On the cliff, surrounded by the Abyss Mages, the golden-haired youth—Aether—looked slightly surprised to see Su Mo arrive.
The Abyss Mages beside him chattered briefly, but Aether waved them off, dismissing them.
He then calmly stepped closer to Su Mo, his expression gentle. "The hero who defeated the frozen dragon... Su Mo," he said. "I've heard of you in the rumors spreading across Mondstadt. And not only that, I've also heard that during her travels, my sister Lumine has been under your care."
Despite being the leader of the Abyss Order, Aether showed no trace of malice or corruption. There was no sinister aura, no madness, no hysterics. On the contrary, his steady yet gentle demeanor felt more like that of a warm protagonist than a villain.
Even after being discovered by Su Mo, Aether remained composed and upright, not even bothering to hide his identity. Instead, he extended his hand, as though offering a polite handshake.
To be honest, Su Mo was both surprised and rather impressed by Aether's attitude. A reasonable, understanding future brother-in-law—what more could one ask for?
However, as Aether extended his hand, Su Mo instinctively hesitated. Not because he suspected any ill intent from Aether, but purely because... well, he had gotten a bit too close to Aether's sister lately.
When Aether mentioned Lumine being "under his care," Su Mo couldn't help but feel as though he was being subtly accused of improper intentions.
—I was supposed to protect her, not get intimate with her!
Granted, things hadn't reached that stage just yet.
After a brief pause, Su Mo figured that Aether likely didn't know anything about his relationship with Lumine. Otherwise, the surrounding Abyss Mages would've already swarmed him by now.
Su Mo generously extended his hand as well, and the two shook hands firmly.
"Actually, Lumine's been the one taking care of me most of the time," Su Mo said sincerely. "Without her, I'm not sure I would've survived back then."
That was the absolute truth. During their journey through the wilderness, Lumine had been the only one capable of fighting. Paimon served as a guide—though mostly just extra baggage. Su Mo himself was more of a strategist—and another piece of baggage. If not for Lumine's strength, the two of them likely wouldn't have made it.
Hearing Su Mo's candid words and sensing his genuine tone, Aether's impression of him grew even better. To think his sister had found such a powerful and dependable companion right from the start—it was truly fortunate.
"Regardless, I still have to thank you on behalf of my sister," Aether said earnestly.
Su Mo fell silent for a moment. How was he supposed to deal with such a pure and straightforward brother-in-law? He almost felt guilty for keeping things from him. Fortunately, guilt wasn't one of Su Mo's stronger emotions, and he managed to suppress it.
"Let's set that aside for now. Lumine has been searching for you," Su Mo said, steering the conversation away. "Since you're not missing, why won't you meet her?"
"Lumine's searching for me…" Aether paused briefly, then shook his head. "Now isn't the time for us to meet."
"I've already traveled across the entire world once," he continued. "At this moment, there are things I need to accomplish. Lumine and I will reunite eventually, but not yet. Only after she has traveled across the world herself and gained her own experience will the time be right."
Typical cryptic talk—he really was the master of speaking in riddles. After he finished, Aether looked at Su Mo with a trusting expression. "At first, I worried that Lumine might encounter danger during her journey. But now that I know you're with her, I have nothing to worry about."
"Can I ask you to continue traveling with her and protect her?" Aether's tone was full of trust, showing no concern whatsoever about Su Mo's strength or character. In his eyes, anyone who had stood by Lumine through the hardest times and remembered her care even after gaining power couldn't possibly be a bad person. With such a reliable companion by her side, Aether felt nothing but relief for his sister's safety.
He knew he still had important business with the Abyss Order, and if Su Mo could look after Lumine, he could focus entirely on his own mission against Celestia without worrying about her.
Su Mo gasped internally. Was his brother-in-law really entrusting Lumine to him so easily? Didn't he fear that one day it wouldn't just be a reunion with his sister, but with a niece or two as well? Maybe even more than two…
"Don't worry. I'll take care of Lumine," Su Mo immediately accepted the responsibility.
