The Mondstadt Cathedral stood imposingly before them, radiating an aura of solemnity and holiness… which completely contrasted with the fact that Cass wanted to be anywhere but here.
Aether, Cass, and Paimon entered the cathedral, escorted by a pair of Knights of Favonius.
Jean, wearing her usual "I'm too busy for this" expression, stood before the altar with her arms crossed.
Kaeya was beside her, sporting his signature professional bastard smile.
Lisa leaned casually against a column, watching them with an amused smile.
Cass felt a chill run down his spine upon noticing her presence.
"Alright," Jean began firmly, "let's talk about how we're going to rescue Venti."
Cass raised his hand as if he were in a classroom.
"I propose not doing that."
Jean shot him a deadly glare.
"No."
Cass sighed.
"Had to try."
Kaeya smirked in amusement.
"Oh, come on, Cass. Don't be so cruel. Surely, deep down in your heart, you care about Venti, right?"
Cass looked at him with the flattest expression possible.
"Kaeya, if you try to mess with my head again, I swear I'll throw you out that window."
Kaeya laughed elegantly.
"Oh, Cass, so aggressive~."
Cass closed his eyes in exhaustion.
Jean ignored the exchange and continued.
"Venti was captured by Stormterror, who's being controlled by the Abyss Order. Our scouts discovered that he was taken to one of their bases on the outskirts of Mondstadt. We can't let them use him for their own purposes."
Cass simply looked away.
Aether nodded; it seemed Jean had believed the lie.
"I understand. What do we know about its location?"
Lisa spoke in her sultry voice.
"Mmm~ according to the reports, the base is well-guarded but not impenetrable."
Cass looked at Jean skeptically.
"Why not send the Knights to rescue him?"
Jean sighed.
"We're busy handling the destruction left by Stormterror's attack. We don't have enough forces for a full-scale assault."
Cass felt his last hope slipping away.
Lisa smirked playfully.
"Oh, don't you want to be a hero, Cass~?"
Cass stared at her blankly.
"No. I want to sit in a tavern, drink until I black out, and forget this day ever happened."
Lisa giggled.
"What a shame~."
Jean, ignoring the chaos, pulled out a map and placed it on a table.
"This is the Abyss Order's base. We need you to infiltrate, find Venti, and bring him back."
Cass crossed his arms.
"And if we refuse?"
Jean looked at him coldly.
"Then I'll assign you all the administrative paperwork for the rest of your stay in Mondstadt."
"Wait a minute, you can't do that!"
Jean gave him an evil smile as Kaeya pulled a piece of paper from his pocket.
"Ohhh, but I can. You see, Kaeya here is a very talented person, you know? With just one look at your handwriting and signature, he can memorize it perfectly! Welcome to the Knights of Favonius, rookie."
Absolute silence.
Aether looked at Cass with a hint of pity.
Paimon covered her mouth.
Lisa smiled in amusement.
Kaeya chuckled softly.
Cass felt his soul leave his body.
"…I'll take the mission."
Jean nodded in satisfaction.
"Wise decision."
Kaeya patted him on the shoulder.
"Oh, Cass. You're adorably easy to manipulate."
Cass glared at him with pure rage.
Lisa leaned in slightly toward him.
"Maybe I'll invite you to the library later~ as a reward."
Cass instinctively took a step back.
Jean looked at Aether.
"You too, right?"
Aether sighed in resignation.
"We don't have a choice."
Cass muttered under his breath.
"We could always run away and live in the forest…"
Jean smiled sweetly.
"I'd find you."
Cass swallowed hard.
Kaeya winked at him.
"Well then, boys… ready for a new adventure?"
Cass sighed.
"If we die, I want my epitaph to say: 'Here lies Cass, victim of a drunk bard and a sadistic boss.'"
Aether patted him on the shoulder.
"Cheer up, Cass. At least now you'll get a salary."
Cass looked up at the cathedral ceiling in pure despair.
"…I hate my life."
**********
Mondstadt Forest – On the Way to the Abyss Order's Base
Cass, Aether, and Paimon moved through the forest path with the stealth of a stampede of drunk boars.
The mission was clear: infiltrate the Abyss Order's base, find Venti, and get out alive.
Cass, however, had one very important question on his mind.
"Why the hell are we doing this at night?"
Aether looked at Cass patiently.
"Because it's easier to sneak in without being seen."
Cass sighed.
"Yeah, but it's also easier to step into a trap, fall off a cliff, or get attacked by something in the dark."
Paimon floated in front of him confidently.
