"…" said Lord No-Name. 

To preface this name, Tao Hua had gifted it to him in the moment of his reverie. He thought it was best suited for someone both intimidating and composed. 

Now, on the surface, it felt like a name that took little to no effort. Which is very much true! Tao Hua thought it up in mere minutes, but it's not like the name didn't hold weight either. 

It was the same weight as knowing he was royally fucked. 

Tao Hua's philosophy on the situation was as stated: 

The moment something is named or admitted is the moment it becomes a reality. Therefore, the decision to name this mysterious man something as childish as "Lord No-Name" didn't come down to laziness. 

It was purely decided by the sole idea that all things real and bound by energy ran on a timer. Time established the beginning of a story, and once something began, it had to end. 

As do all things in life. 

So, Lord No-Name was a name both load-bearing and hollow, with meaning in something meant to be meaningless.

In his baffled stupor, it was now Lord No-Name's turn to mutter a few questionable noises. These ones, compared to Tao Hua's, were more defined—as if they had the intention of going somewhere. 

"What do you want?" he finally asked. 

Tao Hua's eyes wandered that entire bookshop—from the door, to the old man, and to the dust-ridden beams of the ceiling. He did this a few more times until finally returning to the man who was clearly trying to keep his composure. 

"What can you give me?" asked Tao Hua. 

Lord No Name's shoulders slumped. After a moment, his eyes fell on the scroll in Tao Hua's hand, and then to his little corner. "Books. I'll buy you whatever book you want." 

"…how many?" 

In utter disbelief, Lord No-Name stood in the silence until finally resigning. "As many as you want." 

"…" Toa Hua hummed a bit, pursing his lips as if actually weighing the offer. In truth, he wasn't even thinking about it. He just wanted to look decent. 

That all fell apart the moment he jerked forward, shoving that shield of a scroll into the shelf, and leaving it in its mess of destruction. 

"Okay!" He darted to Lord No-Name's side, joining him in his hobby of 'staring at books.' together! 

"What do you need?"

In the stylistic prose of "fuck show, let's tell", Tao Hua wasn't poor. In fact, he was far from poor. Therefore, he really didn't need anyone to pay for his books. But who was he to deny such a chivalrous offer?

All that previous stuff was now yesterday's problem for our dear princess!

The moment between the two was best described through Lord No-Name's reaction—question marks. That's it. He stared down at Tao Hua, and after a moment longer, he finally said, "…anything on the history of this town?"

Through a smile, Tao Hua hummed, "Nope!"

There was yet another air of silence between the two strangers.

"…nothing? Are you sure?"

"Yup!" Tao Hua's hand hovered from one book to the other until his fingers pulled one out. He took that book and pressed it against his torso, leveraging it steady and brushing off whatever dust concealed the title.

The book was bigger than most. It was best described using the planets. For example, this book in Tao Hua's grip was like Jupiter, and the books he typically read were like Mercury; they were smaller, but filled with a denser tale.

"Okay…" The man followed Tao Hua's movements, scratching his temple. "Then what about artifacts? Any?"

"Don't got any." Tao Hua lifted the giant book, presenting it to Lord No-Name. "Unless you want to count the senile old man down the street. But that gets old quickly. Here!"

Reaching for the book, Lord No-Name muttered his "thanks". As soon as it was snugged in his hands, however, his brows pinched together.

"This…this is a fairytale? Are you toying with me?"

"It is." Tao Hua reached up and pulled the man's arms down with the book. Pointing at the title, he said, "It's a fairytale, but it's a fairytale about gods and stuff. That has to count for something, right? Uh, well, that's because most artifacts are from the gods, and that means they're not rooted in reality--"

Downcast, his forehead wrinkled. "—or a reality we don't yet understand?"

"I don't get it." From Tao Hua, to the book, the man's expression flattened. "Just tell me if you're trying to waste my time."

No! Well, yes. Maybe? The brain was truly an unknown thing, and emotions were the most puzzling part of it. Tao Hua didn't know what to say. He never had the opportunity to learn what to say, rather. Talking to himself didn't count. So yes! He was absolutely wasting this man's time, but for a good cause! Kind of.

