Hu Tao leaned down until her plum-blossom eyes were inches from Klee's face.
Klee blinked. Hu Tao blinked back.
Two Pyro gremlins, one big and one small, stared at each other like mirror images of chaos.
Then—
"Hello, Sister!" Klee chirped. "I'm Klee! From Mondstadt!"
Hu Tao's eyes widened, sparkling like fireworks about to go off.
"I am Hu Tao, the Hu that eats and drinks, and the Tao from peach—"
Her voice cracked. She winced. Peach. She had meant to say peachwood (symbol of warding spirits), but the slip reminded her of one man's terrible jokes about peaches.
Her eyes narrowed at Takumi.
This is your fault.
If he weren't so obsessed with peach jokes, she wouldn't have slipped.
Recovering instantly, she puffed her chest.
"I'm the 77th Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor! Services with heart and soul!"
Klee gasped like Hu Tao had announced she was Princess of the Sun.
"Hello, Sister Hu Tao!! Are you here to play with Klee?"
"Klee can take Sister Hu Tao to fry fish!"
Hu Tao froze.
Then her eyes lit up like someone had just offered her 50% off coffins.
"Fried fish?"
"Oh."
"Oh ho ho~!"
"LET'S GO!"
Without hesitation, Hu Tao scooped Klee up like a treasure chest and sprinted outside.
Takumi watched the two pyro gremlins vanish in a cloud of excited dust.
"…That's going to end badly."
Then he shrugged.
"…Actually, no. They're too similar. They'll thrive."
TAKUMI'S NEXT MEGA PROJECT — CARS OF TEYVAT
Leaving the duo to their "fried fish rampage," Takumi returned to his blueprints.
Now that most of the major roads were completed…
It was time.
Time for something Teyvat had never seen—
Cars.
Buses.
Trucks.
Industrial vehicles.
Powered not by combustion engines, but alchemical reactors built from:
Chaos Devices
Chaos Cores
Elemental energy converters
Electro crystals for ignition
Geo-infused stabilizers
A hybrid system—half reason, half alchemy.
A new technological era.
But first: research partners.
And the best alchemist he knew—besides Sucrose—was the "Kreideprinz."
Takumi went to Sucrose's alchemy hut and knocked softly.
"Miss Sucrose, are you free? I'd like to ask for your help."
Seconds later, the door cracked open.
"M-Mr. Takumi? Did I do something wrong?"
Her hands shook like she expected to be scolded for Klee's bazooka upgrades.
Takumi shook his head, amused.
"Actually, I need you to invite Master Albedo here."
Sucrose blinked rapidly.
"You… want to speak with Master Albedo?"
"Yes. Tell him it's regarding transportation that could change all of Teyvat."
Sucrose's eyes widened.
Takumi added gently, "And please… ask him to come soon."
She straightened like a startled kitten.
"Understood! I'll write immediately!"
Takumi left her to it. No point disturbing a focused alchemist.
[SYSTEM — PRIVATE NOTE]
Project Added: ALCH-VEHICLE • STATUS: PROTOTYPE
Required:
Albedo (chief researcher)
Sucrose (bio-tech & materials consultant)
Ningguang's mechanical team
Adeptus energy analysis (optional)
Projected Impact:
Nationwide transport revolution (Liyue → Mondstadt → Fontaine → Sumeru supply chain integration)
Takumi exhaled.
The future was beginning.
NINGGUANG RECEIVES THE BLUEPRINT
Thanks to Phil Godette's adeptal message delivery, the document reached Qunyu Pavilion fast.
Baiwen delivered it personally.
Ningguang took the scroll, unfolded it, and read every line with analytical precision.
Tire structure diagrams.
Power furnace variants.
Disc brake concepts.
Energy conversion notations.
Load distribution sketches.
Driver cabin layout.
Safety protocols.
By the time she reached page three, she stopped and murmured:
"…Impressive."
By page five:
"…Vision-independent? With chaos-powered reactors?"
By page eight:
"…No wonder he needed Mondstadt's help."
By the end, her lips curved—the faint smile she only wore when seeing a gold mine.
"This could become Liyue's backbone industry."
She closed the document and looked at Baiwen.
"Transfer all craftsmen involved in the Jade Chamber's construction.
And all alchemists with mechanical specialization."
Baiwen stared.
"…All, my lady?"
"Every single one. Send them to Guili Plains."
She tapped the blueprint.
"Assist Mr. Takumi.
This research takes priority over everything except national security."
Baiwen bowed sharply.
"Yes, Lady Ningguang!"
As Baiwen left, Ningguang gazed out the glass floor, looking in the direction of Guili Plains.
"Takumi… just how far will your imagination reshape Liyue?"
HOLD ON—WHERE ARE HUTAO AND KLEE?
Meanwhile, down by the riverbank—
BOOM!!
BOOM!!
BOOM!!
The fish population had no chance.
Hu Tao held Klee like a proud coach.
"Klee! That one had excellent distance! Nice explosion arc!"
"Klee learned from Brother Takumi!"
Klee puffed her chest. "And Sister Hu Tao too!"
Hu Tao laughed like a delighted fox.
"Maybe I should hire you part-time during the Rite of Parting.
Our fireworks show could use some IMPACT."
"No blowing people up though!" Klee answered brightly.
"…Yes, of course. No blowing people up."
Hu Tao said it with practiced conviction, as if she had rehearsed that line many times.
Nearby, workers quietly evacuated.
One whispered, "We're going to run out of fish at this rate."
Another replied, "Just write it in the daily report. Ningguang will adjust fishing quotas."
A third sighed, "Mondstadt's children are too dangerous…"
KEQING'S PROBLEM: TWO PYRO GREMLINS
Keqing arrived five minutes later.
The sight that greeted her:
Klee dual-wielding waterproof bombs
Hu Tao cheering like she was at a lantern festival
Dozens of blasted fish floating
Two chefs crying tears of both joy and fear
Keqing put her hands on her hips.
"No. No more bombs. No more fried fish. No more Hu Tao encouraging Klee!"
Hu Tao blinked innocently.
"What? I'm nurturing young talent!"
Klee nodded seriously. "Klee is talented!"
Keqing exhaled deeply.
"Takumi… you're fixing this."
Takumi appeared behind her with perfect comedic timing.
"…I can fix the fish problem, but the gremlin problem is permanent."
Keqing groaned.
THE FUTURE: INDUSTRY, INFRASTRUCTURE, AND INVENTION
While the pyromaniac duo returned to the inn (Hu Tao already trying to convince Klee to design "funeral-safe fireworks"), Takumi drafted more designs:
Electro-crystal battery cells
Pyro ignition arrays
Geo-stabilized chassis frames
Anemo-based cooling fans
Hydro braking systems
Vehicles powered by elemental engineering, not combustion.
Factories would be needed:
A steel plant near Mt. Tianheng
A vehicle assembly complex in Guili Plains
An energy core research institute near Liyue Harbor
A testing field for mobility prototypes
He scribbled ideas rapidly, pages piling up.
Once Albedo arrived, they'd refine the energy cores.
Once Ningguang's team arrived, production would begin.
Once roads connected Liyue to Stone Gate, Mondstadt trade would triple.
Takumi's dream was becoming tangible.
An industrial Liyue.
A technological Liyue.
A future-proof Liyue.
And in the corner of the inn, Hu Tao was teaching Klee a funeral-themed jingle.
"Sister Hu Tao, why do coffins need jingles?"
"Because advertisement is important, little Klee."
"…What's 'advertisement'?"
"Oh, you'll learn."
Takumi massaged his temples.
Tomorrow he'd need to build a safety distance training course.