arrow_back Genshin Impact Quests 
On One Side a Palace, On the Other a Tomb
According to the directions from the Eye of Graeae, one of the fragments of his power is located behind Zapolyarny Palace, where the Tsar's White Birch grows...
Vsevolod:
...The formula is perfect. I'm sure Grand Duke Alvis will praise the results of my hard work over the last few days upon his return.
Vsevolod:
Let's... Let's rest here for a little while. Whew...
Paimon:
It's so cold out there... The train's definitely much cozier...
Eye of Graeae:
That is precisely why the trains exist. Trekking long distances through such bitter cold would hardly be good for anyone's health.
Eye of Graeae:
Perhaps that, too, was my creator's original purpose in establishing it... After all, this land of ice and snow is hardly a place fit for humans to survive.
Paimon:
Your creator...? Ah, could that be the strange woman we ran into earlier?
Traveler:
How rude! What do you mean, "strange woman"!?
Paimon:
Paimon definitely doesn't mean the strange woman you're talking about right now!
Paimon:
...You know, the one who appeared in that mumbly-jumbly town with the firebird, and in that castle full of Snegovik. Paimon remembers her name was Ak...
Eye of Graeae:
Miss Aksinya, yes. Judging from the memories I have recovered so far, she was once a member of the Belyi Tsar's research organization, Hvergelmir...
Eye of Graeae:
She created me so that I might... guide a certain mighty power, and create a "Tomorrow" — a world where no one would ever suffer again...
Eye of Graeae:
A land that has cast aside envy, hatred, and selfish desire. A "Court of Bliss" held aloft by the hands of all living beings. Thus...
Eye of Graeae:
"Thus shall a radiant world descend, where there will be no distinction between human and human, nor between human and god."
Paimon:
A world where there's no distinction between humans and gods? Hmm... Paimon can't even imagine how you'd make that happen...
Eye of Graeae:
"A pure world of mankind, where gods need not wield divine power, and humans need not rely on gods."
Eye of Graeae:
...That is the outcome of the plan, as I remember it.
Eye of Graeae:
But as for how it was to be accomplished... I'm sorry, but I do not know the full scope of the final plan. To the plan as a whole, I was nothing more than a "tool" within it.
Paimon:
Oh, Paimon gets it! Goggles is like a crafting bench. It can craft all kinds of amazing things, but a crafting bench doesn't run around eating up its own materials.
Eye of Graeae:
That is a very apt analogy. However, if I may, Miss Paimon, in present-day Snezhnaya, alchemy is not an officially supported field of study...
Paimon:
R-Right... But, well, we're on our own train, so...
Eye of Graeae:
...But should I truly seek out the final power?
Eye of Graeae:
What if, after obtaining that last portion of power, the memories that return are not the ones I wished to recover? What should I do then?
Eye of Graeae:
What if... What if that's the only reason I was created, the purpose I was destined for...?
Paimon:
Yeah! It's definitely not good to decide when you don't know anything yet. No matter what, you've gotta remember everything first!
Paimon:
Anyway... Goggles has helped us out a lot! Even if that wasn't what Goggles was originally created for, Goggles has still been really useful to us!
Traveler:
When that time comes, just come back to us.
Eye of Graeae:
...Is that so?
Paimon:
Besides, we already talked about all the things we're going to do together when you get your body back! Warming up by the fire, having snowball fights, running around on the ice fields... We promised!
Eye of Graeae:
Yes. I look forward to... adventuring together with you both after I recover my body.
Eye of Graeae:
Though I have thought this countless times throughout our journey... I am truly glad that you were the one to bring me out of that place, and that I was able to meet you both.
Eye of Graeae:
The final power... all the answers are there. At the final resting place of the previous Tsar of Ice — the one known as the Belyi Tsar...
Eye of Graeae:
I have marked the location on your map.
Cat:
Meow... Meow...
Traveler:
(It looks like it's starving... But according to what Pavlina said earlier, it won't eat unless the food is placed in its bowl...)
Traveler:
(Too bad. There doesn't seem to be a food bowl nearby...)
Friends, we were created for a single moment,
To call back those dreams flickering on the verge of extinction, to...
To...?
Traveler:
(Hmm... Where... am I?)
Traveler:
(Wait... wasn't I just... on the train?)
Azazel:
Izmaylov... Izmaylov. Hah, spacing out again, are we? We need to keep watch on the thing inside the egg at all times, remember?
Izmaylov:
I wasn't spacing out... And the Proto-Man is in a highly stable state. Even in the gloom of the Font of the Shadow Realm, he shines as brilliantly as a pearl.
Azazel:
Then you weren't spacing out. You were worried.
Izmaylov:
You are right, Azazel. There is too much to think about.
Azazel:
There is no need for such concern. Your teacher, Miss Aksinya, remained quite composed upon hearing of His Majesty the Tsar's passing... Oh, are you worried about something else?
Izmaylov:
The newly ascended Tsaritsa. It is her attitude that concerns me...
Azazel:
Her attitude toward those fae nobles wallowing in Mora and decadence? I doubt it's anything favorable.
Izmaylov:
I mean her attitude toward Hvergelmir...
Izmaylov:
After all, our research has crossed into forbidden territory. The only reason we were allowed to continue before was His Majesty's tacit approval and protection. But our new Tsaritsa...
Izmaylov:
Well, I've heard certain things.
Azazel:
What kind of things?
