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Rise of a Pretender Chapter 2
🕑 Added 2023-12-15 19:21:19 +0000 UTC…
…
Astel hummed as he walked behind Mona while she led him toward the city of Mondstadt, curiously inspecting the scenery around him as he trudged through the green plains around them.
Although there was a different ‘scenery’ he was more focused on examining while they walked…
Astel nodded resolutely as he inspected ‘it’.
Shapely, bountiful, and bouncy. Astel noticed a slight jiggle with every step from Mona, showing just how ample Mona’s rear truly was. The tights she was wearing did nothing to hide her lavish curves. The opposite, actually, as it enhanced its shape and volume.
That was the “Monass” indeed. He hadn’t gotten a good look earlier, but now he could see it firsthand.
Mona must’ve sensed his gaze as she turned around to give him a glare with slightly flushed cheeks, clearing her throat and turning around while placing a hand on her hips as she stopped walking momentarily.
“... Would you like an invitation to look for longer or something?” She asked with a slightly annoyed tone as Astel blinked and smiled bashfully.
“Oh, I’m flattered…” He slowly spoke demurely, making Mona gape and her eyebrows twitch violently while a bigger flush entered her cheeks as Astel ‘misinterpreted’ her question. “... But I think we should focus on reaching Mondstadt first.”
“T-That wasn’t what I meant!” Mona protested loudly before huffing and rolling her eyes. “Whatever…”
Astel stepped forward to move by Mona’s side instead of behind her this time, catching how she gave him a side glance as he did so. He returned the gaze with a smile, walking side by side with her as they continued walking to Mondstadt.
“So, where’s this pawnshop you’re taking me to?” Astel decided to finally ask a bit more about where they were going once he saw they were only a few minutes away from Mondstadt.
“Hmph… I cannot guarantee you won’t run if I tell you, but I can confirm that it’s much better than most other places you can visit.” Mona narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Astel before returning to the road as she spoke. “Though the owner is a bit… arrogant, from what I’ve heard.”
“You’ve never gone there yourself?” Astel curiously asked as Mona stiffened before shaking her head.
“I have. It wasn’t the most pleasant experience… but I was able to at least sell off a few of the trinkets I had gathered during my travels.” Mona admitted with a slight tone of annoyance. “I apparently seemed too ‘low class’ to do any ‘noteworthy’ business.”
Astel stifled his laughter at Mona’s bitter words, but she could still sense his amusement if her embarrassed glare meant anything.
“Hm… In that case, I have an idea.” Astel smirked as he formulated another devious scheme in his mind, placing a hand on Mona’s shoulder to stop her before they could enter Mondstadt.
“Huh?” Mona stopped with a blink and turned to look at Astel with confusion as he stopped her. “What idea?”
“... Say, do you have any way you can connect us temporarily?”
…
[A few minutes later]
“I can’t tell if I want to call this genius or stupid,” Mona muttered thoughtfully through the small device on Astel’s ears, her voice being transmitted through the ‘earpiece’ like Bluetooth.
“It’s genius, trust me,” Astel reassured her with a grin as she sent him a dry stare.
“You should never trust a person who asks you to ‘trust them’.” Mona pointed out unamusedly as Astel turned to her with a matching blank stare and a raised eyebrow.
“The last person I asked to ‘trust me’ did so and ended up winning their court case thanks to me. I’d say I have a good track record.” Astel pointed out with half-lidded eyes as Mona blinked in surprise before humming thoughtfully.
“I suppose that’s fair. What even is your plan?” Mona conceded before questioning Astel next, placing a hand on her hip as she did so. “We’ve established that I’d be speaking to you through the device to inform you of any lies or misdirection the owner attempts, but will you manage to perform your role correctly?”
Astel quietly chuckled at her question and shook his head, his smile fading into an icy frown as his previously bright and sparkling purple eyes dulled into a cold and slightly dark pair of eyes.
“... You need only to perform as you’ve been instructed; do not question my ability to achieve what I have planned.” He spoke coldly while giving Mona a warning side glance, narrowing his eyes in a frigid glare as Mona stiffened and stared at him with widened eyes.
The catalyst she summoned earlier reappeared alongside one of her Hydro magical circles as she stared at Astel in surprise, her eyes widening a little more as Astel rolled his eyes in annoyance and turned away.
“... It isn’t just your attitude that changed… Even the intentions I’m sensing match your new attitude.” Mona spoke with astonishment as Astel's cold attitude melted away, and a smirk entered his lips. “It was like you turned into a different person…”
“Heh. I told you I could manage my side of the plan, didn’t I?” Astel smugly reminded her as Mona sent him a glare, unable to believe he could be so smug after his previous attitude. “A good actor is one that can fool even themselves, you know?”
“Do you have any clue how difficult something of that scale would be?” Mona blankly informed with slight exasperation as Astel shrugged uncaringly. “... Ugh, Outlanders…”
“I had to do this much if I was to stand any chance at fooling… the stars.” Astel suddenly spoke with a mysterious tone, and his eyebrows furrowed seriously, confusing Mona on what he was quoting or talking about. “Just kidding — It’s probably the brain damage.”
“Speaking of which, I didn’t want to be rude and mention it earlier, but…” Mona moved her head up to look at Astel’s head, narrowing her eyes with pursed lips. “You seem to be… injured?”
“Yeah, that’s the brain damage.” Astel casually noted while waving his arms uncaringly, clearly dismissive of his supposed ‘injury’. “It’s fine, trust me. I’m not lying when I say that I’ve never felt better before in my life.”
Mona nodded hesitantly as she sensed the truth in Astel’s words, unsure if she should trust what he was saying anymore after he fooled her senses earlier. She decided not to push it any longer, though, as it wasn’t her business in the first place.
“It’s still quite surprising how adept you were at that… act,” Mona noted hesitantly while giving Astel a side glance as he smiled in response.
“This world is a Grand Theater, Mona. This much is to be expected, considering I’m its greatest wildcard.” Astel spoke slightly thoughtfully, confusing Mona with what he meant. “Plus, it’s quite befitting of a pretender, no?”
“Huh?” Mona stared blankly at Astel as he spoke a ton of gibberish, eventually sighing and shaking her head. The headache she’d get wasn’t worth trying to understand whatever it was he was saying.
