Guess who just found out how fun Stardew valley is? This girl!

News spread fast in Mondstadt. Faster than anywhere in the world. Especially when it came to something as horrific as what happened to Lumine. Lumine stumbled through the gates of Mondstadt by noon and by the late afternoon everyone knew. Anybody who was affiliated with Lumine was inside the cathedral waiting for the news.

Venti sat in a pew and just watched.

Razor was with Bennett and Fischl, the three of them grouped off in a corner. Razor stayed squatting next to Bennett, while Bennett spoke quietly to Fischl. Venti couldn't hear what was being said. He just knew that they were talking. Venti watched Fischl closely, her movements, she was out of character. Though, nobody was going to point it out.

Sucrose stayed with Albedo and Klee, in her mouth was a sweet flower that she nervously was chewing on while Albedo held on to Klee's hand. Klee was clearly sniffling and trying her hardest not to cry, she was failing at that. "Who would want to hurt Miss. Lumine? She's so nice." Klee asked Albedo with a shaky breath. Albedo didn't have an answer as stared off.

Klee wasn't the only one trying to hide their tears. Venti's eyes turned to Amber. The outrider had her back turned to everyone, one hand on the nearest wall. She wasn't masking her tears, but rather trying just to hide them. Venti watched as Amber's frame racked with small sobs. She wasn't alone. Noelle held on to Amber in a tight hug doing her best to comfort Amber in the moment. Eventually Amber just turned and returned Noelle's hug.

A crackling noise caught Venti's attention and he turned to Lisa. The Liberian was sitting next to Jean. Lisa's eyes were intense and full of fury. She brought her hand up and snapped her fingers, lightning erupted in front of her in just a small burst of purple. She was, undoubtedly, preparing her magic for the poor soul who had hurt Lumine. Venti would normally pity those under Lisa's unbridled fury. But not in this case.

There was another sound to Venti's right, and when he turned, he saw Mona, the astrologist. The sound he heard was her looking desperately at the constellations. 'For an answer?' he wondered. Eula walked past Mona, she was angry muttering to herself while she turned her heel and paced on by again. Venti heard the word 'vengeance.' at least three times while Eula passed him.

Pink hair caught Venti's attention next. Diona. Even though Venti was allergic to cats, Diona never triggered his allergies, which he was thankful for. Diona tried to look unaffected by this whole situation, but her ears were a dead giveaway as they were flattened against her head in anger. His eyes went from Diona up to the second floor. Leaning against the railing was Rosaria, in her hand was her trusty knife. She was better at keeping her face emotionless while she twirled her dagger on her index finger.

Venti felt his leg shake nervously as time ticked on by. He knew Barbara was doing her best and what was given to her wasn't exactly a simple healing. He just wished she would emerge and tell them that Lumine was going to be okay…

A cough rang through the cathedral and Venti slowly turned his head towards Viktor. The Fatui agent. Viktor just stood there, against that pillar that Venti was sure had an indent of his back at this point. His eyes narrowed as his anger started to bubble just under the surface. 'It was the Fatui, it had to be.' Venti could only assume at this point. It made sense after all. The Fatui would stop at nothing to get what they want, be it torture or otherwise. He knew he wasn't the only one thinking it as several others, mostly the knights, tossed quick glares Viktor's way. It became apparent that Viktor was feeling their hate rather quickly as he eventually turned so his back was to them.

That was when the cathedral doors suddenly burst open causing everyone to turn, some stood, others held to their weapons in fear of an attack. Venti was one of those people, next to Eula, Lisa, and Bennett, the four of them ready for an impromptu attack. Thankfully, it was just Diluc and Keaya. Diluc was out of breath as he panted. "I… I came as soon as I heard." Diluc spoke as he started to compose himself. He kept his hands raised while everyone lowered their weapons.

Venti was the last to lower his bow and put it away. Diluc skipped past everyone and went straight for Jean. "What happened?"

Even though he was addressing Jean, Venti was the one to answer first. "She just… walked into the city. No shoes on, limping, covered in blood." Venti wasn't sure if he'd ever get that image out of his head as his stomach twisted and turned.

"Why don't we ask Paimon?" They all could have heard a pin drop at Keaya's innocent question. Everyone looked at one another like they'd have the answer to such a mundane question.

"Where is Paimon?" It was Amber who had asked the question that was all on their minds.

"Y-Yeah… now that you mention it… Paimon is always with Miss Lumine." Bennett muttered as he rubbed the back of his head. Eyes turned to Venti, after all, he was one of the first people to be with Lumine when she walked through the gates. Venti just shook his head.

"Paimon wasn't with her. She was by herself."

An uneasy atmosphere smothered all of them as they thought about it. 'Where is Paimon? I was so worried about Lumine that I didn't even think about Paimon.' He knew the others were probably thinking the same thing he was right now.

