"The true culprit behind the serial disappearances of young women is actually Vacher."
"Vacher?" Navia looked puzzled; this was a name she hadn't heard before.
"He goes by 'Marcel' now."
"What!?" Navia was utterly incredulous. "Uncle Marcel is the culprit?"
Navia could hardly believe it. The real culprit had been right beside her all along—someone close to her?
If the culprit was so close, and she had been investigating him all this time, why hadn't he taken action against her?
If not for her willingness to trust Lucian at this moment, she would have thought he was a fraud.
"If it's Marcel, why hasn't he acted against me?" Navia asked.
"On one hand, you've never uncovered any critical clues. On the other hand..."
Lucian didn't continue but instead glanced at Melus.
Melus took the cue and spoke up: "Let me explain the other reason."
Though he didn't know the culprit's identity, he knew why the culprit couldn't harm Navia.
"Melus?" Navia hadn't expected Melus to keep something from her.
"Young lady, the truth is, you were once selected as a target in the serial disappearances case.
"The boss used the intelligence he had to intimidate the culprit, ensuring that as long as you remained unharmed, the information wouldn't be made public.
"Young lady, the boss never told you... he was suffering from a rare illness and had less than five years to live.
"If the boss were to die, you would be exposed to danger. That's why he used his own life to..."
"Yes, your father exchanged his life for many things, including Clorinde's protection," Lucian added.
"Clorinde? She's been protecting me? And Father... chose to die silently to protect me?"
Navia couldn't accept it.
Her strength crumbled, and two streams of tears flowed down her cheeks.
[Emotional Value Obtained: 100]
[Source: Navia]
[Content: Father sacrificed so much for me, yet I couldn't do anything.]
"Young lady..." Silver wanted to comfort Navia but didn't know how to begin.
"If you need a hug, I can be your pillow," Lucian offered.
"No, thank you. I'm fine," Navia wiped her tears away.
"I'll continue playing the role of the 'clueless' young lady and wait for the right moment. I won't act recklessly and alert the enemy.
"Speaking of which, how did he commit the crimes without leaving a single trace?"
Navia was baffled. In theory, every contact leaves evidence.
Yet the victims of the serial disappearances seemed to have vanished without a trace, as if they'd evaporated into thin air.
But how could people just disappear like that?
At this moment, Lucian smirked triumphantly.
The feeling of omniscience was truly wonderful like a veteran captain watching a newbie play Honkai Impact 3rd.
And when you spoil things for others, they don't get upset; instead, they think you're amazing.
They might even beg you for more spoilers.
"It's the Primordial Seawater," Lucian said.
"It can dissolve Fontainians into water."
"Dissolve people into water? How is that possible? And what is Primordial Seawater?" Navia exclaimed.
Strange knowledge increased.jpg
Even Melus and Silver wore expressions of confusion. Could people really dissolve into water?
Lucian had no intention of explaining in detail for now.
It would be too troublesome to elaborate, especially since it involved the original sin of the people of Fontaine.
Besides, even if they understood, there was little they could do to stop the eruption of the seawater.
If they acted rashly out of concern and confronted Furina prematurely, it would only make things worse.
For now, it was enough for them to know it was dangerous.
"Anyway, the Court of Fontaine's first disaster zone will be Poisson. You all need to be extra careful—especially the two of you."
Lucian pointed at Melus and Silver.
Technically, the first place the seawater would erupt was the Fortress of Meropide.
But it was suppressed there and didn't cause a catastrophe.
Instead, Poisson became the first victim.
"What? Melus and Silver... could they..."
In Navia's mind, Lucian was no longer just an ordinary person.
So she naturally trusted his words.
[Emotional Value Obtained: 100]
[Source: Navia]
[Content: Melus... Silver...]
This meant that in the future, these two dear to her might perish in the disaster.
"What about the young lady? Is she safe?" Silver, who had been silent, finally spoke.
"Navia is fine. You two protected her well."
"I see. That's good," Silver smiled faintly, almost imperceptibly.