Astel simply continued to smile at her as Mona dismissed the magic circle and catalyst she had summoned earlier.
“Ahem… Then, our plan is to have you parade as a noble of sorts to intimidate the shop owner and get a much better price than we would’ve gotten had we entered together?” Mona cleared her throat and repeated Astel's earlier plan as Astel nodded confidently.
“I’m not very familiar with this world’s economy and values, so I’ll be counting on you to inform me of his intentions and lies, if any, while we negotiate,” Astel informed her with a serious expression as Mona huffed and pushed some hair to the side, smirking confidently and nodding her head.
“You won’t need to worry about that. I’ll read that man like he’s a children’s storybook.” Mona stated smugly while placing a hand on her hip again confidently.
“Then we have a plan.”
…
…
[In a certain pawnshop in the Mondstadt Market District]
*Ring. Ring.*
Eric Becken, the owner of the Timeless Trinkets Pawnshop, looked up from his book in annoyance while preparing to dismiss another adventurer with useless trinkets, only to freeze as his eyes caught sight of the icy expression of an intimidating man in foreign clothing.
“So dusty… How irritating.” The man spoke irritably as he moved inside and inspected his surroundings, his eyes slowly moving across the different trinkets and gadgets strewn all around until they landed on Eric himself.
Eric felt his blood freeze as the man’s cold eyes bore into his, his heartbeat quickening as the foreigner calmly stepped towards him and traced his fingers over the countertop.
“... At least the counter is not filled with dust.” Eric heard the man mutter under his breath and almost cried in happiness at his decision to clean his shop this morning.
Eric couldn’t help but sweat as he looked at the man before him.
Who was this man? And what was he doing here?
A quick inspection of his clothes led Eric to believe that this man was from Snezhnaya, and his cold expression and manner further boosted his belief.
He heard that the Fatui had recently taken over the Goth Grand Hotel for their agents to occupy, but none of the so-called ‘diplomats’ he saw or met instilled the same presence and dread into him as this man.
… W-Was he a… H-Harbinger?
“You are the owner of this… establishment, correct?” The terrifying man spoke with slight distaste as he looked into Eric’s eyes, making Eric hastily nod while gulping nervously.
“I-I am Eric Becken, s-sir. H-How may I help you today?” He shakily asked while rubbing his hands with the best friendly grin he could muster, only managing a small, nervous smile.
“Hm... I was looking to sell off an item in my collection that I deemed unworthy of sitting amidst my assemblage and was told this would be the most fitting location in Mondstadt… The authenticity of that is questionable, however.” Eric’s eyes widened as a giant clock of Fontainian design suddenly appeared in the man’s hands, his eyes darting across the man’s clothes again in search of a vision.
T-There was none…
This man couldn’t be anything but a H-Harbinger!
“I-I can assure you that there is no better place to sell off your trinkets in all of Mondstadt, m-my good sir!” Eric couldn’t let go of the chance to get his hands on an item from Fontaine and possibly form a connection with a Fatui Harbinger.
“You best not disappoint me, then.” The man spoke while calmly placing the giant clock on the countertop, setting it down for Eric to inspect. “I acquired this Fontainian Clock from the Opera Epiclese some time ago. I believed it would make a fine addition to my collection, but I have yet to find anywhere fitting to place it and have grown tired of keeping it around.”
Eric’s eyes widened as he heard the Harbinger’s words, inspecting the clock as carefully as he could now that he’s learned of its origin.
A Fontainian Clock, and one that was directly from the Opera Epiclese of Fontaine, no less! He knew a dozen collectors who’d claw at each other’s throats for something like this.
And this was an item he considered unworthy of his collection!?
“I-I would be very interested in taking this item off your hands, my dear sir!” Eric’s smile finally turned genuine as he felt his pawnbroker instincts kick in, immediately paling a second later as the temperature in the room dropped significantly and he found the man glaring at him.
…
[POV Switch]
“He’s currently scared out of his wits. What did you just do? I sense Cryo energy nearby… From two different sources, actually.” Mona spoke in Astel’s ears as he ignored her for now and continued glaring at the man before him.
“You needn’t tell me that you’re interested, fool. This was an item I held in my collection. Are you implying that there was a chance you wouldn’t be interested?” Astel lowered the temperature in the room a little more as the older man in front of him shivered from both the temperature and fear.
“What the hell are you doing!? I know you said you’re a really good actor, but our goal isn’t to make this guy faint!” Mona practically screamed in his ears after hearing his words, but he ignored her again for now.
The ones who are feared… are the ones who are most loved.
“N-No, I would never imply such a thing! P-Please excuse my presumptuousness!” The man bowed his head deeply in apology for his ‘presumptuous’ behavior, making Astel grunt and allow the room’s temperature to return to how it was initially.
“... Do not waste my time any longer. Evaluate the item and state the price you’re willing to pay for such a piece.” Astel ordered coldly while not responding to the man’s apology as Eric hastily raised his head and bobbed his head desperately in agreement.
“O-Of course, sir.” Eric barely glanced at the clock anymore, already knowing its sheer value. His goal now was to find the price that would bring him the most profit yet also leave his life intact.
He wiped his sweaty forehead with a nearby handkerchief. He carefully moved his hand over the clock to make it look like he was inspecting it, unaware that Astel could easily see through his bullshit thanks to Mona’s input and his own observation.
“T-This is an exquisite piece, truly… I can safely say that I am willing to pay a full Two Million Mora for this Fontainian Clock, my good sir!” He eventually gave the price he was willing to pay while buttering Astel up, unaware that Astel wasn’t paying him any attention.
“He’s underselling it a little, but not enough to make it look suspicious. You might be able to squeeze out another half a million-”
“Ten Million Mora.” Astel declared frostily while glaring at the man.
Eric Becken froze in shock and turned to look at Astel incredulously, immediately bowing his head in fear once Astel glared at him for daring to look up at him with that expression.
“M-My good sir, I simply cannot pay such an exorbitant amount for this p-piece…” He pleaded with a slightly fearful tone as Astel ignored Mona’s screaming and hummed.
“... Do you know how much this Clock cost me? The bidding war I had with my colleagues to get this clock cost me several million Mora by itself.” Astel commented cooly while moving his hand over the clock as the man gulped nervously at the new information.
