Villa
Luo Chen smiled and continued.
"Let me give everyone a few examples of Aranara names."
"For instance..."
"Aranaga, Arama, Aradasa, Aranakula, Arapas, Arapacati, Arabalika, Aradashan, Arasudraka, Araminali, Aranakina, Aramuhukunda..."
"There are at least seventy-six names like these."
"And besides the Aranara themselves..."
"Even the name of their homeland is unusual."
"It's called Vanarana."
"There's also a famous tongue twister related to them."
"From the south came Arana, practicing Ararakalari.
From the north came Nara Rana, carrying a Padisarah.
Nara Rana wanted to bring Arana, who was practicing Ararakalari, to Lambad's Tavern.
Arana wanted to bring Nara Rana, carrying the Padisarah, to Vanarana.
Unable to refuse, Nara Rana accompanied Arana to Vanarana, where they met the Aranara named Arama."
"This tongue twister actually hides a rather heartwarming story."
"We'll get to that later."
The chat group had been curious ever since Luo Chen praised the uniqueness of the Aranara's names.
After hearing the examples—
many people immediately shut down.
Who am I?
Where am I?
What did I just hear?
The flood of nearly identical names made everyone's brains grind to a halt.
All they remembered were the repeated sounds of 'Ara' and 'Na.'
Everything else had already evaporated.
[Transcendent Chat Group]
[Barbara]: Those names... Oh Archons... I didn't remember a single one...]
[Keqing]: I only remembered Aramuhukunda... because it's longer than the others...]
[Yae Miko]: Before hearing them: "How hard could it be?" After hearing them: "???"]
[Navia]: No wonder even the light screen says they're tongue twisters. That's genuinely difficult.]
[Lumine]: I'm honestly starting to wonder if the Aranara themselves can tell each other apart...]
[Lumine]: And that tongue twister! What even was that? My brain completely gave up!]
[Paimon]: Huh? Is it really that hard? Maybe you just don't talk enough?]
[Paimon]: I talk all day long! My tongue's super flexible! I never find these things difficult!]
[Alice]: Really now?]
[Paimon]: Of course! Listen! From the south came—]
[Lumine]: Wait! That doesn't count! You have to say it properly! I'll record you!]
[Paimon]: No problem!]
Soon afterward, a short video appeared in the chat.
Everyone immediately opened it.
Paimon floated proudly before the camera.
"Ahem!"
"I'm starting!"
She rattled through the entire tongue twister in one breath.
"...where they met the Aranara named Arama."
The instant she finished—
Paimon's tiny body began wobbling in midair.
Her head swayed from side to side.
"I..."
"I must be dreaming..."
"I think..."
"I'm seeing stars..."
The next second—
she dropped straight out of the sky.
Fortunately—
an arm reached out and caught her before she hit the ground.
The video ended.
The chat immediately erupted with laughter.
[Alice]: Hehe! Paimon, that's all you've got?]
[Lumine]: Exactly! So much for the Mouth of the Gods!]
[Lumine]: If I hadn't caught you, you'd have face-planted!]
[Paimon]: I-I just hadn't eaten enough! That's all! I was hungry! Definitely hungry!]
[Kamisato Ayaka]: Paimon's already impressive. At least she managed to finish it. I couldn't...]
[Charlotte]: Same here...]
[Venti]: Ehehe~ Why don't we all try? Let's make it a little game.]
Everyone had known each other for quite some time by now.
The atmosphere in the chat had long since become relaxed.
Since they'd never played a group game before—
Venti's proposal was quickly accepted.
Soon...
Video after video appeared.
Some people attempted the tongue twister.
Others tried memorizing Aranara names.
Most stumbled repeatedly.
Some completely butchered the pronunciation.
Yet a surprising few delivered them flawlessly.
Venti.
Zhongli.
Makoto.
Nahida.
Furina.
Mona.
Hu Tao.
Yae Miko.
Alhaitham.
Tighnari.
Faruzan.
The group immediately noticed the pattern.
[Lumine]: Seriously?! You Archons are ridiculous!]
[Venti]: Ehehe~ I'm Teyvat's greatest bard, after all.]
[Zhongli]: By universal standards of reason, these are insignificant compared to contracts.]
