Chapter summary: In which Rosaria spies of Kaeya and Childe, and also Eula
The Cryo Archon sweeps her gaze around to take in their surroundings. "Does this stretch on endlessly, like a loop?"
"No. This is a flat dimension." He answers.
She turns to him. "We should place the child at the center of this realm to maximize the energy input."
He nods then signals for Xiao to come. Moments later, the yaksha lands next to them, with an unconscious Kaeya in his arms.
Even though no one could enter this realm, there is no telling what could have happened to Kaeya. That's why he tasked Xiao to guard the unconscious body of the Khaenri'an the past few months.
"Come with me."
It takes less than a minute to reach the designated spot the Ice Queen asked for. The moment they touch the ground, the Cryo Archon begins to study the plain before them.
"This shall do."
The surrounding starts to become colder as an ice platform forms before them.
"Place him on it."
Xiao approaches the platform and gently lowers Kaeya onto it as instructed before taking several steps back.
He follows his fellow archon as she walks towards Kaeya. She hovers a hand above the boy and the sheen of ice covering him begins to glow.
"As discussed, this first seal will guide him to use his own power to reverse the time of his own body while filtering out all the excessive energy that might harm him."
"Might?"
"What happened was unprecedented, or at least it was to my knowledge."
The ice encasing Kaeya merges with the ice that made up the platform and begins to thicken.
"No one, save for Istaroth herself and her master, is able to fully comprehend the complexity and consequences that comes from tampering the flow of time of a living being in such a way."
The ice platform starts to glow and pale blue glowing lines appear from the bottom of the platform and extend towards the grass plain they are standing on.
"What I am going to do is simply based on theories. It is prudent to go about this as slowly as possible to reduce the chance of error."
The glowing lines continue to stretch outwards and intertwine with each other to form some kind of pattern.
"How slow are we talking about?"
"Centuries, perhaps."
He narrows his eyes.
"Morax, you have been living for several millennia already, what is several centuries to you?"
The lines curve in and a circle is being formed.
"I might be able to wait this long, but Kaeya is just a mortal-"
"A mortal whose nation is gone."
The circle is fully drawn and the newly crafted seal flashes brightly for a second before dying down.
"Khaenri'ah is no more." He can hear the bitterness in the Cryo Archon's tone. "What else is left for this little prince apart from you and your adeptus even if he is to wake up tomorrow?"
He lowers his gaze to stare at the unmoving form of Kaeya.
"And if he's to wake up tomorrow, he would only keep hearing about how his brethren, and also himself, have been sinners who brought upon great calamity to the whole world. Wouldn't it be better for him to wake up in the distant future if you want him to live a 'normal' life?"
He unclenches the fist he doesn't even know he has formed at the question. Yes. She is right. This might indeed be better for Kaeya in the long run.
It's better that the bluenette wakes up in a time when the damage people suffered from the Black Calamity is no longer fresh and no one would still curse the already destroyed Kingdom for it.
The Ice Queen places a hand on the ice. "There is another issue I need to warn you about."
He looks back up at the Cryo Archon with narrowed eyes.
"It is possible that the child is affected both physically and mentally. My seal might not be able to heal the mental part if that's the case."
"How bad are we talking about?"
"It is possible that the usage of his power had also reversed, or erased, his most recent memories."
He closes his eyes and lets out a shaky breath. This is at least better than mental instability or even brain damage.
"Now, let us talk about our second contract. Alone."
Morax nods to Xiao who then bows at the two of them and disappears in a swirl of dark green feathers.
He gestures for his fellow archon to continue once he can no longer feel the yaksha's presence in his teapot realm.
"I can craft a seal to completely stop the usage of the eye unless Kaeya himself wants to use it. And in the case where he chooses to use it, the seal would stop him the moment it becomes too much for his body to handle."
He contemplates the other's words for a while. The seal the Cryo Archon is talking about sounds overly simple. It's something he himself could have done.
