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Inside Chioriya Boutique, sunlight streamed through the windows and spilled across the floor, forming patches of dappled light and shadow.
Chiori sat at her workbench, sketching clothing designs—blueprints for the four swimsuits Navia had commissioned.
Suddenly, the door to Chioriya Boutique was gently pushed open, followed by the crisp, pleasant sound of wind chimes.
Chiori instinctively lifted her head, her gaze landing on Shao Yun and Clorinde as they stepped inside the shop.
The corners of her lips curved upward slightly as she revealed a warm, friendly smile and said to Clorinde, "Miss Clorinde, you're right on time."
Clorinde exchanged a brief greeting. "Chiori, I was a little worried you might have gone out for a walk earlier."
As she spoke, she glanced around the shop before her eyes returned to Chiori.
Chiori let out a soft sigh and shook her head helplessly. "Ah, when would I have time for a walk? The shop's been incredibly busy lately… but your personal order is already finished."
Hearing this, a hint of anticipation flashed through Clorinde's eyes as she got straight to the point. "So that means the pants I commissioned are ready?"
Chiori nodded, then picked up a gift box from the table in front of her—the pants Clorinde had ordered were inside.
"Miss Clorinde, would you like me to help you try them on to see if they fit?"
Clorinde hurriedly waved her hand and declined politely. "No need to trouble yourself, Chiori. I trust your craftsmanship."
Standing off to the side, Shao Yun widened his eyes and said in disbelief, "You really bought a pair of pants?"
At that moment, his expression looked rather strange—he clearly hadn't expected Clorinde to actually do something like this.
Clorinde nodded vigorously and said very seriously, "That's right. You really did say that before. You even said that as long as I wore pants, my overall strength would improve."
Looking at the obedient and earnest Clorinde before him, Shao Yun showed a complicated expression and teased her. "You… you're like a kid who never grew up—believing whatever people tell you…"
"So, if I told you that eating the wild grass growing north of the Court of Fontaine could cure all illnesses, would you actually go chew on the lawn?"
Although Shao Yun meant it purely as a joke, to his utter surprise, Clorinde asked seriously, "Then… does eating the grass that grows north of the Court of Fontaine really have medicinal effects?"
That question rendered Shao Yun completely speechless. He hadn't expected Clorinde to take his offhand joke so seriously.
Afraid she might actually go eat grass; Shao Yun hurriedly waved his hands and denied it outright. "Of course it's fake! I was just talking nonsense—how could any wild grass cure all illnesses?"
"You really believe everything I say, huh? I feel like even Paimon could scam you out of all your Mora!"
Watching the two of them converse from the side, Chiori immediately understood why Clorinde had specifically come to commission a pair of pants that didn't match her usual style at all.
"Oh… so that's the reason… I was wondering why Clorinde suddenly wanted to buy pants when they don't suit her style in the slightest."
Clorinde remained completely unfazed, as if it didn't matter at all.
To her, fashion was entirely secondary—improving her own strength was the real priority.
She said with absolute conviction, "Don't worry. If doing this can enhance my strength, then even wearing those ornate and cumbersome aristocratic dresses would be fine."
Looking at the stubborn Clorinde before him, Shao Yun felt a wave of helplessness.
"Don't you realize it even now? What I said before about wearing pants improving strength was nothing but a joke! And yet you…"
"Ah, forget it, forget it. Wear whatever you like—it's your freedom anyway. Hand me the box with the pants. I'll carry it for you…"
With that, Shao Yun took the box containing the pants from Chiori's hands.
Once Clorinde had secured her commissioned item, she immediately moved on to the next destination. "Next stop—we need to buy some ingredients. Let's go."
...
After leaving Chioriya Boutique, Shao Yun accompanied Clorinde to buy some Fontaine armor-piercing rounds—wait! Fontaine breadsticks!
After that, they picked out various fresh vegetables, including onions, tomatoes, and mushrooms.
Seeing Shao Yun holding a large number of paper bags piled high in his arms, Clorinde said gratefully, "Thank you for helping me carry so many things."
"How about this—I'll cook for you as thanks. What do you say?"
Looking at Clorinde's completely immobile right arm, Shao Yun asked doubtfully, "Are you sure? In your condition, can you really cook?"
Clorinde, ever strong-willed, replied, "When I was nine, I broke my arm and still survived in the wild—starting fires and cooking with just one hand. Don't underestimate me!"
Seeing that Clorinde thought he was looking down on her, Shao Yun quickly explained, "That's not what I meant. I'm saying that since you're injured, as a patient you should really be resting—"
Before he could finish, a deafening explosion suddenly rang out from a building not far away.
The sudden blast made Shao Yun instinctively step back half a pace, and he couldn't help but complain, "What the heck?! Who's brewing moonshine at home and blew up their stove?!"
Just as Shao Yun complained, a man's hoarse, furious roar echoed from the house that had just exploded.
"Get lost, all of you! Don't even think about capturing me alive!"
At the same time, members of the security forces gathered outside the house shouted back inside.
"Mr. Mau, please stop resisting! Come out and surrender to face judgment!"
...
Looking at the security forces standing on high alert in the distance, Shao Yun exclaimed, "Is this a war or something?"
