1 The Infinity guided by the wind

In a lonely yet cozy place, the wind rustles through the leaves of an immense tree, echoing in the surroundings. A figure sleeps peacefully, leaning against its trunk, murmuring incomprehensible words.

As time passes, the figure begins to regain consciousness, fingers start to move, and a hand shields the face from the sun's rays as it slowly wakes up.

'Ngh...'

'Huh? When did I doze off... Where is this place?'

The figure quickly gets up, startled by the situation. Curiously and restlessly, it surveys the surroundings.

'What?! Where the heck am I?!'

'Maybe... a dream?'

He slowly approaches his hand to the trunk of the giant tree, feeling its rough texture, the sensation is unusually real for a supposed "dream." A shiver runs down his spine, realizing the situation he is in.

'This place is familiar... this tree looks too much like the one from Windrise, a location in that game.'

'But is that even possible? How could I be in a place that doesn't even exist?'

'Okay, wait. Let's recap a bit... My name is Roman, and I'm 19 years old. I was heading home after a long day at college... My last memory is using my phone on the bus. How did I end up here?'

Roman begins to pat his body, searching for his phone but to no avail. Suddenly, a slight discomfort arises in his eyes, prompting him to put his hand over them. At that moment, he realizes, where are his glasses?

"Ugh... Wait... why can I see so well without them?!"

Opening his eyes again, a tremendous amount of information floods his brain, causing a slight headache. However, in return, he seems to be able to see details that shouldn't be naturally possible.

Leaves moving gently in the wind, the texture of the trunk, and even ants crawling up and down the tree are all clearly visible.

'My clothes have changed too...'

His attire consists of a black shirt and loose white pants. His physique also seems to have changed, appearing slightly more muscular.

Looking up, the sun is directly in the middle of the sky, indicating noon. Without wasting time, he starts walking towards a statue, feeling a sense of familiarity.

'This doesn't seem to be my body... Anyway, it should be around here.'

He arrives at what appears to be a large statue made of stone adorned with gold. A winged figure on top holds an orb, welcoming him with a faint glow that seems to alleviate his discomfort.

'A Statue of The Seven... it doesn't seem to be in a good state. It doesn't look like the Traveler has found them yet.'

Looking to the horizon, he sees some hilichurl camps scattered across the plain. It's a relatively unique sight.

'Analyzing my current situation, I should head to Mondstadt. It's not safe to stay here... if I'm not mistaken, by climbing that hill, I should reach a road.'

After walking for a few minutes, Roman locates a small dirt road that seems to stretch all the way to Mondstadt, already visible in the distance.

'Whoa, it's much more beautiful than in the game. The City of Freedom, huh... has Dvalin appeared yet? I'm not sure if dying on my first day here would be a good idea, heh.'

'The street seems quite deserted, but that's expected... It's not common to encounter people here in the game. Let's keep going for now.'

Following the road, various forests and plains can be seen on the sides. Compared to other nations, Mondstadt doesn't have as many scattered structures.

Finally reaching the city, several caravans and people are seen entering and leaving. Most caravans seem to be heading towards Liyue, likely carrying goods there.

Some people cast strange glances at Roman, given his unusual appearance and clothes. He, on the other hand, seems completely captivated by the colossal city.

'This is absurd... the gates seem much larger than in the game.'

After a few minutes enjoying the scenery, he decides to enter.

'Alright, now is not the time to play around, I need to find a place to stay. The fastest way might be to become an adventurer, but will they accept people without a Vision so easily? Well, there's only one way to find out...'

Walking up to the entrance, Roman is stopped by one of the city guards. He wears white armor and has brown hair and eyes.

"Stop, please. Who are you, and what is the purpose of your entry?"

A bit surprised by the approach, Roman responds.

"Hm? Hey, my name is Roman. Just passing through, I heard this is a pretty good place to visit, haha."

The guard raises one of his eyebrows, somewhat suspicious. However, he continues with his questioning.

"I see… your clothes really stand out, hahaha. Well, just don't cause any trouble, and we'll be fine. If you have any questions or need help, don't hesitate to ask the Knights of Favonius. You can go in, by the way, my name is Swan."

Roman smiles slightly.

"Thanks for the information. Is there anything I need to know before entering?"

Swan puts his hand on his face in a thoughtful manner and says:

"Hmm, let me think. Ah! I would be a little careful while walking at night, we've been receiving several reports of assaults in these last few days."

Roman nods

"Alright, thanks for the help!"

'Nothing about Stormterror, huh? It seems I'm before the main storyline, then. I should prepare before its arrival, just in case.'

Roman bids farewell to Swan and proceeds into the city. The interior of the city is composed of cobblestone streets and houses with German architecture. The city features numerous windmills and a colossal statue of its Archon, Barbatos, at its highest point.

