After all, this was a more formal banquet, so Xavier took Furina to change into a set of casual clothes that leaned towards formal wear.
Seeing Furina change, Hu Tao curiously asked, "No way, are you two so eager to give me business that you're not even active in saving people?"
"Uh, this..."
Xavier didn't know how to answer for a moment; indeed, one lie requires countless more lies to cover it up.
Furina, however, reacted quickly enough, saying righteously, "You don't understand, do you? There's a saying on Blue Star that goes something like 'sharpen your tools to do your work well,' anyway, it means you have to be prepared before you can do serious business!"
Xavier nodded in agreement, "Exactly, exactly! 'To do a good job, one must first sharpen one's tools!'"
Deceiving Hu Tao was easy, but deceiving Nahida was not.
Meeting Nahida's gaze, he gave Xavier a very subtle smile, probably having seen through everything.
Arriving at the garage again, Furina stomped her little feet in excitement.
"Xavier, you must drive fast then! This kind of transportation must be more thrilling the faster it goes, right?"
"Of course, the faster the better..." Xavier said half-heartedly, then suddenly fell silent.
The silly Furina asked puzzledly, "Huh? Why aren't you talking anymore?"
Xavier cleared his throat, then pressed the helmet onto Furina's head.
"Ow, ow, ow! Can't you be a little gentler?!" Furina cried out in pain.
It was inevitable that she wasn't used to wearing a helmet for the first time.
With everything ready, Xavier started the motorcycle.
"Boom!"
The pleasant sound of the engine made Xavier feel like he was about to fly.
"Xavier, where should I put my hands...?"
Just as they started, Furina, who had just been clamoring for more speed, chickened out.
She glanced behind her; there was no backrest or anything similar.
What if Xavier went too fast and she fell off?
Xavier said unhurriedly, "You can hold onto the fuel tank, or you can hold onto my waist. Just don't lean back, or your butt will split into eight pieces."
Furina shrank her head, thinking that as elegant as she was, she couldn't accept such a scene!
She tried to put her hands on the fuel tank; though a bit uncomfortable, it was acceptable.
"Alright... alright, let's go!"
As soon as Furina's voice fell, Xavier had already shifted gears and shot out.
"This, this, this, this damn G-force! Why is it so fast?!"
"Help! I'm not really going to be thrown to my death, am I?"
"My name, Furina, known throughout the ages, to be smashed into several pieces would be too gruesome to behold..."
The power of a top-tier motorcycle was absolutely not just for show, especially when starting; the acceleration from zero to a hundred was indeed very powerful.
Furina tightly closed her eyes, a myriad of thoughts already forming in her mind.
However, she gradually realized that once the speed stabilized, it wasn't so scary.
Even with the helmet on, she could feel the wind constantly rushing past her ears.
This feeling was quite unique; even flying wouldn't feel like this, would it?
"Xavier, is this a motorcycle? It's amazing!"
Furina spread her arms and shouted loudly.
As a result, Xavier deliberately played a trick and suddenly accelerated.
Furina was startled and instinctively hugged Xavier's waist.
"You, you, you, you did that on purpose, didn't you?!"
Xavier tilted his head and feigned ignorance, "Ah? What did you say? The wind's too strong, I can't hear you!"
Furina didn't waste words and directly pinched Xavier's waist.
This made Xavier grimace in pain, and he dared not make any more small movements.
Motorcycles have many advantages, one of which is that they are less prone to traffic jams.
So, in less than half an hour, Xavier arrived at the so-called appreciation banquet with Furina.
This was a hotel, reaching a four-star rating. It seemed the developer was quite sincere.
"Phew~ We finally arrived..."
After getting off the motorcycle, Furina let out a sigh of relief.
She had been a bit nervous during the ride, constantly feeling like she would fall off.
Taking off her helmet, Furina complained to her reflection in the mirror.
"This is so annoying! Why do you have to wear a helmet when riding a motorcycle? My delicate hairstyle is all messed up!"
Xavier watched her fix her hair for a long time, then finally couldn't help but ask, "Furina, can I ask you a very serious question?"
Perhaps it was because Xavier rarely spoke to Furina in such a tone, which made Furina freeze for a moment.
"Wh-what question? You're not going to say you actually really like me and have improper thoughts, are you?!"
Xavier didn't speak but flicked her cowlick with his finger.
Furina's cowlick bounced back and forth like a spring.
"The question I want to ask is, why is your cowlick so resilient that even a helmet can't flatten it?"
After speaking, Xavier couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Damn it! I'm going to summon Lord 乌瑟 to launch a water cannon attack!"
Furina was enraged and was about to summon her follower.
Fortunately, Xavier reacted quickly enough and ran directly into the hotel, thus narrowly escaping.
Entering the hotel, Furina looked around several times.
"Hmm~ The decoration of this hotel is quite good, but it's still a bit inferior to your home."
Xavier said with a hint of pride, "Of course! After all, I live in a top-tier villa!"
According to the seat number on the electronic invitation, Xavier led Furina to their seats.
The moment the two sat down, the other people at the table cast scrutinizing glances.
Even though Furina was wearing casual clothes, her outstanding appearance and eye-catching hair color still drew too much attention.
However, by now, both Xavier and Furina were accustomed to this situation.
Although the banquet hadn't officially started, there were many snacks and fruits on the table.
This table had more middle-aged and elderly people, who didn't seem interested in these snacks.
Furina stared longingly at the rather appealing fruits, but could only swallow her saliva.
"Xavier..."
Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she tugged at Xavier's sleeve.
Xavier asked, "What's wrong? Do you need to go to the restroom?"
"Oh, no, it's not that! I just want you to help me get something to eat..." Furina spoke as if she were a thief.
Xavier had an idea to tease her: "You're not too short to reach it, why do you need me to get it?"
Furina's little face flushed, "What do you know? No one else has eaten yet, how can I be the first to start? That's not polite."
"Then is it polite if I start? Besides, someone has to be the first to start, right?"
Xavier found this logic somewhat difficult to understand.
"You!"
Furina wanted to retort, but her little brain couldn't come up with any counter-arguments.
Xavier shook his head and eventually compromised, getting her some fruit and snacks.
Because a thought suddenly popped into his mind:
"Furina is already silly, and you're still bullying her! Go get the silly Furina something to eat!"