The sky was still dim as Lumine and Paimon arrived at Faruzan's doorstep.
After briefly recalling Dr. Edward's advice, Lumine raised her hand and knocked on the door.
After a long silence, Lumine and Paimon exchanged a glance. Lumine then knocked on the door again, this time with slightly more force.
Finally, there was movement from inside. Lumine and Paimon breathed a small sigh of relief—it seemed Senior Faruzan was home.
"Come on, even if you have questions, there's no need to come to my house this early," a voice grumbled. "Don't you know that old people need their sleep?"
Faruzan opened the door, yawning, her hair slightly disheveled. She had been studying mechanisms late into the night and had only just fallen asleep when the disturbance came, putting her in a foul mood.
"Honestly, which Darshan are you from? If you're here with some trivial question, I'll make sure you fail your final exams."
As Faruzan's eyes focused on Lumine and Paimon, her mind cleared slightly.
"You're not Akademiya students, are you? What do you want with me?"
"Madam Faruzan, please help us!" Paimon immediately pleaded, her eyes wide and imploring.
"You're foreigners, yet you know my name... Are you from the resistance?" Faruzan eyed Lumine and Paimon suspiciously, then shook her head.
"If you're here to recruit me, please leave," Faruzan said dismissively. "My time is precious. I have no interest in playing your little games."
"Your organization would be better off disbanding sooner rather than later. In my opinion, everything you're doing is utterly pointless."
With that, Faruzan started to shut the door, intending to go back to sleep. But the door stopped halfway, refusing to close. She glanced back and saw Lumine blocking the doorway.
"Hmph."
Assuming Lumine was about to force her way in, Faruzan snorted. A vibrant turquoise light flared around her as a sudden, strong gust of wind swirled through the air, causing the hem of her skirt to dance.
Faruzan thrust her palm forward, preparing to blast Lumine away with a wave of Anemo. But an equally powerful gust erupted from Lumine, perfectly neutralizing Faruzan's attack.
Such exquisite control over elemental power immediately made Faruzan realize Lumine's formidable strength. What astonished her even more was the complete absence of a Vision on Lumine's person.
"Wait, Madam Faruzan! Dr. Edward sent us to find you!" Paimon cried out, rushing forward to explain before the conflict could escalate further.
"Dr. Edward?"
Faruzan's expression faltered for a moment. Then, she lunged forward and grabbed both Lumine and Paimon.
"Get in, quickly."
Sensing no malice from Faruzan, Lumine didn't resist. Paimon, however, was too stunned to react. Faruzan pulled them both into the room, and the door slammed shut with a bang.
"Alright, talk. Why did Dr. Edward send you to find me?" Faruzan demanded, her eyes now fully awake. She crossed her arms and stared intently at Lumine and Paimon. "Let me be clear: if it's something too difficult, I won't agree."
She scrutinized them. "You're new faces. I'm surprised Dr. Edward would send two foreigners to find me."
Paimon silently marveled at how effective Dr. Edward's name was, then quickly explained their purpose.
"Kidnap the Great Sage Azar?"
Faruzan was utterly dumbfounded by Paimon's explanation.
She had anticipated that this matter would be complicated, but she never imagined Paimon would drop such a bombshell.
"You've got some nerve... No, wait. If Dr. Edward sent you to me, he must know about this."
"Tell me," she said, her tone serious. "What drove you to resort to such extreme measures?"
After listening to Paimon's account, Faruzan's brow furrowed.
That Akademiya personnel would actually clash with ordinary people inside the Restricted Zone—and even carry out a massacre.
Honestly, Faruzan found it hard to believe Lumine and Paimon's one-sided story. After all, she had been at the Akademiya for so long; she knew the Sages were selfish and pedantic, but she couldn't imagine them committing such a cruel act.
This was why Faruzan had opposed the Akademiya's decision to create the Restricted Zone and then neglect its inhabitants, yet had never resorted to extreme measures herself.
