"I know a place with incredibly good food, called Good Hunter!"
Amber can barely hear Lumine ask, "Good Hunter?" as Paimon squeaks out, "Incredibly good!?"
"Yep, it's a little open-air restaurant that sources fresh-ingredients grown and hunted locally in Monstadt. They make a filling Satisying Salad, and their Sticky Honey Roast is fantastic, all juicy meat in a sweet, caramelized glaze..."
"Ooh! Ooh! Paimon wants that, that sounds good! Definitely a big change over the fish skewers, no offense Lumine."
None taken."
"Now come on, let's go, too Good Hunter!"
With an exclamation, the fae girl immediately zooms away towards the castle-like city. Seeing this, Amber dashes immediately, hoping to catch up with the small creature. Lumine, for her part, is left to cling to the base of Amber's ribbon, her strong arms easily keeping her held steady as the Outrider navigates the dirt road leading into the city.
"Paimon! Slow down! You don't even know where Good Hunter is!" Amber personally fearing Paimon might have gotten too far ahead to hear her. Thankfully, this thought was proven wrong, as Paimon slowed down, tapping her chin until she went, "Oh, you're right. Sorry about that."
"It's no problem, but I would recommend you refrain from randomly flying away as fast as you can anymore. After all, your companion depends on you for help. It could get really bad if you just abandoned her somewhere to fend for herself."
"Lumine could handle herself just fine on her own for a little bit... But you are right. I'm sorry Amber, especially after making you run so fast."
"Oh that light jog? That was nothing. As an Outrider, I'm used to running around just about anywhere."
"Really?"
"Yep."
Lumine gets curious, so she asks, "Amber,exactly what are your duties as an Outrider?"
"I'll tell you in a moment, but first..." Lumine and Paimon were too caught up in their conversation to notice that the group had arrived at Mondstadt's front gate. As the trio approach, two guardsmen walk forward from their position by the entrance.
The two guards give a curt bow, then straighten out as the blonde haired Knight addresses the group, "Welcome to Mondstadt, strange yet respectable traveler, and to you as well, Outrider Amber."
Amber returns the bow with a salute, not wanting to drop Lumine from atop her head, before returning the address, "Greetings, Knight Swan and Knight Lawrence. I hope your days have been fair."
Lumine and Paimon wait for a few minutes as Amber exchanges pleasantries with the two knights, explaining their situation to the knights. Eventually, all matters are settled and the trio are clear to continue on. As they walk, Lumine spots a woman at an outdoor counter, dressed in a white and green uniform as she politely stares forward, unblinking. Thinking this odd, she decides to ask her current transport for details.
"Um, Amber?"
"Hm?"
"Who's the woman at that counter over there?"
"Oh, that's Katherine, the Adventurers Guild receptionist."
"What's the Adventurers Guild?"
"The Adventurers Guild is a network of travelers and explorers who search around and expand knowledge of Teyvat for everyone. I'll admit, I don't know a lot about everything they do, but I do know that they primarily operate by sending adventurers out on commissions posted by locals in their jurisdiction, paying a certain percentage of the commission fee to the ones who complete the required tasks."
"Ooh, they pay you to go travel and do quests? Lumine, we could make a load of mora working with them by doing what we already do!" Paimon begins giggling at the thought, momentarily distracted from her hunger.
"Well, I'm not sure if you'll be a huge success. There's an adventurer I know named Fischl who's very well off, but I'm not sure if it's from working at the Guild or if it was mora she already had. She does claim to be a Princess, after all. There's also Benny, but that poor guy has some... rotten luck, to put it lightly."
Lumine ponders this knowledge for a moment, before asking the biggest question on her mind, "You said that the Adventurers Guild had connections all over, right?"
" Yep, they have branches in every continent, with many travelers at each location."
"So, theoretically, they would have resources and knowledge about every place we go to, and potentially what people are in certain areas?"
"Well yes, most likely but... Oh, wait! Do you want to use the Guild to help you find your brother?"
"From the sounds of it, they have everything I need to find him. Plus, it can help fund us and our journey."
"That's pretty logical. Do you want me to help you get registered with them?"
"I'd really appreciate it."
"Then it shall be done, Traveler."
As the group heads towards Katherine, a sudden rumble from Paimon's stomach reminds the fairy of their initial goal, "Wait, before we register, Paimon thought we were gonna go eat!"
"Oh, you're right! Lumine, what should we do?"
The Traveler takes a only a moment to decide, "Paimon, you go ahead and order a meal for all of us, since I doubt you'd miss a restaurant, while Amber and I get the registrations done."
"Sounds good to Paimon!" she begins to float away before pausing and turning back slowly, a scowl on her face, "Was that an insult in that sentence?"
"It was no more than a compliment to your reliability, my dear friend!"
Paimon takes a moment longer to stare, before finally huffing and flying towards Good Hunter. Amber, for her part, is amused by the cute interactions the two smaller girls keep having. However, spending all day amused wasn't in the cards, she and her small friend have business to attend to after all. Approaching Katherine,the duo recieve the paperwork they need, and take roughly twenty minutes to complete it all before turning it in. In moments of reading through it all, Katherine awards Lumine with official Adventurers Guild licenses for herself and Paimon. Proud of their accomplishment, they proceed to head off for the restaurant.
Amber's long legs get them to Good Hunter in moments, leaving them astounded by the sight before them. They arrive just as the last plate is placed on the table, not that one could see the top of it, as covered in dishes as it was. Mondstadt Hashbrowns, Satisfying Salad, Teyvat Fried Eggs, and many more dishes were strewn about. And sitting happily at the head of the smorgasbord is none other than the bottomless pit herself, her pupils glittered with joyous stars.
Noticing her compatriots, Paimon waves them over, "Lumine, Amber, good timing! The food just got finished, Paimon ordered so much!"
"I can see that Paimon. Why did you order so much?" Lumine leaps from atop Amber's head and onto the covered table.
Paimon pauses her first forkful of Hashbrowns to reply, "Well, like Paimon said, Paimon was sick of fish and berries, and the menu had so much good food, Paimon couldn't just get one dish."
"And did you make sure we could afford all of it?"
In the span of Lumine asking, Paimon had already stuffed her face, so a few moments of chewing were needed before responses could be made, "Of course, barely dented our purse...mmm... but if Lumine's worried, mmm, may Paimon ask how things *gulp* went with the Guild?"
Lumine delivers the good news as Amber takes a seat and begins slowly eating a Cold Cut Platter. After, she explains her job and duties to the guests of Mondstadt. She also explains about Wind Gliders, handy devices she utilizes frequently to glide to far off locations she also presents Lumine with one towards the end of the feast, or she would as she explains she doesn't have one built for Lumine's size. The Traveler sets her at ease though as she de-materializes the glider, then re-manifests it upon her back at her size.
As Lumine hops off the table to test the glider, a tremendous breeze yanks her upwards. A massive, blood curdling roar rips through the skies as Stormterror flies in the clouds over Mondstadt, errant Anemo energy swirling about it's scaley frame. Lumine begins to follow the beast through open air, her hand extended as she feels a divine strength flow through her. In a matter of minutes, Stormterror is repelled from Mondstadt City. As it leaves, all the Anemo it summoned is unleashed outwards, damaging property all over the town. For the miniscule Lumine, this is of course, a problem, as she loses control of her flight path.
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