"Such a grand display of power!"
Late at night.
Inside the Northland Bank.
After a long, busy day, the bank had finally closed its doors. However, the lights inside remained bright. The Fatui had gathered, waiting in solemn silence.
Before long, a shadow appeared outside. The main doors swung open, and a graceful, imposing figure stepped before the crowd.
"Lord La Signora, welcome back!"
"Northland Bank has been awaiting your return, My Lady."
"My Lady, Lord Childe is waiting for you."
The Fatui members dropped to one knee, awaiting her command. The woman standing before them was none other than the Eighth of the Fatui HarbingersLa Signora. Her true name was Rosalyne-Kruzchka Lohefalter.
Rosalyne entered the Northland Bank with a cold, displeased expression. "What on earth is going on? The plan in Mondstadt is just about to unfold! Why summon me back at such a critical moment?"
"My, my. Throwing a tantrum the moment you return? As expected of the Crimson Witch of Flames, your temper is as fiery as ever."
Tartaglia stepped out from a side door, a frivolous smile playing on his lips. He generally disliked dealing with the other Harbingers, and he held no particular affection for La Signora.
Seeing Childe approach, Rosalyne furrowed her brows. "Childe, you are truly a disgrace to Her Majesty. She left you in charge of Liyue, yet so many accidents have occurred under your watch!"
"Do you have any idea how urgent the situation is in Mondstadt? Forcing me back to Liyue now will delay our plans there. Are you going to take responsibility for that?"
Rosalyne snorted and walked straight toward the meeting room. Childe's face flashed with a momentary flicker of annoyance, but for the sake of the Tsaritsa's mission, he suppressed it. He followed her inside and began to explain the recent developments.
"What? Another Harbinger has arrived in Liyue? That's impossible!" Rosalyne snapped, her patience wearing thin.
In the Tsaritsa's plan, there was no room for a third Harbinger in Liyue. She knew the situation here perfectly. The Tsaritsa's order was for her to personally contact Morax, Rex Lapis, and utilize 'The Contract to End All Contracts' to complete their deal. No one could simply seize a Gnosis from Morax's handsnot even the Tsaritsa herself.
Therefore, no matter how many Harbingers came, they would be useless. Her current task was to first go to Mondstadt to take Barbatos's Gnosis, then return to Liyue and wait for the Tsaritsa's signal. Once Morax gave his approval to the plan, he would hand over the Gnosis willingly. It was supposed to be much easier than the operation in Mondstadt.
Now, Childe was claiming there was another Harbinger in Liyue? It sounded like utter nonsense.
Childe shrugged. "According to the reports from the men below, there is an individual capable of using dual elements. He first used Geo, and later used Pyro."
"You know as well as I do that only we Harbingers possess the power to wield two elements."
Rosalyne's eyes flickered with doubt. He was right about that. If someone truly was wielding two elemental powers, they had to be a Harbinger. Could someone have actually arrived in Liyue without her knowing?
She had heard Childe mention that this person claimed he was going to assassinate Morax, and...
Rosalyne frowned. "Can you contact this person? Have him come to the Northland Bank. I wish to meet him personally."
Inside the Serenitea Pot.
Ye Xi cradled two fluffy tails, gazing up at the starry sky through the window. He had to admit, sleeping while hugging tails was incredibly comfortable, even if they weren't his own.
Beside him, Yae Miko had just fallen asleep, her miko outfit discarded carelessly on the floor. Thank goodness for the coconut milk; otherwise, he really wouldn't have been able to handle this fox.
Now that he was lying down and had some free time, he planned to finish what he had started the other night: the Furniture Wish System. He was curious to see what he could pull from this specific gacha pool.
He had tried to check the rewards earlier. Aside from a few decent items, most were marked as "Unknown." However, the known items were very attractivefor instance, an electric-powered off-road vehicle.
Though he didn't know why a furniture pool would contain a car, having one would make traveling across Liyue and Mondstadt much easier. It was the reward he wanted most.
"To get a car, I have to take the gamble!"
He opened the Furniture Wish pool and began his Wish. Across the starry sky, countless stars began to fall. One of them glowed with a purple light. Since this pool had no five-star items, a four-star was more than enough to get excited about!
He clicked the list to check his rewards.
[Four-Star Item: Washing Machine]
[Four-Star Item: Refrigerator]
Ye Xi stared at the first two rewards in a daze. Household appliances? What was he supposed to do with these? Without a power source, these things were just bulky space-wasters.
Over the past three years, he had considered using his knowledge from his previous life to build some modern tools. The problem was that his grades had been terrible back then.
He had spent his days drawing or watching anime, completely neglecting his studies. Now that he was in this world, he couldn't recall any of the physics or chemistry he needed.
He had the finished machines now, but they wouldn't run without electricity. Just as he was starting to get a headache, the next reward caught his eye.
[Four-Star Item: Slime Generator]
Intrigued, Ye Xi clicked the description.
[Slime Generator: Capture Electro Slimes and place them inside the device to provide power to batteries.]
Ye Xi almost clapped in admiration. He remembered someone back at his old company having this exact idea for a web event. He never expected it to actually be implemented here.
He scrolled through the remaining rewards.
[Three-Star Item: Wiring]
[Three-Star Item: Lightbulb Set]
[Three-Star Item...]
The rest were basic electrical components. Ye Xi was overjoyed. The items from this pool were essentially advanced power systems. With these, he could make his mansion inside the Serenitea Pot much more comfortable. At the very least, he wouldn't have to rely on candles anymore!
He decided he would start the renovations tomorrow. He still had 4,640 Primogems left, which he would save for a rainy day.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to him: he absolutely could not bring this technology into Teyvat! Five hundred years ago, Khaenri'ah was wiped out by the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles precisely because their technology had become too advanced. If he placed these devices out in the open world, the Sustainer might find him the very next day.
