Hello I'm back, thy leg is healed but I don't have molars anymore.
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"Good morning," Victor Wang greeted the tardy Furina.
"Good morning," Clorinde greeted the tardy Furina.
"Good morning—what's so good about it?! Not good at all!"
With faint dark circles under her eyes, Furina scratched at her painstakingly styled hair in frustration, the pent-up anger impossible to swallow.
"I already publicly admitted that those measures were meant to deal with the prophecy, and yet there are still so many reporters crowding outside the Palais Mermonia every single day, asking this and that, this and that!"
Victor Wang soothed her, "It is the prophecy, after all. Give it some time—once the heat dies down, those reporters won't be this relentless."
"Fine, I can tolerate those reporters. But what about the especially outrageous ones? Someone actually tried to rappel down from the roof of the Palais Mermonia and interview me through the window! That's a complete invasion of my personal privacy, isn't it?!"
"Huh…?"
"It happened last night! In the middle of the night, no less! A face suddenly plastered against the window of such a tall building! Hey—can it get any more absurd than that?! If I hadn't had the foresight to ask Clorinde to temporarily move in and stay with me, I—I almost—I almost had an instinctive reaction and wiped that person out on the spot!"
Clorinde nodded in agreement. "That's why I truly dislike reporters who lack any sense of boundaries."
"Right? And I remember you barely slept at all after that. How can you still say 'good morning'? What's good about it? It's obviously not good at all!"
"Lady Furina, if you wish to complain, you should complain to the perpetrator. I was simply carrying out my duty."
"Oh right—how's the culprit now?"
"They departed quite peacefully. After being apprehended last night, they were sent directly to the Fortress of Meropide without trial. They should already be undergoing reform now."
"Hmph. Serves them right!"
Furina planted her hands on her hips and vented a heavy breath, only then gradually calming down.
Then she turned to Clorinde and asked, "That said, ever since I called you over, you haven't properly slept for several nights in a row, have you?"
"This is my responsibility."
"It's not your responsibility alone…" Furina glanced at Victor Wang thoughtfully. "I'm considering having Victor stay overnight at the Palais Mermonia as well. The two of you can take turns. That way, you'll be able to rest properly."
"Lady Furina, with all due respect, that may cause various inconveniences. My physical condition is fine—being a bit tired doesn't matter."
Furina stared at Victor Wang. "I mean having him temporarily stay on the rooftop of the Palais Mermonia. What do you think?"
Clorinde also turned her gaze to Victor Wang, evaluating him seriously. "In that case, it really would be an excellent idea."
The person in question pointed at himself. "Me… staying on the rooftop of the Palais Mermonia…?"
"This is a serious matter. We can't have Clorinde exhausting herself every single night."
"I don't really mind…"
"Huh? I thought you'd resist at least a little… So, it's settled, then?"
Victor Wang nodded calmly. He had his own guards anyway—guards that didn't need sleep. Night watch duties were perfectly suited for Little Wen.
"Ahem. In that case, let's discuss today's action plan. Because of those fanatical reporters outside, this is already the eighth day I've been holed up inside the Palais Mermonia without stepping out. Eight whole days! I'm about to suffocate, so today, no matter what, I'm going out for a walk!"
"What's the plan?" Clorinde asked.
"The old method—disguise! As Fontaine's most popular superstar, my experience sneaking out in disguise is far beyond ordinary people. Just tie up my hair and tuck it into a hat—though I'll need to switch to a different hat later—then put on a pair of sunglasses, wrap myself tightly in a high-collared coat, and absolutely no one will recognize me!"
After vividly describing her disguising expertise, Furina continued, "But I'll still need one guard. Victor's been on the job for a short time, and most people only know that Clorinde is my guard. So Clorinde will stay at the Palais Mermonia to maintain the illusion that I'm still here, while Victor accompanies me outside. Any objections?"
Both nodded.
"Heh heh. Luckily, I have a storage room at the Palais Mermonia specifically for performance props. Victor, come with me right now."
…
"Sherlock Holmes' coat, Sherlock Holmes' hat—my treasured Sherlock Holmes set finally gets to shine. It's a pity this set doesn't include glasses, so I'll pair it with these oversized sunglasses from who-knows-which role. Well? Can you tell it's me?"
"It's… passable."
"What do you mean passable? This is clearly perfect!"
She admired herself from left to right in the mirror twice before turning her attention to Victor Wang. "You need to change your look too. Do you know why I called you over? What you're wearing right now is far too conspicuous."
"Me?" Victor Wang silently pulled up the hood of his cloak. "Actually, just like this, ordinary people won't recognize me."
"What are you talking about? The pattern on the front of your hood is even more eye-catching now! No, no, that won't do!"
"You can see it because your perception is abnormal."
Furina glared. "What do you mean by that?"
"…Never mind. Then I'll just take off the cloak."
As he spoke, Victor Wang grabbed the cloak and stowed it away into the Inner Space. Startled by the sight, Furina's eyes widened even further. "Th-This… is this some kind of magic?"
"This is Liyue adeptal art."
"So that's how it is… hehe. I knew it was Liyue adeptal art."
"..."
"Without the cloak, your clothes are actually quite plain. You look just like an ordinary adventurer. But that mask is still too conspicuous."
"Give me a moment."
Victor Wang turned aside. As he removed the fox mask, he brushed his hand across his face, and a dark yellow Geo construct mask formed instead, covering the three remaining extra eyes on his forehead.
But Furina was still dissatisfied. "I thought you were going to take it off, but you just changed it. It's still very eye-catching… if anything, this one looks even more ornate than the fox mask."
Victor Wang brushed his hand across it again, and the dark yellow mask turned pure black—something like what an anonymous night hero might wear.
"Uh… do you really have to wear a mask?"
"I need to cover my forehead."
"If you only need to cover your forehead, why not try a headband?"
"A headband?" Victor Wang froze.
"Yeah. A lot of adventurers wear headbands, and plenty of ordinary people do too. If you switch to a headband, it shouldn't stand out much."
"How did I not think of that…"
Not having to wear a mask all day… a headband… even a forehead protector would work. Find a headband, embed a bright silver plate, draw a symbol, then change the cloak's pattern to black with red clouds—at that point, I could go cameo in another world directly.
Unfortunately, Victor Wang hadn't prepared any of those things.
Seeing him momentarily dazed, Furina rummaged through boxes and cabinets, eventually pulling out a dark blue headband and handing it to him. "Here. I don't know which role this belongs to either. Just take it and use it."
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