In the time that followed, Jean and Kael had a brief talk. Venti had told him that if anything came up, he should look for him at the Angel's Share tavern. Jean could not help but chuckle. It seemed the bard had planned to visit Diluc's tavern from the very beginning. Maybe Venti had slipped away the moment Kael stepped into the cathedral.
"You two are quite a pair," Jean said with a smile. They finally decided to head to Diluc's tavern later to meet this bard named Venti. She hoped he truly had a way to handle Dvalin's situation.
"By the way, Kael..." Once the main business was settled, Jean spoke with a hint of shyness. "You have worked so hard lately. Thanks to you, we have made such fast progress with Dvalin."
Facing her gratitude, Kael waved his hand. "I am not as great as you make me sound. I just figured that if I help you out, you will naturally be more willing to help me in return."
"Help you?" Jean was confused for a moment, but soon caught his meaning. "You mean..."
"It is about helping Lumine find her brother," Kael continued. "Also, I think Barbatos, as the Anemo Archon, should be able to give us more help. Even if he cannot restore Lumine's memories, I have heard the winds of Teyvat carry a lot of information. As the Anemo Archon of Teyvat, he must have intel on many things. Since I have helped protect Mondstadt, the city he watches over, I doubt he would be stingy with his help."
So that was it. Jean looked at the man before her with interest. "So all this running around is ultimately for Lumine. I thought you just valued the title of Honorary Knight," Jean teased. In her heart, she really wanted Kael to stay in Mondstadt as a knight. Surely no one would refuse someone so outstanding.
"I appreciate your high regard, Master Jean. I will certainly cherish the title of Honorary Knight. But my most important task is still helping Lumine find her brother."
"Why?" Jean asked curiously. "Do you not have any dreams of your own?"
Dreams? Kael paused. He felt like since arriving in this world, he had not really thought about what he wanted to do. Not until he met Lumine.
"I have not really thought about it," Kael said with a faint smile. "Lumine comes from a very faraway place. So far that we might never know what her home is like. Especially since she cannot remember her past. To her, this world is completely unfamiliar. Wandering alone in a strange world, searching for her only family... just imagining it makes my heart ache. I have no ties here anyway, so I figured I would just stay by her side and help her find her brother. Besides, a promise is a promise. There is no reason to go back on it."
Jean's eyes softened. In her eyes, Kael's gaze held a certain light as he spoke. Rather than just pitying Lumine for searching alone, it seemed Kael held special feelings for her in his heart. Jean really wanted to ask Kael what he would do after helping Lumine find her brother. Or what he would do if things did not end the way he hoped. But in the end, Jean chose not to speak and ruin the moment.
"It seems my judgment is quite good. You truly are a man with the spirit of a knight. As for the rest..."
The rest, of course, meant taking the Holy Lyre der Himmel to Diluc's tavern to find Venti. Kael and Jean walked out of the Knights of Favonius headquarters. The moment they stepped outside, they saw Lumine sitting on the steps.
"Lumine?" Kael was surprised. "It is so late. What are you doing here?"
Hearing his voice, Lumine's body gave a slight tremble. She quickly stood up, hurried over to his side, and said with a shifting gaze, "Um... I could not sleep, so I came out for a walk..."
"A walk in the middle of the night?" Kael looked at her skeptically. "You are panting. Were you exercising?"
Exercise your head! Lumine rolled her eyes. It was only because she overheard them planning to go out. She got too excited and tired herself out jogging all the way here. Seeing Kael's confused look, Lumine quickly turned to Jean. "Master Jean, do you have a mission?"
Jean nodded, smiling but saying nothing.
"Then I will come with you."
With that, while Kael still looked puzzled, Lumine immediately hooked her arm through his.
Yae Miko: "Did overhearing Kael's thoughts put you in a better mood, Traveler?"
Lumine: "Ahem. Regardless, Kael from the past life was truly very responsible."
Lisa: "Indeed. For your sake, he directly told Jean that everything he did was just a deal with Mondstadt. Ah, poor Jean, still trying to recruit him."
Jean: "I really was the fool here. But I still deeply respect someone like Mr. Kael."
Nilou: "Mr. Kael is a gentle man who also knows how to be witty."
Navia: "Lumine is so lucky. Mr. Kael is not even thinking about his own future after finding your brother. He is just purely focused on helping you."
Kuki Shinobu: "I am genuinely envious."
At Kael's home, Furina slumped onto the sofa, looking completely defeated. "I thought the plot was heading in an uncontrollable direction. But I never expected you to be such a responsible man."
Kael naturally knew what kind of chaotic love scene Furina meant by uncontrollable. But right now, Kael was just as bewildered. The scenes playing on the light screen were indeed from his past reincarnation missions. Yet, Kael could not shake the feeling that the system was polishing his image in front of everyone.
"Was I really that gentle? How come I do not remember?" Kael was completely speechless. Especially seeing those delicate ladies of Teyvat in the broadcast room acting completely love-struck. Kael felt his face burning.
Eula: "I really look forward to seeing the Honorary Knight from the Mondstadt cycle in this life."
Kael: "Ahem. Thank you all for the praise, but those are things from a past life. No need to bring them up."
Everyone: "???"
Lumine: "Ah! So you really are alive."
Ningguang: "Mr. Kael, would you be interested in coming to Liyue? We could discuss some business cooperation."
Charlotte: "Mr. Kael, could you spare some time for an exclusive interview with me?"
Kael: "Keep it low-key, keep it low-key. It is all in the past. There is really no need to mention it."