"...which is what brought us to this point in the first place."
Roxas watched from behind the building as Jean spoke with a strange woman in a mask.
"If you are unable to promptly deal with the threat of Stormterror, leave Mondstadt's defense to the Fatui. We can put a permanent end to Mondstadt's dragon issues, and all we'll need to do for that is to bring that monster-"
"Monster?!" Jean shouted.
"Yes, what's your point?" the masked woman sniveled.
"I expected you so-called diplomats to be more professional," Jean rebuked. "And here you are, saying you want to 'put a permanent end' to one of the Four Winds?! I won't have any of this nonsense in front of the Knights of Favonius!"
The masked woman snickered. "It's not as crazy as you make it sound, you know. Well, I guess that's enough negotiation for today. At this stage, it's simply an amicable exchange of constructive opinions, no? I'll be sure to make...thorough notes..."
The masked woman left, leaving Jean with a frustrated face.
Roxas left from behind the building and approached Jean. "What was all that about?"
"Oh, Roxas, you're back." Jean breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks for your help in the temples. The flow of energy is stable, and we should have a few days' rest before we have to really worry about Stormterror. But, on the other hand, we can still deal with him as soon as tomorrow."
"We can worry about lizard lips later," said Roxas. "Who the hell was that?"
"He means the woman in the mask," Paimon added.
"A so-called 'diplomat' from Snezhnaya, the nation that worships the Cryo Archon," replied Jean. "Their envoys are known as the Fatui. Heard of them?"
Roxas shook his head. He muttered through his teeth, "Though they kinda remind me of the old Organization..."
"Hm?" Jean asked. "Did you say something?"
"Oh, nothing, nothing."
"Paimon's heard of the Fatui," said the sprite. "They're super famous. Or, well, infamous would be the better word."
"Killing Stormterror isn't the right course of action," said Jean, "but the Cryo Archon's Fatui have always coveted the power of the Anemo Archon. And I don't believe they have Mondstadt's best interests at heart..."
"Hey, Jean," said Roxas. "Can I ask you about someone?"
"Sure, who?" asked Jean.
"In...one of the temples," said Roxas, "I...I ran into this girl named Noelle. Short silver hair, maid's outfit, carries a massive claymore? Heard of her? She's a maid."
"That's Noelle, alright," Jean replied. "She's in training to become a Knight of Favonius."
"Yeah, she told me," said Roxas.
"Why'd you ask?"
"I...I wanted to know more about her," Roxas answered. "I...I promised her we could spend some time getting to know each other."
"Well, for one thing, she's...really dedicated to her training," said Jean. "Physical and chivalric training, at that. The other thing is she's probably the most caring girl in Mondstadt. Heh, if it were up to me, I'd make her a Knight right now."
"Well...what's stopping you?"
Jean hesitated. "I don't know...I just...I feel like she's missing something. Maybe...something - no, someone - to keep her going. Someone she holds dear to her heart. Everyone in Mondstadt can fall back on her because she's willing to help just about anyone...but who can she lean on when she needs help...?"
"I'm telling you, I saw this bard guy petting Stormterror!" Roxas exclaimed. "And then when he saw me, Stormterror just ran off! And after that, I found this crystal on the ground."
Roxas held out a teardrop-shaped crystal, which glowed with purple and black energy.
"I don't think I can make a proper analysis at the moment," said Lisa. "I'll have a look through the library's restricted section and get back to you in a minute."
She reached out to take the crystal. Suddenly, she winced, groaning in pain as the crystal's energy started to force its way up her arm.
"Lisa!" Roxas lunged for her and yanked the crystal out of her hands, dropping it onto the floor.
"What happened?" asked Kaeya.
Lisa hesitated. "I...I can't really describe it...but it felt like the crystal was...speaking to me. Not directly, but...foreign thoughts entered my mind. Things I could never have come up with myself...and things I would never want to do..."
Roxas tentatively picked up the crystal. To his surprise, its energy didn't try to possess him. "Lisa...this thing is overflowing with darkness. That darkness tried to take over your mind and heart."
"Then how come you're not affected?" asked Paimon.
"It's..." Roxas sighed, "...it's a long story."
Roxas knew why he was unaffected. He may have been a wielder of the light, but his heart overflowed with just as much darkness.
"Well," said Jean, "with that taken care of...Roxas."
The former Nobody turned to Jean.
