Cloud Retainer looked toward Collei.
"The girl's Eleazar has indeed weakened," she said. "Not greatly, but the effect is clear."
She gave it a brief thought.
"If one had to estimate, it has lessened by one or two percent."
Her gaze returned to the empty dishes on the table.
"This meal was no ordinary meal."
Mountain Shaper nodded.
"One originally came to discuss an important matter with Ryou. Who would have thought the visit would begin with such a feast?"
His tone carried a rare note of satisfaction.
"This trip was well worth it."
Then he turned to Ryou.
"Ryou, one has a matter to discuss with you. Might we find a quieter room?"
Ryou was a little surprised.
Mountain Shaper was one of the Mighty and Illuminated Adepti. If he wanted to speak privately, it probably was not a small matter.
Ryou turned to Keqing. "Keqing, I'll take Mountain Shaper to the study. I'll leave the hall to you."
He lowered his voice slightly.
"If I'm not back in half an hour, go ahead to Yun Jin's performance first."
Keqing nodded. "All right."
Ryou looked back at Mountain Shaper.
"Mountain Shaper, please."
Mountain Shaper gave a small nod and followed him out.
Once they reached the study, Ryou poured him a cup of adeptal tea before sitting across from him.
"Mountain Shaper, may I ask what brought you here today?"
Mountain Shaper lifted the cup.
The tea touched his lips, and the serious conversation was immediately forgotten.
The dignified adeptus took one drink, then another, his expression easing with every mouthful. For a moment, he looked less like someone who had come to discuss urgent business and more like someone who had just found a treasure he had no intention of letting go.
Ryou watched him for a while, then finally said, "Mountain Shaper, if you like the tea, I'll send you some later."
He tapped the table lightly.
"But can we talk about the actual matter first?"
Mountain Shaper's face stiffened for half a breath.
Then he coughed.
"Cough. Then… let us call that settled."
Ryou nearly laughed.
Mountain Shaper set the cup down, though his hand lingered close to it as if someone might snatch it away.
"One came to apologize."
Ryou paused.
"Apologize?"
He could not think of anything Mountain Shaper needed to apologize for.
They had not met many times. Their first proper meeting had been at the Jade Chamber, and while they had crossed paths afterward, there had never been any conflict between them. Mountain Shaper had even entered the Ministry of Civil Affairs through Zhongli's recommendation.
If anything, their relationship was friendly enough.
So where had this apology come from?
Ryou looked at him, genuinely confused.
"Mountain Shaper, you've lost me. What happened?"
Mountain Shaper poured himself another cup as naturally as if the teapot had already become part of the apology.
"This matter has to do with a visit one paid to some old friends a while ago."
Ryou had a feeling he knew where this was going.
Mountain Shaper continued, "During that visit, one gave away some adeptal tea. Unfortunately, other old friends learned of it as well. A few of them have poor tempers. They know the tea came from Liyue Harbor, but they do not know it came from you."
His gaze turned serious.
"And after the disturbance just now, they may be able to trace it here."
Ryou thought of Qingce Village.
Moon Carver had mentioned something similar back then.
"So that's what this is about."
He leaned back slightly.
"If they come politely, I don't mind giving them some. The adepti have guarded Liyue for a long time. A little tea isn't worth making a fuss over."
Then his tone cooled.
"But if they come to take it by force, I won't be polite either."
Mountain Shaper did not seem offended.
Ryou continued, "If this is why you came, then you don't need to worry. I'm not that petty."
Mountain Shaper shook his head.
"You may say that, but one still cannot feel at ease. The fault began with one."
He paused.
"One also heard from Shenhe that you once asked her about the ability to shape landscapes."
Ryou's attention sharpened.
Mountain Shaper raised his hand, and a jade pendant appeared between them.
"So, to make amends, one asked Rex Lapis for a pocket world. Treat it as one's apology."
Ryou stared at the jade pendant.
A pocket world?
Mountain Shaper had actually asked Zhongli for a pocket world?
Ryou's internal pocket world was convenient because he could enter it whenever he wanted, but a separate world sealed inside a jade pendant was different. It could be larger, steadier, and far better suited for storing or growing things.
And if Zhongli had made it, then it would not be ordinary.
Ryou had never entered Tabibito's Vision world, but he could roughly imagine its scale. A pocket world created by Rex Lapis himself would be on another level entirely.
He accepted the pendant carefully.
"Thank you, Mountain Shaper. You really went out of your way for this."
Mountain Shaper shook his head. "The fault was one's to begin with."
For an adeptus, a gift like this might not be impossible. For Ryou, though, its value was completely different.
This was not just a storage item.
This was a whole new space.
After thanking him properly, Ryou remembered something and took out the tea leaves he had prepared.
"In that case, I also have a gift for you."
Mountain Shaper's eyes moved at once.
"These are Puye tea leaves," Ryou said. "Because of my influence, they've turned into adeptal tea. Their quality and flavor are stronger than ordinary adeptal tea, and—"
Before he could finish, Mountain Shaper had already taken them.
His face brightened so quickly that Ryou almost wondered whether the apology had been partly an excuse.
