"Hmm... would it be better with a little pepper?"
Furina took a small sip of the soup from the dish, a hint of eagerness in her beautiful eyes.
With the five hundred years of preparation she had, cooking was no longer difficult for Furina, so... she had already started creating her own recipes.
Just as Furina was about to add a little pepper, a crisp click of a door lock sounded.
Click—
The sound was so pleasant and clear in Furina's ears, even drowning out the crackling of the stove fire and the bubbling of ingredients in the soup.
She knew that the person she had been thinking of had returned.
The young woman turned her head slightly, a gentle smile on her face; at this moment, she was like a completely different person from the night before.
One was a pure and innocent girl in love, who would blush at affectionate gestures; the other was a virtuous wife and loving mother who had been married for decades.
From Yuto's perspective, Furina at this moment was bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, her soft silver hair shining brightly, like a goddess descended from the heavens.
"Welcome home~"
Furina tilted her head, saying with a light laugh.
Looking at the young woman who resembled a virtuous wife and loving mother, a gentle ripple appeared in Yuto's eyes, and he slowly walked behind her, embracing her from behind, just as Furina had done to him that morning.
Yuto lowered his head slightly, burying his nose in Furina's neck, gently inhaling the faint fragrance emanating from her soft silver hair.
Feeling the warmth on her neck, Furina's cheeks couldn't help but flush, and she glanced at Yuto beside her, a faint smile appearing on her face.
Although she was a little shy now, shyness did not mean rejection.
She could indulge him, just as he would tolerate everything about her.
"Yuto~ How is this soup?"
"Hmm? It's great~"
"You haven't even tasted it yet!"
"Because Fufu made it herself~"
"You rascal..."
...
As time passed minute by minute, Yuto and Furina finally ended their lingering in the kitchen and their... feeding play in the living room, under Little Sanhua's watchful eyes.
Of course, the reason they stopped wasn't because they suddenly had a change of heart and realized there was a kitten watching them, but rather...
They had truly finished all the food; there was no more food left to eat.
After dinner, the two of them leaned against each other on the sofa as usual, enjoying the warm moments they had both anticipated for hundreds of years.
This warmth almost made Yuto forget what he needed to say to Furina, or rather... he, as the person involved, couldn't bear to break this warmth.
It would give him a sense of guilt.
After all... Furina had been looking forward to such an ordinary life for five hundred years, and before that, she had borne a responsibility beyond human capability...
Yuto truly felt that he should be quiet at this moment, temporarily putting those matters out of his mind and bringing them up tomorrow morning.
Just as Yuto was debating whether to explain it tonight or find time to discuss it during breakfast tomorrow morning... Furina spoke first.
She raised her head slightly, glanced at Yuto, who seemed to be deep in thought, and asked softly:
"Yuto? What's wrong? Did something bad happen at Jingshui Court today?"
Hearing this, Yuto paused slightly, then gently shook his head.
"It's not that something happened at Jingshui Court, but rather... something unexpected happened today."
"Un...expected?"
Furina adjusted her sitting posture slightly, seemingly shifting from her previous languid state to a more serious one.
"What kind of 'unexpected thing' would cause my Assistant Administrator such a headache? Do you want your Archon to help you solve your troubles?"
The young woman said this while smiling charmingly at Yuto beside her, but a hint of seriousness showed in her beautiful heterochromatic eyes, signaling Yuto to continue.
He sighed softly, then began to speak:
"Archon... it's precisely because this matter concerns you that I find it troublesome."
"Do you remember that playwright named Claude from last time? He came to find me today with that foreign Traveler..."
Over the next five minutes, Yuto recounted everything Claude had told him, allowing Furina to make her own choice.
Looking at Furina, who was deep in thought with her head bowed, Yuto sighed softly, a rare look of struggle appearing in his sea-blue eyes, and then said:
"That's why I said it's tricky, after all, this matter—"
Before Yuto could finish, Furina looked up, a hint of joy and relief in her heterochromatic eyes.
She quietly looked at Yuto, whose expression was somewhat conflicted, and smiled softly.
"I agree."
"So I said... Wait? You agreed?"
A look of surprise appeared on Yuto's face, as if he was somewhat taken aback by Furina's quick agreement.
Although from a quest storyline perspective... once Furina's Story Quest appears, this whole matter will inevitably be related to her, so she will ultimately agree to it.
But compared to the original plot...
This speed of agreement is a bit too fast, isn't it?!
The reason he hadn't mentioned Charlotte seeing them flirting on the street first was that he planned to use that to distract Little Sanhua.
After all... returning to the stage meant playing someone else again for Furina.
But she was tired of playing others; at this moment, she only wanted to "play herself," not someone else.
But now it seems...
Compared to Furina in the original plot, she now has more thoughts, and a more open mind and ideas.
Just as Yuto was pondering Furina's changes... she spoke softly:
"Are you surprised? Why would Furina, who no longer wants to play other people... choose to go on stage so quickly?"
Furina's words interrupted Yuto's train of thought. He turned his head slightly, his gaze fixed on Furina, who was smiling elegantly, waiting for her answer.
At this moment, she gently hugged Yuto's arm, leaned against him, then slowly closed her eyes and said softly:
"Because all of this... is because of you..."
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