"Paimon thinks this won't be that hard!"
Cass and Aether froze in place.
Aether looked at her with absolute seriousness.
"Paimon, no."
Cass shook his head.
"Not again."
Paimon puffed up her cheeks.
"Why do you always react like this?!"
Aether sighed.
"Because every time you say that, something horrible happens within the next five minutes."
Aether nodded.
"More than enough evidence."
Paimon crossed her arms.
"Paimon thinks you're overreacting!"
Cass and Aether exchanged glances.
"She said it."
"We're screwed."
Cass sighed and pulled out his spear.
"Alright, what's the plan?"
Aether pulled out a scroll with a drawing of the Abyss base.
"We sneak in quietly, find Venti, and get out before they notice us."
Cass nodded.
"Sounds good… except for the fact that the drunk bard is a damn magnet for disaster."
Paimon nodded.
"Paimon thinks Venti has already done something stupid!"
Cass narrowed his eyes.
"That's the only logical thing you've ever said."
Suddenly, Aether stopped and raised his hand.
"Wait. There's something ahead."
Cass squinted and looked into the distance.
In the clearing, just before the Abyss Order's base…
There was a guy hiding behind a bush.
Badly hidden.
Ridiculously badly hidden.
The guy wore a dark cloak, but his silhouette was perfectly visible.
Aether frowned.
"An enemy?"
Cass looked at him in disbelief.
"I don't know… but if he is, then he's the worst spy in history."
Paimon looked at him curiously.
"Paimon thinks we should talk to him!"
Cass sighed.
"Fine. But if he tries to stab me, I'm throwing him into the nearest lake."
Aether nodded.
"I was just about to say the same thing."
They cautiously approached the bush where the guy was hiding.
When they were just a few steps away, Cass spoke in the flattest tone possible.
"Do you have any idea how bad you are at hiding?"
The guy jolted and shot out of the bush like a startled rabbit.
"Ah! W-Wait! I'm not an enemy!"
Cass narrowed his eyes.
"Who are you, and what are you doing here?"
The guy brushed the leaves off himself and raised his hands in surrender.
He wore a dark robe and a poorly fitted mask.
"I'm an undercover agent! My mission is to infiltrate the Abyss base!"
Absolute silence.
Cass stared at him blankly.
"…A what?"
The guy nodded excitedly.
"Yeah! I work for a secret organization that monitors the Abyss's movements!"
Cass looked him up and down.
"…Buddy. You couldn't infiltrate a lemonade stand without getting caught."
The spy looked offended.
"Hey! I'm really good at my job!"
Cass frowned.
"What's your name?"
The spy blinked.
"Ah… erm… I… my name is…"
He looked around in a panic.
Then he spotted a barrel of apples nearby.
Without thinking, he blurted out:
"Apple!"
Silence.
Cass closed his eyes in pure frustration.
"Great. We just found the worst spy in history."
Aether ran a hand down his face.
Paimon tilted her head.
"Paimon thinks Apple sounds like a good name!" she commented while eyeing him, a bit of drool escaping from her mouth. "And delicious too!"
Cass exhaled slowly.
"Okay… Apple… what the hell are you doing here?"
The spy, Apple, nodded seriously.
"I'm investigating the Abyss's movements… and, well… I got caught."
Cass felt a twitch in his eye.
"You got caught?"
Apple scratched his head.
"Yeah, but I managed to escape. Now I'm planning a way to rescue my captured partner."
Cass blinked.
"…You have a partner?"
Apple nodded.
"Yeah. He was captured along with that bard, Venti."
Aether and Cass exchanged looks.
Paimon floated closer, curious.
"What does your friend look like?"
Apple paused.
"Let's call him… Pear."
Cass felt his patience draining.
"…I just want to go home."
Aether sighed.
"Alright. So now we have to rescue two people."
Cass closed his eyes.
"Great. The mission doubles, and the reward stays the same."
Apple looked at them with a smile.
"But if we succeed, we could get valuable intel on the Abyss!"
Cass stared at him.
"…I don't care."
Paimon floated excitedly.
"Paimon thinks this is getting interesting!"
Cass sighed.
"The only interesting thing here is finding out whether Venti has kicked the bucket or not."
Aether unsheathed his sword.
"Let's go. We need to sneak in before we get caught."
Cass twirled his spear.
"Alright. Let's make this quick."
Apple joined the group enthusiastically.
"Don't worry! With my espionage skills, this will be a piece of cake!"
Cass glanced at him sideways.
"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."
