The recent incident spread like wildfire throughout Teyvat. Fatui soldiers and diplomats from the Cryo nation of Snezhnaya were quick to arrive in Liyue and investigate. A few days following the incident, Raiden and Kitayuu were still unconscious and recovering. Diluc arrived at Liyue to personally escort all the students in the region to return to the academy.
“Those two are in no condition to return for a while,” Zhongli said as he swirled a glass of wine in his hand.
Diluc; “But I need to get them back to the academy or else they’ll fall behind”
Zhongli; “It’s best that they stay here until they have at least woken up. There is no need to worry. Both of them are under 24-hour care. I will make sure to write you a letter as soon as they are ready to go back, and I’ll send an escort as well. Unfortunately for them, they'll have to do some catchup”
Before leaving, Diluc bent his body over in front of the Archon, “Thank you for protecting these children”
Zhongli; “The pleasure is yours. However, one of them may need to learn how to be more cautious, but I must say, they did hold their own against the Abyss Herald pretty well. You should be proud of them.”
The door to the room suddenly opened, and a tall man with ginger hair walked in. Zhongli raised an eyebrow, “And you are?”
“Tartaglia, last of the 11 Fatui harbingers. However, you can just call me Childe”
Two Fatui soldiers followed closely behind as the man entered and leaned a bit, paying his respect to the Archon.
“Anyways, I’m just going to get straight to the point Mr Zhongli, armed Fatui soldiers will from now on be placed around every block of Liyue.”
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Zhongli took a sip of his wine before answering, “There will be no need for that, I don’t want to have a bunch of foreigners sharing control with the Millelith.”
Childe chuckled before standing straight up again and turning to Diluc, “May we have a moment?”
Diluc nodded and exited the building to join the students who were waiting outside and ready to leave.
Once Childe was sure that no one else was around, he spoke up again, “The Millelith have failed to prevent this incident from happening. How do you think the people of Liyue feel knowing that at any moment and attack can occur, potentially endangering the lives of citizens all because the Millelith lack the latest weapons. Before you mention yourself, the people here have no idea who their Archon is or whether the Adepti are even real”
Zhongli rose from his seat now on the defensive, “There is a reason why I conceal my identity. I wouldn’t be able to step a foot out in public if everyone knew who I was. I may be a god, but I also desire a normal life. As for the Adepti, I have a contract with them. They are the protectors of Liyue. Though they may come off as a myth to most, they are constantly keeping an eye over Liyue and ready to protect it at any given moment.”
Zhongli walked closer to Childe; “And one more thing. May I ask, is there a reason for the Tsaritsa wanting to get involved with every other nation's affairs? I heard recently many Fatui troops were stationed at the city of Monstadt after a similar incident, Fatui activity around Fontaine and Sumeru has also increased and soldiers were recently rejected to enter the island of Inazuma by the Raiden Shogun.”
Childe; “The Tsaritsa’s interests are none of your business, and I thought you may have gotten an idea already of what she wants since you’ve known each other for centuries.”
Zhongli; “I have not spoken to the Tsaritsa ever since she cut contact with the rest of the seven over 500 years ago. However, I find her relationship with Saturo to be rather suspicious”
Childe laughed, “Oh no worries, Saturo just wants to have a military force, so he is borrowing the Fatui and at the end of the day, he is the most powerful person in Teyvat, so a good relationship with him is a smart option, but very well then. If the Archon of this nation declines this request, I have no choice but to follow along, but just for your information. I will be around Liyue monitoring things, just not in the city.”
Childe then turned around and walked out the door with his two soldiers.
