Gu Sanqiu looked Mona up and down, wondering how someone could brave the winter in such high-slit tights.
Is she not cold because of her constitution, or is it just that she can’t afford warmer clothes?
Wait. Most likely the latter.
“Why are you staring at me like that?”
Mona’s face flushed as Gu Sanqiu’s unrestrained gaze swept over her from head to toe. The scrutiny made her feel strangely self-conscious.
“Oh, nothing. What was it you wanted to tell me again?”
He opened the door. “Want to come in and sit for a bit?”
“I’m not stepping inside your house.”
Mona shook her head and cast a wary glance toward the Incense Chamber.
“The energy in there interferes with my understanding of fate. Let’s go somewhere else.”
“Sure, the outdoors or maybe a teahouse?”
“Could… could it be a restaurant?”
Her face turned red again as she clasped her hands together and shifted uneasily. “I haven’t had dinner yet.”
…
This is almost suffocating. No, wait—this was completely expected.
“Alright, Wanmin Restaurant then. I was just there earlier.”
“Well, well, Gu kid. Back for seconds, are we?” Chef Mao greeted him with a knowing grin before glancing at Mona. “And who’s this? Your girlfriend?”
“No, just a fellow traveler.”
Sort of. She’s got some solid skills outside of elemental powers, so that counts.
“Order whatever you want. My treat.”
“Thank you.”
Mona took a deep breath before her eyes lit up, and she began ordering with a fervor that suggested she wanted to reclaim every lost calorie.
“That’s a lot of food. Can you even finish it all?” Gu Sanqiu asked, eyeing the table laden with dishes. “Just so you know, if you can’t finish it, we’re packing it up.”
“As if! Are you underestimating me?”
She spoke between bites. “Not only will I finish everything, but I can also use a special spell to store the calories in my body. That way, if I ever run out of money for food, I can burn the stored energy later.”
What in the world… Did she just unlock a shounen manga ability?
Gu Sanqiu twitched. “Alright then, how much can you store?”
Mona hesitated and shook her head sheepishly. “I don’t know. Ever since I developed this spell, the most I’ve managed is storing energy from apple and sunsettia orchards in the wild.”
“So, in other words, your finances have never allowed you to test the limits of this technique?”
“Pretty much.”
…
“Can you teach me that spell? I might be able to help you test its capacity.”
Mona gave him a puzzled look. “Why would you need a spell for poor people? It’s useless for someone like you.”
“If I can store energy, I won’t have to worry about running out during a fight.”
If he’d known this spell, maybe he wouldn’t have had to rely on Xiao carrying him to the Jade Chamber last time.
“Here.”
Mona tossed a scroll to him. “Everything’s in there, including some of my personal insights and experiences.”
“Thanks. Now that you’ve had some food, how about telling me why you’re here tonight?”
“Oh, right! I almost forgot. Wanmin’s food is just too good.”
Mona straightened up, her expression turning serious. “Your fate has reached a critical crossroads…”
“Hold it.” Gu Sanqiu raised a hand. “Could you translate that into normal speech? This whole fortune-teller act makes my skin crawl.”
“Fine. To simplify, your fate has diverged into two entirely different paths. That’s about it.”
Mona continued, “Normally, fate resembles countless small, intricate streams, so complex they seem endless.”
“But yours is different. Your fate has converged most of these paths into two wide channels. Only by traversing them can your destiny return to its usual form.”
“And by ‘usual form,’ you mean what, exactly?”
“A complex web of small streams,” Mona replied.
Gu Sanqiu nodded. “Got it.”
“So, what happens if I don’t choose either of those two paths? Can I take an alternative route?”
“You can’t.”
“No matter what you choose, the end result is the same—those paths will merge into the two main channels before progressing further.”
Mona set her chopsticks down, her demeanor growing even more serious.
“I’ve never seen a fate trajectory like this before. That’s why I came to find you as soon as I noticed.”
“It’s strange, unique, and honestly… terrifying.”
She continued, “The more you observe fate, the more you develop a reverence for its intricate, unstable nature.”
“Your choices could carve out new branches in destiny or follow well-trodden paths, but you can’t escape the framework of fate itself.”
“Fate can be shaped by one’s actions, but every step you take is recorded by it. Yet in your case, your destiny has preemptively converged before you’ve made any major moves. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Sounds interesting. So, what do you want me to do about it?”
“Observing your fate will deepen my understanding of destiny. But as for what happens next, even I don’t know. Predicting the future is beyond me.”
Mona shrugged. “As thanks for letting me study your fate, I’m sharing this with you. But as for how you handle it, that’s up to you.”
“And do you know where these two paths lead?”
“Liyue and Inazuma.”
Gu Sanqiu paused, a flash of realization crossing his mind. “Ah. That makes sense now.”
“You figured it out?”
Mona blinked in surprise. “Isn’t Liyue’s fortune-telling notoriously difficult when it comes to predicting your own future? The same goes for astrologers.”
“True, but with a high enough price, it’s possible to step outside oneself and observe from the outside.”
Gu Sanqiu considered this. “Though the cost is pretty steep.”
“Alright, I don’t need the details.”
Mona raised her bowl of Wanmin’s signature Nine-Flavored Soup and downed it in one go.
“So, what will you choose?”
She hesitated before adding, “Actually, that’s none of my business. It’s your decision to make, and I shouldn’t interfere.”
“Fate, huh? I’ve already made up my mind.”
Gu Sanqiu smirked. “A situation this interesting… I’d be wasting the blood in my veins if I didn’t get involved.”
In short, Gu Sanqiu had decided to walk headfirst into chaos.
“Well, thanks for the meal. Be careful out there.”
Mona hesitated before speaking again. “One more thing. Lately, the entanglement and complexity of fate have been greater than at any other time I’ve seen. I can’t say what you’ll encounter.”
“The moment you make your choice, fate will shift again. Those two broad paths will merge into one, and the road ahead—marked as ‘the future’—will grow even more intricate.”
“The information I can discern is limited, but I can give you eight words to guide you: Great fortune and prosperity, grave danger and peril.“
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