her brows crease. “...unless you're a researcher i guess? you don't really look like one...” then again, it's not like herta space station lacks for young researchers. qiqi really isn't dressed like one, though. “anyway, i don't think the space station opened a pharmacy since the last time i was here. i'm not sure how you got here, but i can take you back to wherever you came from!”

“Order: follow jiejie. Find wubbababoo.” She gets to her feet, tottering unsteadily for a second before regaining her balance, and does a quick stretch, extending her limbs as far as her body will allow. Satisfied, she adjusts her backpack and takes a few steps forward, in the direction the strange white creature flew towards.

Oh, good. They’re here today, too. Qiqi approaches with soft footsteps, wary of accidentally scaring her little friends off. Though they’ve become accustomed to her presence, she still takes up much more space than them, and any sudden movements will be perceived as an attack, leading them to fly off, out of danger’s reach.

“Hello.” Squatting down, Qiqi reaches into a pocket and draws out several seeds. She offers her palm out, and the finches cock their heads, regarding her with a hefty caution. “Qiqi wants finches to meet Kaveh gege. Will finches come?”

a smile is hidden behind the teacup he raises to his lips ; kaveh blows softly to cool his drink down, breathing in the fragrant steam that swirls upward. it suddenly occurs to him that he hasn't asked the youngest which tea she wanted ; he could've easily steeped a cup for her while she was off chasing the birds.

how inconsiderate of him, he thinks with a twinge of guilt.

determined to make amends, kaveh promptly sets his own aside and begins preparing a fresh cup of tea for her. he carefully selects one of the teabags, fingers working with a deft precision. he pours hot water over the leaves, watching as the liquid transforms into a delicate, golden shade.

while it steeps, he settles back onto the blanket, gaze following qiqi as she slowly draws near.

To demonstrate, she turns towards the finches and opens her empty palm. Several finches begin to hop towards her, but stop once they realise she has no more seeds to offer them. Slowly, she points towards Kaveh-gege instead, trying to redirect them towards him and the seeds. Determining her job as complete, she takes careful sips of the tea. Warmth spreads within her, and though she can barely taste the tea, she knows that such a cup prepared with so much care and love can never taste like anything but the food of paradise.

Watching Kaveh-gege gently interact with her finch friends, Qiqi resolves to do this again some other time, when he visits Liyue Harbour once more, with different tea, but still at this very spot, with the soft glow of the sunset carefully scattering golden hues onto his smiling face and the tips of her finch friends’ wings.

After a quick glance, she notices a huge mountain somewhere in the distance, with a blurry black silhouette at the very top. Some sort of ruin, maybe? She hears lots of stories from the adventurers that stop by Bubu Pharmacy to pick up supplies for their journeys, and their favourite thing to tell her about are the collapsed wonders of days past. Maybe this ruin contains special herbs she’s never seen before, with magical medicinal properties.

Ah, but Dr. Baizhu specifically told her not to climb new mountains without someone else. Qiqi turns her attention to the beach and finds a figure standing further down, darting back and forth. Perfect! She trots over, careful not to slip in the sand, and tugs on the vaguely-familiar pink-haired girl’s sleeve. “Can you…climb the mountain with Qiqi?”

it doesn't seem like it. the request earns a strained smile from march as she glances in the direction of said mountain, grimacing once her head is turned away. mountain climbing...does not sound like a fun time. she cannot think of anything worse than sweating even more on an already hot day.

There is a pause, in which both girls simply look at each other. The pink-haired one breaks the silence first. “Um—right!” she answers, and somehow, Qiqi gets the feeling that it hadn’t been an answer the other was expecting. Well, nevermind that—they have a mountain to climb, and daylight doesn’t last forever. Checking occasionally to make sure that she’s still following, Qiqi heads in the direction of the mountain.

Upon approaching the base, Qiqi realises to some worry that the surface is slightly steeper than she’d originally expected, but a quick sweep yields enough footholds for both her and her companion. One final glance to make sure the pink-haired jiejie isn’t going to back out now, and then she hops up and grabs onto the first hold, feet scrabbling on the rock face for purchase before finding a solid crack to wedge into.

she shares in the production because it sweeps her along like the tide: no recourse, no resistance. she shares in the production because it is moving whether she will or not — the other three, swift and decisive in their strikes just like before ; the flurry of lethal motion and crippling cold rising higher with each too-quickly-passing moment as familiars fade into meltwater and winter cuts fiercely back at them in turn. if all of them are to come out of here alive, one of them can't be sitting on the floor, protesting the death of a sorry god. they would see her only with disdain, then, to have proven no more than a liability to their needs at the end. and they could not be faulted for it.

which is unfair, furina thinks.

if she wishes to stand against this, she should have the right to it. her hand should not be forced, it should not come at the cost of so much else, and the show. . .

should be able to stop.

at least, this is how it had always been upon her stage.

but here, they're fighting for their lives. a new wave of wretchedness comes over her, screws the corners of her mouth in an angry, pitying bend as the roiling emotions crash and collide, recede and well up again, each fighting for dominance and feeding and quashing the others. "keep it up, everyone. i'll do what i can to help." it is all she can muster eventually, and though she tries, they carry not even half of the exuberance their fight deserves. the muse of fontaine, dazzling and electrifying, mistress of all ceremonies reduced to this. what is freedom good for, when it feels so useless.

but along which she must keep plodding?

roll 1d3+2 for energy, 3.elemental skill: herald of frost [ -2 energy, 1 energy remaining ]qiqi +3hp.

