Thank you for your support and sorry for the wait, life and other distractions have taken me. Anyway, here's the chapter for you.


Prologue

Act II: Something Terrible


In front of Olivier's family house, 00:52 AM. August 11th.

"Eula," Amber whispered, "please."

"Tell me the reason, Amber," the woman before her deadpanned.

"I need it to solve a domain, please," Amber pursed her lips, "can you help me out?"

Eula sighed. "Fine. But you will pay for this." She took the stone tablet and waved her hand to transmit Cryo power into it. The tablet lit up and shone with the vigor of light blue energy.

But Eula did not give back the item right away. She looked Amber in the eyes. "If I find out that you lied to me, then be careful of my vengeance."

The Outriders laughed nervously as she received the object. "I do not dare. But still, thank you for spending your time doing this."

She retreated into her house. Before closing the door, she made a military salute. "Enjoy the night, see ya!"

When there was only herself left, the young woman released a breath. She lied to her best friend without them knowing. If Eula found it out, Amber would be done for, hopefully in the humorous sense.

Regardless, she got it. She got the Cryo symbol activated. This would be the moment she uncovered the truth.

She ran down to the basement as fast as she could. Using the light emission from the cryo energy, Amber found her way to the corner where the tile was taken. The girl inhaled deeply, bracing herself for anything that could be waiting. And the activated stonebrick was inserted back into its original position. She took one step back, if her adventure experience was anything to go by.

The blue energy spread across a few tiles before filling a small area just as large as the carpet. Amber looked in shock as the spell released a high-pitched noise. In seconds, the tiles disappeared, leaving a hole where the corner once stood. She took a step forward and knelt before the entrance.

So it all made sense. Grandpa had a Cryo vision and so he could activate it in the middle of the night. If he disappeared, then only other Cryo users would be able to reactivate the puzzle. The young knight picked up the lamp near the hole and hung it down to see clearer. The floor below was… dry. Quite surprising for a deep basement on an island.

There was no staircase, only metal bars attached to the wall to act as a ladder. The knight carefully placed her foot on the bars to test its resistance. Still very tough after all those years. Thanks to the quality of the material, Amber got down quickly without worrying about it breaking.

Standing on the stone ground below, she took a look around her. The walls had big metal shelves that contained multiple rows of boxes. She approached a row on the right. It seemed the boxes were bronze and the labels were cast onto their surfaces instead of being separate attachments.

From the look of it, they seemed like documents or manuscripts about law and history. She tried reading through the labels and found most of them uninteresting. Not that she did not respect the forefather's struggle, just that there was no use for her to learn about the Cataclysm, the overthrow of the Lawrence clan, or the lies of Barbatos and the Knights.

Wait, what?

She looked drily at the box next to her. The lies of Mondstadt's patron deity and the Knights? That sounded like some enemy propaganda to topple the Knights from within. Why would her grandfather have such things? Could he have believed those words and left the Knights due to them?

But before that, she needed to check the other cases to make sure. Amber made a beeline for the shelf in front of her. At least, she hoped she could gather some more information.

Amber scanned the labels carefully; she had to find out the truth behind all of this.

"To my beloved Amber."

The girl circled her eyes. Huh. That seemed tamer than other topics. She could get behind it.

Lifting the box and placing it on the ground, Amber opened it with a sense of excitement mixed with worry. It was always moving to see her grandfather's messages.

She picked the sheets up to see that they were letters from grandpa to her and supposedly, dad and mom. Young face went rigid after seeing the contents of the texts.

Inspector Eroch is a traitor. He framed your parents as being Snezhnayan spies. That treacherous fox wanted to damage my reputation to weaken the Outrider forces. At first, I believed his words like the fool I was.

Amber's eyes widened. Eroch was the Inspector of the Order until about three years back. He was later found to be a traitor and was removed. Though what was done had been done.

Poor Elliot and Alvina. They are pushed to run away to their death in that domain.

Only years later did I find out that Eroch was the person behind the schemes. I voiced my concerns to Master Jean, but there was never an investigation conducted due to having no evidence to back it up. Thanks to that, Eroch shrugged the blame off his shoulder.

