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Before a Mirror
The people will all be dissolved into the waters. And only the Hydro Archon will remain, weeping on her throne.
Focalors knew that she had to protect the people of Fontaine from the prophecy, from Celestia's punishment. She wanted to laugh at Egeria's choice of choosing her to be the next Hydro Archon, even entrusting her with the gnosis. Well, she had always been the genius of Egeria's familiars, despite most of the Oceanids being opposed to Focalors' reign over Fontaine, not that it matters to her anyway. The people of Fontaine deserved better, the chance to be free from the 'sin'.
Focalors told Furina, "...All will eventually end in a magnificent and dramatic trial, and everyone will be saved."
But for this magnificent and dramatic trial to happen, there is one more person who should be in this as well. The Hydro Sovereign.
"Let's hope he'll be willing to help." Focalors sighed, as she planned on reaching out to a hopefully willing Hydro Sovereign to play a role in this plan.
Fontaine, Tevyat
In Fontaine, an extravagant nation surrounded by the ocean in which the governance depends on the judiciary, there's a fortress within the water where the mighty Cerberus resides, guarding the prisoners and seeing their sentences served.
The origin of Cerberus was said to have spawned various rumours. One of the earliest rumours said that Cerberus was a criminal with a death sentence looming above him and in exchange for having that death sentence waived, the Hydro Archon agreed to allow him to govern the Fortress of Meropide until the end of his life, never to see the daylight again.
Some said that it was Cerberus who killed the former prison warden in cold blood to get that position to escape the jail sentence while others said that he bribed his way to the Fortress of Meropide and that whoever opposed it was killed brutally. The most absurd one of all is that Cerberus is somehow an incarnation of a wolf demon.
“Do you enjoy cooking up absurd stories that seem so far-fetched from the view of reality?” Clorinde, the champion duellist, marched up to the office of Cerberus and instantly brought up the question that’s been bugging her during her journey.
The said Cerberus is a man named Wriothesley, who oversaw the administration of the entire Fortress of Meropide on his own which had witnessed the cruellest, cunning, innocents and all and had ensured that the ‘residents’ in the Fortress served their sentences with no shortcuts taken.
The subject of the rumours did not seem to offend him, rather, he was extremely amused and the look on Clorinde’s face was just a cherry on top of the cake. “Hm? Are they not interesting? It amuses me that the imagination of these people can go far beyond the means of what people considered normal.”
Clorinde, however, wasn’t amused by the calm reply from the fortress administrator. “If you’re that bored, I could have got you that latest law book of Fontaine.”
Wriothesley declined the offer with a sip of his black tea. “I prefer a new set of tea leaves rather than a law book, thank you. The law above ground doesn’t apply much here in the fortress, Miss Clorinde, it applies when you leave the Fortress of Meropide.”
Clorinde merely huffed. “Yet you seemed to memorise certain clauses to your benefit.”
Wriothesley set down his teacup and smiled pleasantly at Clorinde. “It’s called learning the basics, Miss Clorinde. How else could I handle the people in the Fortress of Meropide in my position? You and I know what kind of people reside in the Fortress of Meropide.”
"Fair enough." Clorinde dropped the subject. Then, she remembered her purpose of coming here in the first place. "By the way, you have a new mission, Cerberus."
Wriothesley looked up from his teacup to see a folder was placed on the table by Clorinde. Curious, he took the file and flipped through the pages. His eyebrows furrowed doubtfully, looking up questioningly at the champion duellist, “Bodyguard duty? Surely you have better candidates than this, like Chevreuse, the captain of the Maison Gardiennage's Special Security and Surveillance. Her sniping skills are top-notch in Fontaine.”
Clorinde crossed her arms over her ample chest, displeased at the light take of the situation, “It is not just a bodyguard duty. This concerns the well-being of Fontaine as a whole. Her Ladyship, the Hydro Archon, Lady Furina, insisted on it.”
