Noon, inside the Acting Grand Master's office of the Knights of Favonius.
Jean was busy at her desk when a knock came at the door.
She looked up. "Come in."
The door opened, and in walked a young man with an eyepatch—Cavalry Captain Kaeya. He was here to report on the morning's assignments.
Once he finished, Kaeya let out a dramatic sigh. "Captain, it was fine before when they were all acting together, but now that they're going their separate ways to join different competitions—each at different locations—I really can't keep up on my own. Can't you assign me a few more people?"
"Well…" Jean hesitated. "You know how it is—during the Windblume Festival, the whole of Mondstadt has ramped up security. Everyone's already been deployed. We're short on manpower as it is…"
She frowned, thinking. Then suddenly remembered something Mr. Xia had told her the other day.
If it's a problem that can be solved with Mora, then it's not really a problem. No need to overthink it.
Jean looked up. "How about this—you go post a commission at the Adventurers' Guild. Hire a few trustworthy adventurers to help you out. I'll reimburse the expenses."
Kaeya paused. "…Well, I suppose that's all I can do, then. I'll head to the Guild now."
Jean nodded. "Thank you. I appreciate it."
Kaeya gave a helpless wave, then turned and left.
Jean reached for her cup, found it empty, and stood to steep another pot of tea.
Just as she sat back down, ready to continue working, another knock came—this time faster, more urgent.
She turned toward the door. "Come in."
The door burst open, and a girl in a white dress rushed in, breathless and clearly flustered, as if she'd run all the way here.
Jean's brow lifted in surprise. "Barbara?"
"Sis—" Barbara blurted instinctively, then caught herself and quickly corrected, "Acting Grand Master! Something's wrong!"
Jean stood up. "Don't panic. Take a breath and tell me what happened."
"It's the [Holy Lyre der Himmel]! It's gone again!"
"…What?!"
Jean looked stunned.
The [Holy Lyre der Himmel], once wielded by Lord Barbatos himself, held deep symbolic meaning for Mondstadt. It was always kept deep within the Favonius Cathedral.
It was only ever brought out during the Windblume Festival, and even then, only with formal agreement from the Grand Master, the Bishop, and representatives of the citizens, plus paperwork and procedures. The whole thing was incredibly strict.
Last year, it had been stolen once—taken by Lumine. Later, it was played by that bard named Venti, and its melody helped soothe Dvalin. Afterward, Venti returned the lyre to the Cathedral.
Jean had known Venti's true identity was Barbatos, so she hadn't punished anyone over it.
But ever since that incident, the Cathedral's security for the lyre had been massively increased—arguably even tighter than the Knights of Favonius' own vaults—specifically to prevent anything like that from happening again.
So how could it have gone missing again?
"When did it disappear?"
"This morning!"
"Any clues at the scene?"
"Nothing! It's like it just vanished into thin air!"
"That's… strange…"
Jean furrowed her brow.
It was true that a lot of outsiders had come to Mondstadt for the Windblume Festival, but there weren't many people in the whole region who could pull off something like this better than Lumine—stealing the [Holy Lyre der Himmel] without leaving a trace.
But if she had to name suspicious candidates… well, there were some.
The Fatui, for example—if one of the Harbingers acted personally, they might be able to pull it off. But according to intelligence, they'd recently returned to Snezhnaya for the funeral, and shouldn't be back this soon.
Then there was the Abyss Order. They had space-warping magic. But the Cathedral had protective wards in place that should counter that.
Which left…
Wait. Had she overlooked someone?
Jean's mind flashed to Ganyu and her group.
It was said the Adepti of Liyue were masters of many arts, some even possessing three eyes and five forms…
Was borrowing books just a cover? Was stealing the lyre the real reason that Secretary General had left Liyue for the first time?
But Kaeya had been with them all morning and hadn't noticed anything unusual…
Jean felt a headache coming on.
Barbara stood tensely nearby, clearly waiting for her response.
Jean considered it, then reassured her. "I understand. Don't worry. I'll make sure the [Holy Lyre der Himmel] is found."
Barbara, who had always had faith in her sister, visibly relaxed. "Right! Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Return to the Cathedral. Keep everyone calm, and don't let word of the theft get out for now."
"Got it!"
Jean watched her go, then let out a sigh once the door closed.
Great. Now she had to spare manpower to search for the lyre too. As if they weren't already stretched thin.
She took a sip of her tea.
The [Silver Dew] blend quickly cleared her mind.
Jean closed her eyes, playing out the scenario in her head.
A moment later, she opened them again—with a plan.
This… was probably a matter best left to Lord Barbatos.
She stood and left the office.
——
Outside the Adventurers' Guild.
Fischl looked drained.
All thanks to that cursed canned peach!
She'd had to get up to pee several times last night, barely got any sleep, and woke up late. She hadn't even made it to the plaza in the morning.
Bennett came out from the guild hall, looking a bit frustrated. "What a shame, Fischl. There was a great commission just now, but I didn't get to it in time."
Fischl gave him a tired glance. "What kind of commission?"
"Official request from the Knights of Favonius. They need someone to discreetly follow and protect some esteemed guests from Liyue during the festival."
Oz added from her shoulder, "So… bodyguard duty, basically."
Fischl honestly didn't have the energy for commissions. "Did you find the person I asked you about?"
Bennett scratched his head. "Not yet. But I'll keep looking this afternoon!"
