frightfiction Chapter 662 The Secret from Several Years Ago
Chapter 662 The Secret from Several Years Ago
However, as soon as Xu Ning said this, Kong, Paimon, and even Catherine couldn't help but glance at him.
"The divine child who possesses both wisdom and beauty"?
I've never seen this drunkard speak to anyone so obsequiously before!
Kong: "Could it be that she has something on my brother that he can use against him?"
Paimon, however, looked on with disdain. He thought that if this drunkard was willing to speak like that, he must have something on his mind.
As for Catherine, her thoughts remain unknown.
"I wonder what business the Divine Child has in suddenly arriving in Sumeru City, or is he here specifically to sample the delicacies of a foreign land?"
Yae no Miko shook her head slightly, the two identical divine eyes on her ears swaying gently.
"It may be a bit rude of me to say this, but I have absolutely no interest in the so-called food here. I'm just thinking of doing what you do and expanding the market for my light novels overseas, so I came here specifically to investigate."
"Oh!"
Upon hearing Yae no Miko's words, the old man who had been smiling suddenly became as erect as if he had been injected with chicken blood.
"So, does that mean my book, 'Can an Apprentice Mage Whose Normal Attack is a Free-for-All Combat with Summoning Spirits Really Graduate from the Magic Command Academy?' has finally passed the Yae-do's review, and can I now establish a light novel association in Sumeru?"
Yae no Miko looked behind her, and the black-haired female editor behind her immediately shook her head, "Unfortunately, it didn't pass the review."
The steadfast old man immediately went limp again.
Xu Ning shook his head beside him. "Your name, which has a strong tomato vibe, is meant to attract readers with its word count, but I don't see a single exciting element in it."
If it were titled something like "The Apprentice Mage Who Summons the Thunder General and Starts with an Axe Dance: He Has No Intention of Graduating from the Magic Academy," it would probably appeal to that editor, Yae.
But who cares whether this old man writes novels or not!
Xu Ning waved his hand, "Since Editor Yae has something to do, we'll be leaving now. After eating so much sand for so many days, it's time to go back and rest for a few days."
Upon hearing that Xu Ning was leaving, Paimon immediately cried out, "Caravan, caravan..."
Xu Ning almost slammed his fist on the pillar and left, but then he remembered that he had promised Paimon to ask if any caravans were going to Fontaine, so he immediately turned around.
"Oh, I almost forgot about you. Let's go. If nothing unexpected happens, there should still be some people at the Grand Bazaar."
After bidding farewell to Yae no Miko once more, Xu Ning, along with Sora, Paimon, and Slusa who had been silently observing their surroundings, headed towards the Grand Bazaar.
The Liyue caravan, led by Dahuang, sold Xu Ning's wine at an exorbitant price in Sumeru.
However, after the Flower Goddess's birthday festival, with the little grass goddess Nasita regaining power, the lesions of the Demon Scale Disease were completely eradicated, and the sales of the wine returned to a low price.
Purchase restrictions on all colleges have also been lifted.
However, the censorship of the Holy See began to become extremely strict. Except for special approval procedures for individual research, alcohol was listed as a prohibited item of the Holy See, and "intoxicated scholars are not allowed to enter the Holy See".
Xu Ning entered the Grand Bazaar and found Da Huang in front of the square.
Not only that, but two completely unexpected people were also seen beside him.
Kaia, and Dain Sreib.
"Huh? Isn't that the one we've seen before..."
Slusa recognized Dain immediately; he was the masked swordsman she and Xu Ning had seen in Lingguang's memories.
Paimon, whose experience in human relationships was enough to make him Slusa's "senior," immediately rushed over and covered Slusa's cries.
"Don't shout!" Paimon warned in a low voice. "The relationship between those two seems a bit complicated. It's best to wait and see."
Xu Ning gave the little white-haired boy an approving look. "You've become more and more reliable lately!"
Leaving aside the little white-haired boy's smug hands on his hips, Slusa sadly felt that since she came out, she seemed to have stopped praising herself when she worshipped the Lord.
"But Slusa, your ability to recognize someone who lived hundreds of years ago in a crowd at a glance is simply amazing."
Even those who praise the Lord sometimes think about their own duties!
