"So tired!"
"When will we reach Mondstadt?"
Yu Jin carried Garura on his back, sprinting along a rarely traveled dirt road.
It was almost noon, and the bright sun illuminated the entire land. It was neither dazzling nor dim.
He hoped the sun he left in The Lands Between would be like this too.
Yu Jin ran, lost in thought.
"We're almost there. Just follow this road straight, and you'll find a big bridge. Cross the bridge, and you'll be in Mondstadt."
Garura, hearing Yu Jin's complaint, said apologetically. He had carried her from night until noon.
"Yu Jin Gege, you can put me down. I can run by myself." Garura whispered in his ear from his back.
"Almost there? Hold on tight!" Yu Jin roared:
"I am an Undead who can sprint through the Farron Keep!"
"Whoosh!"
Yu Jin's speed suddenly increased!
If before others might have seen a large black rat dart by, now they could only feel a gust of wind sweep past, seeing no figure at all.
At this moment, Garura was unable to open her eyes due to the strong wind. She could only cling tightly to the crevices of Yu Jin's armor, afraid of falling off.
Fortunately, this feeling didn't last long. Soon, the strong wind dissipated, and Garura opened her eyes.
Then she saw a stone bridge spanning a large river in the distance, and on the other side of the stone bridge were the massive walls of Mondstadt City.
At this point, the flow of people increased, with people entering and exiting the city in dense streams. Mondstadt City, one of The Seven Nations, where countless people lived.
Yu Jin put Garura down. He looked at the massive Mondstadt walls, stroking his chin.
It's not as tall as Leyndell, he wins one point—Yu Jin was still bothered by his gaze not being considered a divine gaze yesterday.
He definitely had to get an explanation. Why aren't foreign gods considered gods?
But soon, Yu Jin deflated like a punctured ball. He seemed to suddenly realize that there were more Mondstadters than Leyndell residents, so he lost another point.
"Forget it, forget it, no more comparisons!" Yu Jin quickly gave up the idea of competing with Mondstadt, because he felt he might lose.
"Mondstadt! We're finally here!" Garura, now on her feet, couldn't help but exclaim. After months of escaping, she had finally arrived.
But soon, she hid behind Yu Jin again. The reason was simple: Yu Jin and Garura's clothing was too peculiar.
One was fully clad in armor, and the other wore the attire of a Finger Maiden, which didn't exist in this world, making them very conspicuous.
However, Yu Jin didn't pay attention to these gazes. In the worlds of Dark Souls and elden ring, even wild dogs would bite him. That was truly being an enemy to the entire world.
He took Garura's hand and walked towards Mondstadt with his head held high.
Everything before Yu Jin was a scene he had never witnessed. Transactions, arguments, greetings… Everyone was so full of life—this was a complete world!
Yu Jin's hand, holding Garura's, trembled slightly. He feared he had fallen into an illusion created by the Greater Will.
"Sir, and this young lady, these are your temporary identification documents." Lawrence at the entrance handed Yu Jin and Garura two cards.
Although the attire of the two in front of him was indeed a bit strange, Mondstadt was a city of freedom. As long as they didn't harm others, anything was permissible.
"Oh?! Alright, thank you." Yu Jin turned around and took the cards.
"Welcome to the City of Wind and Idyll. I wish you both a pleasant stay!" Lawrence pounded his fist on his chest, performing a Knights of Favonius salute to Yu Jin and Garura.
Yu Jin, belatedly, bowed to Lawrence. He had been out of touch with normal life for too long and was a bit unaccustomed to it.
Garura, seeing Yu Jin's somewhat bewildered expression, smiled and jumped in front of him, saying:
"Yu Jin Gege, let me be your tour guide next! I've been preparing to come to Mondstadt for a long time!"
"Oh? Then I'll leave it to Garura." Yu Jin graciously accepted Garura's kind offer. He truly didn't know what to do next.
"First, let's exchange some Mora! Hehehe, good thing I was prepared!" Garura pulled out a necklace from who knows where.
Then she dragged Yu Jin and ran towards Mondstadt Square in the distance.
Mondstadt Square, whether day or night, was the busiest place in Mondstadt City. Therefore, it was also where most of Mondstadt City's shops were located.
Of course, there were also plenty of street stalls, with various hawking sounds constantly ringing out, making it very lively!
Both Yu Jin and Garura were dazzled by the numerous shops. They looked this way and that, truly like country bumpkins.