Herald of frost whirls around, triggering Crystallise and granting Qiqi the now-familiar pale blue shield. Still, the protection it offers is minimal at best, so she should try to dodge if she can, though the cold is finally getting to her enough that she is now beginning to find it difficult to move around.

normal attack: ancient sword art [ -1 energy, no energy remaining ] lady winter -2hp. all allies +4hp. counter; qiqi evades.

energy roll ,⠀3.  FURINA passes WARMING BOTTLE to LUMINE.

but now the goddess has drawn away, walled herself behind her hostile protection, and the cavern only grows colder and colder. i know you, she wants to say. maybe it shows in her eyes instead, in two hands clutches around the warming bottle, shivering ; she hopes it does. i know what you're doing. i had to do it too. maybe she does it still. but it wasn't the same for her ; there wasn't anything stopping her from accepting help, no secret to keep or lives on the line. so why?

( how she had longed all those years for someone to listen, someone else's hand to wipe her tears and rub her shoulders. how she had begged. and winter could have those, was being offered them. and yet she turns them away. it fills her with— . . . )

earth ruptures under their feet as lumine's offensive renews itself, but this time, though flinching, furina doesn't stop her. even as a heart sinks, it burns.

( . . . envy. for a moment: blind, righteous fury. ) "then hit me!" steps stride through the gaps between the wall of rock, arms spreading wide. the voice that cracks across ice-bitten shelves doesn't sound like her own, even when she had decreed as archon. one hand thrusts the warming bottle out into lumine's chest, "take this," irrational of the frost that immediately begins to crawl up along ankles, "pass it to the others. it'll keep us warm." but her stare doesn't leave lady winter, doesn't think past the dull howl building behind her ears, telling her to lash out ; telling her that sometimes, people had to be forced.

"if you really want to kill us! if you really want to die here rather than try to take a chance! if there's— if there's truly nothing left in your heart for your sisters at all, then hit me! don't just raise your spear."

EIRA hits FURINA with FROZEN SPEAR ( 8 )   　　　↳⠀(-2)⠀FURINA 8/10HP.

the punishing impact is searing. pain worse than she's felt before explodes in her side, knocking her backwards off her feet. tears immediately bead, freezing where they form, but she's too stunned to even gasp, folding instead shakily to both knees as all strength leaves her, abandoning her with its ghosts of wretchedness and shame. numbly, she clutches beneath her ribs with scraped palm, fearful to look at the site of the injury. she'd really attacked after all. and it was a serious hit. she was serious.

myriad emotions sweep over her then through the numbness: terror for her life, for the first time ; grief, for the confirmation of pain that overpowered hope ; humiliation, that her brash attempt had earned them nothing. in fontaine, all of these would wash to the sea, be claimed by its depths.

here, she is all that's left of that sea.

FURINA hits ALL ENEMIES with LET THE PEOPLE REJOICE. 　　　↳⠀(-5HP)⠀EIRA 60/80HP. EIRA is affected by HYDRO. 　　　↳⠀roll ,⠀1:⠀MEMORY OF SPRING evades. 　　　↳⠀party enters UNIVERSAL REVELRY state. SALON MEMBERS expire.

roll 1d3+2 for energy, 3.elemental skill: herald of frost [ -2 energy, 1 energy remaining ]qiqi +3hp.

Qiqi activates her adeptal art, and the little ball of Cryo swoops around, knocking into Lady Winter but making no visible effect on her. A small burst of healing on herself, then she readies to fight.

normal attack: ancient sword art [ -1 energy, no energy remaining ] lady winter -2hp. all allies +4hp. counter; qiqi -2hp.

—just as the Traveler, having charged forward, reaches the woman and strikes out at her. "Traveler, no!!"

Dash it all to Deshret, what in Celestia's name is she thinking?! Winter is clearly incredibly dangerous given the fact that she froze her own subordinate, so what good will come of antagonizing her?! Furina and I both move, snagging the Traveler and dragging her back a safe distance away from the frosty season. "You can't just dive headfirst into a situation with your sword out and start a fight. What if we had the chance to reason with her and you threw that away because you antagonized her?" I expected a little better of her given her adventuring experience... though I suppose it's an understandable reflex to attack first upon encountering a perceived threat. I let go of her with a sigh. "Furina sounded like she was trying to talk to her, and I want to hear what Winter has to say."

