Wei Zhenzu's Dream

Jean straightened her back anxiously, her hands tightening slightly on the desk. "Were any civilians hurt or killed? Were the defenses breached?"

"Nothing serious. We discovered it in time."

Diluc shook his head.

"On the stone bridge outside the city gates, we found that the boy who's always feeding the pigeons, Timmie, had undergone some changes. He was huddled in a corner, muttering nonsense about pigeons pulling out coins and knocking the Traveler out of a confused state with a flap of their wings."

Diluc paused, seemingly weighing his words.

"The trickiest part was the pigeons around him. Their feathers had turned into metal gears, and they'd grown many red eyes. They flew through the sky, constantly giving off malice. Timmie is currently being contained in the Cathedral of Favonius's basement, under the care of Barbara and the sisters."

Hearing this, Wei Zhenzu paused slightly in the middle of drinking his tea. The corners of his eyes twitched uncontrollably several times.

"Ahem, ahem." He coughed twice, feeling guilty.

"In any case, the Stormterror crisis is over, and the Abyss Order's plot has been foiled."

Varka stood up and walked over to Wei Zhenzu, bringing his heavy palm down hard on his shoulder.

"Ow-oh!" Wei Zhenzu hissed in pain, nearly throwing the teacup in his hand.

"Sorry, sorry, I didn't control my strength." Varka withdrew his hand without a trace of sincerity, his gaze full of admiration.

"It's all thanks to our brother Liangzi here! I propose that, in recognition of Wei Zhenzu's outstanding contribution, we officially grant him the title of Honorary Knight of the Knights of Favonius!"

Jean stood up, placed her right hand over her chest, and nodded solemnly in agreement.

Kaeya leaned back in his chair, a teasing smile on his lips, and gave a light round of applause.

Wei Zhenzu's hand froze completely in midair, still holding his teacup.

He silently rolled his eyes in his heart.

After all that, I still couldn't escape this title.

I thought I was just a City wage earner passing through, but somehow the Traveler's exclusive title landed squarely on my head.

Now I'm completely tied to the Knights of Favonius.

"Yay! Honorary Knight!" Paimon spun happily in the air, clapping her little hands vigorously, her eyes shining.

"It sounds so impressive! Does this mean we can get discounts when we buy things in the City of Mondstadt from now on?"

The meeting ended in a relatively relaxed atmosphere.

Since Wei Zhenzu didn't yet have a proper place to rest in Mondstadt, Jean thoughtfully arranged a single dorm room for him inside the Knights' headquarters and told him to get some proper rest.

After spending another day wandering the streets with Paimon and buying some necessities, he returned to the room that evening.

Wei Zhenzu pushed open the dormitory's wooden door and looked around.

Although the room wasn't large, it had everything he needed.

By the window stood a soft single bed made up with snow-white sheets, with a solid wood desk beside it. There was even a small open kitchen in the corner, equipped with basic cooking utensils.

Moonlight spilled onto the floor through the half-open window, and the breeze carried the scent of flowers.

"Phew... we finally have a place to stay!"

Paimon cheered and flew straight at the desk.

She was still holding a roasted chicken leg.

The little one sprawled comfortably on the desktop, her short legs swinging contentedly in the air as she tucked into the chicken leg, grease coating her mouth.

Wei Zhenzu took off his coat, which was covered in dust and reeked of blood, and casually hung it on the coat rack behind the door.

He walked over to the bed and fell back onto the soft mattress. Looking out at the peaceful streets of Mondstadt and listening to the distant turning of the windmills, he stretched luxuriously.

His bones cracked a few times, and his taut nerves finally relaxed for a moment.

"The Knights' dorms really are nice. Even the mattress is this soft. But..."

Wei Zhenzu pillowed his head on his hands and looked at the ceiling.

"No matter how nice this borrowed place is, it isn't my own home. My dream isn't to wield a sword and hack at monsters every day. It's to open a restaurant that belongs entirely to me."

At the word "restaurant," Paimon's ears immediately perked up.

She stopped gnawing on the chicken leg, hastily wiped the grease from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand, and flew in front of Wei Zhenzu, her eyes shining.

"Oh? Open a restaurant? Then why don't we just rent a spacious storefront in Mondstadt?" Paimon rubbed her little hands together excitedly, her little abacus clicking away.

"You can make all kinds of delicious food in the kitchen, and I'll eat out front. Hehe! It's the most perfect plan in the world!"

"Pfft." Wei Zhenzu laughed in exasperation. He raised his hand and unceremoniously curled a finger to give Paimon a light flick on her smooth forehead.

"Ow!" Paimon clutched her forehead and puffed out her cheeks in grievance.

"Look at you. All you ever think about is food." Wei Zhenzu couldn't help laughing as he scolded her, looking at how cute she was guarding her food.

"The scenery in Mondstadt is nice, but you can't even find a decent selection of seasonings. It's grilled steak or cheese pizza every day. It really is a Western culinary wasteland. If I opened a restaurant here, I wouldn't be able to show what I can do, so forget it."

He leaned back against the soft pillow, looking through the window at the distant starry sky.

A look of longing for the future entered his eyes, and his tone grew gentler.

"If we're going anywhere, we're going to Liyue. We'll go back to that lively place and open a big restaurant decked out in lanterns and decorations." Wei Zhenzu laid out his vision of the future.

"Then I'll go to Wanmin Restaurant and challenge Xiangling to see whose stir-fried pork with Jueyun Chili is more authentic. Once we've earned enough heavy Mora, we'll buy a little house with a courtyard near Yujing Terrace. We'll fill the courtyard with Silk Flowers and put up a grape arbor."

"When we have time to spare, we'll go to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor and invite old Mr. Zhong over for tea, and listen to him talk about things from thousands of years ago. What a wonderful life that would be."

Paimon listened quietly, as though she could already see plate after plate of Liyue food, perfect in color, aroma, and flavor.

Crystal shrimp, poached black-back perch, Adeptus' Temptation... Her mouth was practically watering as she listened, and she nodded repeatedly in agreement, like a chick pecking at grain.

"That sounds amazing! A big house and all the delicious food we could ever eat."

Paimon raised a chubby little fist and declared with conviction,

"Then let's work hard toward our great little goal!"

No sooner had she finished shouting the slogan than a powerful wave of sleepiness swept over her.

The post-meal "food coma" arrived right on time.

Paimon gave a huge yawn and rubbed her eyes with both little hands, her voice turning soft and indistinct.

"I'm full... Traveler, I'm sleepy. I'm going to bed first..."

She flew unsteadily to Wei Zhenzu's pillow and found a soft spot to lie down. Her eyelids began to droop uncontrollably.

Wei Zhenzu turned his head and looked at the little one lying beside him, her breathing gradually growing even. A gentle smile curved his lips.

He reached out a finger and gently poked Paimon's soft cheek.

"Good night, my little guide."

Paimon sleepily rolled over, smacked her lips, and mumbled indistinctly in her sleep:

"Good night, big eater... wait, I think I'm a big eater too... oh well, whatever. Chicken legs are so tasty..."

With that, she sank fully into sweet dreams.

Once he was sure Paimon was fast asleep, Wei Zhenzu lay flat on the bed, closed his eyes, and slowly sank his consciousness into the depths of his mind.

It was completely safe around him now. He finally had the time and energy to take a good look at the three new functions he'd unlocked.