“Hey, don’t bother with all this ‘prep time.’”
Childe cracked his knuckles and sidled up to Gu Sanqiu, lowering his voice.
“If everyone has to psyche themselves up before a mission, doesn’t that mean they’re all just a bunch of kids at heart?”
Gu Sanqiu gave him a look.
“Get serious. It’s not just you and the Knights here—there are adventurers and Vision-wielders from all over. You can’t expect them all to be in combat mode on a dime. That’s just not realistic.”
“Oh yeah? And what about you?”
“Me?”
Gu Sanqiu thought back to the time he’d faced the Yaksha’s fierce malice, bearing down on him like a tidal wave. After getting through that, his tolerance for high-pressure situations had only gone up. These domains wouldn’t likely have anything remotely close to that right at the start.
The group followed Albedo into the depths of the domain, all instinctively gripping their weapons. Gu Sanqiu’s gaze drifted over to the red-bladed sword in Bennett’s hand—apparently, it had a hidden compartment for emergency supplies. A fitting choice for someone like Bennett, who probably needed it more than anyone.
The atmosphere inside was undeniably intriguing.
Albedo moved ahead, raising a shield, while two Solar Isotomas hovered before him, casting faint lights that likely helped with calculations.
Gu Sanqiu clenched his fists, sensing the flow of elemental energy within himself. His brow furrowed.
If he was right…
“Everyone.”
Albedo’s voice cut through the quiet. “Stay alert. It seems that most of the water element in this domain has dissipated—either evaporated or displaced by concentrated wind energy.”
“Usually, using elemental energy in a domain like this would feel restricted, but according to the data I’ve gathered, that’s not the case here.”
“Though it may sound beneficial that elemental energy flows easily, it also means there’s a higher possibility of encountering unknown phenomena within the domain. We should expect unpredictable elemental reactions—some of which could be quite dangerous.”
Elemental reactions… On a small scale, that could mean accidentally popping a Wind Slime and getting blown back, but on a larger scale, it could be something as massive as the stormy wind barrier around Stormterror’s Lair.
“Huh, so we’re starting off with a warning like that, huh?”
Kaeya chuckled. “Good thing we prepared to counter water accumulation, but it seems that won’t be necessary.”
“Actually, I’ve got a question.”
Gu Sanqiu glanced at Albedo. “Any way we can measure the strength of the wind element in the path ahead?”
“Difficult,” Albedo said. “Considering everyone’s safety, we haven’t conducted a full investigation. Relying on our current data to predict unknowns wouldn’t be ideal.”
Jean turned to Gu Sanqiu. “Do you have something in mind?”
“I was thinking… If these wind element anomalies stem from the ley lines, there’s a chance they’re carrying some of the ley line’s properties.”
“If the wind is strong enough, might it have distorted the mapped paths of the ruins? Or affected the layout in some way?”
“If the wind and ley line powers are combining, then the domain could be changing.”
Everyone looked at Gu Sanqiu with puzzled expressions, clearly startled by the sudden suggestion.
In domains, many pathways relied on mechanisms to reach the next point, and sometimes adventurers even had to perform acrobatic feats. It was impossible to say what kind of architecture lay hidden underground, and if his speculation was correct…
“Hey, don’t scare us like that.”
Kaeya blinked. “Since you brought it up, you must have a solution in mind?”
“You should have more than one map, right? Split into small groups, following your usual combat arrangements, and each group takes a copy of the map.”
“We split up. As we follow the mapped routes, each group sketches any changes they notice on the reverse side. Set a meet-up time for an hour from now, and we can compare everyone’s findings here.”
Gu Sanqiu cast a discreet glance at Bennett and Klee.
“Also, if you come across any strange mechanisms, don’t touch them. It could mess up the data we’re trying to gather.”
With Klee’s tendency to press anything interesting and Bennett’s streak of bad luck, they needed to be watched carefully.
“Based on what you’ve detected, the monsters here only seem to have enhancements related to wind elements. So as long as each group is cautious and avoids engaging too many at once, there shouldn’t be much danger.”
“That being said, splitting up and mapping seems to be the best approach to uncover more information right now.”
“Agreed.”
Diluc nodded. “We don’t know the layout ahead, and while splitting up raises risks, it also speeds up our information gathering and lessens the chance of getting wiped out in a single ambush.”
“Hey, is now really the time to talk about getting wiped out?”
Kaeya raised a brow at his brother. “Maybe we could also keep a few people back here to guard this spot as a base. They can track the directions we all take.”
“Good idea. A rare bit of sound advice from you.”
…
(╬￣皿￣)
Behold, the sibling dynamic of Mondstadt’s finest.
Jean sighed, stepping in before the two could escalate. “Ahem. Mr. Gu’s suggestion sounds very reasonable. Shall we proceed with it?”
“I’m fine with it.”
Childe leaned back, hands behind his head. “You guys call the shots. We’re just here on business, so we’ll follow orders.”
After everyone confirmed their agreement, Jean began organizing the groups.
Albedo, Gu Sanqiu, and Childe were each assigned to work solo, given their combat prowess and mobility, which meant they could cover more ground and gather more data for comparison.
As for Klee… Gu Sanqiu wasn’t interested in tempting fate by allowing her anywhere near high-yield explosives. Luckily, their ever-prudent acting Grand Master seemed to agree.
Jean, Kaeya, Amber, and Eula each led a team, while Sucrose, Barbara, Lisa, and Diluc stayed back to manage the base.
Originally, Bennett had also been placed with the base team, but he passionately insisted that his bad luck would cause fewer problems if he joined Kaeya’s team instead.
However, when Jean assigned Bennett to her “most trusted ally,” Kaeya’s complexion seemed to darken a bit.
“Mr. Diluc, the people staying here have less combat experience, so we’re relying on you to keep the base safe.”
“Go on, then.”
Diluc crossed his arms and barely looked Jean’s way.
Still, given his temperament, the base was as safe as it could be as long as he was around.
“I-I want to go too!”
Barbara mustered her courage and looked to Jean. “Acting Grand Master, I wield a Hydro Vision—I can help heal any injuries!”
Gu Sanqiu suddenly spoke up. “If anything goes wrong, everyone needs a safe point to fall back to. A healer will be more effective here at the base.”
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