I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead.
Why did I instinctively start putting on airs again?!
It's all because I've gotten so used to those exaggerated performances. Now being overdramatic is practically becoming my nature.
Boohoo, when will this endless performance finally end?!
Speaking of this Gnosis thing...
So gods actually have those? Then where exactly is "my" Gnosis now?
As always, Furina appeared calm and collected on the surface, while inwardly she was frantic and restless.
She nearly became brimming with Hydro and shed little tears again.
But she looked at the cheering crowd below in the Opera Epiclese, at Neuvillette's helpless expression that said, "There she goes again," and at the expressionless Clorinde behind her, who nevertheless trusted and admired her greatly.
Furina could only grit her teeth and continue this seemingly endless performance.
With Liyue and Fontaine setting an example, the audiences from the other nations naturally refused to be outdone.
[Kujou Sara: Then that means the answer can't be D either. The Shogun is invincible, and her martial fortune is eternal. The Musou no Hitotachi slays all fiends and monsters. How could the Fatui possibly take her Gnosis?]
[Pyro Dragon Sovereign: Although I have nothing but contempt for you thieves who stole our power, that fellow across from me doesn't look like someone who could have that damned Gnosis thing taken from him, no matter how I look at it. So the answer isn't C?]
[Nilou: Lesser Lord Kusanali is also... um, well, yes, very strong. (Guilty conscience.)]
[Nahida: ...]
[Xiangling: Ugh, my head hurts.]
[Collei: Th-then could the answer be B?]
[Tighnari: Uh, Collei, you don't have to be that honest.]
[Faruzan: Oh dear, just look at what you've taught Collei to be like, you brat. Hurry up and come under your senior's wing instead!]
[Razor: Don't understand... still need to... hunt.]
[Kaveh: Something feels off.]
[Sangonomiya Kokomi: Aren't we all overlooking something? As for how to obtain Gnoses from the other gods, the question on the screen never said that seizing them was the only way.]
[Kaveh: Aaaah, I almost fell into that mental trap. That's true.]
[Tighnari: Surely not? Judging by the introduction in the video, Gnoses should be very precious to the gods of each nation. They're even credentials issued by Celestia. Is-is that something they can just hand over?]
[Cyno: Look at how the Anemo Archon behaved.]
One remark from Cyno left everyone speechless.
Right, the Anemo Archon had even fooled everyone, willingly taking a slap and flying away to hand over his Gnosis. Looking at it that way, perhaps these things weren't actually all that precious?
Honestly, Venti's performance in the video had shattered quite a few viewers' image of the gods, as though the rosy filter they had worn for so long had suddenly broken.
After all, not everyone had the discerning eye to realize that the Anemo Archon was throwing an entire ocean.
Since even the Anemo Archon, one of the original gods, was this pathetic-even if there was a reason La Signora had beaten him so badly-perhaps the other gods weren't as invincible as they imagined either?
Quite a few people across Teyvat began receiving an involuntary education in having their worldviews reshaped.
[Diona: Ughhh, this is so annoying! Instead of guessing here, why not just ask someone involved?]
[Diona: Your Excellency Venti, who never comes to our Cat's Tail Tavern, are Gnoses precious to you gods or not?]
Before today, Venti had been nothing more than a completely unfamiliar bard to Diona.
Although bards were all annoying people who sang to entertain drunkards, Diona had originally thought a little better of Venti because he never went to the Cat's Tail Tavern, mistakenly believing that he was different from the other bards.
But now it turned out that this bard was the Anemo Archon himself!
Although she respected the Anemo Archon greatly, when she thought about how he was the chief culprit who had corrupted all of Mondstadt's customs and allowed alcohol, something that shouldn't exist in this world, to run rampant throughout Mondstadt, Diona found it difficult to describe how she felt.
That was why her way of addressing Venti was so complicated.
[Venti: Achoo, achoo.]
[Venti: Strange, can allergies be triggered from a distance through a screen too?]
[Venti: Hmm, little Diona, blessed by pure water, Gnoses aren't particularly important to us, The Seven. We became The Seven because we were first the victors of the Archon War, not because Celestia handed us Gnoses.]