"By completely stopping the usage of his eye, it will also stop his body from subconsciously using his own life force as fuel."
He frowns at this piece of information. He has always known that his seal was only able to stop a part of the eye's power, but this…
"You also mentioned this before. What would happen to Kaeya if this continues?"
"From the research notes I read, the time of his body cell would be consumed and converted into energy that could be stored for later use."
He holds his chin with his thumb and forefinger. "When you said that time was consumed, I gather it means that it's being suspended in time. So his toll is not exactly his life force."
The Ice Queen nods. "It's easier to simply refer to it as life force. The following is simply my speculation. When all the energy stored is used up but the eye is still demanding for more and the conversion rate of the energy he absorbs from the surroundings couldn't catch up with the output, it is possible that the time of his body cells would be reversed as a last resort."
This explains the disintegration of Kaeya's body when he-
He shakes his head to get rid of the horrible image his mind came up with. What he witnessed was only the beginning of that horrible imaginary. They are lucky that the Cryo Archon was nearby when that happened.
"So this seal you mentioned will be able to stop him the moment all the energy stored in his body is used up?"
"No. The seal will stop him the moment the time of his body starts to reverse."
He nods. He can accept such a seal. "Fine. What do you want in return?"
"A favour."
He furrows his brows when he realizes his fellow archon has stopped. "A contract is only fair if both sides agree to the value of the item, or request, used in the exchange. A favour cannot be measured unless you elaborate this favour you want from me."
"Tell me, Morax, are you satisfied with the current Teyvat?"
He narrows his eyes. "It is not something we have a say in."
"Is it?" She waves her hand around the air. "What if it's possible for us to reshape this world?"
"You know it's not in our power to-"
She holds up a hand to stop him. "Not now. Neither of us have the power to accomplish what I just mentioned. Yet."
"Whatever you have in mind, I assure you it would simply be a fool's errand."
"Maybe." She answers vaguely. "When that happens, I want your support."
When. Not if. He has to commend her for this confidence, or overconfidence. Yet, he doubts this would ever happen. It is nigh impossible for those who are already under their rule to rebel against them.
But, even if she really finds a way to do so, it's a lot to ask for in exchange for a mere seal, no matter how much he wants it.
He's responsible for a whole nation, after all.
"You are asking for too much." He tells her.
"When the time comes, if you deem what I ask for to be unfair, I am willing to add something else to sweeten this deal between us."
He crosses his arms before him. "Fine. But this shall only be effective after Kaeya wakes up and I check that the seal is working as expected."
"Fair enough." The Cryo Archon replies. "Now that we have agreed to the terms of our second contract, let us begin."
Compared to the last time he came here, Mondstadt is much less crowded. But that's a given seeing as he came during the Windblume Festival last time.
However, despite the fewer number of people walking along the streets, he couldn't find Kaeya anywhere. Maybe the bluenette is somewhere indoors now.
He holds up the letter Childe gave him and rereads it.
Morax,
As requested, I placed a seal on Kaeya Alberich's eye to heal him and prevent his power from causing harm to his body again. Due to the complexity of the request, the seal I used is a three part seal.
The first one, which was removed the moment the ice encasing him broke, was to facilitate the healing of his body by absorbing the energies from the surrounding and channeling them into ones that could be used by the eye to heal the body.
And, as you might have already discovered, that seal also gives me access to some of those powers, though I must remind you that this is not a violation of our contract as there is no terms saying that I am not allowed to give additional functionalities to the seal as long as it doesn't cause him any harm.
The second one, the one that only started to blink recently, was designed to help reconstruct his lost memory by regulating the energy flow within his body. Just as we discussed back then, I had no idea whether my seal alone would be enough to help him heal his mind so this seal is more of a gambit on my part.
I originally calculated that it should take several years more for those lost memories to be fully recovered if it ever works, yet the mind of a human is more complex than I first predicted and your mere presence was enough to act as a catalyst to facilitate the reconstruction of those memories.
