Rising Storm || Genshin Impact

47: Proud

heyyyy two more chapters after this until act 2 is over (yayyy)

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"Why..."

Y/N wheezed for air as the searing pain in her shoulder overtook all her senses at once. Diluc held the blade firmly in place, painfully preventing the girl from collapsing onto the floor, or even allowing her to struggle under his grasp.

"Do you hate me that much, Diluc?" Y/N rasped with tears flowing from her strained, red eyes.

The latter only gulped in reply, staring straight forwards at La Signora. 

The harbinger simply smirked in amusement, as if the killing and betrayal in front of her were simply mere theatrics.

"Wow." She chuckled. "You're a lot more interesting than I thought, Knight."

Don't credit the Knights, Diluc wanted to utter, but held his tongue instead.

"What are you going to do now?" La Signora raised an eyebrow.

She was tenser now; her mocking tone was pulled back, she seemed a bit more careful with her word choice, a bit more cautious. Her stare send a slight shiver down Diluc's spine, though he swore it was because of the chilly nighttime wind.

His grip on the blade in Y/N's shoulder loosened as she huffed in pain. Diluc wanted his focus to falter, he wanted to let go of the knife and instinctively, he almost did. It was never supposed to turn out like this, Y/N was never supposed to offer herself up to be killed. But now that she had, someone had to act.

Holding the blade still would make sure that the girl didn't escape with any fatal injuries, but La Signora's intent glare told Diluc that simply doing so wasn't going to be enough. 

Could he yank the knife out? No, she'd lose blood. She'd get an infection.

But what if she didn't? What if he got her to a healer just in time to escape death? 

Would the risk of her dying be worth the gamble if it meant saving Mondstat?

Diluc's arm acted on his own, pulling the knife away from Y/N's shoulder as the blade dragged out muscles and bloody goop that had latched on. 

"Diluc! Wha-" Y/N screamed, flailing around in a desperate attempt to escape his grasp. "Stop! Stop! It hurts!"

Her bloodcurdling cries rung in Diluc's ears, bringing a slight tear to the corner of his eye. But he couldn't bring himself to stop.

She might not die. Mondstat would be safe.

He repeated those thoughts in his head as he finally found the strength to yank out the entire blade.

"Aghhhh!"

Y/N cried as the knife was teared out with a 'slash'. She crumpled onto her knees, digging both hands onto her shoulder, desperately trying to numb the agonizing pain. But doing so only stained her palms with her very own blood. The crimson had began clotting around her skin, seeping through her fingers and pooling into a puddle on the ground.

"Why!?" she screamed. "Why!? Why!?"

Diluc only stood there, frozen in shock with the bloody knife still in his hands.

"Fucking idiots!" La Signora screamed. "Verbinska! What the fuck do you think you're doing? Go heal her, you imbecile!"

A brunette dressed in sleek violet jumped back in fear.