"Since that is the case, one shall accept."
Ryou decided not to expose him.
"As long as you like them."
Then he shifted the topic before Mountain Shaper could start drinking again.
"There's something else I'd like to ask you."
Mountain Shaper glanced at him, now in an excellent mood. "What is it?"
"Jueyun Karst is rich in adeptal energy," Ryou said. "It should produce ingredients, tea plants, and seeds that have absorbed that energy. Could you help me find some?"
He touched the jade pendant at his waist.
"I want to cultivate an area inside this pocket world. With some special methods, I'm confident I can raise their quality even further."
Mountain Shaper understood the idea at once.
Ryou could already turn ordinary things into items infused with adeptal energy. If the base material already carried that energy, perhaps he could push it even higher.
And if he planted them himself inside the pocket world, under the influence of his own abilities, the result might be better still.
If it worked, his tea, food, fruit, and ingredients could all reach a new level.
Mountain Shaper stroked his beard.
"That is a small matter. Tomorrow, when one returns to Jueyun Karst, one will gather some seeds for you."
Then his voice slowed slightly.
"However, if the cultivation succeeds, one hopes…"
Ryou smiled before he could finish.
"Mountain Shaper, you gave me such a valuable gift. Once the tea is grown, of course I'll send you plenty."
He added sincerely, "When the first batch is ready, I'll personally bring it to your abode in Jueyun Karst."
Mountain Shaper's expression turned a little strange.
Ryou caught the look and coughed.
"Then it's settled."
"Very well," Mountain Shaper said after a pause. "One will take one's leave."
His form dissolved into drifting mist and vanished from the study.
After he left, Ryou lifted the jade pendant and fastened it at his waist.
The moment he entered the pendant world, the space unfolded around him.
It was vast.
Far larger than he had expected.
The edges stretched so far into the distance that he could barely see the full outline of the place. The ground lay open beneath a clear sky, empty for now, but stable, quiet, and full of potential.
Ryou walked through it once, and the more he saw, the more impressed he became.
"As expected of Zhongli," he murmured. "This space is huge."
He marked out a few ideas in his head. Tea plants could go there. Ingredients there. Storage somewhere closer to the entrance. If the seeds from Jueyun Karst worked, this place could become far more useful than a simple pocket world.
Once he had a rough sense of the space, he returned to the study.
They still had Yun Jin's performance to attend.
Ryou changed into fresh clothes and pushed the door open.
Outside, faint dreamlike color still shimmered above the estate. Traces of the adeptal mist from dinner had not fully faded, and the sky looked as if someone had washed it with light.
Ryou glanced up, then shook his head.
That mist probably spread farther than I thought.
He was about to head to the hall when he noticed a small figure peeking at him from behind a pillar.
Yaoyao.
Ryou smiled and walked over.
"Yaoyao, what are you doing here?"
Once she realized she had been seen, Yaoyao stepped out openly.
"Ryou-nii, Keqing-nee asked me to see whether you were done."
Then she added, "She said it's time to go watch the opera."
Ryou crouched and offered her a strawberry from the tray nearby.
"Then thank you for coming to get me."
Yaoyao accepted it happily, and when Ryou picked her up, she wrapped one arm around his neck without hesitation. Her other hand stayed busy with the strawberry.
Ryou could not help smiling at how comfortable she looked.
As he carried her toward the hall, he asked, "Yaoyao, did anything happen while I was gone?"
Yaoyao tilted her head and thought about it very seriously.
"Keqing-nee kept talking with Tabibito-nee."
"Oh?"
"They looked really excited," Yaoyao said. "Almost like they were arguing."
That sounded about right.
"Anything else?"
Yaoyao shook her head. "I don't think so."
Then she looked at him with bright eyes.
"Ryou-nii, can I go watch the opera with you?"
"Of course," Ryou said, patting her head. "If it gets too late, Keqing and I will take you home."
Yaoyao nodded happily. "Thank you, Ryou-nii."
Ryou carried her into the hall.
The moment he entered, he noticed the atmosphere was strange.
Keqing and Tabibito looked as if they had just finished fighting without drawing weapons. Their eyes were sharp, their smiles were too calm, and the air between them felt ready to spark if anyone said the wrong thing.
But when they looked at Ryou, both seemed normal enough.
The problem was Cloud Retainer.
And Shenhe.
The two of them were staring at him in a way that made Ryou's scalp prickle.
That was not how one looked at a normal person.
That was how one looked at a criminal.
No.
Worse.
A beast.
Ryou froze for half a breath.
In his eyes, Yaoyao was just a sweet little girl. She had come to call him, he had given her a strawberry, and she had let him carry her back. Wasn't that normal?
How had he become a beast to them?
Without making it obvious, Ryou set Yaoyao down.
Before he could say anything, Cloud Retainer fixed him with a glare and raised one hand toward Yaoyao.
"Yaoyao. Come to one's side."
"Oh, okay."
Yaoyao obediently walked over.
Ryou met Cloud Retainer's accusing stare, and his face darkened.
I didn't do anything to Yaoyao.
How did I end up looking like a beast to you people?
[End of chapter]