Of course, they were indeed country bumpkins.
"You two, after looking at the shops for so long, what are you looking for?" A beautiful woman in a brown and black dress approached Yu Jin and Garura and asked.
Yu Jin turned to look upon hearing this, realizing that although the beautiful woman's attire was understated, the accessories she wore were all extraordinary.
"Rich person!" Yu Jin and Garura exchanged glances, then Yu Jin was the first to ask:
"May I ask who this lady is…?"
"Marjorie of the jewelry store." Marjorie couldn't help but smile, covering her mouth, at Yu Jin's words. These two foreigners really knew how to talk.
"I noticed your clothes are of a style I've never seen before, so I wanted to come and ask. If you have anything you don't need, I can buy it." Marjorie pointed to her shop not far away and said to Yu Jin and Garura.
"We do have something to sell, Miss, you have a keen eye." Yu Jin said, following Marjorie into the shop.
"Click!" With the sound of the door closing, the three entered a private room.
"What do you want to sell? Show me. Don't worry, just for those few times you called me 'Miss,' I won't try to drive down the price." As soon as Marjorie entered the private room, she eagerly wanted to see what Yu Jin had in his hand.
"Then please take a look…"
"Garura, no need." Yu Jin pulled Garura back. He could tell that the necklace held special significance for Garura.
Then Yu Jin took out a rapier from within himself.
The rapier was entirely golden, its guard a circular ring, with golden forged branches extending from both sides of the ring. It looked both beautiful and luxurious.
Noble's Estoc — A rapier held by wandering nobles, a weapon designed for ease of use. The blade is adorned with gold and sold at a high price.
"Liyue's Serenitea Pot?" Marjorie's eyebrow twitched. As one of Mondstadt's top jewelers, she had heard of Liyue's Serenitea Pot.
"Serenitea Pot? Liyue? What are those?" Yu Jin scratched his head again. It seemed he needed to read some books, otherwise, he would constantly fail to understand what others were saying.
"Oh? Interesting!" Marjorie just smiled, not paying too much attention.
She picked up the Noble's Estoc and examined it carefully, occasionally brandishing it a few times, letting out sounds of admiration.
"Excellent, a fine item!" Marjorie put down the rapier, praising it. The patterns, decorations, and forging techniques on this rapier were all new to her, greatly benefiting her.
"How much are you planning to sell it for?" Marjorie looked at Yu Jin and Garura and asked.
"Uh… Garura, how much?"
"I don't know, it's my first time in the city too!" Yu Jin and Garura whispered to each other, realizing neither of them had a clue.
"Ay — are you two perhaps from some ancient ruins?" Marjorie covered her forehead with one hand, her mouth twitching slightly.
"600,000 Mora. Although your sword is exquisitely crafted, it hasn't been produced for long. This price is very reasonable." Marjorie explained, fearing Yu Jin and the others might not be satisfied.
"Alright! Deal!" Yu Jin agreed without any hesitation. He had many such rapiers, so even if he lost money, he would consider it a lesson learned.
And it sounded like 600,000 Mora was a lot, after all, 600,000 Runes would be equivalent to half of a peak Malenia.
"Good, I like straightforward people!" Marjorie said, taking out a box and filling it with some Mora.
"Mora is a catalyst; its value is determined by the amount of medium inside." Garura, seeing Yu Jin's puzzled expression, explained.
"Are you really from ancient ruins? You don't even know this?" Marjorie just thought Yu Jin was joking with her and handed the box to him.
Walking out of Marjorie's jewelry store, Yu Jin suddenly noticed that the atmosphere in Mondstadt seemed to have become suddenly tense.
"Did you hear? Two Snezhnaya diplomats were killed on their way back!"
"What? Weren't Acting Grand Master Jean and Captain Kaeya escorting them? How could something happen?!"
"Hmph! Who knows? But good riddance! I heard they were burned alive by black flames! How satisfying!"
"Shh! Keep your voice down, if the Fatui hear you, you'll be in big trouble!"
...At this moment, the people in Mondstadt Square were all discussing the assassination of the Snezhnaya diplomats. Some clapped their hands in delight, some frowned deeply, and some remained indifferent, each reacting differently.
"Hm? What's wrong? Garura." Yu Jin felt Garura clutching his armor and asked.
"Black flames, it's Collei Onee-san!" Garura whispered to Yu Jin.