Teyvat Survival Guide

Chapter 154 The desire to prove

……

——In the evening, Samuel returned to his residence in the cathedral city and sat on the bed, looking through the activities plan he had made earlier during the Wind Flower Festival.

After confirming that everything was correct, he placed the plan on the bedside table next to him.

There should be no problem with the Windblume Festival activities. We just need to wait until tomorrow and let Giuliana arrange it.

There is no schedule for tomorrow... All classes during the Wind Flower Festival have been cancelled. After all, the teachers also have to celebrate the festival, so he might as well give them all a day off.

He could also give himself a break, since he had been busy for so long before the Windblume Festival.

However, even though it was a holiday, to be honest, Samuel himself didn't know what to do during the holiday.

In the past, he might go for a stroll on the street, or do alchemy, or read in the Knights' library.

If all else fails, call Tevarin to fly a few laps in the sky together.

but now…

He wanted to continue hanging out with Master Barbatos as they had done this afternoon.

Well... you don't have to go shopping, just find a corner and sit down and chat.

Or go eat, drink, and listen to other bards sing.

In short, he wanted to stay with Master Barbatos, no matter what.

Thinking of this, Samuel recalled what he had done in that deserted alley when he parted with Lord Barbatos in the afternoon, and his cheeks became slightly hot.

He should have been tougher at the time. When Lord Barbatos approached him, he lifted his chin and whispered, "God, you are playing with fire—"

Ahem... Of course, this kind of thing is just something to think about, Samuel wouldn't dare to do it.

But the idea of ​​wanting to take a tougher stance is real.

He recalled his experiences in Mond so far, and suddenly realized that as long as he was in front of Lord Barbatos, he would involuntarily remove all disguises.

In front of others, he was still the noble Pope respected by everyone, but when he arrived at Lord Barbatos's place, he involuntarily turned back into the little bubbling slime.

This is not okay.

Although Lord Barbatos seemed to think it was nothing, when he recalled it now, he always felt an inexplicable sense of shame.

He must be tougher the next time they meet.

I can't keep being teased by Lord Barbatos.

He wants to take the initiative to tease back!

The little slime made up his mind, saying that next time, he and Lord Barbatos would have to switch between offense and defense.

I wonder if I can continue to stay with Lord Barbatos tomorrow...?

Thinking of this, Samuel let out a long sigh and began to look forward to tomorrow.

As for the scattered soldiers after the evening banquet...

Samuel still doesn't understand what the other party means.

Sanbing spoke in a gentle tone and was very reserved during the conversation. Not only did he not say anything insulting or sarcastic, he even took the initiative to inquire about Samuel's interests and hobbies, and talked about many interesting topics to please him.

The feeling he got was that of a very well-behaved and polite teenager who really wanted to make friends with him.

If Samuel had not traveled through time and knew that these were all disguises of the other party, he would have almost believed it.

The acting is really good.

However, at present, Sanbing has not shown any malicious intentions, and it is not clear what he wants to do.

At least, there is nothing unusual at the moment.

Adhering to the stereotype that Fatui executives are not good people, Samuel still kept it in mind.

Pay more attention to the movements of the scattered soldiers in the future, at least to find out what he is trying to do.

Thinking of this, Samuel slowly closed his eyes and fell asleep.

……

——In Mondstadt’s commercial district, inside the Winter Kingdom Embassy.

The soldier, who had just had a gentle smile on his face, stopped smiling the next second after entering the embassy.

"How is it? Does the revered Monarch of Mond find you difficult?"

The soft and charming female voice spoke slowly, as if an elegant lady was talking to someone, and her tone revealed an undesirable arrogance:

"I didn't expect that the always aggressive executive officer, 'Sanbing'-sama, would actually show such a well-behaved appearance. Oh my... it really opened my eyes."

The soldier turned his head and looked at the tall woman in red in the shadows, and said impatiently:

"It's just part of the plan. It's not your turn to make decisions here.

"Aren't you going to negotiate with the Rock God Morax on behalf of the Queen of Winter? Why are you still not leaving? Are you reluctant to leave this city where you used to live?"

Hearing this, the woman's narrow eyes narrowed in disgust.

She stepped out of the shadows, the moonlight from the window illuminating her form.

Her face was covered by a black veil, and her eyes revealed frivolity and coldness.

If Samuel were here, he would definitely recognize her. This is the eighth of the eleven executive officers of the Fatui who "stole" the heart of God Wendy - "Madam".

"Put away your pitiful tongue and carry out the task given to you by the Clown. Don't make any mistakes.

"Tonight, I will leave Mondstadt and go to Liyue to prepare for Liyue's Summoning the Immortals Ceremony in three months.

