Why Is This Kid Back?!

The reason for the sudden explosion at the Fontaine Research Institute is quite simple: in order to cope with the flood crisis in Fontaine, the Sky Faction Fontaine Research Institute, led by Edwin, wanted to build a Sky City to escape the flood.

As long as I fly high enough, the water won't drown me.

To create such an anti-gravity device, Arkhium is needed as an energy source. Edwin's approach is quite radical: he directly injects a large amount of energy into the Arkhium to maximize the driving force of gravity energy.

And so, unsurprisingly, the experiment went wrong.

"... Neuvillette, does the Fontaine Research Institute research such terrifying things every day?"

"I think... this was just an accident..."

"Would an accident blow up the entire Fontaine Research Institute? This is clearly an experimental accident!"

Neuvillette remained silent, his gaze fixed on the direction from which the smoke billowed from the Academy of Sciences. He turned to Melusine beside him, still shaken, and gave a low, stern order:

"Please escort Mr. Xingsu to Court of Fontaine first. I need to rush to the front lines to handle any emergencies."

After giving his explanation, he turned to face Xingsu, his tone carrying a barely perceptible hint of apology:

"I'm very sorry, Mr. Xingsu, but today's visit to the Academy of Sciences has to be cancelled for the time being."

Xingsu followed his gaze and looked into the distance at the billowing black smoke, and the Fontaine Research Institute, which had been transformed into Mu Feng Dan He Dou Zi Wan.

"I understand, investigating the extent of the disaster is the top priority right now."

Neuvillette nodded slightly, said no more, gave a few brief instructions, then turned and quickly flew towards the center of the explosion.

Can Fontainian fly?!

Melusine walked to Xingsu's side and spoke cautiously:

"Mr. Xingsu, please come with me. I will escort you to Court of Fontaine."

Xingsu nodded, thoughtfully following Melusine's footsteps.

Xingsu turned her head and looked at Melusine, who had been escorting her all the way, and asked:

"Excuse me... do you know what kind of person Mr. Neuvillette is?"

"Neuvillette, though he appears cold and is very serious during trials, he slows his pace whenever he sees us. He seeks justice in all things, but... he often struggles to immediately grasp the subtle and nuanced thoughts of humankind."

"I see, I understand now."

As a child blessed by memories, Xingsu Su vaguely sensed something from Neuvillette.

His memory, compared to that of ordinary people, is like a mound of earth compared to the Five Sacred Mountains, a luminous fire compared to the bright moon, Chlothar of the Necropolis.

Adding to the information from Melusine's words just now—serious towards humans... gentle towards Melusine... not good at interacting with humans... Could it be...?

Is Neuvillette a super-sized Melusine?

Xingsu shook his head, dismissing the absurd idea from his mind.

In short, Neuvillette's identity must be extraordinary.

"This kid's identity must be extraordinary." Callas sat in his study, looking at the letter sent by the members of the Spina di Rosula from the Fleuve Cendre stronghold in Court of Fontaine.

"Close ties with the Fatui' Harbinger... The Maison Gardiennage dispatched multiple agents to track and protect Xingsu's security..." Callas scratched his head, "What kind of person did I even recruit into the Spina di Rosula?!"

Just then, the ground suddenly trembled slightly.

The table and chairs swayed slightly, and ripples spread across the glass on the table.

Callas paused, raised an eyebrow, and instinctively gripped the edge of the table to steady himself.

"Huh? An earthquake? This kind of noise is quite rare around Fontaine."

"Dad! Dad!" Navia rushed in, lifting her skirt in a panic. "Quick, come with me, come see the Academy of Sciences..."

Callas slowly put down the letter in his hand, and seeing his daughter's exaggerated expression, he helplessly raised his hand to rub his temples. "What's with the panic? Is the Academy of Sciences going to explode?"

Navia didn't have time to listen to any advice. She grabbed Callas ' wrist and dragged him forcefully toward the door.

"Hurry up, Dad! We need to see for ourselves to understand the situation!"

"Oh dear, Navia, don't rush, these old bones of mine... ah... ah?"

Caught off guard, Callas was dragged forward, staggering, and the father and daughter ran all the way to the open riverbank outside the stronghold.

Looking up, in the distant direction of the Fontaine Research Institute, a huge column of smoke still billowed upwards, dark and gloomy, staining half the sky murky.

Callas rubbed his eyes, and looking at the black smoke from the explosion in the distance and the surrounding crowd discussing it, he realized that he wasn't dreaming.

Navia released Callas's hand, slightly out of breath, and pointed to the blinding cloud of black smoke:

"Dad, look! It's on such a large scale, it's definitely not a small-scale experimental accident!"

Callas steadied himself, straightened his rumpled collar, and composed himself, his earlier teasing expression vanishing as he gazed solemnly into the distance.

"... I was just saying it casually, how could it really be true..."

After a brief moment of surprise, he immediately made a judgment.

"This isn't an earthquake, it's a shockwave from a massive explosion!" Callas shouted in a deep, steady voice, instantly drowning out the scattered panic and noise in the town. "Everyone, don't panic! Maintain order!"

As the most reliable leader of Poisson, he remained calm and immediately took over the situation and coordinated the overall command. Upon hearing the news, the members of the Spina di Rosula quickly assembled, each fulfilling their duties, and followed Callas throughout the town.

Poisson is quite a distance from the Fontaine Research Institute, and there were no major disasters such as collapsed houses or casualties. However, the violent shockwave from the explosion swept across the lake, creating surging waves that overflowed onto the shore, still affecting the houses near the water.

Callas, along with the Spina di Rosula, went door-to-door to investigate and meticulously assess the damage. They quickly ascertained the extent of the damage: only a few low-rise houses near the lake were submerged by the floodwaters that had overflowed from the lake. The water inside the houses was ankle-deep, and all the furniture and belongings were soaked. The ground was muddy, and some household items were damaged by moisture.

"Prioritize the resettlement of affected residents!" Callas issued the order methodically, his voice firm and resolute. "First, assist residents in clearing the water from their homes and moving damp furniture and belongings to prevent complete destruction!"

Under his direction, the members of the Spina di Rosula had a clear division of labor: Silver led a group of people to help the affected residents quickly drain the water from their houses, clean up the mud, and move the waterlogged furniture to a ventilated place to dry; Melus led a small group of members to check the remaining houses one by one, repeatedly confirming whether there were any hidden dangers such as water seepage or wall cracks, in order to prevent secondary disasters.

The townspeople, who were initially filled with fear, gradually calmed down as they watched Callas and the members of the Spina di Rosula handle the disaster in an orderly manner. They all stepped forward to lend a helping hand, and the town quickly transitioned from brief chaos to orderly post-disaster cleanup.

Within just a few hours, all the water inside the house was cleaned up, all the damp items were properly stored, and the potential hazards were eliminated. Life in Poisson quickly returned to normal, and apart from the remaining water stains and dampness on the ground, it was almost impossible to tell that it had just experienced a distant disaster.

Navia followed behind Callas, watching the town quickly recover, and breathed a sigh of relief, saying softly, "Thankfully, the damage wasn't too great, that's a relief."

"Hey, Callas, Navia, everyone's here."

Callas and Navia were both startled and turned their heads sharply.

Navia's eyes lit up instantly, all her worries vanished in an instant, and she took a step forward with delight:

"Xingsu, you're back! There was a huge explosion at the Academy of Sciences, we were so worried about you!"

Callas also put away his solemn expression and looked Xingsu up and down. After being away for more than a month, Xingsu seemed to have matured a lot.

And most importantly, seeing how enthusiastic Navia was...

Why did this kid suddenly come back?!