Hold over Myriad of Worlds

As everyone in the Chat group, Elysia included, because she felt bored, were learning how to fight using Elemental Energy, I decided to finish matters of Takamagahara.

Those past days, Shinto Gods did their best to uproot any remaining traces of other Pantheons left in the Far East, especially Buddhism. By now, most of those left Shinto's sphere of influence without any conflict, understanding that it was ill-advised to try their chances with the Pantheon, where two gods had just been slain.

My Valkyries also finished their work, fully completing a formation that covered the Far East. It not only allowed Shinto gods to have a better grasp over their land but also weakened other gods and monsters within its range.

With that resolved, I sat in the main shrine in Takamagahara together with Astraea and Ningguang to discuss with the Shinto gods what our future cooperation would look like. To not create too much clutter, Amaterasu, Inari, and Susano are the only ones going to take part in the talks with us. Tsukuyomi was never involved in governing matters and decided to take a back seat.

-"Nice to meet you, goddess Amaterasu, Lady Ningguang."-Amaterasu bowed, showing full courtesy to my wifes despite one being mortal.

-"The honor is ours, goddess Amaterasu."-Astraea smiled and responded in kind to the greeting.-"For ease of the discussion, I suggest we get rid of the courtesies, so please just call me by my name."

-"I'll also ask for the same treatment. I hope my mortal status won't offend."-Ningguang took the second seat to Astraea due to an identity issue, but she was never one to conform to such things, so she didn't show any servile attitude.

-"It isn't an issue. While now you might still be mortal, with such a powerful husband, it's only a matter of time before you transcend such a notion."-Amaterasu responded, showing that my current status was enough capital for her to be sitting as equal with them.-"As for courtesies, I'm also for abolishing them during our conversation. I sincerely wish to build a friendship with you, so such things will only get in the way."

-"Then our intentions are the same."-Astraea ended the introduction and started the main part of the discussion.-"I believe that Yue already informed you about Hold, but if you have any doubts, let's start with solving those."

-"I do have some questions, but most notably, I want to know what place the Far East will take in the greater of the Hold."-Inari spoke for the first time.-"I heard how you operate in Orario and would like for the Far East to develop with your assistance."

-"While more detailed plans are still not finished, the overall idea is to promote the culture of the Far East along with blessings of the gods to create an industry focused on quality, be it of produce or people."-Ninggunag took out some papers and passed them to gods while explaining our intentions.

-"Use the advantage of varying divinities to create luxury products for export and facilitate dojos and schools to teach people here, forming a community of martial artists, huh? But won't that leave us too dependent on Hold?"-Inari asked after listening to Ningguang.

-"Not more than you are now dependant on Orario and the mainland. We encourage full self-sufficiency of our vassals, especially when it comes to food and other basic needs, but integration into a greater market will allow this land to prosper and develop much more quickly."

Ningguang and Inari then discussed some other details, butting heads here and there but jointly solidifying the idea for the future of the Far East.

-"I think it's a good direction, but I hope you will help our people along the way."-Amaterasu agreed after Inari, who was more knowledgeable about business, showed her interest in our plans.

-"Of course. At first, we will send specialists to train and assist the current government, though we will also perform an audit to weed out any undesirable people in high positions."

-"I won't oppose that, but due to circumstances and culture, I'm afraid that any inspection will be biased."-Susano interjected himself.

~"Don't worry, we will punish only for acts that were illegal at the time of their commitment, but after the Far East integrates with Hold, anyone will be under our courts' jurisdiction. No difference in culture or circumstances will matter then. The law is the law in Hold, even I'm not above it."

-"Why?"-Amaterasu asked me, truly perplexed by my words.-"As Emperor and Aeon, why do you allow yourself to be bound by mortal laws?"

~"Because it didn't matter to me. Most of the laws consider matters that I would never consider. Killing innocents and stealing, why would I lower myself with such things? It also creates an impression of fairness and unity that further promotes my image. Most importantly, Astraea, my dear wife, is a goddess of justice."

-"I see."-Amaterasu smiled after hearing my last reason.

