"An order? Sure, an order. No problem at all.
So… what does this young lady plan to command me to do?
But I must say in advance—
I'm just an ordinary mortal. My abilities are limited, so please forgive me if I fall short."
Seeing the girl's cold expression, Kaeya immediately sheathed his weapon and forced a pleasant smile.
He wasn't stupid.
Even if he didn't know what she wanted, one thing was clear:
This girl was not someone he could fight.
Even Lord Barbatos was being held back by her dragon. What could he do?
If he could comply, he absolutely would.
For Mondstadt's sake, for his own sake, for everyone's sake.
And if he couldn't…
He had already decided that he would stall for as long as possible, even if it meant his life.
To her, they were probably worth less than ants.
"A map. I require a complete map of Teyvat.
Don't tell me you can't produce one, human."
Su Mo stood with her hands clasped behind her back, her voice cold and commanding.
She had just received the system notification that the Mondstadt task was complete.
Great—finally done.
She was ready to head back to Liyue and finish the next part.
Except… she had no idea how to get there.
Now that she played the Herrscher of the Void, the system no longer teleported her around like before.
She had to fly or navigate on her own.
And the real Teyvat was nothing like the small, game-like map she remembered—
Vast continents, real distances, no teleport anchors.
Heck, she'd spent her whole time in Liyue until being dumped into Mondstadt.
She didn't even know which direction Liyue was from here.
So… ask for a map.
Simple.
"Ma… map?"
Kaeya froze. Thought he'd misheard.
That's all she wants?
No. Impossible. There must be a catch…
He was deeply suspicious.
"Human. Must I repeat myself?"
Su Mo's patience thinned; her golden eyes sharpened dangerously.
"No problem, no problem at all. But… it takes time. If you wait, I can— ah—!"
Kaeya didn't even finish.
His body suddenly lurched forward—no, dragged forward—
Suspended midair as if an invisible hand had seized his throat.
Su Mo held her hand out in a gripping motion.
Kaeya clawed desperately at his neck, unable to breathe.
"Hmph. Humans truly are all the same—scheming little insects.
You dare stall for time? Then go die."
So she knew.
Kaeya felt his vision blur.
Damn… can she read minds…?
"I… wait… I have something… to say…!"
"Oh? Still pretending?" Su Mo's expression darkened.
"Don't insult me with such petty tricks, human."
She tightened her grip.
Kaeya's breaths turned into choking gasps.
"Listen… our maps… are kept by a specific… department…
With all this chaos… I really do need… a moment…!"
He pointed weakly toward the panicked crowd.
And… she paused.
Because in truth, he wasn't lying.
Maps in this world weren't common items—they were hand-drawn, corrected constantly, and maintained by the Knights' logistics teams.
"...Hmph."
Su Mo released him, crossing her arms again.
Right.
This wasn't his old world.
Maps weren't something every civilian carried.
She shot Kaeya a warning glare anyway.
He'd better not try anything.
"Kaeya!"
Diluc's voice cut through the noise—urgent, furious.
Brotherly affection at its finest.
Hm? She's coming too.
Su Mo's eyes flicked toward Jean, sprinting over weapon in hand.
"Wait, wait—don't rush in! I'm having a perfectly friendly conversa—
cough—conversation with this lovely lady…"
Kaeya burst into a fit of violent coughing, nearly collapsing.
Diluc and Jean hurriedly grabbed him.
"What did she do to you—?"
"Nothing! Nothing at all! Stop wasting her time—
We need to find the map. Hurry!"
Diluc stared at him in exasperation.
Even now, he's still like this…
But he stopped advancing.
He knew too well how dangerous she was.
And yet—he hadn't planned on dying quietly either.
"...A map?"
Jean blinked in disbelief.
"Teyvat's map," Kaeya said quickly.
"Hurry. Go."
Since his back was to Su Mo, he threw Diluc and Jean a barrage of frantic eye signals.
"The maps are stored in the Knights' archives," Jean said loudly.
"We didn't bring any with us."
"Oh? With the Knights? I thought it'd be elsewhere."
Kaeya forced a smile.
"So, this lady—how should we address—"
"You have no right to know my name."
Su Mo's voice cut in sharply.
"Do not waste my time. My patience has limits."
"…Fair enough. Then—let's wait at Angel's Share, shall we?
It's quiet, comfortable, and close. And if they dare play tricks, you can kill me on the spot—
no effort required for someone like you."
"Lead the way."
The moment she heard "Angel's Share," Su Mo agreed instantly.
After all, wasn't that where she could finally try Mondstadt's famous dandelion wine?
"No problem. Leave it to me.
And please hurry," Kaeya muttered toward Jean and Diluc under his breath.
"I don't want to die yet."
Then he led Su Mo away.
…
"Jean… why do you think she wants a map?"
Diluc asked as they hurried toward headquarters.
"If she wants a map… she must be searching for a specific place."
"Liyue?"
Both said at the same time.
They froze.
If she was heading for Liyue, then handing her the map wasn't just dangerous—
It was a political catastrophe waiting to happen.
Because no matter what—
They were the ones who brought this walking disaster into Liyue's path.
What should they do?
Give it… or not?
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