"You claim Fontaine's trials are hypocritical and laughable—that they only brandish justice while remaining indifferent to the suffering of ordinary people."
Xia Yu looked toward Vacher. "But you do not know that the prophecy of national destruction has always been a sword of Damocles hanging over Fontaine. For five hundred years, every single move the Hydro Archon made was an attempt to find balance within the cracks."
"To suppress the Primordial Seawater beneath Fontaine, the Hydro Archon sacrificed nearly all of her divine power. You see Furina watching operas and acting all day, striving to appear carefree, and you think she truly doesn't seem like a god."
"Yet, it is precisely because of this that Fontaine remains the Fontaine of today, rather than a decaying realm living forever under the shadow of doomsday."
"You say this Opera House is ridiculous? I admit, Fontaine indeed has many areas that fall short, and many people criticize the Opera House's existence, feeling that justice cannot possibly be upheld in such an absurd place!"
"But you don't know that without this Opera House and the Indemnitium extracted from the faith gathered through these trials, forget about whether the trials are hypocritical—whether Fontaine would even exist at all is the real question!"
"You want justice, you want the truth. But for the Hydro Archon, the people of Fontaine must first survive before they have the right to discuss justice or logic!"
"For this country, the Hydro Archon sacrificed everything. She was meant to be a free and unfettered Demon God. To put it bluntly, the nations of Teyvat exist because of the Seven. She could have abandoned everyone in Fontaine. Even if you all dissolved in the water, what would it matter to her?"
"After the flood, wouldn't the land still exist? There will always be subjects; there will always be a nation. She truly cares about the people of Fontaine, laboring to suppress that water with her divine power for five hundred years! Moreover, there is little hope for liberation in the future. For a Demon God, how is this not a form of imprisonment?"
Xia Yu knew that when facing such questioning, you must never respond directly. Instead, you should kick the opponent off their moral high ground and stand there yourself to lecture those below!
The crowd below erupted into a frenzy upon hearing this.
What? Have we in Fontaine been living on the edge of a volcano this whole time?
So Lady Furina sacrificed so much for us?
The Knave lowered her head. Logically, this made sense, yet many suspicious points remained. Furthermore, suppressing a danger indefinitely without solving it was not her style.
However, Furina couldn't be a fool. The fact that she could only achieve this much over five hundred years suggested... she likely had no other choice but to stall. But who could drive one of the Seven to such a dead end?
Was there even a need to think about it?
She looked up toward the ceiling.
Despite the obstruction of the Opera House roof, her gaze seemed to fall upon that island in the sky.
Aside from the Heavenly Principles, who else could it be?
'If that's the case... perhaps Fontaine and Furina could become assets for Her Majesty the Tsaritsa. I should write a report upon my return.'
Neuvillette, meanwhile, looked at Furina. He felt this was likely the case. No wonder she appeared as an ordinary person; it turned out her divine power went toward suppressing the Primordial Seawater.
"But... if Lady Furina worked so hard, why is Fontaine's land still sinking every year?" Just then, someone suddenly stood up and asked, "Of course, I am not questioning Lady Furina! I just want to know if we have an emergency plan if we truly can't hold out anymore?"
"For example, building a massive ship, or simply transforming the entire Court of Fontaine into an unsinkable floating island!" The person's eyes sparkled with excitement. "Right, was the high wall of the Court of Fontaine built specifically to resist the flood?"
"First, regarding your last question, yes," Xia Yu nodded. "But do not hold too much expectation for that wall. It won't hold it back."
"Now, for your first question: why the land of Fontaine decreases year by year!"
At this, she stood up and scanned the surroundings. "Haven't you noticed? Your dear, respected, and passionate Lady Furina has not uttered a single word until now!"
Only then did the people of Fontaine realize that throughout this trial, it was the Shadow of the Hydro Archon speaking.
As for Lady Furina, she sat upon her throne with a gloomy face and a lowered head, so far from her subjects that no one could discern her expression.
