"I feel like Jun Bai's suspicion of assassinating the Geo Archon can be cleared." Stelle opened the bento made by Kafka Mama and began eating lunch.
While eating the delicious meal carefully prepared by her mother, Stelle spoke with her mouth full: "(chew chew) This cutscene (chew chew) has already shown that the Geo Archon's cause of death was that bolt of lightning, (chew chew) and Jun Bai is Pyro."
[A single bolt of lightning being enough to fell the strongest of the Seven Archons, the Geo Archon, feels pretty fake. The most reasonable explanation is that before that lightning strike, the Geo Archon had already suffered even more severe injuries. In this era, the only ones capable of facing the Geo Archon head-on, according to the lore, seem to be the other Archons and Jun Bai.]
[Could it be that the Raiden Shogun and Jun Bai teamed up?]
[Has no one noticed that Stelle has already started eating? Damn, I'm so envious! I want to eat Mama Kafka's bento too!]
[We can only be envious. The person in front of us is actually Kafka's real daughter. Stelle only moved out because she didn't want to keep being a leech.]
"If you want some, go find your own mom. This was made by my mom for me." Stelle hurriedly protected her food.
"Besides, it's a cutscene right now. I don't need to control the character. Is there a problem with me taking two bites? No problem at all."
[So righteous and confident.]
[Even when she's clearly in the wrong, Stelle still acts this righteous and confident.]
[Sigh, let's talk about the plot instead. Don't focus on the streamer's good fortune. Otherwise jealousy will only cloud your eyes.]
[Not only the players are willing to believe in Jun Bai—the Millelith also have complete faith in him. They only saw a military tally yet immediately believed our one-sided story.]
[Would Jun Bai, who has earned such deep trust from the Millelith, really be the one who assassinated the Geo Archon?]
"Right now I believe that what Jun Bai and Zhongli said was deliberately misleading the players, steering us toward the possibility that Jun Bai is the true culprit who assassinated the Geo Archon."
"Anyway, I really don't believe Jun Bai would make a move against the Geo Archon."
Stelle scooped a spoonful of rice into her mouth, controlled her character to leave Yujing Terrace, and triggered the next segment of the story.
A round of applause rang out. A bright and cheerful male voice sounded from the shadows as a tall and straight figure appeared before Lumine:
"I didn't expect this young lady to not only possess remarkable skills but also have an incredibly powerful background. To think you are acquainted with the renowned Sky Phoenix Marshal and even managed to obtain the Marshal's military tally."
The newcomer had short-to-medium orange hair, deep blue eyes, and skin that was fairer than that of ordinary Liyue people. A friendly smile hung on his face. He wore a sharp gray suit, with a Hydro Vision hanging at his waist. His bearing was particularly extraordinary.
"Who are you?" Seeing that it was a stranger, Paimon was very wary.
"Don't be nervous. I'm not a bad guy… well, I suppose I should count as a bad guy. But I can guarantee I have no ill intentions." The man in gray raised both hands to show his innocence.
Seeing that the other party's attitude was fairly sincere, Lumine abandoned the idea of drawing the Sword of Descension to confront him directly, but she still remained vigilant: "No ill intentions? Then do you have some other business with me?"
"First, allow me to introduce myself. You two may call me Childe." The man in gray smiled.
"How rude. Treating us like servants right from the start." Paimon really disliked this person's attitude.
"I didn't mean it that way. Hmm… how should I explain this?" Childe stroked his chin in thought. "You should have already met the [Lady] in Mondstadt, right?"
"You're a Fatui Harbinger?!" Lumine was greatly alarmed. She drew the Sword of Descension and took a defensive stance.
At the same time, she took out the military tally. If Childe made any unusual move, she would immediately use the tally to alert the nearby Millelith.
"It seems my colleague left a rather bad impression on you two." Childe said helplessly. "I am the Eleventh of the Fatui Harbingers, [Childe] Tartaglia. Just as I said at the beginning, I have no ill intentions."
"No ill intentions toward us, but that may not be the case for Liyue." Lumine's vigilance increased even further.
The Geo Archon had just fallen, and now a Fatui Harbinger appeared right after. It was hard not to associate the two events with some conspiracy.
"You're the same as the Lady—you're here for the Geo Archon's Gnosis, right?! Does the Geo Archon's death have anything to do with you?" Paimon asked with a fierce little expression.
Listening to Paimon's innocent and naïve words, Childe could no longer maintain the expression on his face and burst into laughter while clutching his stomach: "Thank you for thinking so highly of me—or rather, thinking so highly of the Fatui. To actually believe that the Fatui have the power to fell that Martial God who dominated the Archon War."
"The gap between humans and gods is like an insurmountable chasm. Even the weakest god is not someone humans can oppose, let alone the Geo Archon who ascended to the seat of the Seven Archons."
"Tianquan Ningguang must have lost her composure to actually think that the culprit who assassinated Rex Lapis is hiding among the mortals who came to observe the ceremony." With that, Childe's gaze toward Lumine became fervent.
"If you don't believe me, you can use the sword in your hand to test whether I possess the power to slay a god."
Lumine met Childe's gaze, then put away both the Sword of Descension and the military tally under his battle-hungry eyes: "I don't want to fight you. I need to investigate the cause of the Geo Archon's death."
There might be clues about the unknown god on Rex Lapis's body, and he was also Jun Bai's old friend. Both in reason and in emotion, Lumine felt she could not remain indifferent to the Geo Archon's death.
Lumine walked straight past Childe, not intending to pay any more attention to this person.
She had not forgotten the debt of the Lady's sneak attack on Venti. Even though both Venti and Jun Bai had chosen to let it go, she had not.
"Since you want to investigate the cause of Rex Lapis's death, you will need to come into contact with his remains. Do you think you will have that opportunity?"
Childe's words made Lumine stop in her tracks.
"I have the Marshal's military tally."
"Rex Lapis and the Sky Phoenix Marshal are undoubtedly of one mind, but the Liyue Qixing and the gods may not be."
"Are you saying the Liyue Qixing murdered Rex Lapis? How amusing. You just said the gap between humans and gods is like an insurmountable chasm."
Unlike in the original plot where her tone softened because Childe had saved her, the current Lumine had escaped from the Millelith thanks to the military tally Jun Bai left behind.
She did not owe Childe any life-saving grace, so when facing a Fatui Harbinger, her attitude was sharp and confrontational.
"I simply wanted to remind you that relying solely on the Sky Phoenix Marshal's military tally does not guarantee you will be able to see Rex Lapis's remains in a short time."
"If I can't, do you have a way?"
"Of course. As a Fatui Harbinger, I naturally have other channels."
Childe walked to Lumine's side and said: "Traveler, how about we make a deal? I will introduce you to someone who can let you see Rex Lapis's remains."
"Are the Fatui really this kind-hearted?" Lumine maintained a skeptical attitude.
"I already said it's a deal, so I need you to help me with something." Tartaglia said.
"During the Archon War back then, those who followed Rex Lapis into battle, aside from the God of Dust Haagentus and the Nirvana God Phenex, also included the adepti of Jueyun Karst."
"After the Archon War ended, the adepti of Jueyun Karst retreated into the mountains and forests. Those without adeptal affinity cannot see the adepti."
"But Traveler, you are different. You have the Sky Phoenix Marshal's military tally as proof. The adepti will be willing to meet you."
"You only need to deliver the news of Rex Lapis's death to the adepti of Jueyun Karst. Our deal will be complete. How about it?"