Chapter 6

Aban Dominco walked into the Favonius HQ with a barely suppressed grin on his face, after closing the main door behind him he walked the length of the hall to the stairs with a fast paced strut while his foot steps echoed all the way. Making his way up the stairs he could hear his own heart beat quicken as he came closer and closer to his office on the second floor, The look on Henry's face is going to be priceless when he hears this he thought to himself. As the wood stairs made their last cracking sound under his feet Aban reached the second floor without knowing it and almost took another step on a nonexistent stair until he released he was on level ground. He chastened himself for being too excited and composed himself at the top of the stairs, calming himself he was able to suppress the euphoric grin he had on his face the ever since he left the Imunlaukr's apartments.

Looking much more like his normal self Aban made his way to his office casually and nodded to the passersby one of them a knight came up to him "Mr.Dominco," he said politely "I am sorry but may I have a moment. "Dominco answered that he may "I was informed that you come in on early hours Mr.Dominco so I have been waiting for you for a bit of a while." said the knight almost accusingly. "I am sorry for making you wait sir but there was a sudden change of plans on my schedule this morning I had to attend to something urgent and I only just came back from sorting it out, so I can now hear what it is you want discuss with me in my office sir but I didn't get your name.", "I am Leoplold sir apologies for not properly introducing myself and I was sent here by the acting grand master for a simple request so we don't need to go to your office.".

"Oh?" said Aban curiously "What is it that the acting grand master wishes to request of me?", "It is rather simple Mr.Dominco the Weinlesefest is approaching and people are gathering the harvests to sell at the celebrations and you are a frequent customer of Master Diluc who gives you discounts on his products, a thing which has been noted by the acting grand master. She doesn't wish to pry into the arrangement you have undoubtedly made with Master Diluc to get said discounts but she hopes you can act as an intermediary to convince him to lower his prices for the coming Weinlesefest ." . Aban suddenly felt his excitement dampen a bit but not dissipate Little escapes that Gunnhildr girl eh? he thought But no matter, I am almost done buying up discount wine from Master Diluc anyway the pressure she is applying on me with this veiled threat won't get in the way of my deal with the Imunlaukr clan thankfully but I will play along for appearances sake.

"You can inform our very esteemed acting grand master that I will write to the young Master Diluc on the matter but I can't guarantee he will comply with the suggestion.", "The acting grand master will be very grateful Mr.Dominco and I am sure the young Master will finally acquiesce once your voice is added to our pleas.", "Added?"asked Aban confused, "Yes Mr Dominco, your suggestion will we hope get Master Diluc to lower his prices for the Weinlesefest, the acting grand master had appealed to him on numerous occasions before this point but he wouldn't hear any of it, it was only after days of persistent back and forth that he started even entertaining the idea. Some of Master Diluc's old companions from when he was still a knight added their pleas to the acting grand master's and now with you added to this it could be made a reality." said the knight almost pridefully. "I see" responded Aban thoughtfully From what I have heard there is more to this but what is Jean's main goal? Hmm lets think, House Ragnvindr through the Dawn winery holds a near monopoly over Mondstadt's wine industry and other drinking beverages having them lower their prices would result in their other competitors having to lower their prices as well to keep up with them which in turn would be good for people attending the coming celebrations but not much else that could benefit her hmmmmm.

"Sir Leplold I would like to ask if the correspondence between the acting grand master and Master Diluc were public knowledge."Leplold give Aban a quizzing look before answering "It wasn't exactly a secret so yes a fair number of people know about it."Aban considered this and thought Hmm so a public relations stunt? She is already riding a wave of public support so why would she risk an act like this? It could backfire on her and go side ways, questions will arise about her ability to control the nobility, the merchants and citizens will also grumble and cause damage to her prestige so why risk it? Ahhhhh I can't find any reason and this doesn't affect me much so I will just leave it at that.

