DISCLAIMER: All characters and settings are owned by miHoYo.
Once they arrived at the Favonius Cathedral, Barbara led Diluc to one of the empty rooms at the basement that the church occasionally used to house the sick people that come to them for help. When they got inside, Diluc gently laid the still asleep Jean on the bed while Barbara left momentarily to get some items for her sister from the church's medical cabinet.
As he made sure that she was comfortably on the bed, Diluc took his and Jean's swords from his back and leaned them against the nearby wall and took a seat on the wooden stool right by the bed. Despite being out of any immediate danger thanks to Lisa's potion, he could tell that she was still very much hurt as he observed her sleeping figure.
She was the Dandelion Knight, someone he had fought alongside with many times and one recognized by Varka as his worthy successor. He knew she had put up a good fight before he arrived, as seen by the debris of Ruin Guard parts that the battle had left around the grounds of the Thousand Winds Temple. And yet, the thought of someone as strong as her nearly meeting her end at the hands of the Abyss Order made him grimace.
"Here I thought I was a step ahead of the Abyss...it shouldn't have even come to this. Forgive me, Jean." he said, his voice barely a whisper.
A few moments later, Barbara entered the room carrying washcloths and some spare clothing for Jean and placed them on the nearby table. She then walked over and stood beside Diluc, looking over her sister. She then looked over to the former knight and noticed his forlorn expression.
"I don't think my sister will be happy to see you looking so sad when she wakes up, Master Diluc."
"You think so?" he said as he forced a weak smile to appease the deaconess' concern about him, having felt that she already had a growing list of concerns to deal with.
"Yes. She doesn't really like it when other people worry too much about her, even if she makes them worry without realizing it." began Barbara, recalling the numerous times Jean had worked herself sick despite the warnings of those around her. "She finds it even worse if the ones closest to her start worrying about her. Like you."
"She's always been like that. Selfless to a fault." he couldn't help but chuckle as he remembered how Jean had the same attitude even back when they were younger.
Diluc then noticed the washcloth and clothes that Barbara had brought and figured that she intended to dress her sister up in more comfortable clothing. Not wanting to get in her way, he picked up his sword and made for the door, much to the deaconess' surprise.
"I'll be heading out now. I'll leave Jean in your care."
"But...where are you going?" she asked, concerned as to where the winery owner was headed.
"To the knights headquarters. We need to figure out what to do from here."
Diluc then left the Favonius Cathedral and headed towards the Knights of Favonius Headquarters. Along the way, he spotted a group of soldiers gathered around outside the headquarters and figured that they were from the Reconnaissance Company, which meant that the group out at Dragonspine had returned. Not wanting to waste any time in figuring out their next move, he quickly headed for Jean's office as he walked inside the knight's base.
Inside the Grand Master's office he saw Lisa sitting on the master's chair, with three more people gathered around the desk: Kaeya, his estranged adoptive brother and Cavalry Captain of the knights, Eula, captain of the Reconnaissance Company, and Amber, the sole outrider of the knights. They all turned to him as he walked in while Lisa stood up to acknowledge him.
"Master Diluc, thank you for coming." greeted the librarian, who was then taken by surprise as she watched the young outrider run up to Diluc.
"Master Diluc! How is Master Jean? Is she going to be alright?" asked Amber worriedly.
"Don't worry, she'll be fine. Barbara's taking care of her at the cathedral so she should be able to fully recover soon enough." replied Diluc.
"Thank goodness." said Amber as she let out a deep sigh of relief.
Diluc then turned towards the Spindrift Knight as she approached him.
"Your assistance was very much appreciated. If you hadn't gone to the Acting Grand Master's aid, then the Abyss would've surely robbed me of my chance for revenge." she began, speaking in her typical haughty tone, much to Amber's horror. "However, even if was to save Master Jean's life, don't think I'll overlook the fact that you went and confronted the Abyss while I was forced to stand by and watch them over at Dragonspine. I will have vengeance for this!"
Amber switched glances between Diluc and Eula with a heavily worried look on her face, fearing that the former would take the Spindrift Knight's words at face value and get the wrong impression. Lisa had a palm to her face in disbelief while Kaeya was struggling to stifle his laughter, but Diluc wore the same stoic expression that he was known for, which only worried the outrider more as she couldn't tell what he was thinking.
