Chapter 50

Enjou: "This feeling is as helpless as when His Highness the Prince told me to go deal with Lord Su."

Yae Miko: "I didn't expect the noble circles of Fontaine to be so dark."

Neuvillette: "....."

Clorinde: "Don't talk nonsense, Fox. Is the Inazuma Shogunate very clean?"

Kamisato Ayaka: "Pure white like milk."

Tartaglia: "The Knave actually did such a good deed?"

Arlecchino: "Keep a low profile. Fortunately, it was timely; otherwise, Lynette would likely have been ruined like those girls in the basement."

Lyney: "Regardless, Father's great kindness is engraved in my heart."

Lynette: "Engraved in my heart."

Paimon: "So that means..."

Su Bai: "Ah?"

Nahida: "If the nobles are so dark, Mr. Su Bai, as the Pope, wouldn't he be..."

Kamisato Ayato: "Every level of nobility must be fawning over him."

Yoimiya: "Perhaps, in the past life, Lynette might have been intended as a gift for Mr. Su Bai, but was saved by the Knave?"

Su Bai: "So the truth is as Yoimiya says. Knave Arlecchino, I'll keep this account in mind. (Chuckles)"

Lynette: "How annoying, Mr. Su Bai only knows how to joke. (Blushes)"

Arlecchino: "Ahem, Traveler, time to come out and take control of the situation."

Lumine: "Can't handle it, completely can't handle it. (Helpless)"

【Night in Fontaine.】

【Extremely lively.】

【The basement of the Opera House.】

【Su Bai arrived before the core of the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale.】

【The azure crystal brought a hint of relief to his otherwise dignified expression.】

【Sensing the fluctuations in the core energy of the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale,】

【Su Bai seemed able to feel a heartbeat.】

【Raising his arm, just as he was about to touch the core, a stern voice sounded from behind.】

【"Your Holiness, the night is already deep. What are you doing here?"】

【"Could it be that you are dissatisfied with today's judgment and want to investigate the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale?"】

【Su Bai stopped his movement.】

【He revealed a hint of a helpless, bitter smile.】

【He turned around to look at Neuvillette standing behind him.】

【"Aren't you the same, unable to sleep? The Iudex of Fontaine, Lord Neuvillette."】

【Before the core of the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale,】

【the tension between them grew increasingly severe.】

【It seemed as if they might come to blows at any moment.】

【"I only came to ask you one thing."】

【"Why did you want to send Lyney to the Fortress of Meropide during today's trial?"】

【"Is it because it’s easier for you to make your move there?"】

【"I don't know what you are talking about." Su Bai did not respond directly to Neuvillette.】

【He walked slowly toward the exit.】

【"I think if Lyney were sent to the Fortress of Meropide, his fate would be the same as Dujier's."】

【Neuvillette’s words made Su Bai pause.】

【Seeing this, he continued: "Neither you nor I are from Fontaine."】

【"But I am still grateful for everything you have contributed to Fontaine over the past hundred years."】

【"Whether it was the Narcissenkreuz Ordo of the past, or your support for my reforms to eradicate the old nobility."】

【"Without your contribution, my work as the Iudex of Fontaine would not have been so smooth."】

【"However, you were present at today's trial, and the fact that people have been dissolved has been confirmed."】

【"This means that the prophecy people speak of is highly likely to occur."】

【"I believe that at this moment, you should recognize what you ought to be doing, rather than wasting excessive energy on meaningless things."】

【"The Narcissenkreuz Ordo?" Su Bai’s memory was fresh.】

【It was as if everything from the past was emerging before his eyes one by one.】

【"I would have forgotten if you hadn't mentioned it."】

【"Is Lord Neuvillette here to remind me not to forget the time I killed my friend with my own hands?"】

【Neuvillette frowned.】

【"No, you..."】

【"Forget it, I'm not in the mood to chat today. When I'm in a better mood, I'll have a good heart-to-heart with the Iudex."】

【Interrupting Neuvillette’s speech,】

【Su Bai ignored the Iudex behind him and walked straight away.】

Clorinde: "Narcissenkreuz Ordo?"

