Valerius walked over to Signora and quietly asked,
"You didn't cause any trouble, did you?"
"N-No…"
"Is that you didn't, or you didn't get the chance to?"
"…I didn't get the chance."
Signora wanted to cry.
Getting caught by the person she was trying to borrow prestige from was beyond awkward.
Valerius's gaze shifted to Scaramouche, who was still lying on the floor.
Although he was clearly confused, his face was full of defiance.
"Oh?"
"You don't look convinced."
"Hmph."
Scaramouche turned his head away stubbornly.
To be honest, Valerius had mixed feelings about Scaramouche.
He wasn't exactly a fan of him.
But he was still a playable character.
Besides…
Back when Wanderer first released, Valerius had thrown a single ten-pull into the banner just to build pity…
…and somehow got two Wanderers in one multi.
His feelings toward the character had been complicated ever since.
It was the first time he'd ever gotten truly lucky.
Yet…
It had to be him.
Was he lucky?
Absolutely.
Two five-stars in one ten-pull.
But the problem was…
He didn't even want the character.
To this day, his Wanderer was still Level 0.
After observing the pair for a moment, Valerius looked toward Raiden Makoto.
She smiled and gestured toward the prepared seat nearby.
Naturally, Valerius had no intention of kneeling in the traditional Inazuman style.
He simply crossed his legs and sat down.
"Well…"
"Rosalyne does know me."
"Could you give me some face and spare her life?"
He had taken Signora's Mora before.
Repaying the favor by keeping her alive was reasonable enough.
As for anything else…
He wasn't planning to interfere.
Makoto nodded.
"For Mr. Valerius's sake…"
"I'll let it pass this once."
Inwardly, however, she was delighted.
She'd never intended to execute Signora in the first place.
Now she could both use these two Harbingers as leverage in future negotiations with Snezhnaya…
…and give Valerius some face at the same time.
A perfect outcome.
"And what about the other one?"
"I don't—"
Just as Valerius was about to say he wasn't getting involved…
…he noticed someone had started broadcasting.
Opening the livestream…
He immediately realized everything inside Tenshukaku was being streamed.
The streamer…
…was none other than Shenhe.
He turned toward the two women beside him.
Phantylia immediately shook her head.
"Not me."
"Don't blame me."
Valerius then looked at Shenhe.
Yep.
It really was her.
"Why are you livestreaming this?"
"Master wanted to watch."
"…"
Right.
If Cloud Retainer wanted to watch…
Shenhe would simply start streaming.
Still as straightforward as ever.
[Arlecchino: Mr. Valerius, please… save Scaramouche as well. I will repay this favor in the future.]
Watching the scene unfold…
Arlecchino finally became anxious.
She wasn't particularly fond of Scaramouche either.
But he was still a fellow Harbinger.
She could only ask Valerius for help.
She'd already noticed that his words carried tremendous weight with Ei.
If Valerius spoke…
Scaramouche would likely survive.
[Tartaglia: Why bother with him?]
Tartaglia had no such concerns.
Who cared?
He had no real relationship with either of them.
Among the Harbingers…
The only one he'd always respected was Pulcinella.
The rest?
He couldn't care less.
[Valerius: Uh… isn't this technically Inazuma's internal affair? It doesn't feel appropriate for me to interfere.]
[Arlecchino: Lady Electro Archon, please show mercy. Snezhnaya is willing to negotiate with Inazuma.]
[Raiden Makoto: For Mr. Valerius's sake.]
Makoto couldn't have been happier.
The benefits had practically delivered themselves.
Inazuma had been isolated for so long that its economy had suffered considerably.
This was the perfect opportunity to secure favorable trade concessions from Snezhnaya.
Watching the conversation…
Valerius raised an eyebrow.
Makoto really is clever.
She'd gained practical benefits…
…while simultaneously giving him face.
A true stateswoman.
Had Ei handled this herself…
Only two outcomes were possible.
Either she'd spare them because of Valerius…
Or she'd cut them down on the spot.
In either case…
Inazuma would've gained nothing.
