TN: And we're back! sorry for the week long hiatus, it was not intentional since I had to get my right leg in a cast after tripping 3 floors down a stairwell (like an idiot ://) and be unable to use my PC setup upstairs BUT I should be OK now.
Anyways, Thanks for Arcanic Madness, WeissAkumu and WolfWTF for becoming as Supporters!
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At this moment, Navia carefully examined the clothing Chiori was mending.
After watching for a while, she suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Wow, why does this outfit look so familiar?"
Chiori's needlework didn't stop. As she deftly stitched the tear closed, she replied calmly.
"Isn't it the big order I mentioned to you before? You remember, right? Back then, I even asked you to help me find some extra hands."
With Chiori's reminder, Navia suddenly realized and nodded repeatedly.
"Oh, right! I remember now! Because you were putting most of your effort into this outfit, some utterly bored people started pointing fingers, saying you only cared about making money and completely ignored ordinary customers."
Hearing this, Chiori let out a soft sigh and spoke slowly. "Sigh… just some low-class business competition tactics."
"But it's fine. As long as I do my job properly, there's no need to take the rest too seriously."
With that, she continued focusing on the work in her hands.
Just then, Shao Yun lightly cleared his throat twice.
This familiar sound made Chiori's hands stop abruptly.
That voice was far too familiar to her—the unique timbre and cadence were deeply etched into her memory.
Slowly, Chiori lifted her face, which had been immersed in work moments ago. Her gaze landed awkwardly on Shao Yun standing at the doorway, her lips trembling slightly as she stammered, "W-wa… oh, y-you… hello…"
Seeing her reaction, Shao Yun smiled faintly and replied politely as well. "Ah, hello."
Navia, of course, wasn't oblivious. She immediately sensed the subtle change in atmosphere between Shao Yun and Chiori.
A single glance and a brief greeting were enough for Navia to guess who that "misunderstood customer" Chiori had mentioned earlier really was.
"Ohhh, so the person Chiori misunderstood…" Navia spoke as she casually cast a sideways glance at Shao Yun, a knowing, half-smiling expression tugging at her lips.
Shao Yun naturally understood her implication and calmly took over the conversation.
"Mm, that was me… but fortunately, the misunderstanding's already been cleared up, right?"
Navia's eyes darted playfully as she waved her hands a few times to ease the slightly tense mood, laughing as she smoothed things over. "Haha, what a coincidence! So, you two already knew each other…"
Before anyone else could respond, she decisively turned toward Shao Yun's group and warmly urged them along. "Come on, come on—let's not disturb Chiori while she's working."
"Let's go chat under the parasol seats next door."
With that, Navia took the lead and headed outside. Shao Yun and the others quickly followed her out of the room.
After watching them leave, Chiori took a deep breath and then sped up her work.
Even so, despite pushing herself, the sheer workload meant it still took quite some time to finish.
By evening, Chiori finally stopped her busy hands—the task was complete at last.
…
On the other side, waiting around felt long and dull, so Navia took the initiative to suggest taking Shao Yun and the others out for a stroll to pass the time.
Everyone gladly agreed and followed Navia as they wandered through the streets and alleys of the Court of Fontaine…
Before they realized it, the entire afternoon had quietly slipped by.
As the glow of sunset spread over the Court of Fontaine, Shao Yun's group returned once more to the front of Chioriya Boutique.
Navia was already feeling a bit tired. She slowly walked over to a seat, sat down, and comfortably stretched her arms.
Right after that, she let out a big yawn and said lazily, "Ahh, after tomorrow's trial is over, I'll take you all to Poisson to have some fun."
Hearing this, Paimon replied happily, "That's great! Thank you so much!"
At that moment, Chiori—having just finished her work—stepped out of the shop with a smile.
She walked straight up to Lumine and asked softly, "The outfit's been repaired. Would you like to try it on now to see if it fits?"
Lumine nodded repeatedly. "Of course! I'll go try it on right now."
With that, Lumine followed Chiori back into Chioriya Boutique to try on the repaired "Gunslinger Lady Outfit."
…
A short while later, Lumine stepped out of the shop.
She was now wearing the eye-catching "Cowgirl Gunslinger Outfit." Even after being repaired, the outfit still perfectly outlined her youthful figure.