"She is disappointed—in Fontaine, and in the people of Fontaine," Xia Yu continued loudly. "Why was Fontaine founded on justice?"
"While this is indeed the ideal of the God of Justice, it is also to maintain this fragile nation. Relying solely on the Hydro Archon's strength cannot stop the Primordial Seawater. That is the source of life's emergence on this planet; it is boundless, the blood of the world."
"As I said before, being able to resist until now relies not just on the Hydro Archon's power, but on all Fontainians! It relies on your faith and the Indemnitium converted by this Opera House!"
"Even in that precarious era five hundred years ago, when everyone in Fontaine acted with one heart, we could stabilize the entire continent."
Xia Yu let out a cold laugh. "Furina loves you and is unwilling to say it for fear of hurting your hearts. But I am different. Compared to emotion, I lean toward rationality!"
"Every year, people use the sinking land to cross-examine the Hydro Archon. But today, I ask you!"
Xia Yu threw down a heavy accusation. "If Fontaine's faith in the Hydro Archon hadn't weakened year after year, if the pursuit of justice hadn't dwindled—if bribery, corruption, collusion between officials and businessmen, and deceiving superiors hadn't tarnished the word 'justice,' leading to a yearly decrease in Indemnitium—would Fontaine have lost so much land?"
"Don't look at Furina. I made an agreement with her. Since she doesn't have the heart to do it, I will be the one to wake the people of Fontaine up!"
"According to the original plan, if Fontaine flourished, the income of Indemnitium would only increase. Even if this energy gradually entered society due to development, it should have been more than enough, rather than being as strained as it is now!"
"Are you saying we pulled Lady Furina back?" Hearing this, an old man stood up tremblingly, leaning on his cane. "Is it because some disrespected the deity that Fontaine worsens day by day?"
He looked up at Furina and spoke devoutly, "O Deity, please tell me who those blasphemers are and where they reside!"
"My old bones can't fight anymore, but my eldest son works in the Gardes, my second son is a foreman in a factory, and I have three grandsons who just reached adulthood..."
He fell to his knees with a thud. "God, as long as you point the way, everyone in my family is willing to take up arms and fight for you!"
"Just give the word!"
"Lady Furina!"
"Yes, Lady Furina! Point the way for us!"
In the Opera House, a large crowd knelt. The people of Fontaine looked toward their deity with fanatical gazes.
It must be said that theocracy has its advantages when a god truly exists and truly loves the people.
In this situation, even if Furina were just a defenseless mortal, she only needed to raise her arm, and countless Fontainians would follow her.
Such was the charisma of the Seven.
Phanes really did a good job engraving the underlying rule of "loving humanity" into the authority of the Demon Gods.
Even Furina above couldn't help herself. In such a scene, who could remain unmoved?
Even Focalors, inside the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale, felt a lump in her throat.
Among the kneeling crowd, The Knave felt extremely uncomfortable. She was, after all, a subordinate of the Cryo Archon; she couldn't kneel here. But the feeling of being the only outsider was truly strange.
"Everyone, rise," Xia Yu finally spoke. "As for where those people are? Hmph, in prison!"
"The Special Security and Surveillance Patrol arrested so many people these days. From nobles and officials to merchants, not one is innocent. Doing unjust deeds in the nation of the God of Justice—they will all receive their deserved punishment!"
"Why do I say the Hydro Archon is disappointed in you? Can't you figure it out yet?"
"Furina is already exhausted. She must maintain her divine power to suppress the Primordial Seawater, extract Indemnitium day after day to power the former and the entire machinery of Fontaine, and handle national affairs..."
"Initially, we believed a government should possess the ability to detoxify itself and maintain its own purity. If we must intervene in everything, then Fontainians will forever be infants in a cradle, unable to withstand any storm."
Xia Yu said coldly, "But you disappointed the Hydro Archon."
Yes, she was gaslighting the people of Fontaine. You must remember the Hydro Archon's great kindness!
