NOCTURN BRIDE • genshin Impact | ✓

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR.

it was an interesting phenomenon for the apostle, watching the balladeer becoming... rather obsessed with her.

not that she was complaining though. of course, the more the merrier. with scaramouche in a similar state like venti — but not quite, for he was still cunning and sly — an unpredictable character that she herself could not read.

"build a new world hm?" humming, the apostle tilted her head, not in confusion, but rather amusement. celestia must be watching from above! they should be rather proud of her as she was going to soon fulfill their request of reforming teyvat into a better place. "that would be too troublesome, don't you think?"

"not quite. it's simply a form of gratitude that i would like to express." scaramouche responded, with his devious smirk plastered on his face; it says it all — he wanted her. it wasn't just any sort of "want", rather, it was more of a "demand" and need. "you've been... ignoring me for your other affairs."

letting out a bubbly laugh, the apostle's lips parted. her eye hues glowed in a violent storm, contradicting her actions.

"and what about it?"

"what about it?" repeating the apostle's words in a tone higher, scaramouche inched closer once again towards the apostle. she was not phased by his playful and whimful demanour — she is no child. scaramouche; who was devastated by the lack of her response, grasped onto her head and forcefully pulled her forward. their foreheads, touching against one another. "well, there are many things about it i dislike."

"hm? what could the almighty scaramouche possibly dislike?" giving a sarcastic yet snarky remark, she carefully admired the lilac haired boy. sure, she had to admit it, scaramouche did like awfully decent. but mannerism wise, he'd probably belong in the deepest depth of hell. "also would you so kindly remove your forehead from mine?"

"i dislike you... your snobbish and arrogant behaviour-" seeming irked, his eyebrows scrunched together by the final remark that the apostle made. "you're mine, and-"

"and your forehead is sweaty."

taken aback, the short balladeer seemed stunned. someone dared to insult him? more specifically, his forehead?

using this opportunity, the apostle pouted her lips together, before releasing a blow directly in her eyes. it wasn't really a harmful thing, she would personally consider it an honour — scaramouche getting an exclusive treatment for his eyes; mint and eucalyptus smelling breath.

"y-you...! how dare you-"

"how dare i?" in a swift moment, the apostle's tone changed. from playful, it became authoritative. it became powerful, dominant and assertive. pushing scaramouche against the wall, her hands grasped tightly onto his shoulders, head leaning forward next to his ear as she lowered her voice. almost as if a gentle whisper, caressing his ear. it was almost as if he could feel her body heat, though, they weren't quite touching. "scaramouche, oh scaramouche... i am absolutely honoured that you adore me. however, it seems that you ought to learn some manners, truly."

naturally, as someone who has once lived the life as a human, the apostle knew a few tricks up her sleeves that'd make the boy's heart skip a few beats. after all, she was once in love. she was once someone who'd reciprocate loving actions to barbatos. she was once living as a mortal.

grabbing onto scaramouche's hands, she forcefully intertwined and locked her fingers against his. her arm perpendicular to his, fingers wrapped around his; almost like an inseparable piece, or some may call, their other half.

"my! your face seems rather flustered~" teasing him, the apostle couldn't help but snicker at his reaction. his heartbeat began racing as soon as his fingertips met hers, she could hear it miles away! face flushed, as the blush across his pale skin flowered like pink roses and glittering champagne; it was sugar sweet. "anyways, what else do you want to tell me?"

the apostle retracted from the awkward position, still amused by the balladeers interactions and stiff movements of recovery from the sudden tease.

"i have the gnosis."

"huh? i didn't expect yae to hand it over just like that." nodding her head, the apostle sighed. "what tricks did you pull this time?"

"there... was an opportunity." the balladeer brushed his shoulders, ears and cheeks still flushed from before. "an opportunity that i could not let go."

"and what might that be?"

there was a pause. perhaps it was uncertainty, or doubt; but scaramouche did not know why he hesitated to tell the apostle, as every part of his gut screames and churnned in knots of anxiety. she was his benefactor, likewise, the otherway round as well. scaramouche promised to build a new world for her, to protect her from the cruel beings outside in teyvat, in exchange for her to make him an archon.

but for some odd reason, the feeling of abnormality never seemed to fade.

"there was a traveller..." his tenor toned voice filled the atmosphere. recalling back the otherworldly male adventurer who passed out as his little companion shouted in fear. only for yae miko to arrive. "i believe his name is... aether."

aether. if she could remember correctly, it was the man that she had first encountered during her and la signora's grand entrance in mondstadt to take away barbatos's gnosis. it wasn't a pleasant encounter for sure, but the apostle was amazed by his drastic improvements — because during that time, she had remembered how easily he was flung to the side, but now, he had made it to inazuma.

"so you let him live?"

scaramouche lifted his brows. almost as if a response of asking an absurdly stupid question. his lavender eyes locked in the apostle's hues, unsure of why she had asked such question.

well, he supposed that the apostle never met him before. so she wouldn't know how interesting the boy was, and that he was showing mercy towards this traveller.

"for now... at least."

it wouldn't be very nice of him to kill a protagonist of a story when his journey just begun, would it?

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( CHAPTER XXIV )