As usual, Lin Yide sat at his desk, busy dealing with a mountain of official duties. Suddenly, space rippled, and Columbina appeared out of thin air within his sight. "Yide, the Raiden Shogun's Gnosis is in your hand, isn't it?"
Lin Yide extended his hand, revealing a purple Gnosis quietly suspended above his palm. Columbina tilted her small head slightly, falling into brief contemplation. "So, what do you want in exchange?" As soon as her words fell, she seemed to remember something else and quickly added, "There's no Mora left."
Lin Yide didn't lack Mora, so he naturally wouldn't ask this self-serving "corrupt official" for it. He fell into thought, and after a long while, he slowly spoke, stating his request. "I need to obtain information about all future actions of Dottore, Rosalyne, and Tartaglia."
After hearing this, Columbina gently shook her head. "Regarding Dottore's actions, I can reveal them to you. But Rosalyne and Tartaglia's missions are to obtain Gnosis for Her Majesty the Tsaritsa; I cannot disclose information about those to you."
Lin Yide continued, "I can guarantee that the Gnosis will eventually fall into your hands. The only difference might be that the process will be slightly more convoluted." Columbina was clearly hesitant. Lin Yide continued to raise the stakes. "If you are willing to accept a few more small suggestions from me, in the future, I will also give you the Hydro Archon's Gnosis."
Hearing this, Columbina agreed without hesitation. As long as they could gather the Gnosis, sacrificing the action information of Dottore, Rosalyne, and Tartaglia was undoubtedly an extremely cost-effective deal for Snezhnaya.
After the negotiation, Columbina suddenly remembered something and said to Lin Yide, "Oh, by the way, Director Yide, Dottore has temporarily abandoned his plan to assassinate you."
Upon hearing this, Lin Yide couldn't help but feel a little down. "Why is that?"
Columbina explained, "That guy is working on a new project in Sumeru recently and doesn't have the energy to come assassinate you anymore." Lin Yide knew in his heart that Dottore's so-called new project was the "God Creation Plan." However, this project was currently missing a key material—Thunderclap. So, how was this guy carrying out this project?
"Do you have any specific information about this project?" he asked Columbina, hoping to learn more details. After some careful thought, Columbina seemed to suddenly recall something. Her brow furrowed slightly, and a look of unconcealed disgust appeared on her face. "That pervert, he actually turned one of his young segments into a puppet similar to Thunderclap." Hearing this news, Lin Yide's face also showed deep disgust. Dottore's perversion had surpassed normal imagination.
...
After leaving the West Factory building, Columbina went directly to Furina's official merchandise store. When she reached the store entrance, a smiling shop assistant had already enthusiastically come forward to greet her.
The shop assistant respectfully handed the exchanged Fontaine bank card to Columbina and said politely, "Beautiful lady, I am deeply honored to serve you. I wish you a pleasant day." Just as Columbina took the bank card, Choji Sakura, who had been waiting for a long time nearby, eagerly came over.
She enthusiastically recommended, "Esteemed young lady, I heard you purchased many figurines of Lady Furina. You must know, the best place to display these figurines is undoubtedly the seaside villa at Fudé Garden. If it is convenient for you, I sincerely invite you to visit with me."
Columbina thought for a moment, then gladly accepted Choji Sakura's invitation. Subsequently, led by Choji Sakura, she toured a villa located by the sea. The interior decoration style of the villa greatly appealed to Columbina. She didn't even ask the price before unhesitatingly taking out her bank card and buying it.
After Choji Sakura left, Columbina summoned the large snakeskin bag from her spatial inventory, and then, filled with joy, she carefully displayed her "little angels"—the Furina figurines—one by one. Every time she saw these figurines, a sense of inexpressible joy and accomplishment would well up in her heart. A sudden inspiration flashed in her mind: what a delightful scene it would be if this villa were filled with figurines!
After spending a week of pleasant time in Fudé Port, Columbina left this place she was reluctant to leave, filled with regret. Meanwhile, the puppet body Raiden Ei meticulously crafted for Saiguu was already complete.
In Yae Miko's villa, Lin Yide began his delicate and complex operation—completely separating Saiguu's will from the defilement. However, this work was far more difficult than Lin Yide had anticipated. Because the two had become almost inextricably mixed into a single entity, with each part containing the other, like mud mixed with flour. And what Lin Yide had to do was separate the flour from the mud.
After several attempts, he had to halt his work. If he continued to use a crude separation method, it was highly likely to cause irreparable damage to Saiguu's will. Such a result was clearly unacceptable to him.
Yae Miko asked, her face filled with worry, "What's wrong?"
Lin Yide frowned slightly and replied, "There's been a small hiccup. The separation of Senior Saiguu and the defilement needs to be put on hold for a while." Hearing this news, both Yae Miko and Raiden Ei couldn't help but show disappointment. Seeing this, Lin Yide comforted them, saying, "Don't worry, I will definitely find a way to solve this problem." His words slightly calmed their emotions.
After a while, Saiguu slowly woke up. Since she had already sensed everything that had happened, she did not appear overly disheartened. She said calmly to Lin Yide, "Director Yide, there's no need to rush. I believe you will always find a solution." Lin Yide nodded affirmatively.