all in a million mora • genshin fic

1. 𝘣𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵

It's no secret that your family has been on the decline ever since your father took over the position of family head— his penchant for reckless and excessive gambling alone led to the inevitable pawning of near-priceless family heirlooms and repeated, painful partings with luxuries that you hadn't quite realised were luxuries till they were gone. Needless to say, your father was in deep— so much so that he was willing to sell anything with value— including you.

Not that it was ever a cause for concern on your part. Most families who were capable of footing the outrageous bill your father had weighed you down with had long chosen to distance themselves from yours the moment they caught wind of your father's incompetency, and those who did, even briefly, consider buying you out couldn't even hope to cover half of the debt that your father had racked up. Who in Teyvat would ever make such a foolish decision?

As it turns out, you haven't quite met all the lunatics worth knowing in the kingdom, because your parents finally get you a birthday present for the first time in ten years.

You instantly know something is up, of course. For starters, both your parents are smiling at the dinner table— something that happens less than your father making a net positive from his days spent at the casino. Your father, at a letter with some elaborate seal that definitely did not resemble those of his debtors, and your mother, whose only happiness in life was tangible, material wealth— something that she was lacking in alarming amounts.

"Happy birthday, my darling daughter," she croons in a sickeningly sweet voice. You're caught off-guard, to say the least— birthdays were forgotten about in your household unless they were your father's. And even then, they were disappointing, low-effort things hat were mostly just stale cake and ingenuine well-wishes.

"You know we love you very much, don't you?" your father adds, finally putting the letter to the side. "And that we always want the best for you."

It takes all your willpower not to scoff at the audacity of this man— the gaping disparity between his words and actions is enough to give you whiplash. Instead, your just stab the stiff, unseasoned piece of meat lying on your plate a little too forcefully, and force out a strained of course, Father.

"So, we've decided to get you a birthday present this year. One that your mother and I think you like very, very much." he continues on, his mouth just barely lifting at the edges. Something about the note of anticipation colouring his voice just made you dread whatever 'present' it was that he had in store.

"You're getting married to Duke Ragnvindr."

There's a sudden sense of detachment from reality as you process this new piece of information, but still snared in the throes of disbelief. You? Marry Duke Ragnvindr? The sheer absurdity of the statement is enough to make you burst into peals of unfettered laughter.

Everyone in the kingdom knows the name Ragnvindr— it's one of those names that are uttered both by nobles at parties, laced with envy, and through slurred speech by commoners at a bar. The tales of their singlehanded revitalisation of the wine industry are spread far and wide throughout the kingdom— though they're most popular amongst the heavier drinkers.

Then, of course, there's what the noblewomen had to say about the Ragnvindrs— or, more specifically, Diluc Ragnvindr, and his desirability as a bachelor. If the coy giggles that erupted whenever his name was mentioned and his unofficial role as the kingdom's 'number one, most desirable bachelor' was anything to go by, this man was in a position far beyond what you could ever hope to achieve in any lifetime. And he would be immensely stupid to squander that on a girl who was only ever loaded with emotional baggage.

"Hah. Funny joke, Father. Care to crack another?"  Did that bastard enjoy dangling the possibility of a better life before you, like you were just some cat that pounced at anything that moved thoughtlessly?

For once, the man who you have the misfortune of calling your father doesn't respond snidely to the jab, and instead slides the letter he was perusing over to you.

"Not this time, I'm afraid."

That's when it clicks— that elaborate seal... isn't that the emblem of the Ragnvindr clan? Is there a possibility, even if it's bordering on impossibility, that your father, who lies so often that he starts to believe himself, is telling the truth for once?

You skim past all the fancy, frilly pleasantries. After all, there's really only one sentence you're looking for, and you find it right at the bottom— such an important, life-changing statement hidden amongst perfunctory well-wishes—

'I, Duke Diluc Ragnvindr, for the price of a million mora, agree to buy your daughter's hand in marriage.'

~~~~

The stark reality of the situation doesn't quite set in until you wake up the next morning, sleep deprived and desperate for sustenance and finding two fresh faces in lieu of the stale bread you've been conditioned to expect as breakfast.

"These are servants from the Ragnvindr household," your mother explains. "They're here to escort you to their mansion."

Pause. You blink blearily at them, not quite in the world of the awoken— not quite conscious enough to experience the fight-or-flight fuelled adrenaline. Two thoughts rise to the forefront of your mind— and you realise that you have a long way to go in terms of independence when one of them is the nagging concern of the level of shame you bring upon your household when you meet visitors with a nasty bed head and a nightgown that's gone into the wash far too many times for public decency.

The other, of course, is mounting alarm at how quickly things are progressing— who in Teyvat expects to be carted off to their fiancé's house a day after being proposed to on paper?

Your mother, apparently, expects that for you— and it isn't until you're a little more liberated from the brain fog that you realise that you really should have seen it coming, because to her you're nothing more than a black hole that she has no choice but to shovel food and coin into without ever hoping to see it come back.

Without much fanfare, you get dressed slightly more presentably for a first meeting with your fiancé and stand by the front steps to your manor with all your worldly possessions packed away in a single, travel-size handbag. The two servants— Hillie and Moco— flank you, and your parents stand before you with crocodile tears trickling down their cheeks.

"Well, I guess this is it," you say, rather apathetically. You know you should feel something, anything, really— you're leaving the only place you've ever known as home for the first time in your life, after all— but you can't really bring yourself to miss a place that never truly felt like one.

"Don't let your parents down in front of the Ragnvindrs," your father says, through watery sniffles. It doesn't dull the barest edge of a threat there. Your mother just dabs away wordlessly at her tears. You sigh inwardly— perhaps it was too much to hope that they would offer you even a shred of sincerity in your last moments together.

And with that uneventful, disappointing farewell, you board the carriage prepared for you by the Ragnvindrs. With the sharp crack of a whip, the horses take off in the direction opposite of all that you've ever known.

You don't bother sparing a glance behind.

a/n:
#1) it's my first time trying to write a reader/character fic, so please forgive me if i make any errors!
#2) this fic is also NOT proofread, but please feel free to point out any grammatical errors (i'm not very strong in english; sorry!)
#3) i'm not well-versed in how things work in actual fantasy fics, so there will be inaccuracies
#4) i can't guarantee that updates will be consistent, but this of course depends on the reception this fic receives as well as my workload on any given week!
#5) last but definitely not least, thank you so much for giving this fic a read!! i know it's only just starting out and we haven't even met the m/l yet, but i promise i'll get us there in the next chapter