Although that wasn't how things had actually happened, how each of them had obtained their seat among The Seven was far too complicated. There were also many inside details unsuitable for public disclosure that might make Celestia lash out in humiliation. Venti still concealed some irrelevant matters. In any case, he was only explaining the issue of Gnoses, and putting it that way wasn't wrong either.
Besides, this screen had already exposed the existence of Gnoses, so it no longer mattered whether he talked about them.
After all, the screen had been around for a whole day, yet Celestia hadn't reacted at all. Either it really was dead, or it had fallen into such a deep sleep that no one could wake it. Otherwise...
Otherwise, Celestia was simply no match for this screen and the entity behind it, and even its attempts to interfere with Teyvat had been stopped by the screen.
Although Venti still wore a playful smile as he looked at the screen, his eyes were utterly serious.
[Yae Miko: That's more or less how it is~ Otherwise, since the Electro Gnosis is currently in my hands, could I take over as the Electro Archon for a couple of days?]
[Lumine: Aren't you revealing a bit too much extra information in the discussion area?]
Pen and notebook in hand, Lumine hurriedly recorded the information being revealed. Whether it was the possibility that Venti was allergic to Diona, the information that this little girl named Diona whom she had never met had been blessed by some sort of pure water, or the juicy revelation that Inazuma's Gnosis was actually in the hands of a Guuji of the Grand Narukami Shrine, she wrote it all down, leaving out no detail.
Ever since discovering that her experiences might be a game, Lumine had paid close attention to gathering all sorts of information. After all, based on her past experience playing games, the idle chatter of these key NPCs could very well conceal important information about some side quest.
While Lumine diligently toiled away at her notes, with everyone's attention drawn to the juicy revelations of the Anemo Archon personally explaining secrets among the gods, one sneaky fellow quietly analyzed the question. Convinced he had this one in the bag, he decisively rushed to answer.
[Tartaglia: Hmm, in that case, I'll choose A.]
After watching all the analysis, inquiries, and so on in the discussion area for quite a while, Childe Tartaglia felt that he had fully absorbed yesterday's lesson. Through his meticulous analysis, he believed he had seen through to the truth of this question.
In a rare move, Childe applied his combat wisdom to analysis. He believed this cunning screen was deliberately using the footage of La Signora taking the Anemo Archon's Gnosis, along with the different quantities in the choices, to mislead everyone else.
First, La Signora had effortlessly seized the first Gnosis, leading everyone to mistakenly believe she was the Fatui's designated Gnosis collector. Then came the answer choices with different quantities, causing everyone to unconsciously overlook option A.
After all, under these circumstances, most people would overlook the possibility that La Signora ultimately obtained only one Gnosis, and the smarter they were, the more likely they were to think that way.
But Tartaglia was different. He was both intelligent and an insider among the Fatui Harbingers, so he knew more than other people.
He knew perfectly well that La Signora was no specialist in collecting Gnoses. The plans laid out by the Fatui's upper ranks had never included any designated Gnosis collector. Instead, their approach was to assign one Harbinger responsibility for one nation's Gnosis.
Of course, Uncle Rooster and Uncle Jester seemed to have also said that if an especially good opportunity arose, they needn't concern themselves with that policy. If there was an excellent opportunity to obtain a Gnosis, securing it took priority.
But Childe didn't believe anyone could find a better opportunity to obtain a Gnosis than he could while his own operation was underway.
So was there even any need to think about it? The screen was definitely misleading people. It had nearly led even a Harbinger like him astray.
Thinking this, Tartaglia confidently awaited his first reward.
[System: Incorrect answer.]
What?!
Impossible!
It's rigged!
At the system's response, Tartaglia went straight through three stages of bewilderment.
[System: The penalty for Childe Tartaglia's incorrect answer is-]
[Tartaglia: This isn't right. My reasoning was clearly flawless.]
[Tartaglia: This isn't like yesterday! Yesterday, you could say I was merely speculating, but today I had so much inside information!]
At that moment, Tartaglia looked as utterly lost as a stock trader on a rooftop who had sworn he had inside information before going all in on pharmaceutical stocks in the A-share market.
[System: All of Zhongli's expenses over the next three months will be charged to Tartaglia's account.]
[Hu Tao: Pfft! (Loud laughter.) Ahem, what a good man. What a wonderful man!]
