As the two walked back along the canal, it gradually grew dark.
One by one, the streetlights lit up, illuminating the entire roadside.
Most of the shops along the roadside had already closed, with only a few cafes and bars still open, emitting a warm glow.
Lin En walked beside Ronava, carrying a camera bag containing the Kamera and several photos taken that day.
As Lin En passed the dock, he noticed a crowd gathered by the water.
He stood on tiptoe and glanced at the crowd. It was a beautifully decorated pleasure boat docked at the shore, its hull adorned with colorful lights. Several rows of tables and benches were set up on the deck, and someone was setting something up there.
The sign at the bow of the boat reads " Fontaine Canal Night Cruise - Limited-Time Experience".
Ronava also saw the ship, her gaze lingering for a moment on the colorful lights.
What is going on?
Lin En asked, and someone next to him answered.
"You didn't know? The cruise ship is having a trial run tonight, and they're randomly selecting passengers to board and experience it."
"Oh! I see?"
After making some inquiries, it was learned that the official method of boarding the ship was through a lottery, with a total of twenty seats. Lin En counted at least a hundred people present, all there to join in the fun.
Suddenly, that long-lost voice echoed in Lin En's mind.
"Ding--New task issued."
Lin En paused for a moment. The system? It's back again? After cooking in the Vourukasha Oasis last time, he thought the system would be dormant for a long time, but he didn't expect it to reappear after only a few days.
"Task objective: Spend a night cruise on the Fontaine Canal with Ronava. Task reward: Increased Hydro Affinity, plus one extra lottery draw chance."
Hydro affinity? Lin En blinked. He currently possessed Anemo and Geo, as well as a few strands of Authority of Death obtained from the system quest, but he had never touched Hydro.
Having Hydro affinity means I won't be at such a disadvantage in battles near water. As for the lottery chances... they sound pretty useful.
Then I thought again, the chance of getting on the ship is less than one in five, and both of us need to be selected, which makes it even more difficult, but we still have to try to see if we can succeed.
" Ronava."
"What? You want to try your luck in the lottery?"
I'd like to try.
Lin En scratched his head.
"Besides, today's a holiday, so it should be something special. Maybe we'll get lucky?"
Ronava looked at him for two seconds, then nodded slightly.
A short while later, two people were in line. They randomly drew a prize from the lottery box and opened it to take a look.
Lin En was indeed unlucky and didn't win. He looked at the card in Ronava's hand.
"How about it?"
What does "first prize" mean?
Ronava stared at the ticket in her hand. She had originally thought it was just a matter of winning or not winning, but she hadn't expected there to be different prize levels.
"First prize?"
Lin En felt a little numb; luck between people was like a mountain...
The host picked up the microphone and said...
"Today, in addition to the nineteen second-prize winners who can board the ship, there is also a first-prize winner who can not only board the ship first and enter the VIP room, but also bring one person on board at will. They can also win a grand prize for completing the two-person challenge."
Whispers rippled through the crowd below, all discussing who would win first prize.
Ronava raised her vote.
"This is the first prize."
Having said that, he took Lin En's hand and led her through the crowded throng to the front of the ship.
"The ship will set sail immediately. Please board, both of you."
The two boarded the cruise ship. There were seven or eight people standing on the deck, presumably the ship's staff. One of them came over and gestured for the two to walk towards the stern.
There's a VIP suite at the stern, surrounded by the ship's railing, offering a much better view than below, overlooking the entire Court of Fontaine – the scenery is beautiful.
Lin En sat down on the sofa, Ronava sat down next to him.
The boat rocked gently, then slowly moved away from the shore, heading deeper into the canal.
The scenery along the canal unfolds in the night, with the light of streetlights reflected on the water.
As we passed the opera house, melodious singing drifted from within; as we passed the museum, its glass dome shimmered with a deep blue light in the night, like a giant luminous pearl.
Pedestrians on the bridge and boats below passed each other, and occasionally a child on the bridge would wave to the tour boat.
On the boat, some people were chatting quietly, some were taking pictures, and some were drinking.
Lin En leaned against the gunwale, turning her head to look at Ronava. She sat quietly, her silver hair fluttering slightly in the river breeze, her gaze fixed on the lights on both banks and the water's surface.
"Thanks to you, this place is much better than down here."
Enjoying the pleasant sea breeze, Lin En stretched.
"The treatment for the first prize is indeed different."
"Just lucky."
Ronava finished speaking, two staff members came over and handed her two cards with a few lines of text written on them. Ronava picked up the cards, glanced at them, and her lips twitched slightly.
"This is a top-tier challenge; success will earn you a grand prize."
Ronava handed over the card.
Lin En took it and looked at it; the card had the following written on it in gold-embossed cursive script:
" Fontaine Canal Night Cruise: A Challenge for Two - Two VIP guests, please answer the following questions. The person who answers the most correctly will receive a special gift from the Fontaine Tourism Bureau. Question 1: What is your partner's favorite food?"
Lin En's lips twitched. Favorite food? Ronava's favorite food?
He thought back for a moment. She said the candied hawthorns were too sweet, the macarons were too sweet, and she ate quite a lot of the mushy dishes he made, but she never said what she liked best.
He glanced at Ronava furtively; she was looking at him.
You write first.
Ronava picked up a pen from the coffee table and wrote a word on the card without hesitation.
Lin En thought for a long time and finally wrote "The dish I made" on the card. He felt that he must have guessed wrong.
The second question, "What does the other person hate the most?"
"That's easy," Lin En wrote without hesitation, then thought for a moment, crossed it out, and changed it to "wood." She said it herself, so it couldn't be wrong, right?
Ronava glanced at him, said nothing, and lowered her head to write down her answer again.
The third question, "What are you most afraid of?"
Lin En paused, stumped by the question. What was Ronava afraid of? She had lived for six thousand years, experienced war, betrayal, sealing, and the loss of her power. She could jump off a cliff without blinking, and her hands never trembled when she faced Asmoday.
What was she afraid of? He thought for a long time and finally wrote down the word "parting". After writing it, he felt that it was not quite right and wanted to cross it out, but the pen hovered in mid-air for a few seconds and then left it.
Ronava had finished writing. She turned the card over and pushed it to the middle of the table. The staff took away both of their cards and said the results would be announced in ten minutes.
Ronava picked up her teacup and slowly took a sip. En leaned back on the sofa, looking at the night view outside the window, feeling a little uneasy. He felt that he probably wouldn't guess any of them correctly.
Ten minutes later, the staff member returned, holding a small note in his hand, with a suppressed laugh on his face.
"Gentlemen, the results of the challenge are in."
He cleared his throat.
"For the first question, the other person's favorite food—Mr. Lin En wrote 'the food I cook,' and La Signora. Ronava wrote 'desserts.'"
Lin En paused for a moment, seemingly unconcerned.
"For the second question, the word the other party disliked the most was 'wood,' Ronava La Signora. Lin En wrote 'the food I cooked.'"
Lin En's ears burned a little. Didn't she say she hated wood? He turned to meet Ronava's gaze. Although she seemed normal on the surface, he saw a hint of a smile in her eyes.
"The third question, the one I fear most—Mr. Lin En wrote 'parting,' Ronava La Signora. Jonawa wrote..."
The staff member paused for a moment and glanced at Ronava.
Ronava held her teacup, her expression unchanged, but the fingers gripping the cup tightened slightly.
" La Signora. Ronava wrote, 'He died first.'"