"Brighella..."
The Tsaritsa of Snezhnaya stared at Luo Qing, a flicker of doubt crossing her usually impassive gaze.
"How do you possess the power of authority?"
The aura emanating from him was too familiar. She couldn't mistake it. But why did he have that power?
"Are you referring to this, Your Majesty?"
Luo Qing raised his right hand, and with a subtle thought, a vibrant green energy brimming with life blood in his palm.
"I stumbled across it by chance. It's quite handy, so I decided to keep it. Why, are you interested? Would you like a demonstration?"
"...The Authority of Life."
The Tsaritsa fell silent, her gaze fixed on the life energy in Luo Qing's hand as her thoughts drifted.
Deep in her ancient mories was the image of soone who once wielded the Authority of Life. But for that being, life was rely one of seven authorities they commanded.
Had it not been for an otherworldly disaster, that figure might have beco the most powerful existence in this world.
"Answer , Brighella," the Tsaritsa demanded, her tone calm but firm. "Where did you acquire the Authority of Life?"
"Didn't I just say?" Luo Qing smiled faintly. "It was a lucky find. Nothing more."
"Oh?"
The Tsaritsa's tone turned icy.
"If it were rely a lucky find, why did your connection to the Pure Ice Core sever for the past six months? Why was the energy I left within it completely drained? Do you think I'm a child, so easily deceived?"
"Well..."
Luo Qing scratched his head awkwardly, his gaze flitting briefly to Rosalyne standing beside him.
He couldn't very well admit that he had traveled to the past and used the Pure Ice Core's power to defeat the Plague Archon, gaining the Authority of Life in the process.
So, he ventured, "Can I refrain from answering, Your Majesty?"
"..."
The Tsaritsa's expression darkened slightly.
It seed this man had grown wings and was no longer so easily controlled.
Then again, with two deities in his household and now the Authority of Life under his command, Luo Qing had indeed beco soone she couldn't lightly contend with. If she fought him without reinforcents, she might not win.
"Then tell ," she said after a pause, "what of the Gnosis you promised ?"
"Ah, that..."
Luo Qing rubbed his hands together sheepishly.
"Well, you see, I'm still working on it. It's a process..."
"A process?"
The Tsaritsa scoffed, her voice sharp.
"Then what is this Gnosis Arlecchino delivered to ?"
"..."
Luo Qing fell silent.
Having just returned, he hadn't realized that Arlecchino had already retrieved one of the Gnoses.
"Have nothing to say?"
The Tsaritsa's tone grew colder, her aura radiating an oppressive chill.
"Hand over the Gnosis you possess, Brighella, and I'll consider your efforts sufficient. Otherwise..."
She paused, her words like shards of ice.
"You will stand against the entirety of Snezhnaya."
Her power surged, freezing the very air around them. Frost ford on the ground, and even Rosalyne, standing beside Luo Qing, couldn't suppress a shiver as she bowed her head.
"Your Majesty..."
Luo Qing looked up at the Tsaritsa, unaffected by the frigid atmosphere. He smiled calmly.
"It seems you're aware that taking the Gnosis from won't be so simple, isn't that right?"
He wasn't about to give up the Gnoses so easily, especially not the Dendro Gnosis, which served as the core of his Void System. Without it, his plans for spreading the Void across Teyvat would crumble.
"..."
The Tsaritsa reined in her emotions, her expression once again unreadable.
"What do you want?"
"I don't want anything," Luo Qing replied evenly, shaking his head.
"All I need is for you to tell why you're collecting the seven Gnoses. What are you planning to do with them?"
At first, Luo Qing had believed, like many others, that the Tsaritsa sought the Gnoses to gain the power necessary to exact revenge on Celestia for the calamity in Khaenri'ah.
But after his battle with the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles and the passage of millennia, he had co to understand that her motives were far deeper.
The disaster in Khaenri'ah was rely the spark that ignited her rebellion.
Her true reasons for opposing Celestia likely dated back to a ti long before the Archon War.
She had sown the seeds of resistance in an era shrouded in antiquity.
"..."
The Tsaritsa was silent for several seconds before replying curtly,
"That's not a question you should ask."
"If Your Majesty is unwilling to answer..."
Luo Qing's tone remained calm, but his words carried weight.
"Then I'll make this promise: after you've collected the other Gnoses, I will personally deliver mine to you. Until then, I cannot give them up. They are still of use to ."
The air grew tense. Even Rosalyne, usually composed, felt her heart tighten with unease.
But to her surprise, the Tsaritsa did not lash out.
Instead, she stared at Luo Qing for a long ti, her thoughts unreadable.
"...Luo Qing," she said at last, her voice low.
"Rember what you've said today."
With those words, her figure dissolved into elental energy, vanishing into the cold night.
Luo Qing and Rosalyne stood in the icy winds, the tension finally easing as they processed what had just transpired.
"She... just left?"
The sa thought crossed their minds.
Even as a re avatar, the Tsaritsa was still the Queen of Snezhnaya. For her to leave without escalating the confrontation was almost unthinkable.
"Master..."
Rosalyne broke the silence, her voice trembling slightly.
"What should we do now?"
"Go ho," Luo Qing replied casually, pocketing the Pure Ice Core.
"Pretend none of this happened."
"...Understood."
Rosalyne hesitated briefly, her gaze lingering on the spot where the Tsaritsa had disappeared. Then she turned and followed Luo Qing back to the estate.
---
Snezhnaya
The Tsaritsa returned her consciousness to her true body, seated on her icy throne. She appeared calm, though her mind was anything but.
From the shadows, Pierro erged and bowed deeply.
"Your Majesty, shall I issue an order to revoke Brighella's position as Harbinger?"
Regardless of their personal motives, every Harbinger was bound to serve the Tsaritsa. Luo Qing's defiance could be seen as a direct insult to both Snezhnaya and the Fatui.
"There's no need..."
The Tsaritsa shook her head slowly.
"From now on, matters regarding Luo Qing will be handled by personally. You may leave."
"As you command, Your Majesty."
Pierro bowed again and retreated into the shadows.
Once alone, the Tsaritsa propped her head on one hand, her mind replaying the mont Luo Qing had unleashed the Authority of Life.
"Could it really be him...?"
---
...
Huh. You really stuck it out all the way to the end.
Didn't think you had the patience. Guess I was wrong.
WiseTL's the one who actually made all this co together. I'm just here putting a bow on it... or, well, shoving it in a backpack and calling it a day. Sa thing.
If you had fun, you know what to do:
👉 [patreon/WiseTL]
Heads up—Patreon's 50% off for all tiers during May. So if you were on the fence? Now's the ti.
And if you're the social type, there's a Discord too. Pretty decent spot to hang out—no battles required.
👉 [discord.gg/wisetl]
Alright. That's enough standing around. Go on—before you make it weird.
—Leaf
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