As I listen to the woman and her insistence that we kill her, as she attempts to accept the proffered warmth and fails twice, I begin to understand better. Logically, she is not willing to let us leave until we fulfill her wishes, and with the extreme cold in play, that makes her a threat. Perhaps she should actually work to make amends with her sister instead of trying to atone with the sacrifice of her life—unfortunately, she doesn't want to listen to our reasoning even if she does express appreciation for the kindness offered to her. She leaves us no choice but to fight her, and so as the temperature plunges once more and Furina summons her entourage, I draw Foliar Incision and narrow my eyes at the opposing side.

Roll Energy: 3. Roll Elemental Skill: 3. Hit! 1 Chisel-Light Mirror created! Damage dealt: 3. Energy used: 2. Autum Memory: 6/12 HP Roll counter: 4. Hit! Damage dealt: 1.5. Alhaitham: 5/10 HP Energy remaining: 1.

Roll Normal Attack: 11. Hit! Damage dealt: 1.5. Autumn Memory: 4.5/12 HP Roll counter: 12. Hit! Damage dealt: 1.5. Alhaitham: 3.5/10 HP Energy remaining: 0.

I lunge towards the snowy deer with the help of my Vision, managing to scrape Aineh across its flank. It retaliates by charging, catching me in its antlers and throwing me away. I hit the ground—"Nnh!"—and roll into a crouch, gritting my teeth and brandishing my blades through the burning chill. Though Qiqi did a good job of healing my injuries from the previous battle, several of them still remain, and now they've been added to and exacerbated. Unless she uses her restorative ability again, I won't last for much longer, but there's little else I can do except whittle our enemies down. So fight I must.

Getting back up, I rush forward and slash at the deer again, scoring a neat glimmering gash on its other side. It smashes into me again for my troubles, and I retreat towards my teammates. "This is going to be difficult, everyone, so be very careful. We can't afford for any one of us to fall, and I'll do my best to evade where I can, but this will be a rough fight all the same." Another good hit or two and I might be finished. I should hang back and wait for an opportunity to strike.

(The vial, stowed and safe in my pouch, pulses with warmth.)

“Order: protect Furina jiejie, Lumine jiejie, and Alhaitham gege…as far as possible.”

roll 1d3+2 for energy, 5.elemental skill: herald of frost [ -2 energy, 3 energy remaining ]qiqi +3hp.

Herald of Frost whizzes around in its familiar arc, pinging harmlessly against the memories before triggering Crystallise upon hitting Lady Winter and granting Qiqi another temporary pale blue shield. She feels the adeptal art also healing the damage she took previously, the sensation akin to having comfortably warm water poured over one’s kin. Now, then, on to the next step. Surveying her attacking options, she chooses a different memory from Alhaitham gege, and swings her sword as hard as she can.

normal attack: ancient sword art [ -1 energy, 2 energy remaining ]roll 1d20, 20. crit!all allies +4hp.

Ooh, that one felt really good. Her sword makes contact with a loud thwack, and Qiqi glances at Alhaitham gege and Lumine jiejie quickly as she hops back before she can be counterattacked. But nothing of the sort happens, and both of her teammates seem to look slightly better than before. One more hit, Qiqi thinks. Then Alhaitham gege will be all better.

charged attack: ancient sword art [ -2 energy, no energy remaining ]roll 1d20, 18. Autocrit!all allies +4hp.

Summoning the rest of her strength, Qiqi approaches the same memory and unleashes a charged attack. Strangely, it doesn’t react, absorbing all of the damage she inflicts. Well, it shouldn’t be a big deal—and everyone is fully healed, so Qiqi’s job is done, at least for now.

The final battle ┃┃┃　start.

As Furina charges across the mist and fog, chill more relentless than anything she has ever felt begins to bite at her legs; luckily, the Warming Bottle on her person covers her with a warm aura akin to a blanket, preventing the cold from inflicting injury or damage. The others will not be so lucky as they follow her – the bone-chilling bitterness is becoming really hard to withstand. What meets you on the other side of the mist is a sight both sorry, and equally chilling to the freezing air around them. Whether there ever was anything else in this cavern than rock, snow and ice, it is no longer possible to tell. Broken chains, covered in ice and frost, hang on the walls, bits and pieces of them also strewn across the ground, still emanating some remnants of power long since exhausted. In the middle of it all, kneels a tall lady, arms wrapped around in a self-hug. On her body is a torn and damaged dress that must have been beautiful once upon a time; long, white hair covers her back and wraps around her feet on the ground in a disorderly manner. As she looks up to meet your eyes, frozen tear streaks can be seen on her face. She stares at you wide-eyed. “Who are you!? How did you—” she screams in horror, but in that very moment, a realization seems to dawn on her. She stops, regards you more attentively for a second, and the tiniest shade of a rueful smile flashes across the corners of her blue lips as she continues, her tone much softer. “Of course. Sweet little Silvie… To the last, he believed there was salvation for me…” She sighs. “I suppose he was not entirely wrong, but it will not come in the way he wished.” It is only now as she speaks those words and slowly stands up, that you notice the one decoration present in the chamber: an ice statuette of a fox stands off to the side, an expression of shock immortalized on the little animal’s face. Once the woman gets to her feet, she looks at you again – but this time, it is an ice-cold glare, albeit betraying a hint of sorrow. The frosty breeze grows even stronger. From the mist emerges a trio of icy familiars – a swallow, a deer and a boar. The fallen goddess summons a damaged, but still dangerous spear to her right hand; the pure power of ice oozes from the cracks in its blade and handle. “Come. I know why you’re here. Your way out of my shrine, out of my prison… is through me. Though my body resists, my mind knows that… this winter… must end.”