Navia: "Never heard of it."

Wriothesley: "It must have been something from a hundred years ago. I remember the Fortress of Meropide holds a former... uh... I don't know how to describe that person."

It was a youth who could transform into a Hilichurl, a long-lived species.

Kamisato Ayaka: "Mr. Su Bai killed his own friend with his own hands?"

Tianquan Ningguang: "Was it for power?"

Nahida: "Eh? No way..."

Chapter 53: Neuvillette’s Deduction, the True Relationship Between Su Bai and Furina

【In the luxurious room at the very top of the Palais Mermonia.】

【Furina sat on the bed,】

【quietly lost in thought.】

【Her mind was a complete mess.】

【Today’s sudden anomaly with the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale gave her a particularly bad feeling.】

【But, after waiting for a long time, she did not wait for Su Bai to come and question her.】

【"If this had happened a hundred years ago,"】

【"he definitely would have been very surprised and would have pursued the questioning for a long time."】

【"But now..."】

【Furina looked out the window, where lights had turned on in another tower-like room.】

【"He must be completely disappointed by now."】

【Muttering inexplicable words in her heart,】

【Furina slowly lay down,】

【and closed her eyes.】

【I'm sorry, Su Bai...】

【Even though you have been working so hard to support me, I can't do anything.】

【....】

【The night was deep.】

【In the luxurious room, Su Bai fell into a deep sleep.】

【In his dream,】

【he seemed to see two people waving at him.】

【"Yo! You're here, our genius researcher."】

【"Haha, Rene, stop joking."】

【"Tsk, didn't go to see Lady Furina’s performance today?"】

【"How could Su Bai not go? He doesn't miss a single show."】

【"Hey, kid, you wouldn't happen to have a secret crush on our Hydro Archon, would you? No way, no way."】

【"You're that bold?"】

【....】

【"Hey, what are you saying? You want to innovate and create a Church?"】

【"Come on, have you forgotten the disaster Fontaine is about to face?"】

【"The prophecy cannot be wrong. Jakob and I have both calculated that a disaster will descend upon Fontaine, and everyone will die."】

【"We should unite our strength to solve all this, shouldn't we? Su Bai, we are friends."】

【"Trust the Hydro Archon?"】

【"Hehehe, why did the Church dissolve? Isn't it because she has never cared about Fontaine at all."】

【"What can you do by going to the Church? Do you want to create a Church for yourself alone?"】

【"Ridiculous."】

【....】

【"Su Bai."】

【"Come on, I'll take you to see the new progress Rene and I have made."】

【"Haha, don't be so stingy. We are friends. Last time was just an argument because we disagreed."】

【"We didn't stop you from wanting to go to the Church in the end, did we?"】

【"How about it? Scared, right?"】

【"This matter was indeed our fault. We hid it from you back then. Actually, on the way back to Fontaine from Sumeru, my body was already failing."】

【"It was Rene who used the power of the Abyss to transform me, and I have lived until now. Don't look at my appearance now; it's strange, but I am still Jakob."】

【"Just like the guy you see now who also looks very strange."】

【"Narcissus."】

【"But it's Rene."】

Arataki Itto: "My god, scared me again. Why did that person named Jakob suddenly turn into an Abyss Herald?"

Enjou: "I can transform from an Abyss Herald into a human too. Before Jakob met Su Bai, he must have already been transformed by Rene using Abyssal power."

Aether: "As a Fontaine native, Rene could actually use Abyssal power?"

Dainsleif: "It shouldn't be called using; it should be utilizing."

Amber: "Oh my, they are Fontaine people. Why did they turn themselves into this?"

Collei: "Amber, they said it was to save Fontaine from the prophecy."

Klee: "Why did Brother Rene turn into a monster?"