They didn't think about it for too long as finally, after what had to be hours, the door opened and out Barbara came. She was most definitely shaken up when she emerged. Barbara quietly shut the door behind her as everyone turned to her for answers. She promptly ignored them. All of them. She made a straight bee-line for Jean. Venti frowned. Barbara, though shaken, spoke quietly into Jean's ear.

Jean's emotionless facade broke for just a split second as her eyes went wide, a horrified look etched on her face, and her hand went over her mouth. "Are you sure…?"

Barbara just nodded; her cheeks now flushed with sadness as she squeezed her eyes tight. She bit her lips and tried to stop her tears, but she couldn't as a few escaped. "I…" Barbara gasped a soft breath in and tried again. "I did what I could-" She wiped a few tears away. "Her smaller wounds that is. Her left arm and both of her hands… those were infected so they'll take some time to heal…"

Jean immediately composed herself and went back into 'acting grandmaster mode.' She put a hand on Barbara's shoulder. "One day at a time. That's all we can ask until she's stable enough to wake."

Venti exhaled a breath he didn't even know he was holding. Maybe it was the way Barbara went about it, or the way she explained it, but for a moment he feared Lumine was dead. She wasn't and for that he was eternally grateful… but at the same time… What caused Barbara's tears? The extent of Lumine's injuries? Or was it something deeper than that? Venti wasn't sure he really wanted to know.

"Now what do we do?" It was Albedo who had asked.

"We need to know who did this heinous act and punish them accordingly." Eula growled between clenched teeth. Amber, Diona, Fischl, and Bennett agreed with Eula's statement.

"I don't disagree, but you guys are missing something." Rosaria spoke from above. "The people who did this. We have no clue who attacked Lumine, and because I know a few of you are already thinking of people to blame, we can't just go on assumption."

Lisa came to Rosaria's aid. "Rosaria is right. As much as I want to put these people to justice- and trust me- I do. We need to know who these people are."

Venti bit his tongue. They were right, yes, but that didn't make it any less irritating. He wanted answers dammit and being forced to sit and smile like nothing was wrong…

Barbatos didn't like it. Still, something was nagging in the back of Venti's mind. He felt like he was missing something. 'But what?' He thought to himself as his eyebrows knit together.

"I found something!" It was Mona's voice that suddenly cut through the air and made Venti jump a little. He had almost forgotten about her. Mona was looking into the stars, yes, but she was focusing more intensely on them as she spoke. "It's not a clear answer, but, at least it's something…"

"Which is?" Jean inquired first and foremost as she walked over to Mona.

"I'm only getting a name, but it's something. Dahlia."

"Dahlia?" Jean's eyebrows arched in question.

"I've never heard of that name before." Diluc huffed as he crossed his arms and leaned against a nearby pillar. When Jean looked at others for answers, everyone just shook their heads.

"Alright, well… it's something." Jean assured them all. "All of us have connections, ask around. See if anybody else can identify who Dahlia is. Understood?" Jean ordered. People nodded and muttered agreements.

Mona sighed in irritation. "I'll keep searching. Hopefully something else will come of it. But as for now… is it possible if we could see Lumine?"

Others spoke in agreement even Venti perked a little at it. Lumine was his friend and he wanted to be there for her when she woke. However; Barbara shut it down. "I'm afraid not. It's best if we gave the honorary knight some rest and space. She's been through more than alot and too many people may freak her out."

Venti deflated, as did everybody else. But everybody understood and one by one people made their exits with promises of returning the following days. Venti was ready to make his escape as well, honestly, he was tired, but he also wanted to start asking around for Dahlia, whoever that may be. But then the crook of his arm was grabbed and he was forced to a halt; turning his head over his shoulder he saw it was Diluc who had stopped him.

This didn't go unnoticed by Keaya either, Keaya simply tossed them a look before stalking out of the cathedral. If he had something to say, he didn't say it, nor did anybody else. Diona, however, was brave enough to grumble a few obscenities as she passed Diluc, but nothing major enough to warrant a reaction.

Once everyone made their leave, Barbara went back to attend to Lumine and when the door clicked shut, Diluc let go of Venti. He turned to look at Jean and she put her hands to her face and shook her head; her ponytail swayed with the movement. Jean then took a seat in the nearest pew. She looked exhausted.

"Jean?" Venti asked in a soft voice.

Jean spoke, though her hands were still over her face. It was muffled, but Venti… he hoped he heard her wrong. The world almost came to a complete still as he heard Diluc gasp in a sharp breath. Diluc clearly heard it too, meaning, Venti didn't hear wrong.

