The next day, Arlecchino knocked on Su Ran's door.
When he opened it, he looked utterly exhausted.
"You didn't sleep all night?"
"Yeah. I said I'd give you an answer, after all…"
Inside the room, Focalors was already sprawled across the bed, sleeping soundly.
Originally, Su Ran had intended to sleep while holding this Fufu.
But other matters had gotten in the way.
"Here. This is what you wanted."
He took out a spray bottle.
Arlecchino stared at it blankly.
This is what she'd been waiting for?
Why did it look just like the sprays that were popular in Natlan?
"Don't underestimate this thing."
"This is a healing spray I invented. It can cure every difficult illness in Teyvat."
"Even the Eleazar that has spread throughout Sumeru can be cured with a single spray."
"Apart from things like completely severed limbs, it can even treat the resentment of gods and the corruption of the Abyss."
He'd spent quite a bit of time making this thing.
Arlecchino was half-convinced.
She sprayed some of it onto her pitch-black hand.
Right before her eyes, the dark curse began to fade, revealing the snow-white skin beneath.
But that wasn't the most important part.
"Can you restore the curse on my body?"
"That curse is also the source of my power."
Once the curse disappeared, she could clearly feel her strength weakening.
Her ears were certainly much quieter now, but in exchange, she'd become considerably weaker.
Still, she believed the Genius's device was genuine.
"I've never studied your original curse."
"How would I know how to restore it?"
"Isn't having smooth, fair skin pretty nice?"
Su Ran grabbed Arlecchino's hand and examined it.
"Besides, who's to blame for you messing around with it yourself?"
"..."
Couldn't she at least experiment a little?
She didn't have any other difficult illness around her at the moment.
The curse on her body was the most obvious target.
Of course she'd wanted to spray it and see what happened.
Who could have expected the effect to be so obvious?
One spray and it was effective.
Not only effective—it had completely cured the problem before she even had a chance to stop it.
"Forget it."
"I'll become stronger through my own efforts."
Arlecchino was somewhat troubled by how casually she'd lost so much power.
But after considering that she no longer needed to worry about the curse, she felt it was still acceptable.
Even without that power, her combat instincts wouldn't disappear.
It would simply take some time to return to her previous level.
"Hey, hey, don't leave so quickly."
Seeing the Knave about to leave, Su Ran suddenly had another idea.
"Want some power?"
"..."
That expression of a shady merchant made Arlecchino unable to figure out what he was thinking again.
"Sell yourself to me."
"I'll give you power."
"Power stronger than an elemental dragon."
"Stronger than the Heavenly Principles."
"Even the Electro Archon is enamored with you, and now you're thinking of making a move on me?"
"Exactly what about me attracts you?"
Whether it was Tingyun in the newspapers, the Raiden Shogun of Inazuma, or even the girl in Snezhnaya...
Which one of them wasn't better than her?
Even Furina seemed far more suitable.
She glanced at Focalors, who was sleeping on the bed.
"Sometimes you don't need a reason to like someone."
"Simply falling for their looks is enough."
"But you're different."
"Perhaps your ideal isn't destruction."
"But I think you're definitely suited for this power."
Su Ran's mysterious demeanor made Arlecchino uncomfortable.
It reminded her of those people hiding away in Snezhnaya.
"My allegiance is to the Tsaritsa."
"If I accept your deal, Genius..."
"Are you planning to betray Her Majesty?"
If that was truly what he intended, Arlecchino didn't believe Snezhnaya had the ability to resist him.
Just yesterday, the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles had already made her position clear.
Clearly, even the lofty Heavenly Order itself couldn't pose a threat to this man.
"Then you've misunderstood."
"I have no need to betray Big Duck."
"She listens to me."
"And after I showed her what the outside world is like, she listens to me even more."
He didn't look like he was joking.
In fact, his expression gave Arlecchino the strange feeling that even if she returned to Snezhnaya and reported this to the Tsaritsa, Her Majesty wouldn't care.
Then...
Did she even need to go back?
"Is this another human experimentation project like the Doctor's?"
If this was about power, she was indeed somewhat interested.
"That comparison is insulting."
"At the very least, I'll guarantee that every experiment is conducted with safety as the foremost priority."
"We're colleagues. Do you really think I'd hurt you?"
"You're not Dottore."
So if it were Dottore, you'd happily torture him?
"How much do you actually hate the Doctor?"
Even Arlecchino couldn't understand why the Genius had such intense hostility toward Dottore.
She herself wouldn't mind sending the Doctor to his grave, but she had her reasons.
Dottore and the previous Knave had inflicted unimaginable suffering upon the children of the House of the Hearth.
But what about the Genius?
"Hate?"
"Not really."
"I just think he's pretentious."
"That really annoys me."
"Someone who's less capable than me but still acts so arrogant makes him look stupid."
"He lowers the overall image of the Fatui."
"I finally managed to raise the average intelligence of the Harbingers, too."
"..."
But Dottore, despite being a terrible person, was still among the most intelligent people in the Fatui.
What was Arlecchino supposed to say to that?
She disliked him as well, but she couldn't deny that before the Genius appeared, Dottore had been the smartest person among the Fatui.
Even Sandrone, who was likewise renowned for her technical expertise, was nowhere near his level.
If someone like Dottore could be called an idiot...
What did that make everyone else?
"What about Sandrone?"
"She's just an antisocial shut-in, isn't she?"
"I've never even seen her leave home to cause trouble."
"And does she receive as many resources as Dottore?"
Sandrone only cared about her technology.
She wasn't interested in much else.
Su Ran didn't think she was particularly brilliant either.
But at least, as far as he was concerned, she was far more pleasant to deal with than Dottore.
Perhaps it helped that she was a rather attractive girl.
"Although I don't particularly understand you, there is at least one thing we agree on."
"We both hate that bastard Doctor."
Arlecchino accepted Su Ran's offer.
Because she was curious, too.
Just what exactly was this power that surpassed both the Heavenly Principles and the elemental dragons?
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