[Hu Tao: Young man, I see that your forehead is full, bright, and rounded. One look tells me you're destined for unspeakable nobility, so let me give you our Wangsheng Funeral Parlor's most prestigious package!]
[Hu Tao: Don't be shy. You've earned it.]
[Scaramouche: Hmph. Boring.]
[Xianyun: Since the Fatui intend to lay hands on Rex Lapis's Gnosis, we ought to do something. However, hmm, I believe Rex Lapis must have his own plans, so we shan't make things difficult for this young man.]
[Xiao: ...]
[Mountain Shaper: This ought to be his honor.]
[A Ping: Hahaha, very good indeed. He's a fine young man.]
[Tartaglia: Though I don't know what's going on, I appreciate your goodwill.]
Looking at his penalty, Tartaglia rubbed his head, feeling rather puzzled.
He had helped settle plenty of Zhongli's bills lately. After all, his ultimate purpose in befriending Zhongli was to complete Her Majesty the Tsaritsa's mission. This was official business. Even if Northland Bank was under Pantalone's control, he wouldn't question Zhongli's bills being charged to Northland Bank.
And now this screen was treating that as his punishment...
Wasn't the difficulty of these punishments dropping a little too quickly?
Hmm?
Wait?
After staring at his penalty for a long while, Tartaglia suddenly realized something.
It said the expenses would be charged to his account, not Northland Bank's...
[Childe: Pantalone, for the sake of our being colleagues-]
[Pantalone: No. (Smile.)]
[Childe: I haven't even said anything yet!]
[Pantalone: Even deliberately changing your nickname to Childe won't help. You're the slowest on the uptake in this entire discussion area, only now realizing the screen's true punishment. Business is business, and personal affairs are personal affairs. I'll help settle business expenses, but as for personal matters...]
[Pantalone: Don't worry, Childe. As a Harbinger, even the lowest-ranked one, your salary is quite high. Working for Northland Bank for free for a hundred years should more or less cover three months of that Mr. Zhongli's expenses.]
[Pantalone: At worst, just take more assignments. There's an allowance for those. Go home less often. Why are you so attached to home at your age? Say no to lying flat, starting with yourself. You need to work harder!]
Tartaglia no longer wanted to read that bastard Pantalone's lengthy sermon on success through hard work in the discussion area. Right now, he was staring at his two remaining exemptions with tremendous willpower.
It was only the second day, and there were still twenty-eight days of questions left. If he used up two exemptions by the second day, what would he do for the rest of the time?
But if he didn't use an exemption...
He thought about Mr. Zhongli's usual spending habits.
There was no question. This was an astronomical debt he couldn't repay even if he worked overtime and traveled for business every day for the rest of his life. He might not pay it off by the time he died. One wrong turn, and he could pass a single debt down through three generations.
Although he didn't have a partner yet, although women weren't as interesting as blades, although...
Master in heaven, when your humble disciple finds you someday, I may not be able to buy you a greeting gift.
Childe looked up at the sky and silently shed tears. He had to admit that although the penalty's severity had already been reduced once, it still hurt. It really was a punishment aimed at whatever would cause the person who answered incorrectly the greatest suffering.
After meticulous consideration, Childe Tartaglia finally made his decision. So what if he had only one exemption left? So what if there were twenty-eight days left? He chose-
[Tartaglia: I choose to accept this punishment!]
[Pantalone: Oh? You've got guts.]
[The Rooster: Don't worry. I'll take good care of your family.]
[The Captain: Good. You have resolve.]
[The Knave: You've certainly made me see you in a new light.]
[Childe: Wait, Pantalone aside, have the rest of you ever been to Liyue or heard of Mr. Zhongli? Why does it feel like you all know what I'm about to face?]
Seeing Childe like this, some of the Harbingers who knew the truth felt a rare pang of pity, their scant remaining conscience aching faintly.
This innocent kid had been buried in a trap someone had dug for him and was still being kept in the dark. They did feel somewhat guilty.
But for the sake of their grand undertaking, they hardened their hearts anyway. After all, sacrificing one Childe would let them smoothly obtain what was theoretically the most troublesome Gnosis. It was simply too good a bargain.