"Remember. This trip is for academic purposes only. Depending on where you are, they might not see you as suspicious, but you can not get caught snooping around where you should."
"No need to remind me; I've got it. They'll never know I was there."
While his "bodyguard" was out with his new friends, Wanderer decided to take matters into his own hands. Espionage was not his strong suit, but he was familiar with skulking around and staying out of sight. His flight abilities were exceptionally useful in the large halls of the Palais Mermonia— so long as nobody looked up. Moving from room to room was slightly more complicated though; either he had to drop down and go through a door (which risks getting spotted) or find a window and hope there's an open one close by (and also hope nobody outside happens to be looking up at the building).
So far, his infiltration mission has been going smoothly… too smoothly. For the central governmental office of Fontaine, there weren't that many Gardes in the building— especially since the upper floors were home to the resident Archon. Even if Focalors was currently out, this lack of security was just sloppy. An assassin could have easily snuck in and taken her out if they wanted to. 'Could there be anything up here?' He thought as he reached the residential floor.
He already searched the Maison Gardiennage's offices (that he thought he could get away with) and found no leads towards where they were holding Aether. Despite being a massive celebrity— for lack of a better term —there were few documents related to him, least of all his current location. Perhaps they were in the Iudex's office, but Neuvillette was still there earlier.
As he looked around the massive lounge, the puppet heard muffled voices coming from one of the connecting hallways. He sneakily moved closer and pressed himself next to the doorway, catching the tail end of a sentence. "—warded for what he did."
"I'm more surprised how quickly he got close to Lady Furina. One day, they were bickering in the streets and then overnight, they were suddenly all love-dovey. For the most part, anyway."
Gossiping guards? That's certainly useful, he thought as he continued eavesdropping.
"How did he even get in here in the first place? Did he use the entrance on the roof? I thought we sealed it up after that first guy tried breaking in."
"Beats me."
"Back to what I was saying, the Traveller gets accused of kidnapping Lady Furina and now he gets a luxury suite but if anyone else even thinks of doing anything even half as distressing to her, off to the Fortress for life!"
"One, you're over-exaggerating. Two, the keyword there is "accused". Innocent until proven guilty and all that. And for an adventurer like him, it must be suffering for him to be stuck indoors until further notice."
"You sure? I work the night shift sometimes and it doesn't sound like he's suffering."
…Well, he now knows what Aether has been up to this entire time. It was time to leave before they realised someone else was there. Fortunately, there was an open window more than big enough for him to go through. As he promised Nahida, nobody would know he was even here.
A couple of minutes after he made his quiet escape though— "If anything comes up, I'll be in my room," Aether informed the Garde escorting him up while rubbing his wrist. He could already feel the soreness before even starting to write…
"Hmm… I must say, that is quite the bold idea. Scheming the abduction of a notorious criminal was not what I expected to do today." Lyney hummed after listening to Yelan's plans, glancing at her while sipping his cup of tea. "You've certainly done your homework to come looking for us."
His compliment made Yelan smirk slightly. "I may have written down a couple of notes from Aether's letters to Liyue. He has mentioned you and your sibling a few times. And please—" She smiled "—let's not call it 'scheming'. It makes our desire to help Aether sound dubious."
"My apologies then," laughed Lyney. "You can count on my help in your completely altruistic desire to save Aether from the clutches of Fontaine's law— but I have one question for you."
"And that is?"
"How much do you actually know about what is going on here? Especially the political landscape in relation to Aether. How much I'll help will depend on your answer."
Yelan thought about it for a second. Liyue (or her specifically) doesn't have many informants in Fontaine; while she managed to procure documents relevant to her current mission, she didn't truly have an accurate picture of the current going-ons of Fontaine. If it was true that Aether was being set up, then there was more under the surface. "I know enough," she finally answered with a smile.
"I see… then I'll provide just enough assistance," he replied, smile matching hers. "But should you uncover the truth, I'd be more forthcoming in our little alliance."
