As the day went on and more and more customers and Mora started trickling in, Aiden couldn't help but be a bit bored. Aside from having to make a new rule stating that children 12 and under are not allowed to play without parent or guardian supervision, nothing noteworthy happened much.
Still, he dutifully did his job, assigning people their computers or serving them refreshments and/or food while also making sure to watch for any troublemakers.
Right now, he's especially keeping his eyes on three Treasure Hoarders who came in and specifically chose the farthest computer.
Their faces are the epitome of shifty, constantly looking at their surroundings, speaking in hushed whispers, and avoiding him whenever his gaze even slightly sweeps over them.
Aiden knew what they were planning, but he couldn't just throw them out and ban them from the establishment without a valid reason. It would look bad for him after all. The ban on Dottore notwithstanding.
And so, Aiden patiently sat back and waited for the idiots to try their luck. Even if they managed to get out of the cafe with the pc, almost every single component of it has a tracking device in it, which he found out when he tried disassembling one of them.
No, the thing that worried Aiden was not them stealing the computer itself, but them accidentally damaging it in the process. They were prohibitively expensive, and replacing them would take too long, especially at this early stage in his career.
If that did happen, though, let's just say that there will be hell to pay for these Treasure Hoarders.
Unfortunately, Aiden had to take his eyes off of them momentarily when a group of Snezhnayan came looking to play and also relax with some refreshments to go along.
'Huh... Pretty sure they're all Fatui Agents...'
.....
"The manager's distracted. Now." Said one of the Treasure Hoarders, who was chubby, when he saw the draconic boy busy serving the newly arrived customers.
"Alright, alright, I get it. Step back, they don't call me quick-handed for nothing." The skinny one with a mask on replied, going underneath the table to begin unplugging the wires connected to the computer. Bzzt. "Ah! It just shocked me..."
"Can you please quiet down. This machine is obviously powered by Electro." The brain of the group and the ones keeping guard, now annoyed, pointed out to the second one. "Remember. Don't do anything stupid. Just by looking at this thing, I know how expensive it is."
"I get it, alright. I wouldn't be doing this otherwise if the Mora was not as much as you calculated. How much is it again?" The skinny one asked.
"I think you said 10 million Mora just for this big box alone?" The chubby one whispered out loud.
The brain of the group nodded. "Don't forget to also take the screen, the keyboard, and the mouse as well. They might not be worth much, but I'm sure our would-be clients would be glad to be able to use this machine right away."
After a few more seconds, the skinny one finally managed to disconnect all the wires without electrocuting himself to death.
The smart one grabbed the computer while the skinny one and fat one grabbed the peripherals and screen, respectively. They looked at the front desk, finding the manager still swamped with customers, which was blocking his view.
With the coast clear and other customers too immersed playing to notice them, they nodded to each other and began to make a break for the Liyue exit.
Slamming the doors open, they were expecting a few passerby and maybe a guard or two, which they could easily evade. What they didn't expect, however, was that there would not only be the Liyue Qixing, Ningguang, Keqing, and Tian in front of the entrance, but also half a dozen Millelith soldiers standing in front of them.
The Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing seems to be addressing the soldiers in front of her, but that was quickly stopped when all of the soldiers had their spears raised.
Slowly, the three Liyue Qixing turned around to see the unmoving form of the Treasure Hoarders.
.....
Finished serving the last customers, Aiden made his way outside to Liyue. He honestly was pretty miffed at not being able to stop the Treasure Hoarders. He would've called others in the cafe for help, but he'd rather not raise a stink at this minor problem.
Stepping outside, Aiden was surprised to be greeted by the sight of the three Treasure Hoarders tied up and surrounded by a squad of Millelith, the contents they had taken confiscated and put aside for now.
"Ah. I see that the situation has been resolved." Aiden started, addressing Keqing, who was busy conversing with Ningguang.
The Millelith soldiers, upon seeing Aiden, raised their spears again, but a handwave from Keqing calmed them down.
"Soldiers! This is Aiden, the owner of this cafe that I had just informed you all about. From this day on, all six of you shall stand guard and patrol this area. Do you understand?"
"Understood, ma'am!" All of them said in unison, giving the Millelith salute to her.
"Oh? You're assigning me some guards?" Asked Aiden.
Keqing nodded. "Correct. As you have seen with these three," She gestured to the Treasure Hoarders, "It would be in your and Liyue's best interests to have some security. I'm sure you understand."
"Yeah, I understand. I was actually thinking about hiring a few guards myself, but this works too, I guess." Aiden explained, scratching his head. He then turned to the computer. "Uhh... about the computer, do you need it for evidence or something? I'd rather get it back, you know."
