Chapter 1.2
…A Great Ambition!
"Jean !"
With a oud scream, capable of conveying all his indignation at what he heard, a young boy stood firm and standing. He knows that, at this very moment, he cannot afford to show any disinterest, cowardice or any other sign of weakness.
"There's no point shouting at me, Bennet .", replied an older voice.
If someone were present in the office right now, they would easily notice the contrast between the two people. The difference between the two was much more than size or age.
Unlike the boy who called out his name, "Jean!", the second voice belonged to an adult woman. And it was evident just from the tone of his voice how much more mature and patient the person really was.
From the beginning it was like that, she didn't scream or let on what she felt.
In a way, this was the treatment expected by everyone, including the boy himself. After all, she is Jean Gunnhildr , the second most authoritative person in all of [Mondstadt] , the Nation of Freedom . Maintaining professionalism in any and all situations is expected, especially in a discussion.
Jean was more than a perfect example of a leader for the entire Nation. Her mere presence was something that naturally stood out, even if she didn't want it to.
Even in the office where the two of them were, she conveyed a feeling of incredible grandeur and professionalism.
The office was clearly luxurious and classic, with the best quality furniture the Nation could offer and designed by the best of the best; but currently it was completely messy, with books scattered everywhere ( which should previously have been on the various shelves present on the walls ), mountains of pages on his desk, maps scattered on the floor and markings in squares also scattered throughout the office.
Neither luxury nor clutter could affect Jean's image.
The very light of the midday sun, which entered through the large window behind her, seemed to reflect on her blonde hair in a way that only highlighted her beauty.
"That has already been decided, Bennet. Stormterror must be hunted down. And those infected will be further removed from the capital. Their location is already being prepared."
The two had already been arguing for more than ten minutes. She's probably said this three times already.
And how many times had he tried to argue against her? Probably more than seven times.
"You seem to be getting the wrong idea here, Bennet."
In fact, Bennet wasn't getting anything wrong. Quite the contrary, he knew that Jean was just doing his duty. She wasn't doing anything wrong.
"It's truly impressive and admirable that someone would want to save Stormterror and help the infected.", Jean continued, as a soft smile began to form on her face. "I really respect you for trying to do something that no one has ever tried again after centuries. Rostam and Arundolyn were the last two people in Mondstadt who tried to do anything about Heres. Without a doubt, this is a really big and incredible ambition. Not to mention that you managed to present your point of view and arguments well, so it's easy to see that you prepared for this conversation for a long time. This makes your commitment to achieving your goal more than clear. All of this makes you, to say the least, an admirable person."
It was strange to hear this from Jean Gunnhildr herself. Having someone like her compliment you is not something very common, especially for a person like him. But the most important thing was the hope that seemed to be born in him again.
"Then-"
"No."
Jean interrupted him. At no time had she done this, until now at least.
"It doesn't change anything."
There was no anger, disrespect, indignation, fear, remorse or any other negative feeling present in the woman's voice.
It was impossible to understand what she really thought.
"Stormterror and those infected by Heres have become something that a simple teenager does not have the slightest ability to give their opinion on the subject. I have no reason to do what you ask. Nobody in Mondstadt has it."
That simple sentence hit Bennet more than a punch could. Not because it's offensive. This affected Bennet because it was simply a truth that he personally didn't like to admit.
"You have no authority whatsoever, so you are not able to influence anything or anyone. You also have no merit, so it's impossible to trust someone who has never demonstrated that they are capable of anything impressive. Especially when it comes to a problem that no one has solved in centuries."
Jean was just verbalizing undeniable facts that the boy himself knew were true.
"We both know you are the opposite of all of that. Most people in Mondstadt don't like you, especially "them"."
A clear reaction of disgust towards "them" was conveyed by Bennet. In fact, Jean herself seemed to have looked away when talking about it.
And in the end, silence was the only thing left.
Bennet had no way of disputing what she had said. So he just did what he could do: He remained silent.
He tried to think of what to say, but nothing came out of his mouth. No really good ideas came to mind.
No matter how much Bennet thought of all the possible arguments he could use in his favor, the problem always came back to the same topic: He had absolutely no value or strength.
No matter what Bennet says or presents arguments, he has no way of proving or gaining the trust and support of other people. How would a seventeen-year-old boy be able to give an opinion or say that he will bring a solution to a problem that has threatened Mondstadt for over a century?
There was simply no way. At the moment, Bennet was simply useless and weak at doing anything.
Inevitably, all the courage he had mustered for hours began to disappear.
Lowering his head and reducing his own size was a completely unconscious act on his part.
His light gray, almost albino hair was the only thing Bennet could see with his green eyes, which previously seemed to shine and convey the heat of his determination; but now they no longer conveyed that same shine.
At that moment, Bennet completely lost the argument.
"Please go away.", asked Jean politely while looking into the boy's eyes.
Of course, Jean is the person who carries the title of Acting Grand Master of the [Knights of Favonius], the order of knights that protects, manages, and basically governs all of Mondstadt.