Tao Hua doubled down on his terribly crafted lie, conjuring up each sentence like an author to a book. "Well, uh, maybe there's a revelation? Yeah! One no Historian thought about, or a hidden meaning. Er. Something? Um. Figuratively?"

Lord No-Name's thumb grazed the edge of the book, and his eyes were cast studying the cover.

The moment between the two was awkward. They stood in silence as the man contemplated Tao Hua's explanation, his expression unreadable.

See, that was the ultimate problem when speaking to oneself; there was no one around who could disagree, but that also meant no one could agree either. At the end of the day, both were equally sad; just one was adorned in blue instead of pink, and the person wearing the dress was colorblind.

"This isn't what I'm looking for. Thanks anyway." Lord No-Name passed the book back to Tao Hua, breaking the silence between the two. But he would pause midway through his action, making it difficult for Tao Hua to tug the book back. Ripping it book out of his hands, the man shoved it under his arm and retracted his statement. "I changed my mind. I'll consider it. Anything else?"

Tao Hua blinked. What changed this man's mind wasn't any explanation, but an expression. Unbeknownst to Tao Hua, he donned an expression of hurt, written in capital letters. He was too caught up in trying to prevent this potential conversation from leaving; he hadn't realized just how loudly he wore his emotions on his sleeve.

But that meant one thing! He succeeded!

A smile formed on his face. It was the type of smile that nearly crinkled the lips and came off more goofy than it did cute. He also didn't realize this. He just turned back to the shelves and withdrew more books, piling them into Lord No-Name's hands.

"So why are you in Siyue Town? We don't even have a re—" He paused just as the man side-glanced him. This was information learnt through the act of being nosy. Wouldn't that make him look creepy? Rewind.

"A what…?"

"You're looking for a, reeealllyyy cool thing. A thing. You're looking, or something. Like digging! All Historians need to find those things. You're a Historian right?"

True, but not entirely. What Tao Hua meant to say was an "archaeologist".

Glancing over at the man, Tao Hua's eyes trembled with a hopeful gloss. To his sheer luck, the man wasn't even attentive to the topic anymore. He picked up book after book, reading each title. "A paper. Nothing more."

Huh. A scholar…? Tao Hua's eyes went from the man's expression to the sword strapped at his hip. What scholar carries around a sword?

"It's fine." Lord No-Name returned the glance. "I know you were eavesdropping."

"Aaaaaaaaaah…right. Okay. I might know something then," he lied. Kind of. Half-truth was a better way of putting it. Fortunately, this piqued the man's interest. He lifted his brows, prompting Tao Hua to continue.

"If it's really important to you, then you could…" Tao Hua hesitated, but the ever-growing silence and expecting stare made it harder for him to back out. "You should, maybe, talk to the headman…he knows a few things about the relics."

"Oh?" The man's face looked like a face trying to hold back his thoughts and emotions. He egged on Tao Hua, asking, "Who might that be?"

"That person you ask about, the headman, uh, that's Master Tao." With each word said, Tao Hua's voice lowered until it fell to a whisper. But it would rise the moment he shot his head up. "But he's busy! If you need help, I…I know a bit!"

Master Tao was, in fact, not busy.

"Fairy tales won't work. I told you not to waste my time; there's not much of it to work with—" He froze before walking back his words. "That sounds grim. Let me rephrase that: The paper is due soon."

"No, I promise! It's not a fairytale. I can help you. I know some stuff, I…" In an abrupt moment of trying to unstable himself from this mess, Tao Hua's hands sporadically moved. With each word, they'd draw unrecognizable patterns in the air. And all that pent-up anxiety? Yeah, that came hurtling out in yet another lie. "I work for Master Tao!"

"Oh?"

In a matter of seconds, the man's entire demeanour flipped. He tapped against the pile of books on the shelf, only for it to stop as a smile crept onto his face. It was crafty, and the way it lit his face up could have made any person's heart stop.

That's exactly what it did for Tao Hua. What made it nearly fall out of his chest was the way the man's head leaned towards him, practically making his breathing nonnegotiable. And this wry man's following words? Venom induced ecstasy.

"Well, now I'm curious."

Chapter end.