When the Stars Fall [Genshin Impact]

Chapter 26: Revelation of All Forgotten

“The quota has been met for today,” Lord Scaramouche said, but his tone was not as sanctimonious as always. “Wrap up any loose ends. That’ll finish us for today.”

He was dismissing the subordinates a full two hours early. You had noticed that he had been in higher spirits than usual - not that it was particularly obvious from the way he talked, but rather, his actions. His standards grew lax, and his generosity had spiked. He wasn’t as snappy as usual, but he didn’t mention the encounter with the insidious Yae Miko.

You recalled his words, which he had said the next time you saw him after you had left him alone in the strange room with purple mist: “Not a word of this to anyone else. Do you understand?”

You were still surprised that he had let everybody off the hook so early, considering that not even a week ago, Lumine had ripped through almost half the Fatui soldiers in the facility on her own. Troop numbers were dangerously low, and if any raid were to happen, you vacillated between whether you and the rest would be able to hold them off or not.

“My Lord,” you started quickly as Scaramouche turned to leave. “I want to ask you about something.”

His eyes narrowed slightly in annoyance. “Didn’t I tell you not to ask about it again? Especially now, when there’s so many people around,” he hissed, his voice dropping in volume.

“It’s not about that, I assure you. But I think it would be best if we talked somewhere less busy.”

You shut the office's door behind you and turned to face Scaramouche, who was waiting with his arms crossed, as usual. You expected his signature, “This had better be worth my time,” but it never came.

“So, what is it then if not about that?”

“What did you do with the two men back in Liyue?”

“I dealt with them,” he shrugged, as if it were a normal procedure - though, it likely was for him. “All I had to do was pull a few strings and have them delivered straight into the hands of the Millelith. It didn't take long since I had already convinced them that they were wanted criminals. I'm not a Harbinger for nothing.”

He said that last part with a hint of pride, as if he were subtly crowing a victory. Then he asked, “Why are you asking now?”

“It’s about the eighth nation,” you started, “Khaenri’ah.”

“Not the direction I was thinking of, but what about it? There’s a very limited understanding of the Cataclysm and what happened five hundred years ago,” Scaramouche remarked. “It would help if the gods actually told the truth, for starters.”

“I have a book. A very old one about Khaenri’ah.” You turned to retrieve it from your bag–

An alarm blared. It rang in your ears, piercing and sharp. The lighting flickered above, and then came to a halt, draping the building in darkness. 

“Look’s like we’ve got another visitor,” Scaramouche sighed. “To whom do I owe the pleasure to this time?”

“Our numbers are already so low–”

“Then deal with the complication. You have the might of a Fatui Harbinger with you if anything goes wrong. Don't disappoint me.”

You didn't waste any time. The door to Scaramouche's office was still swinging when you advanced along the corridors. Not long after, the emergency lights flickered on. Dim red lights were sparingly bathing the corridors.

The siren stuttered and then all fell silent. You activated your elemental sight. In the immediate vicinity, you could only see the violet glow of your polearm. Further away, roughly where the centre of the factory was, was a concentrated blur of a multitude of colours - those were the manufactured delusions.