"The Knights of Favonius have another favor to ask of you," said Jean. "Please accept the title of Honorary Knight...and the utmost of gratitude from us all."
"Thank you, thank you, everyone!" said a green-clad bard as his audience dispersed.
Roxas and Paimon approached him.
"Ah, can I help you two?" he asked. "Oh, I know you! You're the ones who scared off Dvalin."
"Oh, yeah, so we are," said Paimon. "But why are you calling him Dvalin? Are you two close?"
"Ah, yeah!" replied the bard. "Dvalin and I go waaay back!"
Roxas leaned towards Paimon. "This guy's got a few screws loose..."
"Agreed," Paimon whispered back.
"Oh, I'm Venti, by the way," said the bard. "Three-time winner of 'Most Popular Bard in Mondstadt', to be precise. And you are...?"
Familiar yellow-eyed creatures of darkness appeared, surrounding the three. "Heartless!" Roxas exclaimed, summoning his Keyblades.
"That's a weird name," Venti quipped.
Roxas sighed. "Not me, them. I'm Roxas. Just leave these guys to me."
Roxas took care of the Heartless in no time.
"Well, that was quick," Venti commended. "You seem to know those 'Heartless' pretty well."
"We've got history," Roxas agreed. "Anyway, we wanted to talk to you about Stormterror."
Venti feigned confusion. "Storm...?"
"Oi quit playing dumb!" Paimon snapped. "Roxas, show him."
Roxas nodded, taking the darkened crystal from his back pocket. However, the crystal's darkness had been removed and replaced with a brilliant white light.
"Huh?!" Paimon exclaimed. "The darkness isn't there anymore?!"
"Last I checked, it almost corrupted somebody," Roxas added, keeping this 'Venti' as out of the loop as possible for safety reasons.
Venti's face fell. "Dvalin, he...the anguish he feels...it's brought him to tears...born from the darkness that's taken over his heart..." Venti took out another teardrop crystal; this one was still overflowing with darkness. "Dvalin was once such a gentle heart...but the darkness has filled him with rage and suffering...and I have a feeling those 'Heartless' may be connected to it somehow...anyway, Roxas. I came across another Teardrop Crystal earlier. Could you try purifying it?"
Roxas nodded, summoning Oathkeeper to his left hand and pointing it at the crystal in Venti's possession. A beam of white light shot from Oathkeeper's tip, expelling the darkness from the teardrop.
"That was a Keyblade, was it not?" asked Venti.
Roxas nodded. "One of two that I have."
"Interesting," said Venti. "I've heard stories and songs about the fabled Keyblade and those who possessed the heart to wield it, but I don't think I've ever heard of someone carrying two of them."
"I get that a lot," said Roxas.
"Maybe your exploits will be written into a bard's poem," Venti mused. "Perhaps one of mine? 'A warrior of the light, his Keyblades shine bright! But in the darkness he'll hide, to turn fate's tide...' Eh, still a work in progress. Anyway...even if Dvalin is not taken down, his heart will wither away any moment..."
"And he'll become a Heartless," Roxas finished.
Venti nodded. "His heart will burn out in the flames of his darkness..."
"I'll help stop that however I can," Roxas assured him.
Venti smiled at him. "I really must thank you for purifying the Teardrop Crystals. It's a great help to me. But...I've already devised a plan of my own. One must be going!"
Venti sprinted off towards the city walls.
"Hey, wait! Don't run off!" Paimon shouted. "Roxas, after him!"
"Oh, did you follow me here?"
Roxas nodded. "You just ran off without an explanation. I'm not done talking to you."
"We wanna know more about the Anemo Archon," Paimon added.
"Lord Barbatos?" said Venti. "He disappeared from Mondstadt a long time ago. Nations like Liyue and Inazuma still have their gods, but Mondstadt has seen many a moon since theirs last appeared. But why do you wish to know about the God of Anemo? Is it, perhaps, related to Dvalin?"
"It is," Roxas affirmed. "Someone told me about his past. Dvalin's, I mean."
"Just how does everyone see Stormterror?" asked Venti. "I'm curious. That said, no need to rush. I've not been back in a while...and it seems some aren't entirely happy with my arrival."
Roxas turned around to see a light green draconic Heartless land on the ground. "A Windstorm!" He summoned Oathkeeper and Oblivion.