After coaxing the two little ones, Xu Ning walked up to Kaiya and looked at the several empty wine jars on and under the table.
"How much of my drink did you have here? Did you pay Mora?"
Kaiya raised his single eye, and surprisingly, there was no sign of drunkenness in it.
"Do you think I'd be short of money for a little bit of wine! Besides, I haven't even started drinking today's wine yet, and these wine jars are such a nuisance; they've been sitting here for two days and nobody's picked them up..."
Xu Ning's face darkened. It seemed he hadn't paid for the two days he'd been drinking, no wonder no one was collecting the wine jars!
"What are you doing here in Sumeru? Did the Knights recruit new members? Are you fully manpower now?"
Kaiya laughed and said, "What do you mean 'me too'? Who else is here? Let me tell you, I'm not here to play around; I have serious business to attend to."
Xu Ning glanced at the wine jars on and under the table, thinking to himself, "I'd never believe you."
He glanced at Dain Sreib not far away and was surprised to see so many familiar faces gathered here in Sumeru.
If he still didn't know the reason, he wouldn't be Xu Ning.
It's funny.
Kaeya of Mondstadt, himself from Liyue, the Divine Child of Inazuma, along with Kong who is currently stationed in Sumeru, and Dain, the former captain of the guard of Kanria, representatives from almost every country gathered together. If they hadn't come because of that strange celestial phenomenon, probably no one would believe it.
However, the celestial phenomenon of Burning Truth was resolved by himself and Kong in a short time, and these guys should disperse soon.
But before leaving, we must make sure that little dark-skinned man pays for the drinks.
"I've come here on a very important business; you could say I've come specifically to investigate Xumi Winery."
Kaeya said seriously, "Sumeru is known for its spices, and recently I suddenly heard that a kind of wine with moon lotus added has been invented and sold here at an astronomical price. I thought I would come and see how amazing this wine is, and also get the exclusive distribution rights for Mondstadt here."
"After all, the Cat's Tail Tavern you support has already made Dawn Winery feel threatened..."
"Oh!" Paimon exclaimed, suddenly realizing, "So you're trying to get this kind of wine for your older brother so you can get revenge back?"
Kaiya burst into laughter, "That depends on my mood. If my brother can beg me a little, hahaha... otherwise, there might be a second tavern competing with him for business!"
Ugh, what a shameless brother-complex guy with such a twisted sense of humor!
Xu Ning and the others gave him a disdainful gesture.
Seeing that Kaiya was already opening the wine jar, Xu Ning glanced at Daiyin not far away and asked, "How many times have you come to Sumeru?"
Kaiya paused slightly as she poured the wine, but then smiled.
"It should be the second time. When I was very young, I accidentally overheard that my godfather's caravan would come to Sumeru... You know, no one is not interested in their homeland, and my homeland, Kanria, is said to exist deep underground near Sumeru."
Xu Ning and Kong were slightly surprised that Kaiya so frankly revealed the name of his former country.
"...Later, I secretly climbed onto the ship, hid in the cargo pile, and smuggled myself here."
Okay, that's Tok behavior.
Xu Ning was very interested in where he had gone and asked, "Where did you find it?"
"When news of my disappearance reached the caravan, I was pulled out of the cargo pile before we even reached the shore, and my adoptive father took me back to Mondstadt himself."
"Did you never think of coming back to visit again?" Xu Ning asked.
"No."
Kaiya took a sip of his drink. "As I've gotten older, my life has become completely disconnected from this hometown, and I've gradually stopped caring about Kanria as much."
“Sometimes… I think that my biological father chose to leave me in Mondstadt, perhaps hoping that I could live well in this free and peaceful city-state, at least isolated from ‘certain things’. So, the only thing I am still connected to Canria now is probably my surname—Alberridge.”
No sooner had Kaiya finished speaking than a figure suddenly sat down at the table.
"Sir, do you know what 'Alberridge' actually means?"
Dain ignored Xu Ning and Kong beside him and asked Kaiya instead.
Kaiya smiled.
“You’ve been following me for two days, and you’ve finally come over to say something? You may not recognize me, but I’ve seen you many times in Mondstadt, Dain Sreb.”
Dain said coldly, "I not only know you, but I may know you better than you know yourself, Kaia Albury—a descendant of the founder of the Abyss Order..."