"Hand on my heart, I'll be honest here.
I really didn't see this coming."
Looking at Aether, who was gritting his teeth, Taro could only shrug helplessly.
"I thought you'd come up with a calmer way to handle this.
Like sneaking over here quietly or something."
"I didn't expect…"
Such a complete loss of reason.
Taro truly hadn't expected it.
That Aether would just charge in this recklessly, not even bothering to conceal the power of the Abyss.
Are all siscons like this?
Letting their anger fry their brains?
Then again… maybe, probably, possibly… he'd be the same.
If someone laid a hand on a person he cared about, to be honest, he'd probably also go straight to the enemy's doorstep like Aether did.
The difference was that he'd be a bit more cautious than Aether—and a lot more ruthless.
The moment he knocked on the door, multiple world-class artifacts would activate at once.
He wouldn't give the other side any chance to set up an ambush, escape, or fight back.
Once he confirmed someone as an enemy, Taro would not leave them even a sliver of hope.
If it's an enemy, then you crush them in one go.
Of course, if the other party wasn't necessarily an enemy—at least for the moment—then even if he didn't kill them, the process would be the same.
First get them under complete control… then have a nice, slow chat.
How many so-called powerhouses had capsized in the gutter?
It wasn't exactly a rare story.
Taro had no intention of becoming the next one.
"Sounds real nice when you say it."
Aether glanced around at the current situation, his brows knitting tighter.
The adeptal grand formation protecting Liyue was nothing to worry about.
But this man standing in front of him… he had absolutely no confidence against him.
The other party had deliberately left a mark on his sister's body, clearly to lure him here.
"Friendly chat," huh?
Yeah, right. He'd believe that when pigs flew.
"Since things have already come to this, why don't we lay everything on the table?"
Aether took a deep breath and sheathed his sword.
"Stop using my sister as leverage. Whatever calculations you have, take them out on me instead.
As long as your ultimate goal doesn't clash with mine, I'm willing to make concessions."
"Oh?"
Taro raised an eyebrow and smiled.
"I don't think you've quite grasped your current situation yet.
But, well, I don't have any particular malice toward you two. Not for now, anyway."
"What I have is curiosity."
"You cooperate a bit, I'll just take something I need.
On that basis, I can even help keep an eye on Lumine for you."
"As long as you don't provoke me or the people around me in the future,
I honestly can't be bothered to care what you do."
"Mm. A win–win situation."
For now, the only ones who had agreements with him were Zhongli and Venti.
So as long as nothing huge happened in Liyue or Mondstadt, they could do whatever they wanted.
As for later…
He would deal with "later" later.
Life was full of uncertainties.
Who knew if he'd suddenly have some wild idea in the future?
With something that uncertain, he wasn't about to make any iron-clad guarantees.
"Just curiosity?"
Aether didn't believe Taro's explanation at all.
"A win–win situation, I'd love to see it.
What exactly do you want to take from me?"
What Taro's true purpose was, Aether actually didn't want to ask.
As long as he didn't lay a hand on Lumine, then agreeing to a few conditions… so be it.
From the beginning, he'd never planned on becoming enemies with this newly arrived descender.
Even less so now.
As long as they weren't in direct opposition, they could each walk their own path and mind their own business.
There was absolutely no reason to forcibly shove the other party onto the opposite side.
Only an idiot would do that.
"No rush."
Taro shook his head slightly.
"Before that, I have to make sure your condition is completely normal."
"If your memories, like Lumine's, have been 'influenced' by some special means, then the thing I want from you might not have any real value at all."
"…"
Aether's brows twisted tighter, his expression turning darker.
"So?"
"How do you plan to confirm that?"
"Very simple."
Taro gave a light smile.
"You just don't resist. I'll do it myself."
"When Lumine came over last time, it was the same."
If you want something done right, do it yourself.
What others told him would never compare to what he could confirm with his own eyes.
In theory, Aether's condition should be a bit better than Lumine's…
Though it could also be worse.
Either way, he had to test it personally this time.
"You're really pushing it."
The moment Taro mentioned Lumine, Aether felt his eyes throb faintly.
This damn blond guy still dared to bring her up?
"You want me not to resist? Then come and try…"
Without another word, Aether drew his sword. His body exploded into motion, thrusting straight at Taro's lower half.
"…That's at least a little bit of personal grudge."
"You fight kind of dirty, you know."
Taro didn't really believe Aether could hurt him that easily.
Even so, he still felt a chill down below.
He decisively leapt backward, then snapped his fingers.
A golden chain surged forth from the empty air.
Whoosh—
A sharp series of sonic booms ripped through the air.
The golden chain carried a ferocious, overwhelming momentum as it stabbed straight toward Aether's forehead.
"Chains?"
Seeing the chain shooting directly at his brow, Aether's forehead seemed to explode, a cold dread rising in his heart.
He immediately bent backward, spine arched, watching as the chain twisted its own trajectory and whipped past the tip of his nose.
As the howling wind swept back toward him again, he forcibly twisted his waist and slammed one hand onto the ground, launching himself up into the air.
He just barely evaded the chain, which had already turned around for another strike.
Before he could land, the chain that had flown past him turned once more.
"…"
Aether gritted his teeth silently. This time, there was no way to dodge.
He gripped his longsword in his right hand and swung it in a fierce horizontal slash.
Sword and chain collided.
Aether borrowed the force of the impact, blasting himself backward in a wild retreat.
Taro waved his hand, not letting the chain continue its pursuit.
Aether landed safely, but his expression was stormy as he stared at his sword, which now had a huge chunk missing and was almost snapped in half.
Just one hit.
Just a single clash.
Yet his longsword—reinforced by both his own power and the power of the Abyss—had a chunk blown out of it that large, almost breaking completely.
…
If that had smashed directly into his body…
As he thought this, a flicker of pain came from his waist and the bridge of his nose.
Fresh blood appeared bright red.
"I didn't dodge it?"
"That's impossible…"
Aether's pupils shrank sharply.
He reflexively pressed his hand to his waist.
A slick, slippery sensation spread across his palm.
He knew all too well what that texture meant—blood.
"How does it feel?"
"Want to try again?"
Watching Aether's face flicker between expressions, Taro remained completely calm.
The idea he'd been toying with in his mind finally solidified.
The Aether before him possessed a very high level of divinity.
Otherwise, there was no way he'd be cut open by the sheer razor-sharp aura clinging to the Chains of Heaven without being hit head-on.
That divinity should be coming from the so-called Abyssal Will.
The Abyss of Teyvat was nothing more than a portion of that will's power made manifest—part of the pitch-black cosmos outside Teyvat, given form.
This guy… had he been marked by the Abyssal Will?
Tsk. Khaenri'ah really left a mess.
"Your power… restrains the Abyss, doesn't it?"
Looking at his wound, which still wouldn't stop bleeding, Aether's expression grew heavier.
"The Chains of Heaven don't only restrain the Abyss."
Taro slowly shook his head and reminded him quietly:
"Also, you'd better not use the power of the Abyss to fight against the aura the Chains of Heaven left behind."
"Otherwise, you might just bleed out and die."
"…"
Aether froze, then let the power of the Abyss fade from his palm.
In its place rose a gentle light.
The wound that had been bleeding non-stop—and even worsening—began to heal at an astonishing speed.
And you still say it doesn't restrain the Abyss…
Aether couldn't help but complain inwardly, even as the injury closed up.
(End of Chapter)
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