Wriothesley’s curiosity was instantly piqued, he leaned forward to Clorinde for confirmation. “Oh? A personal request from Lady Furina?”
A confirmation nod was all Clorinde gave to Wriothesley. “Yes, Her Ladyship was concerned about the safety of her new Chief Justice thus she insisted that you, a dangerous man with a tea obsession-”
“Tea obsession?”
“-to oversee the safety of her new Chief Justice for an indefinite time.”
Wriothesley blinked and then chuckled after processing the words of the champion duellist. “Miss Clorinde, there is always a threat surrounding him, including the risk of getting a papercut there. You can’t expect me to protect him from papercut as well.”
Clorinde gave Wriothesely a side-eye, “He isn’t that weak to succumb to death by paperwork. Besides, I don't think he'll be in danger if he stays with you.”
Wriothesley rested his chin on his clasped hands, curious about the reason for this preference treatment by the Hydro Archon, “Then, why is she so protective of this new Chief Justice? Last I checked, we did not need a Chief Justice after Oratrice was installed in the Opera Epiclese.”
The Oratrice or rather, the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale is a large mechanical weighing scale said to have been created by the Hydro Archon herself to judge the people of Fontaine and at the same time, act as a giant power source that powers the entire nation. The Oratrice carries out the judgement in the Hydro Archon's place. The large mechanical scale had never once had a downtime throughout the years. Suddenly introducing a Chief Justice into the picture will no doubt raise suspicions and speculations among the people of Fontaine.
“...I had doubts as well," Clorinde admitted. "But Lady Furina refused to answer these questions, only insisting that he's an important character for Fontaine's future of governance, most likely with the rumours of the prophecy starting up again."
There's a prophecy that the people of Fontaine are born with a 'sin' that cannot be absolved. On the day of judgment, the water level of Fontaine will rise and the people of Fontaine will be drowned and dissolved, with only the Hydro Archon remaining, weeping on her throne. Only then will the sins of the people of Fontaine be washed away in a great flood. In the past, many shrug it off as an old folks' tale however the recent rise in the water level raised alarm bells among the masses. Lady Furina had repeatedly assured that the situation was under control but the question remains, what has been done?
Wriothesley leaned back against the chair with his arms crossed, "Huh...so that means this new Chief Justice will either save or destroy us? How interesting."
"Who knows?" Clorinde shrugged. "If you can attend the upcoming ball, Lady Furina might answer your questions."
Wriothesley raised his hand. "Can I-"
"Attendance is compulsory, Duke Wriothesley. I will hunt you and drag you to the ball if I have to." Clorinde glared at the hand threateningly.
The Grand Masked Ball of Fontaine is an annual event specially hosted by Lady Furina in the Opera Epiclese to encourage the people of Fontaine from all social classes to mingle together and for potential lovebirds to find each other in this event. For Wriothesley, it’s always been an easy skip but with the Hydro Archon herself requesting his presence, he has no choice but to attend, not with Lady Furina planning on rewarding him with tea leaves from Chenyu Vale.
It's for the tea leaves, Wriothesley convinced himself as he sighed internally after spotting a couple of ladies ogling at him from a distance. Perhaps it's because of his mask (Clorinde deserves the credit for this) that he's become the star attraction of the ladies in the ballroom since no one would approach him, the administrator of the Fortress of Meropide, for a dance, let alone for a chat, save for that persistent pink haired Steambird reporter who kept asking for an interview with him. Wriothesley had always preferred to remain incognito if he could help it.
Wriothesley had opted to wear his usual since he'd only be in the background but Clorinde clicked her tongue at his choice like a disappointed parent before dragging him to the tailors to get his clothing and mask done at once. Fortunately for Wriothesley, Clorinde does have a good sense of style.
"I have to admit Miss Clorinde, your tastes are pretty decent," Wriothesley remarked, admiring his current outfit, a black waistcoat with golden buttons, shielding the details of muscles that were barely shown through his shirt and a pair of white breeches hugging his behind. "I thought you would have gone wild with the colours."
