From Neuvillette's perspective, Furina's reaction was beyond bizarre.
First, she was a hysterical mess, desperately refusing to admit she was a fake Hydro Archon. Then, she had a sudden epiphany, as if waking from a dream. And finally, she inexplicably reached a consensus with Jibril, clinging to the Flugel girl's leg and bawling her eyes out in a display so pitiful it could move anyone to tears.
Wait... what is happening? Neuvillette wondered, his stoic mind struggling to process the scene. Weren't you two bitter enemies just a moment ago? How did you end up hugging this powerhouse and acting like long-lost sisters? Is this even logical?
Sensing Neuvillette's confusion, Jibril patted Furina's head like she was comforting a small puppy and shrugged.
"In terms of our relationship with Master, we really are family!"
"...Master?"
Hearing this word, the teary-eyed Furina looked up with curiosity. Such a terrifying Demon King actually has a Master?
Then again, Jibril had mentioned that she reached Rank 6 only because of her Master's grace. If that was the case, just what kind of monster was her Master?
"We'll talk about Master later. You'll get to know him eventually," Jibril said with a wave of her hand, having no intention of explaining further. "More importantly, let's talk about your situation. Why are you impersonating the Hydro Archon? Who forced your hand? And most importantly... who is your enemy?"
Jibril's words effectively stripped away Furina's mask for good.
Crucially, Furina didn't argue this time. Under Neuvillette's utterly shocked gaze, she thought for a moment and then whispered, "...I don't know."
"Huh?" Jibril blinked.
"?" Neuvillette's brain stalled.
He was shocked that Furina was an impostor, but he was even more shocked that she knew absolutely nothing. If you knew nothing, why did you maintain the act for five hundred years?!
"It goes like this..."
Sensing their confusion, Furina scratched her cheek awkwardly and began to recount her experiences. She spoke of the prophecy, her encounter with her "other self," and the burden she had carried.
By the time she finished, both the office and the chat group were dead silent.
[Madoka Kaname: "Furina-san's willpower is incredible... To play the part of a goddess for five hundred years without being discovered!"]
[March 7th: "Waaaaah! I didn't expect the newcomer to be so strong! I'm literally tearing up!"]
After the emotional members spoke, the more logical ones couldn't stay silent.
[Rin Tohsaka: "While Furina's persistence is truly impressive... are you telling me you have zero idea what the plan is? You don't even know how the prophecy is supposed to be avoided?!"]
To execute a plan for five centuries without even understanding its feasibility... surviving in such a state of blind faith was a miracle in itself.
[Furina: "I-I'm sorry... the 'other me' told me nothing. But it was my only hope."]
Aware of her own shortcomings, Furina lowered her head weakly. Risking five hundred years of her life on a plan she couldn't verify—looking back, it was indeed quite foolish.
She was just one "Silly Fufu."
[Rin Tohsaka: "The fact that you successfully carried out this plan for five hundred years is amazing. But what's even more amazing is the 'other you' who designed such an unreliable plan—unless the plan literally couldn't be told to anyone, I really can't fathom why she'd do this."]
Is it one of those plans that fails the moment it's spoken aloud? Rin wondered.
[Furina: "Actually, it wasn't that hard! Even though I had no one to talk to, the status of a Hydro Archon is quite nice. My daily life was quite comfortable."]
She felt she had worked hard, but not that hard. At the very least, drama and desserts had helped heal her soul.
[Rin Tohsaka: "True! If someone asked me to play god while living in a mansion and driving luxury cars, I'd do it too!"]
[Madoka Kaname: "Rin-san really doesn't want to suffer at all, does she?"]
[Furina: "So... is there a way to solve the prophecy of destruction now?"]
Having resolved to lay everything bare, Furina felt anxious when she realized she couldn't provide much useful intel from her perspective. What if even Jibril can't solve this crisis?
Sensing her anxiety, Rin Tohsaka offered a comforting reply.
[Rin Tohsaka: "Jokes aside, Furina, don't worry. Even without intel, as long as Jibril is there, a solution will present itself."]
[Furina: "Really?!"]
The blue-haired girl's eyes lit up as she looked at Jibril.
"But of course!" Jibril huffed, nodding with pride. "Prophecies are merely a branch of the Authority of Fate. And the 'other you'... she's just your divinized ego."
Jibril tilted her head, looking toward the most significant structure in Fontaine: the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale—the machine that governed judgment and the distribution of Indemnitium.
"If I'm not mistaken, the 'True Hydro Archon'—the 'other you'—should be this individual whose spiritual signature is almost identical to yours, right?"
As she spoke, Jibril opened a spatial rift in front of her and reached inside.
In the next instant, a hydro-blue claymore and a set of scales were dragged out of the rift.
"The Oratrice?!"
Both Neuvillette and Furina recognized the object immediately, their expressions full of confusion.
A second later, a goddess with blue hair, wearing divine raiment and looking exactly like Furina, was yanked out of the machine by Jibril.