"Kai!"
Seeing Kai's figure gradually appear before her, Jean was slightly stunned, then hurried over.
She asked, her voice full of worry, "Are you alright?"
"No, I'm injured."
Dusting himself off, Kai rubbed his shoulder and replied, his face filled with pain.
"Where… where are you injured?"
"Your shoulder?"
"Mm, it hurts a lot."
Kai nodded affirmatively.
He glanced at his wife's flustered expression and couldn't help but chuckle twice.
Then, after a slight cough, he put on a serious expression.
"Unless, as a reward, someone behaves themselves tonight when we get back."
"Otherwise, my shoulder might not be able to heal."
"Mm…"
Noticing the mischievous smile on Kai's lips, Jean, who had been full of worry, suddenly realized that he was teasing her.
Her delicate face immediately flushed red, then she raised her hand and directly pinched Kai's shoulder.
"Is that so?"
"Then let me massage my Kai's shoulder and see how serious the injury is."
"Ow, ow, ow, gently, gently, it really hurts."
"I twisted it when I swung Excalibur just now!"
Kai hastily begged for mercy.
However, thankfully, although her words implied, she was going to be rough, when Jean's palm actually touched Kai's shoulder, a gentle force emerged, accompanied by her nimble fingers lightly kneading.
It almost made his shoulder feel an indescribable sense of comfort.
"Mm, my wife's technique is indeed the best."
"You mean other people have massaged your shoulder before?"
"No… really no."
Kai was slightly stunned.
Feeling that he had accidentally stepped on a landmine, he quickly swore, "Only you have massaged it."
"Then why would you say something like that?"
"Ah, this…"
"Master Kai~"
Just as Kai was getting a headache, in the distance, Traveler and Diluc and the others also walked towards him.
"Yo, you all look safe and sound."
Seeing everyone, Kai casually raised his hand to greet them.
Facing Jean's ongoing massage, Diluc frowned, a little puzzled.
"Injured?"
"Sort of… I used too much force when swinging Excalibur , so I accidentally twisted it."
Kai scratched his head and laughed; such a low-level mistake happening to him was not really surprising.
One must know… although after arriving in Mondstadt, in order to help Jean, alleviate her workload, Kai had often gone out with Diluc for hunting sessions.
But the Fatui strongholds they dealt with were generally not too large-scale.
Basically, after activating the Chain of Heaven and then letting Diluc's set of attacks rain down, even if there were any remaining Fatui who miraculously survived, a few well-placed Noble Phantasms would finish them off.
Sweeping away such a large number of Hilichurl in one go was indeed a battle Kai hadn't experienced in a long time.
And… "That guy's Excalibur is really heavy."
As if remembering the figure of the girl in the light, Kai couldn't help but sigh.
Kai had met Artoria.
He had met her three times in total.
The first time they met was when Kai had just traveled to that world.
At that time, Artoria was just an ordinary girl from Great Britain, curious about everything in the world.
She was even more intensely interested in this Traveler who claimed to be from another world.
At the girl's earnest invitation, Kai briefly spent some time with her.
While using her descriptions to roughly understand the culture and customs of that world, he also told her about his experiences traveling in other worlds.
Later… Kai set off.
After the girl's vivid descriptions, Kai, who considered himself a Traveler, decided to explore this world thoroughly and personally experience its beauty.
Then, when they met for the second time, it was three years later.
Artoria had become King Arthur, who saved all of Great Britain.
At that time, she no longer showed any trace of the innocent and radiant appearance of a young girl.
She had almost completely transformed into a different person; only when dealing with this old friend did she maintain her usual warmth.
"Excalibur is really heavy, you try it."
Under the moonlight… Artoria smiled, looking tired, and handed Excalibur in her hand to Kai.
"Ah, this… it's quite light."
All he got was Kai's troubled reply after weighing Excalibur.
He even wondered if he was too strong to feel the weight of Excalibur.
"Light, huh… I actually wish this Excalibur were a bit lighter."
"After all, it's really not easy to swing."
Raising Excalibur in her hand, Artoria murmured to herself.
Only at this moment could a hint of the former girl's gaze barely be seen in her.
Afterward, the girl set off for battle again.
Kai didn't understand the reason.
But it was said to be because a former friend had betrayed her.
Left with no choice, she had to raise her weapon and lead her army on a distant expedition.
In short, when they met for the third time, Artoria was already in a coma.
Beside her stood a magician named Merlin, who easily tossed Excalibur to Kai.
"This Excalibur is still heavy for her."
"Now I must take her to Avalon; this world no longer needs King Arthur."
"This Excalibur is for you."
Heavy?
That's right… after all, this is…
"Excalibur."
Having traveled through countless worlds, the current Kai could probably now understand the burden Artoria carried.
It was Excalibur of a king who, with every swing, bore the weight of an entire nation.
Just like before she set off for battle, when Kai asked, "If it's so heavy, why not switch to a different Excalibur?"
He received this reply:
[When I raised this Excalibur, I saw the happy smiles of many people. ]
[I think… that must be right. ]
"Is that guy… doing alright now?"
Looking up at the dark starry sky.
Kai couldn't help but murmur to himself.
"Kai?"
Seeing her husband seemingly lost in thought, Jean gently called out, a little confused.
"What are you thinking about?"
"Nothing, it's just that when we dealt with those Fatui soldiers just now, I didn't seem to see the Harbinger there, so it's a bit strange."
"After all, when I was clearing out the strongholds with Diluc before, I heard that a Harbinger personally led a team here. Maybe he ran away in advance."
Kai answered casually.
"In any case, the Holy lyre der himmel is already in our hands."
"We should head back to Mondstadt."