"Yes, Liyue Harbor is the most prosperous and busiest port in all of Teyvat."
Beside Yoimiya, her green-clad assistant beamed with excitement. "The Golden House is here too, the only place that mints Mora for the entire continent. The city is even more bustling than the port."
They had never been to Liyue before.
But arriving early in the morning and seeing the port buzzing with activity was enough to confirm the rumors.
Workers chatted and laughed while they worked.
This was something Inazuma, under its current oppressive atmosphere, simply couldn't compare to.
The difference was night and day.
"Hey! The boat over there! Please come over for registration!"
A Millelith soldier in uniform waved at Yoimiya's ship.
All ships docking in Liyue Harbor required registration.
Ships from Liyue itself had special markings and were exempt from daily checks, as local fishermen went in and out constantly. But foreign ocean-going vessels had to be logged.
"Okay!"
Yoimiya nodded cheerfully. She skillfully docked her ship and hopped onto the pier to register.
"Little girl, you're from Inazuma?"
When the Millelith officer saw Yoimiya's documents, he looked surprised. "Isn't Inazuma under lockdown?"
"What? A ship from Inazuma?"
"I heard the thunderstorms in the outer seas are terrifying. The Electro Archon personally sealed the borders. How did she get out?"
"There was one escapee before the storms got this bad... Atsuko, I think?"
"Yeah, Atsuko. Liyue merchants rescued her. She was on a tiny raft. If they hadn't found her, she would have died. I heard she was being chased, too."
"Atsuko said Inazuma is extremely oppressive. You need permits for everything. That's why she ran. Until now, she was the only Inazuman in Liyue."
The other Millelith guards gathered around, eyeing Yoimiya with curiosity.
A blonde girl from Inazuma?
As port officials, they knew Atsuko was the only known escapee. She had fled with her life on the line.
But this girl?
She looked like she was on vacation. Her clothes were bright, her smile was wide, and she looked completely unbothered.
And she claimed to have come through the thunderstorms? Impossible.
"Eh? There are other Inazumans in Liyue?"
Hearing their chatter, Yoimiya's face lit up.
Although she admired Liyue's prosperity, it was still a foreign land. Hearing that a fellow countryman was here made her feel instantly more at home.
It was a special kind of warmth.
"Yes," the Millelith nodded. "Miss Atsuko lives in the northern part of the harbor. You can look for her later."
"Mmh," Yoimiya nodded. "I'm a fireworks merchant. I went out to sell fireworks, but when I tried to return, I found the outer seas blocked by thunderstorms. It was too dangerous to enter, so I decided to come to Liyue and wait until the lockdown is lifted."
"I see," the guard realized. She wasn't an escapee; she was locked out.
He smiled. "Then, welcome to Liyue, Miss Yoimiya from Inazuma."
"Thank you!"
Yoimiya flashed a brilliant smile and led her assistant, Midori, toward the northern district.
Following the guard's directions, they soon arrived at their destination and spotted a familiar style of clothing.
Seeing Atsuko, Yoimiya felt a wave of nostalgia.
Even though Liyue's fashion was diverse, an Inazuman could always recognize another Inazuman at a glance.
"Miss Yoimiya!"
Atsuko, who had been gazing wistfully at the sea, noticed someone watching her. When she turned and saw Yoimiya, she gasped in surprise.
She ran over and grabbed Yoimiya's hands excitedly. "How did you come to Liyue?"
"Uh, you know me?" Yoimiya asked, surprised.
She had just landed in a strange city, and already someone knew her name?
"Of course! You are the talented fireworks artisan! Everyone in Inazuma City knows the Naganohara Fireworks Shop!" Atsuko exclaimed. "I even bought fireworks from you back home!"
Meeting a celebrity from her hometown in a foreign land made Atsuko overwhelmingly happy.
She had fled Inazuma to escape the oppression. But in this bustling, free city, she often felt a deep, aching loneliness.
She missed her parents. Sometimes, she even regretted running away.
Whenever she had free time, she would stand by the harbor and look toward Inazuma.
Now, seeing the famous Yoimiya here, her loneliness melted away.
"Haha!"
Yoimiya laughed heartily. "I didn't expect to meet a customer here! I came because I got locked out by the storms after a business trip. I figured I'd wait it out in Liyue."
"I didn't expect to meet a fellow Inazuman so soon!"
Yoimiya was thrilled. She could team up with this girl and navigate Liyue together.
"Since you're new, let me show you around!" Atsuko offered eagerly. "Liyue is huge and has so much delicious food. I'll take you to the famous shops!"
"That sounds great!" Yoimiya agreed. "I haven't had breakfast yet. Take me somewhere good! My treat!"
"Okay! The best place for breakfast is Chef Mao's Wanmin Restaurant," Atsuko explained as they walked. "It's delicious and affordable. Along with Liuli Pavilion and Xinyue Kiosk, they dominate Liyue's food scene."
Yoimiya listened intently as Atsuko acted as her tour guide.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Yoimiya stopped and spun around.
Not far behind them, at a street stall, stood a tall woman with white hair and a curvaceous figure.
As a Vision bearer, Yoimiya was sensitive to elemental energy.
She hadn't expected to run into another Vision user so quickly. Liyue really was full of strong people.
"Hm?"
Sensing Yoimiya's gaze, Shenhe turned her head.
A Pyro Vision user.
"Hello!"
Yoimiya waved enthusiastically, her greeting brimming with energy.
Shenhe nodded blankly at the golden-haired girl's热情 (enthusiasm), acknowledging the greeting.
Then she turned back to the stall owner. She placed over a dozen pieces of Cor Lapis on the counter and said expressionlessly, "I want to sell these. How much Mora?"
Her master had said that if she lacked Mora, she could sell these stones.
"Cor Lapis!"
The stall owner's pupils contracted when he saw the glowing orange stones.
More than a dozen high-quality Cor Lapis!
These were extremely valuable, sought after by merchants across Liyue.
And this woman... she seemed clueless about their worth.
The owner's eyes narrowed into a greedy smile. "These are rare stones, yes. But the market is flooded right now. I'll give you 20,000 Mora each. 300,000 Mora for the lot. How about it?"
"Only 300,000?"
Shenhe frowned.
That seemed low.
Her master had told her that selling these would ensure she wouldn't lack money for a long time. 300,000 didn't sound like "a long time" worth of money in a city this big.
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