"I thank you for taking the time to inform me Sir Lepold I will see to it that my letter to Master Diluc is extra convincing."Leplold gave a courteous bow and walked to the stairs Aban had just climbed making his way to the ground floor, Aban watched him till he reached the stair before continuing on to his office That one was most definitely a Gunnhildr knight, could tell by the tone, those guys have been settling in quite well ever since Varka left on his expedition. Can't go a day without seeing more of them in the Knights of Favonius so much so that we might as well call it the Knights of Gunnhildr. House Gunnhildr was quite happy with supplementing the Knights of Favonius with their own knight's to fill the lost man power left by Varka wouldn't bother me or Mondstadt much if it wasn't for the tension it created with the other nobles. Thankfully though Jean has kept the peace even while being called"Tyrant"by the some of the nobility which is kind of ironic. And so until Varka returns House Gunnhildr is effectively in control of all Mondstadt.

Aban thought about the delicate dance the acting grand master had to do to keep the nobles at bay and the citizens happy and was glad that he wasn't in her position. While thinking about the nobility Aban remembered the deal he had made with the Imunlaukr clan and was again filled with elation he couldn't wait to tell Henry. Finally seeing his office door at the corner Aban grabbed the door handle with excitement and pushed it open with bit force smiling all the while. Looking about his office Aban saw his desk filled with documents, records and account books, Aban frowned when he saw the desk opposite him was empty since he was really looking forward to seeing the look on Henry's face when he tells him that he got the deal. But Henry hadn't arrived in their shared office yet or he had been here and left to do one task or another, sighing Aban sat on his desk and thought to write the letter Jean had requested of him and do other work too while waiting for Henry to arrive.

Grabbing a pen Aban began writing to Diluc "'Dear Master Diluc' no that is to formal hmmmm, 'Dear Diluc' no that is to familiar, how about 'Dear Sir Diluc greetings from Mondstadt I am as you know .....". And so on it went as Aban wrote and rewrote his letter to the owner of Dawn winery time went by and after finally being satisfied with how he wrote the letter he folded it and put it in his drawer along side the bag of mora he put there so he wouldn't forget to get it delivered when he went home. With that done Aban went about his papers looking at accounts for any irregularities and looking at reports of missing goods and complaints filed to the knights of some offending buyer or seller of so and so and so and so.

One report Aban found was quite amusing since it states that a man got fired from a grocery shop and then returned to rob said shop with a kitchen knife, the manager who had fired him refused to give him the Mora in the register when he asked for it and they get in to a fight, the manager manages to disarms the man while only getting superficial

cuts but they broke several things in the shop while they struggled. The man suddenly finding himself without his kitchen knife untangled himself from the manager and grabs the register to take it with him but realizes it was bolted to the table it was on so he instead opens the register and takes all the bags of Mora he could carry and runs out of the store.

The other employees finally get to the scene after hearing the commotion and find the manager bleeding from several cuts and Mora scattered around the scene leading to the store's exit. Some of the employees tended to the manager while the rest followed the trail of scattered Mora outside the store and followed it to the city gate where they asked the guards stationed there if they saw a man running away with heaps of Mora, the guards answered that they did see a man gallop out of the city on a horse while the bags he had on the horses back was leaking Mora and that they tried to warn him about it but he didn't listen since he was galloping away so fast. The employees tell the guards that that man had robbed them and asked for their help in catching him, the guards along with the employees then followed the trail of scattered Mora to a bunch of bushes the man was hiding in while his horse was tied to a tree right next to said bushes. He was then promptly arrested and a report filed to the knights of the incident, Aban's job was to calculate the total cost of the fine that would be levied against the man.

The products broken during the struggle plus the injuries suffered by the manager along with the case of robbery and evasion of arrest would amount to total of 20,000 Mora give or take. Aban wondered how the man would pay back that much or even if he could in which case it would be jail time for him which was the more likely scenario. As Aban was done with the report he heard the door of the office open and felt his heart surge with anticipation hoping to see Henry but was greeted by Milo, an average built man with brown hair and eyes, a bit shorter than Aban was as well as a few years younger. Milo looked at Aban as his excitement dead down upon seeing him "Heavens" Milo said humorously "I know I am not what I was but you don't have to look so disappointed.".