"When the time comes, I will return to the Winter Palace with the hearts of the God of Wind and the God of Rock."

With that, she waved her hand indifferently and walked out of the embassy:

"Okay, I won't waste any more words with you, just wait for my good news.

"See you at the celebration party~"

The soldier crossed his arms and watched her leave with a sarcastic look in his eyes.

He didn't look away until the lady left.

… "Poor tongue"? Oh, what right does a woman with a burning body have to speak to him in that tone?

Well, at least she was right about one thing: His Holiness the Pope was indeed a difficult person.

Logically speaking, he did not appear often in Mondstadt, and the Knights knew very little about him.

Even Gunhild had warned the Pope not to be so wary of him after seeing his friendly disguise.

I heard that the God of Wind has the power to listen to all things, and there is also a legend that "wind is the ears and eyes"... Could it be that the God of Wind told him this?

Or maybe he has similar abilities?

Thinking of this, the soldier slowly narrowed his eyes.

The Clown's inference was not without reason. He did indeed smell a faint scent of the World Tree on His Majesty.

However, the other party has been guarding against his temptations... It seems that it will take a long time to prove that conclusion.

……

——The next morning, after Samuel washed up as usual, he sat down in the restaurant to have a slow meal accompanied by Giuliana.

While enjoying the pastries filled with wind elemental power that Albedo had specially made for his taste, he picked up today's newspaper and read it leisurely.

The good thing about His Holiness the Pope is that he doesn't have to worry about food, clothing and other expenses.

I don't know where Mr. Albedo got so much wind power. He always sends him wind power cakes every now and then... While chewing, Samuel cast his eyes on the reports in the newspaper:

"Unbelievable! The 'Heartfelt Words and Adventurers' event sparked huge controversy!"

"The official rumor of His Majesty's disappearance has been refuted by the Knights!"

"Unbelievable! Slime is actually starting to pay attention to official announcements?"

"Captain Gunhild held an important talk, sparking heated discussion!"

“Windblume Festival introduces a new gameplay, and players are crazy about it!”

"..."

Thanks to Grace and the Knights' hard work day and night, Samuel hasn't seen those explosive news headlines in recent days.

But this also makes it less fun. After all, apart from the news about him, the rest is still very interesting to read.

Skipping most of the reports that were about him, Samuel read on and finally saw a serious and interesting report near the bottom of the newspaper.

"The Adventurer's Association released the latest news! New secret realms are waiting for you to explore!"

Secret realm?

Samuel took a nibble of the pastry and looked on curiously.

Secret realms generally refer to the ruins of ancient civilizations that are connected to the earth's veins. They are usually filled with traps and dangers.

But at the same time, there are also rich treasures left.

If it really is a newly discovered secret realm, it is estimated that in addition to treasures, there may also be various ground anomalies and magical props left over from ancient civilizations.

However, generally, when Adventurers' Guild discovers a new secret realm, they will conceal it first and then organize their own team to explore it.

It will be announced only after it is confirmed that most of the treasures inside have been looted, calling on other association members to explore.

This is what Samuel heard from Captain Qin. After all, the association cannot just eat for free, it also has to make a profit from it.

The Knights would cooperate with the Adventurers' Guild from time to time, and the treasures obtained by the Adventurers' Guild had to be approved by the Knights.

Therefore, the Knights turned a blind eye to this kind of situation, as long as it was not too excessive.

If everything has been looted and there is nothing left, why would we still trick so many adventurers into going on adventures?

Then the Knights will have to step in and take charge.

Although I haven't heard that the Knights Templar have approved any new treasures recently, this secret place has been reported in the newspaper, so it is estimated that it has been explored.

Even if it says "latest discovery" or "unexplored", it is just wording to trick uninformed adventurers into going on the expedition.

Thinking of this, Samuel slowly shook his head with emotion.

These are all tricks used by the upper class...

Seeing that there were no other interesting reports, he put down the newspaper and stopped reading.

After breakfast, he tidied his appearance and got on the carriage accompanied by Giuliana, intending to ride around the city.

…Last time, I was busy hanging out with Lord Barbatos and didn’t have time to fully appreciate the festive atmosphere of Mondstadt.

Well… he wouldn’t say that he went out to see if he could run into Lord Barbatos.

……

——Lawrence Parfield, who was dressed in casual clothes, pretended to be calm and tried to chat with Swan Edner, who was also dressed in casual clothes, in the same way as before.

But maybe it's because we haven't seen each other for too long, or maybe his mentality has changed, now when he talks in the same way as before, I always feel uncomfortable.

The last time I went to the Knights' headquarters and called out to Swan, he ran away because of the disgusting words spoken by the people around him.