Again, this is not a violation of our contract. In fact, your request was for the seal to heal Kaeya Alberich, I simply included the reconstruction of his memory as part of our deal, as a bonus.
The last one, the one that is still intact, allows Kaeya limited access to the power of his eye until he could fully control it. It would suppress the usage of the eye the moment it became too much for the human body to handle. Just as we discussed before.
As per the other contract we formed prior, you are not allowed to interfere should any Khaenri'ans that have been under your care, which includes Kaeya Alberich, choose to accept my offer. You are also not allowed to do anything that might in any way affect their decision regarding my offer unless my intention is to cause them harm.
You may ask Childe for information regarding the offer Kaeya has taken, or, in the case that he still hasn't chosen which one to take, the offers that I have laid out for-
"So?"
He glances to the side to where Childe has been standing next to him for a while now.
After the ginger gave him the letter, he quickly skimmed through the content then beckoned the man to follow him as he walked up the stairs leading to the top of the city walls to find a relatively secluded area.
"I need to go to have lunch with Kaeya soon."
He pushes down the flare of irritation he felt at those words. He knows the battle-crazed man is just fishing for another fight from him.
"It won't take that long." He turns towards the man. "Has Kaeya taken any of the offers yet?"
"Not yet." The Snezhnayan answers. "But I am sure he will soon."
"Tell me about those offers."
Childe holds up a hand and uses the index finger of his other hand to press his thumb towards his palm. "Becomes a Fatui Harbinger and comes to Snezhnaya, where Her Majestry will teach him how to control his power and protect him from the Abyss Order."
He then presses his index finger. "Becomes a Fatui Harbinger and travels around Teyvat handling all issues the Fatui has with the Abyss Order and Her Majesty will send for another Khaenri'an to help him along the way and to teach him how to control his power."
The middle finger. "Becomes a Fatui Harbinger but remains in Mondstadt and be in charge of all the diplomatic negotiations between the Fatui and the Knight of Favonius, the same Khaenri'an mentioned in the previous offer will also be sent to Mondstadt to teach him how to control his power."
The ring finger. "Resigns from the Knights of Favonius, leaves Mondstadt and becomes an agent of the Fatui. In this case, Her Majesty will not send for anyone to teach him how to control his power, but she will guide him to do so himself by giving him missions. He's only allowed to reject those missions if they cause harm to Mondstadt or innocent people. He's free to do anything he wants in between missions."
The pinky. "Keeps being a member of the Knight of Favonius but comes to Snezhnaya as a diplomat, Her Majesty will teach him how to control his power and protect him from the Abyss Order. In this case, we will have him assist in our missions as a representative of the Knights of Favonius to further our diplomatic relationship."
"There are more detailed versions for those offers, but that's the gist of it."
He nods to let the other know that this summary is enough for him. At least for now.
"Personally, I don't think Kaeya will pick the first two options." Childe shrugs. "But as I said, I am merely a messenger of Her Majesty."
He turns back to continue looking at the city, choosing not to voice out his thoughts to the Fatui Harbinger.
"Is that all you want to talk about?"
He nods.
"So what are you going to do now? I mean, the letter is Her Majesty telling you to not do anything to interrupt my mission, right?" Childe asks.
"Didn't you say you have a lunch appointment coming up?" He asks instead.
"Alright. I can see that I am not wanted here anymore."
The sounds of receding footsteps tells him that Childe has finally left.
He lets his sight follow the Fatui Harbinger as the man strolls along the streets of the City of Freedom. Just as he expected, Kaeya is sitting at one of the outdoor tables of the Good Hunter waiting for the Snezhnayan.
It feels so long since he last laid his gaze on the bluenette even though he saw the man last night, during the dream. But that was all it was, a dream. Whereas this is real.
It would have been too far for a normal person to see clearly the bluenette's expression from this distance. But then he's anything but a mere normal person.
He feels his heart of stone skips a beat when he realizes that Kaeya is wearing the earring he gifted the man.
