"Whoa!!"
Furina, unable to control her strength, was startled by her own kick and instinctively recoiled twice.
After taking that pill, Furina hadn't had any opportunities to fight, so she'd completely forgotten about it. She hadn't even accidentally used it while in Teyvat.
She never expected that losing control this time would unleash such powerful force?!
"It seems Mr. Momoshiki has brought many changes to Furina."
Facing this level of impact, Focalors just smiled and made a playful remark. She wasn't too surprised by anything else.
Although she didn't know exactly what had happened, she could feel that Furina's body had undergone a drastic qualitative change, so she had already expected it.
After the brief interlude, Furina's gaze once again fixed on Focalors.
"Now, please answer me."
Perhaps because the recent accident had calmed her down a bit, Furina's sobbing had eased considerably.
He should have known to have Furina buy him some popcorn or snacks at the opera house...
Alas...
Momoshiki, lying in the pile of books, felt a little emo.
Such a spectacular scene, yet he didn't even have a single sunflower seed. He felt an itchy, restless sensation all over.
"Hmm~"
Focalors nodded gently, her movements tender as she wiped away the tear stains from Furina's cheeks.
"Before I answer your questions, I think there's another person who also deserves to understand what happened."
"Who?"
Furina asked with a slight choke in her voice.
[Hmm... is it that guy who worked for Fontaine for 500 years for free?]
"Haha~ How interesting."
Momoshiki's playful rhetorical question made Focalors cover her mouth and chuckle, "But that's not wrong to say."
After all, Neuvillette was originally just a little Hydro Dragon who spent his days drinking water, slacking off, and getting rained on, only occasionally feeling confused about his own existence.
But then Focalors tricked him into doing 500 years of hard labor, having to deal with all the complex affairs of Fontaine, big and small, every day, and also being responsible for various major trial cases.
Tsk tsk tsk...
He really hoped Neuvillette would enjoy his role.
If he didn't like it, there was nothing he could do. He'd already done the work, no matter how aggrieved he was, he could only grit his teeth and bear it.
"Worked for 500 years for free...?"
Furina lowered her head and thought for a moment, and a figure with a distinct Zhuge Liang-like style appeared in her mind.
"Are you talking about Neuvillette?"
"That's right~"
Focalors slightly turned her face away, her expression looking mischievous.
In her opinion, Neuvillette, simply because he was tricked, faithfully managed Fontaine for 500 years, working tirelessly, and recently even worried himself sick over the prophecy and the Primordial Sea.
So, keeping it from him now would really weigh on her conscience.
"This..." Furina hesitated.
She really had a lot of power she wanted to show off to Neuvillette, and she also wanted to confess everything to him.
But every time she saw him, she felt like words were stuck in her throat. There was nothing else, it was just a simple feeling that he wouldn't say anything she wanted to hear.
Instead, he might clash with Momoshiki, that planet-devouring guy, putting her in a difficult position.
This was why she had kept everything hidden despite wanting to share it so much, but she didn't expect to suddenly have to reveal everything to Neuvillette now.
[...]
[Then I'll call him over now.]
"Hmm, thanks."
Focalors' lips curved slightly upwards.
...
Reopening a portal, Momoshiki possessed Furina and returned to the opera house.
Neuvillette was still on site, checking suspicious personnel one by one, but he found nothing, and even let Marcel slip away.
After all, that miniature remote control device had long been disposed of, and nothing else could be found, it was truly a silent murder.
"Neuvillette."
Furina walked over, the black Karma lines on her right half receding into her palm.
"Hmm?"
Neuvillette, who was looking at the guard's report, heard the voice and turned around in confusion.
"What's wrong, Ms. Furina?"
Neuvillette rested his hand on his chin, his eyes scrutinizing Furina, a little unsure of the current situation.
What was wrong? Why did her eyes seem to have traces of crying?
Had something big happened in Fontaine again?
"Come with me for a moment, I have something to talk to you about."
Furina said mysteriously, then turned and walked away, leaving Neuvillette looking bewildered.
Although he wasn't sure what Furina was up to, out of respect for her, Neuvillette simply handed over his work to the guards beside him, and then walked in Furina's direction.
But as he walked, he felt an unusual aura.
Looking at Furina's back, which was as usual, Neuvillette's fists involuntarily clenched.
Something was very wrong! There was a very strange feeling, but he couldn't pinpoint it!
Furina wasn't usually this quiet and obedient, was she?
