Not all stones are the same—some differ in type and value.
At the scene, there were no elemental-rich stones like Cor Lapis, just ordinary gravel and small rocks.
Zhongli meticulously extracted every bit of information, ensuring no detail was overlooked. After all, he'd been paid, and he took his work seriously.
Meanwhile, Venti was channeling his divine power.
The intangible wind had gathered under his control, carrying traces of countless clues.
Ten minutes later, once no further information could be gleaned, the two regrouped.
"Old man, you go first," Venti suggested.
"Very well."
Zhongli nodded.
Divine energy surged from his palm, intertwined with the power of the cards. A light flickered in his hand, projecting a scene like a hologram—revealing the Fatui convoy.
Zhongli paused the playback and turned to Andrei. "Is this accurate?"
"Absolutely!" Andrei nodded.
Though the projection was monochrome, how could he forget the details of that day?
Andrei confirmed, "Aside from the lack of color, every detail matches my memory perfectly!"
"Good."
Zhongli nodded and resumed the playback. The four of them watched intently.
In the projection, the convoy reached this area when suddenly—BOOM!—the ground beneath the lead vehicle erupted, hurling it into the air!
The four Fatui inside had no chance of survival.
Tartaglia's expression darkened. He remained silent, continuing to watch.
Amid the chaos, Andrei, panicked and desperate, tried to hide while pulling out his phone—apparently attempting to send a message.
But at that moment, a shadowy figure lurking by the roadside lunged forward.
"Stop!"
Tartaglia barked.
Zhongli paused the playback.
"Can you rewind a bit?"
Zhongli complied, replaying the scene.
Tartaglia's eyes locked onto the figure.
Fast—unbelievably fast.
In the footage, the attacker was nothing more than a blur, their speed enhanced by some kind of glowing energy.
They had clearly spotted Andrei.
Other Fatui members rushed to intercept, but the figure effortlessly dodged, incapacitating them before zeroing in on Andrei.
Andrei tried to fight back, but the assailant avoided direct confrontation, knocking aside more Fatui before forcing Andrei to flee.
But Andrei was too slow.
A beam of light struck him, revealing the Gnosis hidden on his person!
The attacker snatched the Gnosis, kicked Andrei away, and then—with chilling efficiency—began cleaning up the scene.
Every device—phones, tablets—was systematically destroyed before the figure vanished.
Zhongli replayed the scene from multiple angles, but the attacker's face remained obscured.
Only one thing was certain: their physique was genuine—no disguise there.
"Extremely fast, highly skilled," Zhongli remarked.
Tartaglia turned to Venti. "What about you?"
"I've got something," Venti nodded.
All power leaves traces. To leave none at all would require godlike mastery—something this assailant clearly lacked.
Venti explained, "The elemental traces in the wind—Anemo, but subtly different from normal Anemo energy."
Tartaglia's pupils constricted. He gritted his teeth and pulled out his Delusion.
The Delusion was exquisitely crafted, bearing Tartaglia's personal insignia. Its glass-like surface shimmered with faint purple Electro energy.
"Does it match this energy?" Tartaglia demanded.
Venti focused, comparing the residual traces to Tartaglia's Delusion.
He frowned. "Yours is unrestrained, while the traces here were deliberately concealed. After accounting for masking and degradation over time… the similarity is about 40%."
40%?
That was significant.
Tartaglia pressed, "Is it possible that a corrupted Vision could mimic a Delusion's energy?"
Venti shook his head. "I wouldn't know."
Zhongli pondered. "Historically, corrupted elemental energy tends to become unstable and erratic. The traces here don't match that pattern."
Even Zhongli couldn't think of an alternative?
Tartaglia's lips curled into a vicious grin. "Well, well… it really is one of our own."
Scaramouche.
Tartaglia was certain now.
Among the Fatui Harbingers, only Scaramouche fit all the criteria:
Short stature, resembling a youth.Electro-based Delusion, extreme speed.
"Wait, so it was an inside job?" Venti asked, puzzled. "Why?"
Tartaglia clenched his fist. "I don't care why. All I know is—he's going to pay."
"He's one of your own," Zhongli pointed out.
"One of my own?" Tartaglia let out a hollow laugh.
Since when did "one of his own" ambush his men, steal his Gnosis, and leave bodies in their wake?
Andrei and the others survived—was he supposed to thank Scaramouche for his mercy?
Tartaglia didn't know much about Scaramouche, but one thing was clear—the guy had a god complex.
Like he was the only sane person in the world.
Frankly, Tartaglia couldn't stand him.
His expression darkened as he pulled out his phone and dialed the Tsaritsa.
Even if she was resting, she needed to hear this.
The call connected.
Before the Tsaritsa could speak, Tartaglia cut in, "Your Majesty, the Anemo and Geo Archons are with me."
"Long time no see," the Tsaritsa replied coolly.
After a brief greeting, Tartaglia growled, "Your Majesty, I've confirmed—the Gnosis was most likely stolen by Scaramouche."
"Kunikuzushi."
"Your Majesty, given the location, it's close to Snezhnaya. If the Gnosis hasn't reached you within a day… I'll handle the cleanup." Tartaglia's voice was laced with barely restrained fury.
"...Very well."
The Tsaritsa's tone was unreadable as she ended the call.
"Did she just approve you going after Scaramouche?" Venti asked, confused.
"Her Majesty…" Tartaglia smirked. "She allows each Harbinger to pursue their own meaning. When the time comes, freedom takes precedence over orders."
"And right now, if Scaramouche's goal isn't returning the Gnosis to Snezhnaya… then ensuring Her Majesty's plans proceed smoothly is my 'freedom.'"
