Genshin Impact is a big stage, come if you dare

Sue and Paimon both felt that the servants hit the children too hard.

Clementine, however, disagreed, saying with delight and joy, "Pepe has truly become a strict yet gentle father!"

Paimon looked at Clementine. "Clementine, you also know the term 'father'?"

Clementine: "Yes! Because it's my and Pepe's dream."

Hearing Clementine's words, which clearly hinted at a story, Sue turned to look at her. "What were Clementine and Pepe like in the past?"

Clementine hesitated for a moment, then looked at Pepe in the distance and asked, "You... were you invited by Pepe to help, right?"

Sue nodded, readily acknowledging the unexpectedly perceptive little ghost's guess.

Let's rewind to noon.

Su Ben left the Mo Mang Palace and reunited with his companions, but the [servant] said he wanted to make a deal with their traveler team.

[Servant]: "This is not a good place to talk. Come with me."

The servant led the traveler's party toward a remote place.

Paimon whispered, "Has she discovered we've been watching her and is planning to lure us to a deserted place to ambush us...? Here we come!"

Two tall, elite-looking soldiers from the Fools approached and bowed gracefully, saying, "Good day, [Servant] sir."

Sue followed their trail from their swallowtail dresses, the long canes and swords they carried, to their magnificent masks.

These two men's masks were not only different from those of ordinary Fools soldiers, but also different from those of their comrades.

A magician wearing a top hat, with a green feather mask overlapping the hat, looked like Linni.

The other wolf head mask covered the entire face, with a slightly long, curly fringe resting between the narrow wolf ears.

Handsome!

want to!

Before Su could roll up her sleeves and take it herself, the servant simply ordered her guards to bring her a new mask.

Su excitedly fiddled with his newly acquired mask, "I want that pocket watch with the evil eye embedded in it too!"

She doesn't even have this style yet! Honestly, the Fools didn't even bother to let her know when they released new items.

The wind-wielding man and the frost-wielding man hesitated.

Although items stolen by the traveler's team can be reclaimed after reporting to headquarters.

But the Evil Eye Pocket Watches they currently possess were personally bestowed upon them by the [Servant], so their significance is different!

Su was extremely direct: "I want it, give it to me."

The servant nodded to his subordinates, and then the Wind Servant and the Frost Servant reluctantly presented the girl with their Evil Eye Pocket Watches.

After the Wind and Frost servants left, Su raised an eyebrow and looked sharply at the [servant], "You're trying so hard to please us... it seems the deal you're trying to negotiate isn't simple."

It seems the servant is very keen to make this deal happen, but such a small thing is not enough as a price.

"It's just a small, insignificant gift to our partners. You'll need the real bargaining chips." The servant stopped. "We've arrived."

Looking at the ruins of the destroyed buildings before him, Kong asked, "Where is this?"

“It’s the ruins of the House of Hearths.” The servant stood on the circular mosaic bricks where there were no longer any walls. “It used to be a greenhouse and a dueling ground for children.”

Paimon, having caught the key words, was both anxious and angry. "Why make children fight each other?! This is too cruel!"

[Servant]: "Because the 'Mother' of the Hearth House wants to select the best 'King' in her mind in this way."

Su and Kong also noticed a new keyword: "The mother of the fireplace house?"

So, besides the father in the open, is there a mother hiding in the shadows manipulating everything in the Hearth House?

The servants invited them to this remote place to discuss cooperation. Did they want to recruit them to kill that mother?

The servant reached out and brushed across the remaining fireplace fire, picking up a black candle stuck in a sharp candlestick.

A flame emanating from her fingertips emerged and ignited the remaining candle.

This special candle burns without leaving wax tears; only black ash scatters in the wind and drifts to the unknown distance.

“I entered the House of Hearths when I was six years old, the same year that Clementine was sent there by Kujavina.”

"Kujavina was the [servant] at that time, and also the person in charge of the Hearth House."

"She is not only Clay's biological mother, but also the 'mother' of all the children."

Paimon asked, puzzled, "Why would she send her daughter to such a cruel place?"

[Servant]: "To prove to others that she was fair as a 'mother'."

Through this incident, Sue determined exactly what kind of person Kujavina was.

Sue: "A cold-blooded and hypocritical fellow."

“Kujavina was indeed good at disguising herself,” the servant continued. “The fireplace house looked like a fairy tale, with kind adults and loving children, a scene of prosperity.”

Kujavina often gathers the children around the warm fireplace, reading them interesting stories and showing them lovely picture books.

Almost all children love picture books. Because in picture books, each child has a doll image that represents themselves.

The picture book not only features doll characters but also conveys the carefully crafted concepts of Kujavina, subtly influencing children's thinking.

“However, there were also conscious children in that house, and Clementine was one of them.” [Servant] looked at a soft-lighted bell swaying in the cracks of the ruins.

The Soft Lantern Bell is a flower unique to Fontainebleau. Its elegant and beautiful blue-purple petals wrap downwards around the stamen, concealing a light, lingering, delicate, and soft fragrance within.

A fleeting glance at the flowers that had distracted the servant reminded him of the soft-light bell pendant Clementine wore.

Su urged the servant to continue the story.

[Servant]: "After a period of carefree time, Clementine soon realized that the so-called home was not a fairy tale, but an absolute purgatory."

"The Hearth House takes in war orphans from all over the world, and how to raise these orphans is entirely up to the authorities."

"Kujavina came up with a very novel idea: she would gather the children she considered talented at this secret hideout, then teach them martial arts and have them fight each other."

"Until the most talented... 'King' is chosen."

Su nodded, understanding. "A perverted battle royale where you raise Gu poison."

Paimon looked around at the ruins and felt as if he could hear the faint voices of the children who had died in the brutal struggle.

Besides fear, what welled up in Paimon's heart was more sadness.

"Children are constantly being eliminated. Leaving aside the dead, the wounded who survive will not be wasted—they will be sent to the [Doctor] for experiments or assigned dangerous missions, treated as disposable pawns."

The girl's eyes blazed with a cold flame as the keyword was triggered, and Kong quickly grabbed her hand.

Su Fan grasped Kong's hand to indicate that he was alright, and urged the servant to continue recounting more secrets.

The following part does not include the Doctor's storyline; the servant recounts Clementine's failed attempts to persuade him and her subsequent escape.

She fled multiple times, sought help multiple times, and attempted to reveal the truth multiple times...

“It’s all just a futile struggle,” the servant said softly.

Each time Clementine was captured and brought back, she was beaten and bruised, but she always managed to get through it thanks to her strong will.

When her injuries were better, Clementine would open the window and invite her friend Peruvéli to watch the moon together.