Aban chuckled at this he, liked the man even though he didn't know him all that well, "It is not you I am disappointed with Milo it is Henry I had hoped it would be him that was at the door." Milo walked over to Henry's desk as Aban explained and grabbed a book then said "Well isn't that something, Henry wanted me to bring this account book here to him to help clarify a few things to a bunch of store house owners down stairs.", "Henry is downstairs? I didn't see him when I came in.", "Well he wasn't in the lobby, he was in one of the meeting rooms talking to the store house owners about what ever it is store house owners talk about, he came out of the room as I was making my way out of HQ and asked me to get this account book for him.", "Well then when you give him that tell him to hurry to the office if he has no other urgent business to attend to and while you are at it have you seen Eugene anywhere? I owe him a drink and thanks, A LOT of thanks,t ell him to come to my office along with Henry.".

"I haven't seen him today but I will keep an eye out for him, is there anyone else you want invited to this little office party of yours.", "Nope that is about it.". "Ahhh I was hoping to be invited but nobody invites poor Milo to parties anymore."said Milo in a comically sad voice as he exited the office. Oh don't worry Milo if my deal with the Imunlaukr goes through without a hitch you will get invited to one heck of a party thought Aban as he watched him leave and went back to shifting through reports and documents. An hour had gone by as Aban continued to work when he heard the office door open again, he turned ever so slowly and dramatically while his face formed a big wide grin as he did so expecting to see Henry by the door and this time he wasn't disappointed cause it was indeed Henry that he saw by the door. Henry was of a height and age with Aban, he had hair the color of brown tree oak and his skin was much more tanned than the average Mondstadter while his face looked round and his body a bit chubby if not exactly fat.

Henry looked at Aban sitting on his table with a big wide grin on his face and was instantly suspicious, he narrowed his eyes on Aban and asked warily "What's with the grin?", "Ahh nothing really just that things have been going my way lately."answered Aban humorously obviously enjoying himself. "Going your way how exactly?", "Well if you must know" said Aban before stopping and looking directly into Henry's hazel eyes with a bubbling intensity "I got the DEAL.". Henry frowned being confused with Aban's answer "What deal?" he asked, "The deal my good man the one you said I couldn't get.", "I still don't know what you are on about, what deal did I say you wouldn't get seriously I don't know what you are talking abo.....".

Aban saw the realization strike Henry like a thunder bolt and as he imaged Henry's face at that moment was priceless. "NO…."said Henry very loudly all of the sudden "YOU CAN'T MEAN…", "I do mean Henry.", "HOW?". Aban gave a shrug and said "Talent my good man talent." Henry was incredulous "DARK MAGIC I SAY! DARK MAGIC!!!.", "I don't need the dark arts for success and also Shhhh keep your voice down or half of knights will hear you."Henry reeling from the initial shock regained his composure and asked "You really got the deal?" half expecting Aban to tell him it was all a joke but Aban nodded in affirmation. And Henry could do nothing but bark a laugh which went on for a minute before it stopped after which Henry walked across to his own desk and picked up his chair and brought it in-front of Aban's desk and sat on it.

He turned to Aban with eyes full of excitement, admiration and a pinch of envy and said "Tell me exactly how you managed this work of sorcery.". And so Aban did telling Henry how he left his home in a hurry to take care of some business and how he was intercepted on the way to work by a messenger of the Imunlaukr clan who took him to see the Lord Baron Barbanzio himself at which point Henry interrupted and asked "Just….just wait a minute the Lord Baron Barbanzio? As in the Lord Baron Barbanzio Imunlaukr head of the Imunlaukr clan actually sent for you and met you in person?", "Yep"answered Aban with clear satisfaction "So when you asked Eugene to 'leak' the information about the letter you got from Inazuma to the Lord Baron last night this was what you intended to happen?", Aban smiled at Henry as he thought to himself No actually I intended for the Imunlaukr to spread the word of my permit to the other noble houses and get my noble title through them since then they can't deny I got them quality ore they could forge into whatever they wanted but nobles being nobles they would pay me and praise me but their was always the possibility that they would look down their noses at me for merely entertaining the idea of joining their ranks even after all I have done for them. So when I talked to the Lord Baron face to face and saw his more liberal attitude I threw my dice and got a six.