After retrieving the treasure from the chest, Lumine picks up on an unfamiliar, woman's voice coming from the other room.

( Could that be…!? )

Furina had gone ahead earlier, which might not have been such a smart idea come to think of it now. Despite her great showing in the earlier battle, she had made it clear multiple times before that combat is not her strong suit, so if a powerful enemy was waiting ahead, she would most likely struggle to face it by herself.

"…Let's go!!"

With quickened steps, the Traveler arrives to the scene, her gaze instantly locking with the frozen, immobilized frame before shifting to Lady Winter and her three icy Familiars. A four-on-four battle, it seems. While their numbers might be equal, this was not exactly what Lumine for consider a 'fair' battle.

For one, their team is still wounded after the earlier fight, with Alhaitham and Qiqi taking the most damage. Secondly, if she had learnt anything from fighting against a variety of different monsters, it is that elemental immunities can play a vital part in any strategy. Their opponent is clearly Cryo-based, which means Qiqi's attacks can only provide healing but her actual offensive abilities will be severely lowered.

During the last battle, she mostly just stood around and watched, but this time would be different. This was not her first rodeo after all. With a determined look on her face, she drew her swords - the trusty Dull Blade - before lunging straight at Lady Winter.

"Hah…!!"

She could vaguely hear Furina yell "no, wait—!!", but it was already too late. Lumine opened up her attack chain with a single slash, then immediately jumped back to place down her geo construct.

energy roll ,⠀3. LUMINE (GEO) uses FOREIGN ROCKBLADE. Damage dealt: 1. LUMINE (GEO) uses STARFELL SWORD. 　　 ↳⠀GEO CONSTRUCT is summoned to the field!

Alhaitham is the last to enter the room, just in time to witness her assault on Lady Winter.

“So then, you must be Lady Winter—Traveler, stop!”

When Furina grabs onto her, he does too and chide, “You can’t just barrel headfirst into a situation sword flashing without stopping to gather info first. What if we could’ve talked her down and now that chance is gone because she’s been attacked?”

Furina and Alhaitham's interventions did help to calm the Traveler down, albeit on a little. It was admirable how both of them were able to keep their heads cool - pun intended - but she would not simply stand there and allow all of them to be turned into popsicles.

Unlike Lady Winter herself, Lumine did not have a death wish. There were still so many things she wanted - needed - to do, there was no way she was going to meet her end because her team members are pacifists who refuse to take down the enemy in front of them.

Either way, now was not the time for that, her opponent was readying herself for a counter attack.

LADY WINTER uses FROZEN SPEAR. Damage dealt: 2. (Lumine's total HP: 8/10)

"Tsk...!"

The feeling of regret is just out of her reach as she spots poor Silvie, the little fox encased in thick ice, the shocked expression on his face saying all she needs to know. He had not expected this outcome—this being Lady Winter come back to life, three familiars with her, ready to engage in combat. Almost begging for it, from the way she rages at Furina jiejie, who is trying so, so hard to convince her otherwise.

Then Lumine jiejie moves forward, sword flashing, as if prepared to singlehandedly take Lady Winter down herself if she must, both Furina jiejie and Alhaitham gege rushing to stop her. Still, despite their efforts, Lumine jiejie manages to land a hit and summon her meteorite, taking some damage from Lady Winter in the process. Qiqi will have to see if there is a way to heal her later, without fighting. It looks like Furina jiejie does not want to fight. Qiqi can understand. They came all this way, after all, expecting a wronged sister, only to find that she had been at fault. But who is perfect…? Qiqi puzzles over this as the heated exchange continues.

Alhaitham gege says, “You can’t just barrel headfirst into a situation sword flashing without stopping to gather info first. What if we could’ve talked her down and now that chance is gone because she’s been attacked?”

Furina jiejie gives him a look. Lady Winter, on the other hand, only shakes her head. "Your faith is admirable, but there is no other way. If you do not kill me... you will join little Silvie in his sleep, and I know he would not want you to." Her voice is a lot calmer than it was a moment ago, too. As if she already knows what they all have to do, eventually. "There is no other way. I do not want there to be another way. I want to pay for my sins the way my sister wished for me to."

