How can you say such cold words with a body temperature of 37 degrees Celsius?
Furina's world went black when she realized she was already in debt on her first day in prison.
A staggering nine hundred Credit Coupons! After deducting the six hundred she spent daily on cake, it meant she'd have to work herself to death for five consecutive days just to clear her debt.
And if she actually worked five days straight, she'd collapse from exhaustion!
"Um, Emily, can we talk about this?" Furina tried to negotiate.
"Look, as the Hydro Archon, I'd never welch on a debt, right?!"
"Just wait until I get out of prison. Once I'm released, I'll repay you double for the wine!"
"So, about those Credit Coupons..."
"Lady Furina, this is absolutely unacceptable!"
The girl interrupted Furina's next words, then smiled and continued, "Lady Furina, please focus on your work and repay your debt as soon as possible."
Looking at the beautiful girl before her, Furina was now utterly convinced that beneath that attractive facade lurked a terrifying demon!
"Hmph! Don't think you can manipulate me!" Furina declared loudly, her hands on her hips. "Let me tell you, Wriothesley promised to prepare a free cake for me every day!"
She couldn't cower any longer; she had to fight back!
"And how could that bottle of red wine possibly be worth so many Credit Coupons?!"
"Lady Furina, here's the receipt for the wine. You can take a look." The girl seemed to have anticipated this, immediately producing the receipt and showing it to Furina.
Furina's expression turned slightly awkward when she saw the string of zeros, but she still insisted, "I will repay every Credit Coupon. Until the debt is cleared, I, Furina, will not eat another bite of your food! I absolutely, positively will not incur any further Credit Coupon debt!"
With that, Furina whirled around and stormed out of the room, heading straight for the Welfare Meal distribution area. The girl simply watched her leave with a serene smile.
"Hmph, it's just a few cakes! I, Furina, will definitely resist this temptation!"
"Besides, yesterday's Welfare Meal was quite tasty. Maybe the cake Wriothesley prepared for me will be delicious too!"
Furina's last shred of hope shattered completely when she saw the meager Welfare Meal and a palm-sized, shriveled cake.
She shook her head vigorously, trying to reassure herself.
"It might not look great, but maybe it tastes... ugh, this is awful..."
Furina dug a spoonful of food into her mouth, her brow furrowing instantly.
"Wait, maybe the cake will be... utterly inedible..."
She took another bite of the cake, tears streaming down her face.
Objectively speaking, the cake was of average quality. But after Furina had tasted the cake made by the young girl's own hands, even the limited-edition cakes sold daily in Fontaine had lost their appeal for her, let alone this ordinary one.
"The cream is too sweet, the baking isn't done properly, and it's nowhere near as good as Emily's cakes..."
Finally, Furina returned to her room, utterly dejected.
"Welcome back, Lady Furina," a gentle, familiar voice greeted her.
Furina froze instantly, then slumped like a deflated balloon into her seat, resigning herself to defeat.
"When does Emily start work this afternoon?"
"In about an hour," the girl replied, then smiled sweetly at Furina.
"What's wrong, Lady Furina? Are you planning to work hard to earn Credit Coupons to repay me?"
"O-of course! As the Hydro Archon, how could I possibly owe you Credit Coupons? I'm not the kind of Archon who would welch on my debts!"
The girl nodded. "Then you'll have to work hard, Lady Furina. I remember you said you wouldn't eat any of my cakes until you've repaid all your Credit Coupons."
Hearing this, Furina panicked.
"Th-th-that... Emily, I was just joking earlier! Why did you take me seriously?"
"Really?"
"But Lady Furina didn't seem to be joking at all!"
A charming smile spread across the young girl's face once more, but Furina's heart sank at the sight. Whenever she smiled, it seemed nothing good ever followed.
"Lady Furina, as an Archon, you must uphold your promise and work diligently to earn Credit Coupons!"
"No, I can't! I can't live without your blueberry cakes!" Furina pleaded pitifully, all traces of her former dignity long abandoned.
