In the dead of night, Victor Wang woke instantly as Little Wen struck his bedside twice with the sword hilt.
That was the signal—Zhiqiong had snuck out.
Tonight's watchman was Khedive. Ever since the group returned from the Stony Halls, everyone had been taking turns keeping watch. At the moment, Khedive was completely absorbed in studying the photographs of Lumenstones and the Dark Mud, so much so that he hadn't even noticed someone leaving camp. Not that the watchman was required to stop his own people from going out anyway.
Victor Wang didn't disturb him. Guided by Little Wen, he caught up to a startled Zhiqiong in under two minutes.
"Was that really necessary?" he asked quietly.
"Think whatever you like," she replied. "Whether I'm trying to earn a name for myself, achieve something grand, or just leave a trace of my own existence in The Chasm—something that's mine, something that won't be forgotten—it doesn't matter. I just need something."
"No one's taking your credit," Victor Wang said calmly. "The map is indeed something you walked, step by step, and drew, stroke by stroke."
"But I can't convince myself of that!" she snapped. "That way, it doesn't prove my will. If I finish everything with everyone's help, then what does that even mean? It's like—" she paused, searching for words. "It's like if you wanted to become one of the Qixing through your own effort, but your parents smoothed out every difficulty for you, leaving nothing for you to overcome yourself. In the end, it wouldn't matter if it were you or someone else. I don't want that. That's not my adventure, and it can't be my proof."
Being caught sneaking out in the middle of the night, Zhiqiong gave up struggling. She found a flat stone nearby, sat down, and made no move to leave.
Victor Wang sat beside her. "Let's talk."
"Talk about what? You're just that kind of person—well-meaning, sure, but always meddling… like some kind of babysitter."
"I'd say bodyguard is more accurate," Victor Wang said mildly. "And you're right—adventurers don't usually need bodyguards. I apologize for that. But I can't just stand by and watch someone throw their life away in front of me."
"Throw my life away? You're underestimating me."
"I believe you can finish the map of The Chasm on your own. But I also believe that, if left to your own devices, you won't make it out alive."
"Heh… I don't deny that." Zhiqiong's tone softened. "When I came here, I kept thinking—Leonard, Stanley, Roald… those famous visionless adventurers—they must've seen wonders like The Chasm too. They must've walked through darkness, silence, and danger. If they were in my place now… would those great adventurers have chosen to retreat for the sake of survival? Or would they, like foolish me, risk their lives to chase the unknown?"
"You once mentioned Leonard, Stanley, and Roald as examples of mortal adventurers," Victor Wang said. "Since you've brought them up again, I'll answer you using the same three names—I'll tell you what their choices were."
"..."
"I've met Leonard," Victor Wang said simply.
Zhiqiong's face froze. "Please don't joke about things like that. You can't possibly understand what they went through."
"I really have," Victor Wang replied. "Last year, a meteor shower swept across Mondstadt and Liyue. Those who touched the fallen stars were drawn into a dream—a dream of climbing a snow-covered mountain. Believe it or not, that dream was Leonard's obsession with ascending Pilos Peak. I climbed that mountain with him in the dream."
"…There's no such peak anymore. It's not even on the map."
"Right. The mountain that once filled Leonard with fear was sheared off by Barbatos when the Anemo Archon reshaped Mondstadt's terrain. Its summit now barely juts out above the ocean. Anyone with a boat can reach it."
"That's exactly what frustrates me," Zhiqiong muttered. "Even if the Anemo Archon did it for Mondstadt, I still want to ask—what did Leonard's efforts mean to Him?"
"To the Anemo Archon," Victor Wang said, "Leonard's effort was something worthy of song—worthy of a pluck of the lyre."
"How could you possibly know that?"
"I just do."
"Hmph."
"Do you know how Leonard invented the Wind Glider?"
She frowned. "No."
"It was because of his fear of that mountain. In his old age, he no longer had the strength or courage to reach the summit. Pilos Peak ended his adventuring career."
"That's impossible!"
"I will not climb anymore," Victor Wang said, voice softening, "but I will dream bigger, and further."
"?"
Zhiqiong shot him a puzzled look. But he was gazing upward as if the dull stone ceiling above them had turned into a starlit sky full of memories.
Recalling Leonard's determination—and the moment he stopped the falling meteor—Victor Wang continued, mimicking Leonard's voice:
"Humans create tools to conquer nature—and when nature conquers us, we invent better tools still. When our legs can't carry us higher, we use what we build. When tools fail, we borrow wings. In the face of the unknown, humanity stands as one. So long as we live, we will one day reach all places that can be seen."
"It was because he could no longer climb that Leonard invented the Wind Glider. Though his blueprints were unfinished and it couldn't truly fly, it still carried others safely down the mountain—didn't it?"
When Zhiqiong didn't respond, Victor Wang pressed gently, "If you were in Leonard's place, would you have done the same—invented wings? Or would you have fought the peak to the end and frozen into a corpse halfway up?"
Zhiqiong lowered her gaze. "I told you, I'm foolish. I don't have his talent. If the only thing I could do was die halfway up the mountain, then that's what I'd do."
Victor Wang sighed, a mix of weariness and pity. "Only by living can people reach all that they can see."
"Living… but what does living truly mean?" Zhiqiong murmured. "People say we die twice—once when our life ends, and again when our traces fade from the world."
She let out a deep sigh. She hadn't expected that, on a night like this, she would find herself revealing her heart to someone she'd only known for two days.
"Stanley, the great adventurer of Mondstadt, became famous for crossing the Mare Jivari," she continued softly. "He lost his best friend on that journey. And though few remember his friend's name, that memory still lives among adventurers today. I think… that friend who never returned has surely surpassed the second death. Maybe he's the one who's truly 'alive.'"
"And if Stanley had been the one to die, and his friend had survived?" Victor Wang asked.
"You can't fool me with that—Stanley's alive and well in Mondstadt."
"I'm sorry to tell you…" Victor Wang's tone gentled. "Stanley's friend's name was Hans Archibald. The 'Stanley' in Mondstadt now is Hans. It's a secret few talk about, but… if revealing it could save a young adventurer's life, I think he wouldn't mind. Just—don't tell anyone else, alright? You don't seem like the gossiping type anyway."
"What?" Zhiqiong blinked in disbelief. "The Stanley who crossed the Sea of Ashes… is dead?"
Victor Wang nodded. "Hans and Stanley crossed that sea together. When they reached its center, something went wrong. Stanley gave his life to protect Hans."
"Then the Stanley now…"
"Hans feared that Stanley's legend would fade—that his friend's trace in this world would vanish, that Stanley would truly 'die.' So he took Stanley's name, told his stories, and has lived as him ever since."
"You're lying! You have to be lying!"
"I don't lie," Victor Wang said with a shrug. "You can spend a few Mora to take a carriage to Mondstadt and sit in the Angel's Share tavern for a while. The Stanley there sometimes cries about it when he's drunk. Actually, quite a few people probably know by now—they just choose not to expose him."
"No…" Zhiqiong pressed a trembling hand to her chest, breath catching. Stanley had been her greatest inspiration.
"Stanley gave his life so Hans could live. Hans gave up his own identity so Stanley could live. Does that help you understand what it means to truly live? If you were Stanley—how would you use your life? If you were Hans, the one saved, how would you use yours?"
"I…"
Victor Wang didn't let the moment fade. "I know Roald too. That one's simpler. During his expedition to Tsurumi Island in Inazuma, one of his goals was to find the mythical Fluorescent Fungus that could cure his amnesia. But the island was covered in thick fog—he tried everything, couldn't find a way through, and was about to give up, ready to leave. If it were you…"