That was a fair deal in Yelan's eyes— certainly better than what she thought she'd get. She just needed to figure out what "truth" Lyney was talking about. Fortunately, they would see a journalist after this so that worked out great. Keqing was also interested in what the local media was talking about and barring any embellishment, she could also uncover what was going on. "Then it is a deal. It will be a pleasure working with you." Yelan reached out her hand for a shake to seal their agreement.
The magician stared at her hand for a moment before finally shaking it. "Likewise. I look forward to this little plan of yours."
With her business with the magician done, Yelan departed to cross out the next part on her to-do list, Xiao in tow. Now that their guests were gone, Freminet and Lynetter came down to see their brother calmly sipping tea with a grin on his face.
"…You're scheming something." Lynette bluntly accused.
"Scheming is such an ugly word, dear sister. Let's just call it… counter-espionage," he laughed but didn't deny it. "I do hate to betray more people's trust, especially those close to Aether— but I'd rather he stick around Fontaine for a bit longer. Letting the other nations take him is not good for business around here."
"And what exactly do you have in mind?"
Lyney had a thoughtful look for a while before glancing at them. "I need you two to deliver some message for me."
As much as it was tiring to get roped into his plans, they were all with each other through thick or thin. "…To whom?" Lynette finally asked for both herself and Freminet. Something told her they'd be running all over Fontaine for whatever Lyney had planned. And to her despair, Lyney asked for a paper he could write names on and gave them the verbal message to pass to everyone. "Oh, and please be quick. The sooner we all gather, the better. In the meantime, I will prepare our lounge for the meeting. Good luck."
"I hate you sometimes."
"I love you both too."
The aquabus to Marcotte Station was oddly empty when Ayaka and Neuvillette came down to the station. It made finding seats easy though so no use complaining. There were about ten minutes before they departed and for the most part, Neuvillette looked through some documents he had brought with him while waiting. Meanwhile, Ayaka conversed with the Melusine tour guide as the heiress' curiosity about the Fontanian race led to her asking Elphane some questions.
"As you can see, our race differs greatly from humanity but we do have some similarities too. For example, us Melusines have different personalities; some of us like small talk like this, and some of us do not."
Her response made Ayaka deflate slightly and return to her seat. As soon as she sat down, Neuvillette glanced at and consoled her. "I do apologise in Elphane's stead. While she does enjoy her work as an operator, she has been worn down by rowdy passengers and can get rather cranky."
She supposed she was annoying the operator somewhat.
"May I ask what interest Inazuma has in the Traveller, Lady Kamisato?" Neuvillette then asked. "For you to be sent all the way here must mean your superiors have a stake in his trial. If I recall correctly, did he not rebel against the Raiden Shogun?"
"That is a long story…" Ayaka replied. Technically, she did rebel too by aiding and abetting him along with others but there was no reason to mention it to Neuvillette. "But that was some time ago and he has since been pardoned for his crime against Eternity. To the majority of Inazuma, he is a famed hero."
"As he is in all the other nations…" His sigh was not one of anger or disappointment but rather exasperation. "I am grateful for all he's done in my own nation but he has attracted too much attention. I believed this to be an open-and-shut case but it has gained the eyes of the entirety of Teyvat."
But he should have expected that, no? A multi-national hero being accused of kidnapping the patron god of an entire nation would naturally be the subject of whispers all over the world. "Monsieur Neuvillette, how do you think the other nations would react once the trial ends?" Ayaka asked. She hoped to find out what the Iudex thought the trial's verdict would be; having insight into what the other nations would be planning was important, but she needed to know the trial's likely results.
Unfortunately for her, Neuvillette managed to weasel his way out of directly answering what she really wanted to know. "As they are here for the same reason you are, I feel it is safe to tell you I've already met with delegates from Mondstat and Liyue. We've yet to negotiate any terms but I expect we'll be holding a meeting in the near future; you'd want to join this dialogue, I assume."