While this was their first time talking to each other, Diluc knew from his past interactions with Jean that Eula had a somewhat unique way with words, coming off as far more ill-meaning than she truly does. He had heard of the circumstances surrounding her highly controversial admittance into the knights, and while he regarded her conviction to against the stigma brought on by her family name very highly, it was still slightly sullied by the fact that Eula chose to join the Knights of Favonius.
"Now, now, as much as Master Diluc would love to humor you, Captain Eula, I'm afraid the timing couldn't have been worse." Kaeya told Eula, the latter then conceding by folding her arms with an audible huff as she turned away from them.
"Fine, I suppose my vengeance can wait." she replied rather timidly.
Diluc's attention then turned to his adoptive brother as he stepped forward.
"Looks like the knights all owe you another one, Master Diluc." said Kaeya, but without the usual sarcasm that he reserved for his brother.
"Let's just cut to the chase, shall we? Unless you lot actually have some time to spare." said Diluc as he turned towards the librarian. As far as he's concerned, he wasn't there to make idle talk, much less so with members of the knights. However, he didn't have much of a choice since they were his best way for him to find a lead on the Abyss Order at the moment.
Lisa nodded "Yes, let's get back to what we gathered here for." she began. "We were just discussing about where and how the Abyss have managed to hide themselves well enough to have successfully staged an ambush on the Acting Grand Master, and what they could potentially do with the forces they've gathered at Dragonspine. I figured I'd have Master Diluc join us to help, as his aid has proven invaluable in all of our past dealings together."
"The enemy force we found at the south of Dragonspine were similar in number to the forces that attempted to lay siege to Mondstadt at the height of the Stormterror incident. Mostly consisting of Hilichurls and a small number of Abyss Mages, however we also found a few more unexpected additions to their arsenal." reported Eula.
"After I arrived with the reinforcements, we began to notice that the mages seemingly had the ability to reactivate and control the Ruin Guards that laid dormant in the shores. We predicted that they would pass through Dragonspine to get to Mondstadt, and kept our positions so we could intercept them if they began to approach, as they'd pose a much larger threat if they ever got closer to Mondstadt." added Kaeya.
Lisa put a hand to her chin. "The two missing knights reported the Abyss Mages doing the same thing when Jean rescued them at the Thousand Winds Temple. As you said, it will be really difficult if they manage to bring those forces anywhere near the city, let alone the inhabited areas along the way." she said with a conflicted look on her face. "We definitely can't ignore the possibility of them targeting Mondstadt, but we have also yet to figure out where they could've hidden themselves when the knights were attacked."
"I'm not sure if it's any help, but I have an idea." said a somewhat hesitant Amber.
"Please, go on." said Diluc, interested to hear the outrider's theory.
"Okay, here goes. Back during the Stormterror incident, we went to the Four Winds' temples to deal with the Ley Line disruptions that Dvalin used to absorb power from the temples. Normally the temples are deserted but we found Hilichurls and Abyss Mages inside each of them." she began. "What if the Abyss Order were still using the temples as hideouts even after the Stormterror incident?"
"But the temples were cleared out after the Stormterror incident. Any remnants of the enemy forces would've already been dealt with." said Eula.
"Actually, that might not be the case." countered Kaeya. "After the Stormterror incident, the knights did send people to investigate the temples, and while they encountered some slight resistance from Hilichurls that wandered their way back in, the investigation never went beyond the areas that we had already traversed." he continued, supporting Amber's theory.
"What are you implying?" asked a confused Spindrift Knight.
"Those temples are full of ancient mechanisms that controlled access to its deeper areas. If the Abyss Order managed to figure out how these mechanisms operated, they could have easily gone into the depths of these temples and sealed the entrances from the other side, making it look like they were never there." replied Diluc, himself on board with the idea of the Abyss hiding out in the temples.