Clorinde scoffed with no heat. "I'm not one to play around, you knew me better than that. Also, your presence is expected by Lady Furina, Duke Wriothesley."
Ah yes, the mission. How could he forget?
"Of course, Miss Clorinde. I will be there." Sigewinne would have loved to hear all the details from him, Wriothesley mused to himself.
The night of the Masquerade Ball finally arrived.
Wriothesley watched his target (thank Clorinde for the details) from a distance since entering the ballroom and became the centre of attention for the young Fontaine girls. He couldn't blame them because this new Chief Justice looked like a celestial being that had just descended onto Tevyat, gracing Fontaine with his ethereal presence. Despite the mask concealing the upper half of his face, it didn't help deter the ogling young ladies from looking his way. Wriothesley briefly wondered if he should help him out.
It didn't take long for one of the young ladies to approach the ethereal-looking man and with a blush on her face, she sought him to be her dance partner for the night in this The Grand Masked Ball of Fontaine much to the jealousy, shock of the other ladies present in the ball because how dare they steal their man? They lay their eyes on him first!
The ethereal-looking man looked a little startled at being asked for a dance at first however he pondered on her words before apologising to the lady, "My apologies, I am not versed in the art of dancing. Perhaps it'll be more appropriate for you to find another man to dance with.”
The lady was stunned for a few seconds before she giggled, “Monsieur, you must be jesting. How else could you join the ball if you couldn't dance? This Grand Masked Ball of Fontaine is the grandest event for people like us to enjoy.”
"My apologies, but I really can't dance." The man apologised again, feeling a little guilty.
"Monsieur, really-"
"If I may interrupt, milady," Wriothesley casually walked towards them with a smile. "This esteemed gentleman here is the guest of honour of Lady Furina, I would be wise not to push my luck, otherwise I cannot say if Lady Furina might just grant you a special tour to the Fortress of Meropide. How about it? Would you be interested? You could ask these young ladies behind you as well."
The lady's face instantly turned pale at the mention of the Fortress of Meropide, she quickly bowed in apology to the ethereal-looking man before skirting away with the other ladies as far as they could.
Wriothesley sighed in relief as soon as the ladies left out of their sight, "Well now that they're gone-"
"You don't have to scare them away." The ethereal-looking man said, crossing his arms like a disapproving parent. "And I don't think Lady Furina would be so cruel as to send them to the Fortress of Meropide."
"Ah~, but if I don't do that, they won't leave you alone." Wriothesley turned around to defend. "These ladies can be very persistent once they lay their hands on a target, escape is never an option."
"You seem to be speaking from experience." The ethereal-looking man noted with a slight amusement.
"Observation and common sense." Wriothesley shrugged. "Someone like you came from Liyue, three years ago, to promote the funeral parlour business. He was instantly surrounded and these ladies may have gotten their way if it weren't for his entourage." Not entourage actually, but more in the form of a Liyuen teenage girl promoting her funeral package to the persistent ladies who were ogling at her consultant, even going as far as offering a 50% to 70% discount for the package with a free testing of the coffin made of the finest wood. As she quoted, the best way to interact with the afterlife.
The other man smiled in amusement, his lilac eyes crinkled behind the azure blue mask. "It would have been funny to see that."
"Indeed," Wriothesley smilingly nodded in agreement. "Both sides were just short of filing a case if the Maison Gardiennage didn't intervene." If it does lead to a trial, the press would never let this drop from the front page.
"Ah, that wouldn't have been considered for trial." The man pointed out thoughtfully. "Cases like these would have been subjected to the filtering of the Gestionnaires in the Palais Mermonia before they could be passed for trial."
"It wouldn't have livened up the audience, according to Lady Furina," Wriothesley laughed lightly. "She would have been bored by the topic."
