Mondstadt Alter (Rewrite)

Act 1 Chp 2.2: Undesirable Topic

Walking down the stairs from the Church, I see some people gathering in front of the anemo archon statue. I wonder if that is where people usually gather to pray. It actually fitting when your god statue is in front of you. I watch them from afar, but then I begin to walk away.

Going down again, I don't see anything worth my time or attention here, so I decided to move again. On the other side, I see a big building with two knights guarding the entrance of the building. That building is the Knights of Favonius HQ.

I approach the entrance until the guards notice me,

"Good morning, citizen! Do you have a business in the HQ?" One of the guards greeted me in high-spirited manners.

"Er... No." I nervously replied, "I just want to visit."

"Visit?" The guard repeated.

He looks at his partner, confused. But that also goes to his partner.

"At this hour?" The other guard asked.

"Am I not allowed to?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. That's not what we meant. Feel free to visit the HQ."

I'm not a knight, so I can't freely roam the HQ as I please, but it's not like I want to anyway. The only destination I have in mind right now is the library. Maybe it was not a good idea after all.

"Forget it. I just remember I have something else to do." I don't.

While I am about to leave, the HQ door opens.

"Morgan?"

A figure walked out from the HQ. I raise my head to see who it is,

"Grand Master Varka?"

Both guards tense when they notice who it is and are ready to salute their leader.

"Good morning, Grand Master Varka!" They saluted him in unison.

The Grand Master greets them back casually as he walks toward us. Then he stands before me as he says,

"Good morning. I didn't expect to see you here today. What brings you here, kid?"

"Good morning to you, too. It's nothing, so please don't mind me. Are you going somewhere?"

He hummed before saying, "Yeah, I want to see someone right now."

He denotes the training ground.

"How about you coming with me? You're free, right?" He invited.

"What?"

"Oh, but it's okay if you don't want to. I thought you were interested in knighthood, so I thought I should invite you."

In Mondstadt, that way of thinking isn't wrong. Most kids and teens in Mondstadt want to become a knight, or at least, that's what I heard. I understand because if you join the knight, you can make your parents proud and protect them and the people in Mondstadt, which sounds impressive for children.

Who doesn't want to become an honorable knight?

"Sure, if you don't mind me tagging along with you." But I decided to accept his invitation.

"It's decided then. Come." The Grand Master seemed to be delighted.

We walk to the training ground, and I follow him from behind. I've met Grand Master a few times, but this is the first time I'm paying attention to him. So this is the leader of Knight of Favonius, known as the strongest person in Mondstadt with the title Knight of Boreas.

Somehow, I feel like he emits the vibe of a strong person. Despite the rumor of his carefree personality, his strength is no joke. I'm not sure why I can say that for certain. Maybe it has something to do with the fact I have a vision, my keen senses, or even him.

"So, how are you feeling today, Morgan?" He broke the silence.

"I'm good. Thank you for asking."

"Good to hear that." He nodded, "Then do you mind explaining what's with you today?"

"... I'm not sure I get what you mean."

He stayed silent for a moment before slowing down and walking beside me.

"You know what? Forget that I asked that. If anything, I should be glad you are willing to go out to change your mood. I can't stand watching people suffer, you know? Especially younglings like you. I'll always try my best to lend a hand to those who need help."

Then he looks at me and pats my shoulder, "In your case, I could only help a little. It's a shame, and I have to admit it. I'm so sorry for not being able to help you as much."

"Please don't say that."

I didn't see that coming, not with this timing. I didn't know Grand Master had been feeling guilty about it this whole time. I don't understand why he should, either.

The Treasure hoarders managed to escape from the knight can either mean the knight is incompetent or the treasure hoarders are simply clever. But I wouldn't say the knight is inept because I'm sure they did their best in the pursuit, especially with the grandmaster himself involved.

Those treasure hoarders not only managed to escape from the knights, but also succeeded in their foray. If I were the grandmaster, perhaps I would feel ashamed and guilty too.

Don't worry, Grand Master Varka. You're not the only one who feels that way.

"It's not like you're one to blame, sir." I hesitated.

"Maybe, but I must tell you how I feel about this. My negligence was one of the factors why it happened. If I were stricter about our patrols, something like that wouldn't happen in the first place."

I curl my lips.

"To think they used our patrol shift to their advantage is humiliating. I know the Knight of Favonius isn't a perfect protector. There's a limit to what we can do. Not to mention, you already helped us by providing some information and clues."

"I'm sorry, but that's enough." I interrupted.

I need to remember why I'm going out to take a breather from my grievance, so talking about this is against it.

"Right now, I don't want to talk about it. Please understand that I want to take my mind off that subject."

"... Right. It was inconsiderate of me."

There was an awkward silence between us. I appreciate Grand Master's concern and openness in allowing me to know what he feels about it.

"Well, then. Let's keep going, shall we?" He casually said.

I nodded and tagged along with him.

A/N: In your opinion, how strong do you think is the Knight of Boreas? As far as we know, he said he could take on the number one member of the Harbingers. I am intrigued by how true his words are.

Thank you for reading, and carry on!