"Venti, do you have any connection to the Ruler of Time?"
"A little," Venti said with a nod, though he didn't elaborate.
"To summon two Rulers at once… impressive," he added.
"Last time, things just got out of hand with Ishtaroth. It wasn't intentional," Koji said, shrugging.
If all four Rulers were female, then perhaps even the slumbering Celestia's Will was female too.
"Koji, if you became Celestia itself, would that make me the Celestial Queen?" Lumine asked seriously.
Koji blinked, half admiring her creative thinking.
"If you want to, you might very well become Celestia."
Lumine thought for a moment, then turned to Rukkhadevata and the others.
"If I became Celestia, that would make all of you my subordinates, right?"
Rukkhadevata nodded. "As the Seven who govern the mortal world, we would follow the commands issued by Celestia's Will."
Few had ever seen the true Celestia, yet none dared disrespect it—not even the Four Rulers.
Venti laughed lightly. "If you were Celestia, things would be easy. I'd just resign. No more god of wind duties for me."
"Hah! Dream on. If I were Celestia, you'd be working overtime forever!" Lumine shot back.
Koji smirked. "He knows you too well. Resignation wouldn't save him."
"..."
Meanwhile, in Sumeru.
Clack!Clack!Clack!
Alhaitham stared at the glowing message on his Akasha Terminal.
He had just received notice of his promotion.
Acting Grand Sage.
He blinked blankly, feeling the weight of the sky itself fall onto his shoulders.
He'd been perfectly content as a humble Scribe—light work, high pay, a nice home, and peace.
"Congratulations on your promotion, Alhaitham."
Kaveh grinned from across the room, clearly amused by his misery.
"The rent's going up next month," Alhaitham replied dryly.
"NOOOO!" Kaveh's smile instantly shattered.
Elsewhere, Rukkhadevata was browsing Sumeru's database through the Akasha. She sighed.
Qualified people were rare in Sumeru—especially those capable of combat. Even the military was weak.
"Tighnari could be useful. Bring him in. Cyno, too—he's strong and experienced. Have him train our forces."
Sumeru was the land of wisdom, but wisdom alone couldn't defend a nation.
Rukkhadevata's gaze softened when she turned to Nahida.
"Nothing major. Though, Nahida—since I'm technically your predecessor, shouldn't you call me… mother?"
Without warning, she hugged the small goddess, inhaling that pure, verdant aura.
"M-mother…?" Nahida froze, face flushed.
She couldn't exactly deny it, but saying it out loud was far too awkward.
At Avidya Forest.
Tighnari fastened his pack and looked at Collei.
"Collei, I'll be working in Sumeru City for a while. Once you return from Mondstadt, come find me there."
He'd kept his distance from the Akademiya for years—but now that the Greater Lord herself had returned, and personally invited him to serve, he couldn't refuse.
"I understand, Master," Collei said, smiling faintly. She packed up her own things, ready to leave for Mondstadt and see her friends.
The faith of Sumeru's people in the Greater Lord ran deep—reform required no effort. Her will alone was enough.
"Look at Rukkhadevata, then look at Venti—don't you two ever feel guilty?" Lumine said sharply.
"What we've been doing these years…" Venti trailed off, scratching his head.
When he tried to think about it, the truth was embarrassing.
Drinking, wandering, playing music… nothing remotely like ruling.
Compared to Rukkhadevata, he really did seem like a freeloader.
"Cough, cough. Jean's far better at running Mondstadt than I am," he said shamelessly.
Everyone gave him a look of pure disbelief.
Eula, as a Mondstadt native, had long since accepted her archon's hopeless nature.
"Mr. Wind Archon," Nahida asked curiously, "how do you govern your nation?"
"...?"
Venti blinked.
Koji, Lumine, and Rukkhadevata all burst out laughing.
"You're asking him how to rule?"
Poor Nahida—so pure, so naive.
Venti didn't even know how to answer.
Rukkhadevata sighed. "Don't expect too much from other gods."
"The Geo Archon's basically a retired old man. The Electro Archon's a shut-in who eats sweets and reads light novels all day…" Koji said seriously.
Nahida blinked. Those descriptions were… uncomfortably vivid.
The divine image she'd once held was beginning to crack.
"Is that true?" she asked, glancing at Rukkhadevata.
Rukkhadevata nodded. "Indeed. I can vouch for it."
"With examples like them," Venti said cheerfully, "I don't look so bad, do I?"
Rukkhadevata could only shake her head. The so-called majesty of the gods was mostly built by the imagination of mortals.
Nahida stood quietly, processing the revelation. So this was what her peers were really like?
What did it mean to be a qualified god, then?
She truly didn't know.
"Just learn from Rukkhadevata," Koji said simply. "At least she's reliable."
That, everyone agreed, was true. Compared to the other archons, Rukkhadevata was… normal.
Nahida nodded earnestly. Watching Venti's nonsense had been enough to convince her that divinity wasn't the same as perfection.
(End of Chapter)
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