"You..."
"Me? Don't just stand there. If you want to know, come with me."
Ryan took the lead, leaving the Adventurers' Guild, passing in front of the Cat's Tail tavern, and continuing westward until stopping in a quiet alley.
Victor Wang followed closely behind.
"I heard about Wilbur Cobb's situation—and yours. You must be curious about that sword, right?"
Ryan leaned against the wall, eyes not meeting Victor Wang's.
Thoughts raced in Victor Wang's mind. He'd only shared the modified version of his experience with Sidney and the trio in the Grand Master's office. But considering the Knights had to classify the incident, internal communication was inevitable.
Still, it had only been a day. For Ryan to know so soon—he had to be well-connected.
"You know what that sword is?"
"Based on your descriptions: black blade, vortex-shaped guard, pulls people into illusions, capable of mind control—sound right?"
Victor Wang nodded.
"It's called the Demonic Sword."
After a long pause with no follow-up, Victor Wang couldn't help but mutter, "That's it?"
"Heh." Ryan cracked a grin.
"Then I'm leaving. Bye."
What a joke. Did he enjoy messing with people? Victor had expected something serious. His opinion of Ryan dropped to rock bottom. If not for his noble standards, he might've cursed him out.
"It came from the North."
"Keep talking, I'm listening." Victor Wang obediently stepped back beside Ryan.
"It was one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Battle Technique Hunters."
"Battle Technique Hunters?"
"An evil organization active between five hundred and two hundred years ago."
An evil organization... Four Heavenly Kings... It all sounded painfully cliché. But at least now, Victor Wang knew the origin of the Black Sword.
"Can you elaborate?"
"Where there are good people, there are bad ones. And where there are Vision holders fighting for noble causes, there are also those fighting for evil ones."
Before coming to Teyvat, Victor had never imagined a bad Vision holder—but after meeting Sidney, he had no doubts anymore.
"Regardless of their goals, all Vision holders chase their dreams and grow stronger.
"But some dreams are rotten to the core. Some paths are shrouded in darkness. And some, after gaining power, forget their dreams entirely.
"They stop at nothing to achieve their aims. Most of them, once consumed by the lust for strength, gathered together to form a group called the Battle Technique Hunters.
"Many of them sought to steal combat techniques from other Vision holders with the same element—forcing victims to teach them before killing them off mercilessly.
"Some collected Visions like trophies. Others were deranged murderers with unbalanced power who simply enjoyed killing.
"In short, this group was made up of pure scum."
Ryan's tone was flat, emotionless, as he recounted the horrors of the Battle Technique Hunters.
"Such an evil group—didn't the Seven or any of the Seven Nations do anything about it?" From the way Ryan told it, they truly were monstrous.
"They did. Two hundred years ago, the Battle Technique Hunters were wiped out on the surface. But some—either more timid or more clever—evaded capture. Their crimes went unnoticed, and they still hide among normal people today.
"With a Vision, anyone can live better than the average citizen. These scumbags act normal most of the time—only occasionally feeding intel to the remnants, or committing perfect crimes to satisfy their urges.
"Think about it—on the continent of Teyvat, how many people die 'accidentally' every year, month, day? Who has the time to investigate them all?"
Victor Wang felt a chill. These kinds of monsters—hiding among the everyday crowds?
Teyvat, slowly unveiling its true face, was becoming stranger by the minute.
"And the sword? If the organization was destroyed, how is one of the Four Heavenly Kings still around?"
"The Four Heavenly Kings had special sanctuaries. Not even the Seven Archons could touch them."
"!"
"But everything beyond this point... is premium content. And I haven't even gotten to the main point yet."
Victor Wang guessed, "Are you from some righteous group fighting the Battle Technique Hunters?"
"Heh, something like that. But we're mostly in it for self-preservation. Survival. The enemies aren't just the Battle Technique Hunters—who knows, maybe we'll even have to kill a god someday."
Ryan finally turned to look at Victor Wang, expecting him to flinch at the idea of slaying an Archon. But no reaction.
That made Ryan grin wider. "You don't seem too devoted to the Seven, huh?"
"I've read certain texts. Before they were gods, the Seven were just Archons like the others. I respect their power, and maybe their personalities—but not as deities to be worshipped."
"Good kid. Last time I thought you were all humble. Turns out you're cocky as hell!"
Was I? Honestly, I just saw them more as friends.
"Just my honest thoughts." Victor rubbed his nose.
"A guy like you is exactly what our group needs!" Ryan clapped his massive palm onto Victor Wang's shoulder.
"Ow!"
What strength!
Even with his Mitachurl-forged body, Victor could barely handle that.
"Heh. For now, I can only tell you the group's name. We're called Wing."
"Since most of our members operate across the northern continent, we're also known as—"
"North Wing."
A hidden, semi-righteous group spread across the North... Could it be the underground intel network that once saved Diluc?
Victor Wang didn't know how many Fatui Harbingers went after Diluc, but to save him at the brink of death—and spy on the one doing the spying—spoke volumes of their power and intel reach.
After calming himself a bit, Victor asked teasingly, "Only North Wing? Any South Wing or East Wing?"
"Classified. If you want to know, join the organization."
"What are the requirements?"
"For regular members, just provide intel when it's within your means and necessary. For stronger members—if something urgent happens nearby, lend a hand.
"Otherwise, we make no demands. No forced favors. No monetary exchanges."
Before Victor could respond, Ryan continued, "What we offer is intel and support. No matter how far apart, information reaches you within a day. Almost always free."
"I heard Inazuma's under lockdown due to the Vision Hunt Decree. You can still get updates?"
"Absolutely. If you want, I can tell you the price of lavender melons in Inazuma tomorrow."
"…Impressive. Really impressive."
"Lavender melon prices?" Ryan scratched his head. "Wait, you were seriously going to test me?!"
"No no, 'impressive' is just a dialect term. It means 'awesome.'"
"Never heard that before… I'll add it to our intel glossary." Ryan rubbed his stubbled chin.
"Uh…"
"Not gonna lie, our passwords change a lot. Weird, cryptic terms like that? Pretty popular."
Ryan cleared his throat. "Anyway—this Battle Technique Hunter scum, our group's always kept an eye on them. Including that sword. So? Want to join?"
"I have one more question. You said the Seven Nations wiped out the Battle Technique Hunters two hundred years ago. Why does the Knights of Favonius have no record of that sword?"
"…Because the Four Heavenly Kings weren't ordinary. I'd love to explain, but unless you join the group—I can't."
"All right then. I'll join."
"Eh—not so fast. Just because you want to join doesn't mean you can. This chat of ours? It's just an invitation. You still need to pass a test."
"What test? You could've said that earlier."
"Let's see… for you, the requirement is to reach Senior Adventurer rank. No time limit. Easy, right?"
To reach that, you had to complete 1,000 commissions. As a Intermediate-rank Adventurer, he could only take on three per day. At that pace, it'd take over a year.
Victor glanced at Ryan. Ryan raised his brow—his meaning was clear:
Go defeat monsters way above your level.
"Don't worry. Even if you hit the rank through normal means, the invitation stands. Whenever, wherever—you'll be contacted once you pass. And don't tell anyone about the organization. You get that."
Having said everything, Ryan—with his massive 1.8-meter frame and a claymore so big it dragged behind him—walked out of the alley.