"I told you the Imunlaukr love themselves a weapon and when Eugene told the Lord Baron Barbanzio about it I knew he wouldn't be able to resist the possibility of getting himself a bunch of swords made out of the bones of a fallen god. And since he knew I was the only one that could get him said bones he agreed to propose to the other nobles that I get inducted into the nobility and do you know the best part about this? DO YOU KNOW THE BEST PART?", "No I do not Aban so quit being dramatic and get on with it."said Henry a bit of annoyed with Aban's theatrics. "Fine, fine"replied Aban equally annoyed that Henry didn't play along with his drama "The 4 most prominent families in Mondstadt's history are the Gunnhildr clan, the Imunlaukr clan,the Lawrence clan and the Ragnvindr clan."Aban raised his right hand and clenched it into a fist save for his index finger.

"The Gunnhildr clan have always kept their word to protect Mondstadt and wouldn't oppose my promotion and even if they did they already have their hands full with being the unofficial leaders of Mondstadt at the moment so they couldn't object even if they wanted to." Aban then raised his second finger "I have a good business relationship with the head of the Ragnvindr clan and not wanting to compromise that relationship he won't oppose my promotion either."Aban continued by raising his ring finger "The Lawrence clan was the one I most worried about when I thought about making myself part of the nobility dew to their legendary dislike of upwards mobility but the gods have smiled upon me and made it so that the Lawrence clan have to still deal with legal trouble after their clan head got arrested for conspiracy and treason the icing on the cake being that he was arrested by his own niece!!!! So they don't have any grounds to oppose my induction into the ranks of the aristocracy.".

Aban then raised his pinky finger "And finally the Imunlaukr clan, I have to admit that I knew nothing about the Imunlaukr current head or any other of its members until recently so I didn't know where they would stand on the matter, I knew about them being a prominent clan in Mondstadt but all I knew about them came their through reputation and it was nothing concrete. All I knew about them going in to the Lord Baron's apartment was their names and the fact that they loved weapons and fighting but I guess the latter point is a historic constant for them. But luckily for me the Lord Baron wasn't as stuck up as I thought he would be, he actually surprised me by being quite liberal or as liberal as an aristocrat could be so when I asked for him personally to propose my induction into their aristocracy he agreed on the condition that I hold up my end of the bargain and get him his ore from Inazuma.".

Finishing his explanation Aban raised both his hands to the air over his desk and said "The gods have truly blessed me Henry everything went my way and it turned out even better than I expected.". "You got really luck I will admit...…, what am I saying? You got RIDICULOUSLY lucky but there are a few things I don't get.". Aban rested his hands on the desk and looked at Henry "And what are those?" he asked, "Well why do you want to be part of the aristocracy in the first place? Every since Vennessa's rebellion they haven't held any significant power and are simply a glorified social club in this day and age.", "Ahhhh I see what you mean but that is only in Mondstadt my dear Henry outside of Mondstadt however is another story entirely. You see there was a certain side effect of the exile the aristocracy suffered and that is trade.

The aristocracy having been exiled had to find other means of raising revenue to sustain the luxurious life styles they lived, so they went around Tevyat trading their goods from the estates they still retained which resulted in the image the rest of the world has of Mondstadt which came through their interaction with these exiled nobles. Simply having the words Lord, Baron, Count and other such noble titles precede your name gave you a huge advantage when making trade deals, banking, taking loans etc. So if I can officially be made a part of the aristocracy I could making double the profits I made when I traded as a normal citizen no more haggling and bargaining for me.". At this Henry narrowed his eyes on Aban and said "Aban trading is all about haggling and bargaining even if you get that title you would still have to haggle and bargain that is what trading is all about.". "Yes but it will have a more official air to it and I can get word of shifts in the market much more easily.".

"Well I guess that is true if anything but another thing I wonder about is how did you get that permit from the Tenryou commission?". Aban reclined on this chair and crossed his arms "That was a complete stroke of luck on my part if I am being honest I didn't think I would get the permit, there was a chance I would get it but even I thought it was a slim one. You see Inazuma even before the Sakoku decree was a very isolationist state so they had little connect with the outside word, so when the Sakoku decree was lifted many merchants saw an opportunity and rushed to Inazuma to sell their goods at twice their normal price thinking the people of Inazuma wouldn't notice they were being ripped off and much to their surprise the Tenryou commission gave them a rude awakening by arresting all those who tried to raise the price past the original worth. Every since then the Tenryou commission had been keeping the trade of foreign goods to confined to Rituo where it could easily be regulated.".

