Furina finally managed to crawl out from the pile of gifts, her blue top hat tilted to the side, and a Liyue-style silk ribbon hanging from her skirt.
She crossly brushed off the colorful confetti, and just as she was about to demand what Clorinde was up to, she froze when her gaze fell upon her.
Clorinde today... was very different.
Gone was the usual sharp and efficient Champion Duelist uniform, replaced by an elegant, deep purple velvet evening gown.
The hem of the dress draped gracefully with Clorinde's stance, outlining a full and upright figure. Her long purple hair, usually tied up simply, was now slightly curled and draped softly over her shoulders, making her cold and beautiful face seem less sharp and more rarely feminine.
Even her lips, which were always pursed into a straight line, were coated with a light, pearlescent honey-pink gloss.
What made Furina's eyes widen the most was that there were two obvious, extremely unnatural blushes on Clorinde's cheeks!
It was definitely not the healthy glow of exercise, but a crimson flush of nervousness and bashfulness that even spread to the tips of her ears!
Furina's heart skipped a beat.
Clorinde couldn't be... she couldn't be here to confess her love, could she?!
This thought was like a thorn, instantly piercing Furina's heart.
She looked at the piles of gifts that were clearly expensive, then at Clorinde, who was obviously dressed up with care.
Suddenly, a sour smell filled the room.
Sour, so incredibly sour!
Furina crossed her arms, tilted her chin slightly, and narrowed her heterochromatic eyes. Her gaze swept back and forth between the exceptionally beautiful Clorinde and the expressionless King. Her voice carried a thick sense of jealousy that she hadn't even noticed herself: "Clorinde? This outfit... and these gifts, what's the meaning of this? Is today some'special' day?"
Furina emphasized the word "special" heavily, her meaning pointed.
Clorinde didn't catch the jealousy in Furina's words at all; or rather, her entire mind was focused on King at this moment.
Hearing Furina's question, Clorinde took a deep breath and stepped forward. Her posture, ramrod straight from tension, combined with her formal attire, appeared exceptionally solemn.
Avoiding Furina's searching gaze, she faced King. Under Furina's incredulous stare, she folded her hands over her stomach and bowed deeply with a standard, impeccable etiquette that was completely at odds with her current outfit and status.
"Lord King."
Clorinde's voice was deeper than usual, with a faint, almost imperceptible tremor if one listened closely, but her tone was resolute. "Please take me as your apprentice!"
"..."
The air seemed to freeze.
Furina's mouth hung open, the jealousy in her heterochromatic eyes replaced by shock.
King's eyelid twitched. Looking at Clorinde, who was bowing low with a flushed face and burning eyes, and then at the "apprenticeship gift" that almost blocked the hallway behind her, he felt the emperor engine, which had just calmed down, show signs of starting up again.
"...I don't take apprentices."
King looked away, his tone blunt as he tried to end the topic quickly.
Clorinde had expected this. She straightened up, the blush on her face not yet faded, but her eyes even more determined.
She pointed to the mountain of glittering gifts behind her and began to list them like treasures: "Lord King, please look! These are rare items I've bought from various places. Although they may not catch your eye, they represent my sincerity."
"This 'Favonius Scabbard' crafted by a legendary Mondstadt blacksmith is said to nurture sword intent; this century-old Rock Tea from Liyue's Qiaoying Village has the effect of clearing the mind; and these ancient Meditation Incenses from the Sumeru Akademiya can help one better communicate with elemental power..."
Clorinde spoke more and more fluently, even adopting the efficiency she used when reporting missions: "If you find these worldly items useless, I myself am the best 'apprenticeship gift'."
"I can sign the strictest contract and serve my master for life, as a servant or a laborer, without any complaints. My swordsmanship is decent, and my physique can withstand tempering. No matter what martial arts my master wishes to test, or if he needs someone to handle chores and challenges, I am up to the task!"
As she spoke, she seemed to feel her words weren't persuasive enough. She took half a step back and, right there in the hallway filled with gifts, assumed a dueling swordsmanship stance, her eyes sharp: "Or, Master can test me right now! No matter how rigorous the training, I can endure it! Even if you use me as a 'punching bag' for practice, I am willing!"
Furina watched from the side, dumbfounded. The jealousy in her heart had long been washed away by this ridiculous development, leaving only a head full of question marks: 'Clorinde, wake up! You're Fontaine's strongest Champion Duelist! Where's your coldness and majesty?'
King's temples throbbed. Looking at the serious, beautiful woman before him who was going as far as recommending herself as a "punching bag," he ranted wildly in his mind: 'Your weakness is the result of hard training. My strength is the result of hard gacha draws.'
"Take an apprentice?"
"Teach what?"
"Teach you how to obtain Emotion Points?"
"Or teach you how to pretend to be a master with an expressionless face?"
"Or teach you how to make your heartbeat loud enough to shatter glass?"
His skills couldn't be copied. The Explosive Heart Release Fist and the Superalloy Blacklight Body were both directly integrated, like having a martial arts manual shoved into his brain and a steel elixir poured into his body. As for how to specifically train or teach them... he was completely clueless.
"Your path is different from mine."
King tried his best to make his voice sound profound and mysterious, carrying a sense of detachment as if the Dao cannot be easily passed on: "Forced imitation will only bring harm, not benefit."
These words reached Clorinde's ears with a different meaning—indeed, Lord King's realm had already transcended the scope of ordinary martial arts and elemental power; it was a power more fundamental, closer to the "Dao."
To think she could succeed in becoming his apprentice with just this small amount of gifts, she was indeed too shallow.
The heat in Clorinde's eyes dimmed slightly, but it transformed into an even deeper persistence. She bowed deeply again: "I understand. I was being presumptuous; one cannot force what one's realm has not reached. Then, please allow me to follow you. Even if it's just occasionally observing your every move and feeling your presence, it would be a supreme form of cultivation for me! These gifts are my advance 'apprenticeship gift' and an apology for the intrusion. Please, you must accept them!"
She pointed to the pile of gifts again, with an air of "I won't leave if you don't accept."
King: "..."
He was completely speechless. Was Clorinde really this stubborn?
How did she end up sticking to him like this?
Beside them, Furina's mood was extremely complicated.
Seeing Clorinde humble herself so much just to become stronger, even going so far as to try to get close to King at all costs, that sense of envy and faint jealousy surfaced in Furina's heart again.
She wanted to become stronger too!
If she could possess power as great as King's, would she no longer have to play a role every day, no longer have to bear the suffocating pressure of the prophecy alone?
Would she truly be able to protect her people?
But... she couldn't.
She was the Hydro Archon, Furina, the pillar of faith for the people of Fontaine. She had to always appear calm, elegant, powerful, and in control of everything.
How could she, like Clorinde, cast everything aside to seek an apprenticeship?
That would be no different from announcing to everyone: Your deity is actually a weakling who needs to seek guidance from others.
The lie she had painstakingly maintained for five hundred years would collapse in an instant.
This inner conflict, faint envy, and even a hint of jealousy felt like a kitten scratching at her heart—itchy and a bit painful. She could only stand aside with her arms crossed, watching Clorinde bravely pursue power, while she could only maintain her dignified posture as a deity. This feeling... was awful!