Workers at the ministry watched as a well-dressed man, Ruben, angrily pounded on the telegraph. He had just spoken with Atsuko, who he had politely left, and was now drenched in water, because the Hydro Archon has a sense of humor. The rain had started shortly after their conversation.
To make matters worse, Ruben learned that the Crux Fleet was actually a pirate fleet - something that he had a lot of negative experiences with.
"Goddamn state-protected pirates! Who do they think they are? Voyaging far and wide my ass. The so called 'voyaging' is probably robbing merchant ships! MY merchant ships! Piracy should be stamped out completely! What are the Qixing thinking?!"
As he finished sending the telegraph and calmed down a bit, Ruben began to wonder if the Qixing accepted complaints and inquiries. Maybe the people of Liyue didn't see a problem with protecting actual pirates operating on their shores. Perhaps it was necessary for an outsider to bring this issue to their attention. Maybe the people of Liyue were too naive or overconfident in their rulers.
Ruben, who was born in a nation with a literacy rate of only 35%, sighed
"Excuse me, but is anyone from the Qixing here today?" he asked an employee, trying to find a member of the Qixing.
"Lady Keqing was in her office, but she left not long ago," the employee replied. "Where did she go?" Ruben asked.
"Where did she go?" Ruben asked.
"I'm sorry, I can't tell you." the employee said with a smile.
Ruben threw a pouch containing 50,000 Mora onto the desk. "This is urgent," he said. The employee's eyes widened before she smiled and accepted the pouch.
"Well, in that case, she's headed to the Jade Chamber," the employee revealed.
"Jade chamber… that's inaccessible to me isn't it?"
"That would be correct," The employee smiled.
"Well, thanks anyway," Ruben groans and plans his next move.
Ruben decided to go to the waiting room to gather his thoughts. The torrential downpour outside was still intense, so he decided to take a rest in the ministry.
There's an interesting selection of literature here too. And a light novel from Inazuma?! Those are quite rare in the mainland…
"That time I got reincarnated into an electro slime: I'll live my second life to the fullest!" Ruben muttered as he stared at the title, "... This is literature?"
As much as Ruben hates to admit it, he read the whole book and found it quite interesting. The idea that reincarnation exists after death intrigues him somehow.
Can anyone reincarnate into anything? He wondered. He heard the concept of Karma once when he was in Sumeru. Of course, being raised in a different culture and secular environment he dismissed it as a Sumeru thing.
Noticing that the rain had become lighter, Ruben decided to return to his hotel and make a new plan. He borrowed an umbrella belonging to the ministry on the way.
"Borrowed" is just a fancy word for "stole," because he has no intention of returning it anytime soon.
The walk to the hotel was a bit longer than what Ruben would like. Sure, it's because of his right leg whose bones are broken, but you can't blame him for getting injured during a fight with treasure hoarders. He's not a vision holder, after all.
After changing into dry clothes, Ruben's heavy eyelids drooped. It had been a long, exhausting day filled with encounters with Childe (whose real name was probably something else entirely), Atsuko, pirates, and rain. Ruben collapsed onto the bed and closed his eyes, ready to drift off into a deep sleep. As he drifted away, he thought about a nation he could go to in order to relax. Mondstadt... he thought before drifting off into dreamland.
Ruben slept soundly through the night.
When Ruben woke up at 6 AM the next morning, he was disappointed to see that it was still raining. However, the rain was much lighter than it had been the previous day, and people were just getting up for the day. His hotel window allowed him to see merchants setting up their stalls and people going to work. He also saw the variety of umbrella's that people had.
As the morning sun began to peek over the horizon, Ruben went about his usual routine, . He checked out of the hotel at 7:30 AM, pulling up his umbrella - which he had "borrowed" from the ministry - and stepping out into the streets. The rain had increased in intensity, but it was still considered light as the streets of Liyue began to bustle with activity as the hour approached 8 AM.
As Ruben went about his morning routine before, he formulated a plan. Before checking out of the hotel, he wrote a letter to his headquarters back in Fontaine, letting them know that he would be in Mondstadt for a couple of weeks, waiting for the Crux fleet to return. Although Ruben hated pirates, he hoped that the Crux fleet might have a way to help him get into Inazuma.
This will be Ruben's first time actually visiting Mondstadt; he had traveled through the country before, but had never made it to the city itself.
Ruben had never seen a reason to go to Mondstadt before, as he didn't think there was anything of value there, aside from possibly their wine. The people of Mondstadt seemed neither lazy nor hardworking, and Ruben wasn't even sure who was in charge of the country.
