Kaeya glanced between Klee and Riven, then raised an eyebrow, a grin slowly forming.
"Say, Klee has Alice said… anything else she might've mentioned?"
Klee, still hugging Dodoco tightly, perked up. "Ooooh, yes! Mama said my papa was super strong!"
"And did she say anything about what he looked like?" Kaeya teased, nudging Riven with his elbow.
"Kaeya, now's not the time for jokes," Riven snapped, frowning. "Stormterror nearly killed both me and Klee, and you're talking about this?"
Kaeya's tone shifted ever so slightly, though the smirk didn't vanish. "I'm not joking. You said it yourself—Alice is cryptic. And if Klee's father vanished before she was born, well… it raises some interesting questions, doesn't it?"
Riven let out a sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "If you're suggesting I'm her father, then let me make it clear I don't even have long ears, Kaeya. She doesn't look anything like me."
Kaeya shrugged, watching Klee now giggling as she twirled around, completely unbothered by the chaos from earlier.
"She did say her father was powerful," Kaeya mused. "It'd make sense Alice isn't the type to settle for just anyone. So who would be worthy?"
Riven looked at Klee, tracing back to that moment when she was almost pulled away by the wind… and how naturally he had moved to protect her.
How she had clung to him, crying. The strange warmth in his chest hadn't faded since.
"If I am… then that would mean I left her," Riven muttered quietly, his gaze distant. "That I abandoned her. And if that's true… I don't know if I could live with that."
Kaeya crossed his arms, studying him closely. "So that's it? You're not interested in finding out because you're afraid of who you used to be?"
"Exactly," Riven said, his voice low. "If I was a terrible person… if I really did leave her behind… then I don't deserve to be called a father—no less be one."
Before Kaeya could respond, something tugged gently at Riven's leg. He looked down to see two small arms wrapped tightly around it.
"Thank you, Uncle Riven," Klee said with a big, teary-eyed smile. "You saved me."
Riven's heart sank and swelled at the same time. He placed a hand gently on her head, unsure whether the ache in his chest came from guilt… or something deeper.
Then he reached into his bag and pulled out the round object she had given him earlier. "Lucky for me, your little friend here didn't blow up, huh?"
Klee tilted her head, then perked up. "Oh, silly! That one only explodes if you pull the pin like this—!"
She yanked the pin.
Riven's eyes widened. "Wait—!"
A puff of pink smoke burst in his face with a soft pop, leaving soot marks across his cheeks and nose. Not dangerous—just messy.
Klee giggled uncontrollably. "Look at your face! Jean said I'm not allowed to blow people up or Klee's doomed! So I gave you a safe bomb!"
Riven blinked, then laughed, brushing the soot from his cheek. "You really love your bombs, huh?"
Klee giggled, rocking back and forth on her heels. "Momma said my papa destroyed many, many places before I was born!"
Riven froze mid-step. "Okay. I am definitely not the father," he said, hands raised as if surrendering to the gods. "I've never once had the urge to blow things up."
But… deep down, a small part of him felt oddly disappointed.
"Well, Klee, that's… nice and all—"
"Oh! And she also said papa had green eyes," Klee chirped, pointing up at him. "Just like yours!"
Riven blinked. Actually, no—he froze. The world seemed to pause with him.
"And momma said…" Klee rummaged through her bag with gusto, "to give this to a man with green eyes!" She triumphantly pulled out a slightly crumpled note and handed it to him.
Riven unfolded it. The words shimmered faintly, then shifted—forming clearly in familiar, elegant handwriting:
Hello again,
If my little pumpkin managed to give you this note, then that means you've lingered longer in Mondstadt than I expected.
Yes—Klee is yours.
No, she doesn't know anything about your past, so don't go grilling my pumpkin for answers.
And before you ask—we weren't romantically involved. (Even if I might have dreamed about it… mmm—never mind!) You were never great at expressing emotions anyway.
If you want to tell her, that's your choice. But if being with her makes you forget your past… maybe that's the path you chose.
So Good.
—Alice
Riven stared at the note in silence. "…Did she just passive-aggressively confirm I have a child and roast my emotional availability in the same breath?"
Kaeya chuckled behind him. "Well, if that's not classic Alice, I don't know what is."
Riven looked at Klee for a long moment. His hands trembled—just slightly—as the truth began to settle in his chest like a heavy stone.
He… had a child.
Before he could stop himself, he knelt down and gently wrapped his arms around her.
"I'm sorry, little Klee… for not being there."
Klee blinked, puzzled. "Huh? Why are you sorry, Uncle Riven?"