He glanced around and found that she had led him to a deserted corner.
If the feeling just now was an illusion, then what was before him now was reality.
"Who are you?!"
Neuvillette stopped, pulled out his cane from his subspace, and Hydro elements swirled around it, emanating an invisible oppressive aura.
"Not bad, very alert. Truly worthy of being Fontaine's Chief Justice."
Momoshiki clapped his hands, slowly turning around.
"Or rather, the second generation Hydro Dragon King."
Neuvillette: ?!!!
The sudden scene made Neuvillette instinctively widen his eyes.
It wasn't because his identity was exposed, but because Furina at this moment was too bizarre!
The right half of her body was surrounded by black lines and runes, seemingly spreading upwards from her palm, even on her face, and her eyes had turned a jade-like white.
Because this corner had no windows, it was a bit dim, like a horror movie.
If it were an ordinary person, the scene at this moment would definitely scare them out of their wits, but Neuvillette's mental fortitude was clearly very strong.
"As expected, a strange fellow resides within Ms. Furina's body."
Gripping his cane, Neuvillette slowly gathered Hydro elements around him, his gaze fixed on Momoshiki, ready to strike at any moment.
"What have you done to Ms. Furina?"
"Nothing," Momoshiki shrugged, spreading his hands, "I merely borrowed her body for a moment."
"What do you mean?!" Neuvillette frowned, Hydro elements surging around him, the atmosphere suddenly becoming incredibly strange.
"Uh..."
At the critical moment, Furina's eyelids twitched uncontrollably, and she temporarily regained control of her body.
"Momoshiki, what are you doing?"
"Playing with the dragon."
"No way, you..."
...
Listening to their conversation, Neuvillette, who was still in a state of combat readiness, was slightly silent.
He put away his cane, and the Hydro elements around him disappeared. He stood quietly to the side, thinking about something, not making any sound.
Now all his previous suspicions were confirmed. A strange creature had indeed entered Furina's body.
Although this creature was temporarily incomprehensible, just from two sentences, it could be seen that Furina seemed to be getting along with him quite well.
It was unclear if there was a relationship of exploitation, but at least for now, there was no harm.
Thinking of this, Neuvillette spoke to interrupt the two, "Alright, Fur... you two, what do you want from me?"
"It's about the prophecy, there are many things I need to confess to you," Furina said softly, her tone clearly revealing complex emotions.
"Oh?"
The unexpected answer surprised Neuvillette slightly.
He had asked about the prophecy before, but Furina had always deflected the topic with vague answers.
Today, she wasn't avoiding it?! Was it because of that strange creature inside her?
"I'm listening," Neuvillette said in a low voice.
"This isn't the place to talk," Momoshiki said, opening a portal with the system panel, "Someone you're very familiar with is waiting for you. Come with me."
With that, Momoshiki turned and walked in.
Neuvillette considered for a moment, then followed.
It concerned Fontaine, and there was no room for error, so changing to a safe place was reasonable.
As soon as he came out, he felt a sense of weightlessness, followed by the connection to Teyvat's elemental energy becoming faint, only a trace of aura felt through the portal.
"Hmm..."
A hint of solemnity appeared in Neuvillette's eyes.
"Are we no longer in Teyvat?"
There was no oxygen here, ordinary creatures couldn't breathe, and the temperature was very cold. His vision could only see a dim environment and nearby mounds.
But these were child's play for the Hydro Dragon King. An elemental barrier attached to his body easily blocked it, and the circulation of elemental energy within his body replaced breathing.
Dragons themselves were elemental creatures. As long as there were elements, they could survive, their adaptability was exceptionally strong.
"Hi~ Neuvillette~"
Just as Neuvillette was observing his surroundings, a familiar yet unfamiliar voice sounded from behind him, making Neuvillette instinctively widen his eyes again.
He was almost pulled into a flashback.
Her voice was exactly like Furina's, but the feeling she gave him was completely different!
Turning his head in disbelief, he saw two Furinas staring at him.
One was in normal exquisite clothing, with Momoshiki's black lines and Byakugan, and the other was in clothing that only existed in the depths of his memory.
"Focalors...?"
Muttering subconsciously, Neuvillette asked in confusion, "What exactly is going on? Why are there two Furinas?"
Worthy of being Neuvillette, perhaps due to the innate adaptability of elemental dragons, no matter what happened, he would only be slightly surprised and then quickly adapt.
===
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