Not long after they left, another, somewhat short figure approached the area.
In his hand was the Staff of Homa, the legendary heirloom of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. Yet it should have been in Hu Tao's hands.
"Lavawalker..." Looking at the domain before him, the man wore a strange, inscrutable smile. "If we want to reverse death, it should be a great help to our research."
"Let me put it plainly: everyone in the Adventurers' Guild is useless! A legendary S-rank adventurer can't even retrieve some artifacts in a single day?"
With that, he walked slowly into the domain, only to find that it had already been emptied of everything.
"...A remnant of Pyro energy?" As he ventured deeper into the domain, he suddenly noticed traces left on the ground. "Interesting."
The moment he extended the Staff of Homa and touched the remnant with its tip, a familiar sensation pierced his mind.
"Wait, this feeling is...?" His eyes widened. "No, that's not right. That S-rank adventurer..."
Of course, neither of the two knew what was happening there. With Ronava in tow, Tang Wang first returned to the Adventurers' Guild as fast as he could and handed over the Lavawalker Set required for the commission.
"Thank you for completing today's commission. Here's your reward!"
Nevertheless, in accordance with Katheryne's programming, she said the usual line-because Tang Wang had completed today's commission.
"Maybe I should have Marionette optimize this Katheryne when I get back," Tang Wang couldn't help grumbling.
"How interesting. Have humans always been accustomed to taking orders from something so lifeless?" Ronava offered her own opinion.
"Uh, I don't know how to answer that." Tang Wang shrugged. "Katheryne is the Adventurers' Guild's receptionist, but that's all."
"All right, it seems I was mistaken." And so the subject was dropped. "So, human, what exactly is this job you said would suit me better?"
As someone who had worked for thousands of years, Ronava actually had rather mixed feelings about work. In all honesty, after everything she had experienced in Snezhnaya, she hated work-or at least, she hated working for Celestia.
But she had worked for so long that the habit had become a kind of instinct. If she really had nothing to do, Ronava would feel lost instead.
"It's a job guiding people between life and death. Given its nature, it should suit you well."
"Oh," she replied indifferently. "When do I start? How much work will I have to do? Will the boss scold me for something I've done?"
"You'll have to discuss that with the boss in person." Tang Wang seemed to recall something. "But you should know her."
"Know... her?" Ronava had no idea what to make of his abrupt remark, but she would soon understand what Tang Wang meant.
Before that, however, Tang Wang had someone else to come clean to:
"Mr. Tian Tie Zui, have you seen Mr. Zhongli?" Tang Wang asked the storyteller at Third-Round Knockout.
"Zhongli? He's just taken a fancy to some exotic antique again. If you're looking for him, you'd best wait for him to come back."
"You're so sure he'll come back?"
"He hasn't paid his bill yet."
"Oh, fair enough."
After their brief exchange, Tian Tie Zui's gaze drifted toward Ronava, who was dressed in casual clothes.
The Ruler of Death's long hair still fell loose over her shoulders and neck. She wore a pink-and-white blouse with distinctly Fontaine styling, and a pair of teal-and-white shorts.
When Tian Tie Zui looked into her eyes, he suddenly felt an indescribable... pressure? But the feeling vanished in an instant, leaving him unable to describe what he had experienced.
"This young lady doesn't look familiar," Tian Tie Zui said, looking away with a lingering sense of unease. "Is she also like that, what's her name, Li, Li..."
"Linaya?"
"Yes, yes! Is she also a member of another country's Adventurers' Guild, like Linaya?"
Just then, a brown-clad figure walked slowly around a distant street corner. Zhongli carried a bronze-colored carriage in his hands. On his way back to the tea stall, he too caught sight of the white-haired figure.
"Such surging Pyro energy. Could that be a god?"
"Given that child's strength, it wouldn't be surprising for him to bring back a god."
As far as Zhongli knew, the Ruler of Death was still one of the Four Shades. So he would sooner have guessed that Taodu had happened to awaken on Wuwang Hill and been picked up by Tang Wang than consider the possibility that this was the Ruler of Death.
Not until he drew closer and reached the side of Third-Round Knockout did the sight of that long, silky white hair finally give him a bad feeling.
"It looks like the Geo... Zhongli is back." Ronava turned and met Zhongli's eyes.
"..." He froze on the spot.
"Ah, Mr. Zhongli, you're here!" Seeing Zhongli arrive, Tang Wang gave him a rather enigmatic smile. "I've already paid for your tea. So, if you have time, could we talk somewhere private?"
"I know a secluded place. Both of you, follow me." After a brief moment of astonishment, Zhongli immediately regained his usual composure.
Some time later, in the space known as the Serenitea Pot...
"I had originally assumed that the fluctuations on Wuwang Hill were some kind of remnant left by the Ruler of Death," Zhongli began, explaining himself to Tang Wang. "But I didn't expect the one who appeared to be..."
As his words trailed off, his eyes awkwardly met Ronava's.
"All right, Zhongli, I'm done pretending." Watching the two stare at each other, Tang Wang broke the deadlock in the most blunt manner possible. "I'm actually a transmigrator. Like Alice, I came from beyond this world."
"I know about most of the things that happen in Teyvat-and I mean the things that will happen in the future."
"What do you mean by that?" Zhongli's expression remained calm.
"First, I know you're planning to fake your death at the Rite of Parting so you can hand the Gnosis over to the Tsaritsa."
"I know exactly what consequences the Electro Archon's Sakoku Decree and Vision Hunt Decree will bring."
"I know Mondstadt has recently been under attack by Dvalin, the Dragon of the East. I also know Venti is the Anemo Archon and that he has deep ties to Istaroth, the Ruler of Time."
"Oh, right, I also know you're trying to save Zibai. All I can say is, don't rush. Let me finish the Nod-Krai storyline and turn the Moon Goddess into a teammate first..."
At first, the well-traveled Zhongli and Ronava, who had lived through it all, managed to keep their expressions under control.
But as his account grew more detailed, they gradually lost their composure.
"...So, Ronava has now lost the Authority of Death, along with most of the power that originally belonged to her." After going on at length about the main storyline, Tang Wang suddenly made a cosmic U-turn.
"She said she wanted a job, and I think the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor would be a good fit for her. What do you think..."
"Oh? Ah," Zhongli responded, as though waking from a dream. "The Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. Yes, that would indeed be quite suitable."
"That can be easily arranged. I'll speak to the director tomorrow. With the Ruler of Death's status and abilities, she can naturally join without difficulty."
"Just call me Ronava," said Ronava, who had been silent for a long time. "I'm no longer the Ruler of Death."
"Whether in power or memory, I no longer fit the definition of the so-called Ruler of Death..."
Her experience in the domain seemed to have dealt her a tremendous mental blow. Anyone could hear the loneliness and bitterness in her voice.
In a sense, the present Ronava was more like an oversized Paimon... Though in terms of combat strength alone, she was probably still a little stronger than Paimon.