[Makoto]: Quite entertaining, actually. Though government documents are far more complicated.]
[Nahida]: Perhaps because they're my familiars... these names feel very natural to me.]
[Furina]: Hmph! I'm Fontaine's greatest star! Memorizing lines is child's play!]
[Yae Miko]: My, my... seems one Archon is missing from that list.]
[Ei]: ...]
Ei silently stared at the chat.
Earlier...
She had secretly recorded herself attempting the tongue twister.
It hadn't gone well.
She'd assumed everyone else struggled just as much.
Instead—
every other Archon breezed through it.
Even ordinary people performed better than she had.
Somehow...
the former Electro Archon had become the punchline.
Ei's competitive spirit flared immediately.
No.
Absolutely not.
Once I get home...
I'm practicing this until I master it.
I refuse to lose to Makoto.
A moment later—
[Paimon]: I get the Archons... but why are the others so good at this?!]
[Hu Tao]: Hehe~ As Liyue's famous dark-humor poet, this is nothing!]
[Mona]: My own name is already ridiculously long, so I'm used to complicated pronunciation.]
[Amber]: Really? How long is it?]
[Mona]: Astrologist Mona Megistus!]
[Barbara]: Thirteen characters... that's the longest name I've ever heard!]
[Noelle]: It's difficult to pronounce too! No wonder you're so good at this!]
[Yae Miko]: Easy enough for me~]
[Alhaitham]: Compared to some of the Akademiya's academic terminology, these tongue twisters are relatively simple.]
[Faruzan]: For Akademiya scholars, this should be fairly easy.]
[Tighnari]: Agreed.]
[Cyno]: ...]
[Layla]: ...]
[Kaveh]: ...]
Well...
That was rather embarrassing for the Akademiya scholars who couldn't do it.
After the brief game, everyone's attention returned to the light screen.
Villa
Luo Chen continued.
"Now that everyone has experienced just how tongue-twisting the Aranara's names are..."
"Let's continue our proper evaluation."
"Second Category — Their History."
"Our story begins thousands of years ago, during the Archon War."
"After Greater Lord Rukkhadevata parted ways with King Deshret, she arrived at the region now known as the Vissudha Field."
"There, she sang the Primordial Song, the melody closest to Irminsul itself."
"From that song..."
"The very first Ashvattha Tree was born."
"Upon its branches grew a single beautiful, plump pomegranate."
"The seeds within became the very first generation of Aranara."
"Before we continue, it's necessary to explain a few unique traits of the Aranara."
1. Memories and Dreams
"Every living being possesses memories and dreams."
"But for the Aranara..."
"They are literally the source of their power."
"If they expend too much of that power..."
"They lose their memories."
"For example—"
"Ararakalari."
"This is the Aranara's unique power used to resist the Withering."
"And it is born from their memories."
"If another Aranara inherits those memories through special means..."
"They too can wield Ararakalari."
2. Sarva Trees, Bija Fruits, and Yaja Fruits
"When an Aranara reaches the end of its life..."
"It compresses all of its memories and dreams into a single seed."
"That seed—or an aging Aranara itself—can grow into a Sarva Tree."
"Within the tree forms a dream realm."
"The memories and dreams accumulated during the Aranara's lifetime condense into Bija Fruits."
"As for the Ashvattha Tree..."
"It is the king of all Sarva Trees."
"Naturally..."
"The fruit it bears is an even higher form."
"The Yaja Fruit."
"When a human has been deeply corrupted by the Withering and is on the brink of death..."
"Only this fruit can save them."
Everyone quickly pieced it together.
Simply put—
Memories and dreams were the Aranara's strength.
The richer their memories, the stronger they became.
Use too much—
and they lost themselves.
Meanwhile...
Aranara could eventually become Sarva Trees.
Sarva Trees produced Bija Fruits.
The Ashvattha Tree produced the superior Yaja Fruit.
Both possessed miraculous properties.
The race truly was extraordinary.
Villa
Luo Chen continued.
"Now that everyone understands the Aranara's unique nature..."
"Let's continue."
"The very first Aranara was Aramuhukunda."
"He belonged to the wisdom-type Aranara."
"With his help, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata successfully created the Varuna Contraption."
