The heavy, ornate door of the house on Feiyun Slope closed, shutting out the grieving, uncertain city and enveloping them in a sanctuary of warmth and quiet. Paimon, who had been nervously silent throughout the entire ordeal, finally let out a huge, trembling sigh of relief. "Paimon's heart was beating so fast! Paimon thought the Millelith were going to turn us into fugitives!"
Lumine turned to Ren, the gravity of what he had done for her finally settling in. She knelt down, bringing herself to his eye level, her golden eyes full of a deep, profound gratitude. "Ren," she said, her voice soft but full of an unshakable sincerity. "Thank you. You didn't have to do that. You put yourself at risk for me. I don't know how I can ever repay you."
Ren simply shook his head, a small, shy smile on his face. "You're my friend," he said, as if that were the only explanation necessary. "And friends help each other."
Ganyu, who had been watching the exchange, her heart aching with both the sorrow for her lost Archon and a fierce pride for her brother's unwavering moral compass, stepped forward. "You are safe here, Lumine. You are Ren's guest, and therefore, you are a guest of this household. No harm will come to you under this roof."
They sat together, a strange, impromptu council of war, and Lumine explained her purpose in Liyue in more detail. "Before all this happened," she said, her gaze turning distant, "my goal was simple. I came for the Rite of Descension to seek an audience with the Geo Archon. I am traveling all of Teyvat, trying to find my lost brother. I thought… I thought the Archons would have answers." She looked down, a wave of frustration and sadness washing over her. "And now… he's gone."
Her primary lead had vanished in a catastrophic, world-shaking event. She was adrift in a foreign land, her path forward suddenly shrouded in uncertainty.
"I can't just wait," she continued, a familiar, steely determination returning to her eyes. "The Qixing said to remain in the Harbor, but I have to keep searching. I'll explore Liyue, look for clues, anything that might help me."
Ren looked at Ganyu, a thoughtful, concerned expression on his face. "Big sister, she's going to have problems, isn't she? Even if she's not a suspect anymore, she's still an outlander, and the Millelith are on high alert. And if she travels into Jueyun Karst… the adepti won't be very welcoming to a stranger right now."
He was right. In the wake of their Archon's death, the adepti would be reclusive, suspicious, and potentially hostile to any unknown who trespassed on their sacred ground.
Ganyu nodded, her expression grim. "You are correct, Ren. It would be… difficult for her."
She was silent for a long moment, her mind, a repository of ancient laws and traditions, searching for a solution. Then, her eyes lit up with a memory, a relic of a bygone era.
"Wait here," she said, before disappearing into a back room.
She returned a moment later holding a small, flat, intricately carved stone talisman. It was long hexagonal, made of a dark, almost black jade, and a complex, ancient Liyue symbol was carved into its surface. It felt old, imbued with a faint, dormant power.
"This," Ganyu said, holding it out to Lumine, "is a Sigil of Permission."
Paimon floated closer, her eyes wide with curiosity. "Ooh, what's that?"
"In ancient times," Ganyu explained, her voice taking on the tone of a historian, "when mortals wished to seek an audience with the adepti or travel through their lands for a legitimate purpose, they would be granted one of these. It is a symbol that signifies that the bearer has the formal permission of the Qixing, and by extension, the adepti, to travel freely through Liyue without being impeded."
She placed the cool, smooth stone into Lumine's hand. "We… we do not really use them anymore. The relationship between the adepti and the people has become more distant, more formal. And we certainly don't give them to outlanders. It is… an artifact of a more trusting time."
She looked at Lumine, her expression one of profound, newfound trust, a trust that had been bought and paid for by Ren's unwavering faith in her. "But you are an Honorary Knight of Favonius, and you are my brother's friend. You are not a stranger. Carry this with you. If any Millelith should question your presence, or if you should encounter one of the adeptal guardians in the mountains, show them this sigil. It will act as your identity. It will prove that you are not a threat, but a friend who walks with our blessing."
It was an incredible gift, a key that would unlock the entire, guarded nation of Liyue for the Traveler. It was a gesture of trust that superseded the Qixing's formal investigation, an unofficial, but far more powerful, declaration of her innocence and status as an ally.
Lumine clutched the heavy, ancient sigil in her hand, the weight of its meaning far greater than its physical form. "Ganyu… I… thank you," she whispered, her voice thick with an emotion she couldn't quite name.
Ren smiled. His sister, in her quiet, gentle way, had not only solved Lumine's problem but had also formally welcomed her into the intricate, protected world of Liyue. The Traveler was no longer adrift; she now had a home base, a powerful ally, and a sigil that would open all doors.