Forcibly abducted from the Island in the Sky, the white-haired girl with golden pupils snapped her eyes open.
"The Hydro Archon... the Hydro Dragon... and a new Descender?"
The girl's majestic gaze quickly swept over Neuvillette, Furina, and Focalors before locking onto Jibril, who was currently holding her by the scruff of her neck.
Her aura was originally quite withered, as if she were in a state of recuperation from heavy injuries. But in the next second, crimson spatial cubes—the cubes of the Void—emerged from behind her like chains. The Authority unique to the Shade of Space released its power; even at a great personal cost, she intended to seal this "Descender" within Teyvat forever.
However—
THUD!
Before she could even complete her move, Jibril delivered a casual hand-chop to the back of her neck. The blow caused the Shade of Space—an existence standing above the Seven—to black out instantly, plunging her back into a deep sleep.
"Master's 'Godhead Seal' technique really is handy!" Jibril muttered, pulling her glowing golden hand away from the girl's neck.
"The Sustainer of Heavenly Principles... defeated just like that..."
Focalors' face was a mask of pure shock. Only now did she understand why Neuvillette had been so subservient and hesitant to speak from the very beginning.
The opponent's strength was terrifying, far surpassing that of an ordinary Dragon Sovereign. Even the Shade of Space was no match for her. It was possible that even the Heavenly Principles—the Primordial One, Phanes—was inferior to her in raw power.
Forget Fate; a powerhouse like this could crush the very Laws of the World!
In the midst of her shock, Focalors noticed Jibril casually tossing the unconscious Sustainer over her shoulder, looking for all the world like she was packing a lunch for a trip.
"Miss Jibril, what... what are you doing?" Focalors asked hesitantly.
"Collecting my spoils of war, obviously!" Jibril said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"While her strength is nothing to write home about, she's quite cute. She'd make a decent maid for Master... Plus, I'm a bit curious about what she said. I have a few things I want to ask her."
As she spoke, Jibril looked up at the sky. Her usually carefree expression turned uncharacteristically deep.
"I had a faint inkling when I first arrived, but this world really does seem like the 'Fifth-Class World' Master has been searching for. It looks like I really did come to the right place!"
A world that continuously devours Descenders from beyond the stars—swallowing the "Hope" of other worlds just to save itself. If the rules of the Teyvat continent really functioned like that, she had to report it to Master.
"But before that..." Jibril looked down at the two versions of the Hydro Archon. "In order to get Master to praise me, I should collect a few more maids for him first."
"Huh?" Furina blinked, looking dazed. She hadn't quite processed what that implied.
"I'll lead the way!" Focalors spoke up immediately, proving herself to be quite sensible.
"Everyone within Fontaine is yours to choose from. As for those outside our borders, I will arrange for personnel to negotiate. Furina and I will use our status as the Hydro Archon to clear the path for you!"
A wise person submits to the circumstances. In the face of a powerhouse who could one-shot the Sustainer, being the "scout" for her recruitment drive was practically an honor.
Jibril glanced at her sideways but eventually nodded. "Fine. You two help me gather the ones that are easy to collect. I'll handle the difficult ones personally."
She looked toward Inazuma, Sumeru, and Snezhnaya, muttering to herself, "Those other Goddesses you have here... they seem to be fairly good-looking."
Hearing this, both Focalors and Neuvillette broke into a cold sweat. To think her first order of business was "collecting goddesses." It seemed Jibril was right—these were indeed the targets that only she could "handle."
"Understood!" Focalors nodded, then motioned for Neuvillette to go and make the arrangements.
They couldn't help with the gods, but ordinary people were easy enough to recruit. Though they didn't know Jibril's specific criteria, picking the beautiful ones was a safe bet.
"Is this really okay...?"
Once Jibril had stepped away, Furina looked around shiftily before whispering to Focalors.
"I don't mind for myself, but the other citizens of Fontaine have no obligation to comply. I feel a bit guilty 'selling them out' like this. Especially the other Archons—if they're taken away, what will happen to their nations?"
Simple and kind-hearted as she was, she felt this behavior was somewhat immoral.
Focalors sighed, looking at her "silly" human half. "Do you really think I offered our assistance just to flatter that lady?"
"Eh?" Furina's eyes went wide. "It wasn't for that?"
"Of course not," Focalors shook her head. "Miss Jibril is a bit impulsive and acts on whims, but she isn't a bad person at heart. You don't need to worry about that."
"Whoever she takes an interest in—as long as they aren't an enemy—she won't be stingy with offering terms that satisfy them. That goes for the Seven Archons as well."
"The real problem is Miss Jibril's temperament. She lacks the patience to sit down and explain her thoughts to others. If we let her wander off alone, the other Archons will probably end up like the Shade of Space—knocked out and packed away like luggage."
"...That's a fair point." Remembering Jibril's "bandit-like" behavior, Furina had to admit her other self was right, despite her gratitude. If left to her own devices, the other gods would indeed become mere "spoils of war."
"So, that's where we come in," Focalors said calmly. "We can't change the ultimate outcome, but we can at least ensure the others don't panic. We can prevent a massive riot. Miss Jibril probably realized this too, which is why she agreed to our help."
"I see! So even though it looks like we're being henchmen helping a tyrant bully innocent people, we're actually doing a good deed!"
Furina nodded, her eyes shining with sudden realization.
"...When you put it that way, my conscience actually starts to hurt more," Focalors muttered, covering her face. She couldn't keep up the self-deception any longer.