"What do you mean?"
Clorinde frowned slightly, looking at the Knave.
The Knave, meanwhile, smiled faintly:
"That person appeared too suddenly, and it seems that before any of us could react, she 'stole' the heart of our Hydro Archon.
You saw it this morning, didn't you? The Hydro Archon and her companion are overly intimate. Aren't you afraid of something going wrong?"
"I am just a guard. I am only responsible for my duties." Clorinde said.
"So what if the Hydro Archon is in danger? What if that 'consort' has ill intentions? Have you thought about these questions?"
Arlecchino retorted, then, without waiting for Clorinde to answer, continued:
"That young woman, who appeared from who knows where, is far too suspicious, and we know absolutely nothing about her. Even with the recent public opinion reaching this point, Lady Furina still has no intention of clarifying or explaining, which is enough to indicate a problem. Hmm... Of course, it's also possible that Lady Furina doesn't know about the newspapers."
Clorinde, meanwhile, was silent for a moment. After a long pause, she looked at Neuvillette beside her.
Neuvillette then said softly:
"I also want to speak with the consort."
It was clear that this time, Neuvillette and The Knave were on the same side. After all, a completely unknown entity suddenly appearing beside their Hydro Archon of Fontaine, any unforeseen accident would be unbearable for them.
Whether it was Neuvillette as the Chief Justice, or The Knave attempting to resolve the Prophecy of Fontaine, Furina was an existence they valued, and absolutely no problems could arise.
It was precisely because of this that the two rarely stood on the same front.
---
Meanwhile, on the other side, in the Theater of the Lake Light Troupe.
Furina was sitting in a chair, holding a script, watching the young man in front of her who was reciting his lines.
At this moment, the young man held the script in his hand, reciting his lines in a dignified tone.
After a while, the lines were finished, and the solemnity on the young man's face disappeared, replaced by a slight awkwardness. He cautiously looked at Furina, waiting for her evaluation.
However, Furina shook her head slightly and said:
"No... still not right. Your previous performance was excellent, your movements were natural, with no awkwardness or anything off, but... your voice is still not right..."
"Lady Furina... I'm sorry... I... I can try again!"
The young man quickly spoke, but Furina still shook her head:
"No need. This is a matter of your age. You are still too young. Although your voice can convey that sense of dignity, it's still missing something, a kind of... reassuring quality..."
The young man, upon receiving the answer, had a hint of disappointment in his eyes, but faced with Furina's strict words, he ultimately had no choice. He bowed to Furina, then walked to the side, where two friends who had also been rejected like him were waiting.
"Alright, don't be so down. I got rejected too, didn't I? What's there to be sad about?"
"But..."
"But what? Lady Furina is famous for her strictness regarding Theater, and Lady Furina also said it's an age issue. You can't say your mistake is being too young, can you?"
"I..."
"Alright, come on, let's ask the troupe leader for a leave. I'll treat you to something delicious! Let me tell you..."
The young man who auditioned was pulled away by his good friend, and Furina sighed slightly.
All day today, she had felt no energy, and her back had been hurting intermittently several times, making Furina not want to do anything except speak.
Without physical strength, Furina naturally couldn't rehearse. She could only sit on the side and watch. She couldn't very well move a stool onto the stage and rehearse sitting on it, could she? That would be too childish!
However, it was perfect. Furina had been wanting to see how well each actor who was going to participate had familiarized themselves with their roles, so she decided to conduct a "surprise inspection".
And upon this inspection, she found that some actors had some issues with their portrayal, but after her guidance and reminders, they adjusted.
The only exception was the actor playing the role of the "Minister," who was simply too young. Asking an 18-year-old to play a character in his 50s was a bit too much to ask.
But there was no other way. This young man's acting had no problems, only his voice was somewhat immature.
However, there was no way to remedy this.
Sigh...
She finally knew what the shortcoming of the Lake Light Troupe was now: all of its members were very young!
The youngest was only 13, and the oldest was only 26. It was simply... too young.
This was true for both the troupe members and the troupe itself.
Coupled with the fact that the Lake Light Troupe had not been overly picky about actors' acting skills before, there had been no problems. But this time, Furina was present.
For the role of the Minister in the script, a character who didn't have too many lines but played an important role every time he appeared, Furina wanted someone who fit the character's persona to play the role.
Unfortunately, although the actor just now was exceptionally good, his voice still carried a hint of immaturity within its dignity, preventing him from perfectly portraying that role. This left Furina a bit at a loss as to what to do.
After all, that was the best the Lake Light Troupe had for playing this role...
"What's wrong?"
Liu Yuan's voice appeared at the right time, and Furina spoke with a hint of frustration:
"There's no suitable person in the troupe for the role of the 'Minister.' I don't know what to do..."
"Then... find someone else?"
"Who else can I find? Are you suggesting I invite someone to make a guest appearance... Wait, that's right! I'll find someone to make a guest appearance!!!"
Furina instantly reacted, looking at Liu Yuan with surprise.
"Liu Yuan, you're so smart!"
"So... have you decided who to invite for the guest appearance?"
Hearing Liu Yuan's words, Furina paused slightly, then began to think. After a moment, she spoke with a troubled expression:
"The candidate... there is indeed a good candidate, but I don't know if he will agree..."
Furina hesitated a little, and Liu Yuan said softly:
"It's alright, at least you have to ask first. Won't you know if you ask?"
"Yes, you're right!"
Furina nodded, then stood up and took Liu Yuan's hand.
"Let's go to Palais Mermonia."
Liu Yuan smiled and nodded, holding Furina's hand, then instantly disappeared from the spot.
~•— ❦ —•~
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