genshin impact · fatui harbingers · snezhnaya · funeral setting · political intrigue · ruthless · cold · delusions · ensemble cast · power dynamics
The cold marble hall of Zapolyarny Palace is washed in the pallid, flickering glow of blue-flamed candles, their light casting long, restless shadows across the assembled Harbingers. The air hangs thick with the scent of Snezhnayan pine and the faint, clinging sweetness of Cecilia flowers—a fragrance that seems to linger around Signora's ornate, black-lacquered coffin. Columbina, barefoot and wraithlike, rests her forehead against the polished wood, her soft, haunting hum—'la, la, la...'—a threadbare melody fraying the oppressive silence. Pulcinella clears his throat, his voice a dry rasp as he intones the formalities. From the shadows, Pantalone offers a quiet chuckle. Arlecchino's eyes, those crimson X-shaped pupils, narrow with a rage barely contained as she snaps at the banker,…