"That's about it." Ryan clapped his hands softly as he wrapped up. "Everything that needed to be explained has been explained. Like I told you when I first approached—you're free to do whatever you want. The organization doesn't impose anything. It's just an open intel-sharing platform for those who choose to take part."
With that, he turned and left.
Back at his residence, Ryan pulled a commission slip from a thick stack of blank Adventurers' Guild forms. After crafting a simple placeholder mission, he opened The Teyvat Universal Dictionary and wrote the encrypted message: "New member joined. Codename: Kunpeng. Affinity: Anemo."
He checked it for accuracy, then returned to the Guild and tacked the commission onto the board. He also browsed for updates.
One of the ciphers—also from him—indicated that the deviation code corresponding to the value 6 had been updated to the phrase "beef's."
Cipher terms were supposed to change frequently. But with the well of creative phrases long since dried up, no one really wanted to manage it anymore despite its importance.
Another message had been posted by Night Owl, Mondstadt's branch leader. It warned that the Battle Technique Hunters, who had vanished for two centuries, had reemerged. Members were advised to stay alert, and the post included details on identifying them.
This, like the cipher update and the new recruit notice, was a general broadcast—one of the organization's all-hands memos.
Despite Mondstadt's tiny commission board, news spread rapidly across Teyvat through members embedded in every field and trade.
One anonymous report noted increased Abyss Order activity in the wild ever since Mondstadt's Chief Instructor disappeared—Abyss Mages had even been deployed in greater numbers. The post ended by inquiring about the relationship between the Abyss and the Battle Technique Hunters.
Night Owl responded via another commission: The Abyss and the Battle Technique Hunters appear to be hostile toward each other.
Ryan had already read all of this earlier in the day. Aside from the message he'd just posted, nothing new had come in.
Meanwhile, back at his own place, Victor Wang picked up a pen and composed his very first encoded message:
"Please investigate which of the new Knights of Favonius recruits possess Visions. The following names are: Sidney, Duke, Sharon, Boyce, Elsa. I suspect one of them may be a Battle Technique Hunter."
Last time, Kaeya's inquiry into those new recruits had turned up nothing. But if the Black Sword was a Battle Technique Hunter, odds were high its co-conspirators were too.
If any of them had Visions, they might possess abilities that let them sense Victor's presence—like his own Thousand Winds.
And among all the new recruits, aside from the Chief Instructor, only those five had Visions.
"Sorry, but that afternoon… you five were the only ones who might've seen where I went. The timing's just too much of a coincidence."
After pinning his encoded commission to the board, Victor—just like Ryan—scanned through all the other ciphered notices. It felt oddly familiar.
Like browsing a forum.
People posted about events around them—things that might tie into larger mysteries. Anyone might read them. Sometimes there were replies.
Others, like him, sought help—and sometimes, just maybe, someone with the right expertise would lend a hand.
He spent the rest of the day training and returned for dinner.
Then, as always tireless and unblinking, Katheryne called out to him: "Adventurer Victor, someone wishes to confirm the content of a commission you recently posted."
"Who is it?"
Victor had submitted his cipher commission anonymously, meaning the enquirer couldn't find him directly—but Katheryne knew the issuer of every post.
"A young adventurer. I cannot reveal his name. He says if you're willing, you can find him seated at the very back of the Cat's Tail tavern."
"…Got it."
Already? Just a few hours after I posted it?
Victor's pulse quickened as he made his way to the Cat's Tail. Diona was off-duty. Margaret, the owner, was who-knows-where, probably slacking off. The bartender on shift was Shuyun.
"Hello, would you like a drink?"
Victor waved her off and headed for the back room. The place was quiet, and most patrons weren't even in uniform. It didn't take him long to spot the man—a young adventurer, sitting alone at a round table with a drink in hand.
"You waiting for someone?"
The man looked up sharply. "And you are?"
"...Katheryne sent me."
The adventurer's eyes turned wary—but not toward Victor. He scanned the room with heightened caution, like someone expecting danger, then leaned close and whispered, pointing to a nearby booth:
"Let's talk in there."
Victor's nerves flared. He followed him into the booth and quietly closed the door, keeping one eye on the thinning crack until the door shut completely.
The moment it clicked shut, the man exhaled deeply, hand over his heart as if recovering from a fright.
"Enemy nearby?" Victor asked in a low voice.
"No… just nervous."
"…Seriously?"
The man downed the rest of his drink in one gulp, then froze—suddenly realizing something. He raised the glass to his mouth again, then asked with a voice echoing faintly in the cup: "Codename?"
"Kunpeng."
He blinked, lowered the glass, and sighed in relief.
"Scared me."
"…Right."
"Let's get to it. Sidney, Duke, and Elsa—normal family backgrounds. They all received their Visions within the last six months. Before joining the Knights, they were each observed at close range by the organization.
"Boyce's father was a Knight of Favonius. Very upright family. Sharon's the second daughter of the current Gunnhildr head—that status alone means a lot."
Gunnhildr? That explains her Favonius Bladework.
Names weren't called with surnames during training roll call. Only now did Victor realize Sharon's background.
"But the organization isn't some status-worshipping relic. Boyce and Sharon were both investigated. The more distinguished the background, the more any unusual behavior stands out."
He shook his head. "But nothing turned up. All five checked out clean."
"How'd you investigate them so fast?"
"The organization reopened its investigation the day after the Demonic Sword resurfaced. Everyone in Mondstadt with a Vision was reviewed. I just came to pass on the results."
"I knew it was too quick…"
The man continued on:
"Still, even if we didn't find a suspect, the Demonic Sword's appearance in Mondstadt is definitely connected to the city somehow. Most believe there's a Battle Technique Hunter hiding in plain sight—it's just masked too well.
"Those five you mentioned are already under watch—they were closest to where the sword showed up. Is that why you suspected them? Or do you have something more specific?"
Victor hesitated. "Do you know the Knights' newest Honorary Knight—'Victor'?"
"That's you, isn't it?"
"Cough—yes. Then you must also know about my encounter with the Demonic Sword. It possessed Wilbur, the Chief Instructor, and came straight for me. But I was out in the wild all day. The only people who saw me that afternoon were the new recruits. So… yeah. Just a suspicion."
"...Hearing it like that does make them sound more suspicious. We'll keep a close eye on them. Damn those Battle Technique Hunters. Got us all on edge. Really hope we catch them soon."
As he finished speaking, the man cautiously cracked the door open. After checking several times, he glanced back and warned Victor:
"Better safe than sorry. I would've just replied via commission, but it was too long. Meeting like this is dangerous."
Then he slipped out, returning to his seat and acting like nothing had happened.