Diluc hadn't gotten much sleep. It took the better half of the night to write the documentation and reschedule the meetings that were planned for the next few days. Adeline very much disapproved of him mangling his sleep schedule again, but she chided him only after giving him some tea to help him focus, as well as sorted documents with him to help save time. Diluc was certain he'd never be able to pay the head maid well enough for all her diligence. The least he was able to do was get to bed as soon as the work was done. However, once the dawn rose, so did he.

Adeline already had a quick breakfast prepared for him. Apparently, she could allow him less sleep, but to be under-fed was where she drew the line. He prepared a bag with supplies for two days. He hoped to only be gone for one, but there was always a chance for setbacks. To save time getting from Dawn Winery to Mondstadt city, Diluc caught a ride with one of the carts. Inwardly, Diluc was thankful the driver this morning was Ben and not Magar. The latter was dedicated and saw every job through, but he was a bit too skittish. At least Ben was a good sport about Diluc catching some sleep during the ride. It would have been difficult not to fall asleep anyways. He was blanketed by morning dew and the crisp smell of wet grass, all the while the steady rumble of wheels, click of stones and thumping of horse hooves lulled him into a relatively pleasant nap.

Diluc woke to Ben clearing his throat, and he could see the cool stone walls of the city across the lake. The water itself was nearly golden with the rising sun. The sky overhead was a blush pink, while the bushes and grass burst into green. It was sights like this that made Diluc glad he returned to Mondstadt after all those years away.

When they approached the bridge to the city, that was when they saw Rosaria, smoking a cigarette.

Her white-and-black clergy uniform helped her blend into the dark, but it did nothing for her against the lush scenery. It was a bit humorous how out of place she looked. Her uniform already had details that were slightly…off. The gentle garb of a nun had spikes and pointed bits of metal incorporated into it, wayward belts and cords woven in like vines with flashes of red beneath her cowl like flickers of blood, along with chunks of the once-modest skirt missing, practically forgoing its purpose. Rosaria watched the cart approach with a chillingly dull gaze.

Diluc dismounted the cart, and Ben headed into the city, leaving Diluc and Rosaria by the Sunsettia tree.

"Good morning," Diluc greeted cordially. "I assume you're ready to set off?"

Rosaria flexed her fingers and little ember of her cigarette were choked by Cryo. She let it fall and shredded it with a few twists beneath her stiletto heel. Rosaria scraped up her own bag and moved past him, heading east, towards Falcon Coast. She muttered, "Let's get going already."

She definitely wasn't one for mornings.

In lieu of pleasantries, they discussed their route; they would walk straight across Windrise until they reached the beach and that would bring them right to the Cryo Regisvine's cavern. The walk would likely take them several hours to get there, and it would probably be night by the time they returned to the city.

Diluc asked, "Have you traveled to Falcon Coast before?"

"I go wherever I'm needed for a job. I guess you could say I've been just about everywhere," Rosaria answered with a shrug.

The red-haired man glanced back at the pointed spires of the Favonius Cathedral in the distance, where its morning bells could faintly be heard. He wondered, "I'm surprised you find so much time. I've heard that the daily schedule of a nun can be quite rigid."

"I told them I was going out for a smoke break."

Diluc blinked. "This will be…a rather long smoke break."

Rosaria shrugged again, "Whatever. The sisters don't need to know my every move. They'd probably prefer that they didn't."

He didn't have a response to that.

The only sounds then on were the wind dancing through the wild grass while foxes scampered away from them. The silence between them stretched as they walked. Diluc wouldn't say he was terribly surprised at the lack of conversation. They really only knew each other in passing. Diluc had first met her as a patron of his tavern. It was a surprise that a sister of the church would be such a hard drinker—but he could hardly judge her, being a winery owner who didn't even like drinking. At the time, there wasn't much else to note about her, aside from her staring at him like he was up to something. Then again, she scrutinized pretty much everyone. Rosaria was a strange sister, for certain. To Diluc, she was just another customer up until the night they tried to knock each other senseless.

