Business is risky.
Robbing the Fatui is safer.
After Jiang Chen finished explaining the pros and cons, Lumine eventually gave up her earlier idea.
"Alright, fine," she sighed.
"If you say so, then forget it."
What Jiang Chen said made sense—none of them actually knew what the current situation in Liyue Harbor was.
Bringing cargo over blindly might turn their hard-earned Mora into a loss.
After eating their fill, the two returned to rest.
They needed to start their journey early tomorrow morning, and Mondstadt didn't exactly have evening entertainment worth staying up for.
So the group slept early.
Meanwhile, at the Goth Grand Hotel…
La Signora stood with a darkened expression, staring coldly at the two debt collectors kneeling before her.
Her voice trembled with tightly restrained anger.
"So?
Up to this moment, you still haven't discovered anything?"
Lady Signora was furious—truly furious.
They had confirmed signs of Barbatos appearing… yet they couldn't track anything beyond that.
"W-We apologize, my Lady…"
"Only the upper ranks of Mondstadt know the details.
Our agents haven't been able to infiltrate that deeply…"
Hearing this, Signora's face grew even darker.
Useless.
"Waste of space!" she snapped.
"Keep searching.
No matter what method you use, I want to know EXACTLY where Barbatos is!"
If she could physically storm the Knights of Favonius headquarters and force them to spit out the information, she would have done it long ago.
But she couldn't.
Doing so would directly spark a diplomatic incident.
Harvesting a Gnosis had to remain in the shadows—if it became public, that would be equivalent to declaring war on Mondstadt.
And if THAT happened?
The Grand Master, currently away on expedition, would probably turn around immediately and march straight to Snezhnaya.
Mondstadt's blitz against Snezhnaya—what a beautiful justification that would be.
The debt collectors trembled under her gaze.
"Get out," Signora finally said coldly.
"Yes—yes, my Lady!"
They fled instantly, relieved to have survived.
Left alone, Signora sank into thought again.
Where exactly was Barbatos?
They had confirmed he appeared, but the Knights had locked down the information so tightly that absolutely nothing leaked.
They hadn't even publicly announced who the Honorary Knight was.
This secrecy was deliberate.
Jean and the higher-ups knew Fatui agents were everywhere in Mondstadt, and one of the Eleven Harbingers was present.
Of course they wouldn't release such sensitive information.
This indirectly shut out Signora's only lead.
In the original story, Lumine ran all over the city, confronted Stormterror publicly, and Venti was constantly at her side—naturally he got exposed.
But now?
Because of Jiang Chen, none of that happened.
So Signora had no trail to follow.
Meanwhile, Barbatos himself was currently lying drunk in a hotel room thanks to Jiang Chen's "hospitality."
Unless Venti exposed himself, Signora might honestly be stuck in Mondstadt forever.
A miserable start to her mission.
Morning Comes—
Jiang Chen and Lumine woke early, checked out of the hotel, packed up everything into their storage space, and prepared for departure.
From Mondstadt to Liyue, even with their speed, would take half a month.
In reality, travel wasn't anything like the game.
Ordinary people, without mounts or teleportation, needed one to two months to make the journey.
Before leaving, Jiang Chen wanted to restock food and supplies.
They didn't want to be hunting wild boar and berries every meal.
While gathering supplies, they unexpectedly ran into Amber—
and someone else.
A tall, elegant, blue-haired woman stood beside her.
Eula.
"Jiang Chen! Lumine!" Amber waved excitedly.
"Good morning!"
Jiang Chen glanced at Eula—this was the first time they met.
The Spindrift Knight narrowed her eyes slightly, sizing them up.
These are the two who defeated Stormterror?
"Good morning," Jiang Chen greeted with a friendly smile.
"Amber, and this is…?"
"This is Eula!" Amber introduced cheerfully.
"The Spindrift Knight of the Knights of Favonius!
Eula, these two are Lumine and Jiang Chen!"
"…Hello."
Eula nodded politely, but without warmth.
Given her reputation, she had no expectations.
Most people changed their attitude the moment they learned her surname.
"Are you both heading somewhere?" Amber asked.
"Want to join us for breakfast?"
"We're leaving for Liyue today," Jiang Chen said, shaking his head.
"So we're stocking up before heading out.
Maybe next time."
Amber froze.
"You're going to Liyue?
Suddenly?!"
"Yep," Jiang Chen replied.
"Lumine needs to look for her brother, and there's nothing left for us to do in Mondstadt.
Plus, the Rite of Descension is starting soon.
Who knows—maybe something exciting will happen."
Like the Geo Archon dropping out of the sky, for example.
He needed to get there early—buy a house, then team up with Zhongli and Childe to scam free meals out of the Fatui banker.
Letting that walking wallet slip away would be a crime.
Amber pouted.
"Alright…
But come visit again when you can.
I was planning to show you both around today."
"No worries," Jiang Chen said with a smile.
"There'll be plenty of chances later.
Take care of your duties first."
Mondstadt had nothing left to keep him here anyway.
Even Klee was grounded—he didn't even get to meet her.
Truly tragic.
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
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