Our talks continued for some more time, resolving any doubts about our cooperation. By the end, it was decided that Inari would be in charge of integrating the Far East into Hold's market, working with us to develop local industry, while Susano would act as overseer of the Martial Comunity that will be created here, ensuring safety and peace for all warriors.

Amaterasu will remain as head of the Shinto Pantheon and focus on Takamagahara and gods, while Tsukuyomi will become a divine representative in the mortal government, remaining a neutral voice of reason while taking one role as the highest judge in the land at the same time. Amaterasu also appointed Izanami as the ambassador of the Shinto Pantheon, wishing to repair the broken connection with the goddess of Yomi.

I passed this information to Izanami, and she agreed to take this responsibility with the condition of announcing the truth about her past in the Far East to clear her name. Amaterasu instantly agreed, so Izanami once again became part of the Shinto Pantheon.

After that, I decided to leave the Takamagahara, as everything else didn't require me to be present here 'officially'. With Jingliu back in Hold, only Cellinia and I descended back to the mortal world, heading back to the mansion to deal with what last matters here before returning to Orario.

-"Fate brought us together, but your act of helping this princess in need deserves praise. Let it be known that I..."-A blond-haired girl with an eyepatch spoke while posing heroically.

-"Ehem, she meant thank you."-A raven interrupted her, helpfully translating her words for us.

-"..."-Almost all of us were speechless due to the girl's antics, but one person instantly approached her.

-"Don't mind it."-Elysia grabbed the hand of the 'princess' and stared at her with shining eyes.-"What's your name? You are Cute! How about you come with me? I have candies."

~"Sigh..."~After hearing Elysia's words, my understanding of her was once again refreshed.~"Elysia..."

-"I'm Prinzessin der Verurteilung. As for the candy, I would be pleased to hold a tea party with you. It's rare to meet a woman of such good standing as you, Miss."

-"My master's name is Fischl, and she is happy to meet you."-Echoed the translator once again.

-"Oh, my! I'm Elysia. Just call me Sister Elysia or Big Sis. Come, we are going to Mondstadt, so how about you accompany us?"

-"Fate brought us together, so we shall walk the same road..."

As I had enough of that already, I decided to filter out the chatter and talk to someone else. Turning my head to Fischl's companions, I noticed a familiar person among them.

~"Hmm? A Knight of Favonius? I remember that Little Klee called you Amber."

-"Ehh?! You are, Yue!"-Amber finally remembered me.-"What brings you here?"

~"I'm on a trip, but I would like to meet with Jean later, so would you mind passing this letter to her?"~I gave her a letter where I explained the reason behind my visit.

-"Sure, I'll take it to Master Jean."

~"Thank you."

As we were still around an hour away from Mondstadt, we decided to continue talking along the way, and after some introductions, everyone became familiar with each other's names. Elysia was a chatterbox, as usual, talking with almost everyone on her own, so none even noticed when we arrived at Mondstadt's gate.

Everyone but Amber decided to go for some food together, as Amber left us to find Jean. After looking around, we settled on a quiet tavern called 'The Cat's Tail'. Inside, we found a place to sit and ordered some local specialties. As we waited for food to arrive, Amber returned with Jean and Kaeya in tow.

-"Your Excellency Yue, good to see you in good health."

~"Grandmaster Jean, I'm also happy to see you again. Please just call me Yue, and I'll also call you by name."~I smiled and signaled for the trio to join us for a meal.

-"Please do so."-Jean smiled and sat down.

-"Hmm? Good choice of a place to eat, but do you know what is this tavern's specialty?"-Kaeya spoke after also sitting down.

~"Sadly, I'm unaware."

-"Have you heard about TCG?"

~"It's a card game. I received some cards from Ningguang some time ago but never had a chance to play."

-"Then would you like to try before our food arrives?"

~"Sure. Jean, I hope you don't mind."

-"No."-She smiled wryly.-"I hope that Kaeya won't offend you with his attitude."

~"I don't mind. It's good to be relaxed when one can relax."

-"Good! Then let's start with the rules."

Kaeya proceeded to explain all the rules along with some details about the cards. The game itself was not that hard, so I quickly created my own deck and readied myself to play my first game.

-"Hou? A rare card."-Kaeya commented when he noticed a moving card before me.-"I should have known that you are someone with your own card."

