Qunyu Pavilion.
Right now, the assembled Adepti and two of the Liyue Qixing—Keqing and Ningguang—were gathered atop the sky-borne palace.
The atmosphere was heavy, solemn.
No one spoke.
Not a single person looked relaxed.
"Honored Adepti, no matter what we feel, the fact remains—our Lord has departed from us.
The most urgent matter now is to prepare for whatever may follow.
We do not know when the murderer who slew the Archon will return to Liyue.
Even if the difference in strength is overwhelming, we cannot simply sit and wait for death."
Seeing everyone lost in grim silence, Ningguang took the initiative to break it.
To be honest, she had considered the possibility of Rex Lapis leaving one day…
But she had never expected him to depart Liyue like this.
During the brutal Archon War, the Geo Archon had crushed countless rivals, standing invincible among gods.
How could he now fall to a mysterious girl with golden eyes—someone they'd never even heard of?
But Ningguang knew well—matters between gods were not for mortals to understand.
And now wasn't the time to drown in shock.
What truly mattered was preparing Liyue's defenses.
Without the Archon's protection, they were now on their own.
On ordinary days, even without the Archon's hand, the Qixing managed Liyue well enough—
but governance was governance,
and no matter how good the management was, true peace could only be secured by absolute strength.
Now the Archon was gone.
The mysterious, overwhelmingly powerful enemy was nowhere to be found.
Who could guarantee she wouldn't return?
That was Ningguang's greatest concern.
"Lady Tianquan speaks the truth," Cloud Retainer agreed.
"Whatever comes, we Adepti were not raised merely to sit idle.
The Lord entrusted Liyue to us—we must honor that trust."
Even if she couldn't accept Morax's death, she would uphold his final command.
"Both of you are right," Xiao added quietly.
"No matter the foe, Adepti and Qixing alike must guard Liyue.
There is no time to waste—we begin preparations now."
"I will go deploy the Millelith," Keqing said immediately.
Only action could calm the turmoil stirring in her chest.
"Then let us each see to our responsibilities," Ningguang said, nodding firmly.
Liyue's most critical moment had arrived.
Golden-eyed white-haired girl…
A god-slayer…
And the Geo Archon truly died at her hands…
sigh…
Keqing had finished her deployment of the Millelith and was on her way back to Qunyu Pavilion when she let out a quiet breath.
She had mentally prepared herself for the Archon's eventual departure.
She had worked tirelessly for years because she expected this day.
But she had never imagined it would come like this—
not through divination, not through ascension,
but through murder.
And by a mysterious foreign girl at that.
Wait—
Is that… a foreigner?
Ahead of her stood a girl dressed in strange, foreign-looking clothes.
Keqing's instincts sharpened instantly.
A mysterious girl had killed the Archon.
Now, another unfamiliar girl appeared out of nowhere, lingering about, peering around suspiciously—
Absolutely not something she could ignore.
And the girl really did look suspicious—standing there scanning her surroundings like she was gathering intel.
Keqing narrowed her eyes.
This type of person?
She was not letting go.
"Hey, you there.
Stop—I have questions."
Just as Su Mo was about to leave, he heard a very familiar voice.
He turned back—
—And, yep.
It really was Keqing.
Why.
Why was it always her?
Thankfully, this time he was transformed into the Moonlight Knight—Rita Rossweisse.
At least he wasn't standing here in his original identity trembling like before.
Though… whether the "Keqing 50–50 Law" still applied, he wasn't sure.
"You.
What are you sneaking around for?"
Keqing didn't waste breath.
Direct question.
Sharp gaze.
But what puzzled her was the girl's attire—
she couldn't place it as Snezhnayan, Mondstadt, Inazuman… anything.
Yet the girl carried an elegant, refined bearing—
strangely like… a maid?
A very high-class maid?
It was weird.
"'Sneaking around'?
Miss…
Do I look like I'm sneaking around?"
Su Mo glanced around.
Nope.
He really wasn't.
He was openly observing the state of Liyue, minding his system mission.
That was all.
"Then what are you looking at?" Keqing said sharply.
"This area is nothing but houses and storefronts.
Nothing worth staring at.
Don't tell me you actually enjoy staring at buildings?
You were observing the people, weren't you?
They're your target."
Okay—fair point.
He was standing in a spot where conversations about the Archon could be overheard very clearly…
"This prosperous nation is unworthy of my attention?
Surely you jest, Miss."
Su Mo smiled politely.
"…Since you're so interested in Liyue's architecture," Keqing said, eyes narrowing,
"then come with me to see the Yuheng of the Qixing.
We'll talk there."
She didn't believe a word he said.
This woman was coming with her.
"This is a command, Miss," Su Mo asked lightly,
"or a request?"
"If I say it's an order?"
"In that case…
I'm afraid that may be a little difficult."
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