"When I was... I.. didn't want to be helped either. And to tell you the truth, I don't know if I still do." Furina jiejie takes shaky but determined steps forward. "But fighting you won't fix it. It'll just hurt you more, even if we defeat you. It won't solve anything. You'll still be here alone. With no one... no one..." She pushes the warming bottle forward like it takes all of her strength, forcing it into Lady Winter's hand. "It's scary... it's terrifying... but please..."

Qiqi waits expectantly. Furina jiejie is brave, she realises. Unimaginably so. She does not charge into battle like Lumine jiejie, and isn’t as stoic and calm as Alhaitham gege, but she is brave, all the same. Someone—a passing adventurer picking up emergency supplies, maybe—had told her that bravery isn’t always glinting swords and banging shields. Sometimes bravery is what Furina jiejie has. Qiqi feels strangely warm, knowing that.

Lady Winter says something Qiqi can’t catch this far away from Furina jiejie. She slowly, agonisingly, reaches for the warming bottle, but pulls away quickly with a scream. Refusing to give up, Furina jiejie does something to the bottle, then offers it again. "Sometimes it hurts. but you can do it. If it's her gift, then it belongs to you, not with us. I just don't believe you. That you're the 'culprit'? There's no— ugh... it's not like that. It's never that simple... I just don't want you to die here alone."

Dying alone would be…sad. Why does Qiqi feel sad again? Dying alone…it sounds familiar, like it happened before. But how…why…? She shakes her head. The past should stay in the past. She is here now, with Furina jiejie and Lumine jiejie and Alhaitham gege and they have to help Silvie and Lady Winter and then go home. Yes. That’s all there is to it.

Lady Winter reaches for the bottle again, but stops short again, and withdraws again. She takes a step back and shakes her head vigorously, hints of a panic setting in. "... No, you misunderstand. I AM the culprit. I was the one who initiated it, who started it all out of nothing but fear... Fear of my own kin - headstrong, impulsive, but loving nevertheless. I betrayed her!" Tears form in her eyes, freezing as soon as they roll down her cheeks. "My younger sisters were forced to pay for the plot I hatched, too. I pray for salvation and forgiveness - but only for them. The only salvation that awaits me is death..."

She steps back further. The icy familiars approach, stepping in between Lady Winter and Furina jiejie. "I appreciate your kindness... I have not felt any in almost two thousand years. But I do not deserve it. I do not deserve her kindness -" she points at the warming bottle - "and I do not deserve yours. And certainly not more than them!" She then points at Qiqi and Alhaitham gege and Lumine jiejie.

Dendro Core explodes! Damage dealt: 1. Alhaitham: 8/10 HP Roll Ice Shards: 11, 15, 13. Hit, hit, and hit! Frozen activates! Damage dealt: 3. Alhaitham: 5/10 HP Alhaitham is Frozen and cannot counterattack! Roll Cicin Icicle: 8. Hit! Damage dealt: 1. Alhaitham: 4/10 HP Roll Bounce: 10. Hit! Melt activates! Damage dealt: 1.5. Alhaitham: 2.5/10 HP

I kneel there, shivering, as the battle continues around me. A pleasant cool energy alerts me to Qiqi activating her healing again, wiping several of my injuries from my body. Soon after, the song of an unfamiliar blade slices through the air, followed by a crashing sound and silence. Ah. Seems Furina must've stepped up and finished the battle. Good, it's nice to know she is in fact an adventurer worth relying on, at least in this aspect. Pity I didn't get to see it.

The Traveler cries out for Qiqi—oh, the poor girl got caught by the Cryo Slime after I did. Slowly, I stand, wiping my wet hair from my face as best as I can; unfortunately, the strands have already plastered themselves to my head and face and solidified in the cold weather. Great, now I can barely see. I follow the footsteps of the others to the torch in the room, where it sounds like the Traveler sets Qiqi down. While I wait for her to thaw and for my body temperature to regulate back to an appropriate level, I peer out into the cavern beyond the torch in an attempt to discern our next move. The combination of my thawing bangs and low light, however, effectively blind me. "I can't see very well at the moment. Could someone take a look and find some clues for where we should go next? More pawprints, maybe?" In response, the Traveler teases me, and I roll my eyes. I take regular breaks from my reading every now and then, it's called work. Isn't it obvious?

Still, the blonde relents and says something about a chest up ahead. Reaching out, I brush my fingertips against solid cold stone and, using the wall as my guide, enter the room. Sure enough, my foot hits wood, and I bend down to open the chest. Inside is a vial of sparkling light blue liquid that illuminates the place with a gentle glow reminiscent of a little star. Vitality emanates from the vial, a soothing comfort alongside the lovely color and soft shimmer to my senses. I turn and hold the vial up to show the others. "I found something that might be useful. Good work, everyone, well done. I think we worked fairly well together for our first fight as a group."

Bottled Starlight acquired!

