As they ate, the adrenaline of the past two days finally began to wash away.
Venti had quietly slipped away halfway through the meal, murmuring something about a special vintage at the Angel's Share and a poem he needed to write about a "very expensive paperweight."
Lumine wiped her mouth with a napkin, her golden eyes turning serious as she looked across the table at Leo.
"So," Lumine said, her voice cutting through the sounds of the bustling city around them. "The dragon is safe. The Fatui have the Gnosis, which means they're probably going to back off from Mondstadt for a while."
"And we are currently one of the richest people in this city. What's the next move? I still need to find the god who took my brother.
The Anemo Archon didn't know anything. I need to keep moving."
Leo took a slow sip of apple cider, letting the cool liquid soothe his dry throat.
He had been thinking about this since they stepped out of Stormterror's Lair.
He had his Rider powers, he had his cards, and he had an ominous watch ticking in his pocket.
But Teyvat was massive, and standing still was the fastest way to get killed by whatever forces were watching him from the shadows.
"We're going to liyue next" Leo said definitively, setting his cup down.
"Liyue?" Paimon perked up, her ears twitching at the name.
"The City of Contracts! Paimon hears the food there is amazing! Spicy stir-fry, dumplings, seafood..."
"Focus, emergency food," Leo sighed, tapping the table.
"Yes, the food is good, but more importantly, Liyue is ruled by Rex Lapis, the Geo Archon. He's the oldest of the Seven. If anyone knows about an arrogant, unknown god who likes throwing red cubes at twins, it's going to be a guy who's been alive for six thousand years."
"But how do we meet an Archon?" Lumine asked, leaning forward, her hope rekindling. "Venti was... well, Venti. He was running around the woods. I highly doubt the oldest god in Teyvat just hangs around taverns playing the lyre."
"He doesn't," Leo said, his mind flashing back to the lore he knew all too well from his past life.
"He's a bit more dramatic than that. Once a year, Rex Lapis physically descends from the heavens to give guidance to his people. It's called the Rite of Descension. And if my internal calendar is right, it's happening very soon. We need to be in Liyue Harbor when he comes down."
In his mind, a dark, cynical thought crossed his consciousness.
Yeah. We need to be there to watch a dragon skydive without a parachute.
Nothing like a little divine assassination to really kick off a road trip.
He kept that part to himself. Lumine had enough on her plate without knowing they were walking straight into a murder mystery.
"The Rite of Descension..." Lumine repeated the words, committing them to memory. "Alright. Then we leave for Liyue. But we can't just walk out of the city. We should report to Jean first. Tell the Knights we're heading out."
Leo nodded.
"Agreed. We'll stay in Mondstadt for the rest of the day. Rest up, buy some actual travel supplies with our newfound fortune, and hit the road tomorrow morning."