This is all the confirmation he needs to know how Kaeya feels about him even after all that happened.
Yet… he can't show himself in front of Kaeya now, for it will be a breach of the contract between him and the Cryo Archon if he so much as lets the bluenette see him.
It's true that the terms are only about him not doing anything to affect the decision making once she has given Kaeya the offers, but given everything that happened between them up till now, his presence alone might cause Kaeya to think differently about those offers.
This is what she has been aiming for all this time. To alienate the two of them so that Kaeya would think that he has no choice but to pick one of those offers or let himself, and to some extent the whole Mondstadt, suffer the consequence.
However…
A tiny smile forms on his face when he notices the two people who are also monitoring the interactions between Kaeya and Childe.
Amber gaze meets cerulean gaze and he nods curtly towards the Khaenri'an called Dainsleif before turning away to leave the city.
This is where the Cryo Archon has miscalculated.
There might be a time when Kaeya would have thought himself to be alone and thought that he did not have anyone he can depend on.
But not anymore.
It pains him that he can't go see Kaeya now or to be there for him during such trying times or tell the bluenette what he really feels, but…
He's sure Kaeya would be fine.
It is well into the afternoon when Venti finally picks up the energy signature of the missing Geo Archon.
He groans. So the blockhead has really come to Mondstadt.
It takes him another tens of minutes to get to the top of Starsnatch Cliff, where he finds his friend staring into the distance. Towards the east, where that ruin is located.
"So you really did come to Mondstadt." He says as he lands lightly on the soft patches of grass just behind his friend.
Morax doesn't reply to his words. He slowly closes the distance between them as he ponders what he should say to his friend.
"Did you come to see Kaeya?" He asks.
"It is not time yet."
He furrows his brows at the strange answer.
"Did something happen?"
"I found the answers to my questions."
He hums. "Are you satisfied with what you found?" He didn't ask what those questions or answers are, because it's apparent it's something Morax doesn't want to tell him from the way he phrased his reply.
"It could be better. But then it could be worse."
He almost groans at the vague answer. His rock of a friend has always loved to talk in riddles whenever it involves stuff he has no desire to fully disclose.
The brunette finally turns around. "I will be heading back to Liyu- oh, I see you have taken Kaeya's belongings with you."
He blinks at the almost nonchalant tone. "Yes, I am planning to return it to him later, probably tomorrow…" He trails off and squints at his friend. "Soooo, I am over ninety nine percent certain what your answer is going to be, but… do you want me to pass a message to Kaeya for you?"
His fellow archon shakes his head.
"Normally I hate doing stuff like this… but if you are really scared of finding out how Kaeya really thinks of you, I can subtly try to ask him for you." He pushes.
Morax chuckles. "I appreciate your offer, but I am fine."
He raises his eyebrow in surprise. Now he's really curious what happened… So did the blockhead talk to Kaeya or not? What really happened today?
"In fact, please refrain from mentioning anything about me unless he asks."
He crosses his arms. "Okay. Spill." He demanded. "Last time the both of us got wasted, you also weren't there when I woke up. And when you came back, the atmosphere around you changed. And this time your whole attitude towards this matter has completely changed, too. Do you have some kind of enlightenment every time you get drunk or what?"
The Geo Archon hums in amusement. "Indeed. I suppose you can say that I do have some form of enlightenment everytime I got drunk."
He blinks in bewilderment then sends his friend a stink eye. "No fair… I got drunk all the time, why don't I have any enlightenment?"
He sulks when Morax gives out a rare hearty laugh at that.
"Ah, right." The man begins as his laughter dies down. "I am sure Ping already told you. You lost last night, so you have to keep to your word of not pranking me for a year."
He pouts. "You don't have to remind me of that…"
"I shall be taking my leave then." Morax starts walking away before suddenly pausing. "Oh, and Barbatos…"
"Hmm?" He turns towards his friend.
Morax turns his head to the side slightly as he speaks his next words. "Thank you for everything. I really appreciate your help."
