Archon of Minus

Chapter 7: Always keep your tricks hidden

Teyvat was not a peaceful world to live in by any means. Perhaps if you were stationed in one of the big cities like Inazuma City or Liyue Harbor, but out in the wilderness various monsters made their homes and attacked any human they came in contact with usually.

One of the most common monsters to encounter out there were the Hilichurls. A normal one was not such a great deal, but there were those much more dangerous like the hulking beasts known as Mitachurls or the Samachurls who are capable of using elemental magic.

But for a regualar person, even the most common Hilichurls can be an imminent danger to their life. Such was the case for an informant heading towards Monsdat.

Perhaps she was an informant, but she had no combat skills whatsoever. As such, the four Hilichurls surrounding her were a great danger.

Except that, it was over before she even knew it. As the four Hilichurls surrounding her came closer an oversized screw stabbed each if them from the back through their chest, making them drop dead immediatly.

Informant:H...Huh!?

Paimon:Are you alright?

Looking from where the voice is she saw three people approaching her, those three being Kumagawa, Lumine and Paimon. Seeing how undisturbed they were by what happened, they must have been the ones to save her.

Informant:Why is this happening to me? I shouldn't have helped him...

Paimon:Him, who?

Informant:Thanks so much for saving me! You're far more reliable than those Favonius guys.

As the girls were talking Kumagawa picked up one of the masks belonging to the Hilichurls he just killed. This one was quite different from the masks of the Hilichurls he saw before.

Unlike those of the previous Hilichurls who were having flat horns and faded paint with a yellowish color, this one was a pristine white with well crafted bull-like horn and a beatiful design made with red paint. He inspected it a bit looking at it from yop to bottom.

Paimon:What does that mean? If you don't wanna ask Kaeya, you better figure it out!

Kumagawa:[Oh? Are you done with the information collecting?]

Lumine:Yeah, she gave us a clue and a map. Hm? What's up with that mask? I haven't seen one like taht before.

Kumagawa:[One of the Hilichurls had it. It looks cool, right?]

Paimon:Wait a minute...If Paimon is right, then only really strong Hilichurls have masks like those. Huh, strange that ine was around here...Are you gonna keep it.

Kumagawa:[Yes. We don't know what we're gonna be able to keep from this little treasure hunt, do we? Kaeya-chan is still a Knight, so most of it would probably go to the funds of the Knights of Favonius. At the very least I can take a souvenire just in case, right?]

Lumine:I guess. Are you planning on wearing it?

Kumagawa:[It'd be great if such an oportunity arises, right? Like having to hide my identity or something like that.]

Lumine:I doubt you could see anything with it on your face, though.

Kumagawa:[That's fine... I'm used to going through life like I am blind.]

Lumine:I think this and that are different things...

Kumagawa:[Anyway, I wasn't really paying attention. What about the clue? I can take my chance ant cracking it.]

Paimon:Oh! Oh! Paimon knows! Three six-armed giants reside in the city in the lake. Two guard the statue, one, the treasure.

Kumagawa:[Six arms, huh? Wait...Don't windmills have six baldes?]

Paimon:They do!

Lumine:Two gard the statue, one the treasure...So the one furthest from the statue of the Anemo Archon?

Kumagawa:[I think so.]

Paimon:Paimon would have never thought of that...You two are so smart! Let's go! Treasure! Treasure!

Most people would see it appropiate to go to said windmill and use the stairs. However, Kumagawa had found it more appropiate to jump froom rooftop to rooftop with Lumine in his arms to said windmill.

Lumine:Huh, there really is a treasure chest here.

Paimon:Haaah... Haaah...Paimon's tired...Too much floating...Did we find it?

Lumine opened the chest and looked inside. However, to Paimon's exasperation, all that was inside was yet another clue.

Paimon:Ugh!

Lumine:She doesn't love him at all. The passion rushing through the clear spring is just a front. When she's cold and alone, her true heart is revealed...

Kumagawa:[Perhaps poetry is also in the Alberich bloodline.]

Paimon:Hmph! Or being a pompous jerk...

Kumagawa:[Passiom rushing through the spring...Is there a settlement taht begins with Spring anywhere around? Somewhere with a waterfall?]

Paimon:Yeah, there's Springville.

Kumagawa:[Excellent.]

Moving according to the instruction Kumagawa and Lumine climbed the waterfall of Springville to find three Cryo monument close by. Lumine hummed in thought.

Lumine:Damn, the only Cryo user we know is Kaeya and he's still busy...

Kumagawa:[Not a problem.]

Around the place the temperature suddenly dropped, activating the four monuments. It was a little trick Kumagawa had made once before, using All Fiction to attain a temperature of absolute zero.

Although rather than activating something, back there he trapped a girl in an frozen pool. Kumagawa giggled, remembering how Saki rushed to save that poor girl back then.

As the monuments were activated an chest appeared in the middle of them. But this one was much mire better looking then the last one and contained a map.

Lumine:So, we have to get there...

Kumagawa:[I think this is enough running around for one day...]

As he said that they were suddenly in front of the entrace of the place they were looking for, even though they were in a completly different location not a moment ago. Seeing this, Lumine stared at Kumagawa with dead eyes.

Lumine:You could've done that...All this time?

Kumagawa:[Yep!]

Lumine:Why didn't you?

Kumagawa:[Maybe I just like having you in my arms?]

Lumine choose not to give a reply to that, instead turning around with rosed cheeks to burn the map, hoping he didn't see ger reaction. Behind her Kumagawa only grinned wider, like the smug bastard that he was.

Something began to move through Kumagawa's closed jacked. From the neck of the jacket Paimon, who sleept under his jacket all this time, rised.

Paimon:Hmm...Are we there yet?

Kumagawa:[Yeah, we found it.]