Hello I'm back, thy leg is healed but I don't have molars anymore.
===BREAK===
Night had fallen over Palais Mermonia.
Yet Neuvillette's office was still brightly lit.
After learning that Neuvillette was finally willing to meet her, Arlecchino had rushed over without pause.
Stepping into the office, Arlecchino went straight to the chair and sat down, her gaze landing on Neuvillette, who was seated behind the desk.
Neuvillette was tall and upright, his features stern and imposing.
His deep blue eyes were like the ocean—inscrutable and profound, making it difficult to discern his true thoughts.
At this moment, he stared at Arlecchino with no expression.
Arlecchino adjusted her posture slightly, gave a polite smile, and greeted softly, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Neuvillette."
Neuvillette simply responded, "Hmm," then cut straight to the point.
"Ms. Arlecchino, you've recently filed diplomatic visits with such frequency—is there an urgent matter?"
Arlecchino already knew his intent; she understood that Neuvillette was deliberately letting her speak first to explain her purpose.
So, she didn't beat around the bush and answered directly, "As you surmised, what I've come for this time still concerns the Fontaine Prophecy."
"I've already outlined this matter in detail in the diplomatic requests I submitted earlier."
Neuvillette, wanting to maintain control of the conversation, deliberately avoided the topic and offered a reasonable justification.
"Matters of Fontaine are naturally handled by Fontaine itself; there's no need for outsiders to interfere. So aside from that, is there anything else important you wished to discuss with me?"
After speaking, Neuvillette fixed his sharp gaze on Arlecchino, waiting for her response.
Arlecchino understood his intent—he was trying to seize the initiative.
To secure the Gnosis, she followed Neuvillette's lead and continued, "I wouldn't put it quite like that! Although I am technically affiliated with the Fatui, I am ultimately still a native of Fontaine. How could I simply stand by while my homeland faces destruction without doing anything?"
Neuvillette looked puzzled when she claimed to be a Fontaine native. "Ms. Arlecchino, you are from Fontaine?"
In truth, Arlecchino was not really from Fontaine; she claimed so simply to narrow the distance between them and ease some of Neuvillette's doubts.
Faced with Neuvillette's doubt, Arlecchino remained calm and composed.
She lifted her chin and confidently replied, "Of course, that's true. Any problem with that? Do I perhaps not look like someone from Fontaine?"
Neuvillette nodded slightly and answered frankly, "I'm not adept at judging one's nationality by appearance alone."
At this point, Arlecchino got straight to the point.
"In short, Mr. Neuvillette, please trust in my sincerity to cooperate. Although historically the reputation of the Fatui in Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma, and Sumeru hasn't been great, this time it's entirely different. This time, the Fatui and Fontaine are undoubtedly on the same side!"
Upon hearing Arlecchino say "hasn't been great," Neuvillette slowly raised four fingers and recounted four astonishing events the Fatui had carried out over nearly a year.
"First, your Fatui openly attacked the Knights of Favonius in Mondstadt, causing severe casualties; second, you awakened an ancient deity in Liyue, bringing immense disaster and chaos; third, you detonated the Mikage Furnace and caused the death of the Second Electro Archon."
[AN:Neuvillette knew it was Shao Yun who did it, but Inazuma's official stance blamed it all on the Fatui.]
"Finally, you launched a brutal terror attack on Sumeru City, resulting in countless innocent casualties and the city plunged into panic. Can such blatant actions be brushed aside simply by saying you 'have a poor reputation'?"
With each thing he mentioned, Neuvillette's tone grew heavier, and his gaze sharpened as he stared at Arlecchino.
Arlecchino didn't argue; she tacitly accepted these facts as he spoke of her colleagues' actions.
Yet even so, she responded carefully, "Please don't lump me together with those irrational lunatics, Mr. Neuvillette."
As soon as she finished speaking, Arlecchino took out a proposal and placed it in front of Neuvillette.
"This is a meeting gift, please accept it."
Neuvillette took the document.
He opened to the first page and, upon just a glance, his deep blue pupils involuntarily widened.
"This is…" Neuvillette's voice held surprise.
Seeing this, Arlecchino's lips curved up slightly in a barely perceptible smile.