“I-I understand, my good s-sir, but I simply do not have that amount on hand. I-I couldn’t pay for it even if I wanted to!” He spoke again anxiously as Astel thoughtfully brought a hand to his chin while not sparing him a glance.
“... He isn’t lying. He doesn’t have that much. What are you accomplishing here again!?” Mona commented in annoyance from the device as Astel’s lips almost twitched upwards if not for his self-control.
Let. Him. Cook.
“... Yes, I suppose I have forgotten that commoners do not have several million Mora to spend casually.” Astel mused silently as the man breathed a sigh of relief, not even caring that Astel called him a ‘commoner’. “Very well, what is the most you can pay at the moment?”
“F-Four Million Mora, sir.” He shakily replied after half a moment of contemplation as he continued bowing his head nervously.
“... Huh. He’s lying. You could push him for more?” Mona spoke in his ears with a curious tone, but Astel had other plans.
“Very well. You have proven to be… somewhat competent during my time here. I will only take four Million Mora.” Astel ignored Mona’s outraged cries in his ears and looked at the man with the slightest hint of a smile on his face. Eric’s eyes widened in delight, and he eagerly nodded. “... However, I will also choose an item or two from your collection to possibly add to mine.”
“... You sly bastard. You truly are a shrewd son of a bitch.” Despite Mona’s unkind words, Astel could easily hear the grin on her face as she spoke in his ears.
“H-Huh?” Eric’s face twisted in confusion at Astel’s proposition as Astel casually walked around the shop, looking at the different items and trinkets all around.
“You would not mind, correct? After all, it’s quite the honor having one of your very own items as part of my collection.” Astel paused and turned to look at Eric with frigid, narrowed eyes as the man quickly shook his head and smiled nervously.
“N-Not at all! I would be honored, my good sir.” He nodded eagerly, thinking he was making quite the bargain trading an item or two for the equivalent of six million Mora.
Astel continued moving until his eyes caught sight of a pair of items quite familiar to him, a smile entering his lips as he lifted them and brought them to the counter. Eric blinked as a book and a claymore were placed on the opposite end of the Fontainian Clock.
“You have a good eye, my good sir! These here are-” “The Royal Greatsword and Royal Grimoire, I’m aware.”
Eric paused in surprise as Astel interrupted him and revealed that he actually knew of the two items he picked, staring at Astel in awe at his knowledge despite his ‘Snezhnayan’ origin.
“These two are weapons originally used by nobles in the old days of Mondstadt, correct?” Astel asked rhetorically while tracing the catalyst and claymore and recalling their descriptions in the game, leaving Eric to gawk at him and nod his head.
“You’re quite correct! I’m perfectly willing to part with these two beauties if they are your choice, my good sir.” Eric grinned and rubbed his hands together in the classic ‘scheming merchant’ way, unaware that he was the one being duped in this situation.
“Very well. Please gather the required Mora at once.” Astel ordered and tapped the Grimoire and Greatsword, turning away as they disappeared from sight under Eric’s dumbfounded yet awed eyes. Eric nodded and quickly ran into the backroom, leaving Astel to himself as he smirked once the man was gone.
“... How did you know the history of the two items you picked?” Astel’s smirk evaporated just as quickly as it first appeared, his lips turning into a frown as he realized his minor oopsie.
“... Later.” He muttered while raising a hand to inspect a nonexistent watch, hearing a ‘hmph’ from Mona in response before she stopped talking for now, thankfully.
He waited for only a minute more before Eric quickly moved out of the backroom with a chest filled with Mora in hand, panting as he roughly placed it on the counter and wiped some sweat from his forehead.
“T-That should be all, sir. I must thank you for coming to my humble establishment for your business today, and I truly hope to see you again soon.” He placed his hands together and smiled nervously but with a slightly eager tone as Astel closed his eyes and took the chest away into his space, humming and nodding his head after a few seconds.
“... Perhaps I will return in the future if I require the disposal of one of my collections.” Astel did not elaborate further on whether he’d return or not, something Eric didn’t comment on as he nodded his head eagerly.
“Bad news! Cavalry Captain Kaeya is heading your way right now. You might not know him, but he’s bad news, considering how you’re currently acting like you’re from Snezhnaya!” Mona suddenly spoke urgently into Astel’s ears, sounding like she was on the move.
Astel didn’t react to her words, calmly turning around to look at the door with narrowed eyes just as the bell at the door rang. A familiar figure entered through the door, pausing as he saw Astel and Eric inside.
“Oh?~ I apologize if I interrupted something. Should I come at a later time?” The slightly charming voice of Kaeya questioned with slight amusement as his singular periwinkle eye stared intently at Astel.
He looked exactly as Astel remembered from the game. He had long waist-length navy-blue hair and a tanned complexion, an eyepatch covering his right eye for some reason. He was almost as tall as Astel from what Astel could see from where he stood.
“O-Oh, Sir Kaeya! Not at all. W-We just finished conducting some business, that’s all.” Eric Becken quickly spoke while sweating as he saw Astel and Kaeya staring at each other, nervous about the result of a ‘Harbinger’ and a Cavalry Captain meeting.
“... Indeed. I have fulfilled all of my objectives for coming here.” Astel turned his eyes away from Kaeya as they both began walking forward. “I bid you farewell, Mr. Becken.”
Astel and Kaeya slowly walked towards each other as the atmosphere turned slightly tense, a chilling cold permeating the room as the two met in the middle and-
… Walked right past each other.
“Oh, thank goodness… Nothing happened.” Mona sighed in relief while she spoke as Astel cursed inwardly at her jinx.
“Excuse me… Have I seen you around before?”
Kaeya suddenly spoke once Astel passed him, not turning around after calling out.
They were now facing away from each other with their backs to each other, Kaeya tilting his head slightly to the side to look at Astel’s back while Astel continued looking forward with a blank expression.
“No, we have never met before,” Astel denied coldly while not looking back at Kaeya, storing the device Mona was using to communicate with him in his space as he heard her crying out at his tone and words.
He needed to concentrate.