Izmaylov:
They're planning to ban anything related to alchemy. Hvergelmir has plenty of bio-alchemy projects, so it's obvious those would be shut down. And if that happens...
Izmaylov:
His Majesty's final aspiration will never be realized.
Azazel:
Perhaps that would be for the best. Have you forgotten what happened during the last experiment? And besides, His Majesty, in the end, also... Never mind...
Izmaylov:
...You are right, Azazel. But I still need to think this through.
Azazel:
Don't dwell on it, Izmaylov. It's not our call to make. Besides... the higher-ups are meeting today.
Azazel:
Once they've decided what to do, they'll inform us.
Traveler:
(Is this... a Shadow Realm? Paimon and the Eye of Graeae are gone...)
Traveler:
(...There are two people up ahead. Maybe I should try talking to them.)
Izmaylov:
Hmm?
Azazel:
Something wrong, my dear Izmaylov? You'd be even better company if you didn't get distracted so easily.
Izmaylov:
*sigh* I keep feeling like someone's watching us... But when I look back, there's no one there.
Azazel:
Hah. Come now, Izmaylov. Maybe you should keep your eyes on the things that matter.
Azazel:
Speaking of which, Mr. Koshchei seems to have left in a hurry and forgotten to close his office door. Well, never mind. Once we're done recording the data, I'll close it for him.
Traveler:
(They can't see me... That's strange. Something feels off, like I don't quite belong here.)
Traveler:
(But I'm not feeling too uncomfortable. Hmm... Maybe I should take a look around first...)
Vsevolod:
...The formula is perfect. I'm sure Grand Duke Alvis will praise the results of my hard work over the last few days upon his return.
Vsevolod:
Let's... Let's rest here for a little while. Whew...
Traveler:
(The door's shut... If I can find some way to...)
Cat:
Meow...
Traveler:
(...Oh, there's your food bowl.)
Traveler:
(All right, all right. Let's get you fed first, poor thing...)
Paimon:
So that is...
Eye of Graeae:
Yes. That's where we're going... The Belyi Tsar's private palace outside Snezhnograd.
Eye of Graeae:
Pale Crown Palace.
Eye of Graeae:
There, the graceful Snegurochka once played the gusli in the palace royal hall, while waterborn fae sang along to the ethereal melody, chanting the name of the king who ruled the snowfields.
Eye of Graeae:
Valiant Volkodlak clashed endlessly before the throne, vying for the Tsar's favor, while Domovoy searched far and wide for rare treasures and riches, all to fill the palace vault.
Paimon:
Whoa... T-Treasure vault?
Eye of Graeae:
Yes. Though by now, I'm afraid it has long since been emptied.
Eye of Graeae:
They say... that was where the great king showed mercy. There, he accepted humankind and allowed them to come before him...
Eye of Graeae:
To help the frail, pitiful humans of that time carve out a place of their own amid the ice and snow, the flame of Kresnik was first kindled in that palace, then spread far and wide.
Eye of Graeae:
And so, unlike in the days of the Pale Star's royal court, this eternally frozen land no longer belonged to the fae alone. It became a land shared by humans and fae...
Eye of Graeae:
And he renamed it Snezhnaya.
Paimon:
Oh... So that's how Snezhnaya came to be. Paimon always thought the Tsaritsa founded it...
Paimon:
Hmm, how does Goggles know so much about this place?
Eye of Graeae:
Of course. I was created here, in a hidden chamber within this palace...
Eye of Graeae:
The place we mentioned before, Hvergelmir... Though even that is only one corner of the palace's shadow.
Paimon:
Oh, wow... If this palace was so impressive, why does it feel so cold and deserted now?
Eye of Graeae:
Because five hundred years ago, the Belyi Tsar died fighting the Abyss and the tides of beasts. His remains were brought back here...
Eye of Graeae:
And after he was laid to rest, part of his body became the "Tsar's White Birch." Since then, the Tsaritsa has ruled Snezhnaya from Zapolyarny Palace, and no one has returned here since.
Paimon:
So... where we're going is actually the Belyi Tsar's... tomb?
Eye of Graeae:
Yes, Miss Paimon. The Belyi Tsar's tomb — but also the place where I was created.
Eye of Graeae:
...The authorities advise against entering without permission. But officially, it is not strictly forbidden.
Paimon:
Not strictly forbidden? Then that means we're strictly allowed to sneak in!
Eye of Graeae:
Then again... getting put on a wanted list could be interesting.
Paimon:
Whoa, no thanks... Okay, Paimon knows what to do. If we get caught by some Snezhnayan guards...
Paimon:
Paimon will just say the guiding mechanism sent us the wrong way and we got lost! Getting lost isn't illegal, right? Yep, that's our story.
Paimon:
But... the train tracks are broken. What are we gonna do?
Eye of Graeae:
It's all right. That route was only ever meant to mislead people. It was never the real way into the Pale Crown Palace.
Eye of Graeae:
Think of it as a marker, telling ordinary pilgrims and those visiting in remembrance that they should go no farther.
Eye of Graeae:
If we really mean to cross over, we'll need to find... the mechanism that activates the "hidden tracks."
Eye of Graeae:
I can sense it. The mechanism that summons the "hidden tracks" should be up on that tower.
Eye of Graeae:
But the tower appears to be encircled by the "Tsar's White Birch." We'll have to find another way in...
