Rhinedottir.
One of the Five Great Sinners of Khaenri'ah.
She represents the absolute pinnacle of alchemy.
Her most famous creations are the "Chalk Prince" Albedo and the "Demonic Dragon" Durin. The "Golden King Beasts" that swept across the continent during the Cataclysm, and the series of monsters known as "Rift Hounds," were all made by her hands.
You could say Rhinedottir was the chief culprit behind the Black Calamity.
As for why she did all this, she was most likely bewitched by the Abyss. Even now, she is still periodically tormented by its whispers and curses.
After all, before she was contaminated by the divided Abyssal power, her words and actions showed her as nothing more than a mad alchemist—someone very similar to Albedo.
As for the rest of the Five Great Sinners…
Rowan only briefly mentions their names here. The details, he leaves for later.
The prophet Visefonir. He comes first because he has another identity:
He is Dainsleif's real elder brother.
The ring in Dain's hand—the one that can constantly reset his own state—was given by him.
And he is also the true founder of the Abyss Order.
He was the one who guided Klotar and Alberich to establish the Abyss Order.
Next is the sage Helotta Dei, master of the Secret Court, and the most trusted man of the last ruler of Khaenri'ah's Black Sun Dynasty, the Black King Irmin.
He was probably the first of them to be completely seduced by the Abyss, and he's also the one hiding the deepest at present—a thoroughly scheming old fox.
Then there is the "Wicked Knight" Surterloch, a pure battle maniac and Dainsleif's close friend.
He was Skirk's master, and the owner of the Star-Devouring Whale.
The last one is the so-called "pure-hearted warrior," the Moon-Hunter Reliel.
He was just an ordinary man bewitched by the Abyss—a tragic backstory plus a painfully sincere "true love" nature.
His storyline is tragedy stacked on tragedy.
He's easily the most miserable of them all, and if that wasn't enough, the Abyss even dragged him back out in Nordkalai just to whip his corpse a second time.
Tsk, tsk… truly pitiful.
So, how did the Five Great Sinners come to be?
For that, we have to go back five hundred years, to Khaenri'ah.
At that time, Khaenri'ah had already become the Black Sun Dynasty. Its king was Irmin.
On the advice of the sage Helotta Dei, Irmin agreed to summon a Traveler from beyond the stars, hoping to restore Khaenri'ah's former glory.
Thus the "Inverse Lord," Aether, was summoned into Khaenri'ah.
After a series of manipulations, Aether, originally a Descender, was turned into a native of Teyvat.
Using the blank space of his amnesia, they let him grow familiar with Khaenri'ah and witness firsthand the suffering and goodness of its people.
From the bottom of his heart, he came to acknowledge Khaenri'ah, and he genuinely wished to become its savior, willing to lend his strength.
In the end, Irmin used Aether to steal a vast amount of power from the Abyss.
Unfortunately, he died before he could truly harness it—cut down in a single stroke when Dainsleif "cleansed his king's side."
That enormous Abyssal power was then divided up among five people who had already been deeply corrupted by the Abyss.
The Black Calamity that followed was also triggered by these five, and they remained on the sidelines, never stepping in to stop it.
They watched it all happen with folded arms.
The result was the entire continent of Teyvat plunged into ruin and carnage.
That is the origin of the Five Great Sinners.
And that is why Dainsleif's hatred of the Abyss—and of these five—is so deep.
He had clearly invited these five people to join him in cleansing the king's side and saving his brother, Visefonir.
But when they saw that massive, tempting Abyssal power, they simply couldn't resist. They stepped forward and carved it up for themselves.
Even Reliel, who returned to the Secret Court at the end, was ultimately corrupted.
Of course, his ending was also thoroughly miserable—not only did he die, his body was smashed to pieces.
Tsk. Serves him right.
All five were bewitched by the Abyss, and so chose to betray Khaenri'ah, turning a blind eye to the disaster that befell Teyvat.
Rowan doesn't pass judgment on what they did.
He has no right to, and in truth the whole story still hasn't been fully uncovered.
But there is one thing he's sure of:
The reason Rhinedottir created so many monsters must have come from the Abyss's commands. Based on her personality and usual behavior alone, it's hard to imagine her doing something that insane of her own will.
In the future, Rhinedottir is very likely to turn her wrath on the Abyss itself.
The fact that she has devoured Naberius now is probably her way of preparing for that.
(This is just the author's own interpretation. If future canon proves it wrong, please don't come looking to slap my face.)
That's why Rowan wants to recruit Rhinedottir, to bring her under his banner and have her help him.
Just one Albedo has already brought him so much.
Rowan can hardly imagine how powerful Rhinedottir herself must be, as his creator.
"Ah, if you're thinking about finding Rhinedottir, that's… not very realistic."
"She's constantly tormented by Abyssal whispers and curses right now. She has no time to come out."
Seeing that there was no one around, Istaroth smiled, slipped into Rowan's arms, wrapped her arms around his neck, and gave him a kiss.
Rowan chuckled and replied:
"What if I can suppress the Abyssal power? Would she be able to help me then?"
Don't forget—Rowan can now project any Noble Phantasm.
He had more than enough ways to break curses and remove negative effects.
To say nothing of anything else, just the Avalon within his body was enough.
Even if a projected version would be weaker, it would still work if worn properly.
Using it to push back against Abyssal power wasn't impossible.
So trading a projected Avalon for an alchemist who stands at the very peak of the craft was an absolutely profitable deal.
He could even go to Liyue and trade a projected Avalon just to lure Cloud-Retainer over. That would still be worth it.
In fact, anyone who truly understood Avalon's effects could never remain indifferent to it.
"Huh?"
"Really, if that's the case, she definitely would come to help."
A moment later, Istaroth understood what Rowan was getting at, and asked in surprise:
"You're not thinking of giving Avalon to Rhinedottir, are you?"
"That wouldn't really work. The Abyssal corruption on Rhinedottir isn't the same as what Dvalin had."
"It'd be like polishing away erosion—you'd need to keep Avalon on her for a very long time."
"What about your own safety?"
At the end of the day, Rhinedottir was just one of the Five Great Sinners.
Rowan, on the other hand, was her beloved.
She could tell the difference between a lover and an enemy.
"You're overthinking it. I'd only be giving her a projected Avalon, not the original in my hand. It would only have half the power."
"I'm a man who really values his own life."
(End of Chapter)
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