"What's with that look? When I said 'losing you,' I meant sending you back to the village." Noticing the boy's fearful expression, the god slowly explained.
"Back to the village...?" The boy froze, eyeing the god with suspicion.
"Yes. Do you humans misunderstand demon gods or something? Why does it feel like, in your eyes, I'm some kind of unforgivable monster?"
The god finally realized that humans looked at her strangely.
"N-no..." The boy, feeling exposed, blushed furiously as he tried to defend himself.
"Oh? You're blushing."
"Looks like I hit the mark..."
The god seemed to enjoy teasing children, especially their shy, flustered reactions. It made her happy.
With that, the misunderstanding was resolved. The people who had surrounded the god retreated and truthfully reported everything to the village chief.
At first, the chief didn't believe them. But when everyone told the same story, he began to waver. In the end, it was confirmed—they were right. That god simply liked children. Her fierce demeanor was only to teach them a lesson: not to wander into others' territories.
Once the villagers learned that this god was kind, they wanted her to become their guardian deity. But she refused, saying she didn't want to get involved in such troublesome matters.
In fact, most gods across Teyvat were like this—Morax included. Only a few willingly took on the role of humanity's gods, shouldering the duty of protection. It was a burden with no reward, more like volunteer work, and only a rare few chose it.
Most gods preferred a quiet, carefree life—finding amusement when bored, resting when tired. True battles between gods were rare; usually, they exchanged only a few blows before stopping.
...
"Big Brother Zhongli, come play with us!"
At that moment, a little girl in pale blue clothes skipped up to Morax, holding a ball in her hands as she invited him.
"No, thank you. You all go have fun. I'll just watch," Morax answered with a smile.
"Nooo, come play! You're always by yourself and hardly talk—that's not good!" The girl tugged on Morax's hand, shaking it insistently.
In the end, Morax couldn't resist her pleading. With a faint smile, he scratched his head.
"But I don't really know how to play."
"That's okay, we'll teach you! Come on!"
Seeing him stand, the girl grew overjoyed. She dragged Morax toward the group of children, calling out as they went, "I brought Big Brother Zhongli!"
"Hooray! Big Brother Zhongli, play with us!"
Soon enough, Zhongli was playing right alongside them. Under the setting sun, their laughter and cheers echoed through the streets.
The villagers watching from nearby smiled warmly at the sight.
They played until the sun went down. After cheerful goodbyes, the children returned home with their parents for dinner.
Morax stayed behind, sitting alone on the open ground, his smile lingering. The game had been childish and simple, yet he found himself enjoying it to the fullest.
...
"Time to head back for dinner." A familiar voice came from beside him.
"You finally came to get me. I thought you wouldn't." Morax grinned happily.
"Brother."
"What is it?"
"Today... you were the one who had them call me over to play, weren't you?"
"......" Elliot fell silent for a moment, then replied, "Yes."
"I never thought a challenge without going all out could be this much fun."
"They did give it everything they had."
"Tell me... if I had parents, what would they be like?"
Elliot was taken aback. He hadn't expected Morax to start thinking like a human so soon.
As a god, such thoughts would never have crossed his mind. In their existence, 'parents' had no place. They were born already complete.
Yet here Morax was, wondering.
"After watching humans for so long, I imagined what my parents might be like... and it feels kind of nice."
"My mother, I think, would be hot-tempered and straightforward—someone who often offended others but ruled the household."
"My father might look ordinary on the surface, but in critical moments, he'd always rise to the occasion, steadfast as stone, protecting our family."
Morax lifted his head toward the sky, picturing something that never was. But the longing in his eyes showed his true desire—he yearned for a family, to know the warmth of parental love.
"Come on, dinner will get cold." After a long silence, Elliot didn't answer the thought. He only patted Morax's shoulder and started walking home.
Morax watched Elliot's retreating figure, then looked at the warmly lit tile-roofed house.
He smiled—pure and simple.
He had no parents. But having an older brother... wasn't so bad.
"What's for dinner today?" Zhongli ran up, slinging an arm over Elliot's shoulder.
"Potatoes stewed with potatoes."
"That's the same thing!"
"Yes."
"???"