The Marechaussee Hunters — from the mouths of Clorinde and the others,
everyone already had some understanding of them.
The targets they hunted were not ordinary animals.
They were all kinds of monsters left behind by the ancient Remuria dynasty.
How powerful these people's combat strength was.
Yet at this moment, for the sake of so-called Fontaine stability, they had no choice but to extend their hands toward their own compatriots.
[Is it really this ridiculous?]
[This should be before Neuvillette arrived. The nobles really were this ridiculous back then.]
The Poisson Town at night was illuminated by firelight.
At the same time, what was lit up were the faces of people filled with pain and hatred.
It was indeed a massacre. To the extent that one Marechaussee Hunter who participated in commanding the Siege of Poisson later left the Marechaussee Tribunal.
He planned to spend the rest of his life with wine in his cup. (Artifact story)
In this siege, quite a few survivors were still left.
The previously mentioned Karl Ingold was one of them.
He was forcibly transferred out by the great magician Parsifal using a trick.
At the same time, Rene and Jakob were also rescued.
However, Karl, like the Marechaussee Hunter who resigned, also left his profession.
He left the Court of Fontaine.
He became an adventurer.
Rather than reporting these events as a journalist, he would rather keep company with the wilderness, ruins, and relics as an explorer.
Rene and Jakob, unlike the adults, could not choose their own destinations.
They were transferred to the Narzissenkreuz Institute, which specifically took in orphans and children of criminals.
——————
From here, the story entered the second part.
Life at the Narzissenkreuz Institute.
The Hydro Archon Egeria, in her mercy, established the Narzissenkreuz Institute and formally incorporated orphans and children of criminals into the public welfare system.
To commemorate the Hydro Archon's benevolent governance, the director of the Narzissenkreuz Institute was a Oceanid named Lyris.
[Why does Egeria feel less like a ruler and more like she's been sidelined?]
[Words like "grateful for benevolent governance" really sound like she's been sidelined]
[Most likely she's a hands-off ruler]
At the time, some Oceanids were dispatched to other nations to gather intelligence.
However, Lyris did not possess such ability.
Her intellect was below average among Oceanids.
She was not good at understanding cause and effect, nor could she count.
Therefore, she could not serve as a spy.
So she was probably just holding a nominal position.
Of course, it was possible that Lyris had her own strengths.
She could always distribute her love and kindness equally to every child.
Whenever a new child arrived at the Narzissenkreuz Institute, Lyris would personally welcome and embrace them.
Every time, she would get the children's clothes wet…
[It feels a bit humorous]
[I also want an Oceanid hug, preferably like Furina's]
The vice director of the Narzissenkreuz Institute was succeeded by the former Navy Commander Basil Elton.
The higher-ups' intention was: hopefully her stubborn and untamed temperament could be softened through the innocent children and the familial bonds formed afterward…
At the beginning when she received this order, Basil was disdainful.
"What are you thinking? You bastards. Whatever, I'll just treat it as entertainment after retirement…"
After coming into contact with the children, this former commander really changed her tune.
Not long after arriving at the Narzissenkreuz Institute, she personally learned how to bake small cakes.
The following are two rather old notes as proof:
[…One portion flour, one portion sugar, one portion melted butter, two eggs, a large amount of milk for foaming. Damn it, how much is "a large amount"?!]
[…This time remember, bake at 180 degrees for fifteen minutes. It does not equal baking at 540 degrees for five minutes!]
[??? Talent]
[Why does this feel kind of cute]
[I can picture it haha]
[So that's how it's calculated? Then 1800° would only need a little over one minute?]
Facts proved that this softening was successful.
The pastries Basil made became more and more successful.
In the Narzissenkreuz Institute, whether it was the brave, the evil dragon, or some strange adventure world,
whenever the bell rang, the adventure had to be paused.
Not for any other reason — simply because the vice director's pastries were just too delicious.
That bell was the signal for snack time.
Rene and Jakob had entered such a Narzissenkreuz Institute.
Here, they met Alain and Mary-Ann.
Alain was usually enthusiastic about machinery. Mary-Ann was his younger sister.
After becoming friends with Rene,
Alain used scrap parts from various devices to assemble a pocket watch.
Rene still carried this pocket watch with him until the moment he fell into the water.
Although the two were friends, in the adventure games they were also arch-rivals.
Perhaps this was a kind of fate.
In the Narzissenkreuz Institute's games, Alain often played the brave.
He would always go to rescue the princess played by Mary-Ann.
And facing the brave's challenge, the evil dragon Rene and the wicked sorcerer Jakob would not yield either.
They would always try every means to obstruct him.
[Who could have thought it would actually come true later]
[There were already hints in the dark]
[Narzissenkreuz Institute F4]
[Thinking about how the two really went their separate ways later, it's a bit emotional]
[What was originally just role-playing ended up being performed for a lifetime…]
The children used the clothes-drying poles as the Narzissenkreuz holy sword.
The vice director had no choice but to bring back several wooden swords for the children to play with.
However, the children were not satisfied with this.
The brave had a holy sword, so naturally the sorcerer also needed a proper magical tool.
The children set their sights on the feather of an unknown bird on the vice director's hat.
There must be many stories in every feather, the little adventurers thought.
The vice director must have had many stories, just like an elderly brave who had retired into seclusion.
Otherwise, why couldn't even the director herself remove that feather?
However, the children's world was always fresh.
The vice director didn't agree, so they quickly found new fun.
Whether the sorcerer had a powerful magical tool or not, the brave always had to challenge the evil dragon.
Unless… the vice director's afternoon tea bell rang.
To preserve this beautiful memory,
the vice director invited her old friend Karl Ingold to take a group photo for everyone. This photo was the one Jakob kept inside his pocket watch.
He enshrined this photo and broke the seal whose riddle was "love"…
There were only five people in the photo, plus one Oceanid.
On the left were the smiling siblings Alain and Mary-Ann.
On the right were the shy Jakob and Rene, who clearly looked like a genius in mystic studies.
In the middle were the beautiful vice director and the Oceanid director Lyris.
[You're telling me the former Navy Commander looks like this?]
[This photo really has god-tier looks. Everyone in it is]
[Then I have to say, Jakob grew up ugly]
[Isn't it Mihoyo's fault? They just slapped an NPC face on him, lazy dog]
The time in the photo was frozen, but reality was not.
Reality would not always be beautiful. The cataclysm of Khaenri'ah descended…