Lisa's… considerable enthusiasm was pressing firmly against Jiang Yan's arm.
Jiang Yan coughed lightly.
"Lisa, stop joking around."
"Oh my~ It seems that ever since Stormterror started causing trouble, you haven't been visiting the Good Hunter as often."
Lisa spoke with exaggerated grievance, her gaze drifting—quite deliberately—toward Jean.
"Looks like Jiang Yan's heart has been stolen by someone else."
"Lisa," Jean said, rubbing her temples, "is it really appropriate to talk about slacking off in front of Amber and the others?"
The Knights of Favonius still had juniors present, after all.
Lisa had always liked slipping off to the Good Hunter during afternoon tea.
That alone would've been fine.
But she never brought anything back for Jean.
Even Jean, patient as she was, had accumulated a bit of dissatisfaction over time.
"Well… everyone in the Knights already knows…"
Amber said awkwardly.
Lisa was famous for doing as little work as possible—and equally famous for assigning tasks to others. Yet whenever it came to actual duties, she completed them flawlessly, without a single mistake to criticize.
She was, in fact, one of Amber's role models.
"This isn't slacking," Lisa replied calmly.
"Appropriate rest is meant to restore one's spirit, so work can be done more efficiently. It's called getting twice the result with half the effort."
Then she added, pointedly,
"If possible, I really hope Jean would learn a thing or two."
"Mhm, mhm."
Jiang Yan nodded in wholehearted agreement.
Jean was speechless.
"How did this suddenly turn into a joint critique of me?"
"Everyone's nerves have been stretched tight lately," Lisa said with a gentle smile.
"A little humor to relax the mood is good for the soul."
She then turned her attention to Lumine.
"Still, Lumine, coming to Mondstadt at a time like this really isn't ideal."
"Ever since Stormterror's reawakening, it's been active outside the city, spreading chaos."
"And after today's attack, the elemental flow and ley line circulation around Mondstadt are completely tangled—like a ball of yarn clawed apart by a cat."
"For mages, that's the worst possible situation."
She sighed dramatically.
"Bad for the skin, and bad for the mood."
At the end of her sentence, Lisa looked straight at Jiang Yan, her meaning unmistakable.
She wanted a beauty-enhancing cold drink.
"Out of Qingxin lately," Jiang Yan said, spreading his hands.
Jean pressed a hand to her forehead. There was simply no dealing with the two of them.
"Anyway," Jean said, regaining her composure,
"because of the current situation, aside from posting missing-person notices, the Knights of Favonius can't provide you with much more assistance for now."
"You can stay in Mondstadt with peace of mind. Once we resolve this crisis, we'll devote our full efforts to helping you search for clues."
She added the last part gently.
After all, Lumine and Paimon had protected Mondstadt and its people under the threat of Stormterror. Jean felt guilty that she couldn't do more for them right now.
"Jiang Yan?"
Lumine looked to him for confirmation.
"Lumine should help as well."
Jiang Yan replied.
Since he needed to level up anyway, exploring the wilderness or delving into ruins made no real difference.
"Exactly! We want to join too!"
Paimon chimed in enthusiastically. She had discovered that the Knights of Favonius were very generous with rewards.
Lumine nodded.
"So Boss Jiang Yan is willing to help as well?"
Kaeya asked.
"The Good Hunter is in Mondstadt," Jiang Yan said matter-of-factly.
At the very least, the city's reputation—and the Good Hunter's signboard—were both direct sources of his Mora.
Of course he cared.
"That's wonderful."
Kaeya felt the weight on his shoulders lighten considerably.
"In that case, let's move on to formulating a battle plan."
Jean took over smoothly.
"Stormterror's attack on Mondstadt has actually given us an opportunity to cut off the disaster at its source."
"Under Lisa's magical detection, the origin of the hurricane surrounding Mondstadt has been revealed."
"And the answer is—"
"The abandoned Temples of the Four Winds."
Lisa answered.
"Stormterror is drawing on the residual power left in those places to generate storms of this magnitude."
Jean nodded.
"Our objective is three of the four abandoned temples. As for why only three—everyone here should understand."
"I don't!"
Paimon raised her hand.
"Probably some kind of knight-code talk," Lumine whispered to her.
"We'll ask later."
Jean continued laying out the details.
"With Jiang Yan and Lumine joining us, the pressure is greatly reduced. We're severely short on manpower."
A portion of the Knights still had to remain in the city to maintain order.
After such a dragon calamity, they needed to handle the aftermath—and more importantly, keep the Fatui delegation under control, in case they tried to stir trouble while the city's defenses were stretched thin.
"Amber," Jean said seriously,
"you'll be responsible for the nearest temple."
"After your initial reconnaissance, you must wait for Jiang Yan and Lumine before taking action. Understood?"
"Understood."
Amber nodded firmly.
The temple closest to Mondstadt was also the safest—she knew that well.
Jean was clearly accounting for her current strength.
"As for the remaining two…"
"I'll take one with Kaeya."
Lisa volunteered lazily.
"I did say I'd help."
"I have no objections," Kaeya replied with interest.
"Abandoned temples suddenly being activated… it definitely feels like someone's pulling strings behind the scenes. I'll look into it."
"Then we shouldn't delay any further."
Jean concluded decisively.
"The storm is still raging. Passive defense won't accomplish anything."
"Before the dragon calamity escalates, we'll take the initiative—and advance on the ruins of the abandoned temples."
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
patreon.com/MythArcStudio