"This proposal outlines specific measures on how to address the recent flooding problem. What do you think? As for funding, there's no need to worry—the Fatui will fully cover everything."
Neuvillette didn't respond immediately; instead, he continued to quickly browse the proposal.
A moment later, he looked up and nodded slightly in approval.
Then, thoughtfully, he spoke, "It seems, Ms. Arlecchino, that you came prepared. However, as far as I know, your Fatui's activities in Fontaine should have been restricted. I didn't expect you'd produce such a detailed and clear proposal. I take it that you've done quite a bit of covert investigation…"
Hearing this, Arlecchino let out a deep sigh and explained apologetically, "My apologies, Mr. Neuvillette. But seeing Lady Furina's inaction in the face of the flooding crisis made me anxious. I acted first and reported later; I hope you can forgive me."
Neuvillette knew all too well that no wall is completely impermeable.
Even if the Fatui were restricted, as long as they weren't caged, some information or activities would inevitably leak out.
But at this moment, Neuvillette had no time to delve into the Fatui's covert operations; he moved on to discuss compensation.
"What do you want?" Clearly, he didn't believe the Fatui would offer help so generously and selflessly.
Arlecchino calmly offered her prepared reply.
"I don't want anything. I just hope, Mr. Neuvillette, that you can grant us freedom to operate in Fontaine. Restricted as we are, we can't help Fontaine effectively."
Hearing this, Neuvillette's heart tightened.
Loosening restrictions on the Fatui's activities was not a good sign…
The bloody lessons from Mondstadt, Liyue, Inazuma, and Sumeru told him that cooperating with the Fatui and lifting restrictions was the beginning of disaster.
Yet, facing reality, Neuvillette had little choice.
If Furina could have done anything valuable herself, he wouldn't have chosen to accept the Fatui's cooperation.
"Alright, you may… but Fortress of Meropide is excluded. Other than that, I grant you the right to operate throughout Fontaine according to Fontaine's laws."
Though reluctant, Neuvillette agreed, setting a clear boundary.
Arlecchino narrowed her eyes. "Except… Fortress of Meropide?"
Neuvillette replied in a slightly threatening tone, "That's right. I'm sure you understand, Ms. Arlecchino—Fortress of Meropide is unique. I believe you've already received that special 'gift' from Fortress of Meropide."
Arlecchino's heart tightened, memories of recent events flashing through her mind.
A package from Fortress of Meropide had been delivered to Hotel Bouffes d'ete. Inside were neatly arranged severed heads, all Fatui informants planted in Fortress of Meropide.
She nodded subconsciously. "Yes, I understand."
…
After this tense exchange, both sides reached an initial cooperation agreement.
Before ending the meeting, Neuvillette reminded Arlecchino, "Your investigations must abide by Fontaine's laws. I hope, Ms. Arlecchino, that you won't emulate those three Harbingers, or else…"
Arlecchino agreed without hesitation. "Rest assured, respected Mr. Neuvillette, I will not betray the trust you've placed in me!"
Hearing this, Neuvillette's tense heart relaxed slightly.
But out of caution, he added, "Hm, besides that, there's still one crucial thing you haven't spoken about, Ms. Arlecchino. You're determined to assist Fontaine in overcoming this grave crisis—surely that's not only because you claim to be a native of Fontaine. There must be another deeper reason or motivation behind it."
Arlecchino understood perfectly and openly admitted, "As expected of the wise and discerning Grand Judge—indeed, nothing escapes your notice. Yes, just as you guessed, the reason I'm putting every effort into helping Fontaine overcome this imminent crisis is also because I wish to obtain the Hydro Archon's Gnosis. I believe the effort I've put in deserves such a reward."
Neuvillette, seeing all matters laid out honestly, no longer spoke evasively.
"This matter I need to discuss with Focalors; such an important decision cannot be made by me alone."
Arlecchino wasn't surprised; it was expected.
"No problem, I fully understand. I will begin arranging the personnel. For all future plans, I will report to you faithfully, once a day. How does that sound?"
Even if she didn't plan to report diligently, Neuvillette would secretly assign subordinates to monitor her every move.
He casually replied, "Very well."
===BREAK===
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