Is this statue you?

[Side quest in progress: Kill 100 Hilichurls (3/100). Must use Manifestation Art.]

Lumine planted her longsword against the ground and looked up in the direction the black spikes had come from.

The angel hovered in midair, idly flicking her right hand as the remnants of black energy between her fingers dissipated like smoke.

Lumine cupped her hands around her mouth and rose onto her tiptoes. "Hey! Gabrielina!"

The moment she called out, the angel before her vanished with a whoosh.

Lumine felt someone poking her right shoulder. She hurriedly turned around, but there was no one there.

"Where are you looking~?"

An amused voice suddenly came from her left.

Gabrielina tilted her head and peeked out from behind Lumine's shoulder, her long pink hair falling between them and a mischievous gleam dancing in her eyes.

She reached out and gently brushed away the dust the girl had picked up during the fight. "How was it? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine..." Lumine looked at Gabrielina and smiled.

Their earlier "chance encounter" had been too overwhelming for Lumine to get a proper look at her. Only now, with the two of them standing so close again, did she belatedly realize something.

Gabrielina was tall, at least half a head taller than her-and she was barefoot, too...

"Gabrielina, those black things just now-"

"Traveler!!"

They turned to see Paimon and Amber running down the slope toward them.

The girl in fiery red first checked the camp thoroughly before putting her bow away and giving Gabrielina a somewhat complicated look.

"Miss Gabrielina, your power... is incredible." As an Outrider, Amber was naturally capable, yet even she, who was known for her agility, hadn't been able to follow the angel's movements.

It seemed she had merely flicked her hand, and three black streaks had killed the monsters.

"Do you have a Vision, too?"

"A Vision?"

Seeing Gabrielina's puzzled expression, Amber turned to Lumine, only to find her looking back just as helplessly.

"It's this... this thing. Look." Amber pointed at the red gemstone at her waist. "Ordinary people generally need one of these to use the elements."

Gabrielina spread her hands. "Never seen one before."

Lumine shook her head as well, indicating that she had never seen one either. Left with no other option, Amber held her forehead and sighed.

"...Never mind. Let's head into the city first. We won't figure all this out right away."

"Wait!"

As everyone watched, Gabrielina rapidly teleported back and forth across the camp several times. When she reappeared, her arms were full of things.

They were all fragments of Hilichurl masks, along with some arrowheads that had fallen to the ground.

"Why are you picking those up?" Amber looked at Gabrielina in confusion, while the angel dumped everything into Lumine's hands.

"Amber, do you crave power?"

"?"

Gabrielina nodded firmly, motioning for Lumine to put the items away. "If you crave power, they'll definitely come in handy."

Although Amber had heard every word without understanding a thing, she still led the others down the road toward Mondstadt.

Before long, they arrived at a stone bridge.

They could see clear across the broad bridge. A little boy leaned against its edge, and aside from him, it was covered in delicious... ahem, adorable pigeons!

So, time to camp Mondstadt's bridge!!

Before Gabrielina could begin her pigeon harvest, however, Amber stopped her with a distinctly warning look.

And so, the outlander's first attempt at bridge camping ended in failure.

"...Gabrielina, you said you weren't hungry!" Paimon said angrily, leaving Gabrielina utterly baffled.

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"W-weren't you just about to kill those pigeons, then roast and eat them??"

Once again, Gabrielina was floored by Paimon's peculiar train of thought. She weakly gave her a thumbs-up.

I've got nothing.

Is she really an Archon or the Heavenly Principles? How can she possibly be this adorable!?

After crossing the long stone bridge, they finally reached Mondstadt's gates.

"Travelers from... foreign lands! Allow me to formally introduce you." Amber glanced at Gabrielina, whether deliberately or not, then continued.

"Welcome to the pastoral city of wind and dandelions, the city of freedom. Welcome to Mondstadt!"

"Wow..." Lumine gazed up at the towering city walls, her lips parting slightly.

"Finally, no more sleeping out in the open!"

As they stood there, two knights had already spotted them from a distance and offered proper knightly salutes.

"Miss Amber!"

"Miss Amber, have you finished your assig... assign..."

Both knights stammered, unable to finish their words as they stared wide-eyed at Gabrielina beside Lumine.

Clang-

One of them even dropped his weapon.

"Anemo..."

"Relax. They're all travelers from elsewhere."

Amber spoke calmly. The two knights exchanged a glance, and after looking over the angel once more, they seemed to regain a little composure.

"M-Miss Amber, are you sure?"

"Yes. They're guests from foreign lands."

Only after a brief silence did the two guards step aside, under Lumine's and Paimon's puzzled gazes.

With Amber leading them, they finally entered the city. Gabrielina even saluted the guards, immediately earning an expression scarcely better than a grimace.

"...Amber, why is everyone reacting so strongly?" Lumine leaned closer to Amber and asked quietly.

Ever since they had approached Mondstadt, the people around them had more or less stopped what they were doing.

Blacksmiths, merchants, knights-everyone looked at Gabrielina, yet no one spoke.

Gabrielina herself, however, seemed entirely unbothered by being the focus of all those stares. She merely swayed her head slightly, the two tufts of feathers by her ears bobbing gently with the motion.

"...We're heading to the highest point in Mondstadt now. Once we get there... you'll understand."

Lumine and Paimon exchanged a look, then continued uphill with the utterly unconcerned Gabrielina.

The city was even more beautiful inside than it appeared from outside, but they noticed that beyond their surprise, the residents didn't seem to be in very good spirits.

Everyone looked exhausted and a little anxious.

"Everyone seems to be having a rough time..."

"Ah... it's because of Stormterror. A lot of trade routes have closed recently, and hardly anyone from outside comes here anymore."

The steps slowly fell away beneath their feet as a gray silhouette gradually rose above the horizon.

As she led the way, Amber said, "It isn't just the people in the city. Everyone in the Knights has been really tired lately, too..."

For once, the ever-energetic girl's voice sank briefly, but she soon smiled again. "All right, take a look!"

She stepped aside and spread her arms. "This is the Anemo God Plaza, and-" Her voice suddenly turned solemn. "The statue of Lord Barbatos, the Anemo Archon!"

(A brief silence)

"Why are you all staring at me?"

Gabrielina folded her arms, growing uncomfortable under Lumine's and Paimon's gazes.

Paimon scratched her head, her eyes darting between the statue and the angel.

Suddenly, she flew forward and covered the halo above Gabrielina's head with her little hands, immediately seeing the light.

"Oh! This statue is you!"

"Huh!?"

"..."