"Why did you do all of this?"
Inside the Knights of Favonius headquarters, a figure clad in green stood before Aerin.
White stockings wrapped his legs, his expression heavy and conflicted.
"Ah… Venti," Aerin said calmly.
"You finally decided to show yourself."
"When I spoke with the Fourth Descender, didn't you already spy on everything through the Thousand Winds?"
Venti froze.
"…You noticed?"
The bard—whose true identity was Barbatos, the Anemo Archon of Mondstadt—fell silent.
There was no point pressing further. After all, Aerin could also command the Thousand Winds.
"But—" Venti said anxiously, "the world was already repaired after Vennessa's ascension. Teyvat is complete now."
Aerin's expression darkened.
Venti instinctively staggered back several steps.
Cold sweat drenched his clothes.
He had already prepared himself to die just by appearing here.
Yet he hadn't expected that Aerin's mere presence would suffocate him to this degree.
The gap between them was absolute—
not something courage or resolve could bridge.
Even if he attacked now, it would be nothing more than a meaningless sacrifice.
"As one of the original Archons," Aerin said coldly,
"do you really not understand that the stability of the new world order rests in the Ley Lines of the World Tree?"
"The so-called Original Gods who once sacrificed themselves—
their wills returned to the Ley Lines."
"The stronger humanity's will, the purer their wishes,
the more stable the Ley Line resonance becomes."
He looked straight at Venti.
"And this—"
"—is the result of your guidance as an Archon?"
Venti's face turned pale.
He did know fragments of the truth.
After the Year of Falling Fire, the new world had indeed been tied to the bodies of the gods of Celestia.
But the actual process—
that was a secret even he had never been allowed to touch.
Venti slowly shook his head.
Aerin inhaled, then waved dismissively.
"Get lost. You're an eyesore."
"Your personal will isn't the problem."
"But since you Archons are bound by the will of Phanes' beloved, I'll give you one chance."
"Still—if you insist on throwing yourselves into the fire,"
"I won't hesitate to send you back to the Ley Lines."
Celestia.
Phanes.
After only a few sentences, Venti felt as if his Gnosis might shatter from stress alone.
And yet—
Aerin didn't even seem interested in it.
At least ask for my Gnosis, Venti thought dazedly.
That's a Celestia-granted authority…
Then realization struck him.
Aerin could already command the Thousand Winds.
In that instant, everything clicked.
Eyes lighting up, Venti blurted out,
"Then you must be connected to the Heavenly Principles—!"
"At least… a close associate?"
Otherwise, how could Aerin know Celestia and Phanes so thoroughly?
Perhaps he was a god who once left for another world…
and had now returned, dissatisfied with what Teyvat had become.
A divine auditor, here to correct the world.
The theory fit far too well.
Venti's eyes shone.
"…Hm?" Aerin glanced at him coolly.
"What are you waiting for—me to personally send you back to the Ley Lines?"
To the people watching the light screen—
That timid bard…
was truly Barbatos, the Anemo Archon?
Mondstadt's citizens had barely recovered from the massacre.
Now they watched their god stand before Aerin like a subordinate before a superior—
scolded, dismissed, and even mistaken him for a former Celestian god.
This hurt more than seeing Barbatos fall in battle.
Their god hadn't even resisted.
In the end…
he had abandoned them.
[Amber]: "That… really is our Anemo Archon?"
[Barbara]: "No… he's just a bard… then why does Aerin call him Barbatos?"
[Hu Tao]: "He is Barbatos. His profile in the chat just changed."
[Rosaria]: "If he were truly our god, after so many people died, he should've fought to the death. Instead he got told to 'get lost'."
[Barbara]: "Rosaria… don't say that… w-waaah…"
[Kaeya]: "Are we really… unworthy of living?"
[Lisa]: "Kaeya, you and Diluc survived in the future—bandaged like mummies, but alive."
[Diluc]: "…Even the Anemo Archon gave up. What chance do we have?"
Behind the rocks, Venti clenched his fists and whispered excitedly:
"Good. This is… good progress."
Dvalin stared at him in disbelief.
"…You're happy?"
"Of course!" Venti whispered back, flashing a V-sign.
"He said he won't hold it against us Archons because of Phanes' influence."
"That means… I can still talk to him."
"Everything can be discussed."
Dvalin: "...?"
Not long after Venti left, there was a knock at the door.
A white-clad girl with long golden hair stepped inside,
followed by a floating little companion.
"Good morning, Master!" Paimon said cheerfully.
She tugged urgently at the ribbon on Aerin's sleeve.
Say something! Hurry!
Lumine felt a knot in her chest.
Choosing submission over death…
wasn't something she could accept without bitterness.
Still—
She bowed.
"…Aerin, my lord."
Paimon let out a stiff, nervous laugh, terrified Aerin's tone might offend him.