Her throat felt drier and drier. She never connected the former inspector to her grandfather's disappearance. But now, with the evidence laid out before her eyes…

Although this was not the only event that led to me leaving the Knights, it was the last straw. Truthfully, I have been growing discontented with the way the Order does its job for a long time. While they are still busy treating the citizens like kindergarteners who need help in every small task, Eroch and his allies are wreaking havoc and creating distrust.

Don't forget that it was the Knights' incompetence that killed your parents.

Amber put the letter back immediately, furrowing her eyebrows. She had no wish to read any further. With the free hand, the Outrider wiped away the tear that she unknowingly shed.

No. It could not be true. The Order that she knew would never betray its people like that. It would not turn its back on its own knights. She knew that Eroch had committed many unforgivable crimes. But to find out that he could wreak havoc for so long without being noticed…

To think that he framed her parents, and the Knights' attitude killed them…

Amber huffed loudly. It should be fine. It should be fine. Right? Eroch and his accomplices were dismissed from the Order. And grandpa could not be serious about the Knights. Amber was certain that he liked joking and fun.

Right?

Amber would not believe it. She would not be swayed by a few jesting words. But the box that supposedly contains the lies of Barbatos and the Knights?

She strode straight toward the first shelf she saw. The box with those accursed content that she had been delaying for fear of misdirection.

The Outrider swung the lid open to reveal an old and intact book. The book cover said similar things as its container: "The lies from Barbatos and the Knights of Favonius."

The first page of the book read.

"Originally by Barca Lawrence. Edited by various Lawrence clan members. 128th edition."

That was a big red flag for her. The information written by an overthrown tyrannical clan should not be believed.

But why did grandpa believe it?

And so, she turned the pages over. Even though the contents in them could be highly infuriating when presented, she managed to keep her head cool. After all, some of them were worth analyzing.

When Barbatos called for the revolution against the Lawrence clan, he forged a document to frame us. The document stated that the clan would sell Mondstadt to the Liyuean god, Rex Lapis.

That was a lie. The document was fake, made up by Barbatos to lead the population against us.

Think about it, if he could lie to you once, what can make sure that he won't lie again? The Knights of Favonius, a group born of lies and fraud, will grow up to continue lying to the people. They want you to believe that they are the omnipotent group who can solve everyone's problems. But in the end, they only want to keep themselves in power like any other authorities.

Amber shut her eyes in contemplation.

To think about it, the Knights did lie to her. Eroch lied to everyone. If the Order was so incompetent that they kept such a treacherous member for so long, what would assure that another event like that would not happen again?

Should that day come, she would be eager to defend everyone. But was such a defunct order even worth fighting for?

Amber's eyes went rigid as she placed the book down.

That was right. She joined the Knights because of her enthusiasm for her grandfather's job. She stayed because she was motivated by Jean's resilient soul. She fought because she believed that they would not betray her.

She fought because they gave her a family she had lost. What kind of person would she be if she started doubting them?

Thinking so, she cracked an impeded smile. It should be fine.

Grandmaster Office, 5:33 AM

"Amber?"

There was no response. The mentioned woman looked dully at the cup of coffee before her without having any reaction. Her gold eyes displayed exhaustion that resulted from sleep deprivation.

"Amber!" came another call. This time, she snapped out of the trance she was in. The girl blinked a few times before finally looking straightforward.

"What's wrong?" asked the blond woman. Amber frowned.

"I don't know, Jean. I-" stuttered Amber. She was not sure if she should tell her superior about what happened the night before. She did not want to put more pressure on Jean. Furthermore, the problem of Eroch had been solved for years now and there was no point in bringing family feuds back.

But she still had a weird feeling. Amber had consolidated her faith in her duty again, yet the terrible words she had read kept on bugging her like crazy.

"You don't look well today." The older knight addressed her concern, "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Ah-" the Outrider blinked a few more times before shaking, "no, I'm totally alright, nothing wrong at all."

As if to distract the conversation, she quickly held up the cup of coffee and took a sip. Amber took a moment to let the drink soak into her tongue. Bitterness. The taste she missed. Although not being so strong to the point of stunning her, it helped relieve the force crushing on her heart.

"The coffee is good, by the way," Amber remarked with a nod, "it's not every day that I get to drink something you make."

