Hello I'm back, thy leg is healed but I don't have molars anymore.
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"Water Breathing Potions have already reached the minimum required quantity, and the current output from the Magic Pocket can supply one-third of Fontaine households, but the remaining ships are the key..."
Frowning, Furina shared the latest plan report, "All shipyards are working day and night, and production has only reached one-fifth of the expected amount. Excluding households that have already prepared their own ships, it will still take at least three months to ensure every household has an evacuation vessel."
"Three months..."
Victor Wang muttered softly, running through memories in his mind, leaving no room for carelessness.
After the conclusion of the Summoners' King Grand Tournament, Teyvat welcomed another summer. This year, Lumine was supposed to accompany Klee to the Bottleland in the Veluriyam Mirage for an adventure.
And whether from Charlotte bringing back information from the tournament or the intelligence gathered by Furina's secret organization, Lumine showed no intention of immediately heading to Fontaine. Not to mention, even if Lumine did arrive, there would still be some time before the prophecy takes effect...
Victor Wang thought quietly, Three months is more than enough.
Just as Furina exhaled in relief, Victor Wang added, "However, one thing must be started immediately—residents of Poisson must be temporarily evacuated."
"This is the next stage of the plan? The water is rising?!"
"It's only the precursor to rising water. Poisson's location is unique and will be affected."
"Unique location... what about Fleuve Cendre? Do its residents need to be relocated as well?"
"Only the residents of Poisson need to be relocated."
Furina nodded in agreement and promptly sent someone to invite the leader of the Spina de Rosula.
The terms Fleuve Cendre, Poisson, and relocation made Victor Wang think back to earlier events.
Besides the famous underwater city, The Fortress of Meropide. Fontaine, despite its outward splendor, harbors its own "darkness." This darkness lies in the underground worlds beneath Fontaine City: Fleuve Cendre and Poisson near Mont Esus.
Fleuve Cendre was originally just a sewer system.
During the final years of the previous Hydro Archon Eulalia's rule, Fontaine struggled to handle prophecies and succession. The administration neglected governance, leaving the nation almost entirely in the hands of the aristocracy. Much like Mondstadt's Lawrence family, Fontaine's nobles allowed their ambitions to swell unchecked, treating the lower class as "trash."
Trash unseen by the elites naturally should not exist in the beautiful Fontaine, so the nobles carried out so-called "urban optimizations," forcing lower-class citizens into the sewers. Fleuve Cendre thus transformed from a mere drainage system into a lower-city district.
Fontaine's bureaucracy—the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale, the Marechaussee Phantoms, and the Court of Justice—were influenced by the aristocracy. They neither prevented the "optimizations" nor enforced order in the sewers.
Yet, even living underground, life must continue, and order must exist. A young man named Eduardo Baker stepped forward.
He first used scavenged copper pipes to fend off crocodiles and protect merchants from gang extortion. As his followers grew, Fleuve Cendre became more organized. He became the leader, mediating disputes and even blessing newlyweds, gradually forming a cohesive community.
During that time, Fleuve Cendre residents even chanted, "What is under the sunlight belongs to them; what is in Fleuve Cendre belongs to us." Though they accepted underground life, they refused to be completely crushed by the nobles' "optimizations."
Years later, the second round of urban optimization—the "Fleuve Cendre Purge"—arrived. The nobles aimed to completely drive out the Fleuve Cendre residents. Under Eduardo's leadership, they resisted, but the outcome was inevitable: Eduardo was captured and slated for exile to the desert.
However, plans could not keep pace with events. During Eduardo's escort to the Mont Esus, his companions rescued him and detained the Court of Justice members, taking refuge in Poisson to negotiate with hostages.
Around five centuries ago, Fleuve Cendre and Poisson first intersected.
Eduardo already had a son, Jakob Baker. Poisson's town chief, Renault de Petrichor, also had a son, René de Petrichor, roughly the same age. The two families had no enmity, and Jakob and René quickly became friends.
However, the Fontaine nobles spun it as: "Eduardo and his accomplices from Mont Esus occupied Poisson and made unreasonable demands using the Court of Justice members as hostages."
With hostages involved, the situation was delicate. Reporter Carl Ingo volunteered to deliver negotiation terms.
Yet the fleet deployed by the nobles shattered any hope. Artillery could not sway Poisson's residents, so the nobles mobilized Marechaussee Phantoms to infiltrate via secret passages, executing the operation later called the "Poisson Siege."
The two sides were mismatched, and the outcome was certain. René and Jakob became orphans, sent to the Narzissenkreuz Institute.
Carl, unable to prevent the tragedy, gave up journalism and became an adventurer wandering ruins and wilderness.
The Marechaussee Phantom Emanuel Guillotin, doubting the righteousness of his actions, left the Marechaussee Phantoms and years later discovered the truth of the Poisson Siege—he had sent innocent children to the orphanage.
At the Narzissenkreuz Institute, René and Jakob met siblings Alain and Mary-Ann.
Years later, after several disasters, Karl entrusted René and Jakob to himself, while Emanuel took in Alain and Mary-Ann.
These children, especially René and Alain, would later stir waves across Fontaine…
Now, Poisson serves as the Spina de Rosula's stronghold, and Fleuve Cendre is largely under its control. To evacuate the residents of Poisson, the most effective approach is to communicate directly with the guild leader—Navia.
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