Inside the confinement room, aside from Klee—whom Koji already knew well—there sat another woman on the bed, an elf whose mischievous aura was unmistakable.
She wore a bright crimson witch's dress that perfectly outlined her graceful, golden-ratio figure, and a pointed hat rested atop her head. Her long, fair hair matched Klee's, and the pointed ears revealed her true nature.
No need to ask who she was—Alice, Klee's mother.
Guardian of Teyvat's boundaries, elder of the Hexenzirkel, and a legendary adventurer who traversed countless worlds.
Her feats were nothing short of myth: the Ruins of the Wind Dragon were her doing, as was the Hilichurl Sustainable Development Plan.
Whenever Alice entered Liyue, even Morax himself would personally accompany her—for fear of what chaos she might cause.
In Inazuma, she once made a young Yae Miko cry and accidentally injured Kujou Sara's wings.
Though she looked harmless, when she got involved in something, no one's head would stop aching.
If she weren't busy maintaining Teyvat's border, no nation would truly be safe.
"Hi there, transmigrator! Odd and even stay unchanged?" Alice greeted cheerfully with a wave.
Koji blinked. "Symbols are signs."
So she was using a transmigrator's code.
"You're from Earth too?"
Koji rolled his eyes.
"No, no. I've just been to Earth before. I've seen that kind of clothing style, but it's probably not the same Earth you came from," Alice said with a teasing smile.
"Klee!" Koji crouched as the little girl launched herself into his arms.
"Big Brother Koji! When are we going to blow up big fish again?"
Too adorable. Koji ruffled her hair and laughed. "I promised you, didn't I? Of course I'll take you—but we haven't gone to Fontaine yet, so we'll wait a bit."
"Fontaine? The land of the Teyvat whale?" Alice's eyes widened slightly.
As Teyvat's border guardian and an elder witch, she naturally knew about the Whale of the Star-Swallowing Abyss.
"Koji, the one who owns that whale is very powerful," Alice said seriously.
"You mean the Wicked One?"
"One slash will be enough."
Koji grasped his sword, Shinken: Dawn. Even if that Wicked One could withstand his strike, he hoped it could.
"Stronger than any Descender… but the stronger you grow, the brighter Teyvat's hope becomes," Alice said meaningfully.
"By the way, Alice, how did you manage to leave the border?" Koji asked curiously.
"Someone's covering for me for now, so I had time to come back and visit my precious little girl."
Alice lifted Klee and kissed her chubby, collagen-filled cheeks three times.
"By the way—where's Barbatos?"
She turned toward Jean, realizing she hadn't seen that drunk bard since returning to Mondstadt.
Jean's mouth twitched. She didn't quite know how to explain.
"He went to Liyue to visit an old friend. He's been gone for a while."
"Pfft—hahaha!" Alice laughed until her shoulders shook. Koji had seen it before—this was the original Dodo-King herself.
"That's Barbatos for you. Freedom truly suits him."
She wasn't surprised. Such behavior was typical of the Anemo Archon.
While other gods rarely left their nations, Venti had wandered across all of Teyvat.
"Come to think of it, I haven't seen Morax in ages either. Are you sure Zhongli actually wants to see you, his old friend?"
"I've got a question for you first, Alice." Koji stopped her from leaving.
"Oh? What is it?"
"The Archon of Time—Ishtaroth—is she within the River of Time itself?" Koji asked.
"Oh-ho, that's not an ordinary question."
Alice's smile faded. "Jean, could you and Klee step outside for a moment?"
Jean understood immediately. Matters like this were beyond her concern. She took Klee by the hand and left quietly.
Only Koji and Alice remained.
"Sit."
She patted the spot beside her.
Koji sat down, slightly hesitant. The energy radiating from Alice was like sunlight—warm and overwhelming, perfectly matching her lively nature.
"I haven't met Ishtaroth much myself," Alice began. "But yes, she usually resides within the flow of time."
"Among the three remaining Archons of Order—Life, Sky, and Death—the Archon of Life was devoured by an old friend of mine. The other two still live. The Sky Archon rules Celestia, the Death Archon reigns over the Realm of Night, and the Archon of Time is the most mysterious. If you ask that lazy bard, Barbatos, he might know a few things."
"If Teyvat were to face annihilation," Koji continued, "could the Archon of Time reset the entire timeline?"
"I don't know. Maybe. Perhaps what you see now is a reset version of Teyvat," Alice said softly, her tone dropping lower.
"Koji, do you intend to take the place of the Heavenly Principles?"
"No." He shook his head. "That position is a trap. You guard the borders—you know how bad things have gotten."
"Does Teyvat mean nothing to you?"
"It does. But don't try to guilt-trip me."
Koji's expression hardened. He wasn't some self-sacrificing saint who shouldered every burden that wasn't his.
"At least for now, I've got no interest in being anyone's savior," he said flatly. "If Teyvat's ever on the brink of destruction, I can help preserve it—but right now, I'm not lifting a finger."
Alice smiled. "You really are free-spirited. I like that."
"Please don't call me Madam though," she added with a twitching smile. "That title brings back… awkward memories. Just Alice is fine."
"Klee was born through a special method," she said casually. "She carries my genes. There's no adventurous father somewhere out there. When she asked who her dad was, I just made something up."
She grinned mischievously. "Don't tell Klee, okay?"
Koji nodded silently.
"What else do you want to know? If I can tell you, I will."
"Lumine's brother—the Prince of the Abyss Order. Is the Abyss located within Teyvat or beyond it?"
"If you mean that blond kid, he's still in Teyvat," Alice replied. "The Abyss itself isn't all that fun. I once went there to launch fireworks."
Her eyes lit up in fond memory. "But they caught me before I could finish. Otherwise, imagine fireworks inside the Abyss!"
Koji could only sweat. As expected of Alice. Normal? Never.
(End of Chapter)
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