Aban smiled to himself when thinking back on that little bit of theatre before continuing on "Then a couple of months back there was a festival held on Rituo sponsored by the Tenryou commission it was called the Irodori festival if I remember correctly, I heard it was quite successful but what made me send a letter to the Tenryou commission to request free trade beyond Rituo was that I heard that the members of the Tenryou commission enjoyed the wine brought from Mondstadt so much so in fact that the respectable clan leaders got flat out drunk and lamented heavily when they were informed that the wine barrels all ran out.". Henry smiled mischievously at Aban starting to see where the story was going "I think I know what you wrote in that letter of yours now, you heavily implied that you could get them that oh so delicious wine they craved, that would explain your dealings with Master Diluc but what exactly are you giving Diluc that he would give you those discounts I wonder?".

Aban looked at Henry innocently and said "Come now you can't expect me to tell you everything." Henry raised his hands in defeat "Fine fine don't tell me I won't pry. And I take it that since this all happened just this morning that you didn't tell Nasrin or your kid about it yet.", "Ya, I haven't told Rin and Elo yet but they are going to be ecstatic when they hear. I honestly can't wait to get back home and tell them but" he gestured to his desk filled with papers, documents and such "I have to get all this done by today. So I will probably be going home late.". "Speaking of work" said Henry inquisitively "Now that you got your club membership in the bag I take it you are going to stop working here.". Aban gave him a gentle smile "Going to miss me are you? Can't say I blame you I am quite the charming fellow after all but you don't need to be so sad just because I stop working for the Knights of Favonius doesn't mean we won't see each other again. Besides you already knew that my work for the Knights was temporary.", "I did know but I didn't think you would leave so soon and also don't flatter yourself Aban I am asking for a different reason.". "And what reason might that be?"asked Aban curiously, "Well, if you do make it big I would like you to remember that I am quite the organizer and administrator not to mention that I am good at smoothing over unpleasant disagreements." said Henry while placing one arm on Aban's desk.

Aban raised an eyebrow while still smiling and responded "Ahhh But how could I forget my dear Henry? And I have to say it is quite unusual for someone to go about asking for a job that doesn't exist yet. But lets say I do make it big and I do remember your many skills how much Mora would you be asking for?". Henry shrugged "Well we will have to wait and see what happens first but just know that I don't come cheap.", "I wouldn't dream of it."said Aban laughing all the while. And at that moment Aban and Henry heard the slow opening of the office door and they both turned towards it and saw the head of a 30ish looking man pop up behind it "Hmmmm Aban, Milo told me that you were looking for me but if you are busy I can come back later."said the head. Aban's face which had been smiling almost the entire morning broadened to a bigger and more joyous smile upon seeing Eugene "No no I am not busy come in come in."said Aban and gesturing for Eugene to enter.

Eugene obeyed and came into the room, he was wearing his armored knights of Favonius uniform with a sword hanging from his belt, he was a bit taller than both Henry and Aban while possessing much paler skin complemented more so by his blond hair and green eyes and not much could be said about his chin since it was covered in a thick beard. And after Eugene entered the room Aban got up from his chair and walked with a few quick steps towards him and holding his hands up he grabbed Eugene's face and pulled it down kissing it on one cheek and then the other. After letting go of Eugene's head Aban saw the utter confusion on knight's face "What was that for?" asked Eugene who was utterly perplexed by Aban's actions. "That my dear friend was for helping me get a ticket straight up to the top 1%.", "huh?", "Do you remember a while back when you, me and Henry here were on about the nobility and I told you about my hope to join it and Henry said that I could never do it?".

