Lucian couldn't hold back and reached out to pinch. He already had a habit of patting heads, and he especially loved pinching things like ahoges or similar features. How could he resist such a pair of ears?
Thankfully, Lucian snapped back to his senses quickly. His hand had only reached halfway when he abruptly stopped, placing it in front of his mouth and letting out a light cough. "Ahem, the gods say it cannot be spoken."
Ei blinked. Who said that? I didn't say that! I want to know too!
Could it be something another god said? Spouting nonsense when they've got nothing better to do!
Lucian continued, "If you want to know, go ask Albedo. He knows."
Lucian thought to himself, Teacher Albedo, don't blame me for throwing you under the bus. You're far away in Mondstadt anyway, so they can't come after you.
Distant waters can still put out nearby fires. Thank you, Albedo.
To show my gratitude, I'll occasionally help you with some tasks.
Unbeknownst to Albedo, who was still diligently working on illustrations for Lucian, he had no idea what Lucian was up to.
For the content of two whole books, Lucian had provided the drafts, storyboards, and character designs, leaving the detailed work to Albedo.
Having to draw out a story that cuts deep, stroke by stroke, was tough. Fortunately, Albedo's cool-headed nature saved him. If he were as emotionally expressive as Furina, he'd probably be crying while drawing.
The main issue was that no one else knew the contents of the books, and Albedo couldn't share them with anyone.
Once again, thank goodness for Albedo's calm disposition.
Skilled, cool-headed, and never complaining—truly the perfect tool… I mean, the perfect collaborator.
That said, while Albedo was an excellent collaborator, making him take the fall wasn't so easy.
At the very least, Kitsune Saiguu's Yae Miko wasn't someone who could be easily convinced.
Lucian could handle one fox lady, but two fox ladies? That was too much for him.
Under the combined pressure of the two fox ladies, even guarding 3,000 points wouldn't be enough!
Not to mention, there was a "field card" nearby—Ei's expectant gaze.
It was clear that, although Ei didn't say anything aloud, she was also eager to know what happened next in the story.
Even though reading it felt like getting stabbed each time, she still wanted to know. It was as if the story had some addictive ingredient.
Ei didn't know that there was more of her story to come. She thought her part was limited to what had already been told.
Lucian stuck to his old rule: never spoil the story to the person involved, so they could experience the emotions in their "original, untainted" form.
In short, Lucian was struggling to withstand the relentless pursuit of the two fox ladies.
At that moment, Lumine, who could have drawn their attention, wasn't around—she had gone to Seirai Island.
As for Hanachirusato, she was currently touring Inazuma in a "human" body and couldn't help Lucian either.
The three women, united in their determination, were eager to pry the next part of the story from him. Their expectant gazes made Lucian's urge to spoil the story skyrocket. Unable to bear it, Lucian chose to flee.
"Huh? A call's coming in?" Lucian pretended to pull out his communication device, saying "hello" a couple of times.
"It's Furina looking for me. I'll head to Fontaine first." Right after saying that, Lucian teleported out of the Plane of Euthymia and headed to Fontaine.
Kitsune Saiguu and Yae Miko exchanged a glance.
"What's a phone?" Kitsune Saiguu asked.
Having just been revived, she wasn't familiar with the concept of a "phone."
"It's probably this thing. The little guy calls it a 'phone,'" Yae Miko said, holding up the communication device Lucian had given her.
Kitsune Saiguu nodded. I see. Another one of Lucian's marvelous gadgets.
After Lucian left, Kitsune Saiguu's gaze turned to Raiden Ei.
"Ei, why didn't you help us just now? If you had joined in, he might've spilled some details."
"Me?" Ei sighed. How could I say anything? I've already asked so much of him.
Yae Miko, at least, had paid a "price." All Ei had done was teach him martial arts.
In the past, Ei thought her martial arts were the most exceptional thing she could offer. But now, she felt they paled in comparison to what others had contributed.
This wasn't because Ei doubted the quality of her martial arts.
Rather, her experiences had shown her that no matter how exceptional her skills were, they couldn't always protect the people she cherished.
Moreover, Ei's personality differed from the two foxes. Her emotions were more reserved and subdued. When facing Lucian, she genuinely felt too embarrassed to ask for more.
That said, it wasn't that Ei was completely reserved around Lucian. She'd occasionally bicker with him—mostly because Lucian could be such a tease sometimes.
But Ei wasn't great with words, so she usually lost those verbal sparring matches. When that happened, she'd increase Lucian's training load to remind him of his master's authority.
No matter how she retaliated afterward, Lucian was one of the few people who could act freely in her presence.
Things were already like this now. If she managed to bring her sister back, Ei didn't even know how she'd thank Lucian.
If nothing else worked, maybe she'd personally cook him a meal? A god cooking for someone—that's a high honor, right?
Fortunately, Lucian didn't know Ei's thoughts. Otherwise, he'd be glad he chose to flee to Fontaine overnight.
He'd rather eat a few bites of Furina's "Stargazer" dish than Ei's "Thoughtless Meal."
Speaking of which, Ei and Lumine's names sounded so similar—why was there such a huge gap in their cooking skills?
===✧✦✧===
On the other side, Lucian, who had escaped to Fontaine using his marvelous gadget, let out a sigh of relief. Honestly, resisting the urge to spoil was tough enough, and they were pushing him to do it!
If I actually spoiled it, you'd probably praise me for spoiling it well. Who could resist that?
If I weren't worried about you being mentally prepared, I really wouldn't have held back. Good thing I escaped quickly! Fleeing might be shameful, but it's effective.
Pushing open the door, Lucian locked eyes with Furina, and both of them froze.
That phone call was, of course, something Lucian made up. Furina hadn't actually called him, so he hadn't expected her to be at his place.
Furina was equally surprised. She'd only come over because she felt a bit lonely after reading the story and missed her friends.
Well, that was one reason. The second, "less important" reason was that Arlecchino had come looking for her again!!
Fleeing might be shameful, but it's effective! Furina had bolted straight to Lucian's place.
She came to check things out, not expecting Lucian to actually be home.
This was too strange—Lucian was at Lucian's place! How was that possible? Shouldn't Navia be the one here? Where was Navia?
Navia had indeed been there earlier, but after reading the story, she went to find Melus and Silver, missing Lucian by chance.
Through a series of coincidences, it led to this moment where Lucian and Furina locked eyes.
"Huh? You're back… ah!?" Furina's words were cut off by a yelp as Lucian grabbed her ahoge.
Lucian felt relieved now. He'd been disappointed about not getting to pinch those ears earlier, but pinching Furina's ahoge would do just fine.
===✧✦✧===
Character Voice · Furina: About the Ahoge
"You can't pinch this, okay!"