[Emotional Value Obtained: 200]
[Source: Silver, Melus]
[Content: Thank goodness the young lady is safe.]
"Young lady, please don't grieve. Knowing we protected you is enough for us," Melus quickly comforted Navia, seeing her tears.
"Besides, the future hasn't happened yet."
Navia remained silent.
She tried to hold back her tears, but they wouldn't stop.
Just the thought of a future that hadn't yet occurred was enough to overwhelm her emotions.
Navia had always been a sensitive person.
But as the leader of the Spina di Rosula, she often had to suppress her feelings.
She imagined her future self wouldn't even be able to cry immediately after losing Melus and Silver.
She was the boss of the Spina di Rosula—if she wasn't strong, how could she reassure others?
Navia silently resolved to train harder from today onward.
She couldn't just stand by and let this future happen, not when she knew about it.
"Don't worry, I won't let this happen," Lucian said.
Having crossed into the world of Genshin Impact, if he didn't change anything, what was the point?
The reason Lucian acted so playfully around Charlotte and Navia was to gather emotional value quickly and gain the power to alter this future.
Of course, his personality was naturally mischievous, so it worked out perfectly.
Seeing Lucian's confident demeanor, Navia felt a wave of relief.
She was already inclined to trust him, and in her eyes, Lucian was no ordinary person.
He was someone of great capability—if he said he could do it, he surely could!
But relying solely on others wasn't Navia's style. She would still strive on her own.
"Mr. Lucian, thank you for sharing this information with me."
"No need to be so formal. Just call me by my name," Lucian quickly waved his hand.
Addressing someone by name was the first step to building a closer relationship.
Navia smiled and said, "Alright, then I'll call you Lucian."
Lucian nodded approvingly.
This form of address was good. Ever since arriving in Fontaine, no one had called him that.
Being addressed as "Mr." or "Sensei" made him feel like an outsider. This was much more intimate.
When he first crossed over and worked at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor to make ends meet, Hu Tao would call him "Little Lucian."
At the time, Lucian found it strange it sounded like she was calling him a kid.
But now, it seemed endearingly affectionate.
Sadly, while the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor could also collect emotional value, it couldn't compare to the Opéra Épiclèse in terms of quantity.
Come to think of it, why hadn't Navia questioned how he knew all this?
Didn't she doubt the authenticity of his claims?
Was it because outsiders naturally had a charisma buff? The Traveler was also easily trusted.
Of course, he didn't know that Navia didn't doubt him because she had already imagined him as someone extraordinary.
On top of that, Melus's cooperation helped.
Navia trusted Melus deeply, so she chose to rationalize rather than question.
"Lucian, would you be willing to join the Spina di Rosula?" Navia ventured.
She wasn't sure about Lucian's identity, but given the amount of information he knew, he was no ordinary person.
Logically, the Spina di Rosula couldn't accommodate someone of his stature.
But Lucian had always acted warmly toward her, so Navia decided to ask.
What? A job?
"I, Lucian, would rather jump off here and die than work for anyone!
Working is impossible never in this lifetime!
A true man stands between heaven and earth how could he linger under another's roof?"
Just as Lucian was about to refuse, Navia spoke first.
"It's just a nominal membership. You'll receive a salary as usual but won't need to work. Just help out in critical moments.
"And... I might come to you with questions occasionally. Would that bother you?"
What? Free benefits? Hell yeah!
The Spina di Rosula is amazing full of talented people who are great to talk to. I love it there!
If you'll have me, I'd gladly acknowledge you as my sworn mother!
Helping out in critical moments? That was already part of the plan.
As for Navia coming to ask questions wasn't that a reward?
A perfect chance to build favor!
"I'm in!"
===✧✦✧===
Character Voice-Over · Navia: About Lucian
"You mean Lucian? Hmm... how should I put it? I feel the luckiest thing in my life is receiving so much love.
And the second luckiest is meeting Lucian.
Haha, sounds exaggerated, doesn't it?"