The blue eyes of the Acting Grandmaster still did not lose their worry. And that worry was transcribed to words right after. "To my knowledge, you don't normally drink coffee that strong."

The Outrider opened her mouth but held for a bit. In the end, she decided to say. "I'm just tired. Spent a little bit too much time thinking about my grandpa last night."

Jean sighed after hearing her words. "Your grandpa… He did so much for us. Without him and the Outriders, many scouting missions wouldn't have been possible."

Amber could not help but smile at the mention of her shining star. Although still troubled by the unpleasant letter, she tried to suppress it. Her eyes went slightly rigid as a result.

"I will make him proud," stated Amber, "I will fulfill his wishes and protect his legacy until my last breath."

Jean nodded with contentment. "Your grandfather's service is remembered. I hope that you, too, will always be a good knight like him."

Amber's heart flinched. A good knight. What does "a good knight" constitute to Jean? To the Order? If the worst knights to ever exist can enter the Order be called 'good knights'-

Nevermind. She should not have thought that. She should not have those terrible thoughts about the Knights. They were the people that embraced her; they were her family. They are what she fought for.

"Amber?"

That startled her again.

"What's wrong?" Jean asked yet another time. She probably knew something was very wrong with Amber.

"Umm, so…" the Outrider clicked her tongue, "how did he view the knights. How was my grandfather's attitude toward the Knights of Favonius?"

The Acting Grandmaster's shoulders could be seen easing up. "He was passionate about everything he does. He was a good teacher, a good leader, and an outstanding knight."

A smile opened on her face again. "He always said that the Knights have saved him and so he owes them for life."

"Oh," Amber replied curtly. The room fell into silence after that. She only took another sip of coffee, which already turned lukewarm during their conversation. Even so, the potent taste still soaked vigorously in her throat. Bitter, but lukewarm.

"And what caused him to leave?" asked Amber, clearly knowing the answer.

Jean only shook her head, "We don't know. The disappearance was so mysterious that we eventually dropped the case. There were not enough clues to continue."

She then rested her chin on her own fist. "He even swore to stay with the Knights. People say he defected, but I believe he is not that person. He must have had a righteous reason for what he did."

Amber could hear her teeth clicking against each other. Even Jean did not know the reasons why Olivier vanished without a trace. So Eroch managed to secretly eliminate Amber's family from the rank of influential figures. The next would have been her was it not for her timely investigation.

"Oh, and something… unrelated." The Outrider suddenly spoke up. "I hope you won't be angry at me for this question."

The Acting Grandmaster gave her a reassuring smile. "Without a doubt. How can I get upset at you after what you did for Mondstadt?"

That response only half-validated her thoughts. She would ask anyway because she wanted to know.

"Would lord Barbatos lie to us, Jean?" Amber lowered her voice.

As she expected, Jean's smile slowly faded into a concerned face. Her heart started beating drums and her eyes looked back at her superior somewhat faltered. She could hear her brain shouting at her for the terrible question she posed.

"Amber…" Jean stuttered. "Am I hearing things?"

The Outrider only turned away and wiped the dryness on her lips using her tongue. It was not a wise question to ask Jean at all.

"Ah, never mind." Amber coughed. "Just act as if I did not say that."

The older knight nodded lightly, yet her eyes did not ease up any significantly. Of course, such a traitorous question must be asked by the most loyal soldier. How convenient for an officer to hear that.

Came a few knocks on the door. Jean used that opportunity to drive the topic away and approved the request. Captain Kaeya, with an eyepatch and flamboyant clothing, opened the door and moved in quickly.

"Jean, I have come to receive today's mission." He spoke up with a steady tone.

"Very well." The Acting Grandmaster nodded and handed him a roll of sealed parchment.

Amber was not sure if she hallucinated or not, but she had a feeling Kaeya glanced at her during his exchange with Jean.

Trying to not pay attention, she sipped the coffee. It was mostly cooled down.

"Amber," Kaeya's voice could be heard next to her, "I really think you should ease your own workload while distributing it to other knights."

"Why did you say that all of a sudden?" Amber shook her head and frowned at the man, "I hardly think my workload is heavy."

