Chapter 57 — The Lady Who Fell from Grace
"Anyway, your goal is to find the Anemo Archon, right?" Kael said, glancing at Ying with a faint, knowing smile. "If you want Mondstadt's help in finding your brother, making the city owe you a favor isn't a bad strategy."
"That actually makes sense!" Paimon nodded rapidly, her little wings fluttering.
Ying considered his words carefully. It was true — if she could help Mondstadt with their current crisis, she could easily earn the city's gratitude. And gratitude, in a place ruled by freedom, might just open the doors she needed.
Barbara's eyes lit up with hopeful energy. "If you can help Acting Grand Master Jean resolve the issue with Stormterror, I'm sure she'll do everything she can to help you find your brother!"
Ying sighed softly. The logic was sound, but her concern was real. She had no idea how powerful dragons were in this world.
Still, she agreed. Not just because Kael's reasoning made sense, but because a part of her wanted to believe in this new world — to do something meaningful again.
And, well… it was hard to say no to someone as kind as Barbara.
"Alright," Ying said, her tone resolute. "If helping Mondstadt will bring me closer to the truth, then I'll do it."
Kael nodded approvingly, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "Then it's settled."
With that, he quietly ended the live stream.
---
[Group Chat Feed]
Keqing: "Why did you end the stream so suddenly? Are you back in Mondstadt? I still wanted to see that infamous statue of hers."
Ningguang: "Such a pity. If the chat could save images, I'd have shared that statue with everyone in Liyue by now."
Ningguang had not forgotten how La Signora had publicly called Kael her property. This, for her, was justice served cold — literally.
Venti: "Oh-ho! Do you want a picture? I can fly back and take one! How much Mora are we talking?"
Ningguang: "One million Mora."
Venti: "Deal! Expect delivery by tomorrow! I'll go borrow a Kamera from the Adventurers' Guild right now!"
Kael sighed as he read the messages.
Of course. Leave it to Ningguang to turn a scandal into a business opportunity — and Venti to turn it into a drinking fund.
Still, Kael couldn't help but smirk. "Rest easy, La Signora," he murmured under his breath. "You're about to become Mondstadt's latest tourist attraction."
---
As they made their way back to the city, Barbara filled Ying and Paimon in on the current state of Mondstadt. The more Ying heard, the deeper her frown grew.
The people were anxious. Monsters roamed freely outside the walls. The Knights of Favonius were spread thin, and the Church was struggling to maintain morale.
And above all — the Anemo Archon, Barbatos, had been silent for centuries.
Mondstadt didn't need a god right now. It needed a hero.
And though Ying had no intention of becoming one, she couldn't bring herself to look away.
As they approached the city gates, her steps slowed.
"Wait… what is that?"
Not far from the plaza stood a figure — tall, elegant, and frozen solid.
The sculpture was so lifelike that Ying immediately realized it wasn't carved stone. It was a person — petrified mid-motion, expression frozen between fury and disbelief.
The guards surrounding her were no ordinary knights. They wore the crest of the Favonius Elite Guard, a unit usually reserved for only the gravest of threats.
Barbara's presence, however, allowed them to pass without question.
"Who is she?" Ying asked, her gaze lingering on the statue's pale, regal features.
Kael's expression was calm — almost indifferent. "La Signora," he said simply. "She ambushed me. I defeated her and sealed her like this. She'll return to normal in a few days."
Ying blinked, stunned. "You petrified one of the Fatui Harbingers?"
Kael shrugged lightly. "It was either that or kill her. I chose the merciful option."
---
[Group Chat Feed]
Keqing: "She attacked you? Why does everyone who meets you end up regretting it?"
Ningguang: "Poetic justice, if you ask me."
Venti: "Ooh~ I think I get it now. She didn't attack out of politics — it was jealousy! She probably couldn't stand seeing you talking to someone prettier than her!"
Kael: "Venti."
Venti: "Yes?"
Kael: "Shut up."
Jean: "Still, attacking a guest within Mondstadt's borders… unforgivable. I'll make sure she answers for this when she wakes."
Zhongli: "A fitting punishment. For someone as proud as La Signora, being publicly humiliated is far crueler than death."
Ningguang: "Oh, I like that line. I'll have it engraved on a plaque beneath the statue."
---
Kael rubbed his temples, letting out an exasperated sigh. The last thing he needed was Mondstadt turning this into a tourist attraction.
Still… he couldn't deny the poetic irony of it all.
Before her fall, Rosalyne-Kruzchka Lohefalter — the woman now known as La Signora — had once been a gentle soul. A singer beloved across Mondstadt, whose songs once moved even Barbatos himself.
But the Cataclysm had stolen everything from her — her lover, her home, her warmth.
And what had she become in return?
A vessel of ice and rage.
When she saw Kael standing beside Barbara — someone who resembled the innocent, hopeful version of herself — perhaps something in her heart snapped.
Perhaps, for one fleeting second, she simply couldn't bear to see another person smiling the way she once did.
And so she lashed out — not from hatred, but from grief.
Kael had heard this theory from Venti himself. He didn't know if it was true, but it made sense in a tragic sort of way.
He looked at the petrified woman before him.
Once a hero of Mondstadt, now a fallen Harbinger.
"From a savior of the wind to a prisoner of stone," he murmured. "How ironic."
---
Paimon shivered, peeking from behind Ying. "So, uh… note to self: never make Kael mad."
Ying didn't respond. She was studying the statue closely, her eyes narrowing. The energy surrounding the petrification was powerful — far beyond normal elemental manipulation.
It wasn't divine in nature, but it felt close.
If Kael could do something like this so casually… then he wasn't just another traveler.
He was dangerous.
And that made him even more intriguing.
---
"By the way," Barbara said brightly, breaking the tension, "Traveler, you don't have a place to stay yet, do you?"
Ying blinked. "Not yet. We were planning to find an inn, but the city looks pretty crowded…"
Barbara smiled warmly. "Then how about staying with me? My sister, Jean, is stationed at the Knights of Favonius headquarters, so I usually stay at the Church. Kael's already staying there too, so if you and Paimon join us, I'm sure she won't mind!"
Paimon's eyes sparkled. "Free food?"
Barbara giggled. "I'll see what I can do."
Ying hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Then… I'll accept your offer. Thank you."
Barbara's smile brightened. "Wonderful! I'll take you there now!"
As the three of them walked toward the cathedral, Kael lingered for a moment longer by the statue.
He gazed at La Signora's frozen face — once so full of pride, now silent and cold.
"Rest for now," he murmured quietly. "When you wake… I hope there's still a fragment of Rosalyne left in you."
Then he turned away, following Barbara and Ying through the sunlit streets of Mondstadt, where the winds carried the faintest whisper of a long-forgotten song.
---
End of Chapter 57 — The Lady Who Fell from Grace