Ever since Diluc returned to Mondstadt from his three-year absence, he concealed his appearance each night and prowled the streets to quell the criminals and monsters that snuck beneath the Knights' noses. He never wanted a repeat of what happened to his father. It turned out Rosaria did something very similar, sneaking out of church every night to purge the dark. They mistook each other for an Abyss spy and fought. Diluc still remembered the piercing cold of her attacks. He could see how she would strike fear in her enemies. Thankfully, they realized the misunderstanding and were able to defeat the actual Abyss spy together. It wasn't long afterwards that Rosaria deduced Diluc's secret identity. But she expressed no interest in revealing his secret, being only concerned with whether or not he was a threat to Mondstadt. The feeling was mutual. By the end, they agreed that they weren't enemies. However, they still preferred to work alone and stayed out of each other's way, simply becoming passing shadows in the night. Now that he thought about it, this journey to the Cryo Regisvine might have been the first time Diluc had ever directly collaborated with Rosaria.

"Why did you decide to help me?" Rosaria's question cut in, as if reading his thoughts.

Jolted from his mind, Diluc realized they had already walked almost an hour, with the ruins of the Falcon Temple off to the left, built into the side of the hills. As the sun rose and the sky became bluer, the green of the hills steadily popped. He then answered her, "I had little reason not to, especially when it comes to exterminating monsters."

Rosaria huffed. Diluc felt she wasn't convinced by his answer; frankly, neither was he.

Since the silence was broken, Diluc decided to continue conversing, "Your request certainly surprised me. I wouldn't have expected to have been approached by you."

"What's so surprising?" Rosaria replied in her standard mutter. "It's faster to have a Pyro Vision to take down a Cryo monster, and you're rather formidable. It's not like I had a lot of options, anyways."

"Are there truly not? Pyro Visions strike me as quite common in Mondstadt."

Rosaria clicked her tongue, "It's not about scarcity, it's about convenience. Too many of these Pyro users have a bad habit of leaving trails of indiscriminate destruction in their wake."

Diluc didn't disagree. There was a boy in the Adventurer's Guild named Bennett who always had a natural disaster or inexplicable monster at his heels. Instead of him burning enemies, it was usually himself that caught fire. Then the Knights of Favonius had their Spark Knight, Klee, who was indefinitely blacklisted by the Fishing Association for over-fishing via tossing bombs in the lake. She was easy to track from the craters she left behind. Between Bennett and Klee, it was a wonder that half of Mondstadt hadn't burned down.

And yet, Diluc wondered, "I don't believe I've heard any such horror stories about Outrider Amber. Fighting a Cryo Regisvine sounds like it would fit in with her line of work."

Rosaria gave him a narrowed side eye, "Strange that you of all people would recommend help from a Knight of Favonius."

Now it was Diluc's turn to scoff. He replied, "A few decent knights don't prevent the whole organization from being incompetent."

"Hm. I suppose I see your point," Rosaria huffed. "I guess Amber wouldn't have been a terrible choice, but she wasn't available. She was running errands, racing all over town like a maniac. I don't understand where she gets all that energy…"

"She must have been preparing for Kaeya's party," Diluc observed, thinking back to what Jean had told him.

Rosaria's eyes flicked to him in muted surprise. She stated, rather than asked, "Then you're in on it too."

So, the surprise party really is a secret among Kaeya's close associates. That must have meant that Rosaria didn't expect Diluc to get invited. It was an unpleasant truth, but one that Diluc expected. To him, it was all the more evidence that his presence would just be an intrusion. Aloud, Diluc replied, "I've not been involved. I was simply informed of it happening."

Rosaria made a non-committal noise.

The path they were on soon split, with one path continuing south-east to their destination of the coast and the other went south, towards the river and mountains. Diluc and Rosaria proceed with the dirt crunching beneath them. To their left, grassy hills sloped up to clusters of bustling green cedar trees and a crown of grey rocks. To their right, an ocean of grass filled a sprawling valley. It was overlooked by a massive tree, the Symbol of the Hero of Mondstadt, which dwarfed the man-made windmills back at the city. Despite the pleasant winds around them, an uncomfortable silence loomed.

Diluc decided to ask a more light-hearted question, "What made you decide on Shivada Jade? It's not exactly commonplace."

