Bringing About One's Own Demise

"Speaking of which... since you've decided to do this, it means you have some interests to offer, right? It's not just a spur-of-the-moment decision, is it? Oh, by the way, could you get me some soy sauce?"

"Well... I guess I'm doing this for Durandal for Kiana, and Lady Ragna for us? To be honest, in terms of reasons, there's not much self-interest involved."

Rita handed over the soy sauce.

"The main problem is still Kiana. Kiana is also in a bit of a predicament now, isn't she?"

"I think we might have different understandings of the dilemma, but that's certainly true."

Kiana's handling is indeed a bit of a headache—well, to be more precise, it's Sirin's handling.

"Regarding these interests... can't we just take the table and negotiate?"

Do you think we dare to talk to His Holiness the Bishop at the negotiating table?

They're not brain-dead; negotiating with Otto on an equal footing... let's just forget about it.

If someone doesn't even understand their own strengths and thinks they can outmaneuver Otto in equal negotiations, they might as well just die; keeping them around is lowering the overall intelligence of humanity.

Since we have a military advantage, we should leverage it. It seems simple and straightforward, but if we don't even know how to play to our strengths and avoid our weaknesses, we are just complicating a simple problem.

Moreover, trust between them has long been precarious—especially since Rita is Reanna's spiritual successor.

Yes, Rita is a complete traitor. She is the greatest traitor in the history of Schicksal, and the spiritual successor of Reanna, the strongest Valkyries of Schicksal a hundred years ago.

Reanna used to have a small house in Schicksal, where she kept her diary.

After the defection, Otto gave a death order to erase all traces of Reanna.

Even so, Reanna's secluded cottage and diary have been silently passed down and protected by the Valkyries who discovered the place for nearly a hundred years, and now they have been passed down to Rita.

Rita has two mentors in life: Ragna laid the foundation for her values, while Reanna provided further guidance.

Although Reanna keeps a diary, it doesn't stop her from being a respectable person.

There are records of things like how one of his subordinates defected for some reason, Otto sent a certain squad to hunt him down...

Therefore, Rita knew very well that rather than hoping for the two sides to negotiate and exchange interests, it would be better to use more ruthless methods.

We absolutely cannot give Otto too much room to maneuver; after all, negotiation is a delicate matter...

A win-win situation is a sign of good negotiation.

Even if I win twice and you lose twice, it's still excellent negotiation.

"So you want me to do it..."

Rita's words still gave Liu Bai a headache.

But as part of the plan to conquer Schicksal... Rita is actually quite tempting.

"Wait a minute, who was the Valkyries of the Northernmost Branch again?" Bai suddenly remembered something.

"La Signora. Rosalind and La Signora. Kuzkavina are both A-Rank Valkyrie."

Who is Kuzkavina...?

However, Liu Bai seemed to vaguely recognize the name Rosalind.

It looks big, white, and round... oh no, he meant it looks like a "La Signora's" name.

"However... La Signora. Rosalind seems to be quite unusual."

Rita looked somewhat serious.

Rita had seen the name Rosalind in Reanna's diary.

Of course, Rosalind isn't a rare name, so it's hard to say if it's the same person—but if it is, then you should probably consider her an S-rank Valkyrie.

Rita had only just remembered this—mainly because the Inazuma Group members were loitering around in front of her at night, which made Rita think about immortality.

"Oh, I don't understand, it's not just ordinary, is it?" Bai said indifferently, "Let's recreate the Tenshukaku."

Alas, Lao Luo.

Those two people...

Acheron, who was about to read a book, felt something and frowned slightly as he looked at the two figures busy in the kitchen.

I have a feeling... that these two have an unusually good understanding of each other?

Acheron Quan inexplicably felt that he couldn't get involved.

And its presence is a bit too strong...

What's going on?

Chapter 161 Seeking One's Own Death

"Let's talk about other things first."

Liu Bai glanced at the living room, sensing something.

Acheron was sitting on the sofa reading a book, looking perfectly normal... The feeling of hair on his back that he had just experienced must have been an illusion.

"For example, aside from your Schicksal, where should I go?"

"Hmm... Liyue, Anti-Entropy, Mondstadt, Fontaine... You can actually go to these places. These factions have very open-minded foreign policies."

Rita readily changed the subject.

Rita dared to talk to Liu Bai about rebellion because she knew that Liu Bai had a need for Schicksal —after all, Liu Bai and Rita had talked about the end of the world.

Rita knew that Liu Bai wanted to fight for his Schicksal, which is why she dared to talk to Liu Bai about these "sensitive topics".

Liu Bai had needs, and she could provide solutions; in every sense, they were a perfect match.

As for the risks?

Only children think that nothing in the world is risk-free.

However, Rita wouldn't push Liu Bai too hard, as that would be undesirable.

"A half-hearted answer, huh? Then which of these would you recommend I go to?"

"Liyue".

Rita offered her advice almost without thinking.

