After a brief period of hesitation, sadness, helplessness, and pain, Furina wiped the tears from her eyes, placed Little Sanhua back into her cat bed made of discarded documents, and left Yuto's office.
She knew very well that she was not a God; like all living beings in this world, she had to wipe away her tears after a brief breakdown, raise her head again, and continue moving forward.
Because time would not stop for her breakdown; she had to move forward, whether for her life or the responsibilities on her shoulders, she had to do so.
She knew very well that Neuvillette seeking her out at this time... was definitely not a good thing.
The reason was simple: if he had truly found information related to Yuto... then it wouldn't be Sedna notifying her, but the Golden-haired Traveler.
On the contrary... he might also be coming to question her about Yuto's matter.
Thinking of this, Furina rested her small head on her knees, sat on the edge of the bed with her head tilted, and watched the falling rain outside the window, contemplating her strategy for tomorrow—
—just like an actor about to go on stage organizing their lines.
Furina merely appeared a bit exaggerated and somewhat silly, but this didn't mean she was truly foolish; on the contrary, her thoughts were meticulously detailed to a degree that ordinary people could hardly match.
Perhaps even Furina herself didn't know that after the Lesser Lord Kusanali, far away in Sumeru, learned of the five hundred years of responsibility she bore... she praised her as a "Person of Wisdom."
The wisdom personally acknowledged by the God representing wisdom... its value naturally goes without saying.
Furina thought about the points Neuvillette might use to question her, then began to weave her words.
"If it's about the public's recent reactions, I'll use my old rhetoric: that what a God does does not require mortal approval."
"It's always been this way; did the Raiden Shogun of the Inazuma Shogunate get her people's permission before enacting the Vision Hunt Decree?"
"I am Focalors, the God who will break The Prophecy; I am saving Fontaine. If I don't speak, I naturally have my reasons."
...
After nearly half a night of contemplation and organization, Furina drifted off to sleep, filled with both confidence and unease.
She had spent almost every night like this for the past five hundred years.
She was the sole actor on this stage called "Fontaine and The Prophecy"; she knew that no one in the audience was watching her performance, but she couldn't show even the slightest flaw.
No one knew the consequences of revealing a flaw, and no one knew what kind of ending all of this would lead to.
But how easy was it to be flawless?
One must know that even Fontaine's most professional stage actors needed three to four rehearsals before each performance to achieve "not many flaws."
Yet, Furina had to spend less than three hours of personal time each day thinking about how she would perform tomorrow and summarizing what went wrong today.
This led to her being in this contradictory state every day.
The confidence stemmed from the new effectiveness of her preparations, while the unease was fear of new unforeseen circumstances.
In a sense... although Furina didn't often perform on stage, she was indeed a household name in Fontaine.
Because... on this lonely stage, she had performed 182,376 acts in the most perfect manner; she truly deserved this title.
...
Perhaps because something was on her mind, Furina woke up exceptionally early today.
She skillfully tidied her somewhat disheveled hair, picked up her staff, and then quietly sat on her small bed, waiting for her usual wake-up time to arrive.
As a God, she naturally couldn't disrupt her routine just because she had a meeting with the Chief Justice today; in her opinion, that was abnormal.
Of course... if Yuto had scheduled an earlier meeting, she might have considered more factors to meet him as early as possible.
However, he had never done so.
As time passed little by little, Furina finally waited until her usual wake-up time, then walked out of her room with a sense of ease, heading purposefully towards Neuvillette's office.
—God Impersonation Rule No. 12: As a God, one must keep their promises.
She symbolically knocked on Neuvillette's door, then naturally pushed it open and walked inside.
Seeing Neuvillette sitting upright, Furina showed no surprise, but she still had to feign astonishment.
Because this was her consistent "persona"; as long as she maintained this persona... she could accomplish everything.
"Hmm? Neuvillette, didn't you have something to discuss with me? Why are you so tense?"
Furina tilted her head, looking at Neuvillette, who had slowly risen from his seat, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes.
Neuvillette gazed deeply at Furina before him, then slowly closed his eyes and asked:
"Ms. Furina, today's matter concerns The Prophecy and related clues. I think... these matters are indeed serious enough."
Hearing this, Furina nodded knowingly, then retorted in an annoyed tone:
"You haven't been listening to those rumors from the common folk outside, like 'Furina is helpless against The Prophecy,' have you?"
"I've made it very clear: I have my own way regarding The Prophecy. One day you will know the content of the plan, but definitely not now!"
Neuvillette looked at Furina, who seemed somewhat displeased, sighed silently, then continued:
"As the Chief Justice of Fontaine, I must remind you, Ms. Furina."
"Until the matter is concluded, all our excuses are meaningless."
At this point, Neuvillette paused slightly, then directed his words at Furina's sore spot.
"Mr. Yuto has already paid the price because of your scheme. To this day... neither the Fatui, nor the Spina di Rosula, nor Palais Mermonia, have received any news about him."
"Although after that day's investigation... we can confirm that Mr. Yuto did not dissolve in Seawater, but..."
"What if this happens a second time?"
Neuvillette's voice remained calm, but... its meaning was self-evident.
Hearing this, Furina first froze, then lowered her head and fell into thought.
Of course, she knew that Yuto was paving the way for her, that he wanted to help her solidify her prestige among the people, but...
How was she supposed to explain all of this?
To say that the plan wasn't hers? Wouldn't that make Yuto's efforts in vain?
And wouldn't that also push her into the fire pit of "proving the plan's existence"?
To say it was an unexpected accident even for her? Would the people still believe her then?
After all, if her own plan had harmed the Assistant Administrator closest to her, wouldn't it be completely over?
Furina thought for a long time, but she couldn't come up with an explanation for this point.
—Because those statements would either harm her or harm Yuto, or even fail to protect either.
Thinking of this, Furina took a deep breath, then began to use her most accustomed method to avoid the point.
"I said! I am the God of Fontaine! I am Hydro Archon Focalors! My plan does not need to be explained to you!"
"It's fine if they don't believe me, but Neuvillette, why don't you believe me either? Why?!"
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