The Captain laughed softly, "You see, that is what Jean had always said. She ended up putting everyone on alert many times."

"Kaeya!" Jean scolded the man. Her eyes glared at him solemnly, signaling what he needed to do next. He only bowed in compliance with a smug smile and stepped back.

"What I want to say is, it's refreshing to change the atmosphere once in a while, don't you think?"

Without adding, he made his way for the door and scurried off. The moment Kaeya departed was when Amber let out a long sigh. For reasons unexplainable, the exchange just then made her highly uncomfortable.

"You know," Jean suddenly stood up, making the Outrider's eyes follow.

When the older knight caught the attention of her inferior, she started going through the stack of documents on her desk. Amber watched the steps worriedly, fearing she got herself into trouble. Jean pulled out a sheet of parchment from the pile and presented it before Amber's concerned eyes.

"I believe that Kaeya's suggestions make some sense."

At first, she tensed her shoulders thinking that Jean wanted to dismiss her, but with each passing second reading the text, she eased up substantially. Her eyes widened in surprise mixed with a glimmer of hope.

"So I can take on this mission if I wish to?"

Jean nodded with a smile. "Certainly. If you decide to go for it, I will record your information and send it to them."

The Outrider beamed brightly and nodded excitedly. "Then I will gladly take it!"

Dornman Port. 6:44 AM. August 12th.

Amber loved the warmth of the morning sun. It was like a hearth that was granted by Celestia to heat up and bring life upon Teyvat. The morning wind slowly breezed through her hair as if wanting to embrace her in its caring arms. Sometimes she compared it to the rough but gentle caress of her grandpa. It was just beautiful like that.

She strode into the harbor armed up. Her sword and dagger were tied tightly to her belt while her bow was looped over her shoulder. Sitting against her back was a leather sack, which she used to carry her supply and belongings.

The moment she set foot on the stone ground of the port, her world exploded with chaos and chatters. The footsteps, the shoutings, the cursings. They were more discernable and louder than what Amber had heard in the city.

The Outrider paused to take in this new atmosphere. Her feet knocked onto the ground with an unfixed rhythm as she hummed along.

Despite the uncouth scene, the hamlet was rather open and comfortable in her mind. She started trekking through the great road that led to the docks. On the way, she saw a few houses, which presumably belonged to harbor workers. They were not exactly in good shape compared to an average city house, but she was willing to bet that she would stay in one of them like at home.

That is if she did not hear what came next.

"You little DORK!"

Amber tripped over the cobbled ground and landed on her forearms. Fortunately, the fall only gave her a few scratches. When she looked up, she saw a hand reaching out.

"Be careful there, young lady."

A warm and quiet voice spoke up. The Outrider took the hand with no hesitation. With the person's help, she stood back up quickly and wiped the dust off herself. From what she could see, he was around her grandpa's age. The man was a Knight of Favonius, based on the breastplate with the symbolic double-winged sigil.

"Thank you, gramps," She gave the opposite man a smile, "that scream was so loud."

He laughed, rubbing his beard. "Yes, we harbor people do speak very loudly."

He glanced around Amber's equipment and continued. "You are Amber Wang, yea?"

"Ah, right," Amber nodded, "I believe you are the person to accompany me with the mission."

The man fanned his hand. "No, that would be my granddaughter. Normally, she only wants to stay for the work in the harbor."

He then huffed out. She could feel a moment of disapproval in his voice. "She's a stubborn girl. I warned her that the mission would be tiring, but she disregarded me. But it's still good to see her becoming more active."

The Outrider chuckled at the description. She could not blame the granddaughter, because she would have volunteered for the most arduous missions too. Being a scout meant that she had to have a heart for danger.

The old man shook his head, "If only I am still energetic like my younger self. Back in my days, I could run ten times around the harbor within a few minutes."

Amber opened her mouth to respond, but a voice came and interrupted.

"Grandpa!"

A young woman walked up from behind the old man and stood beside him. Standing out the most to Amber were her silver, long hair and her emerald eyes, much like the man standing with her. But at the same time, she could also not miss two lime green feathers attached to the left of her hair. They made for a beautiful piece of cosmetics. Amber somehow found the attitude and attire strangely familiar.