Paimon:
Whoa... Paimon had no idea all this was underneath that giant tree...
Paimon:
Is that... a palace?
Eye of Graeae:
That's odd... Why, all of a sudden...
Paimon:
Goggles, what's wrong?
Eye of Graeae:
I told you before... that I could sense the power that once belonged to me had been split into three parts. One of them was hidden away in a deeper darkness beyond my perception.
Eye of Graeae:
But now, maybe because we're closer, I can feel it... The power I couldn't sense before is right here...
Paimon:
Here?
Eye of Graeae:
Yes. It is right here... within the Pale Crown Palace before us...
Paimon:
The Pale Crown Palace?
Eye of Graeae:
Yes. It is the Belyi Tsar's private palace outside Snezhnograd.
Eye of Graeae:
There, the graceful Snegurochka once played the gusli in the palace royal hall, while waterborn fae sang along to the ethereal melody, chanting the name of the king who ruled the snowfields.
Eye of Graeae:
Valiant Volkodlak clashed endlessly before the throne, vying for the Tsar's favor, while Domovoy searched far and wide for rare treasures and riches, all to fill the palace vault.
Paimon:
Whoa... T-Treasure vault?
Eye of Graeae:
Yes. Though by now, I'm afraid it has long since been emptied.
Eye of Graeae:
They say... that was where the great king showed mercy. There, he accepted humankind and allowed them to come before him...
Eye of Graeae:
To help the frail, pitiful humans of that time carve out a place of their own amid the ice and snow, the flame of Kresnik was first kindled in that palace, then spread far and wide.
Eye of Graeae:
And so, unlike in the days of the Pale Star's royal court, this eternally frozen land no longer belonged to the fae alone. It became a land shared by humans and fae...
Eye of Graeae:
And he renamed it Snezhnaya.
Paimon:
Oh... So that's how Snezhnaya came to be. Paimon always thought the Tsaritsa founded it...
Paimon:
Hmm, how does Goggles know so much about this place?
Eye of Graeae:
Of course. I was created here, in a hidden chamber within this palace...
Eye of Graeae:
The place we mentioned before, Hvergelmir... Though even that is only one corner of the palace's shadow.
Paimon:
Oh, wow... If this palace was so impressive, why does it feel so cold and deserted now?
Eye of Graeae:
Because five hundred years ago, the Belyi Tsar died fighting the Abyss and the tides of beasts. His remains were brought back here...
Eye of Graeae:
And after he was laid to rest, part of his body became the "Tsar's White Birch." Since then, the Tsaritsa has ruled Snezhnaya from Zapolyarny Palace, and no one has returned here since.
Paimon:
So... where we're going is actually the Belyi Tsar's... tomb?
Eye of Graeae:
Yes, Miss Paimon. The Belyi Tsar's tomb — but also the place where I was created.
Eye of Graeae:
...The authorities advise against entering without permission. But officially, it is not strictly forbidden.
Paimon:
Not strictly forbidden? Then that means we're strictly allowed to sneak in!
Eye of Graeae:
Then again... getting put on a wanted list could be interesting.
Paimon:
Whoa, no thanks... Okay, Paimon knows what to do. If we get caught by some Snezhnayan guards...
Paimon:
Paimon will just say the guiding mechanism sent us the wrong way and we got lost! Getting lost isn't illegal, right? Yep, that's our story.
Paimon:
But... the train tracks are broken. What are we gonna do?
Eye of Graeae:
It's all right. That route was only ever meant to mislead people. It was never the real way into the Pale Crown Palace.
Eye of Graeae:
Think of it as a marker, telling ordinary pilgrims and those visiting in remembrance that they should go no farther.
Eye of Graeae:
If we really mean to cross over, we'll need to find... the mechanism that activates the "hidden tracks."
Eye of Graeae:
I can sense it. The mechanism that summons the "hidden tracks" should be up on that tower.
Eye of Graeae:
But the tower appears to be encircled by the "Tsar's White Birch." We'll have to find another way in...
Paimon:
Goggles, you're amazing! Is there any train you can't drive?
Eye of Graeae:
...Not exactly. For some reason, the trains currently running in Snezhnaya only keep their power systems, leaving no room for remote control.
Eye of Graeae:
These early prototypes, though, still have control interfaces...
Paimon:
Oh... Is... that... so...
Eye of Graeae:
That... is true... However...
Paimon:
However... What...?
Paimon:
Do you mean that...!?
Traveler:
(Strange... Why is Paimon speaking so slowly...?)
Traveler:
(No, wait... Huh? Is it me?)
Traveler:
(Ah, the potion bottle next to me...)
Vsevolod:
Huh? What?
Vsevolod:
The concoction, the concoction...
Traveler:
(Sorry about that. Oh, but the door opened. I should go take a look...)
Traveler:
(A giant egg... in the middle of the Shadow Realm...)
Traveler:
(Is something inside it? Could that be the "Proto-Man" they mentioned earlier?)
Izmaylov:
Strange...
Azazel:
Stop staring at nothing. We still have a lot to do...
Message:
(A note, written in an elegant hand...)
Message:
"I will be returning to the House of Hesperides for the next few days, so I'll leave the cat in your care. I can hardly trust the others with her, given how absorbed they become in their experiments."
Message:
"I am sure my colleague Koshchei shares my respect for living things and will remember to feed my Lara... The key and specially prepared cat food are on your desk."