Although life in the Restricted Zone was harsh, the supplies provided by the Akademiya were just enough to keep people alive. Combined with aid from kind-hearted individuals like Dr. Edward, the residents could barely scrape by.
Once the first batch of medicinal herbs cultivated by the Akademiya matured, Sumeru's current conflicts would be resolved instantly.
However, Lumine and Paimon had no reason to lie about something that could be easily verified. Besides, they had mentioned that Fatui soldiers had accompanied the Matra during the operation.
Faruzan knew the Akademiya had some level of cooperation with the Fatui, but she never imagined their relationship was this close.
If what they said was true, then the Akademiya today was likely no longer the one she knew, and the Sages had become complete strangers to her.
"Alright, I agree. I'll tell you the Great Sage's whereabouts."
"I can also get you inside the Akademiya. That's the most I can do."
Hearing Faruzan's words, Lumine and Paimon were momentarily stunned. They hadn't expected things to go so smoothly; they had thought they'd need to spend a great deal of effort persuading Faruzan to help them.
In truth, Faruzan intended to use Lumine and Paimon to test Great Sage Azar. She had already been marginalized by the Akademiya—otherwise, she wouldn't be cooped up at home conducting research alone. She was just as desperate to know what was happening inside the Akademiya.
If the order to massacre those ordinary people had indeed come from Great Sage Azar, she would not stand by and do nothing this time.
"Madam Faruzan, you're as kind as you are beautiful!"
Once she recovered from her surprise, Paimon burst into cheers.
With Faruzan's help, they were confident their mission would proceed much more smoothly.
Lumine and Paimon preferred a peaceful resolution. Their goal in kidnapping Great Sage Azar was to make the Akademiya hesitate before taking action against the people in the Restricted Zone, or at least buy enough time to prevent more people from getting involved.
Storming the Akademiya would have terrible consequences. It could even allow the Akademiya to seize control of public opinion and paint them as the ones in the wrong.
"Hmph, even if you praise me, I won't help you any more than I already have."
Paimon's words had clearly lifted Faruzan's spirits. Though she spoke dismissively, the smugness in her tone was unmistakable.
Just then, Paimon suddenly recalled what Dr. Edward had told them before they left the Restricted Zone.
At the time, Paimon had assumed Dr. Edward was just joking. After all, asking Faruzan—an Akademiya scholar—to help them capture Great Sage Azar sounded utterly impossible. But now, she realized that this "Senior Faruzan" was surprisingly easy to talk to.
Finally, Paimon decided to unleash her ultimate move.
"Madam Faruzan, Madam Faruzan..."
Paimon began a 360-degree orbital call, her voice so sickeningly sweet it wouldn't need sugar even as emergency food. At the same time, her eyes widened and fluttered, radiating the adorable, dorky charm of a mascot.
"Madam Faruzan, I, Paimon, am not one for flattery! Everything I say is the absolute truth!"
"A senior as respected, knowledgeable, brilliant, and beautiful as you... From the moment I first saw you, I was completely captivated by your presence!"
"Madam Faruzan, please help us!"
Lumine felt goosebumps crawl up her arms as she listened to Paimon's speech, staring at her in disbelief.
Good grief, she thought. After traveling together for so long, only today do I realize Paimon is a total 'cutesy voice' faker.
For a moment, Lumine seriously considered abandoning Paimon and running away. The mere thought of Paimon circling her, cooing "Traveler" in that sickeningly sweet tone, sent a shiver down her spine.
"Ahem. Seeing as you're being so honest, I suppose I can help you lure Great Sage Azar over. You just need to lie in wait along the path."
"Yay! Madam Faruzan, you're the best!"
After shouting this, Paimon immediately turned to Lumine, seeking praise.
"Traveler, how was my performance? Pretty good, right?"
Lumine couldn't fathom why Faruzan had fallen for such an obvious act, but she gave Paimon a thumbs-up anyway.
Seeing Lumine's praise, Paimon's expression grew even more smug.
"Let's hurry, Senior Faruzan! We have to move before the Akademiya realizes what's happening, or everyone in the Restricted Zone will be in danger."
