Vulpecula || [Various! Genshin Impact x Reader]

Chapter 14 - Gathering Intel

Talking to Stanley, Y/n discovered, did not give them much information. Or rather, he did not give Aether and Paimon much information. Y/n was sure the man was not even sober enough to comprehend their inquiry about the Arcadian Ruins, only wanting to tell them about his stories at the Mare Jivari. She was not entirely sure but she remembered her brothers mention that Stanley's stories were not actually his but stories of another Stanley. Whatever that meant.

Paimon definitely caught Stanley's attention when she mentioned treasure, but the man was too fixated with stories and tales to really care. They left the tavern with absolutely no information.

"Hmph! Talking to him was a total waste of time," the floating fairy huffed and crossed her arms. "We did not learn anything about the Arcadian Ruins."

Well, it was simply because the Arcadian Ruins do not truly exist and the dear captain had set them out and about to spread the fabricated information. But Y/n could not just tell them that, could she? That would ruin the Captain's hard work. And as much as she wanted to annoy and inconvenience the man, it was quite important that the thief was caught.

So despite knowing how the situation truly is, she will just continue to join the flow of things. The quest was quite entertaining in the game, so it should be just as entertaining experiencing it herself. Besides, she did not get the chance to interact with Stanley and Jack when she played the quest since she went to Cyrus straight away. She would be able to hear what the others say about the Arcadian ruins this time.

"Let's talk to Jack next," Aether said, steering them towards the stairs. "And then we can go to Cyrus if we still do not have enough information."

Y/n hummed in agreement, and they began climbing the steps in tranquil silence.

"Y/n," blond beside her muttered, gold eyes briefly glancing at her. "Do you really think such a treasure exists? It's a bit..."

"Too good to be true? It does, doesn't it?" she continued with her voice low. "But maybe it does exist. After all, my knowledge of this world is still very shallow. Who is to know?"

Aether looked thoughtful once he heard her answer and he nodded. "Yes, maybe such a treasure really exists. Though I still question the validity of Kaeya's story."

Y/n chuckled. The Captain's story does sound a bit far-fetched so it was rather logical that Aether was skeptical of its validity. The Cavalry Captain should really write poems and novels with his talent with words. A smooth talker through and through, indeed.

The three soon came upon the last set of steps that would lead them to the Adventurer's Guild, and they could see the adventurer they were looking for standing just near the top of the stairs. Jack had a friendly smile on his lips when he spotted them nearing where he stood, and he gave a small wave.

"Hey, there!"

"Um, hello. Are you Jack?" Y/n asked the man, purely for the sake of formality. And to make sure since the NPC names no longer float above their heads as they did in the game.

The man nodded. "Yep, that's me. Are you both new adventurers? Wanna join my adventure team?"

"Ah, no, we just want to ask—"

And just like when they talked to Katheryne and Stanley, Paimon had interrupted them.

"Hey!" she said loudly, flying to float near the man. "Do you have any intel on the Arcadian Ruins?"

Confusion settled on Jack's expression and he scratched the back of his head.

"Arcadian...?" he repeated thoughtfully before shaking his head. "Can't say I've heard of it. Sorry, I'm still new here, so..."