"I didn't expect it to be you picking me up. It's been a few days since we last met, Shirayuki."
As evening approached, Jeanne saw the vehicle sent for her pull up at the entrance. Standing beside it was Shirayuki, the ninja who served under Madam Fumizuki.
She wasn't carrying any visible weapons at the moment—at least, Jeanne didn't see that massive shuriken of hers. As for smaller, concealed gadgets, those were anyone's guess.
Although little Ch'en had mentioned that a driver would take her to Wei Yenwu's home, Jeanne had assumed it would be some random staff member. She hadn't expected it to be Shirayuki again. Thinking about it, she and this ninja seemed to have a bit of fate between them; how many times had they crossed paths now?
"Good afternoon, Miss Jeanne. It has indeed been a few days. I heard that you encountered some health issues; it was quite rude of me not to visit you in time."
Shirayuki remained her usual self, speaking these words of concern in a tone that was neither too cold nor too intimate. Though her voice lacked fluctuation, the genuine care behind the words could still be felt. It seemed she was another one of those characters with a "cold exterior but warm heart."
"Has news about me spread all the way there? I only slept for two days, yet you all make it sound as if my injuries were so grave I was on my deathbed."
Hearing Shirayuki say this, Jeanne couldn't help but cover her head and sigh. How did such a small incident manage to become common knowledge for so many people?
"From a medical standpoint, excessive lethargy can be a manifestation of underlying physical issues. Generally speaking, even taking sleeping pills wouldn't guarantee someone would sleep for two days and nights straight."
Seeing that Shirayuki was starting to lecture her on medicine, Jeanne quickly climbed into the car. She was terrified that if she stayed any longer, Shirayuki would give her a full-blown medical seminar.
Once Jeanne was inside, Shirayuki returned to her usual taciturn mode and quietly took on the role of a driver.
From inside the car, Jeanne waved goodbye to Lemuen, who had come out to see her off. Lately, this Sankta didn't seem to want to leave her side for even a moment. If this dinner hadn't been an exclusive invitation for Jeanne alone, Lemuen would have insisted on tagging along no matter what.
It appeared that after the recent incident, Lemuen simply couldn't feel at ease regarding Jeanne's ability to look after herself or her safety in Lungmen. However, Jeanne felt that Lemuen was increasingly associating her with her own troublesome younger sister; even that helpless little look in her eyes was exactly the same.
(Lemuen: Because you're more of a handful than my sister! At most, she just blows up a school; you almost blew up yourself along with all of Lungmen!)
"Is this Chief Wei's car? It looks rather low-key."
Jeanne observed the car Shirayuki was driving. The overall structure and interior seemed quite ordinary, showing no signs of being a vehicle for a high-ranking official. If there was anything that set it apart from the surrounding traffic, it was the reinforced protection and a few subtle designs that prevented outsiders from seeing who was inside.
"Actually, this is Madam Fumizuki's car. The Madam doesn't like to draw too much attention when she goes out. If it were too flashy, it would attract unwanted gazes and potentially lead to people tracking her movements."
While Jeanne described the car as "low-key," that was partly due to her lack of knowledge about automobiles. Her only point of reference was the one she had managed to scrap within a few days. Besides, Jeanne didn't have much interest in Originium vehicles; they couldn't even run as fast as she could.
If she were to sprint through the city with "Revelation" active, she probably wouldn't need transportation at all—she'd leave this car so far behind it wouldn't even be able to see the hem of her skirt.
"True, being too high-profile isn't always a good thing."
After reflecting for a moment, Jeanne turned to look at the scenery outside and stopped talking. Shirayuki drove in silence, focused on her work and not disturbing Jeanne's thoughts.
To be honest, when she heard Madam Fumizuki had invited her, Jeanne felt a bit nervous. Facing a friend's family was always a bit daunting for her. After all, this was the first time she was meeting a friend's elders—she wasn't quite sure how to handle it. Of course, Patriot was an exception to this rule.
Given how this family's relationships were as complex as a Mirage Tank, she wasn't sure if this was just a normal family dinner or a "Hongmen Banquet" (a trap). Even if it were a trap, she wasn't overly worried.
However, remembering what little Ch'en had told her—that if she felt uncomfortable, she should just treat it as going over for a free meal—she figured she shouldn't be that nervous. Besides, Madam Fumizuki didn't seem like that kind of person.
Amidst Jeanne's rambling thoughts, the car came to a silent halt in front of an unassuming villa.
In fact, the entire villa district consisted of such buildings. The exteriors lacked the typical opulence of a wealthy neighborhood, opting instead for a modest look. But a careful observer would notice that the layout and design of these villas weren't the work of an ordinary designer. The environment looked plain, yet it radiated an aura that felt incredibly comfortable to the eye.
Wei Yenwu's villa was located in a corner of the district, and the grounds were considerably larger than the others.
"We have arrived, Miss Jeanne."
Before Jeanne could even reach for the door, Shirayuki had already stepped out and opened it for her.
"Thank you. Actually, you don't need to address me so formally; I'm not some noble's child."
Jeanne stepped out and glanced at the building before her—a tall, two-story villa. She figured that if other merchants knew about this place, they would probably pay any price for a villa here just to get on speaking terms with the neighbors.
Jeanne looked at the architecture and mused, though she knew that was impossible. All the houses here already had owners, and none of them were interested in selling. little Ch'en had mentioned once that the owners nearby were mostly Wei Yenwu's old friends or close associates. In short, this was the area where these "old geezers" planned to retire in another decade or so.
Led by Shirayuki, Jeanne entered the house, where Madam Fumizuki was already waiting.
"I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly; I thought you might get caught in traffic. Now, child... I'll just call you Jeanne. Calling you little Jean or little Anne sounds a bit strange."
Jeanne was met by Madam Fumizuki. She had the appearance of a Forte, with a large, singular horn on her forehead, though Jeanne couldn't quite tell what her specific race was at a glance.
Madam Fumizuki was wearing an outfit similar to traditional Higashi clothing printed with dragon patterns, though it had clearly undergone some modifications. Overall, she hadn't changed much from the woman in Talulah's memories, save for appearing slightly older.
This was understandable. After all, nobody's appearance remains unchanged for over a decade—unless they were some kind of old monster, right?
Wait. Jeanne suddenly realized a problem. If she described it that way, wasn't she including herself, whose appearance never changed, in that category?
"Hello, Madam Fumizuki. Just Jeanne is fine."
Jeanne nodded slightly, but she was clearly unfamiliar with the situation. Her communication with Fumizuki was polite and proper, appearing quite formal.
At this moment, only the two of them remained in the room. Even Shirayuki had vanished somewhere after closing the door behind them.
"Child, there's no need to be so tense. Old Wei is in the hospital anyway, so it's just the two of us today. There are none of those so-called 'rules' from the outside here; just treat this like your own home."
Seeing Jeanne's restrained manner, Fumizuki warmly led her to sit down and chat, acting like a kind elder.
Fumizuki was also secretly observing Jeanne. Since Jeanne had been living with Talulah for the past few years, she could catch a glimpse of Talulah's current state through her. Although she had heard the accounts from Wei Yenwu as retold by little Ch'en, there were some things she wanted to witness with her own eyes to truly be at ease.
And seeing the Jeanne before her, Fumizuki's worries about Talulah's situation eased a bit. It was clear that Jeanne was a good child, so Talulah's current situation must be alright—she must still be a good child, too.
After chatting for a while, Fumizuki glanced at the time and said to Jeanne:
"It looks like it's about time. Let's eat first. We can continue our chat after dinner."