After further discussion…
Snezhnaya and Inazuma reached an agreement.
The two Harbingers would leave Inazuma immediately.
Later, Snezhnaya would send official diplomats to negotiate tariffs…
…with favorable concessions to Inazuma.
"Very well."
"You may leave."
Sitting gracefully above them, Makoto waved her hand.
Despite her gentle personality…
When dealing with foreign envoys…
She naturally carried herself with the dignity of an Archon.
"Hmph."
"I don't need your pity."
Even in his miserable state…
Scaramouche refused to yield.
"You tell me to leave, and I'm supposed to leave?"
"You…"
Signora nearly coughed up blood.
They'd just barely escaped with their lives.
Why was he still provoking them?
She'd personally felt death radiating from Ei earlier.
"Heh."
Valerius suddenly smiled.
An amusing idea had occurred to him.
Walking over, he crouched in front of Scaramouche.
"Want to see something interesting?"
"What?"
Although Scaramouche had a sharp tongue…
He didn't dislike Valerius.
His resentment was directed solely at Ei.
He knew perfectly well…
If not for Valerius…
He'd already be dead.
So his attitude toward him wasn't particularly hostile.
Valerius reached into his pocket.
A strange device appeared.
"A Time Machine."
"This little thing can take you back into the past."
"You'll get to see something very interesting."
Silence filled the hall.
Then…
Ei hurried over and grabbed Valerius's arm.
"Valerius!"
"Take me back to the past!"
"Have you ever heard of a time paradox?"
"…What does that mean?"
"It means…"
"Even if you return to the past…"
"…you still won't be able to change events that have already happened."
"…I see…"
Disappointment filled Ei's face.
The moment she'd heard about traveling through time…
Her first thought had been to save all the friends she'd lost.
Now…
It seemed impossible.
Valerius smiled.
"Don't be so disappointed."
"Isn't your sister already back?"
That immediately reminded Ei of something.
Right.
Even if she couldn't change the past…
She could simply keep winning games.
As long as she earned enough rewards…
The result would ultimately be the same.
Her mood improved considerably.
Looking at the dumbfounded Scaramouche…
Valerius grabbed him by the collar and dragged him onto the Time Machine.
"Doraemon-brand Time Machine…"
"Activate."
[Jing Yuan: …Only Scaramouche is going?]
[Fu Xuan: I wanted to see whether it really could travel through time.]
[Ruan Mei: If something moved fast enough… time travel might theoretically be possible.]
[Herta: Unfortunately… we haven't reached that level yet.]
[Tartaglia: What exactly is Valerius planning to show him?]
[Yae Miko: I don't know… but I'm so curious.]
Whether inside Tenshukaku or in the livestream…
Everyone was discussing the same question.
What was Valerius showing Scaramouche?
Only Signora stood quietly to one side…
Her mind was in complete chaos.
She'd originally thought Valerius was merely an extraordinary individual capable of standing on equal footing with the Electro Archon.
Now…
She realized she'd underestimated him.
He could even manipulate time.
Forget everyone else…
Even she wanted to stay behind and see what Scaramouche witnessed.
Some time later…
Valerius and Scaramouche returned.
Valerius looked completely normal.
Scaramouche, however…
…stood there blankly.
His eyes were filled with shock.
"Dottore!!!"
Suddenly…
Purple lightning crackled around him as he roared in fury.
[Arlecchino: Hm? What's wrong with him?]
[Tartaglia: Why is he suddenly shouting Dottore's name? What did he see?]
[Raiden Ei: Uh… um… he damaged property. Snezhnaya will be paying for that. I'll send you the bill later.]
[Arlecchino: …]
[Tartaglia: …]
How shameless.
Scaramouche was your own creation.
And now you wanted Snezhnaya to pay for the damages?
Wasn't this your own family dispute?
For next few days, I'm offering 50% off memberships on any tier and 50% off any item in my Patreon shop.
Membership Discount Code: 778C5
Shop Discount Code: 823B4
To Read 60+ ahead advanced Chapters, head over to P@treon
patreon.com/DarkVerse146