Martial Teyvat Chapter 79 (Patreon)

The Acting Grand Master tiredly brushed a hand across her head as she looked through a wide pile of files and reports that she herself needed to look through. As Master Varka was still busy fighting alongside the Wolf Lord Andrius to deal with a temporary Abyssal portal that had opened in the Wolven Forest.

So she was currently in charge of Mondstadt City's own security for the next while.

And things... Were actually surprisingly going fairly well, besides that damned Abyssal Portal being opened not far from Mondstadt's capital city. Mondstadt's major issue in lacking high-quality metal in general had lately been 'alleviated'

In no way has the pipeline of extra metal Liyue has been selling to them at the usual high mark up been enough to truly offset the needs of the Knights of Favonius or the people of Mondstadt.

But the metal being shipped from Liyue has been enough to keep things afloat.

"It's just a pity that Barbara wasn't able to make a contract with that Jake Bariss." Jean mused to herself as she recalled Ningguang and even Liyue's very own guardian god in Morax, telling her to leave their new golden goose alone.

And a stifling heat filled her core, as for a while Jean and the higher-ups of Mondstadt thought that Jake's words as being an all-but-exiled researcher and inventor of Mondstadt, were just a hoax.

But... Then she and others had a realization as they went over the population accounts. There were ALOT of oprhans who were never really accounted for in depth, as they were normally in the custody of the church of Barbatos.

The nuns were in charge of watching and educating said children nominally. But if kids just decided that they weren't interested in the church's care and teachings. There was nothing stopping them from leaving and finding their own freedom.

And after that mess of several nobles mass adopting orphans and then selling them off the Fatui's House of the Hearth a few years back... Jean herself several others, were of the firm belief that Jake escaped from the House of the Hearth!

It totally made sense at that point. Jake, being a genius inventor, was stifled here in Mondstadt after not having access to materials as a child and was even then trafficked across the world to the House of the Hearth, which explained why any records of him were wiped away! 

That connection to the House of the Hearth also explained why Arlecchino the Knave was the one who all but threatened to drag him to Snezhnaya to build them several food production plants.

The Fatui naturally just considered Jake one of their own and something they could order about without care.

Jean's annoyed thoughts were then cut off as a knight hurriedly knocked on her door and then pushed the heavy oaken door open with a loud groan as the wooden hinges squeaked.

"Master Jean, a weird mechanical construct landed just outside of Mondstadt's main gates. It is bearing the will of a cultivator of Liyue named Jake Bariss, who is remotely controlling it and wishes to speak with you about trade matters."

Jean just stared at the knight for a second before saying hurriedly as she shot up. "He is actually here!? Is Morax or one of the Yaksha beside him as well?" Jean said with some fear.

As she was... Painfully aware of the brutal beatdown that Morax delivered upon the Raiden Twin Sister Gods who decided to kidnap Jake to build several factories on the island of Inazuma.

While Jean did have faith in Mondstadt's gods and in the Anemo Archon himself... She was very aware that his power was still below Morax's own power.

The knight shook his head with some fear as he wasn't used to Jean looking so frantic. But he still reported. "No, Master Jean! He seems to have remotely controlled that mechanical construct. At least, I can't understand how he could have fitted himself into that small construct." 

Jean exhaled in relief before taking a deep, steadying breath. She then moved past her workstation and said firmly.

"Then lead me to where that construct is. I need to speak with him before any of the Aristocratic Families buy off all his materials if he has truly come here to trade." 

-

A quiet slurping noise rang out past the speakers of the remotely controlled drone as the screen of my display showed my own face to the knights surrounding my drone, who were forced to watch me take a drink from my giant 48-ounce drinking bucket.

Finally one of the knights asked me quietly, "Sir, is your projection some sort of Liyue-style immortal magic?"

I gave the knight a side look and while I didn't recognize him from the game of Genshin Impact. The sensors on my drone were picking up his rich internal Ki. Which put him at a solid lower side of the third realm of martial arts.

So, a fairly strong man, all things told, which made sense, seeing as he was the acting Captain of the Guard for the gates of Mondstadt.

But having not been insulted, nor did any of the knights try to confiscate my drone or steal any of the spatial rings embedded in it for trading. I wasn't going to be a dick back for a simple common question, even if he woudn't understand at all what this technology was.

"While this construct IS powered by spirit stones, it is still an advanced result of technology. And by the way, I am curious. How is the population density outside of the core city of Mondstadt?" 

My general questions about Mondstadt as I tried to work out if I could recruit any workers were slow... And rather unfruitful, as the guard captain didn't want to talk about Mondstadt's civilian population with a foreigner.

But Jean soon appeared with another familiar face in Lisa, following behind her.

"Jake? Can you hear me?" Jean asked with a raised eyebrow as she took in the drone that had a screen with my face on it.

And with a rather dull voice, I said flatly. "Yes, yes, I can hear you, Jean. It would be in rather poor taste if I spent the last three hours flying past and around countless demigod-level beasts and monsters filling the no-man's land between Liyue and Mondstadt only for us to NOT be able to communicate." 

Jean's face twitched with Lisa giving out a giggle before the sexy librarian said with a drawl. "So this is the little cutie who somehow became a world-renowned inventor using the Mondstadt Library without me noticing. I do wonder how that is possible?"

And with a straight face, I looked Lisa dead in the eyes and said. "Probably because you were too busy sleeping, Lisa. It's not like I actually borrowed any books or made any noise either."

Then I looked back to Jean and said with a friendlier chuckle. "Anyway! Jean, I have come... In a way to Mondstadt for a hopefully fruitful trading mission. Within this drone is several spatial rings I have filled with extra weapons, already refined high quality metal, pills, and elixirs. As well as a few other products I believe we can discuss trading for." 

Then on the screen which had been displaying my face and the cockpit around me I had been using to fly here to Mondstadt. I then pulled up a list of the weapons, materials and other things I had brought.

A bright smile crossed Jean's face before she said more formally. "Then, as the heiress of the Gunhildr Family and the Acting Grand Master of Mondstadt while Varka is away on a mission. I will be proud to do business with you Jake Bariss."