"Ah..."
Under the night sky, Rosalyne's song was abruptly cut off.
The holy maiden bathed in moonlight also noticed the uninvited guests approaching.
"Hehehe, only a pure girl like this is worthy of being offered to that great one!"
The leader of the black-robed figures, whose face was hidden, let out a chilling laugh.
"All of you, capture her and bring her back!"
Under the moonlight, his tone sent shivers down one's spine.
"Stay away!"
Rosalyne's voice trembled as she stepped back, one step at a time.
But soon, her heels touched the edge of the fountain.
Splash!
In a moment of carelessness, she fell into the water.
Her white dress was soaked, and her hair was damp with water droplets.
Under the moonlight, her pale golden hair shimmered, enhancing her unparalleled beauty.
Unfortunately, the six black-robed figures were not the type to cherish such beauty.
In their eyes, the girl was merely a tool to achieve their goal.
"Hehehe, move!"
At the leader's command, the five underlings closed in from different directions.
"You... stay away from me!"
Rosalyne, who had fallen into the fountain, let out a desperate cry.
At this moment, she remembered the legend of the Dark Knight that circulated in Mondstadt.
It was said that the justice-driven Dark Knight would appear when people were in need.
Thinking of this, Rosalyne's emotions calmed down.
Kneeling in the fountain, she clasped her hands together in silent prayer.
In the next second, a thunderclap answered her.
Nathan leaped down from the high rooftop, his entire body transformed into pure purple lightning.
"You... this ends here!"
With a flash of lightning, the black-robed figure closest to Rosalyne had his outstretched right hand severed by Nathan's sword.
Nathan swung his Favonius Sword, and the lightning following the blade's path carved a deep trench into the ground.
The advance of the black-robed figures was blocked by the lightning.
Holding the sword in his right hand, Nathan turned to look at the girl kneeling in the fountain.
The young Rosalyne was pure and beautiful, with no trace of the Fatui Harbinger she would become in the future.
What kind of experiences could turn such a pure person into someone filled with arrogance and rage?
Everything would likely require further simulation to uncover.
"Are you okay?"
Nathan extended his left hand to Rosalyne. With his black mask on, even if he smiled, no one would know.
If a normal person saw his dark attire, they would probably hesitate.
But Rosalyne's reaction was completely different. Without a second thought, she tightly grasped Nathan's hand.
"Dark Knight, thank you for saving me!"
The girl's damp, soft hand enveloped his palm and the back of his hand.
A strange emotion spread from her touch to Nathan's entire body.
"The water's cold. Let's get you out first."
"Mm!"
Hearing Nathan's words, Rosalyne nodded slowly.
Using the strength from his arm, her graceful body slowly rose.
"Huh?"
Nathan's intention was simply to help the girl out of the fountain.
But to his surprise, after standing up, Rosalyne threw herself into his arms.
The soaked swallow nestled into Nathan's embrace, her body trembling slightly.
Wet, soft!
These were Nathan's first impressions as the girl pressed against him.
Compared to the curvaceous La Signora of the future, the current Rosalyne was already a ripe fruit.
The only differences between the two were their personalities and heights.
"Dark Knight?"
Rosalyne, hiding in Nathan's embrace, looked up at him.
Her gem-like eyes shone with a light of dependence.
"Save your thanks for later. Let me deal with these sneaky rats first."
Unfortunately, Nathan didn't notice the girl's gaze, as he was already looking around cautiously.
The black-robed figure whose right arm he had severed was behaving strangely.
For an ordinary person, such intense pain would have elicited screams.
But this person showed no reaction, not even bothering to tend to the severed arm on the ground.
A black liquid oozed from the severed area.
In less than a moment, a brand-new arm grew back.
"This is strange!!!"
Nathan frowned beneath his mask. The process of regrowing a severed limb didn't seem like something an ordinary person could do.
Especially the ominous black liquid—it looked incredibly weird.
"Dark Knight of Mondstadt, you usually deal with petty thieves, and no one cares. But unfortunately, you've messed with the wrong people this time. By interfering with that great one's plans, you've sealed your fate. Today, you'll be buried here!"
"That great one?"
Nathan caught the key information in the leader's words.
"You're not worthy of knowing that great one's name. Just die and go to hell!"
The black-robed leader waved his hand, and the five underlings raised their arms.
The black liquid reappeared, and their human arms transformed into something completely different.
"Is this... human alchemy?"
Nathan's eyes were filled with astonishment. The five underlings' arms had turned into something resembling machine guns.
Transforming human bodies into such monstrosities was likely achievable through some form of alchemy in Teyvat.
"You don't need to know. Prepare to die."
At the leader's command, the five underlings were ready to attack.
"Fire, but be careful not to hit the sacrifice!"
However, the leader added a final reminder.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The alchemical machine guns fired, shooting black bullets.
Perhaps due to the leader's warning, the intensity of the gunfire wasn't overwhelming.
Crackle... crackle...
But more terrifying than the gunfire was the thunderous roar Nathan unleashed.
The sound, like the screeching of a thousand birds, echoed throughout Mondstadt.
The Favonius Sword, wrapped in lightning, swung through the air in an invisible arc.
Under the sword's light, all the incoming black bullets were sliced in half.
Along with the bullets, the five underlings firing them were also cut in two.
The gunfire stopped, and the five figures were split into upper and lower halves simultaneously.
"Is that all?"
a/n - Read 60+ Chapters ahead on my patreon
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