Chapter 188: Chapter 188: Your Highness

Chapter 188: Your Highness

Could the Tsaritsa really save these humans?

Of course she could—if she were here in the flesh, rescuing them would be effortless.

But the current her was little more than a phantom, a shade of her true form. Manifesting even this much power—enough to grant these people a painless death—was already pushing the limits.

Snow and frost danced across Bai Luo’s battered body, as if trying to soothe his pain.

[You’ve done all you could.]

The blizzard gradually calmed, and from the shimmering ice below, a few round, chubby cyro slimes began to form.

They shook their tiny heads playfully, scattering snow from their crowns, and looked around in dazed confusion.

These elemental beasts typically only emerged in places rich in cyro energy, such as at snowy peaks.

Bai Luo had always wondered why these slimes showed up near a derelict ship steeped in thunder elemental residue. Could it have been the work of an Abyssal Mage, commanding them?

Now it seemed… it was the Tsaritsa’s presence that summoned them.

The Tsaritsa glanced at Sveta, who was still kneeling in reverence nearby. With a gentle wave of her hand, a narrow path of ice began to form over the water..

The path was just wide enough to allow a carriage to pass.

Her intent couldn’t have been clearer.

Bai Luo sheathed his Reverse Blade Sword. He wanted to say something—but before he could, the wind and snow coalesced into invisible hands, softly pushing him forward, away from the sunken wreckage.

When he reached the shore, the shogunate soldiers didn’t dare approach.

That arrow from earlier… Its sheer force had burned itself into their memories.

No mere mortal could do that.

Even those with Visions would be hard-pressed to unleash such power.

A monster? A demon god? A celestial immortal?

Whatever Bai Luo was… he was clearly far beyond anything they could hope to contend with.

Only when he and Sveta disappeared into the mists of Tatarasuna’s shore did the soldiers finally let out a collective breath of relief.

The unseen force continued to guide Bai Luo, taking him away from Tatarasuna and back toward Nazuchi Beach.

As its strength gradually faded, he turned to glance behind him—off in the distance, the mast of the wrecked ship was still barely visible above the waves.

He claimed he didn’t care about those people, but…

The image of the old man who had gifted him the erhu floated to the surface of his mind. And his heart clenched with a dull ache.

Not grief, exactly.

Something heavier. Something… like helplessness.

And from that weight, a bitter sigh escaped his lips.

“Should I play some song to send them off..?”

The moment the words left his mouth, both Sveta—following silently behind—and the Tsaritsa’s phantom paused, as if startled.

Bai Luo reached for his Reverse Blade Sword.

Hoo… whoosh—!

The frost in the air condensed beneath the Tsaritsa’s lingering illusion. It gathered into a shimmering sphere of elemental energy.

Once it reached its peak, the orb exploded midair with a soft, crystalline burst.

Snowflakes, pure and glittering, began to fall—blanketing the beach in a layer of glistening white.

And when Bai Luo looked again, the Tsaritsa’s image was gone.

Only a few scattered ice crystals remained, twinkling like tiny stars under the first light of dawn.

“…”

’Did I offer her a Sunset Fruit…?’ he wondered, dumbfounded.

He had considered giving her one, sure.

But that thought had never even made it to his lips.

After all, who knew what would happen if the Tsaritsa did accept it?

She might even send Tartaglia to “thank” him.

“Ah well… time to head back to the resistance camp.”

. . . . . . . ..

“To allow another god to run rampant on one’s own land… how amusing.”

High above Tatarasuna, on a crag that overlooked the shattered shipwreck, stood a figure cloaked in black.

Eyes sharp beneath the hood, the stranger observed the sea with keen interest, as though they’d stumbled upon something unexpectedly entertaining.

Beneath the robes, one could just make out the attire of a foreigner—an outsider.

The voice that slipped out from under the hood was low and soft, androgynous, though tinged with a hint of youthful naivety.

A child, perhaps?

But on the ever-mysterious continent of Teyvat, appearances were often deceiving.

That seemingly ordinary middle-aged man sipping tea by the roadside? He could very well be a thousand-year-old sage collecting debts with interest.

“Your Highness.”

A flicker of violet light, and a small, fur-covered creature appeared behind the black-robed figure, bowing deeply.

An Abyss Mage—one of those strange, otherworldly beasts from the depths of the Abyss.

The figure didn’t turn around.

Only spoke, voice flat.

“Well?”

“The Lector has successfully infiltrated Enkanomiya. However…”

That mushroom-shaped explosion from earlier—everyone nearby had surely seen it. The Abyss Mage had, too.

At first, it had assumed the blast was caused by its own master.

But now… it seemed that wasn’t the case at all.

“The wreckage may hold clues. Investigate it. Bring me what you find.”

A thoughtful gleam flickered behind the figure’s concealed eyes.

That technique… it didn’t feel native to this world.

No—it was unmistakably foreign.

Could it be…

“But, Your Highness… with all this commotion, the Raiden Shogun herself is bound to show up. I’m afraid we might provoke her.”

If it were only a Vision-wielder, the mage could handle it.

But the Shogun?

That was a force it dared not antagonize.

“Worry not. She’s already been here. Inazuma… won’t be quiet for a while.”

Though that god now ruled through a puppet, the programming embedded in that body would have surely triggered upon sensing the Tsaritsa’s power.

And indeed—at the very moment the Tsaritsa had released her might, the Shogun had appeared nearby.

Her loyal retainers had come with her.

The robed figure wasn’t sure why they hadn’t acted.

Perhaps they were waiting—calculating.

But now that their spies had been exposed, it was likely Inazuma would begin an internal purge.

She would have to.

“Understood.”

The Abyss Mage bowed again, but after a pause, ventured to ask another question.

“Will Your Highness be visiting Inazuma City, then?”

“No. I’m heading to Mondstadt.”

The figure walked calmly to the cliff’s edge, sat without hesitation, legs dangling into the void.

Their gaze turned toward the far horizon—toward the distant land beyond the waves.

“It is the end… and the beginning. I must go there.”

“Understood. Then we’ll entrust Enkanomiya entirely to the Lector. If needed, we’ll reach out to him for assistance.”

The Abyss Mage hesitated, then added in a hushed tone:

“Your Highness… is it time to handle the Anemo God’s champion?”

Mondstadt.

That meant that project.

The one involving the dragon.

Something important enough that their lord would personally intervene.

“Yes… and no.”

A massive, abyssal gate began to materialize behind the figure, its energy warping the air with dark ripples.

The black cloak billowed from the surge of power, revealing a flash of golden hair beneath the hood.

They stood.

With one smooth motion, the cloak fell back into place, concealing their features once again.

The aura of the Abyss swallowed their form completely.

And then—they were gone.

Only the Abyss Mage remained.

. . . . .

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