"I'm deeply honored to hear you say that, Lady Furina," the girl replied. "After all, it means my craftsmanship has earned your approval. But promises shouldn't be broken lightly, you know, Lady Furina. Just focus on earning Credit Coupons for now. Or perhaps you could try the Pankration Ring—it's a faster way to earn them."
"Though I doubt the organizers would let you compete, Lady Furina. It wouldn't be fair to the other contestants..."
The mention of the Pankration Ring sent a cold sweat down Furina's back.
"Ha ha ha! I'm the Hydro Archon! How could I possibly stoop to bullying ordinary people in a place like that?!"
"My power is immense! Anyone who gets even a little too close to me would be blown away instantly!"
"Is that so? I'll test it out!"
As the girl suddenly leaned in, gradually filling Furina's entire field of vision, Furina panicked slightly and stumbled back two steps, then hastily blurted out, "Don't just suddenly get so close! It's terrifying!"
"I didn't sense any overwhelming power, and I'm perfectly fine, Lady Furina," the girl chuckled. "Even though you're the Hydro Archon, there's no need to keep such a great distance from everyone."
"You... you know nothing!" Furina retorted. "If I hadn't restrained my power in time, you would have been severely injured! Next time, don't get so close without warning!"
Hearing the girl's words, Furina felt a slight stirring in her heart, but she quickly retreated behind her hardened shell.
Making friends with everyone... The thought had crossed her mind, but she couldn't allow herself to act on it. Such behavior was unbecoming of the Hydro Archon.
What everyone craved was a lofty, exceptionally charismatic Archon—only such a deity could earn their unwavering devotion.
An Archon is inherently lofty...
"Then we'll have to rely on Lady Furina to continue suppressing her divine power!"
Just as Furina's mind began to wander, she suddenly felt someone grab her hand, causing a blush to creep across her cheeks.
"Emily, this is too dangerous! We need to maintain a safe distance!"
"Alright, alright," the girl replied dismissively, yet showed no intention of letting go. Instead, she rummaged through a nearby corner and pulled out a medical kit.
Opening the kit, Emily gently cleaned Furina's visibly swollen and reddened fingers with antiseptic.
"Lady Furina, you really need to take better care of yourself while working," Emily said. "If you get hurt, I'll have a hard time explaining it to the Duke."
Emily's touch was feather-light, yet Furina felt a chill run through her body.
She's discovered me!
Furina scrutinized Emily's expression, breathing a sigh of relief when she detected no sign of suspicion.
"This wasn't an injury from work! I got it during a battle with an incredibly powerful enemy earlier!"
"Liar."
"I was watching very carefully. Lady Furina's hands were completely uninjured yesterday."
"Ouch!"
The girl gently flicked Furina's forehead. Furina immediately clutched her forehead, letting out an adorable little yelp.
"You—you assaulted an Archon!" Furina declared with mock severity. "That's a very serious crime!"
"Heh heh heh, then will Lady Furina indict me?"
Seeing the girl's utter lack of fear as she continued to gently massage her swollen fingers, Furina felt utterly helpless.
"If you waive my debt of Credit Coupons, I'll drop the charges against you."
"Then Lady Furina should proceed with the indictment."
Now completely defeated, Furina slumped back in her chair, deflated.
"Emily, aren't you even a little curious about how I got injured?"
As soon as the words left her mouth, Furina wanted to slap herself. She could have easily bluffed her way out of this, so why couldn't she control her tongue?!
"Of course it's not strange, Lady Furina. After all, you haven't used any of your Archon's Power since entering the Fortress of Meropide."
"I don't know much about Archons' bodies. Maybe without the protection of Archon's Power, you're similar to ordinary humans?"
"Because I don't sense any difference between Lady Furina and us."
Hearing the girl's words, Furina froze in place, momentarily stunned.
A moment later, Furina snapped back to reality and quickly admitted, "You're right. I discovered that myself when I was injured back then. Even I was surprised, heh heh heh."
