Jean sighed, the sound a symphony of maternal frustration and administrative weariness. "Horace, Victor," she said, and two nearby Knights of Favonius, who had been trying very hard to look like they weren't watching the unfolding drama, immediately snapped to attention. "Escort Mr. Albert to my office. He and I are going to have a long, thorough discussion about appropriate social conduct and his… fixation on my sister. He will wait for me there."
Albert looked like his world was ending. Being personally disciplined by the Acting Grand Master was a fate worse than any death for someone living in Mondstadt. As he was led away, a whimpering, terrified mess, the protective fortress around Ren finally relaxed.
Lisa, however, was not about to let her new favorite research partner go. "Well, that was a tiresome little distraction," she purred, her playful smile returning. She gently took Ren's hand, her touch surprisingly soft. "Come along, cutie. All that excitement must have been dreadfully boring. Let's go somewhere much more interesting. The library awaits!"
Without waiting for an answer, she led a slightly bewildered Ren away, leaving Keqing to exchange a final, weary look with Jean before following at a more dignified pace.
The Knights of Favonius Library was a hushed, beautiful sanctuary. Sunlight streamed through tall, arched windows, illuminating floating dust motes and the endless rows of ancient, leather-bound books. The air smelled of old paper, polished wood, and a faint, electric tang of ozone that always seemed to cling to Lisa.
Lisa led Ren to a secluded, comfortable corner filled with plush armchairs and low tables, a place clearly designated for her own personal research.
"Now then," she said, settling into a chair with a graceful sigh. "Where were we? Ah, yes. Your brilliant little heater." The incident outside was completely forgotten, her mind already back on the far more fascinating topic of elemental science. "Your design uses a pure conductor and a pure resistor. But have you considered the possibility of a semi-conductive conduit? A material that could act as both the path and the point of resistance, with its properties altered by a small, secondary elemental charge?"
And just like that, Ren found himself pulled into another deep, exhilarating intellectual dive. They spent the next hour discussing theories that would have made the most learned scholars of the Sumeru Akademiya weep with envy. They talked about elemental conversion, about the possibility of using Anemo energy to create cooling systems based on principles of evaporation rather than pure Cryo, and about the theoretical limits of crystal-based power storage. It was a conversation between two pure, unadulterated geniuses, and Ren felt more at home than he had since his arrival in Mondstadt.
It was during a lull in their conversation, as Lisa was retrieving a rare, ancient text on crystal properties, that another figure approached their quiet corner.
She was a young woman dressed in an incredibly intricate, almost theatrical outfit of purple and black, her golden hair styled in elaborate twin-tails. An eyepatch covered one eye, and a raven with dark, shimmering feathers was perched on her shoulder.
"Hmph," she declared, her voice a dramatic, regal pronouncement. "One finds the sanctum of knowledge occupied by the keeper of its arcane secrets and… a strange, yet undeniably luminous, familiar."
The raven, Oz, immediately translated, his voice a calm, eloquent counterpoint to her dramatic flair. "What she means to say is, 'Oh, hello Lisa. Who is your new friend?'"
It was Fischl, the Prinzessin der Verurteilung.
Lisa smiled, not in the least bit fazed by the dramatic entrance. "Fischl, dear. Perfect timing. This is Ren. He is a visiting scholar from Liyue."
Fischl's visible, emerald-green eye scrutinized Ren. "A scholar?" she proclaimed. "A mere fledgling, yet he dares to tread the hallowed halls of erudition? Reveal to me, strange familiar, upon which forbidden scrolls hast thou feasted your eyes?"
Oz sighed softly. "The Prinzessin would like to know what books you enjoy reading."
Ren, who had encountered more than his fair share of eccentric personalities, simply smiled politely. "I mostly read historical texts and books about engineering and mechanics," he said.
Fischl's regal composure wavered for a fraction of a second. "Hmph! A worthy pursuit! A mind that seeks to understand the foundational pillars of reality and the gears that turn the great machine of existence is a mind worthy of an audience with the Prinzessin!"
Oz translated again. "She likes people who read."
But as Fischl continued her dramatic pronouncements, her gaze lingered on Ren. She took in his polite smile, his messy, blue-streaked hair, and his impossibly cute, glowing azure eyes. A strange, unfamiliar warmth began to creep up her neck, a blush that had absolutely no place in the grand, dramatic persona of the Prinzessin der Verurteilung.
Her grand, sweeping gestures became a little smaller. Her booming, theatrical voice became a little softer.
"And… and indeed," she stammered, her gaze flicking away for a moment, "your… your countenance… it possesses a certain… otherworldly luminescence. A faint yet palpable aura of… of…"
"The Prinzessin finds you to be extremely cute," Oz finished for her, his tone impeccably deadpan.
Fischl's face erupted in a brilliant, crimson blush. Her carefully constructed character of the enigmatic, all-powerful princess shattered into a million pieces. She was just a flustered girl, completely and utterly overwhelmed by the sheer, concentrated force of Ren's adorableness.
"Oz!" she squeaked, her voice losing all of its regal authority. She hid her face behind her hands, her golden twin-tails practically vibrating with embarrassment.
Ren just blinked, watching the scene with a gentle, innocent confusion that only made Fischl's blush deepen. He had, with a simple smile and a polite answer, done what no monster or rival had ever managed to do: he had completely broken the composure of the Prinzessin der Verurteilung.