Baizhu informed Yelan and the others that Mu Qingge needed quiet rest, so they refrained from entering the room.
Yelan stayed for only a short while before leaving, as she had urgent matters to attend to. She promised to return later.
Inside the room, Mu Qingge lay peacefully on the bed, deep in slumber, her complexion now much rosier.
Although her battle with Angie had left her with significant injuries, the most severe damage came from Osial's subsequent strike.
The shield she had conjured, forged by draining every last drop of her Elemental Power and physical strength, shattered violently, the backlash from its destruction taking a heavy toll.
Jiang Mumu's consciousness was currently absent from this body, residing instead within Angie's body on the other side.
Angie and Mu Qingge had sustained similar injuries, but Angie had avoided the final confrontation with Osial. After bringing her brother Tartaglia back, she had immediately begun recuperating, thus remaining conscious.
Bang!
The door burst open, startling Angie awake. She immediately opened her eyes and looked up warily.
"Rosalyne?"
"Come, leave with me immediately."
"What's wrong?"
Angie frowned, her face unnaturally pale and drained of color.
"Stop wasting time. If you don't want to be captured by the Qixing and thrown in jail, move it!"
Rosalyne's tone remained as haughty as ever.
Angie fell silent for two seconds before slowly beginning to move. However, she was so weak that she stumbled after just one step, nearly falling to the ground.
Angie suddenly felt herself being pulled into a soft embrace and looked up.
Rosalyne clicked her tongue. "What a nuisance."
Despite her words, Rosalyne gently helped Angie out the door.
"Where's my brother?"
"Him? He's cleaning up the mess you made."
Cough, cough
Even the short walk aggravated Angie's internal injuries, causing her to uncontrollably cough up a mouthful of blood.
Angie had already removed her mysterious silver mask, revealing her devastatingly beautiful face.
Rosalyne kept her arm around Angie's shoulders as they made their way toward the Fatui warship.
"Do you really hate that girl that much?" Rosalyne asked.
"You two were acting like you were willing to die to kill each other. It doesn't make any sense. Logically, you shouldn't have even met her before."
"She hurt my brother," Angie replied simply, her reason causing Rosalyne to pause in surprise.
"Just because of that?"
"Isn't that enough?"
"Hmph, if you say it's enough, then it's enough," Rosalyne sneered, ceasing her questioning, though a flicker of unspoken meaning flashed in her eyes.
The Fatui's flagship was anchored far from the battlefield. Thanks to their swift maneuverability, the Millelith remained unaware of Angie's group boarding the ship.
"Lady Signora, Lady Angie," the Fatui soldiers on board saluted respectfully.
Though not a Fatui Harbinger herself, Angie's status rivaled that of the Harbingers.
Firstly, she was Childe's younger sister and Capitano's most trusted aide.
Moreover, rumor had it that Her Majesty the Tsaritsa had once considered elevating her to Harbinger status, though the plan never materialized for unknown reasons.
Rosalyne handed Angie over to her personal Mirror Maiden, then turned to address the remaining Fatui soldiers.
"Depart this place immediately and return to Snezhnaya."
"Understood!"
-
Ailina was a child of the House of the Hearth, and after leaving the House, she became a Mirror Maiden.
Later, Angie took a liking to her, and Ailina followed Angie, becoming her personal attendant.
Tall and full-figured, she perfectly embodied the image of a royal guardswoman.
During the previous operation, Angie had left her on the ship for convenience.
"My Lady, what happened? Who hurt you like this?"
Ailina's eyes burned with worry and fury. Though nominally Angie's attendant and though Angie rarely spoke much, their relationship was more akin to that of sisters.
Well, she was more like the older sister type of sister.
Angie was gently lifted into Ailina's arms in a princess carry, a position that made the corner of her mouth twitch involuntarily.
"P-put me down. I can walk myself."
Ailina obeyed immediately, setting Angie down carefully and supporting her at the elbow.