"No, no. Feel free to take it back. As for these three... We'll handle them ourselves. How much does this machine cost?" Asked Ningguang
"I estimate about 10 million Mora and maybe a few hundred thousand more for the screen and peripherals."
The Treasure Hoarders whimpered upon hearing Aiden's estimation of the computer's value.
"I see. Looks like this just went from a minor robbery to a major one. Thanks again for your cooperation, Aiden. We'll be taking our leave now." Thanked Ningguang.
"Wait!" As they were about to leave, they all stopped at Aiden's shout. "Since you've all helped me, I would like to extend my gratitude as well as give you all a week of free play."
Ningguang nodded in appreciation. "Thanks, Aiden, but I'm afraid that Keqing and I have to decline playing for now, we have matters to attend to. Although Uncle Tian here may have some free time."
As Keqing and Ningguang take their leave with a few Millelith taking the prisoners with them, an elderly man comes strolling and introduces himself to Aiden.
"So, you're Aiden that Keqing and Ningguang were talking about. Nice to meet you, young man. I'm Tian, Tianshu of the Liyue Qixing, responsible for policymaking, but you can just call me Uncle Tian." Uncle Tian extended his right hand.
"Nice to meet you, too, Uncle Tian." Aiden shakes his hand. "Well... Since you're already here, why don't you come inside? You must be interested, right?"
"Quite right. Experiencing the future... Now that's not something you see every day." There was a tone of astonishment in Uncle Tian's voice.
"Then come right in."
Picking up the computer, before Aiden and Uncle Tian entered the cafe, Aiden turned around to address the soldiers. "Ahem. Gentlemen. I know that you're all not officially my employees, but if you wish to take a break, feel free to head inside and order some food and drinks, free of charge, and also, if you are interested and have free time, feel free to play the video game inside. All employees play for free."
The soldiers all gave their salute and nodded in acknowledgement. "Sir, yes, sir!"
With that, Aiden and Uncle Tian made their way inside while the soldiers began their duties of guarding and patrolling.
.....
After returning the stolen pc, Aiden set up the computer and gave Uncle Tian a guide. Giving him a cup of tea, Aiden bid Uncle Tian a good time playing.
With nothing else to do, Aiden went back to the counter and put his chin on his hand as he once again waited in boredom.
Aiden almost dozed off before a customer came asking for something.
"Hey, manager, I wanted to ask. Is this Venti guy actually Lord Barbatos?" A customer from Mondstadt asked, confusion in his tone.
"Oh, you mean Venti. Why don't you complete the story first?" Aiden knew exactly what the guy was talking about. Prior to completing the Archon Quest, any lore regarding Venti is intentionally obscured so as not to give away the surprise. Even the trailer is modified a bit, only showing the full thing once the AQ is completed.
"Huh, really? Sure..." The guy asked himself in a confused tone as he returned to his assigned seat.
"You have no idea," Aiden whispered to himself. No doubt, once people found out that they can actually play as an Archon, the Mora would be lining up like there's no tomorrow.
After all, who doesn't want to play as a god, especially if said god is from their own nation?
.....
"Hey, have you heard?" A Mondstadtian whispered to another next to him, making sure to be as quiet as possible so as not to interrupt the morning prayers happening in the Mondstadt Cathedral.
"Heard what?"
"Word on the street is that the drunkard bard is actually Lord Barbatos."
"What? Dude, you can't just say that here... That's..."
"Blasphemy!" A shout startled the two as they looked and found Sister Gotelinde next to them, her hands on her hips, anger apparent on her face.
The others in the Cathedral were also startled and looked at Sister Gotelinde in confusion, their morning prayers stopping as a consequence.
Another nun, Jilliana, approached Gotelinde with worry in her eyes. "Sister Gotelinde, is something wrong?"
"Yes, there is!" She answered as she pointed at the two who were whispering earlier. "These two had just insinuated that the bard that always played in front of the Statue of Lord Barbatos is Lord Barbatos himself."
After Gotelinde finished recounting what she heard, the atmosphere in the Cathedral became tense with the other nuns becoming visibly angry.
Before things could escalate, Sister Victoria came over to calm things down. "Please rise up, you two, and confess where you had heard that rumor so you may repent for your sins."
The first one rose up, bowing and clasping his hands together. "Please forgive us, Sisters, it was all my fault. I heard the rumors from my friends who played at the Gaming Cafe."
"Gaming... Cafe...?" Asked Sister Victoria.
"Y-yes. I'm sure you've all heard of the building next to the bridge that appeared overnight. In there, you can play a video game called 'Genshin Impact', a game where you can complete quests and explore Teyvat, at least that's what my friends told me."
"I see... Now sit down and pray that Lord Barbatos shall forgive you."
The guy hastily nodded and sat down, immediately praying to Lord Barbatos for forgiveness.