“Ah, is that so?~ Do you mind if I ask for your name then, stranger? I’m sure I would’ve seen someone as eye-catching as you around…” Kaeya smiled politely and requested Astel’s name as Astel tilted his head to look back at Kaeya, catching his singular eye.
“... My name is not important to you, Cavalry Captain. I am but a mere Vagabond moving through these lands.” Astel narrowed his eyes slightly as Kaeya’s sparkled, the temperature in the room dropping a little more. “... It’s better that you ignore me.”
“I do insist that you inform me of your name. It would be a shame if I didn’t have a name to associate with such an interesting person as yourself.~” Kaeya apologetically smiled while asking for Astel’s name again, ignoring Astel’s warning completely.
A silence enveloped the shop as the two continued standing completely motionless, not moving an inch as the temperature in the room only plummeted more and more with every passing second.
After a full minute of silence, one of them finally moved.
“... I’ll unfortunately have to ask for you to come with me, stranger-” Kaeya closed his eyes and turned around to place a hand on Astel’s shoulder, freezing as his hand hit empty air and an unfamiliar hand landed on his shoulder.
“... Don’t.” Kaeya froze as he heard Astel speaking from behind him, preparing to lash out with his Cryo Vision before Astel could strike first-
“... Have you ever heard of Khaenri'ah, Cavalry Captain Kaeya?” Astel whispered in Kaeya’s ears in a voice too low for the man behind them to hear, stopping Kaeya in his tracks as he was left wholly frozen at Astel’s words.
Any thoughts about capturing Astel immediately evaporated as Kaeya froze in place, only moving again once he felt Astel’s hand let go of his shoulder as he turned around to look at him.
His eye widened further as he turned around and found no one behind him, no hint of the suspicious individual anywhere.
*Ring. Ring.*
The distinct ringing of the door to this shop sounded out from behind Kaeya as he turned around and found no one at the door again, his eye widening more and more as he felt his violently beating heart thumping inside of him.
He stayed utterly motionless for another minute before the room’s temperature finally returned to normal. His heart calmed down a little and allowed him to turn around to look at Eric, who was completely frozen in fear and awe as he stared back at Kaeya with a gape.
“... Who… Who was that?” Kaeya demanded in a tone unlike his usual voice, scaring Eric into speaking immediately despite his usual misgivings about giving information for free.
“I-I don’t know! He never gave his name, but… I-I think it was a Fatui Harbinger…” Eric spoke fearfully as Kaeya’s eye widened significantly, worry etching his face as he turned to the empty entrance again and clicked his tongue.
… He needed to speak to Jean.
…
…
Crouched down next to each other like a pair of druggies were Mona and Astel, who were currently grinning like loons as they stared at the giant chest full of golden coins.
“Mission: Success! Good work out there, partner.” Astel declared while extending his hand to Mona, watching as she smacked it with her own and smugly nodded.
“I must say, I was definitely wrong to doubt you,” Mona offhandedly admitted while staring at the Mora with sparkling eyes. Probably the only time she has and will ever admit that she was wrong, all thanks to the Mora.
“Heh.” Astel smugly nodded and took out the Royal Grimoire he picked up, handing it to Mona as she blinked and inspected it curiously.
“... This’ll definitely be very helpful. I didn’t previously own a Grimoire of this quality.” Mona muttered as she held the Grimoire while infusing it with her magic, probably attuning to it or some other nonsense that Astel didn’t know.
“It seemed pretty fancy, so I thought it’d be good to get since you used a similar one earlier.” Astel proudly explained while puffing his chest out as Mona smiled in amusement before huffing and turning away.
“... Thank you.”
Her voice was muttered so low that Astel almost didn’t hear it.
Astel’s smug smirk faded into a slight smile, nodding wordlessly so as not to embarrass Mona as her new Grimoire moved out of her hands and into the air.
“We match now, by the way.” His slight smile turned into a devious grin as he pulled out a matching Greatsword, showing it off proudly as Mona shook her head in exasperation and amusement.
“I suppose we do.” Mona mused with a smile of her own before that smile faded. She narrowed her eyes a second later, her expression becoming more serious. “... Will we be speaking of your suspicious amount of knowledge despite being a newly arrived Outlander, though?”
“Nuh-uh.”
…
“Nuh-uh!? What do you mean ‘Nuh-uh’!?” Mona asked angrily while staring at Astel with twitching eyebrows as he smiled and blinked innocently, tilting his head at Mona like he was confused about what she was talking about.
“I don’t see what you’re so stressed about, honestly.” Astel raised a hand to rub the back of his head casually while still acting innocent as Mona’s eyebrows twitched harder.
“I want to know how you knew of the history of a random item you stumbled upon by chance despite having allegedly only been in Teyvat for a few hours!” Mona gritted out while placing her hands on her hips as she glared at Astel.
“... Yeah, that’s the thing, Mon Mon.” Astel’s innocent expression morphed into a deadpan as Mona huffed at the nickname before furrowing her brows. “You want to know. It’s not like I spoke about some deep, dark secret of Teyvat. Your desire to know stems completely from curiosity.”
Mona blinked.
“Point.” She puffed her cheeks out as she found no rebuttal to what he said, giving up on uncovering how he knew of the history of the two Royal Set weapons for now. “Fine then, keep your secrets.”
“Hey, hey.~ No need to be upset. If you’re that curious, you can just write it off as a connection, or lack thereof, with Irminsul.” Astel patted Mona on the back to console her as her eyebrows rose at his words, her eyes glancing at him suspiciously before she grumbled and let it go.
“That tells me nothing. Also, shouldn’t you be worried about your encounter with the Cavalry Captain?” Mona suddenly switched the subject back to the matter at hand as Astel shook his head and shrugged. “What even happened in there after you removed my device?”
“We had a nice chat. Well, maybe not ‘nice’ more than it was ‘nICE’. Heh.” Astel snickered impishly at his pun while Mona gave him the blankest stare in the history of mankind. Her face had the most stonefaced, unamused, and empty deadpan in existence.
“The urge to kill you and cover it up is strong,” Mona spoke with the same utterly blank expression as Astel gasped dramatically and frowned at Mona.
“So mean… Is this how you treat your partner-in-crime?” Astel crossed his arms with a raised eyebrow as Mona’s blank expression faded into indignation.