Tartaglia exhaled, his expression easing slightly.
"I've always wanted to spar with the other Harbingers. Never got the chance… but now? Scaramouche… hahaha!"
He laughed until his sides hurt.
But once the laughter faded, he began scouring every channel for Scaramouche's whereabouts.
Zhongli and Venti stood aside.
"Safe to say, the odds of Scaramouche returning the Gnosis are slim," Venti mused.
"Highly unlikely, especially since people died," Zhongli added calmly.
Killing your own comrades—even as a Harbinger—was inexcusable.
Clearly, Scaramouche had no intention of acting as a Fatui member anymore.
But what puzzled Zhongli was—what did he want with the Gnosis?
Was it even that useful?
Tartaglia returned, grim-faced. "Problem. Scaramouche's gone dark—completely off-grid."
Zhongli wasn't surprised.
"Can you still track the Gnosis?" Tartaglia pressed.
Zhongli shook his head.
He'd severed his connection to it. The only way he could sense it now was if someone massively tapped into its power.
But if the thief stayed quiet? No chance.
Tartaglia hadn't held much hope anyway.
With the handover complete, Zhongli no longer considered the Gnosis his. Severing the link was natural.
"Where would he go?" Tartaglia muttered.
Inazuma?
He'd only gone there to assist La Signora.
But after pulling this stunt, would he still help her?
Tartaglia doubted it.
Now, the issue wasn't who took it—but where they took it.
He knew the culprit, but not their location.
If Scaramouche went to ground, Tartaglia had no way to find him.
Unless…
"Wish I could borrow the Sky-Mirror."
The Sky-Mirror, that otherworldly artifact, could surveil the entire continent.
Finding someone? Child's play for it.
But the Sky-Mirror was a Fontaine treasure, locked away in the Palais Mermonia—not something outsiders could just borrow.
Even if he knew Furina, they weren't close enough for favors.
Should he bother Lu Heng?
Tartaglia immediately dismissed the idea.
Bothering a being of that caliber over his petty squabble?
Any goodwill he'd earned would evaporate.
Frustrated, Tartaglia cursed under his breath.
"Don't stress," Venti said lightly. "Worrying won't help. Mobilize the Fatui—they're everywhere. Someone might spot him."
Tartaglia considered it, then nodded. "Fair point."
"Let's go. Back to the car."
Tartaglia took the driver's seat while Andrei handled the other vehicle.
As they drove, Tartaglia furiously typed out a scathing message—a thousand-word rant—directly calling out Scaramouche.
Only after venting did he feel slightly better.
Even his pet, the Crimson Toad, sensed his mood and nuzzled him reassuringly.
"You wanna help too?" Tartaglia asked.
"Ribbit!"
"Good. When we deal with Scaramouche, you're joining in."
Tartaglia grinned.
Scaramouche?
Not even a match for his pet.
The thought amused him.
But no matter what, Tartaglia hoped to find Scaramouche soon.
He needed to teach that arrogant bastard what happens when you cross the wrong person.
Stealing from your own allies?
Who the hell did he think he was?
As far as Tartaglia was concerned, Scaramouche's status as a Harbinger was revoked.
One of his own?
Not anymore.
Next Morning – Knights of Favonius Headquarters
Amber walked down the hallway.
Eula was already out on patrol.
Due to her family name, Eula had rarely stayed in the office, preferring to lead her team in clearing out monsters.
Even now, though opinions of her had softened, Eula hadn't changed her ways.
"Revenge" against the Knights didn't mean destroying them—it meant surpassing them.
With everyone growing stronger, Eula aimed to master her new cards.
Jean trusted her—she wouldn't betray that trust.
Once she fully mastered her 5-star gold card, she'd give Jean a proper defeat!
"Sigh… all alone again," Amber muttered.
But she quickly perked up.
It didn't matter. With phones, she could chat with Klee anytime, even from thousands of miles away!
Entering the office, she marveled at how technology had advanced.
Scouting didn't always require boots on the ground now—drones did the work.
The office resembled a surveillance room, manned by two veteran knights and two young women, including Amber.
"Amber, you're early?"
"Just here to relieve you," Amber grinned.
"Great! We'll grab breakfast, then head home."
Handing over to two girls might seem unreliable, but Amber was the Outrider for a reason.
She earned that title.
Once alone, Amber settled in.
A dozen drones patrolled the skies.
They couldn't match the Sky-Mirror's nationwide surveillance, but their purpose was tracking monster movements.
Monsters were like weeds—endless.
Controlling their numbers, preventing hordes, identifying nests—all part of her job.
Slowing the drone feed, Amber scrutinized the footage.
Military-grade, courtesy of Fontaine's tech.
Long battery life, combat-ready, high-resolution—top-tier equipment.
The veteran knights had programmed the drones to recognize monster nests.
Amber double-checked the logs—no issues.
"Feels too easy," Amber mused.
"Right?" her colleague agreed. "By the way, the Traveler's first stop was Mondstadt, right? You were the first person they met after Venti?"
"Oh! Right!"
Amber remembered.
The game had launched last night at 10 PM. She'd played a bit.
Compact but packed with content.
After some main quests, aside from Venti and Dvalin, the Traveler's first encounter was her!
"If Dvalin hadn't been cured, he'd be attacking roads and cities by now…" Amber glanced at the map. "So where's the Traveler now?"
"Huh?"
Her colleague blinked. "You wanna find them?"
"Yeah! Let's send a drone to check. And scout for monsters—I spotted a few Hilichurls in-game. Wonder if they're in the same spots IRL?"
Soon, Amber took control of a drone, flying from Whispering Woods toward Cape Oath.
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T/N:
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