He beams at his fellow archon as the man continues to walk away.
At least Morax has stopped brooding, so he supposes it is mission accomplished for him.
"Wait…" He mutters as he suddenly remembers about Hu Tao's plan.
Does this mean their plan is no longer needed? What did Morax's words mean anyway? Did those two reconcile? But if that's the case, then why was the blockhead staring at that ruin by his lonesome?
But there's no way that the blockhead would look so lighthearted if Kaeya decided to not forgive him…
Or is Morax fine with not reconciling with Kaeya and just leaving it like this?
So should they still continue with their plan or what?
But then there isn't any way for him, a 'normal human', to contact Hu Tao to tell her what just transpired… and he did promise the girl to help out with her plan…
And he needs the girl to prank Morax in his stead…
Rosaria has known about Kaeya's return to Mondstadt since yesterday. In fact, she's sure the whole population of Mondstadt knew about the return of the Cavalry Captain within several hours after the man stepped past the gate.
What with the rumor about him and Diluc Ragnvindr acting all friendly with each other spreading like a wildfire.
She doesn't know how much of that rumor is to be believed. After all, rumors always become more exasperated the more people talk about it. Yet she understands that that's one of the tactics Kaeya likes to employ.
She would have asked the man himself sooner about the purpose of such a rumor, and maybe to congratulate the man for finally reconciling with the redhead. But she's held back the day before and the bluenette didn't come to find her near the cemetery - their usual meeting spot - last night.
So here she's now, in Angel's Share, slowly swirling around the fine wine in her glass while taking in the man sitting next to Kaeya from a darkened corner of the tavern.
The Eleventh Fatui Harbinger.
An idiotic man who bravely takes a seat at the bar when the Cavalry Captain first walked into the tavern with him and has been returning the glares of a certain redhaired bartender with playful words for a while now.
Kaeya has naturally taken the seat next to the Fatui Harbinger. But the seat on the other side of the bluenette is still empty.
She's still debating whether she should take that remaining seat when the door to the establishment is opened again and in walked another one of the captains of the Knight of Favonius.
Eula Lawrence. Spindrift Knight and Captain of the Reconnaissance Company.
The sight of the female captain in Angel's Share is nothing unusual. After all, she knows how Eula also loves to drink. But she's never approached the captain on her own.
There were indeed occasions in which they drank together, but that's usually when Kaeya's around. But that's it. She doesn't see the need to mingle herself with the female captain.
She is used to hearing Eula spewing nonsense about vengeance. She knows it's just her way of speech and that it doesn't mean anything. But that doesn't mean she likes dealing with her.
She gets up from her seat in one smooth motion. The liquid in the glass she's been holding onto all this time didn't even slosh around as she moves closer to the bar once she noticed that Eula is making a beeline towards the Cavalry Captain and the Fatui Harbinger.
This could be interesting.
She sits down on another empty table closer to the bar just as Kaeya notices the approaching captain.
"Hey Eula! I've been waiting for you." The bluenette turns to the side to greet his fellow captain and beckons her over.
The Fatui Harbinger turns around to look at the newcomer curiously as the man gestures towards him. "This is Childe. I hope you won't mind someone else joining our date."
Kaeya then gestures towards his fellow captain. "Eula. Captain of the Reconnaissance Company."
Childe blinks in surprise. "You should have told me earlier that you are going to have a date with such a lovely lady!" The Snezhnayan puts a hand over his heart. "Now I feel like being a third wheel here." He says dejectedly.
Kaeya laughs. "Don't worry about it. As you've said, the more the merrier."
Eula greets the man cordially. "So you are the latest Snezhnayan diplomat sent to Mondstadt? I heard that you have refused a traditional welcoming party as per the custom of the Knights of Favonius when welcoming a diplomat."
The Fatui Harbinger shrugs. "I don't know about you, but those kinds of welcoming parties feel more like a hassle to me."