"Trust me, if there was a more convenient option, I would've done it. I don't like cutting a deadline so close," Rosaria answered. She exhaled with a scowl, "But nothing else seemed good enough. I wasted a bunch of time looking for one. And everyone I talked to had really crappy suggestions. Barbara and the other sisters kept prattling some nonsense that 'it doesn't matter the gift, just acting of giving,'" Rosaria said this with annoyed finger quotations, her claws gleaming with each flick. She shook her head, "But that just sounds like an excuse to be lazy. A gift should be meaningful."

As Rosaria ranted, Diluc found himself almost smiling at her passion, relating to the notion of not doing anything halfway.

"Someone suggested that I buy him wine, but I decided against that too," Rosaria added.

Diluc rose an eyebrow, "Why would that be? Captain Kaeya has a rather vested interest in fine wines." He then offered, "If you were having trouble finding one, perhaps I could assist."

Rosaria waved him off, "He drinks all the time. What would be so special about one more bottle?"

Diluc felt a stab in his chest, and it caught him off guard. That was the exact gift he planned to give Kaeya. Is it really that mundane?

He didn't have time to dwell on it as Rosaria continued, "I'd rather have a hand in making the gift myself. I don't want it to be something that I could give just anyone. It needs to be for him specifically. For that, I need Shivada Jade."

Diluc was quiet for a long moment. His expression softened a little as he said, "You must care greatly about him."

Rosaria's eyes widened. She marched a little ahead and muttered, "Shivada Jade is just something useful for Cryo users."

He lightly scoffed, a smile tugging at his lips. He thought, Perhaps Sister Rosaria is closer to Kaeya than I thought.

She then stopped suddenly and said, "There's something suspicious ahead."

At first, Diluc assumed she was just trying to change the subject, but he heard it too; the splintering of iron against wood, and the scratchy gargle of Hilichurls. In flashes of gold, Rosaria's spear was in her hand and Diluc grasped his claymore. They raced up the path, towards the sound of battle.

There was a small Hilichurl encampment surrounded by crooked fencing. A couple of the mangy-haired creatures already laid on the ground, cut down by a sword. There was a figure of black and white adorned by gold—it was a Knight of Favonius. He had his sword drawn in one hand and held a Hilichurl's wooden shield in the other. There were two other Hilichurls still alive, both holding crossbows. One of the Hilichurls croaked and lined up the crossbow to its eyeless mask, releasing the arrow with a snap.

The brown-haired knight yanked up the shield, which caught the arrow, and he charged to meet the Hilichurls. He swung his sword just as the other Hilichurl shot an arrow, but the arrow missed. His blade swiped at the ankles of one and cut across the chest of the other, knocking both monsters back with a cry. However, Hilichurls were very durable. Their inky skin was more like leather, so even a direct sword slash didn't always cut deep. Because of this, the Hilichurl he hit across the chest was the first to sit up. The monster clacked angrily and loaded its crossbow, pointing it at the knight's back. The man twisted around, jerking up the shield just before the arrow could strike his forehead, stabbing the wood instead. The precarious form and the force of the arrow tipped the knight back so he crashed onto the ground in a sitting position. A Pyro slime was there to greet the knight, almost blindingly with the heat from its bright, round body.

With a snap of its body, the slime lunged at the knight. He slapped it away with the shield, but the wood caught fire immediately. The knight quickly threw the burning disk at the Hilichurl taking aim at him, bouncing the shield off its mask, but the other Hilichurl was also back on its feet. The monster fired, and the knight dove for cover behind the fencing, next to a strange, blue rock. The two Hilichurls and pair of Pyro slimes closed in, until Rosaria and Diluc dove into the camp.

Diluc's claymore descended with a dull hum, before crashing onto a Hilichurl. The other tittered in surprise and backed up, launching an arrow. Diluc lifted his blade, deflecting the arrow off its broad body. Drawing from his Vision, orange-red flames spread across his sword, which now roared as he swung it. The first swing reduced the Hilichurl's snapped crossbow to ashes, and the second swing crumpled and burned the Hilichurl itself.

However, the fire inconsequentially rolled off the Pyro Slimes. They added to the flames spreading in the camp, spreading it dangerously and to where Diluc wouldn't be able to control it. But a cold streak suffocated the fires. Rosaria darted by, jabbing the slimes with her frost-bitten spear. With a crackle, the bright slime bodies dimmed to a smoldering red. Their gelatinous forms warbled, stubborn against the slashes of her spear, still bubbling with heat beneath. Puncturing them caused their bright, molten condensate to ooze and re-heat them again.