Then, Wriothesley remembered something, they had yet to introduce each other. He smiled sheepishly at the thought, "Ah, apologies, it seemed we didn't learn each other's names."
"Neuvillette, please call me Neuvillette." Lilac-coloured eyes seemed to soften behind the azure mask and a blush appeared on Wriothesley's face. It was a first for this administrator who had his heart toughened up since his first admission to the Fortress of Meropide, falling in love was not a consideration in life. He has friends and there's Sigewinne too, who had looked out for him ever since but love...it's something he thought he could live without until now. He's grateful for the mask though.
"Then, nice to meet you, my name's Wriothesley, Monsieur Neuvillette." Wriothesley offered his hand.
Neuvillette stared at Wriothesley's hand curiously for five seconds before taking his hand for a handshake, Wriothesley didn't suspect much, "A pleasure to meet you too, Monsieur Wriothesley."
"No need the Monsieur, please. You're making me sound like a stuffy old man." Wriothesley said jokingly.
Neuvillette lightly chuckled and conceded to the other man's wishes, "Very well, then please do the same for me as well. Just Neuvillette, Wriothesley."
Then, the orchestra music changes to a waltz, and both Wriothesley and Neuvillette watch as the people around them attune themselves to the music with their dance. A wild idea hatched in Wriothesley's mind, he moved to Neuvillette's field of vision and bent down with his palm held out, "May I ask you to be my dance partner?"
"Wriothesley, you know that I can't-" Neuvillette didn't get to finish when Wriothesley pulled him close.
"Allow me to teach you the basics then," Wriothesley said with a wink, leading Neuvillette to the dance floor. "You have a full excuse to step on my foot during that time."
A blush coloured Neuvillette's cheeks in embarrassment as he nearly shouted in indignation, "Wriothesley!"
Wriothesley merely laughed at Neuvillette's reaction, "Hahaha, just let me guide you for this time, Neuvillette. I can't buy you out with the same excuse again if another lady or even the melusines ask. Don't worry about messing up, I'm here to guide you through."
A huff escaped Neuvillette's lips, "If you insist."
"Here, put your hand on my back." Wriothesley guided Neuvillette's gloved hand to his back, grasping the other with his free hand. "Just follow my lead."
And so they begin the dance. Neuvillette looked very anxious about not stepping on his foot, it would look bad for the new Iudex to be poor in the art of dancing especially when you have an Archon who loves balls and entertainment just as much as she loves desserts.
Step.
Neuvillette's heel found its landing on Wriothesley's boot. "Sorry." Neuvillette murmured an apology.
"Don't be, you're just learning the dance. Not everyone mastered dancing in the span of a few minutes."
"Still, I must avoid stepping on your foot. How could you handle the people in the Fortress of Meropide when you have an injured foot?" Neuvillette insisted.
There's Sigewinne, Wriothesley almost suggested however the thought of drinking her special milkshakes is enough to make him reconsider resting. Out of curiosity, he glanced at Neuvillette's face and saw an earnest expression on the other man's face and...
Wriothesley cleared his throat. "Well, don't worry about that. My foot is much sturdier than you think." And there's Sigewinne's medical skills coupled with her milkshakes. He almost shudder at the thought of those milkshakes. "Also, don't think about not stepping on my foot. Keep your thoughts blank and go with the flow." Is that a good suggestion?
"I see, then I shall heed your advice." Neuvillette did think of it as so.
Throughout the dance, Neuvillette may have accidentally stepped on Wriothesley’s foot a few more times but the Duke didn't complain, instead, he patiently guided Neuvillette to one of the most memorable waltzes in their lives. Little did they know that their relationship would blossom from that night onwards.
If only they could continue the relationship with the prophecy acting as a ticking time bomb.
That night, the waters of Fontaine brought upon an interesting rumour from the merchants arriving in Fontaine. The merchants had just arrived at Lumidouce Harbor when one of them brought up about it.
"Hey, have you heard about the golden-haired traveler from another world?"