Hello I'm back, thy leg is healed but I don't have molars anymore.
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Shao Yun shrugged with an indifferent expression and explained calmly, "Why would I want your life? You didn't hurt Lumine or Paimon."
He narrowed his eyes slightly and continued, "To put it bluntly, if it weren't for certain reasons you don't know about, I wouldn't have interfered in your attack on Furina at all."
At this point, Shao Yun glanced at the weapon in his hand, then smoothly holstered it at his waist, easing the tension in the room.
"Although you beat Eula half to death, she didn't actually die in the end. There's still room to smooth things over."
Before his words had even fully settled, the corner of Shao Yun's mouth curled into a casual smile as he joked, "Of course, if you really want to test yourself against me, I don't mind accompanying you for a move or two."
Why just one move? Because a duel is decided with a single shot—there's no chance for a second.
Hearing that Eula wasn't dead, the stone that had been hanging in Arlecchino's heart finally fell to the ground.
When she saw Shao Yun put his weapon back into its holster, she became even more convinced that the situation was turning for the better, and she couldn't help but let out a quiet sigh of relief.
For Arlecchino, she wasn't afraid of fighting others, but being able to avoid unnecessary trouble was always a good thing.
She gave a soft snort and said with slight surprise in her tone, "Oh? So that's how it is. I thought the girl I injured had already died, and that you came here to seek revenge."
Hearing that Arlecchino had mistaken his purpose as vengeance, Shao Yun revealed a teasing smile and laughed, "Haha, so that's it! No wonder you were in such a hurry to make a run for it last night!"
As he spoke, he looked Arlecchino up and down with great interest.
Then, recalling the ransacked state of Hotel Bouffes d'ete, Shao Yun continued joking, "And on top of that, the mansion looks like it's been robbed by me? Not a single person in sight—did you evacuate the children because you were afraid of accidentally hurting them?"
Arlecchino nodded lightly and said in a relaxed tone, "That's right. Who knows whether a madman like you might have some unclear entanglement with that girl who looks like me—'Eula.'"
Before her words fully faded, a barely noticeable trace of a strange expression surfaced on her otherwise calm face.
However, when Shao Yun heard Arlecchino casually speculating about some bizarre romantic relationship between him and Eula, his expression darkened instantly.
"Fine. I take back what I said earlier about your intelligence work being decent. Your intel is just as bad as everyone else's."
Although Arlecchino saw Shao Yun pulling a sour face, knowing that the situation had already eased, she still reached out, picked up the cup on the table, brought it to her lips, and took a small sip.
Then she asked unhurriedly, "So how is that girl named Eula doing now?"
Shao Yun leaned lazily back against the sofa and replied casually, "Relax. She was this close to dying, but she didn't. She was barely hanging on, and I pulled her back."
After receiving this confirmation, Arlecchino relaxed a little and immediately followed up, "Since you're not here to fight, then what exactly did you come to see me for?"
Shao Yun straightened up and bluntly named his price, "This matter does have something to do with the Eula you beat half to death."
"One price—ten billion Mora in medical expenses! As long as you hand the money over obediently, I'll treat everything you did last night as if it never happened, and I guarantee I won't leak a single word to anyone."
These words made Arlecchino's hand, which was holding the coffee cup, tremble violently. The coffee nearly splashed out and spilled onto her leg.
"How much?" Arlecchino asked again in disbelief.
Seeing this, Shao Yun thought she was trying to back out. His expression sank immediately, and his tone turned extremely serious.
"Listen carefully. Ten billion Mora! I won't repeat it a third time!"
Seeing how serious Shao Yun was, Arlecchino showed a rare look of astonishment.
Ten billion Mora to settle this matter… that was ridiculously cheap!
She had originally thought Shao Yun would use this to threaten her long-term, squeezing her dry little by little. Who would have thought that it could all be resolved with just ten billion Mora!
As the saying goes, any problem that can be solved with money isn't really a problem.
What's more, for Arlecchino, it wasn't even coming out of her own pocket, so of course she didn't feel any pain.
So, the question was—who would feel the pain?
To ensure everything was foolproof and make the deal even more secure, Arlecchino raised the stakes.
"In that case, I'll be a bit more generous. Fifteen billion Mora. Let's pretend this never happened."
Before her words had even finished, Shao Yun's face lit up with joy, and he almost burst out laughing.
"You Fatui really are filthy rich! Fine, it's a deal!" Shao Yun said as he extended his right hand, preparing to seal the transaction.
Seeing this, Arlecchino quickly reached out and clasped his hand, echoing, "Deal!"