And so, the group advanced toward the Abyss base, fully aware that things would go wrong in a matter of minutes.
********
Abyss Base – Main Entrance
The group hid among the bushes, watching the Abyss Order's base.
Cass crossed his arms and assessed the situation.
"Alright… before everything inevitably goes to hell, let's go over the plan."
Aether nodded.
"We sneak in, find Venti and that 'Pear' guy, and get out without drawing attention."
Cass raised an eyebrow at Apple.
"Any idea where they are exactly?"
Apple nodded confidently.
"Yes! Based on my calculations and observations, they should be in the central tower, on the top floor."
Cass sighed.
"Of course they're in the hardest place to reach. Why wouldn't they be?"
Paimon floated excitedly.
"Paimon thinks we can do it without being detected!"
Cass closed his eyes.
"Paimon. Please shut up."
Aether sighed.
"Alright, let's keep a low profile."
The group started moving through the shadows.
The Abyss base was full of patrolling soldiers.
Cass observed the situation and murmured.
"I see two guards at the main entrance. Any ideas on how to get past them?"
Apple eagerly raised his hand.
"Oh! Oh! I know! We can make a noise in the opposite direction to distract them!"
Cass stared at him, looking surprised.
"That actually doesn't sound bad."
Apple grinned proudly.
"Yeah! I learned it in my spy training!"
Cass nodded.
"Alright. Do it."
Apple picked up a rock, aimed carefully, and threw it with all his strength.
The group watched in complete silence as the rock flew through the air…
…and landed with a loud thunk right on one of the guards' heads.
The guard collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
The other guard stared at the scene in absolute horror.
"What the hell?!"
Cass looked at Apple in surprise.
"Was that intentional?"
Apple blinked.
"Erm… yes."
Cass sighed.
"Well, at least it worked."
Aether took out the second guard before he could react, knocking him unconscious.
Cass examined the scene.
"…Well. Not exactly stealthy, but not loud either. I like it."
Paimon flew forward confidently.
"Come on! The entrance is clear now!"
Cass rolled his eyes and followed the group inside the base.
.....
The group moved cautiously through the dark hallways of the base.
Cass kept his spear ready, Aether had his sword in hand, and Apple…
Apple was making spy noises as he walked.
Cass turned to him with a raised eyebrow.
"What the hell are you doing?"
Apple flinched.
"I-I'm in stealth mode!"
Cass closed his eyes for a second.
"If you keep making those sounds, I'm going to break your legs so you move slower."
Apple swallowed hard and nodded quickly.
"Got it."
Paimon floated excitedly.
"Paimon thinks we're getting closer!"
Aether looked ahead seriously.
"Yeah. The central tower is near."
Cass sighed.
"Alright. Let's keep moving before—"
Before he could finish his sentence, an alarm blared throughout the base.
Cass closed his eyes in pure frustration.
"…Before this happened."
Aether quickly raised his sword.
"They found us."
Cass looked at Manzana suspiciously.
"Was it you?"
Apple shook his head rapidly.
"No! I swear!"
Cass sighed.
"Then it was probably Venti."
Paimon nodded.
"Paimon thinks that makes sense!"
Aether looked ahead.
"They're coming for us. Plan B?"
"What's Plan B?" Apple asked.
Cass spun his spear. This time, he had actually convinced Jean to give him a higher-quality lance.
"Plan B is to fight and make them pay for all the time we're wasting on this." A grin appeared on Cass's face—he was more than ready to hit something and let off some steam.
Apple trembled as he raised a hand.
"Can't we just run?"
Cass looked at him.
"No. Now we send a message."
The sound of hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway.
Abyss soldiers were heading their way.
Cass smirked.
"Perfect. I needed some exercise."
Aether got ready for battle.
Paimon floated with excitement.
"Paimon thinks this will be easy!"
Cass sighed and gripped his spear tighter.
"Sure it will, Paimon. Sure it will."
And with that, the group prepared for battle.
...
Abyss Base – Central Tower Interior
The group ran through the base's hallways, dodging enemies and destroying everything in their path.
Cass swung his spear aggressively, taking down soldiers mercilessly. A wide grin spread across his face as he imagined Kaeya, Venti, and Jean's faces on several of them.
Aether moved skillfully, cutting down enemies with precision.
Apple… well, Apple was just trying not to die.
"Why did this turn into hell so fast?!" he yelled while clumsily dodging an enemy attack.
Cass rolled his eyes.
"Stealth is for cowards!"
Paimon floated beside him excitedly.
