Scout Knight Amber had no tasks assigned today.
Hearing that the reconnaissance squad was about to return from their mission, she planned to head out and buy some things for her best friend.
Just as she was about to enjoy some afternoon tea, a knight hurried over.
"Amber! Report to the Knights of Favonius training grounds immediately!"
With only that one sentence, the knight rushed off in another direction.
"Report? Is there some important mission?!"
Amber didn't dare delay.
She quickly packed her things and ran toward the Knights' training grounds.
Before long, she arrived at the entrance.
She saw two knights walking away dejectedly, holding a document in their hands.
Where were their suits of armor?
Amber was puzzled.
As an official knight, she soon entered the training grounds.
The vast training field was lined with desks and chairs, each spaced at least five meters apart.
Amber could see many knights hunched over, writing something.
"Amber, over here!"
A middle-aged knight she knew waved at her and handed her a test paper, saying, "This is an assessment. Pay attention—write what you truly think."
"An assessment?"
Amber stared blankly at the test paper in her hand, then glanced around.
Weren't the Knights' assessments supposed to test combat skills?
Since when did they start testing knowledge?
"Go, that's your spot. Don't waste time—this is something you need to take seriously," the middle-aged knight said, shaking his head without further explanation.
He could only hope this good kid would pass the assessment.
"Alright."
Amber wanted to ask more but was shooed away.
She sat down at her assigned seat and began observing carefully.
Something felt off!
She noticed a red-haired man standing on the platform at the front of the training grounds.
In his hand was a sword swirling with Anemo energy.
The purity of that wind... Wait, just by looking at it, she could feel the breeze brushing against her skin, relaxing her.
Was that the power of the Anemo Archon?!
Aside from the Anemo Archon's power, Amber couldn't imagine anyone else capable of releasing such pure Anemo energy.
Shocked, Amber spotted a green-hatted youth sitting on a chair, playing a lyre.
The strings vibrated under his fingers, and the soothing melody, carried by the wind, seemed to flow through the training grounds.
Who was he?
Wait!
He looked familiar!
He was the guy who ran off with Klee!
Acting Grand Master Jean said Klee had been taken by the Anemo Archon, so then... he must be Barbatos, the Anemo Archon!
He was actually here!
"Scout Knight, you are currently undergoing an assessment—focus!"
Amber snapped back to attention.
She decided to ask about it after the assessment was over.
Picking up her pen, she looked at the questions.
Unlike her other best friend, who wasn't very literate, Amber was a proper official knight with solid academic skills.
But the moment she saw the questions, she was stunned.
Each question was full of traps.
Remembering the earlier senior's hint, Amber gradually calmed down.
Amid the melodious lyre music, she found herself immersed in answering the questions without realizing it.
The assessment had no time limit.
Soon, Amber finished and turned in her paper.
Several knights marked with "Supervision Office" on their sleeves reviewed her answers together.
A moment later.
"Scout Knight Amber, 80 points—excellent performance. You are permitted to remain in the Knights." One of them handed her a form and pointed to the signature line. "Pay attention here."
"Once you sign this, your records will include both physical and electronic files, and your personal information will be entered into the unified system."
"This means you will truly shoulder the responsibilities of a Knight of Favonius, fighting for the justice in your heart and moving forward to protect Mondstadt."
Since when did the Knights have so many formalities?
Amber didn't ask. Without hesitation, she signed her name.
"Alright, head over there."
The Supervision Office knight pointed in a direction.
Before Amber could ask what was there, he waved her off and turned to the next knight's paper.
Thud!
A stamp came down on the paper.
"Failed! You are hereby relieved of your duties. You are no longer a member of the Knights of Favonius. The finance office will issue your salary for this month shortly."
"Wait, sir, please—"
"Take him away!"
Amber immediately swallowed her questions.
She now roughly understood the purpose of that test.
Under the Anemo Archon's power, there was no room for deception—everyone answered based on their truest thoughts.
It had nothing to do with combat skills and seemed to focus more on a person's character.
That guy earlier... Amber knew a bit about him. She never expected him to be expelled from the Knights just like that.
What on earth had happened?
Holding the signed document, Amber walked to the designated area.
She saw the person ahead of her receive something from Kaeya and leave with a delighted expression.
"Next!"
Amber looked around—no one else was there—so she stepped forward.
She and Kaeya were familiar, so she thought about catching up.
"Document!"
Kaeya's expression was stern, unapproachable.