"With Yelan's connection, Liyue is very convenient for you. Moreover, Ningguang... although she is a businesswoman, she is not so mercenary. If you have to say, she is closer to the so-called 'Confucian merchant' in ancient Shenzhou? Except that this Confucian merchant may not be holding the Analects, but the Gongyang Commentary."

"... Oh, the one about the Great Revenge."

Liu Bai thought for a moment before remembering that the book Rita mentioned was a Spring and Autumn Annals commentary with a strong Confucian martial spirit.

"Zuo Zhuan excels in rites, Gongyang Zhuan excels in prophecies, and Guliang Zhuan excels in classics?"

"Yes, that's it. I didn't expect you to be so eager to learn, even as an alien." Rita looked at Liu Bai with a slightly surprised expression.

Liu Bai scratched his head.

This is actually a kind of knowledge accumulation that I, as a homebody, inexplicably accumulated.

"Since you know this, it wouldn't hurt to be careful. Lady Ningguang of Liyue isn't exactly a pure businesswoman. Well, it's a good thing she's not a pure businesswoman."

People who are completely profit-driven can also be a real headache.

"Another point is that Yelan can influence Ningguang's decisions... Although Yelan and I are about the same in terms of power and status, I can only interfere with the bishop's judgment, not influence the bishop's decisions—does that sound a bit awkward?"

"No problem, I understand the general meaning."

Liu Bai nodded knowingly.

For example, Rita can fool Otto by not telling him what she knows, but once Otto actually makes a decision... it will probably come at a great cost to change it.

To truly influence Otto's decisions, perhaps only Kallen and Theresa could do so.

"That's great." Rita wasn't surprised by Liu Bai's understanding. "As for Liyue, then there's Anti-Entropy. Although Anti-Entropy's black and red style and color scheme are rather depressing, the internal atmosphere is still very open... or you could say chaotic? Anyway, with Inazuma by our side, if we just want to negotiate, Anti-Entropy might be easier than Liyue."

You might as well just say that Anti-Entropy is a makeshift operation... anyway, everyone's probably a makeshift operation in essence...

"What about Mondstadt and Fontaine?"

Liu Bai wanted to hear Rita's evaluation of the two forces.

"Mondstadt... a resort town, but... it might be even worse than Anti-Entropy."

Hey, did you say those four words so directly?

"There's nothing we can do. We can only find a handful of reliable people in Mondstadt," Rita said, shrugging.

She also wants to give positive reviews! But how should those people evaluate her?

Does that mean the Knights Commander, the leader of a powerful force, is responsible for finding cats for people?

... Although she occasionally doesn't mind helping others, doing this every day is a bit absurd.

Mondstadt's fall from above left Rita speechless.

"However, as an ally, they can be trusted."

Rita briefly ended the conversation about Mondstadt and steered the topic to Fontaine.

"Fontaine... is difficult to deal with. Although the current God is an unambitious person, that Supreme Judge... gives me the feeling that he is somewhat like the Bishop—but his emotions are more stable than the Bishop's, but his strength is also greater."

"Isn't Otto quite stable too?"

"Sometimes, the bishop's smile doesn't give people a sense of security at all. Well, it's better to have a blank expression."

"..."

Grass, it seems that's indeed the case.

Just thinking about Otto calmly speaking to him with a mysterious smile made Liu Bai's heart race and his fists clench slightly...

"In short, it's a tough situation to deal with them, maybe even tougher than our Schicksal. I really can't think of anything that could sway them, but if we don't touch them, they're unlikely to cause any trouble."

Clearly, Rita strongly discouraged Liu Bai from going to Fontaine first.

After all, as for Fontaine, it's best not to touch him. He's a small place, and when the apocalypse comes, he'll spontaneously unite.

Yes, the same applies to Mondstadt and the unmentioned Sumeru; these peaceful little places can just go with the flow.

Right now, the most likely groups to cause trouble are Liyue, Schicksal, and Anti-Entropy.

Schicksal and Anti-Entropy are old rivals, and the Liyue Merchant Guild, based in the Shenzhou region, has a large base of influence. Moreover, Ningguang, the current leader of Destiny, is a powerful woman.

At this point, there's no need to consider Ningguang's thoughts; you can simply place Liyue as the hypothetical enemy.

Two burly men were fighting, while a slightly thinner burly man stood by watching—this was clearly not a good thing.

"A very helpful suggestion, thank you."

"It's just my duty."

Rita chuckled softly.

Rita's Affection Level: 5355

"What are you two doing?" Eden had just gotten up, looked at the two people working together seamlessly in the kitchen with great surprise.

"Huh? Cooking?" Liu Bai said matter-of-factly as he handed Rita a bowl.

"Do..."

Cook?

Hmm... You two inexplicably give off a vibe that you're going to end up in bed together.

Eden's thoughts at this moment were exactly the same as Acheron's.

However, Eden wouldn't say it outright.

"Never mind, what should we eat today?"

"Fried rice and fried noodles."

"First thing in the morning it's just oil, salt, and carbs..."

"I've made up my mind! I'll go to Inazuma first!"

Snap snap snap snap~~