“What?? I’m no criminal!” She declared furiously while glaring at Astel as his raised eyebrow rose even higher.
“You know we were selling stolen contraband from Fontaine, right? Not to mention how I was impersonating a Snezhnayan noble to intimidate a shopowner and finesse him out of more money, something you were an accomplice to, undoubtedly.” Astel wryly pointed out as Mona froze and stared at Astel with a gape, her mouth slowly opening and closing before a silent scream left her.
“You stole that clock!?” Mona exclaimed accusingly in shock as Astel huffed and uncrossed his arms.
“What, did you buy that nonsense about me entering a bidding war? I’ve only been in Teyvat for a few hours. How else would I have gotten that clock?” Astel’s words only made Mona despair more as she realized how logical his words were and how significant her oversight was.
She was so blinded by the sheer amount of Mora she could get that she forgot to ask where Astel got the clock.
No, it was obvious in hindsight. Where else would someone like Astel get the clock?
“... Oh stars… I’m a criminal.” Mona stated with horror as Astel patted her back with a bright smile to console her before she could freak out.
“It’s not that bad. I’m the only known face anyone might try to look for, so you’ll be fine if you don’t mention your involvement.” Astel reminded her cheerfully as Mona blinked, nodding thoughtfully before turning around to Astel panickedly.
“We need to get you a disguise or a mask to-” Mona’s mouth clamped shut once she turned around, finding what seemed to be a completely different person from where Astel was standing earlier. “... Astel?”
“Yeah? Oh, I was already thinking about disguising myself a bit after my debut as the Ace Attorney, but now it’s kinda necessary.” Mona sighed in relief as she heard Astel’s casual voice and tone from the person in front of her, narrowing her eyes as she inspected him intently.
His previously black and white hair was now purely black and swept to the side rather than the flow it once was. Mona noticed that his bright purple eyes no longer glowed as they initially did. The missing electrical glow almost made them seem like a different color, so she couldn’t recognize them immediately. The striking fur coat he was wearing previously was gone, leaving a black dress shirt that Astel was currently folding up.
“How’s this? I’m thinking that’ll be enough. With my differing personality and tone, I think the disguise should be flawless.” Astel finished folding his sleeves up and struck a pose for Mona, ignoring the flabbergasted expression on her face as he smugly nodded at her reaction. “Heh.”
“... How in the world did you change the color of your hair so fast? And your eyes-” Mona paused again as Astel ran his hand through his hair, moving it to the other side of his head as it turned white this time rather than just black or a mix of the two shades.
It was an illusion of perspective, Mona noted. Bringing all of his hair to one side made it appear as either white or black, but it was actually both simultaneously.
His eyes were narrowed and lidded this time, dulling the color of his eyes into a shade of purple completely unlike the bright violet it used to be. It was closer to black than it was to purple.
“... How about this?” Astel spoke again with a distant tone and voice, almost fooling Mona into thinking he was a different person because of his icy and uninterested tone. “... Maybe a less casual and more aloof attitude would be better for a disguise.”
Mona silently walked up to Astel as his cold eyes followed her movement, slowly blinking as she stood before him and raised the Grimoire she was holding in her hands.
*THUD*
“Turn back to normal already!” Mona demanded furiously after smacking him on the head with her new Grimoire, messing with his hair enough that it became mismatched again.
“Ow. Ah, the horror… My partner-in-crime is physically abusive!” Astel complained with a grumble as he brushed his hand through his hair again to return it to its mismatched appearance, pausing momentarily before moving it to be completely black again. “Fine, fine… I’ll stop messing around now.”
“Finally… If I knew outlanders were this annoying, I’d have left you on the hill I found you on.” Mona sighed aggrievedly and glared lightly at Astel, unable to put much heat behind her glare after all the trouble they went through.
“But you didn’t.”
“Shut up.”
“Ok.”
“Why are you so good at acting and disguising yourself? It’s so suspicious and unnecessary!” Mona complained exasperatedly as Astel gasped in shock at her words.
“It’s very necessary!” He crossed his arms unhappily and glared at Mona as she sighed again at his reaction. “I already told you, I’m this world’s best wildcard. I need this much, or else I wouldn’t have the same impact on my performance.”
“Uh-huh… and the real reason?” Mona drawled unamusedly as Astel huffed.
“The brain damage.”
“Is that your excuse for everything?” Mona raised an eyebrow as Astel brought up his brain damage again. “How would your injury even affect your ‘acting’ and disguise ability? It’s not like your physical appearance has anything to do with it.”
“Who knows? This body was probably made to assist me for that exact purpose. What good is an actor who can’t quickly switch appearance to fit their role?” Astel thoughtfully pulled at his hair while Mona tilted her head with a blink at his words.
“You say ‘this body’ as if it isn’t the one you’ve always had,” Mona commented in amusement while rolling her eyes at Astel’s silly words.
Astel hummed.
“Anyways. We’ve wasted enough time. Your current disguise should be good enough, but you’ll need to look for a change in wardrobe just in case.” Mona changed the subject again and returned to the important topic they were discussing.
“I think I have enough Mora to handle that task and more,” Astel commented in amusement as he and Mona turned to look at the chest full of Mora, both of them grinning like loons as they crouched around it again like druggies.
“Speaking of which – How are we splitting this?” Mona immediately zeroed in on the more important topic, her hands shaking as she imagined the books she wanted in her hands much earlier than they would’ve been if she waited for her next paycheck from the Steambird newspapers.
“Got any empty Mora bags?” Astel questioned while placing a hand on the chest of Mora, taking the bags that Mona summoned out of one of her magical circles as they popped out of existence alongside the Mora chest.
*POP*
They reappeared a moment later, appearing full to the brim with Mora as he handed them all to Mona.
“That’s 50% of all of the Mora in the chest, and not a Mora less,” Astel spoke truthfully while staring into Mona’s eyes, watching as she nodded in satisfaction once she confirmed the truth in his words.
“That’s quite handy... Is that one of your Outlander powers? All Vision Holders have a pocket space, but I don’t believe they can change or affect anything within that space.” Mona commented with curiosity while storing the Mora in her own pocket space.