While Angie's injuries appeared severe, they were actually quite minor. She could have healed them instantly with a few Emotional Feedback Points.
But Angie would never resort to such shortcuts. For the sake of perfect execution, she preferred to endure some pain.
This persona would be temporarily going offline as Angie prepared to execute her plan in Mondstadt.
But just as Angie finished her medicine, lay down, and closed her eyes to rest, a figure suddenly landed on the roof of her room.
The clattering of tiles immediately alerted her.
"Who's there?!"
"What's wrong?" Ailina rushed in.
Angie pointed to the roof. Before Ailina could even glance up, the roof shattered, and a cyan figure plummeted down.
Ailina reacted instantly. In the blink of an eye, she formed a hand seal, and a Cryo flower bloomed beneath the cyan figure's feet.
But the small cyan figure moved even faster, dodging out of the ice flower's range. With a swift counterstrike, it thrust its spear, and a burst of Anemo Energy shattered the ice flower.
The spear's momentum carried through, striking at Ailina.
Angie could no longer remain still. Forcing herself to move, she summoned an Ice Shield to block the attack, shielding Ailina.
The Ice Shield shattered, and Angie violently coughed up a mouthful of blood.
While her methods of harvesting Emotional Feedback were somewhat ruthless, she refused to let anyone else suffer or die because of her actions, except for her own demise.
This was Angie's bottom line, provided these people were good.
"Captain!"
Ailina immediately stepped forward, shielding Angie with her body as she glared warily at the small, teal-haired figure.
"Conqueror of Demons!" Angie exclaimed, genuinely surprised. She hadn't expected him to follow her even here.
Xiao was mildly surprised as well. Although he was Liyue's Vigilant Yaksha, many of its people wouldn't recognize him.
The commotion naturally drew the attention of others, but Angie was particularly taken aback when Lady La Signora arrived first.
La Signora surveyed the scene. "Liyue's Vigilant Yaksha, crashing a gathering uninvited? How rude! Did Morax forget to teach you manners?"
Typical La Signora, still spewing venom, Angie thought.
From Angie's perspective, La Signora's right hand, concealed behind her back, was already gathering considerable Ice Elemental Power, poised to strike at any moment.
Angie's brow twitched. Has this woman always been this reckless?
Injured as I am, can she really take on Xiao? she wondered.
Suicide mission, much?!
Angie stepped forward and gently pressed La Signora's hand, shaking her head slightly when the woman glanced at her.
Xiao cast a cold glance at La Signora before turning his gaze back to Angie.
"By order of the Geo Archon, I am to bring back the one who harmed the Kaiyang. Will you come with me, or shall I take you by force?"
Take?
This 'take' probably isn't what I'm imagining, is it?
Angie remained calm. She had anticipated this outcome and knew there were multiple ways to resolve it.
However, Ailina and La Signora were unaware of this. Ailina stood poised to strike, while La Signora confidently believed she could easily subdue the small figure before her.
Seeing Angie's silence, Xiao took it as her answer. Elemental Power surged around him as he prepared to subdue her.
But just then, footsteps echoed through the corridor.
Hearing the familiar cadence, Angie froze mid-stride and retreated.
Xiao also turned toward the entrance.
"I deeply apologize for Angie's actions within your nation," a magnetic voice declared. "I will compensate your nation for this matter. I implore this Adeptus to show leniency."
The magnetic voice was unmistakable.
Xiao immediately sensed the overwhelming pressure emanating from his opponent, realizing this was no ordinary foe.
He glanced around, saying nothing, but his surging Elemental Power subsided.
Xiao wasn't afraid, but the situation had already turned against him. Forcing a confrontation would almost certainly result in defeat.
Moreover, the Geo Archon's orders were clear: recover the price they were meant to pay, and if possible, bring back the one responsible. If not, return.
Earlier, Xiao hadn't fully grasped what the Geo Archon meant by "if not," but now it seemed the Geo Archon might have foreseen this outcome all along.
The Geo Archon's words must hold a deeper meaning.