Compared to the game, the city seems much more bustling, with various people going up and down the streets. Roman observes the city a bit more, experiencing a familiar sensation, even though he has never been there physically.

'Marjorie is there, as always. The guild is there too, and Good Hunter seems to be up there. Everything is where I remember it, very good. I think I'll go to the guild first, I should be able to handle some hilichurls if I have a sword. Or maybe collect some fruits, we'll see.'

'Ah! I almost forgot, I should be able to see my reflection in some window around here. I'm almost sure this is not my body...'

In a slightly deserted street, Roman begins to approach a random window, and what he sees is quite bizarre.

His facial features have completely changed, his brown hair is gone, replaced by a pure white one. His eyes now seem to reflect the sky's own blue.

'What the hell... Wait, Gojo?!'

Putting his hand on his face, he finally realizes what is happening. His clothes, appearance, and especially his eyes. All these characteristics are very familiar to him, as they once belonged to the world's strongest Sorcerer, Gojo Satoru.

'Is this serious? Am I in his body?!'

'Fuuu... Okay, I can't waste time here. This is clearly an advantage for me, but can I use cursed energy?'

Roman opens the palm of his hand, attempting to sense some kind of energy in his body. Suddenly, something seems to stir deep within his soul, and his arm tenses as it receives it.

'This is... Cursed energy? My arm seems reinforced...'

'I should be able to deal with some hilichurls with this.'

He tries to move his arm a bit, attempting to understand what has changed in him at this moment. The sensation is a bit strange, the entire arm seems to tingle slightly in various different parts, almost like a shiver.

'Mhm... I'll head to the guild before it gets dark, I urgently need a place to stay, even if it's just for one night. Camping would be an option, but I have no supplies, so it's not really a viable choice.'

Heading to the guild, a round building with a star emblem comes into view. Roman notices a small line of people dressed in green, engaged in conversation with the receptionist. He moves to the end of the line and waits, enjoying the scenery around.

A few minutes pass, and he arrives in front of the receptionist. She has black hair and gray-blue eyes, wearing a white dress with green details.

"Ad astra abyssosque! Welcome to the adventurer's guild. What can I do for you?"

'Katheryne huh... I wonder if she's a puppet here too?'

"Sir?"

Noticing that he spaced out a bit, Roman straightens up and responds: 

"Ah! Sorry. I would like to become an Adventurer, is it possible?"

Katheryne raises an eyebrow, noticing the unusual appearance of the person in front of her.

"Of course! Just wait a moment, please."

She bends down and seems to look for something among her drawers and cabinets. Suddenly, she pulls out a sheet of paper and places it on the table.

"You just need to fill out this form for me."

Taking a brief look at the form, surprisingly, it is written in English. And it seems to have some basic questions, such as name, age, and some other things.

"Uh, just a question, is it necessary to have a Vision to become one?"

Katheryne shakes her head and says, "It's not really necessary, but unfortunately, some specific missions won't be available unless you have a recommendation from someone special, proving your skills."

Roman sighs a bit relieved and nods, starting to fill out the form.

"I think that's it, here you go."

Katheryne smiles and gently takes the paper.

"Roman, right? 19 years old... born in Fontaine. Perfect. You came from far away, huh, Traveler?"

'Calm down, I just need to act naturally. She doesn't need to know that I'm not from Teyvat.'

"Haha, yes. It's been a few months since I left my hometown."

Katheryne opens a drawer and puts Roman's form with other files. She turns to Roman and says: 

"The initial procedures have been completed, but you still need to take a small test to complete your application."

'I knew it, it was too easy... What the hell is this test she's talking about, anyway?'

"A test?"

Katheryne opens a small smile.

"Don't worry, you just have to complete some daily commissions. Just normal tasks for an adventurer... the guild does this to assess if you're capable of doing this kind of task since it's part of the job."

'Mhm... well, it makes sense. It doesn't seem too difficult.'

Roman nods and says:

 "Okay, when do I start?"

Katheryne pulls out three more papers and hands them to Roman.

"Right now! You need to complete them by the end of the day. Good luck!"

Roman takes the papers from Katheryne's hands, after analyzing them for a bit, they seem to be common commissions. Two extermination quests of Hilichurls, and one seems to be about collecting some small lamp grass.

"Understood, I'll start right away. Thank you!"

Bidding farewell to Katheryne, Roman begins to exit the city with a thoughtful expression..

'Okay, I think I should start with the small lamp grass... It seems to be the easiest of the three. I still don't know how I'm going to deal with these hilichurls, I need to test some things first.'

'According to the quest paper, I need to find five of them... If I'm not mistaken, they are quite common in Whispering Woods. I should head there.'

In front of the city, Roman follows the path to his left, heading toward his goal. The road in this direction isn't very busy; you can spot a few adventurers returning, but nothing more. Without wasting much time, he continues his journey.