"It was thanks to this device that Sumeru's rainforest gradually flourished."
"Otherwise..."
"Most of Sumeru would still be endless desert today."
"Of course, Aramuhukunda wasn't the only remarkable Aranara."
"Among them..."
"Aradasha was unquestionably the mightiest warrior."
"Using Ararakalari, he could effortlessly topple and seal enormous Ruin Graders and Ruin Guards."
"Back then..."
"The relationship between humans and the Aranara was exceptionally close."
"Adults and children alike could see them."
"The two races helped one another."
"Together, they built the rainforest."
"The Aranara learned songs from humanity..."
"And transformed them into songs of their own."
"Within the Hall of the Ashvattha Tree..."
"They even established a shared nursery."
"It was, without question..."
"Sumeru's golden age."
"Then..."
"Five hundred years ago..."
"The Cataclysm arrived."
"Ruin Graders and Ruin Guards poured out from the desert."
"The corruption of the Withering spread across the rainforest."
"The Aranara's homeland..."
"The old Vanarana..."
"Was devastated."
"With Greater Lord Rukkhadevata unable to deal with everything at once..."
"A very special individual appeared."
"The Traveler's twin—"
"Aether."
"After arriving, he repaired the Varuna Contraption."
"Because of this, the Aranara gave him the title..."
"Nara Varuna."
"He then helped eliminate the corruption spreading throughout the rainforest."
"To aid its recovery, he even left behind the divine artifact Utsava Marga, along with its guardian, the Cup of Life, Jnanayuma."
"Later..."
"Aether attended the Aranara's Utsava Festival."
"He cooked together with them."
"And told them stories about his younger sister."
"The Aranara found the bond between siblings so beautiful that many began imitating it themselves."
"After the festival..."
"Village Chief Aralila prepared a Yaja Fruit as a gift for the Abyss Prince."
"But in doing so..."
"He lost all memories of Aether."
"When Aether realized what had happened..."
"He was devastated."
"Afterward..."
"Aether and the Aranara worked together to eliminate the Withering."
"They eventually defeated its core."
"But they could not destroy it completely."
"Left with no other choice..."
"They sealed it away."
"To guarantee its safety, they established four separate seals beneath the ruins of old Vanarana."
First Seal
Aramuhukunda transformed into a Sarva Tree to suppress the source of the Withering.
Second Seal
Aradasha and countless Aranara erected a powerful barrier.
Third Seal
The memory runes of Aralaji, Arayama, and Aramaha.
Fourth Seal
The Gate of Vanarana—
the original Ashvattha Tree itself.
"Thus..."
"The spread of the Withering was successfully contained."
"As for Aether..."
"He departed shortly after the seal was completed."
"He left behind nothing..."
"Except a single Forest Adventure Journal."
"Not even his name."
"Within its pages was one particular sentence."
'I ran away. If possible... I hope you won't hate me for it.'
"Whatever Aether's true purpose may have been..."
"Objectively speaking..."
"He truly did save Sumeru."
"Without his help..."
"The outcome might have been very different."
Sanctuary of Surasthana
Lumine had been listening attentively.
But the moment she heard Aether's name—
her eyes widened.
"What?"
"My brother?"
"He came to Sumeru... five hundred years ago?"
Ever since Nahida searched Irminsul—
this was the first concrete information she'd received about him.
She listened even more carefully.
Hearing everything Aether had done for Sumeru, she nodded approvingly.
Good.
At least he finally did something right.
Maybe...
When I see him again, I'll beat him a little less.
But then—
the final sentence reached her ears.
I ran away. If possible... I hope you won't hate me for it.
Lumine froze.
"What..."
"What does that mean?"
"Did Aether..."
"Did he do something terrible to Sumeru..."
"...or to the Aranara?"
An uneasy feeling welled up inside her.
Her hands slowly clenched into fists.
Beside her, Paimon also sensed that something wasn't right.
The Yaja Fruit.
Leaving without recording his name.
The Forest Adventure Journal.
The words 'ran away'...
'hope you won't hate me'...
No matter how she looked at it—
everything seemed suspicious.
But seeing Lumine's expression darken, Paimon quickly floated over to comfort her.
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