“Fine?
Look at yourself.” Pierro unfastened his own cloak and draped it over Dottore’s shoulders.
His sharp gaze swept over Dottore’s weakened state once more, and his tone held undisguised exasperation.
“Dottore!
Every single time, the moment it involves research that interests you, you disregard your own safety completely!
And this time, it was even more outrageous.
You just vanished into thin air!” For some reason, he stopped himself.
It seemed he did not want to add to Dottore’s burden at this moment.
He merely shook his head and spoke with a heavy voice.
“The month you were gone, your out-of-control laboratory nearly turned Snezhnaya upside down!” “A month?” Dottore’s pupils contracted.
Genuine surprise surfaced on his face for the first time.
“I was there…
for nearly a year.” This time, Pierro’s gaze sharpened.
“A year?
Explain clearly.
Where exactly did you go?
Our informants practically turned over every inch of Teyvat, and there was not a single trace of you.
It was as if you evaporated from the face of the earth!” Dottore fell silent for a moment and avoided Pierro’s eyes.
“I had a reason I had no choice but to go,” he said in a low voice.
He pressed his pale lips together and offered no further answer.
He could not speak of the reason that concerned the survival of the future.
“What reason could be so important that you would leave without a single word, use unknown powers to disappear for so long, and then return looking like this?” Seeing that stubborn, immovable expression, Pierro felt another surge of frustration.
“And I am very curious.
How did you manage to connect to a signal from another world?
And as for that one—” Pierro pointed toward the sky, alluding to the Heavenly Principles, Phanes, “—did she truly not detect your cross-dimensional activities?” This question was like a key, instantly unlocking a corner of Dottore’s memory that he had deliberately left forgotten.
He remembered now.
It was an ability he had accidentally triggered during that journey into the river of time, one he had then blocked out because it was far too noisy.
Back in the river of time, he had been able to hear the voices of countless world consciousnesses, their whispers, sighs, and even cries and shouts.
They had been far too chaotic, like standing in a marketplace of billions.
At first, he had assumed it was inherent to that space.
After he returned and discovered the ability still remained, he had chosen to block it out because of the unbearable noise.
Over time, he had nearly forgotten it existed.
It was only now, with Pierro’s question, that he recalled it.
“The signal…” Dottore quickly gathered his thoughts and searched for a plausible explanation, mixing truth with falsehood.
“It was not received through any conventional device.
It was more like a kind of resonance, or rather, an anomalous fluctuation that I passively perceived.
As you know, certain high-level research can sometimes bring a person into contact with phenomena that defy rational explanation.” He subtly implied that this was related to his research, not some specific ability.
“As for her…” Dottore furrowed his brow slightly, as if pondering the question himself.
“Perhaps the scale of my actions was small enough, and my target was not Teyvat itself, so it escaped notice.
Or perhaps that being…
has other considerations or limitations?” He could not be certain, but this was indeed a question worth pondering.
It seemed his cross-dimensional actions truly had not attracted the gaze of the Heavenly Principles.
(Note on the Heavenly Principles: She is either on the verge of slumber, in the middle of repairing the firmament, or spending most of her time in deep sleep to recover her strength.
As for her Four Shades, they are naturally slacking off.) Pierro looked at him deeply, as if trying to judge the truth in his words.
Dottore’s explanation was vague, but considering the unconventional research abilities he had always displayed, it was not entirely impossible.
Pierro ultimately chose not to press this point further.
Dottore’s current condition worried him far more.
This time, he did not haul Dottore along like a chick.
Instead, he half-supported, half-carried him as they walked toward the medical bay.
The members of the Special Operations Unit followed in silence, maintaining their vigilance.
Dottore gritted his teeth.
He knew resistance was futile at this moment.
He could only suppress the anxiety in his heart for now and follow Pierro to the medical bay.
The journey was wordless, filled only by the crunch of boots on snow and the howl of the wind.
The environment inside the medical bay was a world apart from the blizzard outside.
The temperature-controlled air carried faint notes of disinfectant and calming herbs, and soft crystal lights spilled from the ceiling.
But the atmosphere was noticeably different from before.
The guards, seeing Dottore’s unnaturally pale face as Pierro supported him, all wore expressions of shock, but no one dared ask a single question.
They passed straight through the cold main hall and headed toward the medical area reserved for the Harbingers.
The medical bay had never been far from Dottore’s residence.
The closer they got to it, the heavier Dottore’s heart sank.
From a distance along the road, he could already sense the temporary reinforced energy barrier set up around the main laboratory near his residence.
On the heavy metal door, even from afar, he could see a highly conspicuous seal affixed to it, bearing the Tsaritsa’s personal mark and Pierro’s stamp.
Now, up close, he could see several elite soldiers under Capitano’s command and members of Pierro’s direct guard, fully armed and rotating in shifts around the clock.
The security was ironclad.
Dottore looked at the completely sealed entrance to his main laboratory, just outside the medical bay and beside his own residence.
He merely adjusted his robes lightly, a meaningful smile surfacing on his face, his voice even carrying a chill.
“Pierro, though we have a great many things to discuss, tell me now, what is the meaning of this?” Before he had left, it had not been this strict.
Now it was sealed almost completely shut.
Although he had numerous hidden passages to get in, he dared not make any rash moves now.
The slightest misstep, and the secret laboratory could very well be exposed ahead of time.
“Not long after you disappeared, your laboratory suffered a violent energy leak.
The emergency systems triggered automatically and only then averted a greater disaster.
Her Majesty the Tsaritsa personally decreed that until you return and explain everything clearly, this area is to be completely sealed, and no one is allowed near it.” “Furthermore, now that you’re back, don’t even think about running off again.
Otherwise, I will not hesitate to use a more ‘secure’ method to bring you back.” As if afraid Dottore might suddenly flee, Pierro kept one hand firmly pressed on his shoulder.
He stared into Dottore’s eyes, the sharp light in his gaze unyielding.
“Now, speak.
Where exactly did you go during this time?
What did you do?
And what exactly was that ‘energy leak’ about?” Dottore lay on a sickbed padded with thick furs, a warm fleece blanket draped over him.
His face was still pale, but compared to the way he had looked when he first returned, on the verge of collapse at any moment, he was already much improved.
The power of [Heart of Life] was circulating slowly and steadily within him, repairing his overly depleted essence and the damage caused by traversing spacetime.
After a thorough medical examination, it was found that Dottore’s life force had indeed recovered considerably compared to before, though his mental state was still somewhat exhausted.
Leaning against the bed, he rubbed his somewhat uncomfortable neck, his mind racing.
He could not reveal the truth he had seen in the river of time.
That would only invite more unnecessary trouble and suspicion.
He needed some plausible excuses, something that could at least partially explain his actions and abilities.
Leaning on the sickbed, Dottore gently brushed the frost from his robes, trying to appear composed, but the faint trembling of his fingers still betrayed his weakness.
He drew a deep breath, knowing he had to give some account.
When he looked up, his face had regained its usual calm, and his tone was light, as if he had merely stepped out for a walk.
“I didn’t go anywhere dangerous.
I just…
received a distress signal, went over to the ‘neighborhood’ and resolved a small problem.” “‘Neighborhood’?” Pierro’s brow furrowed deeply.
He stepped closer, an overwhelming pressure radiating from him.
“Which ‘neighborhood’?
Be clear!
There is no ‘neighborhood’ in Teyvat where time flows at a different rate!”