“Probably. It was a bit complex to do, but I had motivation.” Astel shrugged casually before grinning devilishly and opening a rift in the air to grab the Royal Greatsword from, the rift looking suspiciously like a cut in reality similar to the work of one Dark Slayer.
Mona simply blinked at his display before turning away, slowly growing a resistance to his nonsense.
“I suppose we’ve at least got that out of the way. Now, Astel, does your weird knowledge of Teyvat tell you how to survive here?” Mona moved on before Astel could continue as he put the blade back into the rift and blinked.
“No? Maybe? I’m more just aware of random facts and history, honestly. I also know some places.” Astel shrugged helplessly as Mona hummed at his words, eventually settling on a nod.
“Very well! I’ll assist you in at least figuring out the basics of what you’re doing in Teyvat for now.” Mona declared with a slightly devious smirk, clearly planning something with Astel. “You better be grateful. You owe me one, after all.”
“... Okay?” Astel tilted his head in amusement at the clearly scheming Mona, not pointing out that she still didn’t have a home. “So, what’s next?”
“Hm. I suppose we must find an inn to stay at for now so that I can teach you some of the basic information you’ll need in Teyvat-” Mona paused as she saw Astel visibly cringe and lean away from her, a horrified look on his face. “... Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Here, take this.” Mona slowly blinked as Astel put a bag of Mora in her hands, turning to look at him in confusion. “Go get two rooms at an inn or something. Imma do my own thing.”
“What?”
*POP*
…
…
[Adeptus Xiao POV]
Atop Wangshuu Inn sat a familiar Adeptus in silence, carefully listening to the winds passing him for any sign of trouble that would require his attention. His dark, medium-length hair with teal undertones calmly flowed in the breeze, the gale informing him of no new dangers.
A moment’s rest for him, it seemed.
*POP*
His golden irises with avian pupils suddenly sharpened at the sound of a pop from beneath him, his gaze immediately zoning in on the figure of a newly arrived man standing on the platform at the very top of the Wangshuu Inn.
He hadn’t sensed anyone approaching beforehand, and the winds didn’t alert him of anything either. This could be an attack.
Xiao narrowed his eyes and lifted his spear, prepared to dash out at the man facing away to skewer him.
“Where the fuck am I?”
Xiao paused.
… Nevermind, it was just a clueless idiot.
“Oh wow… It’s beautiful.” The human leaned against the railing and stared at the view from Wangshuu Inn in awe, allowing Xiao to relax completely and inspect the man with less intensity.
Black hair, purple eyes, he didn’t seem familiar. How did he appear here out of nowhere? Xiao would find the situation ironic considering his usual appearing and disappearing act, but he didn’t have any sense of humor.
He dismissed the mortal from his notice once he realized how clueless and unobservant they were. The chances of someone like him coming here to attack him were null. The man will leave soon once he notices Xiao anyway.
“Wait, this view… Isn’t this Wangshuu Inn?” The man blinked and stopped admiring the view after a few seconds, freezing as he appeared to come to some realization.
Xiao watched with the slightest amusement as the man slowly turned around and looked at him, his lips morphing from a smile into a blank line as he stared wordlessly at Xiao.
Any second now, he’ll either profusely apologize before running away or skip the apology and run away in fear-
“Yo, my bad. I didn’t mean to end up here; I was trying to go to Liyue.” The man casually waved at Xiao with an apologetic smile and glanced around again, almost baffling Xiao at his nonchalance. “I’ll go uh… get you some Almond Tofu or something as an apology, okay Mr. Xiao?”
Xiao’s eyebrows rose as the man somehow recognized him, his confusion growing as he registered the rest of the sentence. How did he know about his… neutral disposition towards Almond Tofu?
The man walked down the stairs before Xiao could choose to question or stop him, leaving Xiao to stare at the floor where the man was standing with twitching eyebrows.
Xiao sighed as he heard the sound of footsteps walking up the stairs to the platform beneath him. He stared blankly at the man as he returned again instead of running away.
This time, with Almond Tofu in his hands.
“The lady downstairs was yelling about ‘who are you’ and ‘how did you get here’, but she immediately stopped once I pulled out the Mora. And told her about your Almond Tofu, but it was the Mora that swayed her, trust me.” The man smugly explained to Xiao as Xiao stared at him blankly, turning his gaze from him to the Almond Tofu in his hands.
How did he know…
*POP*
Xiao’s eyes widened as the plate disappeared from the man’s hands and reappeared on his lap, his eyebrows twitching as the man dusted his hands off and smugly crossed his arms.
… Perhaps Xiao should reevaluate this idiot’s threat level.
Or not. Odd teleportation aside, he seemed harmless.
“Back to my apology. I was trying to triangulate the direction Hu Tao pointed me towards and where I was in Mondstadt, but I must’ve messed up again since I ended up here.” The man spoke again to explain himself as Xiao continued staring at him blankly, suppressing the urge to tilt his head at whatever he was saying.
He knew that girl? Xiao hoped he wasn’t as annoying as she was… though he certainly seemed just as humorous.
“Oh! I’m Astel, by the way. I’ll make sure to prepare the Almond Tofu beforehand next time I visit, don’t worry.” The now-named Astel introduced himself while reassuring Xiao that he’d visit again, making the Yaksha furrow his brows and open his mouth to finally speak.
“... You best not return here again, human. For your own good.” Xiao knew how threatening his words seemed, but he would not correct the other party’s misunderstanding. It was better for them to fear him, or else they may grow attached.
“Nah, pretty sure your Karma stuff doesn’t affect me… Or does it? Myeh, Traveler was fine.” Astel carelessly waved his hands to dismiss Xiao’s warning, surprising Xiao with how much he knew.
Was he really going to risk his own life by staying near Xiao just so he could visit again?
“Anyways. Do you mind pointing me to Liyue? I’ve already seen Mondstadt for myself, but I wanna see Liyue in all its glory, too.” Astel requested with an apologetic smile as Xiao stared at him exasperatedly before raising his spear and pointing in the direction of Liyue. “Thank you!”
“... Stop.” Xiao saw Astel raise his hands to clap them together and quickly stopped him, making Astel pause and tilt his head to Xiao.
Xiao took a deep breath and turned to look away from Astel.