"Paimon thinks it was more fun this way!"
Aether sighed.
"We're getting closer to Venti's cell. Let's keep moving."
The group reached a large metal door with strange inscriptions on it.
Aether frowned.
"It's locked."
Apple stepped forward and inspected the lock.
"Yeah. But if you give me a few minutes, I might be able to—"
Cass shoved him aside, raised his spear, and smashed it against the lock.
CRACK!
The door swung open.
Cass smiled in satisfaction.
"Done."
Apple stared at him, mouth open.
"…Well, that works too, I guess."
Aether ignored the conversation and stepped into the cell.
And there he was.
Sitting on the floor, magically chained, with an expression of absolute peace on his face.
Venti.
Sleeping.
Cass felt his blood boil.
He walked up and kicked him in the leg.
"Wake up, you useless bastard!"
Venti blinked slowly and smiled upon seeing him.
"Oh, Cass~ Did you come to rescue me? How sweet of you~." The bard tried to jump on him, but Cass gritted his teeth and stepped back in disgust.
"I want to leave you here."
Paimon floated beside him.
"Paimon thinks that would be cruel!"
Cass looked at her in disbelief.
"Cruel? For who? Him or me?"
Aether ignored the argument and approached Venti's chains.
"These are reinforced. We need to break the seal."
Manzana raised his hand.
"Leave it to me! I'm an expert at this kind of thing!"
Cass stared at him.
"If it explodes, I'll kill you."
Manzana swallowed hard and got to work.
After a few seconds of muttering spells and making strange hand gestures, the seal broke, and the chains fell to the ground.
Venti stretched with satisfaction.
"Ahh~! Finally free! I missed being able to move."
Cass glared at him.
"Why do you look so relaxed? Didn't they torture you or something?"
Venti winked.
"Oh, they tried to interrogate me, but… let's just say I bored them to death with my stories."
Cass felt a twitch in his eye.
"…If I had to interrogate you, I'd probably prefer to kill myself too."
Aether sighed.
"Alright, we have Venti. Now let's get out of here."
But just as they turned to leave, a new voice echoed in the room.
"Well, well. What a touching rescue."
The group tensed.
From the shadows of the cell, a figure emerged.
Tall, wearing a dark cape and a mask, exuding a sinister presence.
Cass narrowed his eyes.
"And who the hell are you?"
The figure smirked.
"I am an emissary of the Abyss Order."
Cass sighed.
"Do you have a name, or are you just another generic extra?"
The emissary chuckled with amusement.
"You may call me… the Abyss Herald."
Cass looked at him, unimpressed.
"That doesn't answer my question."
The Herald ignored his remark and raised a hand.
"You've made a mistake coming here. Now, you will pay the price."
Cass rolled his eyes.
"They always say that."
Aether unsheathed his sword.
"Fight or flee?"
Cass spun his lance with a grin.
"I say we fight. I need to blow off some stress."
The Herald snapped his fingers, and the room filled with dark energy.
Cass smirked with excitement.
"Now this is going to be fun."
**********
Cass, Aether, and Venti ran after their fight against the Herald. The guy was surprisingly… decent.
Cass had a few cuts, Aether was panting from the effort, and Venti…
Venti looked completely unscathed.
Cass glanced at him with some resentment.
"How the hell are you the only one without a scratch?"
Venti chuckled and winked.
"Divine magic~."
Cass felt the urge to strangle him.
Aether ignored the conversation.
"Save the fight for later. We need to get out of here."
The group ran toward the exit, dodging enemies and magical attacks.
Paimon shouted.
"Paimon thinks this is worse than when we came in!"
Cass panted.
"Yeah, because some idiot dragged us into this."
Venti feigned surprise.
"Oh, Cass! I didn't know you cared so much about me~."
Cass gave him the most hateful look possible.
"Don't make me throw you again, Gae-Venti."
"Oh, Cass~ It hasn't even been that long since you saved me, and you're already trying to claim your reward~."
Cass felt a shiver run down his spine. He wanted Mora, not that with another man!
The group finally reached the exit.
With one last effort, they escaped the base before more reinforcements arrived.
Cass collapsed on the ground, exhausted.
Aether sighed.
"At least we managed to rescue him."
Cass looked at Venti.
"Are we sure we had to?"
Venti stuck out his tongue.
"Oh, come on. Admit it, you missed me~."
Cass covered his face with both hands.
"I need a vacation."
Paimon floated cheerfully.
"But we still have to save Dvalin!"
Cass screamed in frustration.
"Why is there always something else?!"