. I said it held immense power, but you insisted it was just for trade. And now you are here acting like an expert again."
Paimon: "Ah! I remember you now. You are that Liyue scholar who studies Rex Lapis. Nobody knows Rex Lapis better than you."
The dark clouds in the sky grew heavier.
The rain poured down harder.
Boom!
A sudden gust of wind roared with a loud crash.
Kael was instantly blown backward, slamming into a cliff face.
Right after, Aether stepped forward, light sword in hand, and swung down.
Seeing this, Kael shaped intense purple lightning into a blade in his palm.
The moment the two swords clashed, a fierce gale erupted beneath Kael's feet.
The next second, the cliff behind him exploded into dust. The entire massive rock vanished.
Kael's body was sent flying backward over ten meters from the heavy blow.
Boom!
At that exact moment, thunder flashed high above.
The lightning was so bright it turned night into day.
Aether, who was about to step forward, seemed startled by the sight.
He could not help but look up at the sky.
In that split second, a waterfall of lightning poured down from the heavens straight at him.
Boom!
After just one deafening explosion.
The mountain range where the two stood completely collapsed.
Enjou: "....."
"Nope. Hiding here is not safe. Gotta move to a new spot."
"Damn it. Rainy days are the worst for an Abyss Lector like me."
Arataki Itto: "Huh?"
Tartaglia: "That is terrifying combat power."
Dottore: "Hiss. These two guys..."
Raiden Ei: "So a casual swing from Aether can completely erase a mountain cliff behind Kael."
Yae Miko: "And that lightning from the sky. If that hit me, I would be gone on the spot."
Lisa: "Even someone with an Electro Vision would be turned to ash."
Lumine: "Wait, now is not the time to compare their strength. Kael seems like he cannot take Aether's attacks anymore."
Aether: "Lumine, I also got swallowed by that waterfall of lightning..."
Lumine: "This... Brother... To be honest, you should know you are fine, right?"
Aether: "Huh?"
Zzzzt...
Countless arcs of lightning crackled among the ruined rocks on the ground.
Crash...
As the rock pile collapsed.
Aether stood up, his body still crackling with purple electricity.
His neck cracked as he twisted it.
"Sigh..."
He let out a long breath.
He looked with regret at Kael, who was lying on the ground not far away.
"I acknowledge your courage, and I respect your strength."
"If you had not met Lumine first, and if we had met earlier, maybe we could have been good friends."
Still surrounded by electric sparks, Aether walked step by step toward Kael, who lay in the rain.
"No..."
"Fate is right in front of us. No matter what, we probably cannot ever stand on the same side as allies."
"Just like that guy."
Aether paused for a few seconds.
He slowly raised his long sword.
"Thank you for letting Mondstadt's Anemo Archon take Lumine away."
"I trust he will not talk out of turn."
Lumine: "Brother, stop!"
Aether: "....."
Aether: "Wait, that is not me in this life."
Dainsleif: "Aether, that guy you mentioned... is it me?"
Aether: "Shut up, Dainsleif. Hurry and talk some sense into Lumine. Past life grudges should not carry over to this one."
Aether held his golden long sword.
His arm was about to fall, but a sudden swirl of dark purple smoke made him freeze.
He quickly stepped back several paces.
"This is..."
"An Abyssal Curse?"