"The Four Winds' temples are known to have been constructed in the same way as the Domains scattered around Teyvat, so the existence of these mechanisms has in fact, been confirmed by Mondstadt's archeologists. However, the knowledge of operating these mechanisms are quite limited and are unique to each Domain. Sadly, no materials exist pertaining to those found within the Four Winds' temples." said Lisa, recalling on the numerous books and research materials about the mysterious Domains that she has read over the years.
"So there's really no way for us to go deeper into the temples?" said Amber, the outrider sounding hopeless thinking they've reached a dead end. "If only there was someone out there who knows about this stuff..."
Diluc and Kaeya exchanged knowing looks as if on cue, having thought of the same idea.
"Actually, that someone may very well exist." said Kaeya, earning him questioning looks from everyone sans Diluc.
"If the Abyss Order really do possess the knowledge on how to operate the mechanisms, then we'll just have to get them to tell us how." continued Diluc.
"Capture someone from the Abyss, huh? That does sound like a good plan, but how do we even find them?" asked Eula, unsure if the idea was actually a viable option. "If they are hiding deep within the temples as we predict, then it would be impossible to find them without even knowing how to progress further into the ruins."
"We don't have to find them there, we just have them get out in the open." replied Diluc who remained confident on this plan. "Have someone draw them out and lure them into an ambush. With a little persuasion, we can get the information we need out of them."
"Act as bait for the Abyss Order? That sounds like an awfully risky job...if Jean were here she'd be going crazy against this idea." said Amber as she imagined the Acting Grand Master expressing heavy opposition against the dangerous plan.
"Exactly why the knights don't have to bother on dealing with this." said Diluc. "I know you people like to take your sweet time coming up with elaborate plans, so I'll go do this alone to save ourselves some time."
"Hang on, I'm going with you." said Kaeya, earning him a sharp glare from Diluc. "Our friends could be using any one of the temples as their hideout, so why not save ourselves some more time by having me tag along to help cover more ground quickly."
"Fine. Do as you please." Diluc relented, aware that dissuading his brother from joining him would end up being more difficult than their actual objective.
Now having settled on how they would deal with the Abyss Order's hideout in Mondstadt, Lisa turned her attention to the looming threat of the organization's forces at Dragonspine.
"What are we going to do about the Abyss forces at Dragonspine then?" asked the librarian as she looked towards the Spindrift Knight for ideas.
"While I don't wish to defy the Acting Grand Master's wishes, I believe it is best to strike at the enemy while their forces have yet to strengthen themselves. I'm afraid that allowing the situation to develop further will only put us at a further disadvantage." replied Eula, determined to resolve the threat of another siege as quickly as possible.
"I agree, however we need to find a way that won't attract any attention from the Millelith. I simply don't want to have Jean coming back to any diplomatic trouble with Liyue if I can help it." said Lisa, mindful that any knock-on effects that come from their actions will inevitably find their way back to the Acting Grand Master.
"As long as we can use the cover of darkness, I'm quite confident that we can wipe the enemy forces out in good time. Besides, with the Millelith's hands full at Liyue Harbor, it would still take them a while to respond, plenty enough time for us to leave the scene by the time they arrive." assured the 4th company captain. "Be that as it may, I'm afraid my men will need some time to resupply in preparation for this plan."
The librarian nodded in response. "I understand, then I'll leave that matter to you, Captain Eula."
Eula then turned to the young outrider beside her, who looked at her expectantly. "I suppose I can use your help again on this. Go and let the rest of the squad know, we leave at noon tomorrow and strike once dark sets in."
Amber's face lit up, excited to go on a mission with her friend once more. "Yes ma'am! You can count on me!" said the enthused outrider before she quickly excused herself from the Grand Master's office to relay the order to the rest of the Reconnaissance Company.
"Always so excited..." Eula trailed off, amused at Amber's eagerness. She then excused herself shortly after to follow Amber and meet up with the rest of her team, planning to go over their preparations for the attack, leaving Kaeya, Diluc and Lisa in the office.
"If there's nothing else, then I'll be taking my leave." said Diluc. Having received no objections from the other two, he made his way out of the Knights of Favonius Headquarters. Wanting to get some time to himself, he decided to make his way back to Dawn Winery.
