Ana had not yet received Raiden Ei's answer when a small pink fox poked its head out from her braid and cried out to Ana first:
"Please, help us save Makoto!"
"Makoto?"
Just as Ana was puzzling over the name, Kitsune Saiguu glanced at the somewhat desolate Raiden Ei, then lifted the little fox from her shoulder and continued:
"Raiden Makoto."
"Ei's older sister."
"The two of them ruled Inazuma together as the 'Raiden Shogun'."
Kitsune Saiguu held the little fox and made a hushing gesture at its mouth.
"Makoto followed Sky Island's command and went to Khaenri'ah, all alone."
Ana looked at Raiden Ei before her.
"As far as I know,"
"Khaenri'ah possesses no significant high-end combat power."
"Since you are blood relatives, the strength of you two sisters should be roughly equal… Even if she couldn't win, escaping should have been no problem."
This was the standard combat doctrine of the Imperial Legions: on the defense, fight to the death without retreat to show loyalty; on the offense, employ diverse tactics and be ready to reposition at any time.
However, Kitsune Saiguu's answer did not resolve Ana's confusion. As the counterpart of the [Third Flame-Chaser], even if her "talent" was split between two people, she shouldn't have been so easily eliminated by the technology of an intra-planetary civilization.
"Regrettably,"
"You may have misunderstood."
"Makoto excelled in civil governance, while Ei is a master of the martial arts… In terms of combat, Makoto could be said to have no talent whatsoever."
Ana frowned.
"'Gods' can be so easily killed by mortals?"
This was already a very tactful way of putting it. A god unskilled in combat charging to the front lines of a battlefield was something that would be fundamentally impossible in the specialized structure of the Empire.
"…"
"For our sake, Makoto had to die."
Kitsune Saiguu remained silent. This time, the one who answered Ana's question was Raiden Ei, who had not uttered a word during the conversation. From the moment her sister had entrusted the ever-present little fox, "Yae," to her, she had faintly guessed her sister's intentions.
"The reason?"
"Although my sister was not skilled in battle, she wielded the power to reverse life and death."
"She once resurrected me from death using a forbidden art… Sky Island did not trust this power."
"Oh?"
Raiden Ei's answer surprised Ana. If what she said was true, then it made sense why she could remain so calm after hearing words like "overthrow Sky Island."
The Heavenly Principles wielded five Authorities. "Life" and "Death" were two of them. Resurrection was no easy feat; within the Empire, only those of the Apostle rank and a very small number of Legion Commanders could achieve it.
If the "Raiden Shogun" named "Makoto" was capable of such a thing… when an ordinary Demon God's strength was at best [Higher Primordial Species], Ana had reason to believe that this woman had a very close relationship with the "Maintainers," the shadows of the Heavenly Principles.
Betrayal or appeasement—based on the intelligence the Empire had gathered, Ana, who was equally adept at strategy, found her mind flooded with a multitude of possibilities.
However, she did not need to reach a definitive conclusion at this moment.
"Did only your sister go alone,"
"Or did all the 'gods' of Teyvat receive Sky Island's directive?"
"…"
Raiden Ei and Kitsune Saiguu exchanged a glance.
"All of them."
"Very good."
All the Archons were in Khaenri'ah. This meant that both the "points" for her mission and her Imperial colleagues would most likely converge on Khaenri'ah. None of those characters were easy to deal with. Even her notoriously lazy husband wouldn't dare to dally for a second when carrying out His Majesty the Emperor's orders.
The nation of Inazuma… she had already wasted too much time here. Her own Authorities were not suited for speed. It was entirely possible the other three had already completed their first "objective" and were on their way to Khaenri'ah.
If she was any slower, the "Archon" on her end might be the very last one!
"Miss Raiden Ei."
A golden scale appeared in Ana's hand, with a paper contract resting on each of its two pans. Time was short and the mission was critical, but the elegance and unhurried composure ingrained in her bones, along with the ceremonial contract, were unchanging traditions of the Schariac family for thousands of years.
"Tch."
At that thought, Ana, in a very uncharacteristic manner and unnoticed by anyone, curled her lip. Certain juniors—no, certain overly restless peers as well—possessed only the talent and power brought by their bloodline, but had long since lost the innate "quality" they were born with.
The key was, the current family head didn't have much say in this matter (lacking the strength and confidence). When she finally took that position…
"Saving your sister and resisting Sky Island."
"These two matters are not contradictory. In fact, they are a great boon that benefits both parties if we join forces."
Ana's train of thought shifted with incredible speed.
"Sign this contract."
Her standard smile was flawless.
"From this day forward…"
"We are comrades-in-arms."
---o---
"Bella!"
"Leave it to me."
In the capital of Khaenri'ah, around the perimeter of the royal palace.
The students of St. Freya were clearing out grunts. The situation here was something not even Rin had anticipated. The portal she opened was rather random, only roughly locking onto Khaenri'ah's location. She never expected it to teleport the St. Freya group directly to the vicinity of the royal palace.
As for the current situation… the nations of Natlan (Pyro), Fontaine (Hydro), and Snezhnaya (Cryo).
Their regular troops were still "negotiating" at the borders, but their gods had already led their retainers straight to the core of Khaenri'ah. It was a critical moment of standoff between the two sides when—a wave of divine justice descended from the heavens.
The St. Freya group knew neither of the two factions, but by using a surprise teleportation tactic while the area was under lockdown (the Khaenri'ahn royal palace's barrier blocked the teleportation network), they were instantly mistaken by both sides as the enemy's reserves.
And so… both sides immediately picked up their weapons and started fighting!
---o---
"Pfft!"
Sirin's light skirt was dyed a shimmering, starlit purple. Eyes opened on its surface, and the fabric transformed into tentacles. Empowered by the [Authority of the Void], the curled tips of the cloth became razor-sharp spear points, instantly piercing through all hostile targets in a straight line for a hundred meters, be they human, machine, or Quantum Beast.
Immediately after, hearing Sirin's call, Bella took a deep breath. Imaginary energy began to convert into the higher-magnitude Honkai energy. Though numerous, the enemies before them did not require the power of Imaginary energy; Honkai energy was more than enough to destroy their bodies and souls.
In the process, Bella's body began to expand rapidly. According to the energy conversion ratio, to contain and release such a quantity of Honkai energy, Bella had to reveal her Collapsed State: a colossal, white and cyan dragon!
"ROAR!!!"
An elemental magic circle, shimmering with four colors, converged in front of Bella.
An elemental storm erupted from her maw, instantly clearing a space the size of a football field!