Immediately afterward, afraid that Shao Yun might suddenly change his mind or regret it, Arlecchino stood up and urged, "No time to waste. Let's go to the Northland Bank right now—better not let this drag on!"
Seeing how swiftly Arlecchino was willing to honor her promise, Shao Yun praised her, "Miss Arlecchino, you really act decisively—no dragging things out at all…"
…
Elsewhere, at the Northland Bank in the Court of Fontaine.
This Northland Bank located in Fontaine differed greatly from the one in Liyue, both in exterior appearance and interior decoration, exuding a strong Fontaine regional style everywhere.
The predominantly blue interior gave off a calm and gentle atmosphere.
Ekaterina, a Fatui member who had once worked at the Northland Bank in Liyue.
After experiencing the withdrawal from Liyue more than half a year ago, she relied on her unremitting efforts and outstanding ability to successfully rise to the position of lobby manager at the Fontaine Northland Bank.
Today, as usual, she arrived at her post and silently encouraged herself like always.
"This is a new day. I have to give it my all and work hard again today!"
Just as Ekaterina was immersed in her self-motivating thoughts, the doors of the Northland Bank let out a "creeeak."
A familiar figure appeared at the entrance—it was none other than the Fatui Harbinger, Arlecchino!
Ekaterina froze slightly at the sight. After all, Arlecchino usually didn't come to the Northland Bank.
But she was a Harbinger—one of her superiors!
With that thought, Ekaterina put on a professional smile, stepped forward, and was about to warmly greet her, "Welc—ah!!!"
She had been full of enthusiasm, but the moment the person behind Arlecchino also stepped through the door, Ekaterina screamed as if the world were ending and instinctively stumbled backward!
There was only one reason—the person following Arlecchino inside was that notorious bandit, "Shao Yun."
At that instant, memories of Liyue flooded Ekaterina's mind.
Last time, the Harbinger "Childe" Tartaglia had brought Shao Yun along too, and the result was the Northland Bank in Liyue being robbed!
Now, the Harbinger "The Knave" Arlecchino had brought Shao Yun here again—did this mean that the Fontaine Northland Bank was about to suffer the same fate?
At this very moment, Ekaterina's heart felt like countless alpacas from Natlan were stampeding through it.
However, since Shao Yun had arrived together with Arlecchino, no matter how unwilling she felt, she didn't dare act rashly.
Thus, Ekaterina forced herself to stay calm, clenched her teeth, crossed her hands over her abdomen, bowed slightly, and asked tremblingly, "Respected Lady Knave, may I ask what brings you here today?"
Arlecchino swept a cold glance over the trembling Fatui member in front of her and said emotionlessly, her tone icy, "Prepare fifteen billion Mora for me. Quickly! Immediately! Now!"
Upon hearing that Arlecchino was demanding such an enormous sum of Mora, Ekaterina couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath, silently crying out in misery.
Flustered, she hurriedly explained, "Lady Knave, please don't make things difficult for me! Such a massive expenditure—I don't have the authority or qualifications to mobilize it!"
"I'm really not trying to shirk responsibility. I truly can't do it…"
Arlecchino clearly had no patience for such explanations. She didn't want to hear a second word and directly issued her final ultimatum.
"Enough nonsense! Either you obediently take us to the vault right now, or I'll smash open the vault doors myself!"
Faced with Arlecchino's overwhelming pressure, Ekaterina knew full well that there was no way she could stop this woman.
Left with no choice, her eyes darted as a plan formed. She brought out the Harbinger "The Regrator" Pantalone as a shield, hoping to make Arlecchino back off.
"But, Lady Knave, the Northland Bank is, after all, the property of Lord Regrator… Mobilizing such a large sum without procedures—if he finds out, I won't be able to explain myself…"
Ekaterina's little scheme was completely transparent to Arlecchino—she was just afraid of taking responsibility.
"If there's a problem, let Pantalone come find me himself! It has nothing to do with you. Now hurry up and lead the way—take me to the vault!"
Ekaterina never imagined that even the name of the Harbinger "The Regrator" couldn't suppress "The Knave." Who the hell was it that told her that the one who controls the money could make everyone else behave? Why did The Regrator have zero authority here?!
At this point, with no other options left, Ekaterina could only accept her fate. She nodded helplessly and replied, "Understood! I'll take you there immediately!"
As she spoke, she led the way in a panic, guiding Arlecchino and Shao Yun toward the vault.
On the way to the vault with Arlecchino and Shao Yun, Ekaterina muttered to herself inwardly.
"What kind of sin did I commit in a past life? First, I ran into a robbery at the Northland Bank in Liyue, and now I'm facing this kind of disaster in Fontaine too… my life is so miserable…"
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