Message:
"...And remember, my Lara only eats from her bowl. Please don't scatter her food on the floor. She won't eat anything off the floor."
Message:
"P.S. If I find that my cat has not been properly fed, or that she has somehow grown parts from another animal, I will find out who is responsible. — Pavlina"
Someone's Notes:
(A note, written in a cold, stiff hand with almost no variation...)
Someone's Notes:
"...The prisoners used as experimental material have already been handed over to Alvis. There is no doubt that the results of that experiment were 'incorrect.'"
Someone's Notes:
"But is that what humans... Is that what loveless fae should seek as 'love'? Perhaps the Snegovik, incomplete in spirit as they are, truly could make use of this technology..."
Someone's Notes:
"To gain the 'love' they lacked from the beginning. Just as... just as 'he' told me, dreams that are too grand have no meaning. Perhaps..."
Someone's Notes:
"Perhaps 'he' was right. That power... That power should have been ours from the start, as compensation. It was never meant to belong to Aksinya's aberrant dream."
Someone's Notes:
"...I will stop here before Alvis 'accidentally' comes across this again and causes more trouble."
Traveler:
(A set of scales... There's a feather on the left pan, and something is supposed to go on the right...)
Traveler:
(This looks like some kind of ritual. The feather is probably just there to represent something "as light as nothing." What matters is the right side... Something real, but with the same weight as "nothing.")
Traveler:
(The things on the table are...)
Traveler:
(This liquid is giving off a strange glow...)
Traveler:
(No, this shouldn't be on the other side of the scales.)
Traveler:
Reagent Bottle
Traveler:
(This liquid is giving off a strange glow...)
Traveler:
(No, this shouldn't be on the other side of the scales.)
Traveler:
Reagent Bottle
Traveler:
(This liquid is giving off a strange glow...)
Traveler:
(...Looks like nothing I put there will work for this ritual. Maybe there's another meaning behind the words in that note.)
Traveler:
("Separated, everything is not the cause. For everything to be everything, what was divided must be gathered back into one?")
Traveler:
(I should try... combining something together.)
"Cast off the soul of the past, and it shall no longer be bound by the hidden veins of the planet." "Cast off the will of the past, and it shall no longer be watched by the gaze above." "Cast off the body of the past, and it shall no longer be worn away by the toil and turmoil of the mortal world."
Following the note's instructions, you grind the yellow crystal and Kresnik Kristall ore into powder and add them to the reagent bottle.
Then...
A new substance begins to form.
Traveler:
(A strange reagent... Even when I hold it in my hand, it doesn't feel like it weighs anything. Is it because...)
Traveler:
(This substance, by nature, "transcends" ordinary concepts?)
"It worked... This reagent has the exact same properties as the (...) that once reduced Kitezhgrad to ruin."
You hear a piercing voice echo through the room.
"This is the way to transcendence in this world — restoration and reversal."
"All 'humans' came from (...). With this power in my hands, I can become like them. I can create... I can even command it all..."
"'He' didn't lie to me. The man in the egg... 'He' was right. I just need a way. I need to get 'Him,' even one fragment would be enough..."
"Your Majesty, this should be mine, shouldn't it? I, Alvis, deserve this much!"
"'His' power is perfect. 'He' is the answer I've spent so long searching for. I simply must have 'him'..."
"I must have 'him'!"
"I must have 'him'!"
"I must have 'him'!"
"I must have 'him'!"
"I must have 'him'!"
"I must have 'him'!"
"I must have 'him'!"
"I must have 'him'!"
Traveler:
(Huh... Strange. That voice just now... Maybe it was the owner of this room?)
Traveler:
(...The pointer fell off.)
Aksinya:
They'll be absolutely stunned to learn that I can upload your consciousness here, fully intact, using ancient Hyperborean technology.
Aksinya:
Impressive technology indeed. Very well. Let's call this lightweight, portable device the "Eye of Graeae."
Eye of Graeae:
...That's what these goggles are called? But they're blue... Uh, anyway, this feels really weird. I can't feel my arms or legs at all.
Eye of Graeae:
Now that I'm inside this tiny little device, I can barely feel... my own body.
Traveler:
(Is that Aksinya... from the past? And the one speaking to her is... the Eye of Graeae from the past?)
Aksinya:
That's to be expected. Your consciousness may have been uploaded into these goggles, but your body is still what sustains your power and your existence.
Aksinya:
After all, your body is the true key to opening the new world.
Aksinya:
As that "key," you are already a perfect work of creation. If only... if only we could have gone further...
Eye of Graeae:
But His Majesty... What a pity.
Eye of Graeae:
Part of my body once belonged to His Majesty. Sometimes, through fragments of his consciousness, I can see what he once saw. That's how I know...
Eye of Graeae:
If all goes smoothly, you will carry on his will and bring his grand design to completion... He would surely be pleased.
Aksinya:
"Only you can make me laugh so freely, Aksinya." That's what he would say, and he would mean every word. Not like when he speaks to that "Professor," with all those hollow pleasantries.
Aksinya:
A "Court Jester" gives everything to bring joy to her lord. That is her duty.
Eye of Graeae:
"Court Jester" was merely a nominal title His Majesty gave you so you could come and go from the palace. It was only meant to keep people from resenting a human for being in His favor. You don't have to...
Aksinya:
I don't see anything wrong with the title. There's nothing laughable about it. Even now, it still has its uses.
