Hearing Rosalyne's question, Wu Yi couldn't help pressing a hand to his forehead.
He wasn't going to explain himself right away, though. The more he explained, the easier it would be to make a mistake. Better to throw the question back at her first.
"Why are you here? Good question. Why don't you think about that yourself first?"
Rosalyne froze. She frowned, slowly lowered her head, and gave it some serious thought.
The scorched smell of lightning still lingered in the hall. Cold wind poured through the breach, making her bare shoulders tense.
"Why am I here..." she murmured to herself. "I remember now. I was originally scheduled to meet the Raiden Shogun today to discuss some diplomatic matters between our two nations..."
"Halfway through the meeting, someone burst in..." She paused, her gaze drifting toward Kujou, who was still unconscious on the other side. "Right, it was that woman. I remember subduing her, right over there."
"After that... after that, it seems someone else came... who was it again-"
Her voice suddenly stopped.
Her memories of what came next seemed to have been severed. A chill rose from deep within those memories, piercing her bones and leaving her cold all over. She couldn't help wrapping her arms around her shoulders.
Of what came after, all she could recall was a flash of a blade that seemed to cut through everything, lightning filling her vision, and... fear.
Fear as though she were facing death itself.
"Lightning... was it the Raiden Shogun?"
She immediately had a guess about that missing stretch of memory. She looked up and glanced around.
"Where's the Raiden Shogun? Where is she? Did she leave Tenshukaku?"
"The rebels launched a surprise attack on Tenshukaku. The Raiden Shogun went to put down the rebellion," Wu Yi answered.
"So shouldn't you be with the rebels? Why are you here? And what happened to my clothes?" Rosalyne asked again.
Wu Yi didn't answer immediately. After a moment's thought, he took off his coat. To avoid turning around and provoking Rosalyne, he simply tossed it in the general direction he remembered her being.
"Anyway, put this on first."
The coat landed right at Rosalyne's feet. She looked down at it, then at Wu Yi, a trace of hesitation appearing on her face.
A man's coat... should I wear it?
She felt a little uncomfortable about it.
She had never worn another man's clothes, not even Rustam's...
She bent down slightly and grabbed the coat, but the faint warmth Wu Yi had left on it made her heart tremble when it touched her fingertips.
Holding the coat, she looked toward Wu Yi again. From this angle, she could see only part of his profile... yet he was still outrageously handsome, even more so than the Rustam who lived in her memories.
"Are you putting it on or not? If not, give it back."
Just then, she heard Wu Yi speak again. Her grip on the coat tightened slightly, and she finally picked it up.
"Quit nagging."
Muttering that, she gritted her teeth and draped the coat over herself, then quickly pulled it together in front. For the moment, it covered everything that needed covering... but when the fabric, still carrying a little warmth, pressed against her clothes, her body couldn't help trembling slightly.
Forget it... this is just a necessary measure in an emergency. I don't have a choice. I can't leave Tenshukaku naked like this.
She comforted herself with that thought, forgetting that she also had the option of making do with Kujou's coat on the other side.
"As for how you ended up like this... uh, how should I put it?"
Wu Yi considered his wording.
"You just had a Duel Before the Throne with the Traveler at Tenshukaku, and then... you were slightly outmatched."
"Huh? How is that possible? What kind of joke is that?!"
Rosalyne couldn't help protesting.
"I lost to that little blonde?!"
But the moment the words left her mouth, her heart jolted.
For some reason, as she said them, she suddenly felt a strong sense that something was off... or was it guilt?
It was as though a voice deep inside her was telling her... Wu Yi was telling the truth.
I... really lost?
"...That can't be true."
She suddenly fell silent.
And she knew perfectly well what happened to the loser of a Duel Before the Throne.
That seemed to explain the flash of the blade and the lightning in her memories.
"The Raiden Shogun..." Her voice trembled slightly. "She... she really dared to attack me? Wasn't she afraid at all that Snezhnaya would retaliate against Inazuma?"
"Well..." Wu Yi rubbed his chin and offered a reminder. "You might want to think a little harder. When you were alive, you were a Snezhnayan diplomatic envoy, a Fatui Harbinger, and someone who had rendered important service to Her Majesty the Tsaritsa. Snezhnaya could put pressure on Inazuma for your sake... but after you died, what were you?"
Rosalyne froze.
Naturally, she understood the reasoning.
Once she was dead, she would naturally be nothing.
Snezhnaya wouldn't fall out with Inazuma over a dead person. It might even distance itself from her and attribute everything she had done in Inazuma to her own personal actions.
If it were another Harbinger, someone like Pantalone or The Doctor, who died in a foreign land, she would make the same recommendation. It was a wise move and a way to cut their losses in time. Every competent politician in Snezhnaya would make that choice.
But... what about Her Majesty the Tsaritsa? Her Majesty is merciful. Surely she wouldn't do that...
Surely...
Yet she knew it clearly: given a powerful Electro Archon and a dead subordinate with no backing whatsoever, it was actually an easy choice.
"...Bastard."
Rosalyne gritted her teeth.
"Stop trying to sow discord. Don't think you can shake my loyalty to Her Majesty the Tsaritsa."
"What? Why would you think that?"
Wu Yi smiled.
"Even if you want to find someone to take the blame so you can keep deceiving yourself, don't pick me. What would I gain from sowing discord between you and the Tsaritsa? Don't forget, I'll be a Fatui Harbinger soon too."
Rosalyne closed her eyes and took a deep breath before continuing.
"I'm starting to regret recruiting you," she said, looking at Wu Yi. "You really are a dangerous man."
"Don't say that." Wu Yi waved a hand. "The Electro Archon nearly killed you with one slash and burned all your clothes off. I was the one who left the resistance and snuck over here to treat you in time and save your life. I'm your savior, you know."
"I see..." Rosalyne fell into thought. "The Electro Archon didn't kill me outright with that slash? It seems she did have some reservations after all."
"But regardless, since I'm still alive, the Raiden Shogun and her Inazuma will have to pay for attempting to assassinate a Snezhnayan envoy."
She pulled the coat tighter and stood up.
"We need to leave Inazuma immediately. We're going back to Snezhnaya, and I can take you to meet Her Majesty the Tsaritsa while we're there."