Eugene considered for a time while rubbing his hand on his chin or rather his bread "I do vaguely remember that yes but what of it?", "If you do then you will be surprised to hear that I have just proved him wrong with your help.", Eugene looked even more confused now than he was before and looked at Henry who only weakly nodded "How exactly did I help?"asked Eugene. "Well, do you remember that letter I got last night form the Tenryou commission?" Eugene nodded and Aban continued with his explanation "Well at that moment when the letter was in my hand I had an idea, I remembered you talking about your former teacher the Lord Baron Barbanzio and how he would tell you about the rich history of his house during your lessons of how the Imunlaukr clan sought out new ways to perfect their craft and weapons and then the idea hit me. I remember reading about there being a corpse of a fallen god in Inazuma who was killed by the Electro Archon during the Archon War and that the Tenryou commission were mining the corpse of said god and making weapons out of its bones. So I put two and two together and sent you to inform the Lord Baron hoping he might take advantage of the info and he did. And now my good man I am going to get me that sweet sweet aristocratic privilege.".

Eugene just looked at Aban while the gears in his head turned and Aban wished that those gears would speed up, as he did so he saw Eugene's face start to fully comprehend what was being said to him and was glad for it "So that's why you sent me to him? To tell him about the letter?", "Yep", "But how are you going to get that as you say 'sweet sweet aristocratic privilege? Did he just say 'gave me the gods bones and I will make you a Duke?'". Aban opened his mouth to explain but then considered what Eugene said "Actually" said Aban humorously "That is exactly how it happened.". Eugene narrowed his green eyes at Aban "Really? He just said give me the bones and I will make you a Duke?". "Well yes but it is a little more complicated than that and you know what take a sit and I will explain.".

Once Eugene found a chair to use he sat next to Henry in front of Aban's desk and heard Aban explain what happened like he did with Henry and by the end of it Eugene was laughing like a horse who enjoyed its evening gallop."You sly little fox" he said uproariously "When you said the gods were with you I can't help but agree cause these string of events is beyond just luck.", "Right?"said Aban enjoying the banter "I am honestly surprised it worked as well as it did.". "I still say he worked some black magic."said Henry accusingly, "Honestly I can't help but agree with Henry on this." said Eugene in turn. "Oh come on not you to Gene, I can do quiet well for myself without the use of the dark arts.". "I am still going to call it black magic either way."said Henry casually while Eugene nodded in agreement. "And since Henry has already submitted his application I might as well do the same, I think my skills with the sword speak for themselves so you could hire me on as a body guard and if you happen to find better fighters than me to do that job well I just ask you to remember who got you to that point 'mY lOrD'"Eugene giggled after he exaggerated the "my lord" bit.

"Oh get off it Eugene it is not official yet I need to get the ore to Mondstadt first.", "When do you leave for Inazuma then, also how had you planned to make the trade you never explained that part."said Henry. "I had planned to book a ship paying extra for my cargo of wine and 'gift' said wine to the Tenryou commission officers and get the ore in return but as I was talking with the Lord Baron about the transport plans he said he would let me use one of his personal vessels for the journey so I don't even have to pay anything another stroke of luck. As for when I will be leaving with Elo it will be just after the Winelesefest.". "Wait,Why is Elo going with you?" asked Henry, "Well 2 reasons, one is so he can see Inazuma with me and it would be quite the nice trip to have with him on and before you ask why Rin won't come with us it is cause she has just quit her job and wants to do nothing but relax for the next few months or years, I will try to take her with me the next time I get a chance to go to Inazuma. As for the second reason our dear Lord Baron also thought it would be nice to have his kid see Inazuma so his daughter Desdemona will be coming with us and Elo can help out his old man by getting on friendly terms with the little Baroness.".

Henry looked sternly at Aban and asked "And how 'friendly' do you hope for them to get.","As friendly as the gods will allow." answered Aban. "Wow, I didn't think you would be planning arranged relationships this quick guess all you need is the title to start acting like one of them noble folk."said Eugene teasingly. "Oh get off my back would you? If they get along then they get along if they don't then they don't simple as that I am not going to pressure Elo to make advances on her. I just think it would be advantageous to have them on good terms." said Aban irritatedly but Eugene and Henry simply giggled. "Ok but how good are we talking?" asked Eugene. "A real good night I am guessing."answered Henry and started laughing hysterically along with Eugene.