Aksinya:
Perhaps I could use it to gain entry to Zapolyarny Palace and speak with the newly crowned Tsaritsa... Though by the time I came to court, she had long since departed...
Aksinya:
Perhaps she will understand His Majesty's will...
Eye of Graeae:
Yes, Aksinya.
Aksinya:
I should show you to my colleagues, just as you are now. Perhaps then, they'll admit that every line of research has its worth. At the very least, Alvis will stand by me.
Aksinya:
Perhaps they will help me carry this great cause forward...
Aksinya:
Though I know our ideals do not align, all differences will ultimately return to a single path. In the end, true understanding will come.
Aksinya:
They will help me, won't they?
Eye of Graeae:
...
Eye of Graeae:
...Yes, Aksinya, they will.
Aksinya:
Yeah.
Aksinya:
This is the only thing I can do for him, and the only meaning my life has ever had.
Aksinya:
I must have the "Proto-Man," have "you"... No, I beg "you." Please, take the place His Majesty was meant to hold in the original plan...
Aksinya:
Please, become the ruler of this planet.
Aksinya:
Ah... For a grand undertaking like this, why should I need anyone else's approval or support? Maybe I can carry on the final experiment on my own...
Eye of Graeae:
...
A grand vision, yes. But then what?
Aksinya:
No... How could you...? Can't you see...?
Aksinya:
This is... such a terrible betrayal... Alvis, Koshchei, Pavlina...
Aksinya:
You've forgotten... why we came here. Forgotten that grand, radiant vision...
Aksinya:
You’ve forgotten... the grace he gave us, the glory he granted us. You...
Aksinya:
You cast me out, but no matter. I will return... no matter how long I have to spend in that Shadow Realm beyond beginning and end.
Aksinya:
I cannot understand. Why... why would you destroy the grand undertaking we were meant to build, just for your own selfish reasons? Why would you turn away from the path we were meant to follow?
...This cannot be how it all ends.
"Even now, I don't hate them. I just feel sorry for them."
You hear someone say this. At some point, she has appeared, watching her past self fall into shadow.
"But everything will get back on the right path eventually. Like light passing through different mediums — it may look like it's taking a crooked path, but in truth, it's always taking the fastest, best one."
...Have you forgotten, friends? We were created for a single moment,
To call back those dreams flickering on the verge of extinction,
To let the phantom-like children of daylight lead us into "Tomorrow,"
Where we would laugh and spin, circling the sole seat upon the court of the stars, and build—
Build a pure nation, a homeland born from everyone's love.
Build what would become—
A carefree courtyard for humanity alone.
Paimon:
Traveler, Traveler! Are you okay?
Paimon:
You sat down, and then just froze up all of a sudden...
Eye of Graeae:
I did sense a slight disturbance in your mind, but your physical readings didn't change at all...
Traveler:
(You tell them about what you saw in the Shadow Realm...)
Eye of Graeae:
...There have been experimental reports of certain Shadow Realms affecting only the mind, while leaving the body in the "Physical Plane" untouched.
Eye of Graeae:
But such cases are exceedingly rare.
Paimon:
Traveler is always seeing weird stuff out of nowhere!
Paimon:
...So, you saw that... place or whatever from five hundred years ago?
Eye of Graeae:
Hvergelmir.
Paimon:
You saw Hvergelmir from five hundred years ago, and Goggles from the past, too!
Paimon:
So, Goggles, does any of what Traveler saw sound familiar?
Eye of Graeae:
...My apologies. I do not remember much of what happened back then.
Eye of Graeae:
I cannot even clearly recall... that such an argument, or such a conversation, took place before I entered the Shadow Realm.
Paimon:
I see...
Paimon:
But that means we can confirm Goggles really did have a body before, right?
Eye of Graeae:
Yes. Based on what Traveler heard in that conversation... that does put me much more at ease.
Paimon:
Maybe Goggles' body is still somewhere in the center of Hvergelmir, just waiting for him!
Paimon:
Th-Then the last piece must be in the center of Hvergelmir...
Eye of Graeae:
I hope so. Then I may be able to remember more... and return to my original body sooner.
Eye of Graeae:
We will soon be arriving at the Pale Crown Palace. Please be mindful of any jolts as we pull in.
Paimon:
No problem! Paimon's always floating, so a few bumps won't scare Paimon!
Traveler:
Unnamed Potion Formula
Traveler:
Unnamed Potion Formula
Cat:
Meow...?
Vsevolod:
Ah, my concoction... You naughty little cat, honestly... *sigh*
Vsevolod:
Great. Now I have to prepare it all over again!
Find a way to track down the fragment of the Eye of Graeae's power inside the mausoleum that was once the Belyi Tsar's itinerant court...
Eye of Graeae:
The door at the back of the royal hall appears to be shut...
Paimon:
What do we do now?
Eye of Graeae:
Please wait a moment. I sense that there may be a port in front of the throne I can connect to...
Eye of Graeae:
It's right here.
Paimon:
How's it going, Goggles?
Eye of Graeae:
I have gained access to the mechanism.
Eye of Graeae:
...Alright. The way to unlock the door here is more or less the same as the main entrance.
Eye of Graeae:
"Let the two-headed beast, guardian of that most majestic corpse, return unto its rightful place."
Paimon:
"The two-headed beast"...? Are we talking about that statue back at the entrance...?
Paimon:
Paimon seems to hear a door opening over there...