After Diluc left, Kaeya decided to confer his thoughts to the librarian. The blue-haired Cavalry Captain had been observing his brother the entire time and it was clear to him that Diluc had a lot of things going through his mind.
"He's done a good job of hiding it, but he's really upset about this whole mess." he said. "He's obviously no stranger to dealing with the Abyss Order, but I don't think he ever expected them to go after Jean like that and almost succeed, and it really bothers him."
The librarian sighed as she sat back down on the Grand Master's desk. "I can't say I blame him. We're all affected by what happened to Jean, but Diluc's bound to take it much worse than everyone. It's never easy when you see someone you care about so much get hurt, after all." she said.
As Jean's best friend and confidant, Lisa was well aware of how close she and Diluc were. And while they've ignored her insinuations about them being in a relationship, she knew that at the very least, neither would ever allow harm to come to the other and would rush to their aid at anytime. Back in the Stormterror incident, Jean went as far as to momentarily cast aside her role as Acting Grand Master in order to join Diluc and the Honorary Knight to bring an end to the crisis, something she wouldn't do in a normal situation.
When Lisa looked at Kaeya, she thought that he too, appeared to be lost in thought as he stood beside her looking out the window behind the desk. After hearing his concerns, she guessed that he had his adoptive brother on his mind. However, she didn't get the chance to ask as he suddenly made his way to the exit.
It was around midnight when Diluc made it back to the winery, the vineyard very much calm as the day's operations have long since ended. When he got to the front door, he was greeted by Adelinde, the head housemaid of the Ragnvindr household.
"Welcome back, Master Diluc." greeted the blonde maid, her voice as gentle as ever.
"Evening, Adelinde." he greeted back. "I'll be in my study."
The maid slightly bowed her head in response. "I understand, do you need anything by chance?"
Diluc paused for a moment, as he mulled over what he could request from the maid. "Just a bottle of grape juice." he eventually replied.
"As you wish, Master Diluc." said Adelinde as she walked ahead and opened the front door for Diluc.
The two then separated as they walked in, with Adelinde heading for the kitchen while Diluc headed for his study.
Once inside his study, Diluc took his sword from his back and placed in on the metallic rack that was mounted on the wall behind his desk. He then pulled out a couple books from the nearest shelf before settling himself on the large, comfortable master's chair, turning on the nearby lamp to illuminate the desk and placing the books on the side. He then took his gloves off and set them aside on the pullout drawer underneath the desk
A minute later, Adelinde entered the study carrying a tray with the bottle of grape juice and an empty glass on it. She gently placed the tray on the side of the desk opposite to where Diluc had placed the books. The maid then uncorked the bottle and poured her master a glass.
"Thank you, Adelinde. I'll see you in the morning." he said, effectively dismissing the head housemaid for the night.
"Very well, then. Good night, Master Diluc." replied the maid, excusing herself from the study.
When the maid left, Diluc leaned back on the master's chair as he took a sip from the glass of grape juice, allowing himself to relax after what had been a very hectic evening. Finally having some time to himself, he began to organize his thoughts.
With Jean being attended to by her sister, her physical condition's become the least of his worries, as Barbara's healing should make it only a matter of time before Jean fully recovers and returns to her duties as Acting Grand Master. The knights themselves have also settled on how to deal with the Abyss Order gathered at Dragonspine, and given that the Reconnaissance Company is known as a highly successful unit under Eula's leadership, they should be able to deal with that problem without so much as attracting the attention of Liyue's Millelith.
This left the matter of investigating the whereabouts of the Abyss Order near Mondstadt, and how they were able to conceal themselves during the aftermath of the Stormterror incident. Despite initially wanting to conduct the investigation alone, Diluc knew that having Kaeya along would ultimately make his job easier. He hated to admit it, but the two brothers have always made a great team, as he recalled how they both managed to resolve the Black Fire Incident by plotting behind the scenes. Kaeya was a knight, yet he was also a free spirit who shared the same pragmatism, not letting himself be confined by the rules of the knights to get the job done.
Still, he was plagued by the events that happened just a couple hours ago. All this time, he had unfailingly kept Mondstadt safe from the Abyss Order's machinations, repeatedly throwing a wrench in the organization's plans from the shadows by staying one step ahead of them. Yet this time, they managed to catch him completely off-guard and he nearly ended up losing Jean for it.