"That's great!" Aether said, visibly pleased. With someone like Su Mo looking after her, he could finally be at ease.
"Since you don't plan to meet Lumine yet," Su Mo hesitated briefly before asking, "should I tell her about this encounter?"
"No need," Aether shook his head after thinking for a moment. "This is her first journey alone, and it's her chance to grow. She doesn't need to know too much about me right now. We'll meet again naturally at the journey's end."
"So that's your plan…" Su Mo nodded, agreeing to his future brother-in-law's request. Since Aether was willing to entrust his sister to him, keeping his whereabouts a secret was a small price to pay.
The two of them chatted for a little while longer, confirming each other's positions, before parting on good terms. Who would've imagined that the hero who saved Mondstadt and the leader of an evil organization would meet without any conflict, instead parting with such friendly understanding? Perhaps this was the darker side of reality.
After leaving Brightcrown Canyon, Su Mo returned to Mondstadt.
Inside the Knights of Favonius headquarters, Jean, Kaeya, Venti, Lumine, and the others were all waiting for him. The moment Su Mo walked in, Paimon immediately asked curiously, "Su Mo, what happened? You suddenly disappeared by yourself!"
The others were equally concerned. "Did you find any traces of the mastermind?" Kaeya inquired.
Su Mo nodded and answered truthfully, "I sensed a strange gaze watching us. When I followed it, I discovered someone observing from Brightcrown Canyon. By the time I got there, I found evidence of Abyss Mages, but I didn't initiate combat. After observing for a bit, I noticed they didn't seem hostile and left soon after."
Everything he said was entirely true. Yet, when strung together like this, the scattered truths formed a perfect lie. Jean and Kaeya couldn't detect anything suspicious, only finding it odd that the Abyss Mages showed no aggression.
"Unfortunately, we couldn't get any information from our captives," Jean sighed. "We'll go investigate Brightcrown Canyon again tomorrow. Hopefully, we'll find something useful."
Tonight's operation was only a partial success. They had captured a fair number of Abyss Mages, but failed to locate the so-called Prince, and still couldn't figure out the Abyss Order's exact goal. Nonetheless, the gains were not insignificant.
After sorting through the gathered intel, it was finally time to rest. One by one, they bid each other goodnight and returned to their warm rooms.
Meanwhile, in the plaza, Stormterror—still frozen in ice—shivered quietly, waiting for the already sleeping Su Mo to return and thaw him out.
—Weren't we supposed to lure out the mastermind by releasing me?
—How long do I have to wait?
—Barbatos, where the heck did you go?!
In Mondstadt City, inside a tavern, Venti was enjoying his dandelion wine when he suddenly sneezed. Yet, even after that, he couldn't recall anything, and simply continued drinking with the other patrons, strumming his lyre and singing ancient ballads.
Meanwhile, amidst the cold winds, Stormterror Dvalin was starting to question his own existence. Fortunately, the layer of ice provided some soundproofing. Otherwise, if the frozen Dvalin were to hear Venti's drunken and cheerful singing, he might very well go berserk again and mete out punishment to the unreliable Anemo Archon.
......
......
While Su Mo in the world of Teyvat had resolved the Stormterror incident and even won his brother-in-law's recognition, over in the Campione world, on Sardinia Island, things were progressing differently.
Inside the villa, Su Mo sat idly, looking at the female knight beside him. "Why hasn't the King of Swords arrived yet? I've been waiting for two days! Did he get lost? Or does he actually dare stand me up?"
If that man truly dared to stand him up, Su Mo fully intended to let the King of Swords understand the meaning of cruelty. Ever since slaying a god, he had heard that the King of Swords was coming to challenge him. But Su Mo had no fear of this brute. In fact, with the War God of the East authority from Verethragna, especially the White Horse incarnation embodying the sun's flames, it perfectly countered the King of Swords' Man of Steel Authority. That was precisely why Su Mo deliberately waited here, intending to use the reputation of this veteran Campione to further solidify his own dominance.
Yet unexpectedly, two days had passed without any sign of him. For a fellow god-slayer, flying over should've been quick enough, no?