Paimon:
Oh, look inside that room. There's another statue that looks just like the one at the entrance.
Paimon:
"Return unto its rightful place," huh? Oh, Paimon gets it now! We'll have to move both statues onto this mechanism right here, don't we?
Eye of Graeae:
It certainly appears to be the case, Paimon.
Paimon:
Great, the door's open... Oof. Those were some strange-looking monsters back there...
Eye of Graeae:
They are man-made monsters... created by Koshchei at Hvergelmir back in the day.
Paimon:
Then... what about the creature that was just talking? Paimon thought we'd have seen it by now...
Eye of Graeae:
That's... Zver, or "The Beast." It's one of many of Koshchei's bio-alchemical creations, and the leader of the man-made monsters.
Eye of Graeae:
Back then, Koshchei created a number of "prototypes" using the same materials... But of these prototypes, the only ones that turned out to have a shred of intelligence were Zver and... Hmm. This is strange. I don't seem to be able to recall now.
Eye of Graeae:
Koshchei deemed Zver nothing more than a half-formed creation, so he chose to abandon it.
Eye of Graeae:
In the end, that unfinished form was fused with the seeds of other monsters, molding it into its present shape. Truly, it should have been destroyed back then.
Eye of Graeae:
But before it could be unmade, the Belyi Tsar, believing that no being with sentience should be so discarded, decided to take the creature into his service.
Eye of Graeae:
...It was said that it was Zver who had dragged the Belyi Tsar's body back from the battlefield, even though it was itself gravely injured at the time.
Eye of Graeae:
That is the reason it loathed Koshchei so...
Eye of Graeae:
I thought it had already perished somewhere, quietly and unnoticed. But no, this is excellent news.
Eye of Graeae:
Never did I imagine that it would be standing watch over the Belyi Tsar's body all this time — in this minor palace that is now effectively a mausoleum.
Paimon:
Whoa, Paimon finally gets why nobody is supposed to come here without asking first! Maybe everyone who sneaked in without permission got totally scared off by that beast!
Eye of Graeae:
It's too dangerous to venture further to Pale Crown Palace. Zver...
Paimon:
That's alright. We're already here anyway. We'll definitely get you your body back.
Traveler:
If it comes around again, we'll just fight it off.
Eye of Graeae:
Alright. I believe you, Traveler... and you too, Paimon...
Eye of Graeae:
We'll have to stay alert from now on. That creature is likely to appear again...
Eye of Graeae:
Please leave this matter to me.
Traveler:
(...Huh? What's going on? Isn't this... Am I...?)
Traveler:
(Ah. Just like how I was at Hvergelmir earlier... This place is also in the past...)
Aksinya:
Your Majesty, I am pleased to report that the first experiment have been completed.
Aksinya:
The great hypothesis is about to be proven right. With continued cultivation, we shall soon witness the birth of a complete prototype of the Primordial Human.
???:
The first experiments have been completed, you say?
Aksinya:
Yes, Your Majesty. We found that the test subjects entered a realm of boundless joy... where they'd never suffer sorrow or distress again...
???:
And they never woke up again.
Aksinya:
No, they never did wake up again. But that is entirely logical, given that the realm they entered was no mere dream. Your Majesty... we are speaking of a butterfly breaking free from its cocoon, or a bird bursting from its shell.
Aksinya:
And by breaking free, they have left all the pain and sorrow arising from desires and fixations behind like a useless cocoon... All that remains is a broken dream, a pain as blurry and indistinct as a shadow.
???:
That new courtyard, Aksinya. Is that the world of your dreams? The one you seek to reach?
Aksinya:
...
Aksinya:
Your will is my will, Your Majesty.
???:
...Is that so? When then, will you embark on the final part of the plan?
Aksinya:
I shall require more time before I can do that. However, I expect everything to be ready... by the time Your Majesty returns victorious from the front.
Aksinya:
I am certain that Your Majesty will return victorious.
???:
... Yes, I shall, Aksinya. And you may rest easy, for Zver shall accompany me. It will never abandon me, no matter what.
Aksinya:
That certainly is true.
"Zver":
*Snorts*
Aksinya:
In that case, I shall stay here to wait for you... Your Majesty.
Aksinya:
I shall remain here until Your Majesty's wish has been fulfilled, until your will has been done...
Paimon:
What is it, Traveler? You're doing it again — just standing there, staring blankly like a dummy...
Eye of Graeae:
Did you see something again...?
Traveler:
I saw something from the past...
Paimon:
Hmm... Then did you see anything that made you uncomfortable or something?
Traveler:
No... not at all...
Paimon:
Alright! In that case... The door to the palace's royal hall is already open! Come on, let's keep moving!
Paimon:
Hmm... Paimon doesn't know why, but the higher we get, the more anxious Paimon gets...
Traveler:
Are you feeling that way because of "Zver"?
Paimon:
Mmhmm. Hey, that creature knows how to talk, doesn't it? Maybe we can reason with it... and it won't see us as intruders barging in anymore...
Eye of Graeae:
"As long as we communicate, we can reach an understanding..." Perhaps it truly is as Miss Paimon says.
Paimon:
Heh heh...
Eye of Graeae:
...Something isn't quite right, Traveler. I've detected a high-energy object... And it's approaching us! LOOK OUT, Traveler!
Paimon:
I have warned you people time and time again. And yet, you continue to seek inevitable destruction...