But that still didn't stop him from asking Jean to repeat herself. His voice became almost small when he asked "What did you just say?" He felt his fingertips turn to ice while his heart rate spiked considerably. Jean removed her hands from her face and swallowed hard.

"She was...raped."

Maybe it was a good thing Barbatos no longer had his Gnosis. Because if he still had it then he might have created a tornado then and there in his rage; maybe even flatten houses or another landscape with the powers of a thousand winds. Still, Venti could hear the winds- his winds- pick up outside and slap powerfully against the windows so harshly that the pane rattled and threatened to break.

For the longest time there wasn't a sound between the three of them as they all stared at one another and just listened to the angry winds outside.

Then Jean spoke. "I'm telling you two because I trust you guys and you deserve to know. Don't tell anybody else. I'm sure it's the last thing Lumine will want people to know when she wakes."

Venti was only half listening. Really, he was planning on what to do whenever he caught the monster who had hurt Lumine in such a way.

Diluc let out a growl and it was clear to Venti that Diluc was thinking the exact same thing. "Please, I know you both want to take action, but I beg you both to hold off until we have a solid lead." It was nothing less of a demand from Jean as she finally stood from the pew. "Trust me… I want to find who did this just as much, if not more, than everybody else." Jean then walked by them and towards the door. "I know you both know people. Ask around and help us find this 'Dahlia.' Please." And with that, Jean walked out.

When it was just the two of them, Venti shook his head and Diluc asked: "Any ideas who could have done it?"

"My first guess would be Fatui."

"Mine as well."

"I think I know a few places they might be hiding in Mondstadt-"

Then, someone, that wasn't one of them, sneezed.

The two of them turned to Viktor. Viktor immediately tried to make it seem like he wasn't listening by quickly turning away. Venti narrowed his eyes and felt a growl leave his throat.

It was rather convenient that a sudden, and bizarre, gust of wind blew Viktor off of his feet… and a good ten feet from the pillar. Viktor couldn't fight the wind as he was being dragged towards them. Though he did try to drag himself away, the vortex Venti created was too strong and soon Viktor was at their feet on his back. "W-wait!- ah!" Viktor cried out when Diluc's sword came down next to his face, nicking Viktor's cheek, and cutting a bit of his hair, in the process. "Please! I don't know anything! I'm just a diplomat!" Viktor put his hands up towards his face in an attempt to shield himself.

"What did you hear?" Diluc demanded.

"I don't know Dahlia!"

"That's not what I asked. What did you hear?!"

Viktor sputtered before it seemed to register what Diluc was demanding. "N-Nothing! You have my word. I heard absolutely nothing." Viktor wheezed in fear.

Diluc looked down at Viktor before lifting his sword up and away from Viktor's face, but he didn't put the claymore away. "And… about what happened to Lumine?" Diluc inquired. Viktor just continued to shake his head vigorously.

"I swear. I didn't hear a thing." Viktor reassured them.

At the same time, Diluc and Venti both relaxed at this and finally Diluc put his sword away. "I shouldn't have to tell you, if word gets around about what happened to Lumine… I won't hesitate next time." Diluc growled at Viktor. "Now. Get out of here."

Viktor, surprisingly, hesitated to leave. Venti felt an eyebrow raise as he watched Viktor shake slightly, before standing a little taller. "I-...I just want to say one thing. As a Fatui diplomat- My people wouldn't have done...that."

Diluc sucked on his teeth in annoyance, but it was Venti that asked the question lingering in the air. "What makes you so confident about that?"

"The Fatui would never stoop as low as rape." Viktor made a face like he tasted something bad.

"So you say." Venti challenged.

Viktor sighed as he thought about what to say next. "We wouldn't dare. We're not savages. Not only that, but word travels. I may be stuck in place, but I know things. For instance: Your Traveler is friends with one of our harbingers. Our reputation is bad enough as it is. Why would we make it worse by doing something so heinous that it even got the lazy Barbatos to get upset!-"

"-Wait- back up. Lumine is friends with a Fatui Harbinger?!" Venti felt his jaw drop.

"Yes-"

"Heh. She would." Diluc gave a low chuckle as he gave his head a sudden shake. Venti couldn't deny it either, Lumine would befriend someone from the Fatui be it out of spite or genuine friendship. It was almost impossible for Venti to wrap his head around though.

"Can you contact them?" Venti found himself saying. Maybe if he met this harbinger and questioned them accordingly (or have the knight's question them) then maybe-

Viktor openly scoffed. "No. I'm just a diplomat. The harbingers won't even look in my direction."

"Maybe that's a good thing." Diluc shut the conversation down suddenly as he crossed his arms over his chest. "The last thing we need is more Fatui running around Mondstadt."

