Dominator Stellae

15 | Golden House of Unmet Expectations

We gathered up the petals deemed suitable for medicinal use and stored them for later. Hopefully, we could find some actually usable Glaze Lilies somewhere that didn't involve skewering whopperflowers with spears. Those things were annoying little shits when they managed to surprise you well enough.

"Excuse me," called a soft voice. A woman with blue hair and black horns upon her head approached her. Immediately, I recognized her as Ganyu. She's grown so much. "Are you looking for Glaze Lilies?" Aether, Lei-Li, and Paimon were quick to greet her as Zhongli and stood to the side quietly. I was torn between introducing myself and just letting them do the talking.

I couldn't help but chuckle when Paimon griped about Ganyu forgetting to show them the way to the Jade Chamber. She'd always been a little forgetful. Paimon questioned her about her "serious attitude" being gone.

"Ah, well, when I first met you it was as an emissary of the Tianquan," Ganyu explained to her. "Now I am simply out on a stroll to see the flowers."

"You came all this way to see the flowers? Why not just enjoy the ones in the city garden?"

Ganyu pursed her lips, her expression falling as she momentarily quieted. I shook my head at Paimon, gently poking her between the eyes. Ignoring her disgruntled "Hey!" I said, "She is an adeptus, Paimon, and one who lives within Liyue. I do believe she may have worked under Rex Lapis. She's in mourning."

I'm clearly an expert at playing like an intelligent mortal. I think. I hope. Oh no, why is she staring at me like that? "Yes, everything he's said is true...Yujing Terrace is where Rex Lapis parted from this world. If I strolled through those lonely gardens now, I wouldn't be able to bear it. As for the adeptus part, I'm a mix of human and qilin."

Paimon quickly apologized. We all quieted once again as she explained how now all of the original seven but Barbatos and Foko had passed. My mind wandered back to the bard I'd seen in Monstadt. Barbatos was much weaker than he was when he first ascended during the war. To be honest, while he's still above most anemo vision users, it's safe to say that he's probably lost his gnosis. Foko and Kusanali were the co-archons of Sumeru though Foko had a bit more control than Kusanali.

"Liyue has been under Rex Lapis' rule since it was first founded 3,700 in years ago. This city has never had to bid farewell to its deity."

Lei-Li sighed, "I'm sure his rule was wonderful considering how large Liyue Harbor is now. It was so much smaller thousands of years ago."

Ganyu nodded. "Indeed. This is all so sudden it's just... disorienting."

"What do you think of this farewell?" Zhongli suddenly asked Ganyu. Being straightforward can be considered a good thing, but what the hell? I side-eyed him in disbelief. Did I not just say she was in mourning? The nerve of this man sometimes. She stumbled over her words a little in shock of the rather random question. I hated she had to be put in the spotlight like that, but it was interesting to hear how she felt.

I have to agree with her since I too am immortal. I will eventually come to terms with the fact that he's truly gone...but that day will no doubt be years, maybe even decades from now. My current emotional state is about as stable as water. Sometimes I feel fine and sometimes I feel like I'm not going to be able to continue.

Life is such a fickle thing. Ganyu ended up gifting us a few Glaze Lilies that she'd picked. She handed them with great care to Aether. Before she could leave, Lei-Li asked for a hug.

"And that just about does it," Zhongli said once Lei-Li finally released Ganyu from the clutches of her hugs. "Our preparations for the Rite of Parting are mostly finished. Given the ease of picking Glaze Lilies, I think this was a fitting end to our tasks, in more ways than one."