At that moment, a figure came charging toward them at full speed.
Taking a closer look, it turned out to be Navia.
She ran up, panting heavily, and asked in surprise, "Whoa—Clorinde, Mr. Shao Yun! What are you two doing here?"
Clorinde stared at Navia with vigilance and pressed her, "Never mind why we're here—Navia, tell me, what exactly happened?"
Navia took a deep breath, calming her rapid breathing before explaining, "It's like this—do you remember that adjudicator, Mau?"
Hearing the name "Mau," related memories surfaced in Clorinde's mind.
"Oh, right—the descendant of that old Fontaine-era noble family. I heard he passed the exam a couple of years ago and entered the Court of Law."
She then deduced thoughtfully, "So you're saying he's one of the protective backers behind the Confrerie of Cabriere?"
Navia nodded vigorously and continued explaining the dire situation. "Exactly. But this time, the arrest operation hasn't been going smoothly. That guy's been resisting desperately and refuses to surrender."
"Even worse, he just detonated explosives. If everyone hadn't reacted quickly and dodged in time, we'd probably all be dead!"
At this point, lingering fear showed clearly on Navia's face.
Shao Yun narrowed his eyes slightly and looked toward the heavily surrounded house in the distance before asking magnanimously, "Do you need my help?"
Hearing this, Navia subconsciously looked up at the sky and muttered to herself, Did the sun rise in the west today? Shao Yun actually offered to help? This is unprecedented!
For a moment, she even wondered if she was hallucinating.
Before she could fully recover from her shock, Shao Yun urged impatiently, "So do you want my help or not? Give me a straight answer!"
Navia snapped back to reality and stammered, "Ah… r-really? You're really willing to help?"
Seeing her reaction, Shao Yun merely shrugged and replied flatly, "If you don't need my help, then forget it."
That instantly made Navia panic. She hurried forward in quick steps, blocking Shao Yun and nodding repeatedly. "No, no, no! It'd be great if you're willing to help! Please come with me!"
As she spoke, she reached out and took the gift box, the bag of breadsticks, and several bags of vegetables from Shao Yun's arms.
Shao Yun didn't refuse and let her take everything.
Then the two of them walked together toward the house surrounded by the security forces.
Along the way, Navia was brimming with curiosity, constantly sneaking glances at Shao Yun, trying to figure out why someone who usually didn't care about others' affairs had suddenly become so helpful.
What Navia didn't know was that Shao Yun was doing this entirely because Lumine had told him to work on improving his interpersonal relationships.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side, Melus—who was coordinating with the security forces—was staring intently at the house ahead.
Suddenly, he noticed Navia approaching while carrying several large bags.
His heart tightened, and he quickly stepped forward, urging anxiously, "Miss! Please leave this place at once! Mau seems determined to resist to the end—don't put yourself in danger!"
Facing Melus' concern and advice, Navia merely smiled calmly and replied softly, "No need to worry. I've found a capable helper."
As she finished speaking, Shao Yun walked over and greeted Melus politely. "Hello, Mr. Melus. Long time no see."
Melus took a closer look, recognized Shao Yun, and immediately lit up with joy. "Oh! It's you—the young lady's partner!"
Hearing this, Shao Yun shook his head and corrected him seriously. "Strictly speaking, the ones who truly qualify as partners are Lumine and Paimon."
Hearing Shao Yun be so particular about it, Navia felt a bit awkward and quickly smoothed things over. "Ah, that was before—aren't we partners now?"
Shao Yun didn't seem to mind. He waved his hand casually and went straight to the point. "Alright, none of that matters. Tell me—what do I need to do?"
Navia raised her right hand and pointed lightly toward a nearby member of the security forces. "Let's go meet Thierry. You're probably not very familiar with him—he's an important liaison between the Spina di Rosula and the security forces."
"He's also involved in this operation to capture Mau. I'll introduce you."
...
At the same time, on the other side, Thierry frowned deeply as he stared at several Special Patrol members who had been injured by explosives and were being hurried away on stretchers. He felt a serious headache coming on.
"Oh no… Chevreuse isn't here right now. What are we supposed to do? So many Special Patrol members are injured… what now?!"
Just then, Navia arrived with Shao Yun in quick strides and asked anxiously before they even got close, "What's the situation right now?"
Thierry turned around, shook his head, and sighed. "Miss Navia, the situation doesn't look good. Mau is resisting fiercely and has barricaded himself inside his own house."
"The Special Patrol has tried going in several times, but every attempt ended in failure."
He paused briefly before adding, "Worse still, he used explosives just now and seriously injured quite a few of our people."
"Everyone's shaken—no one dares to rush in recklessly anymore…"
After hearing Thierry's report and seeing how complicated the situation had become, Navia secretly felt relieved that she had managed to bring Shao Yun in time.
She waved her hand, signaling Thierry not to worry, and reassured him, "Don't panic, it's alright. Look—I specifically invited a powerful helper."
As she spoke, she gently pushed Shao Yun forward.
The moment Thierry saw Shao Yun, his eyes widened and his mouth fell open as he blurted out, "Whoa! It's Mr. Tacitus! What an incredible surprise!"
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