to dust.
Thinking this way dulled his excitement.
"…Forget it. Let's not rush back. After waiting five centuries, what's a little longer?"
Rather than returning now and reopening old wounds, it was better to prepare himself first—and then give Ei a pleasant surprise.
He thought he needed to persuade Makoto, but unexpectedly she agreed without resistance.
Of course, Luo Li didn't know the truth: Makoto hadn't figured out how to explain to Ei that she was "stealing her man."
That conversation… would require a very delicate moment.
Before that, she would rather continue pretending to be a traveling couple.
After all, since becoming the Raiden Shogun, she had never left Inazuma.
Now that she was finally free, she wanted to see the world with her own eyes.
Thus, the two quickly reached a mutual understanding.
Stanley shouted from the bow,
"Hey! We're almost out of the Ashen Sea! From here, we'll follow the adventurer route back to Mondstadt!"
Makoto's amethyst eyes brightened.
"Mondstadt… I've never been there before."
With a sense of novelty and longing, the two traveled alongside the adventurers for ten days before finally stepping onto the lands of Mondstadt.
Mondstadt City
Five centuries later, stepping into this familiar place again, Luo Li felt something entirely different.
"After all these years… Mondstadt really hasn't changed."
The massive walls still bore the marks of the ancestors' glory.
Stanley and Hans needed to report their expedition at the Adventurers' Guild, so they parted from Luo Li and Makoto for now.
Makoto wandered the streets, taking in the scenery unlike Inazuma or Liyue.
There were merchants everywhere, bustling stalls, and the faint smell of wine drifting through the air.
"So this is Mondstadt?"
Having once been the almighty Shogun, Makoto was used to being watched with reverence wherever she went.
Now, walking as an unknown traveler and receiving curious stares only because she was beautiful, brought her a strange sense of freshness.
"What shall we do next?" Makoto asked, visibly excited for the life ahead.
Luo Li thought for a moment.
"If we're going to live like ordinary people… we need Mora. Do you have any?"
Worrying whether being "kept by his wife" would hurt his pride wasn't even a consideration.
"Mora?"
Makoto tilted her head cutely. Her violet hairpins swayed softly—an action that was devastatingly charming coming from a goddess.
Luo Li's eyelid twitched.
"…Don't tell me you don't have Mora either."
"Of course not. I never needed them before."
"…"
Good grief.
So it wasn't just "three Archons can't gather a single Mora"—Makoto belonged to that club too.
Probably all seven Archons had zero financial sense.
The dignified sovereigns of Inazuma were now forced to consider how to make pocket money.
Instead of being troubled, Makoto was delighted.
This was her first time encountering such a trivial earthly concern, and it made her feel more connected to mortal life.
Luo Li wanted to cheat the system, but Makoto stopped him.
"If we're blending in as ordinary people, we must follow the rules of ordinary people."
He had no choice but to abandon the idea of "borrowing a little" from some wealthy merchant.
It didn't matter—when he first arrived in Teyvat three thousand years ago, he had lived a truly fragile mortal life with no power at all.
If he survived that, he could certainly endure this.
"Never thought that after three thousand years, I'd be starting from zero again…"
But when he saw the excitement shining in Makoto's eyes, he couldn't bring himself to refuse.
"…Fine. We'll do things your way."
As for Mora, he could always hunt some monsters and sell materials at the Adventurers' Guild.
With Stanley's reputation, they would be accepted easily.
Makoto spent some time planning—but then realized something terrifying:
she had no idea how to earn money.
The realization devastated her.
Luo Li chuckled.
"Didn't you just call yourself my wife? Naturally, it's my job to support you."
He paused, eyes gleaming with ambition:
"But a wife has obligations too… and you'll need to fulfill yours."
Makoto didn't need to ask what obligations he meant.
After hundreds of years, his intentions were obvious.
She gave him a soft, knowing smile.
"…If you can make me happy for the next few days, I'll consider it."
It was merely playful modesty—her heart had already decided.
For Luo Li, this was enough to make him want to pluck stars from the sky.
A thousand-year desire, finally within his reach.
He couldn't be more satisfied.
"Looks like our story from here on… is truly 'Starting Life in Mondstadt from Zero.'"