While Diluc finished off the last Hilichurl, he saw the knight emerge from his cover and move towards the blue stone. It was an Elemental Amber with a Hydro symbol etched into it, and the knight brought his sword down on it. The stone cracked and water spewed forth as a geyser, which then fell and rained onto the camp. Where there were once flames, steam hissed and Rosaria's Cryo spread across the ground. The slimes' bodies gleamed and steamed, but her ice seized them, petrifying them. Now her spear pierced them, cracking the slimes open like eggs, and the boiling condensate oozed out as yokes that cooled into gelatinous puddles.

When the last of the chilled water fell and the steam fizzled away, there only remained these three figures in the empty camp.

The knight hurried to the pair's side and said, "Travelers, thank you for your assist! Are either of you injured?"

When the pair turned to him, the knight's brow furrowed, likely realizing they were locals, as Rosaria wore the uniform of the Church of Favonius. Looking at Diluc, the knight's eyebrows shot up and he exclaimed, "You're—Diluc Ragnvindr!"

Diluc resisted the urge to frown. He regretted not dressing less conspicuously, but he had hoped they wouldn't run into many others on their way to Falcon Coast. It tended to slow a trip down when someone recognized the owner of the illustrious Dawn Winery. His bright red hair was always a terrible giveaway. Outwardly, Diluc put up a smile like one puts up a lovely painting and he greeted, "A pleasure to make your acquaintance. And what brings a Knight of Favonius so far out of the city?"

The knight snapped to attention. He placed one arm behind his back and straightened his other hand, swiping it from his chest and down to his side in a salute as he answered, "I am Sir Godwin. I've been assigned here for exploratory reconnaissance."

Rosaria narrowed her eyes and repeated, "Exploratory reconnaissance? I've never heard of that before."

Most nuns wouldn't be privy to military assignments anyways, Diluc thought. But Rosaria was right to be suspicious. As a former Knight of Favonius, Diluc could tell the assignment was false. Additionally, Diluc could tell that Godwin was not a normal knight. Subtle details in his armor and fighting style indicated that Godwin was an elite knight, far beyond the skillset of the standard knights that mulled around Mondstadt. There weren't many elite knights currently in town since Grand Master Varka took pretty much all of them on his latest expedition, leaving Acting Grand Master Jean with what Diluc considered to be a rather dismal excuse for a group of soldiers. So it was strange to see an elite knight still in Mondstadt, rather than with Varka.

Godwin cleared his throat, as if nervously. He replied, "It's newly established, to help keep the roads to the city clear of monsters and bandits, so it may be safe for travel in and out of Mondstadt." He seemed quick to change the subject as he asked, "Speaking of, may I ask where you are traveling to?"

Knights are so nosy, Diluc thought. He'll never let us through if he hears we're hunting monsters. They claim it's for safety, but I imagine it's to keep others from stealing the glory.

With a pleasant smile, Diluc answered Godwin, "Is it not obvious from the presence of this devout sister? We're on a pilgrimage to honor the Four Winds. We've just made our way from the Falcon Temple and were headed to the Wolf Temple at Falcon Coast."

While Rosaria silently rose an eyebrow, the knight appeared pleasantly surprised by this answer. He offered, "Allow me to escort you then to ensure your safety to the temple."

"No need, Sir Godwin. Though your offer is kind, as you can see—" Diluc gestured to the burnt Hilichurls, "—we can hold our own just fine. Dare I say, I'm a bit more worried for your safety. I shudder to think of what would have happened had we not arrived sooner."

The man looked embarrassed. He cleared his throat again and stuttered, "Ah, that's—well, there is no need for concern. Though I still appreciated your assistance, I am still capable of dealing with threats to the city and its people."

"But of course," Diluc replied, with a tone that he barely kept from sounding mocking. "Allow us to let you resume your…explorative reconnaissance. We should really be on our way to complete our pilgrimage."

Rosaria and Diluc started to walk off, but Godwin called, "Wait! Just a moment!"

Diluc tried not to tense up and barely kept from scowling.

To Diluc's surprise, Godwin approached Rosaria, fidgeting with his gloves as he asked meekly, "Dear Sister, before you go, um…well, would you be able to pray a blessing over my girlfriend? For her health and safety?"