"Zver":
Um.. AHEM! You miserable cur! I know you're in there! I know you're hiding inside that tiny little mechanism like the coward you are...
"Zver":
...Hah! I thought you were long dead! Come out, then! Come out and show yourself!
Eye of Graeae:
...It seems we were both mistaken, then.
"Zver":
Is that what you've turned into? How pathetic!
"Zver":
A pity I won't get to see that face of yours again. It's worth far more to me than the rest of your existence.
"Zver":
...Is this the new master you have chosen? Or is he simply just another meticulously chosen sacrifice of yours?
"Zver":
Hahahahaha! Oh blond-haired human, do you really know what you are doing?
"Zver":
...Ha. Hard to believe that a person as powerful and yet pure of heart as you actually exists in this world... But I must warn you: that companion of yours inside that mechanism? They might not be as trustworthy as you think.
Paimon:
You can take your nonsense and shove it, you two-headed freak! We're traveling with Goggles here...
Paimon:
And we've already become friends. Don't you dare speak ill of him!
"Zver":
Ahahaha, "Goggles"? Fine then, "Goggles," would you like to tell your new friends over here about your friends from before?
Eye of Graeae:
I... I... I don't know.
"Zver":
Do you really not know...?
"Zver":
So you really have no inkling... Ha! That woman was pushed into the Shadow Realm, while your body was split up into three. That is why you don't have all your powers now...
"Zver":
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.... Ahem... Heh heh heh. You don't remember a thing because you don't have all your powers. I cannot believe this... This is beyond absurd.
"Zver":
The grand power of fate... like a spinning thread, it allows no escape. You may have lost all your memories, and yet you have returned and now stand here...
Eye of Graeae:
Before that wretched and broken body of yours...
Eye of Graeae:
Zver. All I want is to retrieve what is mine.
"Zver":
Ahem... What are you talking about? Nothing you held was ever truly yours. Everything you ever "had" came from His Majesty!
"Zver":
Our flesh, our blood, the very seed of consciousness that was rooted into the core of our beings... They were all given to us by him!
Eye of Graeae:
I see. So I am... a prototype. Just like you.
"Zver":
...Except that I was the failed specimen, and you eventually became the vessel for the Key. But you should have never remained in existence. Your consciousness should have been erased long ago.
Traveler:
"The Key"...?
"Zver":
His body, that is. The only things in existence that are meaningful are his body, his flesh and blood. Because he was the perfect creation grown in His Majesty's likeness.
"Zver":
The only other thing worth anything at all would be his face... It looked exactly like the Tsar in a painting of him as a child.
"Zver":
Hmph, but if I were to see that face again, I would tear it with my teeth and swallow it whole.
Eye of Graeae:
Why would you do that??? You and I, we are clearly the same...
"Zver":
Bah! You and I, we are not the same! I am the Beast in the service of the Belyi Tsar. "Zver" was the name His Majesty bestowed upon me.
"Zver":
I was the one who received his acknowledgement and praise. I was the one to whom he promised glory everlasting. Though I had a useless, hopelessly ill-shapen form... He ensured that my existence did not go to waste.
"Zver":
I was the one who followed His Majesty to every battlefield, the one who resisted the dark tide of the Abyss alongside the monsters and fae... And I was the one who brought his lifeless body back from that pitch-black ruin.
"Zver":
Maybe I should have, right there and then... O Your Majesty, I have watched over your long-sleeping body for five centuries now. I believe it is finally time... finally time for me to follow in your footsteps.
"Zver":
I have, right up to the very end... fulfilled my vow. Even the very final moment of my life shall be for your sake... Aaaah...
"Zver":
And you? Ha! You pitiable fool. You have become the most pathetic of us all...
We may share the same flesh and blood, but we are not brothers...
You, "Proto-Man," don't even have a name to call your own...
And with that, the beast with two heads falls limp.
The sheer will — rather than bodily strength — that has held it up all this time... drains away.
In an instant, its form dissipates like fine sand into the wind, as a faint cry fades into the dust.
Traveler:
(Here comes that feeling again... Is this another memory from the "past"!?)
Traveler:
(Yes, I'm seeing... Zver from the past now...)
"Zver":
Your Majesty, you wished to see me... How may I serve you?
"Zver":
Or is this regarding... that incident involving the human noble the other day? The one where I executed without authorization? I beg you to...
???:
Dispense with the terror. I have no intention to strike you down.
???:
The details of the matter are already known to me — Aksinya and Koshchei have given their report. The eldest son of the House Solovyov chanced upon something he shouldn't have... And the fault clearly lies with the two of them.
???:
Your actions have spared Koshchei and the others a rather significant headache.
"Zver":
Me? But helping him was the furthest thing from my mind! I only acted to... ensure that Your Majesty's private affairs remained entirely inviolable.
???:
And yet, you owe your very existence to him, Zver. Perhaps he alone deserves the title of your father.
"Zver":
That is indeed true, Your Majesty. It was he who created me, gave me this deficient mind and a tongue with which to speak.
"Zver":
Yet, that has not stopped him from looking upon me... as a flawed creation that should have been destroyed from the very beginning. Your Majesty...
"Zver":
Must a creation forever bend the knee to its creator? Surely, even an imperfect being like myself cannot be expected to endure the neglect, the contempt, and the unending wrath of the one who fashioned me?