Later he went to the confessional in the Basilica of St. Catherine to confess, and after being comforted by the kind priest, his mentality improved.

After thinking about it day and night, he decided to ask Su Wan to come out on the day of Wind Flower Festival and express his feelings to the other party.

If he agrees, it will be a good thing for Lawrence.

If he disagrees...that would be a good thing for Lawrence...

At least... I don't have to worry about whether I'm going to cause trouble for the other party anymore, right?

With this thought in mind, Lawrence made up his mind and forced himself to face this moment.

But, on the Windflower Festival yesterday, he stood for a long time at the corner alley of the Knights' headquarters with a bunch of windflowers in his hand.

In the end... I still couldn't take that step.

After returning home at night, he lay in bed complaining about how useless, cowardly, and incompetent he was, and he didn't even dare to face such a small matter.

I had planned to go out for a walk and relax the next day, but unexpectedly, I ran into Mr. Swann by chance on the street.

However, he didn't know what tone to use when talking to Swann.

It's not only because he doesn't know how to face his own heart, but also because the other person has changed.

Swann is no longer as casual and leisurely as before, but determined, has his own goals, and works hard to improve himself every day.

After the transfer, his mentality also changed.

If I rashly express my feelings to him now, will it affect his current life...?

To be honest, Lawrence Parfield's love is quite humble and cheap.

He likes whoever is nice to him.

But in these three years, only Senior Swan treated him well.

But when he fell in love, he would be concerned about the other person's feelings, afraid of causing disgust, so he could only enjoy Swann's kindness cautiously in secret.

For Senior Swan, would it be a trouble for me to have such thoughts about him?

Lawrence was confused.

Just like yesterday, he thought he had prepared himself mentally.

But when you really get there, you realize how difficult it is to take that step.

So, he temporarily suppressed his thoughts and took the initiative to bring up the topic:

"…Since you were transferred, it feels like it's been a while since we've walked down the street together like this."

"Yes, the Knights' Headquarters has been busy with too many things recently, and I always can't find the time to look for you." Swan sighed and shook his head slowly.

“Will it be hard?”

"It would be a lie to say I'm not tired, but I think it's more meaningful than being a goalkeeper. It was so boring to stay there all the time."

Lawrence was stunned, not knowing how to respond to this sentence.

After a moment, he pretended to empathize with her and laughed:

"…Yeah, it's too boring to be guarding the door all the time."

But before, when you were around, I looked forward to standing guard every day.

I only wish I had a legitimate reason to stay with you a little longer.

There was never a boring day.

never.

"Speaking of which, how have you been lately?" Swan asked about his recent situation. "I remember that every time something happened to the Lawrence family, you would be in trouble. There has been a lot of news about Lawrence recently. Are you okay?"

"Me? I'm fine, it's just that you haven't been around lately and it's kind of boring having no one to talk to, hahaha..."

I'm not okay at all.

How I wish you hadn't been transferred away from Southeast Gate.

I know this is so selfish, but I still can't help thinking this way.

I feel really bad when you are not around.

"Hey, if only you had come with me to the audition, we could have looked after each other." Swan looked up at the sky and sighed, "I'm really worried about you being alone."

Lawrence's heart trembled.

"…Yeah?"

"Otherwise, when we were on duty together before, basically no one talked to you except me. Now that I'm gone, I really can't imagine how you usually spend your time." Swan turned his head to look at him and said with a smile, "How about it, do you want to consider it? I can find a way to transfer you to the headquarters."

"Captain Qin and His Majesty Samuel are both easy to talk to. I usually have many opportunities to contact them. If you want, I can try it later."

Lawrence's eyes lit up, but then he thought of something else.

Finally, he slowly shook his head.

…It would bring me closer to him.

But, I will also affect him.

He didn't want to influence Swann's life anymore.

Swan had done enough to him in the past three years.

He was too greedy and couldn't bear to give it up.

“…Forget it. This is too much trouble for you, Senior Swan.” Lawrence said with difficulty, in a tone that he himself did not even notice, “I am fine the way I am now.”

Given Senior Siwan’s personality, he might give up after a few more persuasions.

But unlike what Lawrence thought, Swann not only did not persuade him, his smile disappeared, and a chill appeared on his face.

The next second, his wrist was grabbed by the other party.

Before he could react, Swan pushed him against the wall.

"Parfield, you're always like this."

Swann whispered in his ear, with a slightly depressed tone:

"Every time I make advances towards you, you reject it like you are doing now."

"What are you hiding from?"

"Are you hiding from me? Is there something I did that displeases you?"

Lawrence was stunned.

He never expected it to turn out like this.