The Spindrift Knight hums appreciatively. "At least you sound less stiff than those tradition-abiding diplomats."
"Why, thank you." Childe grins at her as Eula takes the empty seat on the other side of her fellow captain.
"A watered down Foamy Reef, please." She calls out to the bartender and points at Kaeya. "Add it to his tab."
So Eula also has the sense to not get drunk in front of a Fatui Harbinger. Good for her.
"So, how long are you planning to stay in Mondstadt?" Eula asks.
The ginger shrugs again. "Actually, I also have no idea how long this visit will take. I am here to do some inspection of the operation of our men then send my report back to Snezhnaya. I am supposed to stay here until I receive positive feedback on my report."
So the Cryo Archon has some plans that require one of her Fatui Harbinger to execute it from inside Mondstadt.
Eula hums thoughtfully. "Really? I thought the only one the Fatui Harbingers report to is the Tsaritsa."
Childe nods. "You thought correctly. I am to send my report back to Her Majesty directly."
She doesn't believe anyone is fooled by that ridiculous excuse. She just doesn't see why the Ice Queen herself needs to read the report on how her men are operating here unless said operation is to be carried out by a Fatui Harbinger.
Before anyone can get another word in, Diluc places the Spindrift Knight's order in front of her. "A watered down Foamy Reef."
"So," Childe continues, "since I will be staying here for quite a while, I have decided to ask Kaeya here to take me around Mondstadt to do some sightseeing."
"Oh." Eula lightly exclaims. "So you two were already acquainted before you came to Mondstadt?"
"We met during my Liyue trip." Kaeya answers. "And we travelled around for a bit after that."
She narrows her eyes at this piece of information as she sips from the glass of dandelion wine in her hand.
Kaeya took a two-week leave less than two weeks ago. His early return to Mondstadt is a surprise to everyone. Or did the bluenette obtain some information from the Fatui Harbinger during their Liyue trip and thus decided to come back early?
The conversation from then on sounds kinda boring. Or at least there's nothing note-worthy she could find. It's mostly just Kaeya telling Childe about the places to visit in Mondstadt with Eula adding her own input here and there.
It's surprising yet disappointing that Kaeya didn't do anything, or say anything, to try to unveil the real reason behind the Fatui Harbinger's sudden visit to Mondstadt. Or maybe the bluenette has already obtained some valuable information regarding the Fatui's plans prior to Childe's arrival.
And it seems Eula has also come to the same conclusion as her as the Spindrift Knight has also been content to let her fellow captain lead the conversations.
It's starting to get late. Most of the patrons have already left Angel's Share. Including that unlikely trio. The only ones left are the rowdier ones that usually require the bartender to personally 'escort' them out.
She has ordered another two glasses of dandelion wine and moved to one of the now unoccupied seats in front of the bar sometime after Kaeya and his two companions left.
"Sister Rosaria, we are about to close."
She raises her half filled glass. "Don't worry, I will leave the moment I finish this. But I might get drunk if I drink too quickly and I hate to waste good wine." She takes another slow sip to emphasize her point.
A grunt. "Just don't take too long."
She sees out of the corner of her eye the Ragnvindr turning around and starts walking away, most likely to 'ask' the other patrons to leave.
The door to the tavern opens again.
"We are about to-" Diluc pauses his words then sighs.
"Hey, what's with that sigh and that expression? Aren't you happy to see me?"
She turns her head to the side and watches as Kaeya says cockily to the redhead.
A grunt. "I expect you to be getting ready to sleep in your own apartment."
The bluenette scoffs. "Oh please, only kiddies sleep so early."
Another sigh. "Just don't stay for too long. And no alcohol. I am about to close up."
She shifts her attention back to the front as the exchange behind her comes to a close with Diluc turning away to continue making his way to the rowdier customers.
"Sister Rosaria, is this seat taken?"
Kaeya then sits down next to her. Without waiting for her reply. Just as usual.
"So, what's with the Fatui Harbinger?" She asks.
