Chapter 45

It wasn't surprising to Bai Luo that the Tsaritsa would send a letter.

He had been in Inazuma for quite some time, yet there had been little progress in obtaining the Electro Archon's Gnosis. It was only natural for the Tsaritsa to urge him on.

However, what he didn't expect was that the letter didn't scold him for slacking off. Instead, it was about another Harbinger—Il Dottore.

The Tsaritsa's message was simple: he was to temporarily hand over his work in Inazuma to Scaramouche and head to Mondstadt to assist Il Dottore with some matters.

"Isn't Mondstadt La Signora's territory?"

Bai Luo had initially wanted to go to Mondstadt the most. After all, the god of this free city-state was a rather elusive figure. As long as he didn't cross any red lines, Bai Luo wouldn't be in any real danger.

Unfortunately, La Signora, who hailed from Mondstadt, didn't want anyone meddling in her affairs, so she took full responsibility for matters related to Mondstadt.

If he went to Mondstadt now, wouldn't La Signora cause trouble for him?

Perhaps anticipating Bai Luo's concerns, the Tsaritsa included an explanation in her letter.

It turned out that the god of the free city-state was still missing. To avoid alerting anyone, La Signora hadn't yet gone to Mondstadt and was instead handling some affairs in Sumeru.

Moreover, the Tsaritsa specifically instructed Bai Luo to avoid taking any direct action against Barbatos if he encountered him.

Some matters needed to be resolved by La Signora personally.

"When do I leave?"

After putting away the letter, Bai Luo turned to the Fatui agent in front of him.

If this letter had come from Il Dottore, Bai Luo could have easily declined.

After all, he was now of equal rank to Il Dottore and didn't have to take orders from him.

But since the letter came from the Tsaritsa, he had to take it seriously. He was still her subordinate, after all.

Betrayal... wasn't something the Tsaritsa took kindly to.

At least until he was strong enough to withstand the wrath of the Seven, he couldn't easily leave the Fatui.

"You can leave tomorrow. Il Dottore's subordinates are already waiting outside Inazuma. You can take their ship to Mondstadt."

The Fatui agent was actually quite reluctant to see Bai Luo go.

Although Bai Luo often slacked off, much like that absentee archon Barbatos, he treated his subordinates well—at least he didn't randomly kill them off.

Now, Scaramouche, on the other hand...

He had only been in Inazuma for a few days, and already several colleagues at the Delusion Factory had died.

And their deaths were gruesome, clearly the result of being used as tools with those inferior Delusions.

The agent was already considering whether he should join the vanguard to lay low for a while.

"Alright, find a way to inform Il Dottore's subordinates that I'll be there by noon tomorrow. Tell them to be ready to receive me."

"Yes, sir!"

The Fatui agent acknowledged the order and was about to leave to notify his colleagues waiting at sea through a special method when Bai Luo stopped him.

"Sir, is there anything else?"

He couldn't tell if it was his imagination, but Bai Luo's gaze seemed a bit off.

"Do you have any Fire-Water on you?"

"...No."

Though his face was hidden behind the Fatui mask, the agent's demeanor clearly betrayed his guilt.

Whether he had it or not, he definitely didn't dare admit it in front of Bai Luo.

According to Fatui regulations, while Fire-Water was allowed, it had to be consumed at the right time.

If someone was caught drinking Fire-Water during work hours, a harsh superior might even kill them.

With a quick glance, Bai Luo expertly searched the agent and pulled out an unopened bottle of Fire-Water.

As the instructor for the Pyro Agents, Bai Luo had done this sort of thing countless times before.

So he knew exactly where these grunts liked to hide their liquor.

"Sir, this is my last bottle. I've been saving it."

The agent looked miserable, trying to make a final plea.

If he had known it would be confiscated, he wouldn't have saved it. He should have just drunk it.

"When we get back to Snezhnaya, I'll treat you to the finest Fire-Water."

After pocketing the confiscated bottle, Bai Luo patted the agent on the shoulder and left the courtyard, carrying the fireworks.

"Let's just hope we make it back to Snezhnaya..."

The agent sighed helplessly.

...

Kseniya's place was actually quite easy to find.

She didn't like water, nor did she like bugs chewing through her expensive little rug, so she had set up her temporary camp on a rock far from the stream.

Waking up to the sunlight and then heading out to complete nearby tasks was her favorite part of the day.

From a distance, Bai Luo could see her temporary camp made of dark red canvas and the smoke rising from her campfire.

"I haven't eaten much today, so I'll just mooch a meal off her."

Since he was leaving Inazuma and wasn't sure when he'd be back, Bai Luo naturally didn't forget to visit Kseniya before his departure.

He had quite a good impression of this hospitable Electro Cicin Mage.

Especially since she had always talked about pure Fire-Water, he had even gone out of his way to confiscate a bottle from his subordinate.

However...

As he approached, he realized something was off.

Because the person sitting by the temporary camp wasn't the Kseniya he remembered, but a group of oddly dressed individuals.

They were gathered around the broken pot Kseniya had once used to brew tea, seemingly taking a break.

Based on their attire, Bai Luo immediately recognized them.

The Treasure Hoarders.

They were a fairly well-known organization in Teyvat, mostly made up of greedy individuals.

Though their footprints spanned the entire continent, and they even ventured into domains that some adventurers dared not enter, it didn't change the fact that they were essentially a loose band of thieves.

But... why were they near Kseniya's camp? And where was Kseniya?

He didn't think these Treasure Hoarders could defeat Kseniya.

After all, Kseniya was an Electro Cicin Mage, a special unit even in Snezhnaya.

These Treasure Hoarders, who didn't even have Visions, were no match for her.

Watching these Treasure Hoarders chatting and laughing, Bai Luo quietly set down the box of fireworks, drew his dagger, and disappeared into the night.

The most terrifying aspect of the [Black] class wasn't its combat prowess.

In terms of direct combat, Bai Luo was undoubtedly the weakest among the Harbingers.

But when it came to assassination...

Bai Luo was undoubtedly the best.

To date, Bai Luo had never failed a single assassination mission for the Fatui.

As long as the target was given to him, the mark would be dead within a day, without a sound.

Even if they hired Vision users as bodyguards, they still couldn't escape Bai Luo's shadow of death.

It was said that even those who shared a bed with Bai Luo's targets only realized their partner had turned into a cold corpse the next morning.

According to incomplete statistics, Il Dottore, The Instructor, and Pierro were the three Harbingers least wanted and least willing to be provoked by anyone in Snezhnaya.

In any case... these Treasure Hoarders were in for a world of trouble.