Paimon said, "There are only three locations on Uncle Wagner's map. Does that mean he only knows about those three mining spots? This time we have enough ores, but what about the next time we need to upgrade our weapons?"
"No idea. I guess we'll have to ask the adventurers. They're out there fighting monsters and leveling up every day, so they probably know a few mining spots too."
At that moment, he really missed Ningguang—specifically her passive skill that reveals ore locations on the map.
Yes, he was just missing her passive skill, definitely not the gentle affection of that rich elder sister.
Of course, if that rich elder sister were willing to comfort him a little, that wouldn't be so bad either.
"Traveler, look! There's someone over there."
The wind howled across the hills, sunlight glistened off the flowing river against the green mountains. They spotted a man in glasses with an artistic air standing under a tree, doing something unclear.
"A quest?" Zephyr walked over.
"Ah—don't come over, don't come over!"
"Oh, you're an adventurer? renjia thought you were a Hilichurl," the man said.
Lumine's expression froze. "Did he just say… 'renjia'?"
Aren't you a guy?
The young artistic man adjusted his glasses and spoke in a soft, delicate tone, "What's the matter? Are you confused by the way renjia talks?"
"N-no, not at all!"
His manner of speaking sent chills down the spines of everyone present.
Paimon asked, "What's your name? What are you doing out here all by yourself?"
Renjia's name is Jack~"
Zephyr's eyelid twitched. Knew it. Damn sissy!
Paimon gasped. "Wait, is he the Jack that Chloris mentioned?"
"Chloris? You know Chloris too? We're totally friends~ And as the saying goes, 'a friend of a friend is also a friend.' So that makes us friends too~"
Paimon shivered. "Paimon have never heard that saying in her life… Anyway, what are you even doing out here?"
"Have you ever heard of the 'Trial of Manliness'? That Jack from the Adventurers' Guild said that whoever defeats ten thousand Hilichurls will be acknowledged as a real man!
So, renjia is getting ready to prove that renjia is a true man!"
Paimon said, "...So are you going to challenge them now?"
"Eh? What's the rush? Don't tell me you just want to see renjia embarrass himself~ Hilichurls are super, super scary, okay? You have to be well-prepared!
Like, trim your nails nice and neat, make sure your bangs are perfectly in place..."
Paimon: "How is that even preparing?! Paimon think you're just too scared!"
"W-who said I'm scared?!"
"Then go fight them!"
"I—I… When renjia challenges the Hilichurls has nothing to do with you!"
Paimon twitched at the corner of her mouth.
Zephyr had absolutely no interest in talking with this sissy any longer. "You're right—it has nothing to do with us. We're leaving."
Suddenly, Jack called out, "W-wait, adventurer! Renjia has a favor to ask!"
"A quest?" Zephyr's attention immediately sharpened at the mention of a task.
"Just now, while renjia was organizing renjia's thoughts, a wild boar passed by. It reminded renjia of the roast ribs renjia had in Mondstadt. Adventurer, could you help renjia catch that boar and make two servings of roast ribs?"
Paimon snarked, "Why don't you catch it yourself?"
Renjia is a refined boy—how could renjia possibly touch such a filthy, muddy animal? It's definitely not that renjia can't catch it, okay?"
Paimon said, "Wow… You want to eat it but still think it's too dirty to catch yourself."
Renjia will pay you! How about… one hundred Mora?"
Paimon was shocked. "What the—just a hundred Mora for catching a whole boar? You're way too stingy!"
"No, no! I don't need the boar. You can keep it. Just make two servings of roast meat for me."
"That's more like it."
Zephyr twitched. The reward was still pretty underwhelming, but he figured that sometimes completing strange or unique quests could yield special rewards. So, despite really wanting to punch this so-called "manly man," he accepted the quest.
"Wonderful~ Thank you so much, adventurer!"
Zephyr accepted the quest—but he had no intention of hunting a boar and cooking it on the spot. That would take too much time.
Instead, he simply pulled two servings of grilled meat from his backpack.
"Here. Done. Quest completed, right?"
"This is... roast meat? Where did you pull this out from?"
Jack looked stunned. He sniffed it with his nose and then moaned with satisfaction, "Mmm~ That's the smell~ So tasty. So, so tasty."
As Jack munched on the meat, he stared at Lumine and said, "Adventurer, is your skirt some kind of dimensional storage item? Can you make a set of clothes like that for renjia too?"
"Get lost."
> Quest Complete
> You received 100 Mora and a small amount of experience. No special rewards.
Zephyr sighed and turned to leave.
"Wait, adventurer! Renjia has another favor to ask!"
"I'm done. I'm leaving."
"Wait, wait!"
Jack grabbed Lumine's sleeve. "Brave, beautiful, and kind adventurer~ Please help renjia one more time~"
Lumine shivered. "Say what you want, but don't touch!"