Otherwise, what else could be done? Muddle through? Heavens, could the crisis of Fontaine's destruction be settled by muddling through? Not announce it at all? Conduct a secret trial for Vacher?
Then where was the justice? How would the grievances of the deceased victims be voiced?
Announce the full truth?
If the truth came out today, Fontaine would be destroyed tomorrow. Focalors would be dragged out of the Oratrice by the Four Shades to be dried in the sun!
Everyone had their own motives. If you did things quietly in private, others might pretend not to see. Who would look for extra work? But since it was out in the open, what could the Four Shades do?
They would have to follow official procedure.
Otherwise, if Phanes woke up and asked why Fontaine became such a mess without their intervention, how would they answer?
Xia Yu continued with a cold face, "From the day that corruption sprouted until now, we gave the people of Fontaine enough time. If you had the heart, could justice ever yield to injustice in a nation of justice?"
"Even if we take ten thousand steps back, the so-called power of those people is nothing but scrap paper before the Hydro Archon. Yet even now, no one came before the Hydro Archon to tell us of your grievances."
"Not a single person! Is Furina someone difficult to reach? You see her in the Opera House almost every day! She waits here, sitting before all Fontainians, waiting for even one person to stand up!"
Actually, there were some, like Navia... but Furina simply had no way. She was just a weak, powerless mortal.
"But no one took action. You all accepted the existence of those people and grew accustomed to it."
"Until two years ago, with the death of Mr. Callas of Spina di Rosula, Furina could no longer wait. That is why I appeared."
Xia Yu said, "For these two years, I searched from Fontaine to Snezhnaya and back, collecting countless documents and witnessing the evils they committed. Ultimately, she still held expectations for you, hoping you would wake up."
"I requested today's trial, and I requested that these matters be made public. Stop looking at Furina; she won't say anything today! You have already broken her heart!"
"But I am different. I have no expectations for you, so naturally, I won't be disappointed. Furina protected you too well for five hundred years. You are completely unaware of the external crises and do not know how hard she works to maintain this country."
"I believe all Fontainians must recognize this crisis. This is not the Hydro Archon's business alone, but a reform for which all of Fontaine must strive!"
Xia Yu announced, "For your own sakes, show some concern, Fontainians!"
Truthfully, in her past life, which legitimate national leader could use such a tone to emphasize their sacrifice and the people's lack of initiative? They would be cursed to death. But in Teyvat, Furina was not just the master of Fontaine; she was the nation's faith.
As a god, there was truly nothing wrong with her saying such things!
The people below began to boil with righteous indignation, declaring one after another that they would henceforth be irreconcilable with evil.
Focalors, inside the Oratrice, watched the surging Indemnitium and knew this was just the prelude.
After today's events spread throughout Fontaine, the reserves of Indemnitium would grow at a visible rate.
Thus, she truly couldn't figure out who this person was.
She seemed to truly know something, such as the truth of the prophecy and the fact that Indemnitium did much more than just power Fontaine, yet she didn't point out what Focalors was actually doing.
Instead, she framed Furina's powerlessness as a need to keep Fontaine from sinking... and blurred the purpose of the Indemnitium along with it.
Does she truly think so... or is she simply using this as an excuse to fool others? Focalors couldn't be sure.
She looked up at the blade she spent five hundred years forging and sighed softly.
The day in the prophecy approached. She could not afford any mistakes now, so she could only watch that person fabricate stories outside. Her heart felt as though a cat were scratching it, yet she was helpless.
'Just you wait!' She looked at Xia Yu's reflection in the water mirror. 'When that day comes, I must pull you and Neuvillette in together and ask everything clearly!'
'I will keep an eye on you from now on. If you truly intend harm to Fontaine... the blade forged over five hundred years isn't only capable of taking me away. Taking a cushion with me is more than enough!'
'Unless you are one of the Four Shades, there is no way you will escape!'
Outside, Xia Yu suddenly felt a faint, eerie gaze staring at her back.
She didn't dare turn around—truly, she didn't.
★ ★ ★