Amplification.
Defense.
Recovery.
It could be said that the enhancements provided by a Cloth were truly all-encompassing.
In this moment, Saeko Busujima finally understood why, within the Sanctuary, a Saint equipped with a Cloth would utterly crush a candidate with an equivalent level of Cosmo who lacked one.
There was no helping it.
The boost provided by a Cloth was simply too immense.
"However..."
Saeko murmured in a low voice, "If one becomes accustomed to this level of power, and it is stripped away at a critical moment, I fear their mental state would completely collapse."
Before arriving in the [Saint Seiya Universe], Saeko had researched the corresponding 'plot' and was naturally aware of what Deathmask had experienced. She understood all too well that if one grew reliant on such things, and the worst were to truly happen, their psyche would shatter.
But, after only a brief moment of contemplation, a stream of light manifested beside her.
Shortly after, the phantom of Riku appeared, accompanied by Rika Minami and Rei Miyamoto.
"Mr. Riku!"
"Rika, Rei."
Saeko turned to face the three of them. She wasn't surprised; Riku had naturally notified her of his arrival.
After exchanging greetings, Saeko gave a slight nod. "Mr. Riku, I have made the arrangements. The magical beast is outside, and I have cleared away all traces."
"I'll leave the rest to you," Riku said, offering no further instructions.
Originally, Riku had intended to handle a few more matters. However, Alice had just sent him a message stating that something had occurred in the [Longhuang Universe]—something quite interesting.
Riku needed to depart.
As the phantom dissipated, Saeko, Rika, and Rei exchanged glances and nodded in silent agreement.
Now, it was time to truly get to work.
***
[Longhuang Universe]
Upon returning, Riku immediately saw two women sitting under a parasol, seemingly enjoying afternoon tea.
Alice had changed into her signature attire—a look that, in truth, hadn't been seen in a very long time.
Opposite her sat a woman with long golden hair and golden eyes, dressed in attire that carried a distinct Khaenri'ah style.
"Rhinedottir?" Riku raised an eyebrow, finding this quite amusing.
The greatest characteristic of the [Longhuang Universe] was that it acted like a sieve. It was constantly catching all sorts of strange things that fell into it.
However, aside from Alice, no other sentient life had ever fallen into this realm.
Rhinedottir was the second.
Still, Riku hadn't expected that even though the arrivals in his universe were completely random, both lifeforms would originate from Teyvat.
"Mr. Riku." Rhinedottir crossed her slender legs and raised her teacup in a slight gesture of greeting.
"Darling~~~" Alice chimed in, drawing out her voice as she greeted him as well.
Riku walked over and sat beside Alice, observing Rhinedottir with interest. "No Abyssal energy? You haven't fallen as a sinner yet? The Khaenri'ah cataclysm hasn't happened?"
Rhinedottir's slender hand, holding the teacup, trembled slightly.
With her sharp intellect, she naturally understood the implications of Riku's words.
"It seems that in the flow of time, I still end up doing it," Rhinedottir said softly, setting down her teacup.
Riku countered, "You don't seem surprised?"
Rhinedottir replied calmly, "I pursue the pinnacle of alchemy. As long as the opportunity is placed before me, I will certainly take it. If Teyvat cannot offer me hope, then the Abyss is the only choice I have."
Riku wasn't surprised by this. To be precise, the Abyss, as a form of Nirvana/Extinction, also existed within the [Longhuang Universe]. He had studied the true essence of the Abyss himself.
Unlike other forms of extinction—some being pure destruction, others pure decay, or even bewitchment—the nature of the Abyss was quite fascinating.
It was like an 'if' scenario.
The Abyss would display all your potential futures before you and lay the path you desired most right at your feet.
Would you choose to walk it?
You would achieve the success you craved most; as for the rest, that was no concern of yours.
To put it more simply: If someone gave you a hundred million and told you the world would end in a hundred years, what choice would you make?
Most people would choose the hundred million. After all, what did the world's destruction a century later have to do with them?
Never mind a hundred million—even for ten million or one million, countless people would make that choice.
"Oh, right!" Riku suddenly thought of something and asked with a hint of curiosity, "Rhinedottir, was it the Prince or the Princess that you summoned in Khaenri'ah?"
"Mr. Riku, are you referring to His Highness the Prince?" Rhinedottir pondered.
To Rhinedottir—no, to everyone in Khaenri'ah, even the so-called Five Sinners—addressing one of the twins as "His Highness the Prince" was absolutely correct. It could not be denied that one of the twins had indeed personally carried the weight of Khaenri'ah on their shoulders.
As for why they had to carry that burden? Well, that was a question for another time.
Hearing this, Riku's smile grew more pronounced.
As expected!
The Abyss Order had pulled from the gacha and gotten the wrong result again; there was no Princess in that banner, only Princes.
Alice hugged Riku's arm and asked, "Darling, what's the situation?"
Riku laughed. "You know about 'if' scenarios, right? There's a saying from my old world: the Abyss Order's gacha banner only has the Prince; there is no Princess at all."
Alice and Rhinedottir, both being witches of vast experience, understood the implication immediately.
"Can I still go back?" Rhinedottir asked, smiling and choosing not to dwell on what had already happened, focusing instead on her return.
Riku considered this for a moment. "It is possible, but the timing is uncertain. The 'Gate of the Universe' can lock onto universes within the Crystal Wall Sea, but it is always random. Trying to precisely lock onto the [Teyvat Universe] where you and Alice originated... that is quite difficult."
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