Regarding the "treasure" Jeanne had suddenly fished out, Wei Yenwu felt that he was completely finished tonight; he suspected he might actually need to stay in the hospital for the next few days just to be safe.
At this moment, he was caught in a dilemma: should he honestly go back and coax his wife, or should he bolt back to the hospital, lie down, and pretend nothing had ever happened?
Wei Yenwu glanced at Shirayuki beside him. The ninja remained silent, her eyes darting back and forth between him and the villa where Madam Fumizuki sat.
"Shirayuki, let's make a deal. How about you pretend I never came here and that you have absolutely no idea what happened inside?"
Wei Yenwu knew that trying to use force to make this ninja—who was fiercely loyal to his wife—keep a secret was simply unrealistic. If she were the type to bow to pressure, she never would have been chosen as Fumizuki's personal shadow. Besides, such an extreme measure wasn't warranted for a situation like this.
Even if he went home now, it wasn't as if Fumizuki finding a card—or even finding all of his private savings—would result in her skinning him alive. At most, he'd be forced to kneel on the remote control without being allowed to change the channel. For a man of Wei Yenwu's martial prowess, that was nothing; he could probably write a report while kneeling on a keyboard without breaking a sweat.
So, negotiation was the only path forward. Wei Yenwu looked at the helpless Shirayuki with a benevolent expression, waiting for her answer. If his wife agreed to let it slide, he'd find an excuse to hide out at Old Lin's place or with that penguin for a while. At worst, he'd pretend to be ill and return to the hospital for an IV drip.
Fumizuki wouldn't give him a hard time in front of outsiders, right? She was a reasonable woman; she wasn't that kind of person.
"I apologize, Lord Wei. I can promise not to proactively inform the Princess, but if she asks, I cannot tell her a lie."
Shirayuki looked at the man who was technically her master with a look of utter helplessness. Being caught between the two of them was an unenviable position. Which one should she help? Neither choice seemed appropriate, yet she had to make a stand.
In the end, Shirayuki chose to stick to her heart and do what a ninja loyal to the Princess ought to do. There were certain things she could overlook—if the Princess didn't ask, she usually wouldn't report such trivial matters anyway. Much like that bottle of Gaulish wine she'd heard about; it fell into the category of things that didn't strictly need to be mentioned.
"I see. Then I'll trouble you to help cover for me—at least until Fumizuki brings it up herself."
Wei Yenwu glanced at the ninja. He hadn't expected her to be this loyal to him in her own way, offering him a hand at a time like this. He understood that getting Shirayuki to agree to even this much wasn't easy. She was doing him a massive favor based on his status.
However, knowing the likelihood of Fumizuki not mentioning it later was slim, he could only silently pray for some major event to occur that would distract her.
"It looks like it's getting late. I should head back now, Madam Fumizuki."
Jeanne looked at the card she had accidentally flipped over on the table and then at the darkened sky outside. She felt that issues regarding family property distribution were best left to the adults to settle; she, as a "child," shouldn't get involved.
She wondered if she had just sabotaged a couple's domestic harmony. Then again, Madam Fumizuki didn't seem that angry—she actually seemed almost... amused? Perhaps she just enjoyed having a fresh reason to see her husband's embarrassed expression. Such things were, perhaps, the spices that flavored a long-married life.
"Very well. Feel free to drop by whenever you have time. Old Wei is busy with who-knows-what lately and doesn't spend much time at home anyway. It would be nice to have someone to talk to."
Seeing that it was indeed late, Fumizuki didn't insist on Jeanne staying the night. Before heading out, Jeanne pulled a small box from her handbag—a gift she had prepared for Madam Fumizuki.
"This is a gift I prepared for you. It was a bit of a rush, and I wasn't sure what to get you. I struggled with it for a long while before remembering I had this."
Jeanne handed the gift to Fumizuki. The box wasn't large and felt quite light in her hand. After the usual polite protestations of "you shouldn't have," Fumizuki accepted the box and bid Jeanne farewell.
When Jeanne stepped outside, she found Shirayuki waiting by the car, ready to take her back as if she had been waiting there the entire time. However, a closer look revealed a slight sheen of sweat on the ninja's brow, and her breathing was heavier than normal, as if she had just finished a long-distance sprint.
Shirayuki felt lucky that the Madam had delayed Jeanne inside for a moment longer; otherwise, she wouldn't have made it back in time. She had quite literally leaped from the window of that distant room and sprinted back at top speed.
After watching the car disappear from sight, Fumizuki returned to the house and sat down, the gift from Jeanne in her hand. It was light, suggesting it wasn't an expensive item.
Fumizuki unwrapped the packaging, and a photograph was revealed. It was held within a wooden frame—the wood looked high-quality, likely purchased from a boutique shop.
The photo featured a Draco dressed in casual clothes. She was standing with her back to the setting sun, smiling at the camera. She looked like a girl without a care in the world.
This was a photo Jeanne had taken when she and Talulah were exploring Chernobog during their free time—a memento of their visit. In the photo, the girl wasn't carrying her signature greatsword, nor was she wearing the military uniform she hadn't changed out of for years. Instead, she wore a loose, long-sleeved top paired with a long skirt she would never normally wear.
Looking at her in the photo, she possessed a different aura than her usual self. Yet, the spirit reflected in her eyes still told the world she was a warrior. If one hadn't heard that she suffered from Oripathy, no one would have guessed this was a girl who had been infected for years without treatment.
"In the blink of an eye, that little thing has grown so much. It's moments like this that make me realize how much older I've become."
Madam Fumizuki traced her fingers over the image of Talulah, looking at the features that mirrored the child from all those years ago—a face that bore a striking resemblance to her parents. A gratified smile appeared on her face. Looking at this vibrant girl in the photo, she could still see the shape of hope in her eyes.
Though she didn't know exactly what the girl was pursuing, she was clearly walking the path she chose for herself, and that was enough.
"Looking at her now, that spirit in her eyes truly does resemble Edward's. If he could see this photo, he would surely be very happy."
Behind Fumizuki, Wei Yenwu—who had finally decided to come back—stared at the photo in silence. It was a long time before he finally spoke. His eyes were also filled with nostalgia. It seemed that through Talulah, he saw the shadow of her father, his former comrade.
"I thought you'd find an excuse to hide at Old Lin's or with the penguin for a while," Fumizuki said playfully, turning back to look at him.
Wei Yenwu, feeling as though his wife had just read his mind, felt a metaphorical line of cold sweat run down his face. It was a stroke of luck that he hadn't actually followed through with that plan.
"How could I? No matter what, I wouldn't go live with them. My wife is so reasonable; surely she wouldn't bar me from our own bed, right?"
Wei Yenwu smiled at his wife, trying to seize the moment to perform well and earn a bit of leniency.
"Hmph—that depends on your performance."
Fumizuki didn't pursue the topic further, returning her gaze to the photograph.
"I feel that as she's grown up, the shape of her face looks more like her mother's."
"My wife is exactly right," Wei Yenwu echoed, his eyes fixed on the girl who indeed shared the features of his own sister.
Sigh... what a cruel twist of fate.