Was it the Knights of Favonious, or is it the two clans remaining after the Lawrence clan was ousted? Ruben had always thought of Mondstadt as being under a military junta for the last millennium. Were the Knights of Favonious a legitimate government, or were they merely a military junta that has cemented themselves as the legitimate government? Is it the Church? They enjoy a fair amount of power there he heard.
Ruben shakes those thoughts of his head and sighs. Mondstadt may be a relaxing country, but they sure are confusing. The people of Mondstadt are too carefree to care about such things.
After a short walk, he arrived at the gates of Liyue, and the guards notice him. Ruben let them know that he was leaving and had nothing to declare.
"Why do you have an umbrella from the ministry?" one of the guard asked. Clearly noticing the golden emblem of the ministry against the dark color of the umbrella.
"Oh, it was given to me by a kind employee yesterday when it was raining really heavily," Ruben lied.
"Ah, well, be safe on your journey, sir!" the guard said. Ruben thanked the guards and left.
The objective is to reach Mondstadt before sunset. It was currently 8:30 AM, and at his speed, he should reach Mondstadt at 14:00 PM or less.
Nothing memorable happened on the road. Sure, there were hilichurls and slime and other riff raffs, but Ruben's handgun quikly took care of them. Ruben had to admit, although he disliked Snezhnaya and the Fatui, the Snezhnayans know how to make a damn handgun. A given fact since their entire economy is based on making weapons of war.
On the way to Mondstadt though, Ruben did come across a large manor surrounded by grapes. A winery by the looks of it.
He thought to himself, 'What about business opportunities in Mondstadt?' While the country can at times be held politically hostage by Snezhnaya, it is otherwise a stable and peaceful nation, with the exception of occasional hilichurl attacks and the presence of the Fatui. Despite the land being fertile, there are limited opportunities due to the lack of machinery and factories. The only notable industry in Mondstadt is the winemaking industry, which appears to be monopolized by a single company.
A bank? Do the people here understand banking? Are they compelled to open up accounts? Do they trust a bank to hold their money?
Are they alright with a foreign business presence in their city? The people are already cautious about the Fatui.
More importantly, are there any restrictive regulations?
Ruben hadn't realized that he had already reached the bridge that connected to the city of Mondstadt. As he walked on the bridge, a sudden breeze blew and he saw pigeons flapping their wings and flying up. He heard a little kid screaming but chose to ignore him. Entering the City was easy enough, since the guards only asked him a single question, 'where are you from'.
The city of Mondstadt was lively enough, even though it was three in the afternoon. Ruben had gone to the Katheryne of the Mondstadt Adventurers Guild to find an inn where he could stay.
"Good afternoon, Katheryne. Any recommendations for a place to stay as a tourist?" Ruben asked Katheryne as they are familiar with eachother.
"Ah, yes. . There is one that you are able to stay in." Katheryne said with a warm smile.
"Perfect! Where is it? Can you give me directions?" Ruben exclaimed as he breath a sigh of relief.
"Ah! . It's good to see you again!" A male voice spoke from behind him.
Wait a damn second. Ruben's face darkens and he scowls, "...Pantalone, what are you planning?" He said as he turned around to face the 9th of the Fatui harbingers.
Pantalone smiled coyly, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "Planning? Whatever do you mean, Mr. Rheine?" he replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "I heard you are searching for a place to stay, no? luckily for you, I have a place where you can rest easy."
Ruben chuckled and snickered, "I'll pass. I won't stay in a place crawling with the Fatui." He turned to Katheryne and placed five thousand Mora on the counter. "Thanks, love, but I'll look for a place myself." He then turned to walk away.
"Ahem. . I have a very important piece of information, should you accept my offer." Pantalone cleared his throat. "I'm sure you will find this interesting…"
Ruben squinted his eyes, "What about it?" he asked suspiciously.
"Let's not talk about it here shall we? We can talk about it on the road to the Goth hotel" Pantalone then begins to walk away. What he said has piqued Ruben's curiosity, though he dislikes to admit it, Pantalone is an astounding individual. Becoming a Fatui harbinger without a vision? No ordinary person could've achieved that.
And, being fellow businessmen, any information from him could be very rewarding.
Reluctantly, Ruben began following him and catching up beside him in a few steps.
Once they walked a certain distance and started walking up the stairs leading to the hotel, Pantalone talked in a quiet voice, "There may be traces of Khemia left near Inazuma.."