 Right after Lumine jiejie asks if they should go check it out, Furina jiejie cuts in. "You go for the treasure; I'm going to keep looking for Silvie." With that, she darts into a different hallway, one Qiqi only just notices, even though it’s right next to her, and is gone. Her gaze tracking Furina jiejie, the girl’s silhouette disappearing into the mist at the other side, Qiqi stops short of following. Turning, she sees that Alhaitham gege has picked up something that glimmers like the galaxy, like the view of a clear sky on a cloudless night, from the chest. It looks potent, and useful.

“Lumine jiejie, Alhaitham gege. Furina jiejie…went that way. For Silvie.” Qiqi helpfully points down the hallway. “There is…mist. Can’t see. Qiqi…doesn’t know…what is inside mist.”

Peering into the room, I lock eyes with a Slime, its element difficult to tell in the dimmer light. It flees back around the corner, its shadow on the walls joining those of other small elemental lifeforms. Though the torchlight obscures the details, most of them look vaguely familiar.  I turn to the rest of the group to alert them as to what we're about to encounter. "It looks like there are at least one slime and several other smaller entities in that chamber. We'll need to proceed with caution, but if they're hostile, I don't believe we'll have any difficulty taking care of them. Everyone, be on your guard." Of course, we'll need to make it through without getting impaled by falling ice, for a large chunk of icicle drops and smashes into the ground right in front of Qiqi. In the room proper, I make out three different Slimes hopping around, one larger than the others, and three Cicins buzzing about. The Traveler creates a Geo boulder and calls out to me to go next. I hang back, however; based on both the Hydro Slime and what I assume are Furina's capabilities (and companions—hello again, Mlle. Chevalmarin), it would be wise to prioritize Dendro Core production on my end. Qiqi summons a frosty little hovering ornament that smacks into the entire monster group, freezing the Hydro Slime before she attacks it and shatters it out of its temporary prison. Very well, then, since it's available, I'll just use that as my battery, I suppose. The wash of icy healing energy, though ineffective on me, alerts me to the usefulness of her skill. Good thing I waited for her to go first, then, we're going to need that.

Roll Energy: 4. Roll Elemental Skill: 16. Hit! Bloom activates! 1 Chisel-Light Mirror created! Damage dealt: 3. Energy used: 2. Hydro Slime: 2/10 HP Roll Sacrificial Sword passive: 2. No activation! Energy remaining: 2.

Roll counter: 4. Hit! Wet status applied. Damage dealt: 1. Alhaitham: 9/10 HP Roll Charged Attack: 19. Crit! 1 Chisel-Light Mirror created! Damage dealt: 3. Energy used: 2. Hydro Slime: 0/10 HP Energy remaining: 0.

Pulling on my Vision, I blast the Hydro Slime with "An Elaboration on Form" and generate a Dendro Core as expected. It launches itself at me in response, soaking me in an already painfully cold environment. A relief that we have a torch in this room... actually, that would explain why these creatures were here in the first place. I charge at it with a lightning-fast dual slash, sending it evaporating out of existence. "... Ah. A little bit too much force." But one less enemy to worry about. All good in the end, I think.

Hydro Slime has been defeated!

With no time to react, the big Cryo slime launches ice shards at poor Alhaitham gege. Since he had been hit once by the Hydro slime before it died, he becomes frozen, but not even that stops the remaining cicin from avenging its fallen teammates and dropping an icicle on him. And then, as if mocking him, the Pyro slime, clearly on its last legs but unwilling to give up, knocks into him, melting the ice on him.

Before Qiqi can think about what to do next, the big construct Lumine jiejie put up does something that hits the remaining enemies with Geo. With a satisfying pop and a shower of Pyro-coloured sparks, the slime is gone, and the last cicin quietly crumbles into nothing, too. Well, then. It looks like there’s only one enemy left, and Alhaitham gege took quite a bit of damage for the team, so Qiqi will just have to thank him the best way she knows how. “Order: heal Alhaitham gege.”

roll 1d3+2 for energy, 4. elemental skill: herald of frost [ -2 energy, 2 energy remaining ]

Summoning her little ice ball again, it spins and hits the slime, but nothing happens, as usual. Well, no matter; right now, Qiqi is focused on making sure they leave this place safe and sound with no injuries to speak of. It looks like the Cryo slime is going to hit her if she hits it first, so she’ll have to heal as much as she can and do as much damage as possible before it freezes her like it did Alhaitham gege.

charged attack: ancient sword art [ -2 energy, no energy remaining ] roll 1d20, 10. large cryo slime -1.5hp. all allies +4hp.

Checking on Alhaitham gege, it seems like her healing has worked, since he looks just a little bit better than before. That’s good, then. When she breaks free of the impending freeze, she’ll have to finish off her job, as befitting of her title as the assistant at Bubu Pharmacy.

roll 1d20 for counter, 18. large cryo slime attacks; qiqi -1.5hp. frozen status is in effect.