“... If you are ever to find yourself at death’s door… Call out my name, Adeptus Xiao. I will appear.” Xiao instructed the mortal coldly, not wishing to see him dead after his promise of returning again to visit.
“Aww, thanks! I’ll make sure to do that. See you soon.” Astel waved at Xiao cheerfully before clapping his hands together and disappearing with another pop, leaving Xiao to stare at the spot where he disappeared with a scrunched nose.
What an annoying human.
… Wasn’t the worst human he has met, though.
…
…
*POP*
““AHHHH!””
“What a nice guy.”
Astel ignored the sound of the screaming people behind him as he gazed down at Liyue from the mountain he found himself atop, one he guessed to probably be Mt. Tianheng.
The view of Liyue was breathtaking. The game could only do so much, and it couldn’t truly capture the same beauty he could now see personally.
It certainly helped that Liyue looked particularly prettier at night.
He smiled and inspected the city a bit closer, his eyes searching for its two waypoints and eventually finding them after only a minute of search.
Perfect. He’d register the Waypoints and then walk around Liyue for a bit before returning to Mondstadt.
Astel nodded to himself after deciding his plan.
“Please excuse me.” He turned around to apologize to the people he had startled before, his eyes widening a little as they spotted the figure of a mature woman with short black hair tipped with blue highlights. “Ah…”
She smiled.
*POP*
Nope.
Not today.
Astel disappeared from where he was standing previously at the top of the mountain, reappearing at one of the waypoints he spotted while he was still searching that area.
“Excuse me.” Astel apologized to the two guards standing by the Waypoint, smiling apologetically as he registered the Waypoint before they could react.
*POP*
Disappearing from that Waypoint before the two guards could do so much as stumble, Astel reappeared at the other Waypoint in the city.
“Please ignore me.” He excused himself again once he appeared at the other Waypoint and registered it, easily sidestepping a panicked slash of one particularly jumpy guard as he smiled apologetically again at the guard and disappeared.
*POP*
“That’s enough excitement for today.” Astel declared as he reappeared in Mondstadt, standing atop the same roof he was standing on with Mona barely twenty minutes ago.
Ah, she wasn’t here.
Nice.
Astel needed to collect a few things and buy some things anyway. He’d also like to explore for himself without teleporting everywhere for once.
Astel straightened his clothes and checked himself for anything suspicious, eventually nodding in satisfaction and stepping off the roof as he gently glided to the ground using some Anemo.
He walked out of the alleyway and casually entered the crowd in the bustling streets, camouflaging himself in the crowd without much trouble as he inspected the relatively lively streets of Mondstadt.
Despite how late it was, many people were still going about, leaving Astel to enjoy himself on his impromptu shopping(?) trip. He visited many of the still-open stores, buying clothes, necessities, and whatever else he thought he might need.
He spotted some familiar faces while he was going around, but he kept his head low and didn’t try anything. No need to rush things anyway, it was only his first day here.
He found an open clothes store and quickly grabbed several pieces for his future needs. Mischief needs.
… And just normal daily use, but mischief mostly.
He picked up a few food items while walking, remembering that he hadn’t eaten anything since dropping into this world.
Astel moved through the streets while munching on a chicken skewer, his eyes lazily moving across the different people and buildings around him as he finally finished shopping and exploring.
His eyes eventually caught sight of a familiar building that had him pause, his mind contemplating a few things before his mental clarity reminded him of his disposition toward the act of ‘thinking’. A moment later, he disappeared from where he was standing previously.
“Ad Astra Abyssosque! Welcome to the Adventurer’s Guild.” Katheryne greeted Astel as he approached, now with a different set of clothes and his white-haired disguise rather than the black-haired one he used up to this point.
“... I’d like to register as an Adventurer,” Astel spoke in an aloof tone while raising the scarf covering his face, having decided on using this disguise for his Adventurer’s Guild stuff earlier. His primary and black-haired appearances would serve different purposes…
“Perfect. Please give me your name, and I’ll have you registered immediately. Do you require any information before we proceed?” Seeing how uninterested Astel was in small talk, Katheryne immediately got down to business.
“... Not at the moment. My name is Estel.” Astel switched a single vowel in his name as a precaution, ignoring how useless such an action was in the name of ‘caution’.
It sounded the exact same.
“Welcome to the Adventurer’s Guild, Estel. There’s a short form that I’ll need you to fill out before you’ll be ready to be a full-fledged adventurer.” Katheryne handed a paper to Astel that asked for basic information, not blinking even after Astel summoned a pen into his hand to fill it in.
“Will that be all?” Astel returned the paper to Katheryne and unsummoned his pen, tilting his head slightly as Katheryne inspected the paper for a moment before looking back up at him.
“Indeed. You should return tomorrow for your Daily Commissions as it's unsafe for a beginner Adventurer to go out at this time.” Katheryne advised Astel with a polite smile as Astel blinked slowly before summoning his Greatsword into his hands.
“... I wouldn’t call myself a beginner, but thank you. I will return soon.” Astel stared into Katheryne’s slightly widened eyes blankly, unsummoning his Greatsword once she got the message and nodding his head while turning around to leave.
Him having a fancy Greatsword didn’t mean much beyond possibly being rich, but it was his ability to summon a Greatsword that was of interest. It meant that he at least had a vision or elemental power, putting him above most normal adventurers.
“My apologies then.” Katheryne bowed her head slightly as she saw Astel leaving, the same smile on her face as Astel walked away. “Farewell, Adventurer, and thank you for supporting the Adventurers' Guild.”
Astel wordlessly waved without turning back to Katheryne, walking away with an aloof expression.
He had a Mona to find.
…
…
*POP*
“Sup.”
Mona jumped and held back a scream as Astel appeared in the middle of the room in his white-haired disguise, calmly waving at her with an aloof frown. A moment later, his expression melted into its usual smile, and his hair changed back to black and white.
“Damn it… Enter rooms normally, you freak!” Mona berated him while gritting her teeth angrily, flushing slightly at her lack of preparation for Astel’s appearance and her current clothes.
How could she know that he’d just appear in the room!?
“I would’ve, but I didn’t exactly know where you were. I only found you because I decided to try teleporting to the biggest concentration of Hydro in Mondstadt.” Mona’s eyebrows twitched at Astel’s defense, her flush growing as she was torn between berating him for trying such a stupid thing or acting smug at being the strongest Hydro user currently in Mondstadt.