The true leader of the Knights of Favonius is the Grand Master , but he was absent. So, in his absence, the duty of looking after the Knights falls to the Acting Grand Master.
In other words, Jean is the second most important and powerful person in all of Mondstadt, theoretically with the power and authority to do whatever he wants with the nation. She was obviously busy (the messy office was proof of that), but she still agreed to talk to Bennet, even though he himself saw no reason to.
Without any other attempt to contradict Jean, he just turned and headed towards the exit, then passing through a simple door.
It was easy to hear and see the sudden movements of people passing in front of the Grand Master's office.
' Of course they heard… ' Bennet thought.
None of the knights could hide it.
Although the conversation with Jean started well, he ended up losing his composure after hearing that the so-called "monster" would be hunted down and killed, while those infected by Heres would be driven away from the Nation's capital much further than they already were. And precisely because he lost his composure, Bennet completely forgot that he was still at the Knights of Favonius Headquarters .
Literally everyone will know that Bennet yelled at Jean, who is not only one of the most important people in the Nation, but also one of the most loved and admired by everyone.
In short, Bennet's reputation will get even worse in the city. And possibly in other corners of the Nation as well.
'Well, better move on... and make sure "Amy" never finds out about this.' Unconsciously, Bennet shuddered at his last thought as he remembered someone. ' Who am I kidding? She'll figure it out in less than a minute... '
Taking a deep breath and raising his head as he reached the exit door, which was a little more than two meters tall (it was a really impressive and large door).
Upon leaving the General Headquarters, instead of seeing the nation's capital, Bennet could see the brightest thing he would see for the rest of his entire day: White.
"Arg…!" grunted the poor guy.
The sun hit his eyes, as if someone threw a match into them. The poor guy couldn't see anything else.
A great misfortune indeed… or was it just low intellect? After all, what kind of person has the habit of leaving places looking up and taking a deep breath? And this definitely wasn't the first time he'd done this.
It was a little painful, at least that's what he's sure of.
' I'm glad it won't rain today. ', Were his thoughts as he massaged his eyes.
His eyes, after a few seconds, were finally able to see again without any problems.
This time, he actually managed to see the capital.
There is a general consensus among the other six nations: Mondstadt was the most backward among all the seven nations of Teyvat. It is known by everyone as a city stuck in time, with an aspect they call "medieval".
Divided into five districts, the city is surrounded by a huge wall, which is kept a few meters away from the city, so as not to affect residents in their daily lives.
Most of the buildings were made using an ancient construction technique, which people call "Medieval Houses" or "Mondstadt Style Houses".
Bennet actually feels a little uncomfortable hearing this kind of thing, after all Mondstadt is not as backward as they imagine... although it is not very technologically advanced either.
' Mondstadt does not in fact have airships, robots and firearms or a strange device that connects your mind with a virtual library of information. But that doesn't mean Mondstadt is primitive... '
Bennet has a bad habit of thinking about random things while he has free time or nothing to do.
Sometimes it's better to think about random things than remembering problems. Well, at least that's what he learned over the years.
' But I really wanted to fly in an airship. It must be cool to touch the clouds– Wait, I'm wasting time! '
Bennet finally began walking west of the city.
He passed houses, bars, shops and inns. Then he continued on through houses again, bars, shops, but instead of inns, this time he found a fountain in the middle of a square.
He had been lost before.
Bennet just ignored the fact that he had taken the wrong path earlier and continued walking.
How long did he walk? Great question. The last he read in a survey published in the newspaper, it would take a few hours to get from the west end of the city to the east end. Of course, that's if you run.
' I think that in the past there were capitals where its name was not the name of the nation. [Liyue] is the only nation where its capital doesn't just bear the name of the nation. "Liyue Harbor," I think? I mean, it has the name of the nation, but it's still not JUST the name of the nation. She's the only one who did this— I mean, I haven't studied the others very well yet… Well, it's almost impossible to know much about one of them in particular.'
While ignoring the people moving away from him almost automatically, Bennet continued his random thoughts as he walked home.
It was a good few minutes of walking until he got to where he wanted: A practically empty place.
Within [District-3], known as the Residential District , is where most of the houses and places to live are. It is still possible to find hotels and inns in other places, but this is where the residential part of the city is concentrated.
Ghost Area , this is the name given to neighborhoods or streets in District-3 in which there are not many or literally no people living.
It is exactly in one of these areas where Bennet lived.
' The sky is an illusion if you stop to think about it. Like, when we look up, we don't exactly see the sky. When someone looks up, people are seeing the universe, correct? So, theoretically speaking, heaven does not exist. You could say the sky is fake— Huh?'
Looking at a simple two-story inn, Bennet read an old, broken-in-half sign: [Freedom's Home]
' Did they accidentally break the sign again?'
As if it were just part of his routine, Bennet walked over to the sign and picked it up. He couldn't help but smile as he did this, after all he knew what awaited him inside that inn.
[Continued in Chapter 02]