He was in no rush to build a café, as Henry realized more funds needed to be gathered first. The idea itself was sound—location, infrastructure, differentiation—but without capital, even the best plans remained fantasies written in air. Equipment had to be purchased, materials imported from his own world or locally sourced.
So he had to put his idea on hold.
Instead, Henry wanted to test his new strength against the monsters of Teyvat. Real combat would tell him more than speculation ever could.
I would use fists, but I should get a sword. It is too cool.
With that decided, he trudged his way toward the blacksmith.
The steady clang of hammer against heated steel rang through Mondstadt's forge. Sparks leapt upward in golden bursts, briefly illuminating Wagner's broad frame as he worked.
"Do you have temporary weapons you can sell to me?"
Wagner, the owner, looked up from his smelting work, sweat beading across his forehead. "Yes, I have two—Old Merc's Pal and Silver Sword."
"Please show it to me."
Wagner stepped away from the anvil and brought out the two of them, laying them carefully across the counter.
Henry picked up the Silver Sword. Next to his large frame, the sword looked small, and it was almost weightless in his grip. He rotated his wrist experimentally, testing its balance. The blade was well-crafted, no doubt, but it lacked presence.
He set it down.
He then picked up the claymore and lifted it almost easily.
"Ah ha!"
Henry twirled the claymore with two hands smoothly, the weight of it humming through the air in a controlled arc. Wagner's brows rose at the sight.
"This does have a good weight. It's good. I'll take this."
The claymore felt right. Not too light, not unwieldy. Substantial.
"Master Wagner, I would also like to get a claymore made."
Wagner wiped his hands and leaned against the counter.
"If you're serious about claymores, I can make you Whiteblind. Strong core, layered reinforcement. It'll hold against heavy impact."
Henry rested a hand on the counter. "What is the Price?"
"Five thousand Mora. Ore's expensive these days, and quality forging isn't quick work."
Henry did not hesitate. Paying the Mora for the Old Merc's Pal and the Whiteblind, he accepted the receipt Wagner handed him. Wagner instructed him to return after a month.
As soon as Henry turned around, a translucent screen suddenly appeared in front of him.
___
Mission: Clear out a hilichurl camp
Reward: Qi Condensation- Basic Devouring: Can absorb the energy of small monsters (Slimes). Can "cleanse" minor elemental corruption or poisoned water.
___
Henry stared at the words.
"…What the hell is this reward?"
His expression flattened.
"Are my rewards now based on Xianxia cultivation? Are you a Chinese cultivation system, Orianna?"
[This is a good reward, Henry. Why complaining?]
Qi Condensation? Devouring? What's next, I am going to be an Immortal young master?
Henry let out a quiet breath and closed the screen. Whatever the naming convention, power was power. He would analyze it later. For now, he turned his steps toward the Adventurers' Guild.
"Ad astra abyssosque," Katheryne said after seeing him.
No, I don't want extra apple sauce.
"Miss Katheryne, I want to register as an adventurer."
"Fill this form, sir."
Henry filled the form and handed it back to Katheryne, his handwriting steady.
"Congratulations on becoming a member of the Adventurers' Guild. Here is your Adventurer Guidebook."
Henry opened the book and saw that it contained a map of different parts of Mondstadt. The locations of ores were marked. Areas where elemental enemies were known to appear were indicated. Trade routes and safe zones were sketched in fine ink.
Sadly, the map was static. No movement. No layered detail.
Introducing Teyvat to GPS would be good.
"I also want to accept a commission."
"What would be your preference, Mr Henry?"
"Any combat commissions."
"There is a small hilichurl encampment near Windrise. Commission reward to clear it is 2000 mora"
Henry agreed, and Katheryne asked the book back from Henry, marking the area clearly on the map page before returning it.
"You will need to take a photo after the area has been cleared as proof."
"Do you know where to buy a Kamera?" Henry asked.
"We do indeed sell Kamera here", Katheryne says as she produces one from beneath the counter.
After paying, he accepted the item from Katheryne, stored it in his system space, and bid her goodbye before heading toward the gates.
On arriving at the main exit, Henry removed his bike from his inventory. The sleek machine materialized beneath him, its design starkly out of place against the medieval stone walls.
He rode smoothly past the Mondstadt stone bridge and into the grassy plains, the wind slapping his face gently along the way. The open sky stretched endlessly overhead. Windmills turned in the distance. Dandelions swayed in the breeze.
As he moved past the Windrise tree, he stopped for a second and reminiscenced about how he first arrived in Teyvat at that same spot.
Where is this drunk bard?
Henry glanced up at the Anemo statue.
Come to think of it, I haven't seen him ever since I arrived in Mondstadt.
He narrowed his eyes slightly.
Hmmm… maybe 500 years still haven't passed and the Traveller is not woken yet.
Speaking of Traveller, he wondered who it would be.
Henry had chosen Aether as his Traveller in the main cutscene. Earlier he used to think that choosing Aether and Lumine was just a gameplay mechanic. But later, when the concept of Samsara was introduced in Sumeru, he realized things weren't that simple.
He suspected Teyvat to be in a cycle of Samsara, but he couldn't prove it yet.
Lumine as Traveller had always fascinated him. Aether, while an excellent main character, felt straightforward.
Lumine was more cute and beautiful. Maybe, this was his male bias speaking. Lumine's fan art had indeed risen something within him.
That said, if Lumine was indeed the Traveller, I don't mind making Aether brother-in-law.
He he.
Henry continued on the road and soon spotted a hilichurl camp.
There was a hilichurl shooter, a hilichurl fighter, and a blazing axe Mitachurl.
I have to deal with the shooter first.
Sorry, but you're monsters now and I need Mora. Don't take it personally.
He moved silently, using terrain and timing. Closing the gap, he struck the shooter with a direct punch to the face, killing the hilichurl instantly.
To Henry's horror, the hilichurl's mask was removed upon impact. He saw not a scarred face but one made of grotesque flesh, disturbingly human beneath the distortion.
"Eeughh, I did not want to see that."
He tried to stop bile rising from his throat.
But he did not have time to hold his ground as he saw the Mitachurl rushing toward him.
Henry removed his claymore from system space, holding it horizontally in style as he calmly walked toward the Mitachurl.
He blocked the axe with his claymore, which made a huge clang. Henry felt slight pressure of the Mitachurl's force on his claymore. Adjusting his footing, he deflected it and cleaved the Mitachurl in half.
Black blood spewed out. Henry quickly swerved out of the way to avoid it.
Henry noticed the fighter, on seeing his dead comrades, had become even angrier, but Henry also cleaved him in half. This time blood didn't spew out; it just erupted violently.
Maybe it was because of size. Mitachurls are larger in size than hilichurls.
Henry took out the Kamera and noticed its design was similar to old-age cameras but with high-end features like timers. He placed it on a stand and set the timer. Henry came in front of the Kamera and squatted stylishly, holding a peace sign.
The Kamera clicked and a generated picture came out of it.
"These look old but have workings of modern handheld cameras which generate images instantly," Henry thought as he observed the clear image.
Teyvat seems to be a tech-advanced world but at the same time medieval too.
---
Last week, the Power stones did not meet the goal and I still released an additional chapter. Please drop your power stones. Don't read and dash.
Also I noticed that other than power stones, reviews are also a factor to increase visibility. So if you liked this fic, please drop a review and let me know your thoughts.
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