'Thinking about it now, I haven't encountered any playable characters from the game so far... I don't know if I'm being lucky or not, haha.'

After a few minutes, Roman realizes that he is completely alone on the road, only occasional adventurers seem to pass through it from time to time.

Suddenly, he ventures into a small forest beside the road, with a certain enthusiasm stamped on his face.

'I couldn't test the abilities of this body in the city, now it should be safe enough. Let's see what I can do.'

'Gojo Satoru has two innate techniques, the Six Eyes and the Limitless. As for the first, it's clearly here, considering my vision. Now, about the Limitless... it consists of the Infinity, which slows down almost infinitely anything approaching the user. Besides this one, there are three others, but let's focus on the 'easier' one first.'

'The logic is easy to understand, but in practice, it's another story... let me try.'

Opening the palms of his hands, Roman attempts to move his cursed energy out of his body and shape it to perform the technique. From an external perspective, nothing seems to have happened, but the Six Eyes allow him to perceive any flow of energy. In this case, a slight distortion in space caused by the technique is observable.

'Is this it? I sort of knew how to do it... almost like a muscle memory. Mhm, but is it working?'

Roman brings the palm of his other hand closer to the one that executed the technique, slowly. Suddenly, his hand appears to come to a halt in the air, no matter how much force he exerts, nothing happens.

"Woah, this is so cool..."

'With this, I don't have to worry about attacks from these hilichurls.'

'I should also be able to use the cursed technique lapse... It basically creates multiple negative spaces at a point in space, making the world self-correct itself by creating a vacuum. At least that's the description I remember.'

'That tree over there looks like a good target. Let's do another test.'

Approaching the tree, he makes a gun sign with his hands and aims at it. Roman focuses his cursed energy on the tip of his finger and says:

"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue."

Once again, his body seems to remember exactly how to execute the technique, like a muscle memory. A medium-sized blue sphere appears in front of the tree, breaking and tearing its trunk with its gravitational force, making it orbit around the sphere..

"Fuuh... Damn, this is unbelievably strong."

'I hope no one heard that noise, it was much more powerful than I thought it would be... I should train a bit more later, I need better control of my energy output, otherwise I might end up hurting someone unintentionally.'

'Now, the Red... that's the biggest problem. I don't think I can use positive energy at the moment, my body may remember the technique, but without positive energy it's completely useless.'

Even with these doubts, Roman raises his index finger. However, instead of focusing his energy, he attempts to multiply it. This is the principle of the Reverse Cursed Technique—multiplying negative energy by negative energy, creating positive energy, and then using it in place of negative energy in the technique.

'This is easier said than done... Grh...'

"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red!"

'That's it!' Roman exclaims.

A faint red glow appears at the tip of his finger, intensifying gradually. A subtle force seems to repel the surrounding air as Roman then aims at another tree and attempts to unleash the technique. However, at the moment it should explode, it vanishes completely, leaving no traces.

'Shit! What did I do wrong?!'

'I'm sure I did everything right... What the hell.'

Looking frustrated at the sky, he realizes that it is already past 2 in the afternoon, time is passing, and it's not good to waste it.

'Tch... I should hurry. This should be enough to deal with some hilichurls.'

He discreetly leaves the mess he made during his "training" and starts heading towards his goal again.

After a few more minutes following the road, Whispering Woods comes into view in the distance. It is a small and dense forest situated on the way to Starfell Lake, where one of the region's Statues of The Seven is located.

The sky, once completely clear, now harbors various dark clouds, a forewarning of the imminent rain. Roman hurries to gather the five small lamp grass before the storm arrives.

'They should emit a faint glow at night, making them much easier to find. Well, the weather has darkened a bit anyway, so it shouldn't be too problematic.'

Upon entering the forest, it doesn't take long for him to spot a small blue plant illuminating its surroundings. There appear to be many of them in the forest, much more than in the actual game. Roman crouches down and observes before collecting it.

'So, this is what they look like in real life, huh... They're quite beautiful. I used to collect them to level up Fischl and Diluc. Good times.'

After collecting it, Roman continues exploring the forest in search of more. It's not a very difficult task, as the clouds have darkened an already naturally dark forest even more.

'Mhm... I think that's it, I got them all. Now, only the other two quests remain. There seems to be a blockade made by Hilichurls between Springvale and Dawn Winery, closing the road... considering that, there shouldn't be many people around.'

'Hmm, as for the other one... Ah.'

'There's a Hilichurl camp near Starfell Lake... So, just keep going. Did Katheryne intentionally choose these quests? Mhm…'

'Ugh, fighting with these plants in hand is going to be a pain. I should have bought a bag or something. I guess I'll leave them behind a tree and hope no one takes them. I already have no experience with fights, imagine fighting with one hand…'

After complaining for a while, Roman begins heading north toward Starfell Lake, a small lake that houses one of the region's Statues of The Seven.

