Su Yuan and Aether's plan ultimately failed…
The Eerie "Klee" had no intention of playing with the children at all, and instead hurled countless bombs straight at them…
Although Su Yuan and Aether reacted as quickly as they could, trying to shield the children and dodge the blasts, several of them were still injured — some even blown to pieces on the spot…
"Klee, weren't you going to play with your friends? Why are you hurting them???"
Aether looked at the "Klee" standing at the doorway, his face filled with disbelief and sorrow, and asked.
"Harurorila~ Honorary Knight big brother, how could blowing up fish ever be more fun than blowing up people?"
"Klee" grinned grotesquely as she replied:
"Tell me, should I shove these bombs straight into your mouths? Or dig out your eyeballs and stuff the bombs into those empty sockets? Or maybe… I should put them in your *holes instead, and let flowers bloom in your backsides???"
The surviving children, terrified by this strange and horrifying "Klee," burst into screams and sobs, scattering in all directions as they tried desperately to flee…
"Run? Do you really think you can get away???"
"Klee" sneered, flinging more bombs from her hands.
These bombs, twisted by eerie power, ignored all physical laws of trajectory and inertia — instead homing in like guided missiles, locking precisely onto each fleeing child…
At that moment, Su Yuan and Aether tried to rush in to rescue the kids, but in the next second, their bodies turned rigid, locked in place, completely unable to move…
"Honorary Knight big brother, Su Yuan big brother, just stand there and watch. Don't try to stop me from blowing people up…"
And so, Su Yuan and Aether could only watch helplessly as the fleeing children were shredded into chunks of flesh and blood by "Klee's" bombs.
Not a single one survived — every last child was annihilated.
After wiping out all the children, "Klee" walked toward Su Yuan and Aether, her face twisted into a grotesque, chilling smile.
She spoke word by word:
"Honorary Knight big brother… Su Yuan big brother… now, you get to choose between each other…"
"One of you will be blown to pieces by my bombs… while the other will be burned alive by me — the 'Cremation Knight'!!!"
Su Yuan understood then that he and Aether were both doomed to die…
But it didn't matter.
As long as he had uncovered the reason behind Klee's corruption, he could prevent it from happening next time!
Su Yuan thought to himself: being blown up by a bomb would at least be instant, while being burned alive would be long and excruciatingly painful.
So, he stared at "Klee" and shouted:
"Klee, if you've got the guts, then burn me alive! I want to see just how hot your flames can get — whether they can reduce me to nothing but ashes!!!"
But right after saying those words, Su Yuan suddenly felt a pang of regret…
Because—didn't that count as provoking "Klee" into killing him?
Wouldn't that violate the old death-rewind rules — no suicide, no inducing others to kill you?
Did those rules still apply here in Mondstadt?
Aether, seeming to sense Su Yuan's intent, also spoke up:
"Su Yuan, don't you know being burned alive is unbearably painful? If someone has to burn, then let it be me instead!!!"
"Honorary Knight big brother, I'm really sorry…"
"Klee" spoke with an apologetic smile:
"But everything has to follow the proper order. Surely you understand that, right?"
As she spoke, "Klee" pried open Aether's mouth with her hand and shoved several bombs inside…
"Fiery explosions… dazzling sparks… I just love them so much!!!"
In the next instant, amid "Klee's" delighted exclamation, the bombs exploded inside Aether's mouth, blasting his entire head into pieces!
Su Yuan could hardly bear to watch, and thought to himself: Next time… I must save Klee, and I must save Aether…
"Now then, it's your turn, Su Yuan big brother…"
"Klee" looked at him with a beaming grin, eerie flames flickering in her hands.
"I'm very merciful and obedient, you know…"
"Do you prefer a slow cremation with gentle flames, or a rapid cremation with blazing fire? Either way, I'll gladly oblige you!"
But in the very next moment, something unexpected happened!
The once-cheerful smile on "Klee's" face suddenly vanished, replaced by a grave expression.
Beads of sweat the size of beans burst forth from her forehead and rolled down her cheeks onto the ground…
"Klee" didn't even know why — but she could feel an overwhelming terror, an imminent threat to her very life…
"Su Yuan, Traveler, are you two alright?"
At that moment, Jean's voice rang out from within the Knights of Favonius headquarters:
"We heard multiple explosions just now — what on earth is happening out there…?"
Yet what Su Yuan never expected was that Jean's voice was suddenly cut off.
Moments later, her blood-soaked head rolled right to the feet of Su Yuan and "Klee"…
Su Yuan stared at the scene in utter horror.
What on earth was happening?
Who killed Jean?
Could it be that someone else had already fallen under the corruption of the eerie power?
"How dare you… who gave you the courage to do this…"
Soon after, Su Yuan heard a voice filled with unbearable pain and madness, and then Paimon's figure appeared before him…
"The Traveler… the Traveler is dead!!!"
"I've been following in the Traveler's footsteps all this time, only so I could always stay by his side…"
"But now… you've mercilessly taken him away from me…"
"This place… is it hell? No… this is far crueler than hell itself!!!"
"A world without the Traveler — what meaning could it possibly have?"
"Traveler, I will destroy this world without you…"
"And then… I'll create a new one, a world where you exist once more!!!!"
In an instant, two completely different powers erupted from Paimon's small body…
One of them was a twisted blend of pitch-black and blood-red — the eerie power everyone was all too familiar with.
The other, however, was a radiant force of golden and orange intertwined — its nature unknown, yet no less terrifying than the eerie power itself.
Su Yuan looked on, too shocked to even speak…
What was happening?
Did Paimon fall into a Eerie state after the Traveler's death?
But… she didn't seem completely controlled by the eerie power.
That golden-orange force — what in the world was it?
And most importantly, why did Su Yuan feel that this Paimon before his eyes looked strangely familiar…?
As if he had once, long ago, witnessed a nearly identical scene with his own eyes.
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