"Furina... some paths are already etched by Fate. The light in Fidelle's eyes isn't impulsiveness, but 'knowing.'"
Having once been a God, Focalors possessed a rationality that Furina lacked. Though she shared Furina's concern for Fidelle's safety, Focalors' deeper understanding prevented her from acting as Furina had.
Focalors gently drew Furina closer, her voice softening further:
"Bonds aren't chains. True cherishment sometimes means praying for her even when you know the road ahead is thorny, rather than trying to stop her. Some things she must do. Her wings were born to soar through storms, not to nestle beneath our eaves."
Though her words were addressed to Furina, Focalors' gaze remained fixed on Fidelle.
These words were as much for herself as they were for Furina.
Furina's resistance crumbled bit by bit under Focalors' words and Fidelle's unwavering gaze.
She looked at Fidelle through tear-blurred eyes, her voice choked with sobs. "But... I'm scared... Fidelle..."
Fidelle gently withdrew her hand, then turned and firmly clasped Furina's icy fingers, leaving behind a brief but warming touch.
"I will return," she promised, her words as light as a feather yet as solid as bedrock. "I swear it in the name of the stars."
Without hesitation, she turned sharply, her figure flashing like a shooting star as she merged into the panicked crowd. Yet, she surged against the tide, her path resolutely set against the flow—toward the crimson Pillar of Light.
Furina instinctively lurched forward to chase after her, but stopped after only two steps...
She watched helplessly as that familiar silhouette receded into the distance, eventually vanishing around a street corner.
Finally, she collapsed against Focalors' shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably. Her tears soaked through her friend's robes, all her worry, her resentment, and her deepest sense of loss coalescing into this scalding torrent.
In the distance, the Pillar of Light stood like a gaping, festering wound, searing through everyone's eyes—and tearing through her heart.
-
In Mondstadt, Diluc made the same choice as Arataki Itto. Without informing anyone in the Knights of Favonius, he left Mondstadt alone, carrying two Visions, and set out on a journey to Natlan.
Meanwhile, the Knights of Favonius analyzed and assessed the sudden Pillar of Light that had appeared in Natlan. As Acting Grand Master, Jean comprehensively evaluated Mondstadt's combat capabilities and chose to fortify the city.
With no way to contact the Anemo Archon and the situation beyond their ability to handle, and with Mondstadt still needing their protection, Jean's decision was both logical and reasonable.
It wasn't just Jean. Ningguang of Liyue, Alhaitham of Sumeru, Kujou Sara and Kuki Shinobu of Inazuma, the upper echelons of Fontaine, and even Snezhnaya—where Pulcinella remained behind—all made similar judgments.
-
The Natlan Battlefield.
A crimson and pitch-black torrent finally collided with a deafening roar on the scorched earth surrounding the Stadium of the Sacred Flame!
It was a symphony of destruction—the tearing of flesh, the explosive release of elemental energy, the howling of monsters, and the furious roars of warriors.
The battle lines instantly stretched and intertwined like jagged teeth. Even in this initial clash, many warriors suffered grievous wounds, their hot blood spurting into the air.
Every inch of contested ground was instantly stained with primal bloodshed.
The Abyss's aura hung like a tangible swamp, attempting to devour all light and flame. Yet the Natlan warriors' furious roars and the flames blazing from their bodies served as unyielding sparks of defiance in this desolate darkness.
Lumine, wielding the Unrelenting Will like the sharpest blade, surged ahead of the others, cutting straight into the heart of the monster horde.
Her figure darted through the air, Elemental Energy flowing through her like an extension of her will.
Electro crackled along her blade, erupting into arcs of lightning that tore through the air, instantly charring the onrushing monsters to ash.
With a swift shift in her stance, brilliant Geo Element energy coalesced into a colossal Claymore-shaped construct, which she slammed down in a sweeping arc. The earth trembled, instantly clearing a wide swath of the battlefield!
Countless Falling Stars plummeted from the sky, intercepting the monsters' relentless advance.
Anemo Elemental Power enhanced her agility, allowing her to weave through the chaos and leave behind dangerous vortexes in her wake.
She was not merely a warrior, but the elemental nexus of the battlefield, precisely parrying, evading, and counterattacking. Her golden eyes calmly swept across the battlefield, making her the most stable fulcrum amidst the chaos.
Paimon frantically darted around her, loudly warning her of threats from blind spots.
Lumine's relentless assault greatly boosted the morale of the warriors behind her, their spirits soaring higher.
Kachina stood atop a slightly elevated rock formation. She slammed her long-handled weapon into the ground and bellowed, "Attack! Turbo Twirly!"
A drill-shaped construct of pure Geo Element, its top constantly rotating, crashed into the monster horde, unleashing a massive area-of-effect Geo Elemental attack.
This was only the beginning. Kachina leaped nimbly onto the rotating construct.
She steered the "Turbo Twirly" across the battlefield at breakneck speed, transforming it into a rampaging Geo Elemental fortress. Monsters were crushed, tossed aside, and pulverized by its crushing Geo Elemental Power, leaving carnage in its wake.
Just then, a hulking behemoth wielding a massive axe charged forward. These lumbering behemoths had lagged behind, unable to keep pace with the smaller, swifter monsters.
The axe swung down at Kachina. At the critical moment, a "shark" made of water surged from behind the monster and tore into it.
"Kachina, watch out!"
Seizing the moment when Mualani's attack destabilized the monster, Kachina unleashed the same move she had once used against Mualani: a massive, soaring Turbo Twirly aimed straight at the monster's face.
Mualani and Kachina's extraordinary synergy shone as they simultaneously channeled their Elemental Energy to strike the monster's back.
Under this coordinated assault, the monster finally collapsed.
Kachina impaled a smaller monster with her spear, killing it instantly. "Thank you, Mualani! You stay safe too!"
The battlefield's situation shifted rapidly. Dark clouds had already blanketed the skies over Natlan, plunging the once-bright day into near-total darkness.
Ororon provided constant support, firing arrows at any warrior overwhelmed by the enemy.
Iansan, Xilonen, and others fought fiercely on their respective fronts.
The battle quickly escalated to a fever pitch, its brutality escalating sharply.
Severed monster limbs and shattered warrior blades flew through the air. Elemental reactions clashed violently with Abyss Energy, annihilating each other in deafening roars.
A young Natlan warrior had just pierced a hound-like monster's skull with his spear. Before he could catch his breath, another monster pounced from the side, tearing out his throat in a crimson spray.
Xilonen immediately rushed forward, dragged the warrior back, and pressed her hand against his throat, barely slowing the gushing blood but unable to save his fading life.
"Hold the line! Consolidate on the left flank!" Ororon roared, his precise Electro arrow piercing a monster that had managed a surprise attack.
Kachina, piloting the "Turbo Twirly," plowed through a swarm of monsters, sending them flying and relieving pressure on the left flank.
Mualani, like a fish in water, weaved through the electrified mist and thunderous explosions, her water-shaped sharks tearing through enemy formations with wave after wave of stacked momentum.
Lumine's figure moved like a golden whirlwind, pouring her Elemental Energy wherever the pressure was greatest.
Yet the Abyss's assault was like an endless black tide, one wave crashing after another.
Even larger, more twisted monsters surged forward from the front, their numbers seemingly inexhaustible.
The battle lines were gradually being compressed, each explosion and scream painting the land crimson and shattering it further.
The meat grinder of war greedily devoured all light and life, testing the limits of every warrior's resolve.