Leaving the Guild, Fischl made her way to the musical competition venue.
She scanned the area, spotted the bard Venti, but didn't see the young man in sunglasses.
Oz flew up for a better look but didn't spot him either.
Maybe he hadn't arrived yet.
Fischl decided to wait.
——
After leaving the Knights of Favonius HQ, Jean headed straight for the music competition venue.
She knew that the young man Venti—whom she knew to be the mortal guise of Lord Barbatos—had been the three-time champion of the [Most Beloved Bard] competition.
So it was almost certain he'd be entering again this year.
Jean arrived and looked around, eventually spotting Venti drinking in a corner.
She walked over and, when she was just behind him, lowered her voice respectfully. "Lord Barbatos…"
Venti turned around with a grin. "Oh, Jean! Are you here to enter the competition too?"
"No, Lord—"
"Just call me Venti."
"…Venti, I came to find you."
"Oh?"
"The [Holy Lyre der Himmel]… it's missing again."
"…Really now?"
Venti put on a theatrical look of surprise.
"It got stolen again?"
Jean thought his expression seemed a bit too deliberate.
"I'd like to ask for your help in finding it."
"You got it! Don't worry. I'll track it down as soon as I finish this performance!"
"Thank you."
Jean gave a relieved nod. Since Lord Barbatos had agreed, the matter was as good as settled.
She had other tasks and didn't have time to linger, so she was just about to head back when she spotted Mr. Xia approaching with a group of girls.
Jean looked surprised.
And Xia Zhi was walking directly toward her.
She was about to greet him—only for Venti to beat her to it.
"Dearest friend! Good afternoon!"
Dearest… friend?
Jean blinked.
Xia Zhi and Lord Barbatos were that close?
Kaeya hadn't mentioned anything about this.
Maybe Kaeya didn't think it was important—after all, he likely didn't know Venti's true identity.
Xia Zhi walked up with a smile. "Good afternoon, Venti."
Jean nodded. "Mr. Xia."
Xia Zhi looked as if he'd only just noticed her. "Captain Jean, you're here too? Did you come to cheer me on?"
Jean smiled, a little embarrassed. "Actually, I came here on business. I was just about to leave."
Venti chuckled. "Captain Jean is always busy."
Xia Zhi added, "Busy as you are, you still need rest."
Jean nodded with a smile. "I know. Mr. Xia, Venti—best of luck in the competition!"
After Jean left, Xia Zhi glanced at Venti. "Was she here looking for you?"
"Of course not. I'm just a humble bard. Why would the Captain be looking for me?"
"She doesn't know who you really are?"
"Of course not."
"You have the [Holy Lyre der Himmel]?"
"[Holy Lyre der Himmel]? What lyre?"
"You know—the one you said you were going to use to beat me in this competition."
"Oh, that? I was just joking."
"Really? I figured you'd stolen it from the Cathedral. Thought she came to ask for your help retrieving it."
"What? As if I'd do something like that!"
Venti kept a perfectly straight face.
Then quickly changed the subject. "Hey, dearest friend, look over there. That girl's been staring at you this whole time."
"Sorry, can't see her."
Xia Zhi had already noticed.
That girl standing over there was the same girl he'd run into at Cat's Tail tavern.
She'd randomly tailed them for a bit, then disappeared for days.
Today, she looked a little under the weather.
From his god's eye, she seemed to be having some mild stomach issues—probably ate something bad.
He could cure it in an instant, but they weren't close, so… no need.
Xia Zhi and Venti chatted casually while waiting for the competition to begin.
Mondstadt, city of freedom and song, had a deep love of music. Back at Wangshu Inn, Xia Zhi had even seen a few Mondstadt travelers playing instruments.
So it was no surprise that the music competition was one of the festival's most popular events—with a huge number of entrants.
The preliminaries came first. Each contestant played a song on their instrument of choice, and judges scored them. The top ten scorers would advance to the finals.
Venti went first—a privilege of the reigning champion. He used his usual lyre, and with his massive popularity, easily earned a high score and secured a spot in the finals.
Xia Zhi brought out his [Focus Guitar]. Though this was his first time competing, his naturally high charm stat, combined with the guitar's special effects, quickly won over the crowd. He too advanced with ease.
By the time the prelims ended, it was already quite late.
Several girls who had finished their own events made their way to the venue to watch.
When the finals began, Venti took the stage first once again.
And… he was still using that same lyre?
Xia Zhi frowned slightly.
Did he guess wrong?
But the moment Venti's fingers touched the strings, and the music rang out—divine, ethereal—Xia Zhi chuckled softly.
This wasn't the same lyre as before.
It had to be the [Holy Lyre der Himmel], disguised.
The audience was completely entranced by the performance.
Xia Zhi sat quietly, listening.
He could tell—the sound quality was exquisite. Much better than his silver-tier [Focus Guitar].
No wonder Venti had once claimed that with this lyre, he'd beat him hands down.
But if Venti was placing all his hopes on the lyre…
It might not be enough.
Xia Zhi was still debating whether to go all out, when suddenly he noticed the air begin to shift.
The currents above were turning chaotic.
This was…
Wind.
Coming from high above…
Something was approaching.
Xia Zhi looked up, but his detection range was too limited—he couldn't see anything.
The girls around him also glanced skyward.
Then he heard them gasp softly—
"Dragon!"
----
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