"Duke, how are you feeling now?" Sigewinne asked.
Wriothesley nodded in response. "I've almost fully recovered. The Head Nurse's medicine worked wonders."
"Next time, please don't take such risks," Sigewinne cautioned. "If anything were to happen to you, Neuvillette would never forgive me."
Recalling the earlier events, Wriothesley added, "Actually, I don't think I would have been in any danger even if you hadn't intervened."
Sigewinne smiled. "Because Miss Emily clearly had the situation under control, yet she refrained from taking any drastic action against the Duke, didn't she?"
"As for what you have been experiencing recently, could you reflect on whether you might have provoked the other party's anger somewhere?" Sigewinne suggested.
Hearing her words, Wriothesley couldn't help but recall recent events. It seemed she was right.
Initially, he had believed he had the situation completely under control, even resorting to verbal threats and provocations against the young woman. From that moment onward, his peaceful tea time was never peaceful again. And today's incident was initiated by him summoning the Gardemeks to ambush her.
But the situation couldn't be viewed so simply. He refused to believe the murder today had nothing to do with her. After all, a single glance at the scene was enough to identify the murderer.
Moreover, Neuvillette still hadn't arrived at the Fortress of Meropide. This was likely also connected to her.
Without understanding the young woman's true motives, if he failed to act decisively, the situation would inevitably spiral into disaster.
"Perhaps..." Wriothesley replied, then suddenly remembered something and spoke again.
"Wait a minute, I specifically instructed everyone not to tell you about these matters. How did the Head Nurse become so well-informed?"
"Could it be... that time someone brought me tea with an excessive amount of milk, was that you, Head Nurse?"
"I know absolutely nothing!" Sigewinne said innocently, her gaze drifting elsewhere.
Wriothesley rubbed his forehead. Good grief, Sigewinne is the biggest mole of them all!
"Direct contact with her is far too dangerous," Wriothesley said, a hint of lingering fear in his voice. It was clear the girl had met with Sigewinne before. If anything were to happen to Sigewinne, he wouldn't be able to explain it to Neuvillette.
Neuvillette had entrusted Sigewinne to him with such unwavering trust. Even if it meant sacrificing his own life, Wriothesley wouldn't let a single hair on her head be harmed.
Hearing Wriothesley's words, Sigewinne shook her head.
"I don't think so."
"Duke, you remember, don't you? We Melusine have a special kind of vision that allows us to see the true nature of things more clearly."
"Although I can't quite understand Miss Emily, most of the members of the Mutual Aid Network are good children."
"And the Miss Emily they admire, I believe she wouldn't do anything truly terrible."
"But she killed someone today," Wriothesley emphasized, stating the stark fact.
"I don't know the full story, but I imagine Miss Emily had her reasons."
"Just like you, Duke, using force doesn't necessarily mean she intends harm."
"Let's wait a little longer and see what Miss Emily is planning?"
Wriothesley shook his head.
"I need to go back. I can't trust these people with that place."
"And the remaining Gardemek need to be destroyed. We can't let such dangerous machines fall into their hands."
Wriothesley cracked his knuckles, producing a dull thump.
"Though it grates on me, I suppose I'm out of the game for now. Once I've destroyed all those Gardemeks, I'll see what she's up to."
"Still, this fight was the most exhilarating I've ever had. Dealing with those unchained Gardemeks last time was just a warm-up."
"If the Duke gets captured again this time, there's nothing I can do."
"Hah! I was tricked last time, but I won't give them another chance."
Just as Wriothesley was preparing to settle the score, an alarm blared from his wrist device.
His face darkened instantly. He pulled out the device, his expression incredulous, and checked the alert.
The device was linked to the massive valve. When the valve's indicator reached the red zone, the alarm would sound.
Just moments ago, the valve's indicator had barely passed the halfway mark. For it to surge into the red zone so quickly, Wriothesley refused to believe no one was meddling inside.
"Damn it! Their target is the Forbidden Zone's valve!"
Wriothesley surged toward the Forbidden Zone, his body a blur of motion. Sigewinne, her face etched with anxiety, hurried after him.
"Duke, is there something terrifying beneath those water valves?" she asked.
"Primordial Sea Water," Wriothesley replied tersely, his voice tight with urgency as he moved swiftly. "They aim to release the suppressed Primordial Sea Water, to force the Prophecy to unfold prematurely!"
The gravity of the situation erased any trace of levity from their faces. Sigewinne strained to keep up, while Wriothesley deliberately slowed his pace, fearing she might encounter unforeseen dangers.
Wriothesley's heart clenched as he thought of the Ark, still unfinished despite the frantic overtime efforts of his construction teams.
Though more efficient modular construction methods had recently been proposed, time was running out.
If only I had a little more time... Was this also part of their plan?
Meanwhile, Tartaglia had been searching the vicinity of the room for quite some time, but he couldn't find any of his subordinates. Just as he was hesitating whether to look elsewhere, he suddenly felt the pull calling to him growing stronger.
At that moment, the Vision on Tartaglia's body began to flash with a deep blue light. He felt the Hydro Element within him threatening to erupt once again.
Tartaglia immediately removed the Vision, wrapped it in cloth, and stashed it in another pocket.
To Tartaglia, the Vision was merely a convenient tool for combat. When a tool became cumbersome, discarding it wasn't a difficult decision.
Of course, his immediate priority was to understand the source of this persistent call.