When Venti thought about it, he realized that Diluc was right. To bring a harbinger in (Who was friends with Lumine on top of it) would be inviting more Fatui into Mondstadt and might even get the Fatui involved just to clear their name. Venti bit the inside of his cheek in frustration.

"We'll consider all you have told us, Viktor… Thank you for your help." The reluctance to thank Viktor was clear in Diluc's voice. This time, Viktor was more than happy to run out of the cathedral.

"So… now what?" Venti asked as he looked at Diluc.

Diluc shut his eyes and thought about it. "Ask around. Like Jean said: We both have contacts."

"Right!"

Nobody at Angel Share knew anything. Some even got frustrated when Venti asked because they've been asked multiple times by different knights. However, before too long, the questioning turned on Venti though what happened to Lumine was a secret. It wasn't a secret that she stumbled into Mondstadt, bloodied and wounded. Those that had even been there to witness it, asked Venti for details. Which he would deflect.

"Poor Bennett-" Cyrus told Venti from his table as he took a big gulp of his beer. "The kid is blaming his bad luck on what happened to The Honorary knight. He stormed out of the guild promising he's going to fix this."

Venti went to answer, but another adventure suddenly joined in. It was Pallad if Venti wasn't mistaken. "You know. I think I saw that weirdo that lives in Wolvendom sniffing around the front gates trying to find a scent."

"No-no-no. The guy in Wolvendom isn't a weirdo. The girl in purple? Now, she's the weirdo." Another adventurer, Jack, laughed a little. "She went on with some long winded speech that I could barely comprehend about how she was going to 'Right those who had done her friend wrong.' I think…"

Venti simply sighed as he sat down on the nearest barstool. "This is bad. Too many innocent people getting involved…" He muttered. What if they got captured like Lumine? He didn't want to think about it, really, but the thought was there. Venti pressed one of his hands against his face and felt his nose squish against the palm of his hand.

"You look like shit. Have one on me. Charles." A familiar voice came to Venti's side and tapped the counter after getting Charles's attention. Venti lowered his hand from his face and looked at Nimrod.

"Hey, thanks." Venti wasn't going to turn down a free drink and happily took the glass of wine from Charles. "I thought you were quitting?" Venti inquired as he looked at Nimrod, who had his own drink in his hand.

"Hey, I'm cutting down. One glass a night is better than ten. Cheers." The two of them bumped their glasses. Venti didn't hesitate. He downed his drink in one go. Nimrod waited for Venti to finish before he spoke. "I was kind of hoping to see you. I saw her come through the gates as well."

Venti shot a look at Nimrod's way. "I didn't see you." He got ready to deflect any and all questions.

"I was over by Quinn's shop when I heard Flora scream and I ran with Quinn to see what the commotion was… I… don't think you saw it, but I and Quinn sure did." Nimrod rubbed the back of his head awkwardly and Venti frowned.

"Saw what?"

"Well… it was strange, The Traveler- Ms. Lumine. She was in this weird almost zombie state when she stumbled in, you saw."

"Yes."

"Well, for just a moment, Quinn and I both swear, she snapped out of that state the moment she saw, well, you." Nimrod let out an awkward cough. "Before you ask-" Nimrod stopped Venti from speaking. "- I can't really describe it. The only thing I can say is just for that second it was like something broke through to her and… I think she might have smiled right before she passed out."

Venti tried to rewind his memories, to see if he saw Lumine's face right before she fell. He thought and thought, but no, the more he tried to dig, the more he was starting to realize he was more focused on the blood around her mouth that had dried all the way down her throat, the torn clothing she was desperately trying to hold up in an attempt to keep herself decent. The limp she had. He hadn't looked into her eyes.

"I'm sorry. I… I probably shouldn't have brought it up." Nimrod sighed out. "I just keep seeing that smile of hers. It wasn't a malicious smile... It was…"

"-Relief." The word left Venti's mouth before he could stop himself. A deranged laugh left his mouth once it all clicked in place for him.

"She was relieved. How long had she been-" Venti slammed his fist down on the bar in anger. The sting reminded him to keep his mouth shut before he said something he shouldn't. "-She saw me and realized she was finally safe!" Tears threatened to spill out of Venti's eyes as the tavern started to quiet down at his outrage. His head was down, resting against the wood of the bar as he stared angrily at the ground. "She hadn't done her commissions in weeks and nobody noticed until it was too late! If I had noticed sooner-" The dam of emotions broke as he gritted his teeth and felt the tears slip from his eyes and land on the floor.

Lumine, undoubtedly, endured rape and torture for weeks and what was Venti doing? Singing songs in the tavern just for a drink?!

No.

No.

This was no time for self-pity. Not now. Not when the people who hurt Lumine were still out there. Right then and right there, Barbatos made a promise to himself. When he found these scumbags he was going to personally put them in the ground or die trying.