With a roar, the Windstorm dive-bombed Roxas, who blocked it with a light barrier to send it away from the large tree in Windrise.
Roxas charged, casting Thundaga before lighting it up with a flurry of Keyblade strikes.
The Windstorm roared again, a blast of wind knocking Roxas into the tree. The former Nobody pushed off the tree with his legs, shooting towards the Heartless and slashing its neck with Oblivion. In a flash of light, the Heartless disappeared, releasing a crystalline heart to the heavens.
"That was quick," Venti remarked. "Now, then. You said someone told you about the dragon?"
"Yeah, Lisa, the librarian," Roxas replied.
"Ah, quite the scholar, that one," said Venti. "She's right. The conflict's only reached this point because both sides resorted to using force immediately. But Dvalin's hate didn't arise from people not making a tribute to the Four Winds, nor was it a result of degradation or even of his own nature...it's because of the darkness infecting his heart. That darkness has been torturing him for longer than it may seem. The darkness that was instilled within his heart by the lies of the Abyss Order."
"Abyss Order?"
"A group of non-human beings that despise mankind," said Venti. "They bear a strange emblem - one that looks like a crossed-out heart."
"The Heartless?" said Roxas.
"Ah, so you've encountered them before, but under a different name," replied Venti.
"No...man, I'm so confused." Roxas rubbed his head. "Are they Heartless, or are they something else? Almost all Heartless bear that emblem."
"Then perhaps Abyss Mages are sentient Heartless," Venti deduced.
"I figured that much," said Roxas. "Let's go with that."
"With that out of the way," said Venti, "about Dvalin. He...He wasn't the only one corrupted by the darkness. I, too, was poisoned by it."
"How?" asked Paimon.
"I tried to communicate with Dvalin earlier, but I was...interrupted." Venti eyed Roxas. "As a result, not only did I fail to break Dvalin's darkness, that same darkness started infecting me."
"Ooh..." Roxas rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry..."
"No worries, it's quite alright!" Venti assured him. "I feel much better now. But I still want you to make up for it. And to do that, I want you to come with me to the Cathedral!"
"So, why are we here?"
Venti put his hands on his hips. "We're here to get the Holy Lyre der Himmel! It's the lyre that Barbatos himself used to play. I plan to use it to draw out Dvalin's gentle nature and expel the darkness from within his heart."
"Will it stop him from causing more damage?" asked Paimon.
"Of course it will!" Venti said confidently. "I'm the best bard in the world, after all. There's no song I don't know, past, present, or future. Roxas, look into my eyes. Don't you trust me?"
"No, no, no," said Roxas. "You look into my eyes. You're hiding something. What is it?"
"That...I'll tell you later," said Venti.
"Anyway," Paimon interjected, "how can we get it?"
"It's said to be enshrined deep within the Cathedral, somewhere with tight security," said Venti. "I'll scope things out inside. Come with me if you want."
"I think I'll pass," said Roxas. "Paimon and I will hold down the fort out here."
Roxas sighed. "Lemme guess. You didn't get it."
"Well, no," said Venti, "but I've managed to confirm that the Holy Lyre is here. The Sister said something about signed documents from a buncha big shots like the Grand Master of the Knights. Well, it seems borrowing isn't possible. So, we're just gonna have to borrow it without permission!"
"You mean steal it," Roxas deadpanned.
"Yep!" Venti said casually. "Any suggestions on how?"
Roxas sighed. "I guess we could try at nighttime."
"Ooh, good thinking!" said Venti. "The guards here are off duty throughout the night. If we can seize the opportunity tonight, it should be smooth sailing from here. Whaddya say, Roxas?"
"Well...I guess, but if I get caught, I'm throwing you under the train."
"What train?"
"It means if I go down, I'm taking you with me."
Are these idiots blind? Roxas thought. That red-haired guy was right, the Knights aren't capable of doing crap after all!
Roxas, despite his lack of experience with any sort of stealth, easily sneaked past all the Knights guarding the Holy Lyre in the basement of the Cathedral without getting caught.
"There it is!" Paimon whisper-yelled.
Roxas got up from his crouched position and went to grab the Holy Lyre.
Someone darted in front of him and took it. A green-haired woman with a mask and a strange hooded jacket smirked at him, holding the Holy Lyre as if inviting him to take it from her.
Roxas ran forward to do so, only for the woman to disappear from where she stood.
"You! Freeze!"