Daelan Ciro looked helplessly at the tightly shut door before him, letting out a soft sigh.
He cleared his throat, his face showing a rare trace of seriousness, and said in a voice neither too loud nor too soft, "Lady Furina, if you don't come out soon… I'll refuse to make petit cakes for you for the next week."
Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, a flurry of frantic noises erupted from Furina's room, instantly reminding Daelan of his previous life, scrambling to get ready when he was already late.
With that thought, Daelan shook his head. —In the end, he'd become the very thing he despised.
After about two or three minutes, the chaotic, battle-like commotion inside finally subsided.
The next second, the door swung open, and a neatly dressed Furina appeared before him.
Seeing the girl with a slight sheen of sweat on her forehead, Daelan shook his head with a wry smile, pulling a handkerchief from his collar to gently dab at her brow.
"Wouldn't it have been easier to get up earlier?"
Daelan said softly, carefully wiping away the beads of sweat.
Feeling the touch on her forehead and Daelan's face so close, Furina's cheeks began to warm involuntarily, and she let out a quiet "mm" in response.
But Daelan didn't dwell on it, his mind replaying the somewhat… tumultuous morning.
Here's how it went.
The first thing he did after leaving his room was to call on Furina, only for her to mumble sleepily that she was fixing her hair.
Hearing this, Daelan didn't press further. He went to the kitchen to prepare food for the kitten, even playing with it for a bit before stepping out.
But… some twenty minutes later, Furina still hadn't emerged, leading to this scene.
With that thought, Daelan stopped his hand, neatly folded the blue handkerchief, tucked it back into his collar, and said, "Come, Lady Furina, it's time for our appointment."
Just then, a noise came from the neighboring room, and Neuvillette, holding a cane, stepped out of his office.
He naturally noticed the two preparing to leave the Palais Mermonia and likely guessed their destination.
As he hesitated over whether to ask Daelan, Daelan spoke first, "Is Mr. Neuvillette also heading to the Opera Epiclese to see Mr. Lyney's performance?"
Neuvillette paused, then nodded lightly.
"Yes, Mr. Lyney's magic show is quite captivating. I wish to observe it to deepen my understanding of Fontaine's artistic culture beyond opera."
Daelan nodded thoughtfully, understanding Neuvillette's intent, and suggested, "Since we share the same goal, shall we go together?"
"Fine by me."
Thus, the Palais Mermonia's three giants reached an agreement. The trio walked out of the Palais, one leading and two following, providing fresh material for today's already intriguing Steambird newspaper.
—Shocking! Palais Mermonia's Three Giants Attend Opera Performance Together, Dispelling Rumors of Discord Between Chief Justice and Advisor?
Of course, this also added fuel to the fire for Lyney's performance, which was bound to have an incident.
And that… was exactly what Daelan wanted.
Daelan knew well that the Hydro Archon Focalors, Chief Justice Neuvillette, and Fontaine's Advisor Daelan Ciro appearing together would guaranteedly make newspaper headlines.
What was the centerpiece of their joint outing? Today's magic show at the "Opera Epiclese."
If something went wrong during the performance, the three of them—no, more precisely, Neuvillette and himself—could step in promptly.
Displaying calm and composure before players was a classic way to earn points.
Though this served his own interests, it caused no harm to the public, so… there was nothing to worry about.
With that thought, a faint, almost imperceptible smile crossed Daelan's face as he walked behind Furina.
Everything was still within his grasp.
He aimed to twist the story's rhythm back, forcing those vermin who deserved the name of "injustice" to crawl out from the shadows.
He would clear the name of that great father, the respectable president, his friend… Mr. Callas!
…
The Aquabus moved swiftly, and the trio soon arrived at the "Opera Epiclese."
After nodding to Neuvillette, Daelan followed Furina to the sole VIP box in the opera house.
As always, Daelan sat behind Furina, already envisioning the perfect entrance pose.
In a musical, the more chaotic the crowd, the more a calm, composed character with a striking entrance would be adored.
They waited quietly, having entered with special privileges, so they had to wait their turn.
Neuvillette closed his eyes slightly, either deep in thought or perhaps dozing.
As for Furina… she was striking poses.
Daelan, seated behind her, watched her swaying fair legs and fidgeting hands with a wry smile, shaking his head lightly.
He let the adorable girl maintain her airs while he deftly pulled a book from his coat's inner lining and began reading.
The book's title was… The Narzissenkreuz Adventure...
…
Ye Zhi marveled at the changing scenes and the grand, intricate indoor modeling on her screen, clicking her tongue in admiration.
"Tch, tch, tch, miHoYo's getting better and better. They can make indoor modeling this good now… I don't know why people keep doomsaying."
After saying this, Ye Zhi paused, a random thought popping into her head.
"But, come to think of it, a game is like a giant amusement park that updates regularly. The first fifty times you visit, it's still fun."
"But after a hundred, two hundred, or even a thousand visits, you naturally start feeling the park's boring."
"You complain about slow updates, lack of content, or low quality, so you start looking for another amusement park to play in."
"Then one day, you find another park of the same type in your city. Overjoyed, you try this shiny new thing."
"But during your visit… you realize its rides, update speed, and quality are far inferior to the first park."
Ye Zhi paused again, stopping her keyboard inputs, and said softly, "Technology's always advancing. Right now, Genshin Impact is like that first amusement park. I hope when a true competitor emerges…"
"I hope it won't be like that second park I described…"