"It seems to be... this way."
Tartaglia had taken only a few steps when he suddenly remembered something. He returned to the table, left a note instructing his subordinates to carry on as usual and await his further orders, then swiftly moved in the direction he sensed the pull originating from...
-
Back at the Judgment, Furina's words took everyone by surprise, even the young woman herself seemed momentarily stunned.
Regaining her composure, the young woman shook her head, a hint of helplessness in her voice.
"Lady Furina, you're truly kind."
"Why won't you voice the answer you already know?"
"In the Fortress of Meropide, only four individuals possess the capability to create a crime scene like this."
"Monsieur Tartaglia is unconscious in the infirmary, immediately ruling him out."
"The Duke remained in his office all morning, never leaving."
"And you know perfectly well this has nothing to do with you."
"Even without these superficial pieces of evidence, you should have been able to deduce the true culprit."
"That's right. I am the one who did this."
The moment the words left her lips, disbelief swept through the crowd. Charlotte's grip faltered, nearly sending her camera crashing to the ground.
"No, this can't be true! You couldn't possibly be that person!"
"Emily, you're joking, right?"
Furina pleaded with the young woman, her voice laced with desperation. Even after Emily confessed to her crimes, Furina refused to believe it.
But Emily ignored Furina's words and began speaking on her own.
"Lady Furina, it was I who brought you to this place. I found them gathered here and then wiped them out."
"I fabricated the evidence, directing all the incriminating clues toward you."
"Then, as you defended yourself, you personally accused me of murder. This was the script I wrote for you."
"I wonder if you enjoyed it, Lady Furina?"
"No, that's not how it happened!"
"Emily, we've known each other for so long! You could never do such a thing!"
Furina shook her head frantically, unable to accept the reality before her. Her vision blurred, and crystalline tears streamed down her cheeks.
"No, Lady Furina."
The girl gave Furina an incredibly captivating smile.
"Everything you've seen before was merely a facade."
"You thought I wouldn't do such a thing because you don't truly understand us."
"Then let me reintroduce myself, Lady Furina."
"I am No. 8. Please take care of me."
Her words sent the crowd scrambling backward. This declaration unmistakably revealed her true identity: she belonged to the same organization as No. 6, who had stirred up bloody chaos in Fontaine.
Furina felt her head was about to explode. She could never have imagined that the girl was a numbered member of that mysterious faction.
In that moment, Furina seemed to lose all strength, her body swaying as if about to collapse.
"Lady Furina, get away from Emily now!"
Charlotte snapped to her senses, shouting loudly as she charged toward Furina.
But to Charlotte's utter shock, the spectators beside her coldly reached out to block her path.
Not only that, but even those preparing to leave the scene were stopped by others in the crowd.
Charlotte immediately realized these were the young woman's people, but the situation was far worse than she imagined. She saw two of them each pull a Vision—one Pyro, the other Electro—from their pockets and attach them to their bodies.
Charlotte was immediately repelled by the pair. Unlike the other ordinary spectators, when the man who had made the accusation heard the young woman's words, his face first showed shock, then he took two steps forward, his emotions surging violently.
"Why? Why would you do this? Why did you kill my brothers?!"
"If you're No. 8, then you have even less reason to do something like this!"
"Because your methods and thoughts are too primitive, too glaringly inadequate," the young woman replied calmly. She then turned her gaze to Furina, who had been utterly devastated and was now completely dazed.
At this moment, Furina's eyes had lost their light, and she kept muttering, "Impossible... this isn't real..."
"Lady Furina, the story isn't over yet."
"The climax of the script I prepared for you is still to come."
"Please... kill me."
The girl's words sent a violent tremor through Furina's body.
"Why?"
"Doesn't Lady Furina understand even now? Everything I've done has been to die by your hand."
"If I merely wanted to frame you, I wouldn't have left so many clues."
"As for the reason... I've grown weary of this tedious world."
"But I wanted Lady Furina to personally orchestrate this grand finale for me."
Hearing this reason, Furina's face once again wore an expression of utter disbelief.
"That's why I've been orchestrating this for so long, Lady Furina."
The girl smiled at Furina, then spoke with a hint of anticipation in her voice.
"So hurry and do it, Lady Furina. I've been waiting for this moment for so long."
"I... can't do it..."
Furina shook her head, completely taken aback by the girl's final request.
Yet, at the same time, a glimmer of hope surged within her.
If I can rekindle the girl's will to live, will the Emily I once knew return to my side?
But the girl's next words shattered Furina's beautiful fantasy.
"Of course, Lady Furina, I know that." The girl nodded with a faint smile. "That's why I've prepared a reason for you to act."
"Within the Fortress of Meropide, I've already deployed enough Primordial Sea Water to completely submerge this place."
"It should be about time now."
As soon as the girl finished speaking, a piercing alarm blared throughout the Fortress of Meropide.
"Emergency situation!"
"Everyone inside the fortress, immediately drop what you're doing and evacuate in an orderly manner!"
"This is not a drill! Repeat, this is not a drill!"
Hearing the piercing alarm sirens, everyone immediately realized the girl hadn't been lying. Panic erupted as they began to surge against the encirclement.
"Get out of our way! Let us through!"
"You suicidal fools! I'm not dying with you!"
Meanwhile, Furina was reeling from a devastating blow. No matter how desperately she wanted to deny it, the undeniable evidence staring her in the face forced her to accept it.