"You are talking about your days again." The woman could not help but crack a smile when saying that.

"Fine, this old man will stop and leave you two to it." The grandfather replied, seemingly disheartened. He only moved past Amber and shook his head.

His granddaughter only hollered to him. "I will bring back some wine. Love you, grandpa!"

Amber giggled at the thought of her and Olivier interacting like that. Back then, he often bought her delicate food every time she sulked. She had hoped that one day she could earn her own money to return his love.

Well, she could still do that, just with different methods.

"Hey, you are Amber?"

It was then she realized she was still in a conversation. She only nodded.

"Yes, it's me. So you are the assigned person to accompany me?"

The woman nodded in confirmation. She stared somewhere into Amber's right waist without an explanation. The Outrider figured that was the direction of her Vision.

Before she could ask about the behavior, she received another question.

"Right, shall we go now?" Her voice was loud and clear. No syllables were missed. That was the attitude Amber liked and she gave a smile for that. Just like that, she completely forgot that the other knight had stared at her magical gemstone a few seconds before.

"Sure, please lead the way."

Her companion seemed delighted with the answer and nodded in return.

"Then follow me." The woman turned back and strode in the direction Amber was looking. Her steps were firm and long, which compelled the Outrider to follow hurriedly. As instinct kicked in, her speed raised to keep up with her colleague.

"Wait, you haven't told me your name yet." Amber huffed amidst the footsteps with her head turned towards the other woman.

"Audrey." The askee said curtly.

"Audrey," repeated Amber, "so which people are we escorting?"

"Two merchants and explorers from Shurima. We should be on the way in fifteen minutes."

Amber widened her eyes slightly. "I didn't know merchants can also be seasoned explorers."

"It makes sense if they are seeking to explore new lands and cultures," Audrey chuckled, "they are often people who do not place money above all. We won't see committed merchants docking here any time soon."

Amber concurred. "So that's why the traders I've seen always stay even when they couldn't sell any of their goods."

The other knight laughed heartily. "If they prioritized trade, they would've left for Liyue or Fontaine, not lingered in this piece of soil."

The Outrider only nodded and remained silent. She had a throwback to when her Vision was stared at by Audrey. When she looked back at the other woman, she could not find a Vision anywhere. Not on her leather gloves, not on her dark brown corset, and not on her belt either.

"Not trying to restrain yourself, are you?"

Amber jerked her head back up to see Audrey giving her a smirk. She hastily shook her head and said. "I'm sorry, I am wondering that… you stared at my Vision back when we met, so you must have taken an interest in it."

The silver-haired woman suddenly stopped midtrack which made Amber follow suit.

"Sharp eyes," she commented, then changed her words to mutterings, "I guess she was trained well."

"Excuse me?" the Outrider asked, having not heard the latter half.

"Nothing, let's go."

The ferry back to Mondstadt City would have been boring to death for Amber solely because of the uptight space that the cabin provided. Thankfully, the merchants had a talent for killing boredom. They told her stories of lands far beyond. The stories she never had the chance to listen to because of her duty.

"And just when we were to give up our hope, a storm of dust surged up on the horizon." One of the merchants made an explosion-like motion with both of his hands. "It was a ball of spike rolling toward the swarm of kmiros with godly speed."

Amber's left hand tightened onto the scabbard as her jaw dropped. "What… the?"

"Yes, it is clad in shiny and spiky armor." The other guy chimed in with a fist sticking out. "When the ball unfolded, he revealed himself in full glory."

He spread his arms out to illustrate his words. "His claws are sharp like swords. Against his strikes, the kmiros are nothing but a bunch of helpless beetles. They panicked and attempted to counterattack."

The first guy jumped in to assist his company, "But only to no avail. Their attacks are useless against his armor. Meanwhile, Rammus' strikes became more and more vicious. We watched in awe as he finished the beetles one by one. In the end, the remaining could only fly away with empty stomachs and we thanked him for coming at the right time."

"Splendid," the Outrider silently clapped her hands as the man caressed his beard. Whether they were telling the truth or just exaggerating things, the story was still enough to satisfy her heart for adventures.

Audrey, on the other hand, seemed uninterested. She was leaning against the wooden wall of the ferry, arms hugging a saber.