On the way, various animals are visible among the trees: boars, squirrels, and many others— even more than the game shows. Occasionally, even wolves are seen, but they quickly hide upon noticing his presence.

After a few minutes of walking, the lake reveals itself in the distance along with its faintly shining statue. However, another structure comes into view—a camp blocking the passage between the road and the lake statue.

Indecipherable words can be heard from it, prompting Roman to hide behind a tree.

'It's here... Doesn't seem like many. Two archers, one fighter, and a Mitachurl.'

'None of the Hilichurls should pose much of a problem, but that Mitachurl... I should take him by surprise first, and then deal with the rest. I can't afford to be careless, even with the infinity, mine isn't automatic like Gojo's yet.'

The camp has two towers, each with a Hilichurl archer on top. The Mitachurl seems to be sitting in front of a campfire, with his shield leaning beside him, and the Hilichurl fighter stands next to his larger companion.

Hilichurls are slender, short creatures with grayish skin and masks on their faces. The Mitachurl shares the same characteristics but has a much larger, more muscular body. Its mask also features larger horns compared to those of regular Hilichurls.

Sneaking up to a nearby bush, Roman is already close to the camp and begins preparing for the fight. He envelops his body with cursed energy, greatly strengthening himself.

'Let's try using that... it should be more than enough to deal with him.'

'Fuuh... Here we go.'

Roman starts murmuring some words. It seems that memorizing them purely out of love for the character has paid off.

"Cycle."

"Twilight."

"Eyes of Wisdom."

To ensure the most dangerous target is eliminated quickly, he begins chanting the technique, a method of increasing the output of cursed energy.

"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue!"

The Mitachurl, who was sitting peacefully by the campfire, could barely react. The unleashed Blue next to him shifted the ground, compressing it. In the blink of an eye, the giant was engulfed by the bluish sphere, its flesh torn and compressed until only red particles remained.

The other Hilichurls watched in shock, seeing the remains of their companion dissolve into red particles and be absorbed by the ground.

'One.'

After a few seconds of shock, the remaining Hilichurl charged fiercely toward Roman, while the other two archers began loading their crossbows. Assuming a combat stance, Roman fortified his arms with cursed energy.

'He's not very fast…'

The Hilichurl lunges forward, scratching everything in its path relentlessly. However, Roman agilely dodges backward and delivers a precise kick to the lower part of the Hilichurl, making it fall flat on the ground.

His cursed energy and the six eyes were crucial for this maneuver, even as a complete novice, Roman's movements are extremely precise. 

He says calmly:

"Sorry about that, but I need the money."

He steps on the Hilichurl's head with his cursed energy-strengthened leg, causing it to explode into pieces before being absorbed by the earth.

'Two.'

"Now, just the arch…?!"

Suddenly, an arrow charged with electro energy appears in front of him. Reflexively, Roman dives to the side, dodging it.

"Tch, I forgot they can use elements."

A second arrow emerges, but this time it is charged with the Pyro element. Unfortunately for the Hilichurl, it stops in mid-air.

"Well, too bad, heh"

Roman moves like lightning, launching himself into the air and landing on the platform where one of the Hilichurls stands. Without hesitation, he rips the crossbow from its hands, delivers a swift kick to the stomach, and throws the Hilichurl off the platform.

'That makes three.'

'Ugh, maintaining the infinity is a bit tiring. Let's finish this quickly.'

He turns to the platform where the next Hilichurl is, and another arrow stops right in front of his eyes. Completely disregarding it, Roman smiles.

'This is kind of fun, let me try something else.'

Launching himself into the air, Roman uses Blue once again, this time to pull his body upwards. He ascends rapidly, dissipating his technique at the height he set.

"It works! Hahah!."

Roman drops onto the poor Hilichurl, crushing its body on the platform and causing it to collapse afterward.

'Huuf, four.'

He lifts his foot off the Hilichurl's head, and it dissolves into red particles, absorbed by the ground along with its companions.

'That was much more fun than I thought it would be, heh.'

The battlefield, once teeming with life, now lies in complete silence. Only Roman remains in the area, his eyes glowing with a residual bluish light as the cursed energy begins to dissipate.

'Since Hilichurls disappear after being killed, I don't think I need to take anything as proof of the extermination. They must have some way to verify that.'

'Two quests done, just one more. It's a bit far away... But I have no choice, without money, there's nothing I can do.'

Roman retrieves the plants he had hidden earlier, humming as he begins to walk back along the same path he used to come. Springvale is on the opposite side of where he is now, on the way to Liyue.

But little does he know that his first encounter with someone important in this world is about to occur.