Genshin Impact: I'm The Envoy of Snezhnaya
Chapter 66: Visitors from Sumeru
"Wow! Collei, you're amazing! You found another one!"
Watching Collei pull a mechanical bird out of some obscure corner, Amber's eyes filled with admiration. At first, she had assumed that her new friend, whom she had only met yesterday, had offered to help simply to cheer her on and provide moral support.
She hadn't expected Collei to be even more efficient than her. It seemed that all she needed to do was take a quick look around before finding one of the mechanical birds hidden somewhere in Mondstadt.
"Um... I just got lucky."
Collei awkwardly avoided Amber's gaze, feeling rather guilty.
After all, she had originally placed these things there under Bai Luo's orders. Naturally, she knew exactly where they were hidden.
Today was the Ludi Harpastum, and Bai Luo still hadn't restricted her movements. He had given her complete freedom to wander around the city.
Although Jean had dispatched additional personnel overnight to deal with the mechanical birds, there simply hadn't been enough time. As a result, even someone like Amber, a member of the Outrider squad, had been sent out to help.
Compared with someone as lively and cheerful as Amber, Collei seemed rather gloomy.
However...
Watching Amber hop around like a little rabbit as she searched for mechanical birds, Collei couldn't help looking at her with envy.
Would there ever come a day when she could be as bright and cheerful as Amber?
After all her efforts on the first day, she had gradually grown accustomed to being stared at strangely by others. It no longer made her uncomfortable.
Thinking back to the past... Whenever she entered a new city, people would always look at her with disgust and drive her away.
Compared to that, these curious glances didn't seem so difficult to accept.
Just as Bai Luo had once told her, this was Mondstadt, the City of Freedom. There was no war or conflict here, and she didn't need to remain on guard against others.
If she wanted to smile, she could smile.
If she wanted to cry, she could cry.
However...
"Cry?"
Looking mockingly at her own body, which was covered in bandages, Collei recalled that ever since her mother died and she began wandering from place to place, she had already cried all the tears she had.
She had also decided that she would never cry again.
"Ah—!"
The two girls, who had been searching for mechanical birds atop Mondstadt's city walls, were simultaneously drawn to a sudden commotion.
"F-Fatui?"
Seeing that the disturbance was coming from the direction of the Fatui, Collei inexplicably felt nervous.
Perhaps even she hadn't expected that one day she would find herself worrying about the Fatui.
Chains made of black flames shot into the sky, piercing through the bodies of several Fatui members and burning them to ashes.
These strange black flames seemed to possess an extraordinary thirst for life. Anyone unfortunate enough to come into contact with them was unlikely to escape unharmed.
Amid the shouts and reprimands of the Fatui guards, a figure with icy blue hair suddenly leaped out of the crowd.
The figure climbed onto the city wall, then jumped over it and plunged into Cider Lake, disappearing beneath the water.
"Let's go after them!"
Although that strange individual had attacked the Fatui, Amber was a member of the Knights of Favonius, responsible for maintaining order. She immediately decided to pursue the culprit.
More importantly, she found that icy blue hair somewhat familiar.
Could it be...?
Collei didn't think too much about it and immediately followed Amber over the wall.
However, she failed to notice that after she jumped down from the city wall, the Missionary she had spent years desperately searching for finally appeared among the Fatui.
By the time the Missionary intervened and extinguished the black flames, the Fatui members who had been entangled in them had already been burned to ashes.
Even several people who had attempted to help put out the fire had suffered varying degrees of injury.
Looking at the burn marks left behind, the Missionary furrowed his brows slightly.
He had indeed come here specifically because of the black flames. However, these flames were clearly different from the black-flame described in the intelligence reports.
Could it be...?
After ordering his subordinates to clean up the scene, the Missionary didn't participate in the Fatui's subsequent questioning of the Knights of Favonius.
That was more Bai Luo's responsibility. He only needed to deal with the black flames.
Looking in the direction where the mysterious blue-haired individual had disappeared, the Missionary fell into deep thought.
Outside Mondstadt, a young boy carrying a shoulder bag held a book bearing the emblem of the Sumeru Akademiya in his hands. He seemed to be muttering something to himself.
He wore an unusual robe, and his hat had two jackal-like ears sticking upward. His long white hair playfully poked out from beneath his hood, as though even it was curious about this free-spirited city-state.
His appearance was rather distinctive, immediately bringing to mind the legendary Anubis.
However, compared with the deity who guided the souls of the dead, this young boy seemed to possess considerably less of an aura of death and considerably more scholarly refinement.
Someone dressed like him would undoubtedly have attracted plenty of attention had he appeared in Mondstadt under ordinary circumstances.
But it was currently the Ludi Harpastum, and visitors had arrived from all over the world. There were plenty of people dressed in unusual ways, so he didn't stand out too much.
"Hey, you up ahead! Stop!"
The sudden shout caused the boy to instinctively raise his head.
What he saw was a blue-haired figure wearing an owl mask, rushing past him at high speed.
Yet beneath that blue hair, a faint hint of fiery red could just barely be seen.
After the blue-haired figure ran past, two girls who appeared to be around the same age as him came chasing after them.
One of the girls was carrying a bow, while the other held a fruit knife. Both seemed intent on hunting down the blue-haired individual.
"Hmm?"
When the girl carrying the fruit knife, whose body was covered in bandages, passed by him, he seemed to sense something unusual.
His field of research at the Akademiya was focused on gods and medicine. Although the divine power within the girl's body had been suppressed by some unknown force, he could still detect its presence.
And moreover... that distinctive scent of the Eleazar disease.
She must be the girl mentioned in the letter—the one who needed help.
"Well? How is she?"
A voice suddenly sounded beside his ear, startling the boy. He immediately assumed a combat stance.
When did he get here?!
Although he sometimes became so absorbed in his research that he unconsciously ignored the people around him, in a situation like this, he should have noticed if someone was standing right beside him.
"Relax. I'm the person who invited you here."
Bai Luo removed the mask from his face, revealing a gentle smile. In the modern world, he would probably look no different from an ordinary university student.
However, the boy didn't lower his guard.
Members of the Fatui generally carried some form of identification, and Bai Luo was no exception.
His insignia was located on his sleeve. Pale golden patterns adorned his black trench coat, making it relatively inconspicuous. Nevertheless, the symbol representing the Fatui was impossible to overlook.
"Where is she?" The jackal-headed boy asked warily.
This Fatui member was rather strange. Not only could he identify him, but he also knew the purpose of his visit.
Could it be that she had already...?
"If you're referring to Lisa, she should be in the library right now. Once you enter the city, just find any Knight of Favonius. They'll take you there."
Since the boy had already arrived, Bai Luo wasn't in a hurry.
He would let little Collei enjoy the Ludi Harpastum a little longer. After that...
Everything would finally come to an end.
Putting his mask back on, Bai Luo prepared to follow the mark he had placed on Collei and catch up with her.
If he got too far away, the Archon Residue inside Collei's body would become active again.
He didn't want anything unexpected to happen.
"Her condition is very serious."
Looking at Bai Luo, who had just put his mask back on, the boy spoke.
If the girl suffering from the disease was indeed the person he had come here to save, then there was no harm in telling this Fatui member.
"The remnants of the ancient god's power have already spread throughout her entire body. Her condition is even worse than I imagined. Perhaps... completely purifying it will be extremely difficult, if not impossible."