"So you're agreeing? That's great~ Please take renjia back to Mondstadt~"
Paimon groaned. "Who agreed to anything? And take you back to Mondstadt? Can't you go back yourself? How did you even get here?"
Renjia came here with a few adventurers. We agreed to meet back here in three hours. But it's already been one, and they're still not back.
Renjia is afraid they were killed by those evil, terrifying Hilichurls. The more renjia thinks about it, the more scared renjia gets. Please take renjia back to Mondstadt. Next time, when I'm fully prepared, renjia will come back to challenge the Hilichurls."
Paimon was speechless. "You agreed on three hours, and it's only been one—what are you panicking for? And why are you so quick to assume they're dead? Couldn't even say something nice."
Renjia can't help itrenjia's the cautious type~"
"If you're so cautious, what are you even doing out here?!"
Paimon was at a loss. The amount of nonsense coming from this guy was never-ending.
"Anyway, please help me~"
Zephyr thought for a moment and said, "Fine. But at least leave them a message. Just in case they're okay—we don't want them to worry."
"No problem!"
Jack daintily raised his pinky finger, picked up a twig from the ground, and wrote a message in the dirt.
"All done. Let's go."
Paimon said, "Paimon didn't expect a guy as soft as you to have such nice handwriting."
Renjia is a manly man, after all~ Isn't it only natural for a manly man to have beautiful handwriting?"
Zephyr's eyelid twitched violently. "From now on, don't talk. If you say a single word, I'll punch you. Got it?"
Renjia understands~"
"Good. That's five words."
"Ah! That hurt! Why did you hit me?!"
"Nine words."
"Waaaah..."
Maybe because crying didn't count as words, Zephyr didn't punch him again.
Or maybe because if he kept punching, this guy might really die—and then wouldn't be able to pay the reward.
Paimon, unable to bear it, said, "Wow, wasn't that a bit too cruel? Jack didn't really do anything wrong…"
That might've been true, but his expression really made you want to punch him.
Of course, Zephyr had only been trying to scare Jack—he hadn't used any real force. After all, with Lumine's stats, a serious punch could probably kill him.
Jack, the so-called "manly man," quickly covered his mouth, mumbling "mmm mmm" nonstop.
"What are you howling about now?"
Paimon pointed into the distance. "Paimon think he means, look over there—a Hilichurl."
"So what? Just ignore it. It's not bothering us. Just pretend we didn't see it."
Zephyr didn't want to waste time on Hilichurls that didn't drop anything useful.
But apparently, the Hilichurl had a different opinion.
"Pfft. You ignore the road to heaven and barge into hell instead? You're asking to die!"
Zephyr, now wielding his upgraded +30 Sacrificial Sword, one-shotted the level 5 Hilichurl with a single thrust.
Jack's eyes widened, completely stunned.
"Adventurer, you're amazing! I admire you so much!"
"Shut up, or I'll punch you again!"
"Go ahead, idol! As a girl, you're stronger than so many male adventurers. From now on, you're my idol! Being punched by my idol is an honor!"
"…Goddamn lunatic."
Zephyr was speechless. If he'd known killing that Hilichurl would cause this, he would've just walked away. Regret—so much regret.
All the way back, Jack kept pestering Zephyr. If it weren't for Paimon constantly holding him back, Zephyr would've chopped him down on the spot.
Then, unexpectedly, they ran into a traveling merchant caravan. Zephyr immediately tossed Jack to them.
Screw the quest—he just wanted some peace and quiet.
> Quest Failed. <
Since the quest required him to personally escort Jack back, handing him off didn't count.
It was Zephyr's first failed quest, but fortunately there was no penalty.
Even if there had been, Zephyr figured he would've accepted it—anything to be rid of Jack.
He'd already mined two of the ore sites. One more remained.
"What a waste of time. Let's head to the last mining spot."
Paimon tilted her head, looking thoughtful. "Hmm… Paimon had a feeling earlier, but Paimon think Paimon have heard of the name Jack before…"
"Jack… Ultraman?"
"What the heck kind of answer is that!? No, Paimon remember nowJack from the orphanage!"
"…Huh?"
Jack from the orphanage? What was that supposed to mean?
"You mean… Jack has no horse?"
"That's not what Paimon meant! Paimon just suddenly remembered—Paimon think Paimon heard about this guy before. Jack from the orphanage.
That title doesn't mean he grew up in an orphanage—it means Jack is known for being incredibly kind-hearted. Every month, he donates a large portion of his income to orphanages.
Apparently, the reason he wants to become a 'manly man' is because adventurers earn more money—and that way, he can help more kids."
"…Wait, that sissy actually did something that admirable?"
Zephyr was skeptical. In his memory, Jack was just Jack—he didn't recall any kind of touching backstory.
But then again, it made sense. Everyone in Mondstadt had their own story, their own hidden side unknown to others.
Perfectly normal.
//END
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