"Here!"
Amber was startled and quickly handed over the paper.
Kaeya was usually so easygoing—why was he so serious today?
And everything happening today was so bizarre. The Anemo Archon himself was present, making Amber a bit nervous.
"Scout Knight Amber?" Kaeya asked expressionlessly.
You don't recognize me? Amber could only grumble inwardly, nodding like a chick pecking at rice. "Yes, it's me!"
"Hah."
Kaeya burst out laughing at her cautious demeanor. "Scared you, didn't I?"
"Hey! You—" Amber's emotions had been on a rollercoaster.
So this guy had just been pretending to be serious to mess with her!
Amber rolled her eyes. "What's going on here?"
"Simple. As you can see, we're purging the Knights," Kaeya said with a shrug.
Glancing into the distance and seeing no one else coming yet, he decided to wait and explain to the next batch together.
He continued, "Times are changing fast. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I'd have a hard time believing it myself."
"What did you encounter in Liyue Harbor?" Amber couldn't help but ask curiously.
She knew Kaeya and Albedo had gone to Liyue Harbor but wasn't sure what had happened there.
They'd returned so quickly and brought about such changes... What exactly had occurred?
"We encountered a brand-new era."
Just then, another knight who'd passed the assessment approached.
After checking the signed document, Kaeya said, "You'll find it hard to believe, but a miraculous shop has appeared in the world, selling items that grant people immense power."
Amber was stunned; the other knight looked bewildered.
"In the future, you'll see more and more people as powerful as the Anemo Archon—and they might just be one of you."
"One of us?" Amber found it hard to believe.
They were all ordinary people. At best, she had a Vision, which set her apart from regular folks, but she was nowhere near the Anemo Archon's level.
"Exactly," Kaeya affirmed.
Then, he raised his hand, and a golden-edged card depicting a skeleton riding a motorcycle materialized, hovering above his palm.
"What you need to understand now are these cards."
"Watch closely."
Kaeya retracted the card, then suddenly burst into flames.
"He's on fire?!"
"Doesn't it hurt?" Amber exclaimed in shock.
She was about to reach out and touch the flames when Kaeya grinned at her.
His head tilted, his flesh seemingly incinerated in an instant, leaving only a skull behind.
The hollow eye sockets stared straight at Amber.
"AHHH!!"
At such close range, Amber was utterly terrified.
Who in their right mind suddenly turns their head into a skull?!
Kaeya shook his head, and it returned to normal.
"Everyone knows I have a Cryo Vision, right? But now, I wield a different kind of power—one that doesn't require a god's recognition to obtain."
Seeing the astonishment on their faces, Kaeya elaborated further.
Once he finished explaining the card shop's details, Amber and the other knights were completely awestruck.
If Kaeya hadn't demonstrated it firsthand, who would've believed it?!
"Does this mean... we can become as strong as Vision holders?" a young knight asked excitedly.
Kaeya glanced at him and shook his head.
Just as the knight's face fell, Kaeya said nonchalantly, "You're underestimating it."
Huh? That's an understatement?!
"No wonder there's suddenly an assessment..."
Amber understood.
She wasn't stupid—she immediately connected the dots between the card shop's impact on the world and the changes in the Knights.
If Mondstadt wanted to maintain its peaceful lifestyle, the Knights needed greater strength to preserve that peace!
And before the Knights could grow stronger, they had to clean house.
Only by traveling light could they move faster!
"Line up," Kaeya instructed.
The previous group had left, and Amber was first.
Kaeya helped her bind the equipment device, then said, "Now, everyone is starting from the same point."
"Tier 1 cards are the basics issued to everyone. To obtain higher-tier, more powerful cards, you'll need contribution points."
As long as someone had ambition, they could work hard to earn the cards they desired. Few could resist such an opportunity.
Kaeya laid out a pile of Tier 1 cards on the table. "Take your pick."
There were many types of cards, each from different worlds.
For example, among the current batch of Tier 1 cards:
There were cards like [Enhanced Physique], [Enhanced Agility], and [Enhanced Strength], which directly boosted physical attributes.
There were also magic-based cards like [Fireball], [Lightning Call], and [Wind Summoning].
Then there were technological weapons like [Pistol], [Rifle], and [Grenade].
And even martial arts or fantasy-style techniques like [Battlefield Sword Art] and [Tiger Subduing Fist].
However, since these were only Tier 1, nothing too outrageous appeared.
