"All right, Ronava, that's it for today's work." After a full afternoon of work, moonlight and lamplight had finally spread across Liyue Harbor.
Outside the front entrance of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, Hu Tao smiled and waved goodbye to Ronava.
"Consultant Zhongli has already sent someone to have your uniform tailored. It should arrive in a few days. Then you'll be an official employee of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor!"
"Oh, right, if you need a place to stay, the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor can provide one too," Hu Tao added before leaving.
"There's no need for that." Ronava shook her head emphatically.
"All right, then I won't keep you." With that, she returned to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
After turning around and looking at the bustling, brightly lit streets before her, Ronava suddenly realized she had a serious problem: she apparently had no idea how to get to the place where she and Tang Wang lived.
Powerful as the ability Shrinking the Ground to an Inch was, its biggest problem was that anyone who followed along could easily fail to remember the way entirely.
"Hmm... Should I stay at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor and wait for him to come get me?" Looking at the bustling streets and alleys, Ronava began to hesitate.
Although she had observed how human society functioned, this was her first time being a part of it herself. As a result, she was no different from an older child who had grown up shut away in a grand residence and suddenly ventured out alone.
Watching the vendors calling out in the distance, she was overcome by an unfamiliar sense of novelty. Before this, no matter how much Ronava had done as she pleased, she had only been dancing in shackles.
Now those shackles were gone, and an inexplicable impulse spurred her to set off on foot, into the bustle of mortal life.
On either side of her, Liyue Harbor's distinctive buildings stood in close rows, with vendors' stalls set up in front of them.
The aroma of food filled her nose. Seeing the glistening fried skewers, grilled fish crisp on the outside and tender within, and bowls of glossy noodles, she finally couldn't resist approaching one of the stalls.
Looking at the food, she instinctively wanted to reach for it, but fortunately, reason held her back.
After spending some time watching how the other customers spoke, Ronava finally ventured in a hesitant voice:
"E-excuse me, could I have a skewer... of grilled meat?"
"Coming right up!" the middle-aged woman in an apron called out cheerfully. "That'll be two hundred Mora."
"Um, could you put it on... his... tab?" Remembering what Tang Wang had told her earlier, Ronava hesitated as she spoke.
"Whose tab? The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's?" The stall owner was evidently well accustomed to this sort of situation, so she asked Ronava directly.
"No..." She shook her head slightly. "Tang Wang's."
"Oh, sure." The owner nodded and promptly handed her the skewer.
This surprised Ronava. She didn't understand why the owner didn't even want to check whether she was lying-in her rough understanding, shouldn't something like this "contract" be verified first?
"Oh, miss, you probably do know him, don't you?" Seeing Ronava's expression, the owner immediately guessed a great deal. "Don't mind me. Tang Wang is one of the kindest people around here."
"Some of the neighborhood children have strict parents and never get any pocket money of their own. When they're craving a snack, they often use Tang Wang's name to buy a little something here on credit."
"He's never stopped them. Whenever we give him the bill, he pays it without fail. After a while, word naturally got around."
"I see." Ronava nodded.
She felt that her understanding of her new master was still too one-sided. Compared to her, he seemed closer to what the world considered a "good person."
And so she spent some more time wandering the streets, collecting a number of wooden skewers laden with snacks. Her lips and cheeks were smeared with grease from the food as well.
"Ronava!" Just as she left the street and walked to the somewhat dark edge of the harbor, that familiar voice finally rang out again. "So this is where you are."
"Mm." She nodded, biting into a fish ball.
"So you like this kind of food?" Tang Wang looked thoughtful. "Then I could consider stocking up on some when we get back..."
"Mm." She shook her head this time. After finally swallowing the fish ball, Ronava spoke in a slightly hoarse voice:
"I just wanted to see what they tasted like... cough, cough..."
Seeing this, Tang Wang handed her a bottle of a local Liyue drink.
"Fried food like this is pretty 'dry.' It's best to have something to drink with it."
"Okay." Holding the drink in her right hand and the bundle of bamboo skewers in her left, Ronava nodded slightly.
"Also," he said, pointing to a nearby trash can, "if you think something is no longer useful and you won't need it again-like those bamboo skewers in your hand-you can throw it straight into a trash can."
"Into a can like this?" she asked curiously.
"Yes. These cans are usually quite distinctive in design, and they have a picture on them..." For some reason, Tang Wang now felt like a preschool teacher.
Of course, he wasn't a preschool teacher, and Ronava wasn't really a child. She had simply never lived in human society, so she lacked a little too much common sense about daily life.
"Ronava, Hu Tao should have shown you the general routine at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor today, right? How did it feel working there?" Tang Wang asked her on their way back to Bai Ju Inn.
"It was all right." She nodded. "Director Hu was very kind to me, and I think the work might be very meaningful too."
"Tang Wang, when I can fully understand the meaning of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's work, will I understand what the weight of life means?"
"Mm, yes, that's right." He smiled. "It's a gradual process, so there's no need to rush."
"But before that, Ronava, I need to make a trip to Mondstadt."
"To Mondstadt? What for?" Her gaze suddenly grew tense. "Are you going to leave me behind?"
"No, no, no, I'm asking what you think." Tang Wang hurriedly waved his hands. "If you don't want to go, you can stay here."
"I said I'd be your traveling companion." She gave a soft huff, her attitude resolute.
"All right, then I suppose we'll have to tell Director Hu first thing tomorrow morning," he sighed.
"Our reason for going to Mondstadt is simple: to deal with the disaster caused by Stormterror."
"Did Linaya ask you to go?" she pressed.
"Huh? How did you know?" Tang Wang asked in mild shock.
"Hmph..." She huffed and said no more, leaving Tang Wang completely baffled.