Faruzan nodded.
"Just a moment, you two."
With that, Faruzan quickly straightened her clothes and combed her messy hair before leading Lumine and Paimon toward the Akademiya.
-
Meanwhile, in Fontaine...
As the clock struck six, Furina, her eyes ringed with dark circles, finally succumbed to exhaustion. Her head slammed onto the desk.
Thud!
Fortunately, a thick stack of documents cushioned the impact, saving her from getting a large bump on her forehead.
Just then, the office door opened. Focalors walked in slowly, her expression one of grim determination. Two Maison Gardiennage officers followed her into the room.
The officers immediately began inspecting Furina's work. At that moment, Furina looked at Focalors as if she were gazing upon a savior.
"Focalors, you're finally here!"
"Why is time moving so slowly?!"
Furina felt like crying. In the past, when she watched the Judgments, time seemed to fly by, and the fun would be over before she knew it.
But today, she had been staring at the clock, her eyes practically boring holes into it.
Finally, it was over. Although she would have to return in the evening to relieve Focalors, at least she could relax during the day.
She had it all planned out: she would eat ten slices of cake, twenty servings of cookies, and drink thirty cups of black tea!
Then, she would have a wonderful dream on her five-meter-wide bed.
Just thinking about it reignited a spark of energy in her exhausted body, and she shot up from her seat.
Meanwhile, a pained expression crossed Focalors's face. With a workload three times longer than Furina's, she could already imagine her own despair later on just by looking at Furina's current state.
It's all that man's fault!
Focalors didn't believe in coincidences. The newly added regulation was clearly aimed specifically at her and Furina
It must have been because they were running around and slacking off during work hours recently that they caught his attention.
Damn it! If only they'd thought of the jail sentence option sooner, before the Fontaine Law was changed.
And the official reason was that, in consideration of their "outstanding contributions to Fontaine," their punishment was changed from imprisonment to overtime. But jail time would have been so much better! What kind of cruel and unusual punishment was overtime? She vehemently condemned such morally bankrupt behavior!
How blissful it would have been to mindlessly tap away at components every day without a care in the world. But that beautiful dream had been shattered by that man's own hands!
"Focalors, it's all yours now."
Hearing Furina's words, Focalors's body trembled violently. She replied in a shaky voice, "Furina, you must come back on time to relieve me."
"No problem! I'll definitely remember!"
With that, Furina headed out of the room, her steps growing lighter and more cheerful with each stride.
At that moment, Furina felt an overwhelming sense of liberation and freedom. However...
"Wait, Lady Furina, you can't leave."
"Our inspection shows your work completion is only at eighty percent. You may rest only after finishing the remaining work."
Hearing the Maison Gardiennage officer deliver the most terrifying words in a calm tone, Furina froze for a moment before immediately bolting for the door.
But just then, the towering figures of two Gardemeks appeared, completely blocking the exit.
"No! I'm off the clock! I need to rest!"
Furina desperately clawed at the Gardemek in front of her, but it remained utterly motionless. Despair slowly filled her eyes.
"Lady Furina, please return to your work."
"I—I'm sick! I can't work anymore!"
"Ten Melusine Doctors are on standby outside the room at all times. If Lady Furina requires their assistance, we can summon them all immediately."
"Of course, any time spent on medical treatment will be deducted from Lady Furina's rest time."
Furina's eyes widened.
Are you devils?!
"Does Lady Furina have any further questions?"
"No more questions. I'll get back to work immediately."
Furina tilted her head back at a forty-five-degree angle, staring at the ceiling to keep her tears from falling.
Finally, the door closed again. Furina and Focalors sat facing each other across the table, as if they had returned to the very beginning.
Focalors pondered for a moment before presenting the Fontaine Law to Furina. Furina stared at it, stunned, unable to process what she was seeing for a long time.
After an unknown amount of time, Furina suddenly looked up and let out a groundhog-like scream.
"Aaaah—!"
Her voice echoed through the room for a long, long time...