She had heard from Eula—
this man had erased seventy percent of Mondstadt with a wave of his hand.
Paimon might not understand what she truly was,
but she understood one thing:
As long as Aerin submitted, she would live.
"What do you want?" Aerin asked calmly.
Paimon immediately answered,
"We came to see if there's anything we can help with! Eula said good performance gets rewards!"
"And Lumine… wanted to ask about her brother."
Aerin turned to Lumine.
She puffed her cheeks, then nodded.
"…Please grant us a chance."
Aerin considered briefly, then smiled.
"There's nothing for you to do."
"I only bound you with the Stigma Serum to prevent you from using Celestia's authority—
the power that converts human wishes into strength."
"Now that you belong to me, that concern is gone."
"As for your brother—
I'll tell you."
Lumine's face flushed instantly.
She had only come on a gamble.
But Aerin really knew.
And more than that—
he was generous.
Eula hadn't lied.
Aerin treated his own quite gently.
"Your brother—Aether—is currently the leader of the Abyss Order."
"What?!"
Lumine and Paimon stared in shock.
Before Aerin ever attacked Mondstadt, they had already fought Abyss-controlled Hilichurls.
"That's impossible…" Lumine whispered.
"Calm down," Aerin said, raising a hand.
He explained everything—piece by piece.
As he spoke, Lumine's shock faded into numb clarity.
She had thought that by submitting, she'd lost any chance of returning home with her brother.
But the truth was—
Aether had long since become a native of Teyvat.
He could no longer leave.
"He joined the Abyss… because of Khaenri'ah's national flower," Aerin said calmly.
"—Inteyvat."
"You once wished to find a world filled with flowers."
"He found it."
"So he chose Khaenri'ah as his home."
Khaenri'ah—
a nation close to the Ley Lines, closest to the cracks in the false sky.
A land that often received beings from beyond the world.
That was why its technology surpassed all others.
They welcomed outsiders as honored guests—
hoping one day a true Descender would appear.
Until the twins arrived.
Aether awakened first.
He was cherished.
When he found that flower sea, he decided—
this would be their new home.
He accepted an ancient Khaenri'ahn ritual.
"Death…"
"…and rebirth?"
Lumine trembled.
Lumine nodded.
"You can find traces of that ritual in a book called 'Perinheri.'"
"Once he accepted it, Aether became Khaenri'ahn."
"As a former Descender, the World Tree once recorded nothing of him."
"But the moment he completed the ritual—
his existence was written into the World Tree."
Later came the Cataclysm.
They tried to flee.
The Sustainer stopped them.
Aether awoke first…
and saw the ruins of Khaenri'ah.
Under Clothar's influence, he learned how to create the Fate Loom—
and chose to challenge Celestia for control of the world.
"If he couldn't leave," Aerin said quietly,
"then he would make this world his home."
"And restore that flower sea."
"The Inteyvat Sea."
Lumine felt dizzy.
Her brother…
the Prince of the Abyss.
Before she could even process relief, the truth struck harder than any blade.
In the Abyss Order, Enjou burst out excitedly:
"Prince! Your sister became a Valkyrie!"
Aether exhaled slowly.
"Terrifying… Aerin knows everything."
Still—
seeing that Aerin hadn't mistreated Lumine eased his heart slightly.
As long as she obeyed, she was safe.
That was… acceptable.
Aether opened the chat interface and sent a private message.
Lumine.
I'm fine. Don't worry about me.
But remember—when facing Aerin, your attitude matters.
Lumine felt overwhelmed.
Her brother was the Abyss Prince.
If he ever provoked Aerin—
complete annihilation would be a mercy.
"…M-Master…" she said softly.
"About my brother—"
Aerin cut in calmly.
"The Abyss Order's Fate Loom core is already in my possession."
"Your brother's plan is effectively dead."
"He's just another chess piece. I'm not interested."
"With your current strength, handling him is trivial."
"If you want to resolve that matter—
do it yourself."
To Aerin, the Abyss Order wasn't even worth notice.
If they interfered, he'd erase them incidentally.
If they hid, he wouldn't bother.
After all—
the Ruin Golem's eye was already in his hands.
The anxious ones were the Abyss.
Lumine's face brightened instantly.
"Right! Just a bunch of small fry!"
"No need for Master to act personally!"
"…So, Master's next plan is—?"
Aerin looked at her overly eager expression and laughed helplessly.
Leaning back on the sofa, he said casually:
"Once Bennares finishes dealing with Mondstadt's expeditionary force…"
"I'm leaving Mondstadt."
"For the next nation."
Paimon's eyes darted.
Another country's doomed, she thought.
"Liyue?" Lumine asked.
"It's right next door, isn't it?"
"No," Aerin replied flatly.
"Distance is meaningless to me."
"My next target—
is Inazuma."
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