After drawing her swords, she followed the group into the room, watching from the sidelines as the ex-Hydro Archon actually made the first move on the battle field, summoning her three 'pets' onto the field to deal gradual damage to the opponent. A smart technique - Lumine concludes - as she had a similar idea in mind. While it does feel nice to land one strong blow which deals a lot of damage to the enemy, it's often the weaker, yet consistent damage which can end up saving you in the end.

energy roll ,⠀3. LUMINE (GEO) uses STARFELL SWORD. 　　　 ↳⠀GEO CONSTRUCT is summoned to the field!

As much as she would love to charge at one of the slimes and hack away at them with her sword, she too ultimately chooses the more passive route, raising her left hand into the air to summon a geo construct.

"Fall...!"

Not only will this deal waves of Geo damage at timed intervals, but it could also block some of the incoming attacks. Perhaps it could even help create some cheeky crystallized shield once it comes into contact with either Furina's Hydro or Qiqi's Cryo attacks at some point during the fight.

"...Well, it's up to you now, Mr. 'Feeble Scholar'~"

“Order: heal…Lumine jiejie.”

roll 1d3+2 for energy, 3. elemental skill: herald of frost [ -2 energy, 1 energy remaining ]

Summoning her first adeptal art, Qiqi watches as the little ball whizzes in a wide arc, hitting all the enemies she can see—several slimes, and three taller…cicins? Yes, those look like cicins. The small Hydro slime is conveniently frozen in place, but nothing happens to the Pyro or big Cryo slime, and it looks like the cicins were relatively unaffected too. Still, since they had Lumine jiejie’s Geo on them, Qiqi receives a pale blue, if temporary, shield. How useful.

The first step of her plan in place, Qiqi now has to choose a target to hit, so she can heal. It looks like the cicins are quite evasive, and Qiqi’s movements are slow, so they are out. The Cryo slime feels intimidating, and she decides it’s better to leave that to Alhaitham gege and Lumine jiejie to deal with. Furina jiejie’s Hydro will handle the Pyro slime easily enough, but her bubble friends won’t work against the currently-frozen slime, so…

normal attack: ancient sword art [ -1 energy, no energy remaining ] roll 1d20, 18. autocrit! all allies +4hp.

Bravely swinging her sword, Qiqi aims for the small slime encased in ice. That feels like a good hit, she thinks, just as the weapon makes contact and shatters the ice. The slime bounces free, just a tad more weakly than before. Good; it looks like she managed to deal some damage to it. Wide eyes narrowing, it readies itself, and launches its entire body at Qiqi before she can react.

roll 1d20 for counter, 7. crystallise shield in effect! no damage taken, hydro status applied.

she supposed not, if he'd been asleep in it for. . . come to think of it, she doesn't know how long ago all this was supposed to have happened.

of course one only thinks of more things it'd be good for them to know the moment he's gone.

FURINA moves the team 8.　team sheer cold ,⠀2.

"oh! up there. . . !!" thoughts are momentarily discarded in favor of the promising orange glow of another torch ( and how have those stayed lit down here all this time? had someone else. . . been down here recently? ) when a crash just on her right of something splintering makes her leap sideways with an audible gasp, heart hammering a mile a minute. a shattered pile of ice lies not a foot to the right of where she'd stood.

hand to chest, back presses to wall as she glances up for yet more incoming peril. how did these keep happening precisely when they were close? but the stalactites dangle out of reach now, allowing her to catch her breath and remember to be more mindful before rushing forward. embarrassing. . . the others shouldn't see her so easily spooked, even if she was only a former god.

Sweeping her gaze around, Qiqi doesn’t find anything of note down either path, but she notices faint pawprints leading to the room ahead of them, the one with the fainter torchlight. Still, if the prints belong to Silvie, and he really went that way, it must be worth retracing his steps. “Silvie…must have run there.” She points across, to the narrow hallway, their path blocked by falling icicles. “Everyone can…follow Silvie? Or separate?”

"I believe we should follow the pawprints. We know near nothing about this place, so it doesn't seem wise to try to explore on our own without Silvie." Lumine jiejie proposed. "I also think it would be best if we stick together." A good point, one that Qiqi knows Furina jiejie would also agree with.

"I'm still of the mind that we stick together," Alhaitham adds, having shrugged his cape back on. "If you think that's where he's gone, then that will most likely be our best bet. It's best to stay together in case we run into trouble, as that way we have a greater chance of making it out safely."

QIQI moves the team 7. team sheer cold, 3.

Furina seems to agree as well, despite still seeming somewhat anxious about what else could be awaiting them in the room.

Meanwhile Alhaitham remains quiet - per usual - but he does not voice any objections either.

"Everyone agrees to move north? Let's go then!"

Lumine moves the team 6. Torch encountered! Team sheer cold, 0.

Once again, the blonde takes the lead, heading through the upper passage to reach the small room on the other side. Just as Qiqi had accurately perceived, there was a torch to the left and a treasure chest right next to it. As much as she wanted to take a peek inside, it was more important for them to warm up first, so she stop besides the torch for now.

