Hu Tao Is Monetizing My Existence. [158]

“It’s Barbara! The wound’s already mostly healed,” Bennett said, scratching his head a little sheepishly.

Because of his constitution, he was always getting hurt—old injuries constantly piling up with new ones.

He came to the church often to ask Barbara for healing. Thankfully, healing at the church didn’t cost anything, or with the rate he got injured, he’d have gone bankrupt after just a few visits.

With how often he came, he’d long since gotten familiar with the Deaconess named Barbara.

“That’s good. Be more careful next time, okay? If you keep getting hurt, your family’s going to worry,” Barbara said, her eyes curving into a smile.

For her, being able to help others was already a source of great joy.

“Mhm! This time I actually brought some friends from Liyue to visit the church. If you’re busy, Barbara, go ahead and don’t worry about us.”

“Oh? Friends from Liyue? What a coincidence—I’m free right now, so I can show you around!” Barbara’s mood lifted as her eyes landed on the two unfamiliar faces: Jiang Bai and Hu Tao.

Meeting new friends was always something that made her happy.

Especially since, for once, Bennett wasn’t here because he was injured.

“Hiya~ I’m Hu Tao.”

“I’m Jiang Bai.”

“Nice to meet you! I’m Barbara, a Deaconess of the Church of Favonius,” she said with a graceful nod and the customary gesture of a nun.

“With an official introduction from a church priestess? That’s perfect!” Hu Tao was quick to warm up to her, soon linking arms and peppering Barbara with questions.

“So the church priests are responsible for healing people’s injuries?”

“Yes! Though we can only treat simple wounds. If it’s a more serious illness, you’ll need to see a doctor…”

After all, there were limits to a priest’s healing abilities. Treating minor injuries was no trouble, especially for Barbara, who possessed a Vision bestowed by the Hydro Archon. With it, she could quickly stop bleeding and even accelerate recovery.

But her stamina was limited, and high-intensity healing wasn’t something she could maintain for long.

Still, with the Knights of Favonius keeping watch and the Anemo Archon’s blessing, Mondstadt was a peaceful place, and injuries were rare.

“That’s amazing!” Hu Tao exclaimed, eyes widening in surprise.

Liyue was wealthy, but correspondingly, Bubu Pharmacy’s medicine didn’t come cheap.

Free medical care—she’d only heard of that in Sumeru. Looks like she’d really seen too little of the world.

Barbara, pleased by the chance to share her city’s virtues, gave her a playful wink and said proudly, “And not only is healing free—Mondstadt even has a grand library! It’s open to everyone, and there are so many books to read!”

“Yes, yes,” Bennett chimed in. “Though I don’t really like reading much, so I hardly ever go.”

“But Mondstadt wasn’t always like this. It’s all thanks to the hero Vennessa, who lived a thousand years ago…” Barbara paused, leaving the story hanging for a beat.

“Oh? How so?” Jiang Bai asked, curious. He didn’t know a thing about Mondstadt’s history.

Barbara cleared her throat and began recounting the key events from the miraculous chronicles of the Anemo Archon and the history of Mondstadt—knowledge every member of the clergy was expected to memorize.

“Around three thousand years ago, Mondstadt was nothing like the verdant land it is today—it was a frozen tundra buried in snow and ice.

“Back then, the people of Mondstadt were ruled by the tyrannical Lord of the Storm, a god of harsh winds. Under his cruel rule, they barely managed to survive.

“Then came Barbatos, a wind spirit who led the people in overthrowing the tyrant known as the King of the Tower. He freed them from tyranny, then flattened the mountains and scattered the snowstorms, transforming this bitter land into the green Mondstadt we now know.

“Under the Archon’s watchful gaze, the people built a city and established order. When their lives had finally stabilized, Lord Barbatos quietly left Mondstadt.

“Roughly a thousand years later, that ancient order began to rot. The old aristocracy that ruled over Mondstadt had grown decadent and corrupt. They no longer listened to the people, and life under their rule became exceedingly harsh…

“At that time, Lord Barbatos returned once more, aiding Lady Vennessa in toppling the corrupt nobles. From their efforts rose the Knights of Favonius we know today.

“Since then, Lord Barbatos has vanished once again—it’s been a thousand years since his last appearance. But under his blessing, Mondstadt has remained at peace ever since…”

Though Barbara’s version of the story was simplified, she’d covered all the major turning points.

To recount Mondstadt’s full history properly would take far more than a few words.

After all, the books on Mondstadt’s history filled entire shelves at the city’s library—and few people had ever managed to read them all.

“It really is completely different from Liyue,” Hu Tao remarked.

Compared to the diligent and ever-present Geo Archon, Mondstadt’s Archon seemed to take a hands-off approach—only showing up when things went seriously wrong.

“Even though the Anemo Archon hasn’t shown himself again, the wind is always with us.” Barbara pressed her hands together at her chest and prayed, her expression one of deep devotion.

Bennett chuckled. “My dads always tell me, ‘Adventurers mustn’t fear death. The wind will carry our souls home.’ So if I die someday, I’ve gotta make sure it’s in a place where the wind still blows!”

Hu Tao and Jiang Bai exchanged a glance, both coming to the same unspoken realization.

It was going to be hard to expand their business in Mondstadt.

But on the other hand, if the wind sent souls home, and they specialized in returning bodies home… maybe the two weren’t so incompatible after all?

That said, there weren’t many people in need of such services.

Even their first client, Cartis, had only wanted his adventures recorded—so that the stories he’d lived through on Dragonspine wouldn’t be lost beneath the snow. It wasn’t really about bringing his remains back to his homeland.

Hearing Bennett’s words, Barbara gave him a light smack on the back of the head, her brows drawn together as she scolded him.

“How can you talk about death so casually? What if something really does happen?”

“Don’t worry, I’ve still got my dads to look after—I’m not going anywhere that easily.” Bennett gave a sheepish laugh.

He’d thought about death a long time ago. After all, he’d survived countless brushes with it, and once, he’d even come within a hair’s breadth of dying.

He used to be terrified of dying. But eventually, he came to terms with it.

For an adventurer, the best end would be to give their life in the pursuit of treasure and the secrets of the earth—and let the wind carry their soul home.

That didn’t mean he didn’t value life. On the contrary, he cherished it deeply.

No matter how dire the situation, he would always fight to live with everything he had.

Among the people present, no one understood the matter of life and death more profoundly than Hu Tao, the Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.

She didn’t like how people treated death as a taboo topic. That was why she promoted funerary services openly in Liyue—she wanted people to let go of old notions and face death with a calm heart.

But that didn’t mean she was lacking in emotional intelligence.

—

This is a fan translation of 胡桃拿我冲业绩 by 余溯. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!