For some reason, a wave of guilt suddenly surged through Furina's heart.
She took a deep breath and, to divert attention, asked the girl, "Emily, I didn't realize you knew how to treat injuries."
"Wait, this won't cost me Credit Coupons, will it?"
Furina suddenly remembered something and asked anxiously, "Only a little bit. I'm nowhere near as skilled as Head Nurse Sigewinne, but these minor injuries are nothing to worry about."
"Of course it's free! Everything in the Fortress of Meropide might come with a price, but medical care is absolutely free."
"After all, staying alive is more important than anything else."
Hearing the girl's words, Furina gradually clenched her hand behind her back.
"Yes, you're right. Staying alive is more important than anything else..."
I will save everyone...
"All done! That should do it."
Finally, the girl playfully tied the gauze wrapped around Furina's finger into a neat butterfly knot.
Seeing this, Furina wanted to tell the girl not to make such a fuss over just a bit of redness and swelling. But the words caught in her throat—she couldn't bear to dismiss the girl's genuine concern.
"Be careful at work this afternoon. Don't hurt yourself again."
Hearing the girl's warning, Furina couldn't help but smile bitterly.
"I thought you'd let me rest this afternoon."
"Absolutely not! You still owe me Credit Coupons."
"Until you're unable to stand, you need to work diligently to earn them."
"What kind of remark is that? It sounds like something that should be hung on a lamppost!" Furina retorted, amused.
The two exchanged a glance and burst into laughter.
Furina was beginning to think life in the Fortress of Meropide might not be so bad after all...
In the Duke's office, Wriothesley frowned as he reviewed the detailed investigation reports on the girl.
It wasn't that he had discovered any problems, but rather that he hadn't discovered any at all.
Both the girl and the members of the Mutual Aid Network behaved with perfect normalcy in their daily routines.
It was precisely this normalcy that had reassured him enough to arrange for the girl to be Furina's roommate.
Not only could she help Furina adapt to life in the Fortress of Meropide more quickly, but she could also serve as Furina's bodyguard when necessary. Even Wriothesley had to acknowledge the girl's formidable abilities.
But was it truly just to prepare a gift for Furina that the girl had recently learned to bake cakes?
Hmm... something feels off.
Based on his understanding of her personality, she didn't strike him as the type to become particularly attached to Furina.
In fact, when he initially approached her for help, he had even prepared for the possibility of being rejected.
"I'll keep a closer eye on her these next few days," he murmured. "The Hydro Archon Furina won't be staying in the Fortress of Meropide for long. I hope I'm just overthinking things..."
Just then, Wriothesley heard the downstairs door suddenly open, followed by a series of light footsteps ascending the stairs.
Hearing the footsteps, Wriothesley immediately ruled out the possibility that they belonged to anyone on his side. He tugged at his fingerless gloves, a relaxed smile spreading across his face, and instantly prepared for combat.
However, when Furina's figure appeared at the top of the stairs, his eager expression instantly morphed into one of utter resignation.
"Wriothesley, I have something very important to discuss with you!"
"P-pardon me, Your Grace," a guard stammered, appearing behind Furina shortly after. "Lady Furina forced her way in. We couldn't stop her."
Two guards appeared shortly after Furina, their heads lowered, not daring to meet Wriothesley's gaze.
Wriothesley shook his head gently. After all, given Furina's status, few would treat her as an ordinary person. It wasn't that they couldn't stop her; they simply didn't dare.
Of course, Wriothesley wasn't unreasonable enough to force others to choose between him and Furina as the "true ruler." With a wave of his hand, he dismissed the guards and turned to Furina, asking with a hint of exasperation:
"Lady Furina, what urgent matter compelled you to force your way into the Duke's Office to see me?"
Upon hearing Wriothesley's question, Furina crossed her arms defiantly, tilted her head back dramatically, and declared in a loud voice, "I, Furina, the Hydro Archon Focalors, demand payment!"
Wriothesley stared at Furina, a large question mark slowly forming above his head.