“Qiqi found…two things.” She turns to show the rest of the group the healing potion first. “This one…should heal. Qiqi can keep it with…Qiqi’s herbs.” Then, the bottle with the seelie in it. “Warming bottle…like the Dragonspine one. Furina jiejie…can take it, so jiejie will always…be warm. Warm and safe.” This way, she might be more comfortable exploring the rest of the space too. Still, they shouldn’t spend too much time hanging inside this room, with nothing else in it. Qiqi goes outside again, scooching past the icicles from the ceiling, and realises they now have to choose where to go.

QIQI moves the team 7. team sheer cold, 1.

"Owーー!"

HP: -1

A soft groan could be heard from her as she slowly got back up on her feet, rubbing her head while following the group for now. The temperature seemed even lower down here, their bodies gradually cooling down as they proceeded onwards. Thankfully, the tallest of the group succesfully lead them towards a torch, providing some temporary relief.

They were now left with their next dilemma, however - do they go east or south? They had no idea which way Silvie went, so it was mostly a guessing game.

"There's two hallways… Which way did he go? Ugh…" Furina said while warming herself by the torch.

“Qiqi thinks… everyone should stay warm… as much as possible.” Qiqi then added. A very valid point. Lumine too believed that separating without any means to get back in touch and regroup was very risky. Furina seemed to think otherwise, however.

"Well, we can't just stand here forever!"

Lumine decides to step in. "Let's not get into any arguments, okay? We're all in this together." She emphasized, reminded of the times when her and Aether would get into a disagreement during their journey - with one of them wanting to proceed left and the other right.

"There's two options. Either all four of us go together and pick one path. This seems like the safer option in case we run into any potential threats or enemies. On the flipside, if we choose the wrong side, it could lose us a lot of time." The blonde added, placing one hand underneath her chin. "Alternatively, we could split into two groups. That way we can almost certainly locate Silvie. The only issue would be regrouping afterwards.

Furina looks visibly more nervous at the mention of running into threats. It's clear she hadn't considered that might happen down here "My… strength doesn't lie in fighting. if we split up, I…" she looks down the south hall, then the one in front of them at the room's far end. "Does anyone have anything we can use to stay in touch?"

The traveler immediately picks up on her nervousness - she tends to do a lot of people observation while Paimon takes the word, so she has developed a talent for reading others based solely on body language.

"It's okay to be anxious. This whole situation is pretty spooky, that's for sure. I mean, we have no idea where we are and how or if we'll get out…" Personally, she thinks it might be best to stay together, even if it would slow down their process. "I don't…Alhaitham, do you have any devices from the Akademiya on you?" It wouldn't surprise her if they had created something which allows for one to share their location from a distance.

Alhaitham simply folded his arms in response. “Unfortunately, ones like the type you’re expecting used to run on the Akasha terminal and were typically designed for contact within a research group. The Akademiya has been transitioning away from relying on the terminal after its shutdown, but with everything going on, the devices they’re using for the moment are a little… less than stellar.” He tilts his head in consideration. “That’s not to say that I haven’t considered the issue myself. I’ve been modifying my earpieces to make and accept this type of contact, although I haven’t finished a compatible test receiver for such a purpose yet. It’s fully built but hasn’t been tested yet. The modifications to the earpieces themselves are also unfinished and rather rudimentary at this point.”

Furina looks down. "Then… looks like going together is still the best we have. but which way?"

Lumine took a closer look at both pathways, when suddenly caught her attention about the passage south of them.

(Shadows…? Could it be caused by the torch? No, they're distinctly different. I'm positive that something is ahead.)

"Guys. I think the room south might have some potential dangers lurking ahead. If everyone else agrees, I believe we should take the eastern pathway instead."

The others nodded in agreement and with the Traveler taking the lead this time, the group headed eastwards.

Roll movement: 7. Lumine moves team forward. Sheer Cold: 1

QIQI moves the team 5. team sheer cold, 2. 1d20 for perception, 19.

From where they stand, though, and right behind another patch of falling icicles, Qiqi can just make out the outline of what looks like an exquisite chest, and the warm glow of another torch. In an unknown place such as this, it might be worth picking up whatever items they come across, just in case they turn out useful later on. She also notices the cold creeping up on them again, and warming up once more by another torch before continuing their exploration would do everyone some good.

Well, that’s all in the past now. Furina jiejie leads them down a narrow hallway, avoiding some icicles that appear to be dropping from the ceiling. With that movement, Qiqi feels the cold getting colder, and she again turns to look at her human teammates, who would be more easily affected by such temperatures. Suffering from something like hypothermia at this stage would be quite troublesome, but luckily, she spies something that looks like it emanates heat in the corner of the room just ahead of them. Warmth! It might not be temporary—they still have to find Silvie, after all—but it’s something. Qiqi herself isn’t entirely immune to cold, either—just because she doesn’t feel it doesn’t mean it can’t cause her harm, too, and so she takes the lead, bringing them a little closer to some temporary warmth.