Her gaze first landed on the black leather cavalry gloves, then carefully traveled over the rest of her outfit.
"Wow, this is amazing! I can't see even the slightest trace of damage—it's just like brand new!"
At this point, Chiori came over as well, circling Lumine once with keen interest before nodding in satisfaction.
"Mm, yes, it really does look great."
"But now that I think about it, it's actually a bit strange. When I made this outfit, I specifically added some special materials imported from Natlan to give it cut-resistant properties."
"Yet when I was repairing it just now, I found knife slashes all over it. How did that happen?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Shao Yun couldn't help but tease, "Haha, wow—Jeht really didn't hold back, did she?"
Hearing this, Lumine placed her hands on her hips, wearing a helpless expression as she replied with a wry smile. "Sigh, nothing I could do about it—it's all Babel's fault."
"But still, thanks to the shooting techniques you taught me. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to subdue Jeht so easily."
At that moment, Navia—who had been listening nearby—suddenly lit up with interest and eagerly asked, "Wait, did you just mention 'shooting techniques'? Does that mean… you can all use guns?"
Lumine answered honestly, "Guns? Umm… I guess you could say so."
Navia's curiosity was instantly ignited, and she pressed on excitedly. "Then could I take a look at your gun? I'm really curious!"
As she spoke, her bright eyes stared at Lumine with anticipation.
Seeing this, Lumine reached down and drew the silver revolver of Jim "Boy" Callowayfrom her holster, handing it to Navia.
Navia took the handgun and examined it closely.
Under the glow of the setting sun, the silver revolver gleamed brilliantly. Its intricate engravings and polished surface clearly marked it as something extraordinary.
Yet the more Navia looked, the more puzzled she became. She raised her head and asked Lumine with a suspicious expression, "This gun looks really strange… it's not quite like the standard Fontaine guns at all."
At this, Lumine turned to glance at Shao Yun beside her and patiently explained, "This was a gift from Shao Yun. And he's also the one who taught me how to use it and all the shooting techniques."
Just then, Navia seemed to suddenly remember something important. Her eyes widened as she stared straight at Shao Yun sitting across from her.
"Wait! When I read The Steambird this morning, it mentioned that yesterday a sharpshooter named Tacitus defeated Clorinde in a duel. Don't tell me that person… was you?"
Shao Yun had been smiling, but upon hearing this, his expression immediately grew a little awkward.
He cast a glance at Lumine beside him, sighed helplessly, and said with a bitter smile, "See? This is exactly why I insisted on using a fake name back then. Otherwise, even going out becomes a hassle."
Realizing that Shao Yun truly was the Tacitus who had made a name for himself overnight, Navia exclaimed in shock, "Wow… but I heard that person was wearing a brown jacket and a black hat…"
As she said this, Navia stared at the hat on Shao Yun's head in astonishment… so that's how it was…
Right after that, Shao Yun's words further confirmed her suspicion.
Spreading his hands, he said with a wry smile, "What, am I supposed to wear that same outfit forever?"
Hearing this explanation, Navia froze for a moment, then began muttering under her breath for no apparent reason.
No wonder Clorinde was like that last night…
Sensing the change in Navia's mood, Shao Yun asked, "What's wrong?"
Navia snapped back to herself and hurriedly covered up her earlier reaction, pretending to be calm as she replied, "Oh, it's nothing! Ah, don't think too much about it!"
"Look at the time—it's almost dinner. How about we all go to Debord Hotel together?"
As she spoke, eager to quickly divert Shao Yun's attention, Navia also called out to Chiori and her shop assistant Eloffe.
"Chiori, Eloffe, come along with us!"
Chiori thought to herself, Why am I getting dragged into this too?
She raised her head, glanced at the sky, and frowned slightly. "Isn't it a bit early to head out now?"
Navia swiftly stood up from her chair and, without giving her a chance to refuse, grabbed Chiori and started pulling her along.
"It's not early at all—let's get going!"
Chiori tried to break free, but it was completely futile.
Left with no choice, she agreed, though she still reminded them, "Hey! Don't rush so much—at least let Eloffe and me lock up the shop first!"
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