Rosaria was taken aback. Apparently, she didn't usually get these requests and someone asking was a surprise. She shot Diluc a dirty look, as if this was his fault. Diluc discreetly urged her on, since it would look suspicious if she didn't. Rosaria rolled her eyes.

"Ugh, fine. Let's pray. First, close your eyes and…think of her or something," Rosaria directed, which Godwin immediately followed. "And the next step is…to pray. Right. Uh…"

Diluc never saw Rosaria at such a loss of words. Her eyes searched the grass and sky before she settled on shutting her eyes as well.

After a long pause, Rosaria started mumbling, "Dear Lord Babr…baratas? Barbertos. We come before you to ask that you please watch over this man's girlfriend with your…windiness. And, uh, keep her healthy and safe. Just like how you clear away storms, please…keep things…not stormy between these two. Amen."

"Amen?" Godwin murmured.

Diluc stared at Rosaria in disbelief.

The knight fluttered his eyes open and cleared his throat, "Um, thank you, Sister. May the winds guide you both."

"Yeah, yeah, winds to you too," Rosaria muttered, turning heel to march past Diluc, who quickly followed.

Diluc started, "That was—"

"Not a word," Rosaria snapped. "And I'll make you regret it if you laugh."

He held up his hands in a kind of surrender and said, "I was going to say, that was a strange knight that we met."

Now Rosaria stopped and leered over her shoulder. It was in the direction Godwin went, but he was no longer in sight. Diluc also looked back to observe but then Rosaria disappeared from his side. The man blinked and looked around aimlessly among the bushes and trees, only for Rosaria to suddenly return, picking leaves off her cowl. She stated, "It doesn't look like he followed us. But he was suspicious. Do you think he was a Treasure Hoarder in disguise?"

"Doubtful. I believe he was a legitimate knight, but that fact alone doesn't make him any less suspicious. He's definitely hiding something," Diluc said with a deep scowl. It softened slightly as he added, "But I think he was telling the truth about fending off monsters. He had no reason to risk his neck fighting those Hilichurls."

Rosaria glanced at the sun high above them and clicked her tongue. She drew a little notebook and jotted quick notes before stashing it away. Rosaria shook her head and said, "There's no time to investigate him. If he's not an immediate threat then I'll just have to come back to it later. Come on, let's go."

Diluc paused as he watched her press on towards Falcon Coast. So she's still prioritizing Kaeya's gift over all else? Diluc felt a bittersweet warmth in his chest. He was almost envious of her tenacity. It's good to know there is at least someone who cares much for Kaeya. The red-haired man thought of Jean and the likely dozens of other knights and cohorts that he had seen Kaeya surround himself with. That he's likely not alone anymore. A part of him was glad to see that Kaeya able to branch off from the Ragnvindr name and flourish on his own. Kaeya is fine without me.

The last thought stung. But Diluc accepted the pain, reasoning that Kaeya Alberich simply wasn't his brother anymore. In a sense, Diluc lost his brother years ago, on the same day their father died.

Before his thoughts could drift further, Diluc forced himself to refocus. The light-colored beach of Falcon Coast was on the horizon in the distance, and Diluc walked towards it to catch up with Rosaria.

CatCrescent: Because I happened to have Diluc and Rosaria on my account, I was able to map out a path in the game from Mondstadt to Falcon Coast and roughly time the trip in-game. It was to my delight that Godwin happened to be a NPC along the way, because of how incredibly suspicious Godwin would appear to Diluc and Rosaria. It was also a fun excuse to write Godwin, who is a fun character on his own. I sometimes forget that he is technically an elite knight who could probably clear a Hilichurl camp on his own. He's just also an immense goofball.

I also realized that there wasn't really any overt information on how Diluc and Rosaria first met. It's hard to say if Rosaria even actually knows if Diluc is the Darknight Hero in the game. I decided that, since Rosaria does her own vigilante work, it seemed like only a matter of time before her and Diluc found out each other's secret. I originally was going to have a more detailed flashback of the vigilantes meeting, but it killed the pacing, so I reduced it to what it is now. Still, I like the idea as a separate, maybe prequel story. What would you guys think?

Tune in tomorrow for the next chapter! Expect more fights, but not with monsters.