"Sigh."
Charlotte exhaled heavily. The Maison Gardiennage had clammed up completely; no matter how she tried to pry information, they didn't let slip any clues.
Yet the existing evidence suggested they'd also discovered the victims might have been manipulated. Therefore, the higher-ups had issued a gag order to the security forces.
Without Lyney's intel, Charlotte was certain she wouldn't have uncovered the potential truth before the security forces. She couldn't help but acknowledge how crucial it was to have an exceptional intelligence organization like the Fatui to gather clues for her.
Next, Charlotte decided to try her luck with Furina. She knew a gag order would never work on Furina, so she might get some unexpected results.
Soon Charlotte arrived at Furina's residence. However, before she could even identify herself to the Maison Gardiennage and obtain entry permission, she saw Furina running out with a terrified expression.
Strange?
Charlotte had never seen such an expression on Furina's face before. She immediately sensed this must be big news, so she quickly moved forward to block her path.
"Madam Furina, why are you so panicked? Did something happen? Could you spare me a moment for an interview?"
Charlotte abandoned all journalistic dignity, firing off her questions like a machine gun while still running.
But what Charlotte didn't expect was that Furina's face would suddenly fill with immense terror upon seeing her.
"Don't come closer!!!"
In front of Charlotte's stunned gaze, Furina turned around and fled back inside at even greater speed.
Charlotte suddenly found herself intensely questioning her appearance. Could I really be that ugly?!
When Clorinde returned from the Maison Gardiennage with documents in hand, Furina finally found her safe harbor. She shrank into Clorinde's broad embrace, sniffling and tearful.
After hearing the full account, Clorinde's brow furrowed deeply. She summoned the Maison Gardiennage to conduct further inquiries.
Their investigation concluded that the mastermind behind the horrifying suicide performance in front of Furina was highly likely the serial suicide case culprit. The behavior exhibited was simply too bizarre.
Though no corresponding messages matching the bloodstained letters were found on the suspects, Clorinde's return from the Maison Gardiennage brought alarming news - every detail in the bloodstained letters now matched perfectly.
This chilling discovery meant two possibilities: either the killer had temporarily ceased operations, or they would escalate to even more horrific crimes.
What Clorinde never anticipated was that the moment she stepped away, Furina became the target of a new threat. This time, the killer's aim was nothing less than Fontaine's Archon!
What a brazen act of blasphemy!
Though Clorinde desperately wanted to apprehend the culprit as soon as possible, her duty lay with Furina. The most pressing task now was to comfort Furina and prevent further harassment from the killer.
"W-w-wah, C-Clorinde! I-I can't breathe!"
Hearing Furina's choked sobs, Clorinde froze momentarily before relaxing her tense body, which had been rigid with anger.
"My apologies, Lady Furina."
"It's fine..."
Furina drew in a deep breath, but before she could finish speaking, a button from Clorinde's chest flew open, revealing a grandeur she could never hope to attain. The button then landed squarely on her cheek with a firm kiss.
"Wah..."
Strangely, though the button's impact wasn't painful, Furina felt even more heartbroken.
"My deepest apologies, Lady Furina..."
Now even Clorinde didn't know how to comfort Furina.
-
"Tsk tsk, her defenses are quite impressive."
Lofan observed the tight security around Furina's residence and immediately abandoned any plans to scare her again. With this level of vigilance, he'd need to exchange for significantly stronger abilities to breach the defenses successfully. But his points were crucial for future operations—he couldn't waste them recklessly.
"Still, it doesn't matter. The points from earlier incidents should suffice for now. Let Miss Furina rest for a while."
Though he'd already marveled at the scheme's efficiency, Lofan couldn't help but exclaim again: tormenting Furina was truly too profitable!
These recent incidents lacked the spectacle of tens of thousands of witnesses, yet the point rewards remained nearly as substantial. It was pure profit!
The points gained from these Furina scares nearly doubled his previous earnings, yet the effort required was exponentially less.
"Pity Furina is merely Fontaine's mascot. In another country, she'd likely yield even greater rewards."
"Let's take a look at the system's newly unlocked feature."
Lofan's total points had now exceeded 30,000, unlocking a new system feature that allowed him to adjust various aspects of the body he obtained through exchanges. This included modifying the proportions of wealth, power, strength, and even selecting his starting location, though this came at the cost of triple the original point expenditure.
This significantly expanded Lofan's operational flexibility and would be crucial for executing his upcoming plans.
Lofan carefully examined the new feature, realizing the system had quantified different quality bodies into numerical values. Each body possessed distinct point allocations, which could be distributed across various attributes.
For instance, a ten-point body only had one allocation point. If randomly assigned to physique, it would result in a slightly stronger build. If allocated to wealth, it might grant a small amount of initial funds. If assigned to power... well, perhaps becoming the child king of Fleuve Cendre?
Moving on to a three-hundred-point body, the allocation points increased to ten. This made such a body noticeably more advantageous compared to the ten-point version.
Next was a body worth a thousand points—a value Lofan had never before exchanged. Yet it came with a full twenty points to allocate!
If the system randomly distributed these points, the body might oscillate wildly between identities like petty merchants, minor clerks, and obscure adventurers.
It's worth noting that manually customizing facial features and selecting a rebirth location each required one fixed point. Other choices, such as race and gender, also demanded corresponding point expenditures.
Though this seemed complex at first, the actual process proved straightforward. The system displayed updated stats immediately after allocating points.
Lofan's ultimate goal remained the God Body priced at ten million points—an immortal form capable of effortlessly reshaping mountains and seas. Just contemplating it filled him with awe.
The spatial gateway connecting worlds also required ten million points. The path to accumulating enough points stretched endlessly before him!
Despite having only 30,000 points currently, which he expected to exhaust soon, Lofan felt no discouragement. Even without reaching his ultimate goal, he'd already gained immense joy!
Moreover, he still had Furina, not to mention Barbatos, Morax...
Whenever Lofan thought about the gods of Teyvat, he brimmed with confidence!
"Those people above should be reaching their limit soon."
Anticipating the impending wave of points, Lofan couldn't help but chuckle. With that, he deliberately crashed into the wall outside Furina's residence and perished.