“Whatever… What took you so long anyway?” After a moment of indecision, Mona decided to let it go for now and questioned Astel instead.
“I met an Adeptus,” Astel replied casually while inspecting the room curiously, ignoring the flabbergasted Mona staring at him with twitching eyebrows. “I also went shopping. You like my outfit?”
Astel proudly puffed his chest out at Mona to show off his new outfit, ignoring the exasperated shake of her head.
“... Quite the eventful first day you’ve had here in Teyvat, huh?” Mona questioned dryly while glaring at Astel as he hummed in response.
“It has been quite eventful, hm? I suppose that’s why I decided to settle for the night.” Astel tilted his head and searched around the room for something. “Where’d you put the key to my room?”
Mona froze.
“About that…” Mona cleared her throat in embarrassment and tapped her foot against the ground, clearly anxious about something.
Astel blinked.
“What? I calculated the amount I gave you. It should’ve been enough to get five rooms. Surely you had enough?” Astel tilted his head in confusion as Mona stuttered in response, raising a hand to her face to cough into her fist and hide her blush.
“N-No, it’s not that… Um, you see… I decided to make use of the new money we made and went shopping for a few things…” Mona nervously began as Astel’s face turned blanker and blanker, the smile on his face fading into the same expression Mona was giving him after his pun earlier today.
“Mona… What did you do?” Astel slowly spoke despite already having an idea of what Mona did, staring blankly into Mona’s eyes as she cleared her throat in embarrassment again.
“... Well, I was… coming a bit short on this one item and… I didn’t get the rooms yet at the time.” Mona explained with embarrassment as Astel crossed his arms and continued blankly staring at her, waiting for her to get to the point despite already getting the complete picture.
“Uh-huh…” He nodded his head and waited, completely expressionless.
“... I ‘borrowed’ a bit of money from the bag you gave me… and used it.” Mona finally admitted while slumping down to the bed, looking defeated. “There was only enough for one room left…”
“And I’m guessing that if I go down there right now, I’m gonna find no more rooms available anymore?” Astel questioned exasperatedly as Mona grimaced and nodded her head. “Damn… I can’t believe I’m sleeping on the couch.”
“No, no! It’s only right that I sleep on the couch, considering how you’re the one paying for the room.” Mona quickly shook her head and moved to sit on the couch, staring apologetically at Astel as he sent her a raised eyebrow.
*POP*
“I may have a disturbing case of brain damage, but I’m still a man. Can’t exactly accept such a thing unless I was an asshole, which I’m not.” Astel spoke exasperatedly while sitting on the now-empty couch, turning to look at Mona as she stared at him with twitching eyebrows once he teleported her to the bed.
*FWOOM*
“No.”
Astel blinked and turned to look next to him on the couch, finding Mona sitting next to him while smirking.
*POP*
*FWOOM*
*POP*
*FWOOM*
*POP*
“Stop teleporting me! I said no!” Mona exclaimed angrily while reappearing next to Astel, her smirk completely gone after Astel’s persistent teleportation.
“Actually, have you eaten anything today?” Astel’s question made Mona pause; whatever she was about to say failed to leave her mouth as she coughed in her fist.
“I-I have, why do you ask?” She lied as easily as she breathed.
“Oh, you have? Ah, I guess I’ll keep the food I brought for us for another day.” Astel blinked and sighed while summoning a plate of Sweet Madame in his hands, staring regretfully at the plate and preparing to put it back where he brought it from.
“W-Wait!” Mona quickly exclaimed once she realized why Astel was asking, her face flushing deeply in embarrassment. “I-I only ate a salad this morning… and it’d be a shame to allow the food you bought to go cold!”
“I suppose that’s fair.” Astel agreed while bringing out a few dishes with a smile of amusement, not mentioning that the food he stores doesn’t get cold or go bad due to its isolation from outside factors.
… To a limited degree. It ain’t frozen in time.
Hm. A space with a special rule that doesn’t allow time to flow within it… Thoughts for later.
“By the way, would you mind teaching me some Hydromancy, Mona?” Astel decided to spring that topic up now while they ate as Mona paused and turned to him with widened eyes?
“You can use Hydro?” She asked in surprise before pausing and narrowing her eyes. “No, I guessed that it was you who used Cryo energy repeatedly back in the Pawnshop. You don’t have a vision, so it isn’t unreasonable to assume you can also use Hydro.”
“Huh.” Astel blinked. Mona had excellent insight and deductive capabilities. “Yeah.”
Probably came with being an Astrologist. Seeing the truth of stars and shit.
“Ugh… Outlanders. Fine, I suppose I wouldn’t mind imparting some of my wisdom to you, but you better be grateful for such an opportunity!” Mona puffed her chest proudly before coughing as something lodged in her throat, glaring at Astel as he suppressed his laughter.
“Yes, yes. I am truly grateful, Master Mona. Please don’t choke on your food and die.” Astel’s words only made Mona glare harder before she gulped down some water and set it down with a sigh, grumbling under her breath.
“Just shut up and go to bed. You aren’t escaping my lessons tomorrow like you did earlier, so you’ll need the rest.” Mona sternly instructed Astel while pointing to the bed, blinking as she found herself on the bed she was pointing at the next moment. “Damn it…!”
*FWOOM*
*POP*
*FWOOM*
*POP*
*FWOOM*
*POP*
*FWOOM*
*POP*
This was going to go on for a while…
…
…
HI FRIENDS SORRY FOR BEING LATE HERE HAVE CHAPTER LOVE YOU ALL. ENJOY CHAPTER IN ONLY A WEEK INSTEAD OF TAKING A LONG TIME! YEAHHHHHH
Ahem. My PC has recently fucking gotten obliterated so I'm currently working on my mac. My PC is like 10 years old, so it was about time, but I can't exactly afford a new PC at the moment... Its gonna probably take me a bit to gather all the money I need to get myself an upgrade, so bear with me for a bit.
I mean, hey, I only had half of this chapter done when my PC exploded, yet here we are! Finished in a week baby. I'll try to keep an even pace, but PC got me depressed and shit fr fr.
See you soon friends.