"So you are saying," she smiled cheekily, "that you are saved from a bunch of carnivorous bugs by a giant spiky tortoise."

One of the men raised his voice and shook his head a little too passionately. "No, no, no. It's not a tortoise. It's Rammus, the God-Warrior, our savior."

"Right, I see. Very cool to see him ram into the scene like that and save the day, huh?"

"Audrey!" Amber prompted. She was not happy to see her companion being so childish. Fearing that the merchants were offended, she turned to them and bent down. "Please don't be disheartened, she did not mean it."

While one man looked like he did not appreciate it, the other nodded to her. "We don't take offense for that, don't worry."

The silence fell over the ferry and the passengers could hear the wind tapping against the wooden chamber. Audrey opened the window next to her and peeked outside.

She then turned to the men. "We are getting close to the city. Pack your stuff!"

Hearing that, the merchants quickly followed her words and got ready for the docking. Meanwhile, Amber looked directly at Audrey in an attempt to communicate with her. But Audrey had already turned away, making the Outrider's efforts fruitless.

Whispering Woods, August 15th. Afternoon.

It was already a few days since her first escorting mission and Amber got used to the pace fairly quickly. Naturally, she found the change in atmosphere refreshing since it gave her more room to breathe after the terrible truth she found out that day.

As she strolled by the lakeside, Amber gazed upon Mondstadt city in the west. The six-bladed windmills cast their shadows onto the water, and stood next to them was the great statue of Barbatos stretching its hands out as if cherishing a little gift. She thought that it was a spectacular scene and decided that it was a good sight to feast her eyes on.

After finding a suitable spot by the lake, the Outrider dropped herself down and picked out her food box. A perfect place for some light meal, one could say.

As she bit on a slice of jam bread, her golden eyes ecstatically witnessed the city in its glory before the sunset. In the past few days, she managed to make friends with Audrey. The woman was somewhat stubborn and dictating when it came to working, yet always avoided Amber's questions when asked about other things. Strange, but she could not ask for more.

Besides, that was not actually the most important part. What mattered the most was that she procured a booklet from a merchant who came from Liyue Harbor. The book wrote about the Runeterran artifacts that made their way into the hands of Liyuean traders. Ever since she saw the manual of Aurman combat in the basement, she always had a feeling that grandpa must be connected to Runeterra somehow.

Munching the last piece of bread, she hurriedly pull out the book from her pouch and rested it on her lap for a better look. The contents of the pages were beautiful. Other than potteries and silk, they also showed the place whence the items originated.

Most of the items she could see were identified as from Aurma, Shurima, or Targon, which made her wonder what those places looked like. The artifacts from Shurima were ornately decorated with gemstones and were likely the most valuable among them all, while the objects of Targon were more moderate, simple, and austere.

Other than her personal remarks, she noticed something that anyone else could have. There were some artifacts derived from Demacia, which had a symbol of a sword with two wings grown from its crossguard.

"Now where have I seen it?" pondered Amber as her eyes wandered to the silver bracelet on her wrist. And there she saw it, next to the line of text was a smaller version of the Demacian symbol, which she attempted to bring closer to examine.

But as if to jest on her, loud and hurried footsteps came from her left, putting her on alarm. The Outrider rose, hand placed on her dagger. As the person approached, she realized that he was a knight who was seemingly out of breath.

"Amber!" He called frantically. "Your…"

The knight did not continue his sentence until he reached in front of her. He could not help but rest his hands on his knees to regain his breath.

Amber frowned and asked in worry. "Calm down, what happened?"

"Your… grandfather…"

She widened her eyes and placed her hands on his shoulders. "My grandfather… what?"

The knight said amidst his heavy breaths. "He's… at the cathedral..."

Amber's heart began racing. She was certain her ears did not deceive her. The Outrider launched her walking limbs and ran towards the city bridge, leaving the messaging knight behind.

There were many things she needed to ask her grandfather. Where had be been all those years? What did the secrets in the basement mean? What connections did he have with Runeterra?

There would be no more covering. This had to be done once and for all.


Aaaaand done! Thank you Plebers for helping me with the chapter. I will see you all next time. Remember to give suggestions if you have any!