"Rosalyne has changed. She'll follow me now, do the right thing, and witness the most beautiful future," Akio said.
"Well… alright," Paimon muttered, still pouting a bit. She was mostly just annoyed about that time the "Lady" had frozen her into an ice cube.
"Okay, okay, let's not dwell on that anymore," Akio said, leading them into the Grand Narukami Shrine. "It's almost noon. I haven't had Miyuki's cooking in forever—I really miss it."
"Lord Akio!" As they stepped into the shrine, a flash of golden light passed before them and Kuki Miyuki appeared.
"Miyuki." Akio stepped forward and embraced her.
"You haven't eaten yet, have you? I'll go cook something for you all," Miyuki said cheerfully.
"Sounds great," Akio nodded with a smile.
"I'll come help too!" Ayaka chimed in, stopping Miyuki with a gentle call.
"Of course, let's go, Ayaka." Miyuki nodded. The two of them were close, like sisters, so teaming up in the kitchen was second nature.
"I'll join too! I'm pretty good at cooking," Lumine added.
"Perfect. I've never had your cooking before, Lumine." Akio nodded, clearly excited.
"I'm coming too!" Paimon zipped over.
"You're just here to sneak bites, aren't you?" Lumine rolled her eyes, clearly suspicious of her floating partner.
"No, I'm not!" Paimon put her hands on her hips, speaking with mock righteousness. "I'm going to be the official taste-tester!"
"…" Everyone fell silent. But no one could really say no to Paimon, so they let her tag along to the kitchen.
Meanwhile, Akio sat with Rosalyne at a small table beneath the Sacred Sakura.
"Darling, Pantalone has already left Inazuma," Rosalyne said sweetly, gazing at Akio with affection.
"Oh? That Harbinger, 'The Regrator'?" Akio asked with a chuckle.
"That's right. He controls the entire economic lifeline of Snezhnaya—he's filthy rich. Though his personal wealth doesn't quite rival Liyue's Tianquan, what he manages in terms of Mora circulation is unmatched."
"You have to admit, under his control, Snezhnaya's economy has developed rapidly," she added. "They say he harbors deep resentment toward Morax."
"Because of a Vision?" Akio raised a brow, amused.
"Huh? You actually know about that?" Rosalyne looked at him curiously, then smiled. "Well, in front of that man, the name Morax is practically taboo. It's like a thorn stuck in his heart."
"But he's still just a loser. Hating gods just because they didn't favor you is even more twisted than I used to be," Rosalyne shrugged. "Enough about that idiot. Darling, I've got a big present for you!"
"Oh?" Akio's eyes lit up with interest. "A big present? What kind of gift gets you this excited?"
"Hehehe~" Rosalyne grinned mysteriously and leaned in to whisper, "Darling, do you remember that girl who came with Pantalone? What did you think of her?"
"You mean Columbina, 'The Damselette'?" Akio raised an eyebrow. "Not bad. Lovely voice, ethereal looks. I liked her."
"Can't deny it—your Tsaritsa has good taste. All you female Harbingers are stunning," he added with a smirk.
"Of course! Her Majesty's standards are sky-high." Rosalyne smiled proudly. "Not just us—Her Majesty herself is breathtaking. I'm sure you'd like her. But that's out of my hands; I can't sway a god's will."
"Anyway, back to Columbina—after Pantalone left, I tied her up!"
Rosalyne flashed a gleeful, slightly manic smile. "I knew you'd like her! So I decided to make her your gift!"
"???" Akio's face froze, completely baffled. Did he just hear that right? Rosalyne tied up Columbina?
"That girl's from the Seelie race. She's always cold and detached, totally lacking human emotions," Rosalyne explained. "You can't win her over with normal methods, darling. So…"
"You're something else, my dear Rosalyne." Akio gave her a thumbs-up, thoroughly impressed. She really went and did it.
"But wait a second," Akio suddenly frowned, puzzled. "Didn't Tartaglia say the Harbinger ranks are based on strength? Isn't Columbina the third seat?"
"Top three are supposed to have power comparable to the gods. How did you manage to capture her?"
"It's only 'comparable to gods,' not actual gods," Rosalyne scoffed. "Since you healed me, darling, I can now freely wield the Eternal Flame. My strength is no weaker than hers."
"Back then, even in my Crimson Witch form, I was only using about one percent of the Eternal Flame's true power. A mortal body can't handle divine fire," Rosalyne said. "But now, with your Life Energy protecting me, I've fully unleashed the Eternal Flame."
"At this point, I'd say I'm on par with a god," she declared proudly.
"Emm… even so, wouldn't it still be hard to capture her?" Akio rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
Even if Rosalyne had fully unlocked the Eternal Flame and reached god-tier strength, Columbina was supposedly on the same level. It couldn't have been easy.
"Of course it wasn't easy! But darling, I borrowed a bit of your Authority of Death," Rosalyne said with a sly smile. "The Life Source you gave me constantly supplies me with Life Energy."
"But didn't you say once that life and death are two sides of the same coin? So I experimented a little—tried transforming some of that Life Energy. And guess what? I pulled it off."
"Just a sliver of Death Energy was enough to completely suppress Columbina."
"…" Akio was genuinely impressed. Rosalyne was smart—really smart.
He had mentioned before that life and death came from the same source, and the Life Sources he gave the girls could indeed be converted. But that was usually passive conversion.
He never taught them how to actively channel the Authority of Death. And yet Rosalyne figured it out herself. Damn.
A/N: Enjoying the story? Read 60+ chapters ahead on Patreon! Your support helps: Patreon.com/nneol