Lisa: "Did he also utilize the power of the Abyss to transform himself?"

【"Su Bai, actually, I'm sorry. Rene failed in the final experiment."】

【"He came up with a way to separate his consciousness from his body, trying to survive as consciousness alone, but unfortunately, he failed."】

【"But it doesn't matter. My experiment succeeded. Narcissus was born from the fusion of Rene’s consciousness and many others."】

【"We only need to fuse everyone’s consciousness, and we can resist the prophecy. Everyone in Fontaine can retain their own consciousness."】

【"What did you say?"】

【"You say that surviving as consciousness alone doesn't count as surviving?"】

【"You want us to stop this kind of experiment."】

【"You... you are not one of us Fontaine people, you don't understand our feelings."】

【...】

【"It’s bad, Lord Jakob."】

【"Neuvillette is bringing people from the Marechaussee Phantom to raid our Narcissenkreuz Ordo."】

【"Damn it, did Su Bai betray us? That guy."】

【"Don't panic. You take people and lead Neuvillette and the others into the body of Elynas."】

【"Rene and I will leave from another place."】

【Jakob led Rene, who had become Narcissus, to sneak away through another path.】

【Halfway there, they encountered Su Bai blocking the way.】

【"It’s you, Su Bai..."】

【"You betrayed us."】

【"Do you know that the birth of Narcissus, this multi-consciousness aggregate, is the key to saving Fontaine?"】

【"If we can save 50% of the Fontaine people, we will find ways to turn that 50% into 60%, 70%..."】

【"Why do you want to destroy our rescue plan? You are not a friend, not a friend!"】

No wonder the Su Bai of the past life said Neuvillette’s reminder reminded him of the memory of killing his friend with his own hands.

Jakob, who turned into an Abyss Herald, and Narcissus, the monster born from the combination of multiple consciousnesses, were both destroyed by Su Bai himself.

However, this scene was only known to Neuvillette, who arrived later.

People didn't understand why Jakob would show their research results to Su Bai, who had already become a member of the Church.

Perhaps, in the hearts of Jakob and Rene,

Su Bai, who had conducted research with them, was not only a friend but also an outsider who wanted to save Fontaine.

They wanted to gain the recognition of their friend for their salvation, and perhaps they also wanted Su Bai to join their research on resisting the prophecy again.

Unfortunately, the final outcome was that Su Bai did not stand on their side.

Su Bai did not approve of this method of stripping away the consciousness of others.

In other words,

the Su Bai of the past life already knew about the Fontaine prophecy before becoming Pope.

【Old Fontaine from several hundred years ago.】

【In the process of destroying the Narcissenkreuz Ordo,】

【Su Bai made great contributions and was praised by all parties.】

【Even his solitary Church welcomed new members.】

【And during that battle with the Narcissenkreuz Ordo, Elynas’s body suffered trauma, giving birth to a new species called Melusines.】

【They deeply loved Neuvillette, and Neuvillette felt the same.】

【He liked Melusines very much.】

【But as the Iudex of Fontaine, Neuvillette was ostracized by the old nobility,】

【who wanted to use the Melusines, an alien species, to make trouble for Neuvillette.】

【In the end, it was resolved by the Church, which helped Neuvillette overthrow the old nobility.】

【"You are just an outsider..."】

【"Damn outsider, do you want to destroy Fontaine?"】

【"Su Bai, you guy who betrayed friends and lusted for power."】

【"Sinner, you are the real sinner of Fontaine."】

【"....."】

【Countless accusations came from the dream.】

【There were former friends, and nobles from the old era.】

【Su Bai, in his sleep, could no longer distinguish who each sentence came from.】

【Waking up slowly,】

【no emotional fluctuations could be seen on Su Bai’s face.】

【He walked to the table and poured himself a cup of warm water.】

【His gaze landed on Furina’s room, where the lights were already out.】

【"What exactly are you thinking?"】

【"Focalors."】