"That's correct." Ayaka nodded while thinking about what Neuvillette revealed. 'Mondstat and Liyue are also here? That will complicate matters…' especially when deciding what Aether's ultimate fate would be. If Ayaka could play her cards right, she thought could convince someone it was best for Aether to be taken somewhere far away from the person he hurt— the Hydro Archon —to serve his sentence… which just so happens to be Inazuma. But now that the Nations of Freedom and Contracts are entering the picture who no doubt have their own plans…
At her answer, Neuvillette nodded in turn before asking where she was staying. Assuming Thoma successfully got a room for them, they were staying at the Hotel Debord. "I'll send a messenger when I've scheduled a proper place and time," the judge told her after she informed him of her temporary residence. It was then that Elphanse interrupted them by announcing they'd shortly depart the station. Ayaka felt the aquabus slowly moving under her as they were about to leave the station when— "Wait! Don't leave us behind!"
The elevator doors opened and out ran a frantic girl about Ayaka's height accompanied by a woman who, judging from her purple uniform, was her bodyguard. Ayaka believed she recognised them from somewhere but the thought escaped her for the moment. Neuvillette, however, knew who they were if the long exhausted sigh he made was any indication. "This is going to be a long ride…" Ayaka overheard him mutter, making her wonder who the girl's identity was.
The aquabus stopped for the VIP and reversed back into place so the two new arrivals could get on. "Damn elevator, if it didn't get fixed in time…" the girl cursed between breaths, seemingly not noticing the other passengers. The woman, meanwhile, politely greeted Neuvillette with a bow. "I thought you would have gone to the opera house early, Monsieur Neuvillette," she then said.
"I would have been earlier had it not been for some work keeping me in my office," Neuvillette replied. "And how are you today, Clorinde? You accompanied Lady Furina and… to the Steambird, correct?"
Clorinde, as Ayaka now knew her name, nodded. Ayaka also assumed the other girl was the mentioned Lady Furina and wondered who the other person Neuvillette was going to say. "It was a… interesting interview. I expect it will be difficult to get a copy of the Steambird's next issue when it comes out," Clorinde answered with a small smile. She then glanced at Ayaka and asked, "I don't believe we have had the pleasure of meeting before?"
Before Ayaka could introduce herself, Neuvillette did so for her. "Clorinde, this is Kamisato Ayaka, an envoy from Inazuma. Lady Kamisato, I'd like to introduce you to Clorinde. She is one of Fontaine's most renowned Champion Duelists." Clorinde gave her a slight bow of respect which Ayaka returned. Neuvillette then turned towards the last passenger on their trip, who had fallen asleep in her seat. "And that refined lady… is our dear Hydro Archon, Focalors."
Ah, no wonder Ayaka thought she recognised her. She didn't expect the God of Justice to be so… different. Her sole idea of an Archon came from Inazuma's own so to see Fontaine's dozing off less no more than fifteen feet away was strange. She wondered if Focalors even realised they were on board before taking a nap. "Is she… normally like that?" Ayaka hesitantly asked.
"Normally not but she's been busy with certain matters lately. Even this morning, she had to wake up earlier due to a change in her schedule," answered Clorinde with a hint of sympathy in her tone. "I'll wake her up before we arrive at the station. Until then, she can have her beauty sleep." Ayaka could only sympathise too; as good as her brother was, she sometimes caught him with bags under his eyes or even sleeping in his office.
It was also usually the days after he visited the shrine or when Yae Miko dropped by on her way back from Inazuma City. Ayaka didn't want to think further about that. In the meantime, Ayaka requested Neuvillette to discuss more about the upcoming trial and the circumstances around it; they had some time before they reached Marcotte Station…
A/N: And finally done with the next chapter. IRL stuff really got in the way (and also cause a brainworm wouldn't let me focus on anything else besides my new fic…) but finally managed to crank out this next steaming pile of mess! And right after the 4.2 stream too. 5 more days till Furina and here's hoping all you Furina wanters will be Furina havers! Can't wait for the next update.
In this chapter, Scara (or Wanderer or Kagero as I named him in my game) gets to do his own investigation and narrowly missed Aether (I swear this won't be a running gag), Ayaka technically meets Furina, and Lyney is scheming somethi— I mean, counter-espionageing. I think you can all guess what's going to happen~
Anyway, thanks for reading and see you all next time!