"Have I somehow become complacent? Overconfident that I was always a step ahead of them?" he repeated these doubts to himself.
Diluc took one of the books he placed on his desk and began to browse through it. The books weren't ordinary textbooks, however, as they were instead a collection of information regarding the Abyss Order compiled by himself and other members of the intelligence organization that he worked with. He began to look for any signs that he may have missed, things that went unnoticed which allowed the Abyss to execute their plans as they did.
His train of thought was interrupted, however, when he heard the door to his study creak as it opened and saw a figure enter. While he could only make out their silhouette as they stood in front of the moonlit window that was beside the door, he could tell that it wasn't anyone from the Ragnvindr household. And yet, his falcon, which rested on its perch near the window, kept silent, telling him that his visitor wasn't hostile.
"I knew you'd be cooped up in father's study."
Diluc grimaced as he recognized his brother's voice as he watched him walk over, his figure slowly coming into view from the light on his desk.
"What do you want now? Couldn't it have waited until morning?" he asked, annoyed at Kaeya's sudden interruption, but the tanned knight merely shrugged in response.
"Not really. I figured you and me could use a little chat before we went out on our little investigation."
Meanwhile, back in her room at the Favonius Cathedral, Jean stared out at the moonlit sky beyond her window as she laid in her bed, unable to get herself to sleep. Only a short while ago, she had sent Barbara home to get some sleep after having taken care of her up until then. The deaconess had infused her with healing Hydro energy to help with her recovery. But while Jean had recovered enough strength to use her Anemo energy to accelerate her recovery, Barbara insisted on having Jean stay rested for longer.
She frowned as she remembered the events that happened before she fell unconscious: her coming to the rescue of the missing knights and the subsequent battle with the Abyss Mages and the Ruin Guards that she nearly died from. Much of her hazy memory of what happened afterward was cleared up by her younger sister, but she still clearly remembered briefly waking up in Diluc's arms as he carried her back to Mondstadt, probably the only good memory from it.
While the Abyss Order's threat has always loomed over the whole of Teyvat, Jean cursed her weakness in having been unable to deal with them by herself in this occasion. As the Acting Grand Master, she always believed that she had to step up and assume the responsibilities left by Varka, himself a formidable warrior. She couldn't help but think that if Varka were the one to have fought that battle, he would've undoubtedly come out victorious and while looking none worse for wear, instead of being at the brink of death like she did.
"I guess I was never suited to become the protector of Mondstadt, after all." she said to herself in a defeated tone.
"Really? Cause I think everyone in Mondstadt would tell you otherwise." a voice suddenly replied.
Jean suddenly sat up and began frantically looking around for the source of the voice until she saw someone leaning on the wall at the far side of the room. The figure stepped forward towards her bed, and Jean started to recognize them as they came into the moonlight that permeated through the window.
"Venti? What are you doing here?" she said as she recognized the teal-clad bard who had an ornate wooden lyre slung to his side.
"Heya." the bard cheerfully greeted. "I heard you got into a bad spot, so I thought I'd come visit, but it seems you're doing just fine."
Jean laid back down on her bed and sighed as she tried putting her doubts into words for the bard.
"Tell me something, Venti. You've watched over this land for so long and seen everything in its history. So tell me, am I really worthy of the title I've been given? The Dandelion Knight is supposed to live up to Lady Vennessa's legacy as Mondstadt's protector, yet I couldn't even do anything on my own."
Venti took a moment before he replied as he thought about how he could help the young Grand Master overcome her self-doubt. He figured words wouldn't be enough to get her to believe she was worthy, and instead needed something more concrete to help her understand.
"I'm afraid not even my words would be enough to convince you that you are." he began. "However, there is one thing I can do, but first you have to get some rest. Once you've fully recovered, come find me at Windrise."
The puzzled look that Jean threw him implored Venti to go on and reveal more about his intentions, but he wasn't about to let her know everything just yet.
"I think it's about time you found out the real reason why the Dandelion Knight stands as one among the Four Winds."