"Zver":
Must the thing created... always walk the path its maker has laid out, and bow to his every caprice?
???:
...
"Zver":
Ah, I wasn't speaking of y——
???:
None of that bears weight here, Zver. None of it. There are times when the sole matter of consequence is the path one resolves to take.
???:
And once that path is taken, one never looks back... for that alone is the matter of consequence.
"Zver":
Your Majesty. I fear I have misspoken, and for that, I extend my deepest apologies...
???:
Think no more of it. I, too, have now bound myself to a chosen path, and shall know the touch of doubt no longer...
???:
Oh, Zver, my forgiveness is yours... Though you may hold no need for such grace to begin with, I forgive you for not following the orders of your creator.
"Zver":
Your Majesty, I accept your forgiveness, but solely for the sake of the one who offers it.
"Zver":
I accept your forgiveness, solely because I have chosen to shoulder the burden of your expectations, and because I am fully aware that my life belongs to you, and that I shall one day surrender it to you.
"Zver":
Though no one exacted this deed from me, I hope when the moment comes, you will remember that this choice, too, was entirely my own.
???:
Indeed, Zver, my adorable friend... I shall never forget what you have told me today.
Eye of Graeae:
Emotional fluctuation detected. It is of the same kind as before...
Traveler:
Um...
Paimon:
Are you seeing strange things again?
Eye of Graeae:
The closer we get to the upper levels of Pale Crown Palace, the greater the effect this place has on Traveler...
Eye of Graeae:
And Traveler's perception capabilities... are clearly keener than most.
Eye of Graeae:
But thankfully, it does not look like this will have any ill effects on him.
Paimon:
Oh yeah?
Paimon:
Traveler, did you see...
Traveler:
(You recount what you saw...)
Paimon:
Hmm, someone's talking to that "Zver"...
Eye of Graeae:
...
Paimon:
What is it, Goggles? Did you just remember something?
Eye of Graeae:
I suspect it was the Belyi Tsar who spoke with Zver... Although it's been 500 years... he might have left something behind here...
Eye of Graeae:
However, his motives in doing so remain entirely unclear to me. I fear... the only way I can remember is to recover all my powers.
Paimon:
Uh-huh...
Paimon:
...So, Goggles, "Eye of Graeae" isn't your name then?
Eye of Graeae:
...Perhaps. Perhaps it's just the name of this device, and I simply assumed...
Eye of Graeae:
I...
Paimon:
Never mind about that! That Zver freak was probably just spouting total nonsense anyway! Maybe you'll actually know your real name once you get all your powers back!
Eye of Graeae:
...May that be the case.
Traveler:
But... what should we call you in the meantime then?
Eye of Graeae:
Since my consciousness is now housed inside this mechanism... either the "Eye of Graeae" or "Goggles" would do fine.
Paimon:
Alright then, Goggles! Let's start looking for your missing parts right now! They must be somewhere around here, right?
Paimon:
Ooh, look. This is a piece of Goggles, and someone's left a note next to it.
Paimon:
"Alvis has paid the price for his crime of defiling the sacred form, and the flesh and blood taken by the covetous Domovoy have been recovered from Novokitezhgrad..."
Paimon:
Hold on, hold on — so, does that mean that this piece of Goggles' body wasn't here all this time?
Eye of Graeae:
Analysis of this handwriting indicates that the author is Aksinya.
Eye of Graeae:
Novokitezhgrad is of course a rather long way away from here... That might explain why I have never been able to sense or detect this piece of my body.
Paimon:
Huh. So she was the one who brought this piece back from, um, Novokitezhgrad. That's... a city southeast of Snezhnograd, Paimon thinks...
Paimon:
Oh that's right, didn't Netochka say that she used to live in Novokitezhgrad...?
Paimon:
Paimon wonders who this "Alvis" is...
Paimon:
Oh, so you mean Hvergelmir you saw before entering the Pale Crown Palace... the one in the past?
Paimon:
Was "Alvis" one of those people you saw there?
Traveler:
No, I don't think I actually saw him...
Eye of Graeae:
Alvis... was the Grand Duke of the Domovoy. Though he was indeed a member of Hvergelmir, there is not much more I can recall at the moment, unfortunately.
Paimon:
Well, no matter who he was, judging from that note, things probably didn't end well for him.
Paimon:
Oh, look, there's another line written here on the back. It says... "The final mission is thus: return the flesh and blood of the King, and begin a new era with the Key."
Eye of Graeae:
...
Paimon:
What does that even mean...?
Eye of Graeae:
Given that my body is already shattered, I would not be able to reconstruct it even if I have all my powers back. I'll have to... place it somewhere.
Paimon:
Oh, so you mean collecting the pieces and putting them in the same room alone won't do it? We have to bring them someplace, huh...
Traveler:
I thought they'd just magically come together!
Paimon:
Maybe we have to do something like at the crafting bench! Come to think of it, that's a three-into-one process too, isn't it...
Paimon:
Wait, let's rewind a second. So, if we want to fix Goggles, where are we even supposed to take the pieces to?
Eye of Graeae:
"Shattered the flesh and blood are. Rebuild the sacred form, reforge the Key, and knock on the door on the other side. Return — return the flesh and blood of the King... return it... return them to..."
Eye of Graeae:
The Court of Bliss.
Paimon:
The Court of Bliss? And where's that?
Eye of Graeae:
...
Eye of Graeae:
It's... right there.