The Sisters, meanwhile, convened out of sight of the congregation to discuss the matter.
"Thank Lord Barbatos that Sister Barbara isn't here right now." Sister Jilliana said, relief in her tone.
"That I agree." Sister Grace said. "Although, what should we do? This 'Gaming Cafe' is potentially spreading false views about Lord Barbatos. Perhaps a force closure of the establishment on that ground alone?"
Sister Victoria disagreed. "No. That would be too extreme and may be seen as the Church abusing its power."
"What about sending one of our own to try out this 'Genshin Impact'?" It was then that Sister Jilliana proposed her solution. "Perhaps the rumors were merely some sort of misunderstanding?"
"Sister Jilliana is right. Perhaps it really was a misunderstanding." Sister Grace agreed. "That begs the question. Who would we send to investigate?"
"I'll go." Suddenly, Rosaria, who had been on the sideline, chimes in.
"Ah, Sister Rosaria. You're not trying to shirk your duties, are you?" Said Sister Victoria.
"No, no. I'm merely making sure no false belief of Lord Barsibato spreads. Isn't that one of the duties of a nun?"
All the others only shook their head at Rosaria mispronouncing Lord Barbatos' name.
"Sister Rosaria is right. Although we will need one other person to oversee Sister Rosaria." Sister Grace suggested.
"I'll accompany her." Sister Gotelinde stepped in, to which all the other nodded in agreement.
With all in agreement, Sister Gotelinde and Rosaria quickly prepared themselves for the task ahead, taking with them a handful of Mora in case they needed it, and hastily set off to this 'Gaming Cafe'.
As they were walking out of the Cathedral's courtyard, where the large statue of Lord Barbatos was, the bard in green, who was the subject of all the commotion, was in front of it, performing his usual activity of reciting poems and playing with his lyre.
While they were walking past him, Sister Gotelinde couldn't help but compare the statue to the bard. While she hated to admit it, she could see a resemblance which she chalked up to just a mere coincidence. After all, countless people lived in Mondstadt; it would be a matter of time until someone just happened to resemble their god.
She snapped her focus back to the task at hand. Now's not the time for some silly comparison; she has a duty to do, even if Sister Rosaria was looking as bored as ever.
When they reached the bridge, they saw a strange sight of people giving Timmie seeds, presumably to feed the pigeons, and then looking guilty thereafter.
Sister Gotelinde and Rosaria shared a look with each other, confused about what was happening. They decided to stop and ask Timmie about it.
"Timmie... Do you know what's going on?" Sister Gotelinde gently asked so as not to scare the pigeons.
"Oh, it's Sister Gotelinde. No, I don't know what's going on, but people've been giving me food for the pigeons ever since this morning." Timmie answered, scratching his head in confusion.
"And what of this building? Do you know anything about it?" Rosaria asked, pointing at the building ahead.
Timmie shook his head. "No. I was kind of confused when it appeared yesterday, too."
"I see. Thank you for answering, here, your allowance from Sister Grace." Sister Gotelinde then handed Timmie a handful of Mora. "Don't spend it all at once now."
After saying their goodbyes, both Rosaria and Sister Gotelinde continued forward on their mission.
Entering the building, a cold breeze hit both of them, causing Sister Gotelinde to shiver slightly.
Nevertheless, the pair made their way to the counter, where a bizarre sight greeted them.
A boy with draconic features, who they assumed was the owner of this cafe, was manning the counter and interacting with the patrons of the establishment.
Just as they were about to talk to the boy, Sister Gotelinde's eyes just happened to glance at a nearby desk where a known troublemaker, Albert, was presumably playing the game described back at the Cathedral, and what she saw mortified her.
Albert was seemingly controlling Sister Barbara in the game, and right now, he was making her fight a Ruin Guard, all the while having an awestruck expression on his face.
"Mr. Albert!" Sister Gotelinde screamed in anger.
Hearing Sister Gotelinde's scream, Albert jumped from his seat, falling onto the floor, his headphones falling from his head and disconnecting from the computer.
Coincidentally, the Ruin Guards unleashed a stream of missiles at the now unmoving Barbara. All of them watched as the green bar below the screen instantly disappeared as Barbara fell to the ground motionless.
"Sister..." They heard Barbara hauntingly cry out to her sister one last time, with the screen going red soon after.
To say that it didn't shake Sister Gotelinde to her core would be a vast understatement as she stood there, her brain processing what she had seen.
Sister Gotelinde stayed still for several moments while Albert awkwardly sat on the ground, even as Rosaria became alert when noticing someone approaching.
It was the draconic boy with a confused look on his face. "Cough cough." He faked coughing to get Sister Gotelinde's attention. "Is there anything I can help you two with?"