The Power of Revelation: The Truth Shall Set You Free

Chapter 7: What a small price to pay

A/N Sorry for the late update, I fell asleep XDXD

And I forgot to add the title HAHAHAHA

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Xiansheng.

Zhongli didn't know how much he missed the nickname coming from Tartaglia, but he didn't like how pained the Harbinger sounded. The god's heart clenched, and he carefully maneuvered his body, sitting on the floor beside the boy.

"Childe... are you... alright?"

Zhongli felt like it was a really stupid question to ask. Of course he wasn't okay; otherwise he wouldn't be running away from the rest of Aether's friends and hiding away in his room.

He didn't get a response from the youngest Harbinger, and Zhongli had no idea how to comfort him; he wasn't the best at dealing with emotions.

"I... didn't know." The ex-Archon broke the silence.

Zhongli didn't know it was even possible for Tartaglia to slump even further, resting his hands against the floor, his bangs covered his eyes.

"You didn't have to know." The boy whispered, his entire body trembling, "No one had to know."

Here, in the dark, no longer having to put up his facade as the Harbingers' unpredictable vanguard, Tartaglia look all the more vulnerable; sometimes, even the ex-Archon of Geo forgot that while the Eleventh Harbinger was one of the most dangerous members of the Fatui, Tartaglia was still young, even amongst the mortals within the Cryo Archon's ranks.

The two of them just sat there in silence, until Tartaglia started to nod off. His eyes started to droop, and the Fatui shook his head gently, trying to keep himself awake. On a good day, his nightmares were already filled with flashbacks, the horrors that he'd encountered in the bottomless depths haunting him within the confines of his own mind.

Tartaglia didn't want to sleep. He didn't want everyone to see how weak Ajax was.

But his body was betraying him; he was already tired from fighting in the Spiral Abyss, and he still hadn't fully recovered from using his Foul Legacy Transformation during Teucer's stay in Liyue and his previous usage in the Golden House, not to mention that he had skipped lunch before going to the Spiral Abyss, and had just missed dinner as well.

He felt a warm pair of arms that were as solid as stone wrapping around him, and for the first time since his descent into the darkness, Tartaglia finally felt safe.

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"So I've consulted with Tubby." Aether started, "While it is possible for her to make more Realm Dispatches, she doesn't think it's too safe to do so while in this strange realm. It's outside of her comfort zone, and adepti sigils and magic and stuff like that are complex, so she doesn't want to risk it. But if it's just for short-term use, like the bathroom, Tubby thinks it would be fine."

"That makes sense." Ganyu nodded, "Rain Calmer is a gentle soul. She wouldn't want to hurt anyone, even by accident."

"We've got six Realm Dispatches." Aether continued, "I guess we'll just pick at random who stays in the teapot for the nights? And rotate people around everyday until we get out."

"I thought there were eight." Diluc blinked in confusion.

"Aiya, the remaining two are probably with Master Childe and Zhongli." Hutao laughed, "Leave them be! Those two better make up, or I'll lock them in a closet and force them to!"