What Kaeya was referring to was the character card depicting me that I decided to use in the deck. The image on the card showed me sitting on the Throne in Hold with my gleaming eyes half open and my tails swaying behind.

~"It was the reason why I received those cards as a gift."

-"That makes sense. What are your Skills?"

~"Elemental skill uses three dice of the same element. It deals two DMG of matching element and changes the element of my basic attack to the same element. The basic attack can be only used after at least one Elemental skill was used and deals one DMG of the element it currently is while costing one dice of said element and two other dice."

-"Changing element? Interesting."

~"As for ultimate, it requires one dice from every element and three energy. It deals one elemental DMG of every element. Every element can be targeted independently, so I can deal seven DMG between all your characters."

-"Strong, but the cost is also not low. Cool, let's play."

I nodded and placed the remaining two character cards on the table. The first of them was Aranyani, who had the same skills as Nahida, while the second was Xianyun. Kaeya used his own card along with Bennett and Mona.

The first round ended in my defeat, but the next two were in my favor, so as the meal arrived, the games ended in score 2-1. During the meal, we mostly talked about the cards, and after the talking cat jumped on our table, everyone bought their own starting deck.

An hour later, I left the tavern with Jean, two of us decided to take care of more pressing matters while everyone else was immersed in the fun. Jean took me to Knight's Headquarters, where Lisa, Aether, and Eula were waiting for us.

-"Hello, Sweetie."

~"Good to see you too, Lisa. You as well, Eula, Aether."

Eula nodded in greeting while Aether spoke with me.

-"We haven't seen each other in a while. How are you?"

~"Not bad. I have enough free time to wander around, so you can say that everything is going well. Where's Paimon? I rarely saw you without her flying around."

-"She is sleeping in my home."

~"'Your home', huh? I believe that congratulations are in order then."

Hearing my words, both Aether and Eula blushed before thanking me.

-"Yue, I wanted to confirm if what you wrote in the letter is true."-Jean brought up the main subject.

~"Yes. This is the result of our examination of Abyss, Abyss Order, and Fatui. Some details that I marked are conjectures made from our research, but information about Fatui and Abyss Order can be considered certain."

-"I see. Aether, can you give us your opinion about this?"

-"To be honest, I'm a little unsure. I apologize, Yue, but I spoke with my sister about Abyss, and some things I heard are different than what you wrote."

~"I'm aware of that. I can admit that I'm beyond skeptical of Abyss, maybe even somewhat afraid of it, but I have my reasons for this. I have already planned a meeting with your sister at a later date to find some common ground on the Abyss issue, but the fact that Abyss is something even I need to be careful about should ring alarms to you."

-"While I wish to help you, Aether, this time I'm on Yue's side. Even in Akademiya, the Abyss is something Taboo, and for a reason, as many of those who touched it never returned the same from their investigations."

-"No matter what, I'll stand by your side."-Eula assured her man.

Listening to everyone's words, Jean contemplated for a while before speaking again.

-"Leaving Abyss aside for a moment, I want to know more about how Mondstadt will fit into Hold. As you know, our city has bad memories of being ruled over."

~"You will only be required to follow the laws of Hold and join our market, exchanging products and allowing trade with Hold and other vassals. We won't interfere with your internal matters beyond that. Of course, your diplomacy and other external issues will require our involvement."

-"What about our Knights of Favonius?"

~"You will be treated as a policing and governing force. While this will reduce your capacity to act without oversight, you will receive our assistance when needed."

-"I see. Can you give us some time?"

~"Sure. I'll be in town for two more days, and after that, you can contact Ningguang if you have any questions. She will also be responsible for ironing out any details you want to talk about."

-"Thank you."

We talked a little more about some other issues, but I soon left the Knight's Headquarters. I promised to visit Lisa in the library before leaving Mondstadt, but aside from that, all matters planned for this part of the trip had been dealt with.

After meeting up with the rest of the Chat Group, we rented out tooms in a nearby inn and decided to laze for the evening. As to not give me a chance to leave, Elysia booked the same room as me, so we went there to rest together, but in the end, neither of us two slept for the whole night.