But!
Even at Tier 1, these cards created a massive gap between users and ordinary people!
Amber watched as a young knight chose [Frostblade Qi].
Given its low tier, the sword's energy only had a range of a few meters. But when the knight swung his hand, the energy slashed out, leaving a half-inch-deep, one-meter-long mark on the stone floor.
And this was solid stone!
If this hit a person or a monster...
Indeed, Kaeya was right.
As strong as Vision holders?
That was an understatement!
"Stop spacing out. Upgrade your equipment device and pick three cards," Kaeya called her back to reality.
The experience needed to level up a novice equipment device was minimal—something the Knights could easily afford.
Having only one Tier 1 card was quite limiting.
Those who remained in the Knights now were all elites and driven individuals. The Knights intended to use them as the core for rapid development—they couldn't afford to lose them easily.
Additionally, under the unified system, card swaps no longer required upgrading the equipment device to Tier 3 (Silver). So, there wouldn't be cases where someone used the same three Tier 1 cards for years.
Those with high contribution points could exchange for higher-tier cards to replace their lower-tier ones or upgrade their equipment devices to expand card slots.
Kaeya was confident that under this system, these ambitious young knights would tackle missions like wolves and tigers!
No other choice!
The desire for progress was too strong!
"Cavalry Captain, when are we dealing with the Fatui?!" someone suddenly asked.
Kaeya was taken aback.
The Knights had many outstanding young members, so why did they seem weak when facing external threats?
A key issue was lack of confidence.
Knowing the Knights lacked elite fighters naturally made them hesitant.
Kaeya smiled. "What's your take?"
The young knight said indignantly, "Those Fatui bastards love pushing their luck! Before, none of us had the confidence to stand up to them. But now? I just got my cards—how can I tolerate them?!"
The Fatui's military strength had long pressured the Knights, and everyone resented it.
But with the Knights' lack of power, they had no choice but to endure it, leading to the Fatui growing increasingly arrogant.
Now, things were different!
No more tolerating this nonsense!
Kaeya had a feeling that if an order was given to take down the Fatui, these young knights would charge faster than anyone!
Missions meant contribution points!
And contribution points meant progress!
Plus, the Fatui's past arrogance had left everyone fuming—this was the perfect chance to vent!
"That's not my call. We'll have to wait and see. Don't act rashly—this is a diplomatic matter," Kaeya said, waving his hand.
The Fatui had only been arrogant in attitude, not outright hostile.
There had been plenty of covert clashes, with Mondstadt usually on the losing end.
But now, the tables had turned.
Kaeya was curious about the expressions on the Fatui's faces right now.
Goth Grand Hotel
Three days ago, La Signora had arrived here.
"Lady Signora, the Knights are acting strangely," a Cicin Mage reported.
The Knights' movements weren't subtle. Those who'd been expelled went to taverns to drown their sorrows, making it easy to extract information.
"Speak."
La Signora sat languidly, swirling a glass of red wine.
Her expression showed little concern, only arrogance and disdain.
The Fatui's intelligence network was formidable. To put it bluntly, the Knights' internal affairs were practically an open secret to them.
They'd been infiltrated like a sieve.
As the Cicin Mage reported, La Signora's mind wandered slightly.
She gazed out the window at the scenery.
Mondstadt... her homeland from long ago.
The wind was as gentle as ever, the surroundings as soothingly comfortable as she remembered.
Yet...
The land was buried with far too many painful memories.
Wounds even the wind couldn't heal.
Familiar yet foreign—loved yet hated to the core.
Crack!
The wine glass shattered abruptly.
The red liquid spilled over La Signora's pale wrist, trailing down her arm like fresh blood.
The Cicin Mage trembled, bowing her head lower.
"You're saying..."
La Signora turned her head.
Her uncovered left eye bore down on the mage.
The oppressive aura made it hard to breathe.
"The Anemo Archon... has appeared?"
Her voice was low, restrained.
The Cicin Mage shivered. "Y-Yes... It must be a power only the Anemo Archon could possess."
"Hehe..."
A red line split open on La Signora's fair skin.
Like a spider's web, cracks spread, revealing flesh beneath that seemed forged from flames—a sight too horrifying to behold.
The flames burned, incinerating the spilled wine and reducing the glass to ashes.
"How fortunate~"
She rose slowly.
Her tone was inscrutable.
"Only three days here, and I've already found the hiding rat."
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T/N:
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