No Extra Training Goes to Waste

Yeah, I didn't tell her either.

What was my mindset?

Perhaps even I can't say for sure.

Even though she knew that the lingering memory was haunting her, a feeling she could never quite grasp, she still chose to sever it with her own hands.

She knew perfectly well what it felt like to be tormented by those old memories swirling in her heart, so close yet so untouchable, yet she still chose to sever the truth of their past with her own hands.

People can't even empathize with their past selves.

"Heh." Xingsu forced a bitter smile. "Yeah, I didn't tell her either... but seeing my former friend like this, it really hurts."

A thousand thoughts were stuck in his throat, and he couldn't sort out his chaotic mind. Xingsu turned around, lifted his foot and walked towards the door, wanting to be alone for a while and have some peace and quiet.

Before he could take more than a few steps, a pair of arms reached out from behind him, and a warm embrace gently encircled him.

Her voice was close to his ear, low and gentle. "Having you by my side is already my greatest fortune."

Xingsu stiffened slightly, the confusion, guilt, and dilemma that had been weighing on her heart eased a little. The candlelight in the study flickered, casting long, overlapping shadows. The evening breeze blew gently through the walls outside the window, and the room was silent.

"Me too."

Xingsu slowly turned around and looked up to meet Arlecchino's gaze.

The flickering firelight reflected in her scarlet eyes, burning away the usual coldness of Harbinger, leaving only tenderness for her beloved.

He gazed into those eyes, leaned forward slightly, and kissed them.

The study was completely silent, save for the soft crackling of the candlelight, which gently intertwined the silhouettes of the two people. Regrets about the past, longing for Clervie, and the swirling conspiracies in Fontaine all temporarily receded into the background.

After a long while, the two slowly separated.

Arlecchino's breathing was slightly erratic, her fingertips gently resting on Xingsu's shoulder, her eyes filled with a myriad of emotions.

"I love you, both then and now, whether you are Arlecchino or Peruere."

Arlecchino's eyelashes fluttered slightly, a barely perceptible blush creeping across the tips of her ears. "You're so good at talking... Me too."

Before he could finish speaking, Xingsu leaned down and kissed him again.

Knock, knock—a gentle knock sounded on the heavy wooden door of the study. Lyney's slightly hurried voice came from outside:

"Father, a new situation has arisen tonight!"

The knock on the door abruptly shattered the tenderness inside.

The two quickly separated, both calming their breathing slightly. Arlecchino raised her hand to adjust her clothes, instantly concealing the tenderness in her eyes and reverting to the cold and decisive Harbinger of the Fatui, though a faint blush remained at the base of her ears.

"Come in." Her voice regained its usual authority.

The door opened inwards, and Lyney bowed as she entered the study.

"Xingsu Su is here too, Father. The nobleman Valerius, whom you instructed us to keep a close watch on, has suddenly become suspicious tonight... um... he..."

Halfway through her sentence, Lyney subconsciously looked up, sensing that the atmosphere was a bit off.

Xingsu's face was somber, his complexion dark; Arlecchino beside him also had a cold and stern expression, but there was also a hint of... indescribable, subtle feeling.

The atmosphere was subtly stagnant, the candlelight flickered quietly, and a lingering afterglow remained in the air.

Lyney's words caught in her throat. She blinked, then belatedly realized what she had said.

broken.

Did I come in at the wrong time?

He stood between the threshold and the room, his hand still in the gesture of greeting, unsure whether to go in or back, inwardly lamenting his predicament.

"Have you finished speaking, Lyney?"

Arlecchino had completely suppressed her earlier tenderness, her expression returning to the calm and sharp demeanor of Harbinger, as if the earlier incident had never happened.

Xingsu suppressed her embarrassment and calmed down.

Lyney braced himself and quickly finished reporting the intelligence.

"Yes! Valerius has suddenly mobilized men, armed and heading towards the Fleuve Cendre. Their exact purpose is still unclear."

"Fleuve Cendre... I know what he's up to. He found out really fast."

Arlecchino tapped her fingertips heavily on the table, a chill creeping into her crimson eyes:

"It seems our cooperation has only just been finalized, and some people are already rushing to silence us."

Lyney stood to the side, barely daring to breathe.

I'll go there myself.

As soon as Xingsu finished speaking, he strode towards the door. Just as he was about to step out of the room, he suddenly turned his head to look at Lyney was still frozen in place.

"By the way, Lyney, go to the training ground for extra practice afterwards."

Lyney stiffened, her face contorted in a grimace, and whispered, "... Yes."

"I'll go too." Arlecchino stood up, casually adjusting her coat, her stern aura as Harbinger once again enveloped her.

"Valerius has a considerable number of men under his command, and the terrain along the Fleuve Cendre is complex and intricate; you alone cannot take care of many areas."

Xingsu looked at her and nodded slightly. The situation was urgent, and there was no time for further words.

"Walk."

Without further delay, the two quickly walked out of the study, leaving Lyney standing there, staring at the empty doorway, letting out a long sigh, and silently calculating the extra training session tonight.

Fleuve Cendre

"Boss, with so many people on this list, who leaked the information?"

The leader's face was full of malice as he spat, "Who cares who leaked the information? Let's just kill everyone on the list and be done with it. Dead men tell no tales."

Another man next to him rubbed his hands together, a lewd glint in his eyes, and grinned.

"Hehe, I love hearing that. I've been eyeing that trafficker's wife for ages. After we finish this job, could I...?"

"Tsk tsk tsk, I didn't expect you to have this kind of taste."

I heard he also has a daughter.

"... You're into this, right? His wife is yours, his daughter is mine."

"Go through the formalities or just call directly?"

The leader waved his hand dismissively, his tone as indifferent as if he were discussing an insignificant object:

"You have three minutes. That man's daughter needs to stay, but the adult still needs to be kept alive."

The man's eyes suddenly lit up, and he rubbed his hands together eagerly.

"That's enough! That's enough! Thank you, boss!"

"Tch, you're not so good either!"

"Get the hell out of here, you little brat, you have the nerve to talk back to me like that."

A few lewd chuckles echoed from the alleyway, completely unaware that two figures had already quietly taken up positions at the alley's exit, overhearing the entire conversation.

In the darkness of night, Xingsu's face was extremely cold, and Arlecchino's scarlet eyes were filled with a chilling aura.