Chapter 21 - First Request

A/N: Not quite as full of a chapter as I normally try to have, but I still wanted to post something before going to bed. G'night. Or g'morning. Guess it depends when you're reading this. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sun shining brightly, warmth bathed the northernmost islands of Inazuma. Birds chirped, lizards darted about, Hilichurls danced, and small squads of Fatui quietly sneaked around the island. All in all, it was another peaceful day in Inazuma.

"Run, Thoma, run!" Ivan yelled, sprinting as fast as he could. 

"I AM running, Ivan! I'm right next to you! Hahaha! Hah," Thoma retorted. Laughter and tears mixed together as though he couldn't decide what to feel about their current predicament. 

"Sorry. That was just a movie quote I thought fit the situation."

"Is now the time for that?!"

Behind them, nearly three dozen Ronin chased them with katanas ablaze with Pyro or Electro energy. 

"Stop running and fight us like real men, you Yashiro Commission dogs!"

Perhaps Inazuma wasn't the most peaceful place after all was said and done.

***

The events that led up to Ivan and Thoma's predicament seemed inconsequential at first. It started early in the morning when the guild contacted Ivan through the messaging function in the Adventurer's Handbook shortly after he woke up in the Shrine's guest room. For some reason, somebody requested him specifically even though he had yet to complete a single quest. However, it all made sense when he saw the name of the person who requested him.

Rolling his eyes, he turned his face into his pillow and groaned. He already didn't want to wake up after spending a whole day writing while Yae Miko casually read books next to him as if to taunt him. The walk to and from the shrine left his entire body sore, too. Exhausted both mentally and physically, he simply laid in the futon for several minutes. Unfortunately, he could not fall back asleep no matter how long he waited.

"Ugh. Whatever."

Slow and clumsy like a bear just leaving hibernation, he dressed himself in a pair of black pants, a red shirt, and a black leather vest that Thoma had given him. Then, he exited the guest room. The moment he entered the main hall, he halted. There, sitting at the table with a cup of tea in front of her and a book in hand, was Yae Miko.

Raising her eyes from her book, she smirked and greeted, "Good morning, Ivan."

Bleary-eyed, Ivan blinked a few times before replying, "...Mornin'."

Yae Miko returned her eyes to her book. 

Ivan sighed.

"So, three Amethyst Lumps and a Vajrada Amethyst Fragment?"

"Indeed. Our stock is lower than before due to a certain curse cleansing ritual that was recently performed on a certain visitor who also seems to have taken a liking to our guest room. The sun has already risen, so you may as well start now."

Sighing at the woman's smirk, Ivan tiredly grumbled, "Uh-huh. I guess I should have expected this."

'Is she going to do this for all the materials used in the curse removal? Most of 'em aren't too bad, but gathering Naku Weeds would probably kill me knowing my luck. Actually, that fragment might be a bit hard to get my hands on as well. I don't think there are any nearby bosses who drop them. Even if there was, I'm probably not strong enough to fight one on my own yet.'

"Any idea where I can find one of those fragments?"

"There is a small cave a little south of here where some wandering Ronin have been camping. A little bird told me that they are in possession of one."

"Uh-huh. Great. Guess I'll need to recruit some help or something."

"That is most likely a good idea."

"You know, you could have just asked me to recover any materials you used to remove my curse. I don't really mind, though it could take a while to collect the rarer ones."

"Perhaps that is so, but by doing things this way, you can receive rewards from the Guild as well. Am I not the kindest Guuji you have ever met?"

"...Sure. The wise and beautiful Guuji Yae is very, very kind," Ivan dully replied, one eye twitching a little.

Yae Miko smirked at his retort. 

Figuring he may as well use the commission to pass the time and practice the skills he had acquired along the way, Ivan bid the fox lady goodbye, finished getting ready by washing his face, and then trekked down the mountain. Luckily, only a single fruit fell on his head along the way. And a boar nearly knocked him off the mountainside. And a squirrel attacked him due to a nut that fell into his pocket somehow. And a squad of Hilichurls intercepted him on the road. And a snake tried to bite him…

Yesterday's relative lack of bad luck did not carry over, apparently. Eventually, however, he reached the front gate of the Kamisato Estate looking a little worse for wear.

One of the guards inspected Ivan for a moment before saying, "Ah, you're that Ivan guy, right? Do you need anything?"

"Kind of. Is Thoma here today?"

"He should be," The guard answered. Then, he gave Ivan a strange look and added, "By the way, Lady Kamisato told us that you may enter the estate freely, so go ahead. You can look for Thoma yourself. He shouldn't be hard to find."

"Huh. That's quite welcoming of her. Thanks."

The guard simply nodded in response. It wasn't his job to care who the Kamisato family considered a friend, so he decided not to care.

Although Ivan entered the Kamisato Estate freely countless times while playing Genshin Impact, he felt a few butterflies in his stomach now that he was doing it in person for the first time. If he had to compare the feeling to something, it was like entering through a new friend's front door without knocking even while knowing they were okay with it. 

'No, wait, isn't this exactly that?' Ivan mused.

To his surprise, he quickly found Thoma who was sweeping the front veranda not far from the front door of the mansion. The blondie hummed a simple tune while lost in the moment. Behind him, a rather unattractive young female maid trimming bushes grimaced at Thoma occasionally but quietly returned to her work the moment she noticed Ivan frowning at her.

"Hey, Thoma," Ivan greeted, raising his hand in a short wave. He discarded the issue of the ugly maid to the back of his mind.

Halting his movements, Thoma raised his head, smiled upon seeing Ivan, and replied, "Oh? Good morning, Ivan. What's up?" 

"Are you free today?"

"Maybe for a little bit. Do you need help again?"

"Yeah. I got my first request this morning from the Guild. You can have half the rewards if you're willing to help me out. You interested?"

"Haha. Sure. What's the commission?"

"Collecting some items, though one of them seems to be in the possession of some Ronin."

"Gotcha. Lemme' tell the Young Miss first, then I'll be happy to join you."

"Thanks, man. You're a great guy."

"Hehe."

The two entered the mansion, found Ayaka in her office, and informed her of their intentions to go on a little adventure.

"Are you interested in joining us?" Ivan asked once the explanation ended. 

Frowning, Ayaka sighed before answering, "As much as I would love to join you, I unfortunately have many things to take care of in light of recent events. Also, things may start to become more dangerous, especially for Vision holders, so please stay safe out there, you two."

Both young men nodded in response. Then, they said their goodbyes and left. Back in the office, Ayaka sighed. Although she wanted to join them, she simply had too much on her plate for the day.

Not even an hour later, Ivan and Thoma found the cave Yae Miko had mentioned, mostly due to Thoma's knowledge of the area. Within, they found far more than they bargained for. Nearly fifty pairs of eyes filled with murderous intentions locked onto the two of them the moment they entered. 

"Yashiro Commission dogs! Get 'em, men!"

Ivan and Thoma fled without even needing to consult each other aside from a single glance of agreement. It was an instant decision on both their parts.