He decided that aside from using small tools for short durations, everything would stay within the Serenitea Pot. As long as his home here was comfortable, that was enough.
Having made up his mind, Ye Xi felt a wave of drowsiness wash over him and drifted into a deep sleep.
The next day.
Sunlight streamed through the window. Ye Xi felt a heavy weight on his body, making it a bit difficult to breathe. When he opened his eyes, he found Yae Miko clinging to him like an octopus. Her tails were wrapped tightly around him like tentacles.
To be honest, the tails were so soft that he didn't want to let go. One of the tails seemed to have a mind of its own; even though Yae Miko was sound asleep, it was wagging slightly. It was unexpectedly cute.
He stroked her ears and couldn't resist burying his face in her hair to take a deep breath, much like someone "huffing" a cat. Others huffed cats or dogs; he huffed a fox.
"Nngh... mmm..." Yae Miko's brow furrowed slightly as she let go of him. She rolled over to the other side of the bed, finding a comfortable position to continue her slumber.
Her pink cheeks bore the faint imprint of her hair, and her little nose twitched slightly. She looked like a sleeping angel. Although she usually acted like a mischievous "big sister" type, she was actually quite shy at night. Shy, yet prone to playing hard-to-get, which made the experience even more addictive.
After a few minutes, Ye Xi dressed himself and left the Serenitea Pot.
When Ye Xi returned to his bedroom in the mansion, there was a knock at the door.
"Coming," he replied.
He opened the door to find Ningguang standing there.
"Good morning."
Seeing Ye Xi immediately brought back memories of the previous night, and a faint blush touched Ningguang's face. The thought of them sharing drinks still made her heart race. For some reason, looking at him now, she felt an almost uncontrollable urge to "devour" him.
The switch that had been dormant for over twenty years had been flipped, and now the floodgates were open!
Ye Xi responded, "Morning. You must have a lot of work to do today. You should head to Yuehai Pavilion and get everything sorted."
Ningguang nodded gently.
As they stepped out of the residence, Ye Xi noticed a Delusion pattern etched onto a nearby rock wall. It was a Fatui contact signal. He frowned.
The Fatui are looking for me? Is it Childe? Should I go or not?
Standing beside him, Ningguang heard his inner thoughts, and her pupils contracted instantly. The Fatui!
Hearing those words in Ye Xi's heart felt like being plunged into an ice cellar. Her greatest fear had come true. Could Ye Xi really be involved with the Fatui?
She had heard of Childethe lowest-ranked of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers. Why would Childe want to see Ye Xi now? Was Ye Xi a Harbinger too?
She wanted to ask him directly! If he really was a Harbinger, she would do whatever it took to get him to leave the organization, even if she had to support him for the rest of his life.
Just as she was about to confront him, his thoughts drifted to her again.
Sigh, if I go, my secret of impersonating a Harbinger might be exposed.
Ningguang realized the truth. Impersonating a Harbinger!
Does that mean the Fatui saw him use two elements and mistook his identity?
Now she was even more worried. If Ye Xi went to see Childe and was caught, wouldn't he be in grave danger?
The meeting place is Northland Bank. Even if they realize I'm a fake, they probably won't cause too big a scene.
I have my Midnight Coat with elemental immunity, so I just need to watch out for a sneak attack.
Besides, Childe shouldn't have a reason to kill me. He doesn't know the Gnosis is already on me. Moreover, he's still counting on me to assassinate Rex Lapis. As long as he doesn't find out that I'm the one who made the deal with Morax, it should be fine. Speaking of which, Morax should be taking action soon, right?
Ningguang took a sharp breath, her mind in a state of chaos. The Gnosis is with Ye Xi?! And Rex Lapis is about to act?!
This was monumental news.
As they walked, Ye Xi spoke up. "Ningguang, I have some things to handle today, so I won't be going to Yuehai Pavilion with you."
Ningguang was terrified for his safety, but she knew she couldn't stop him. She could only nod. "Fine. I'll go to Yuehai Pavilion alone."
Ye Xi looked surprised by her answer. "Aren't you... afraid I'm going to see other girls?"
Ningguang managed a small smile. "As if you don't have enough girls around you already."
With that, she turned and walked toward Yujing Terrace. Ye Xi gave a helpless, bitter smile; she wasn't wrong. Once he saw her enter Yuehai Pavilion, he made his way toward Northland Bank.
On the other side.
The moment Ningguang entered Yuehai Pavilion, her expression turned dead serious. "Guards! Increase patrols around the Northland Bank. Arrange for plainclothes officers to observe the situation!"
"Yes, Ma'am!" The Millelith soldiers immediately set off.
Ningguang then went to the Tianquan office. She had already instructed Baìwen to notify the rest of the Liyue Qixing for an emergency meeting. She was worried that Rex Lapis might "retire" even before the Rite of Descension! If that was the case, every plan had to be accelerated.
She couldn't afford to be as lax as she had been yesterday.
Northland Bank.
When Ye Xi arrived, he found that the bank was indeed closed for the day. He knew immediately that this was a trapa "Hongmen Banquet." Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door.
Footsteps approached from within. The door opened, and several members of the Fatui Skirmishers greeted him.
"Lord Harbinger, you've arrived."
Ye Xi began his performance. He scowled, his voice laced with anger. "What is it? Why must I come all the way here in person?"
The Fatui members trembled with fear. "My Lord, it wasn't our intention to disturb you! Please, lower your voice! It is Lord La Signora who wished to see you!"
Ye Xi's heart skipped a beat. La Signora is back already?
At that moment, the crisp clicking of high heels echoed through the hall.
"Such a grand display of power you have, 'Lord Harbinger'!"
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