Just as Furina was taking Little Sanhua, whom she and Mr. Yuto jointly raised, to Beryl Region... Neuvillette and Clorinde had already arrived at the scene.
Looking at the Spina di Rosula members searching every corner, Neuvillette's eyes narrowed slightly, as if he had thought of something unpleasant.
Clorinde also felt the oppressive atmosphere, and after a soft sigh, she said,
"Let's find Miss Navia first and see what the situation is."
"But we still need to prepare for the worst."
Neuvillette merely nodded slightly at Clorinde's arrangement, not saying another word.
...
Lumine looked at Miss Navia, who had barely stopped crying, and sighed softly.
Paimon, floating beside her, showed a worried expression at this moment and asked softly,
"Miss Navia..."
It seemed that the recent crying had somewhat improved Miss Navia's mood. Miss Navia gently wiped the corners of her eyes and said apologetically,
"Sorry... I made you laugh. I... I'm feeling a bit better now."
Lumine looked at Miss Navia's red eyes and pale cheeks, sighed softly, and remained silent.
She wasn't silent because she was cold-blooded, but because... she truly didn't know how to comfort Miss Navia.
Clearly, the blow from Mr. Yuto's incident this time was almost comparable to the case involving her Father.
This was even after Miss Navia had gone through three years of trials and tribulations and Mr. Yuto's deliberate nurturing.
If it were the previous Miss Navia... she would probably have collapsed and been unable to speak a word...
Thinking of this, Lumine sighed once more and remained silent.
And this oppressive atmosphere made Paimon truly uncomfortable. Although she desperately wanted to break the deadlock, in such an environment, she, who was usually eloquent, also didn't know what to say.
In this situation, she could only look around, trying to distract herself.
However, at this moment... she saw Neuvillette and Clorinde not far from them.
She rubbed her eyes, as if afraid she had seen wrong, and at the same time tugged on Lumine's sleeve, asking doubtfully,
"Lumine... do those two over there look like Neuvillette and Clorinde? At this time... shouldn't they be in Meropide?"
Perhaps because Miss Navia had spoken earlier, this time she didn't deliberately lower her voice but spoke very naturally.
Miss Navia naturally heard Paimon's question, so she subconsciously raised her head and looked in the direction of Lumine and Paimon's gaze.
After briefly examining the two people's attire, Miss Navia nodded gently.
"Yes, it's them."
After saying that, Miss Navia seemed to suddenly remember something, and her misty blue eyes, which had lost their luster, brightened slightly. Then she leaped up and ran towards Neuvillette.
"Hey! Miss Navia! Wait for us!"
Lumine and Paimon also quickly followed suit.
Although they didn't know why Miss Navia was suddenly so anxious, they thought it was better to follow her first, in case she needed their help.
...
Neuvillette gently stroked his chin, looking at Miss Navia, whose eyes were slightly red and hair was a bit disheveled, and sighed softly.
"I regret to say, Miss Navia, that although I have worked with Mr. Yuto for four hundred and eighty-nine years, I do not possess the ability to constantly perceive his presence."
"However... my personal inclination regarding Mr. Yuto's state leans more towards 'disappearance' rather than 'dissolution'."
Hearing this, Paimon tilted her head slightly in confusion, as if waiting for Neuvillette's next words.
"According to our current understanding of the Primordial Sea, it only dissolves Fontaine people and has no effect on people from other nations."
After saying that, Neuvillette looked at Lumine and then said,
"Regarding this, we previously focused the core of the problem on the Fontaine people.
In other words... it's because the past of the Fontaine people holds a certain 'secret,' which causes them to be 'dissolved' upon contact with primordial sea water."
"But whether Mr. Yuto possesses this characteristic, or whether his 'essence' truly conforms to the concept of a 'Fontaine person'... we do not know."
"Even Mr. Yuto himself... is troubled by the 'essence' problem."
Hearing this, Paimon nodded knowingly, then looked at Lumine beside her and said,
"Speaking of which, when we met Mr. Yuto and Gan Yu on the street before... didn't he also say that he wasn't a 'Fontaine person' protected by fontaine law?"
"Does this also mean... that he really might not have been dissolved?"
Regarding this argument, Miss Navia, who was usually optimistic, held a pessimistic attitude at this moment.
"If that were the case... then the Spina di Rosula should have been able to find Mr. Yuto here, but... we've searched all of Beryl Region and haven't found any trace of him."
After saying that, Miss Navia held up the piece of cloth in her hand and said softly,
"This is the only trace I could find."
Hearing Miss Navia's words, Neuvillette fell silent, unsure what to say for a moment.
"Miss Navia..."
Paimon looked at Miss Navia with some concern, because the state she was showing now was too different from the optimistic and cheerful girl in her memory.
"Don't worry about me, Paimon."
"Mr. Yuto once told me that for any matter, one must prepare for the worst outcome, but at the same time, one must not give up hope."
"We can continue searching, but at the same time, we must also be prepared to welcome a... Fontaine without an Assistant Administrator."
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 40 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[patreon.com/Greyhounds]
Thank you so much for your support!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"