"You don't have to worry about him. I have got that covered."
Another slow sip from her glass. "Is that so?"
"I have resigned and will be leaving Mondstadt in about a week."
Her hand pauses momentarily before it continues its course of putting the glass back onto the bar. She raises an eyebrow and finally turns her head to the side to look at the man sitting beside her.
Without a glass in hand, Kaeya is playing with a coin with his fingers instead. It's a show of nervousness that only those closest to the bluenette knows.
"His business is with me. Once I leave Mondstadt, he will also leave." The bluenette continues while facing the front and doesn't look at her.
She raises an eyebrow at the bluentte, not that he could see it from his angle. "What? You two eloping or what?"
Kaeya laughs aloud and stops the movement of his fingers. "Sorry to disappoint you, but he isn't even my type."
She scoffs and turns back to the front. "Right. I nearly forgot that your 'type' is in Liyue now."
She raises the glass of wine to her lips again and hides the way her lips are tugged up behind it when she feels Kaeya stiffens beside her. If her friend is drinking now, she's sure he would have choked.
"It didn't work out for us. Zhongli and me, I mean."
Ah. So she supposes that's one of the reasons Kaeya left Liyue earlier than expected.
She raises her glass towards the bluenette's direction. "I would offer you a drink if the owner is still taking orders. But alas, I guess we will have to make do with just this one glass."
She then gulps down the remaining alcohol in one go.
Kaeya chuckles. "Aren't you supposed to give the glass to me and let me finish the wine instead?"
"And make myself a certain redhead's next glaring target? I think I will pass on that." She places the glass on the bar and glances at the man beside him. "At least you have your brother back now."
"Yes." Kaeya says softly.
They fall silent after that and listen to the sound of someone dragging the body of another person across the floor behind them.
"So, what about Childe?" She repeats her original question. "Is he the reason you resigned?"
A thoughtful hum. "Kind of."
"Is that reason alone enough for you to resign? Especially after how you and Diluc are back to being buddies now." She questions.
Kaeya chuckles. "Diluc is also in on this. But you are right, there is indeed another reason. And I suppose you can say that they are intertwined."
She hums thoughtfully as she places her elbow onto the bar and rests her head on the back of her hand while tracing the rim of the glass with a finger of her other hand.
If Diluc is also in on this, it explains why her friend would choose to talk to her here instead.
"Don't tell me somehow the Abyss Order is also after you for the same reason the Fatui is after you."
A pause, then the man sitting beside her starts laughing hard. "That's the most funny thing I have ever heard you say."
"Is it?"
The sound of footsteps approaching interrupts whatever Kaeya was going to say.
"Sister Rosaria, I see you have finished your wine."
She gets up from her seat and turns around to face the Ragnvindr heir.
"You are right. I will be taking my leave then."
Diluc gives her a curt nod before turning towards Kaeya. "And you-"
"Alright, alright." The bluenette stands up with his hands in the air to placate the redhead. "I promise I will go home straight from here. Happy now?"
The redhead sighs tiredly then proceeds to follow after them to the entrance of the tavern. After they leave the establishment, Diluc turns the open sign on the door around to the closed sign.
Once the owner of Angel's Share disappears behind the closed door, she turns towards Kaeya.
"Whipped." She smirks at the bluenette.
"I think you used the wrong adjective, my dear Sister. You see, that word is for lovers. And even if I have one, that word would only ever be applied to my partner. Never me."
"Don't care."
She sees Kaeya roll his eye out of the corner of her eye.
"So, want to continue our conversation in my place?" He asks.
"Whipped." She repeats the word much to the annoyance of her friend.
Author's Note:
With this chapter, all the past scenes are finally out! For those who are interested, I will later post the outline of all the past scenes in AO3 (it's in table format, so I am unable to post it in FFN...)
Btw... I hope those offers the Tsaritsa gave Kaeya aren't too 'boring' or 'weird'... as basically all of them are just 'work for me and I will teach you how to use your power'...