Yes, Lady Funina!

They didn't even stop me!

Ying glanced down the corridor and saw someone about to come over. After thinking for a moment, she said, "How about... we go inside and talk?"

"Go...go inside!" Yae no Miko initially thought that Kage was trying to lure the fox inside to beat him up, but then she realized that Kage didn't seem to have any reason to do so.

Moreover, if you don't agree, it feels like you've already lost in terms of momentum.

They had already lost by a small margin; if they were also overwhelmed in terms of morale, they would probably have no choice but to submit and be subservient to Shadow from now on.

Upon entering the room, Yae no Miko discovered that most of the furniture was missing, and the bed had simply vanished, leaving only a thin layer of dust under it, proving that the bed had been in the room not long ago.

"Where's the bed?" Yae no Miko asked.

“In the Pure Land of One Heart,” Ying replied honestly.

"...Then what are you going to do, General, tonight?"

Shadow did not always occupy this body. At least during the time he was on a mission to Fontaine, Shadow would let the general go out for a walk at night.

The general had no objection to this.

"I can take the general into the Pure Land of One Heart." The Pure Land of One Heart of Shadow is very magical. It seems to be a space of the mind, but in reality it is a material space.

It's like a blessed land in Liyue, except that what Ying can carry with her and what carries this space is also her will as a god.

"What are you planning to do?" Yae no Miko felt that Kage must have a serious illness to do this.

Why would you put your bed in the Pure Land of One Mind? Haven't you had enough of staying in the Pure Land of One Mind for hundreds of years? Why would you go to the Pure Land of One Mind to sleep?

But then Yae no Miko thought of something, and she looked at the shadow and said, "Wait...you wouldn't..."

You wouldn't be thinking of spending time with Richard in the Pure Land of Delight...

Hiss… that means we can do it anytime, anywhere…

In response to Yae no Miko's question, Kage unusually did not give a direct answer, but instead changed the subject, saying, "May I ask how you are feeling right now?"

“Very good, very good. What could be wrong with me? It was Richard who did the work, not me,” Yae no Miko said, his tone sharp but his words restrained.

At least in front of Ying, she still hoped that she could appear 'strong' and 'tough'.

After all, he couldn't very well tell Shadow that he was beaten to a pulp by Richard, begged for mercy in the second half, and was eventually unable to utter a single word because he was knocked unconscious, could he?

Classic scenario: making grand pronouncements before the match, spouting nonsense during the match, and remaining silent afterward.

That would be too shameful!

"That's it..."

Just as Yae no Miko understands Kage very well, Kage also understands Miko in the same way. What Miko said just now can actually be interpreted in reverse...

"You don't believe me?!" Yae no Miko frowned, feeling that this guy, Kage, was looking down on her.

"A little," Ying Ai said truthfully.

"why?"

“Because of… uh…” Ying’s words stopped abruptly, as if he was considering whether or not to tell Yae no Miko about it.

It's not that it needs to be kept secret. In fact, Clarinde never mentioned keeping it secret. Right now, the other side is eager to have a target to share the firepower with.

The reason Ying stopped talking was entirely because she was worried about whether the Divine Child could handle it.

From the princess's perspective, she might think she was the one who got to drink the first soup...

Chapter 197 Clarind's Advice

"Clolind what? You mean Clolind?" Yae no Miko keenly sensed the abrupt halt in the shadow's words, and her sense of unease reached its peak at that moment.

She had a strange intuition that what she had worried about might very well become a reality.

"..."

Yae no Miko's unease grew more pronounced, and the clever fox girl quickly connected it to Clarinde, whom Shadow had personally seen off earlier; she must be Funina's secretary.

Logically speaking, the other party and Shadow have absolutely no connection, and the reason of sparring is even more lame.

It's obvious that Shadow and Clarinde couldn't spar indoors. If they were to spar, it wouldn't be in a special venue. It's likely that Shadow brought her into the Pure Land of One Heart.

But all this trouble, just for a friendly exchange?

Looking at the missing furniture in the room, Yae no Miko clearly had her own guess.

Seeing that Ying still refused to reveal everything, Yae no Miko couldn't help but show a sad expression.

"Ying, I thought you wouldn't hide anything from me because of our relationship, but now it seems I was overthinking it..."

The fragrant aroma of tea filled the entire room, and it was clear that Ying had no good way to deal with Yae no Miko's offensive.

She could only helplessly say, "Divine Child..."

"Don't call me God Child. I am merely your servant, and I do not deserve such an intimate address..."

"Don't say that..." Ying said helplessly. She was not good at dealing with such witty remarks, and Yae no Miko knew this, which was why she said it on purpose.

"I just saw you chatting happily with that Claude. Alas, she's getting old and her beauty has faded; the new is always better than the old..."

As Yae no Miko spoke, she secretly opened one eye to glance at Kage. Upon noticing that Kage had a naginata in his hand, her fox ears immediately perked up, and she said, "Of course, it's also possible that I've misunderstood. How could Kage be that kind of person..."

“God, I remember you used to tell me that sometimes it’s better to be confused about things.”

"What if you keep digging deeper if I don't say it this way?"

"?"

Seeing that Kage's expression was gradually turning unfriendly, Yae no Miko wisely didn't say anything more and quickly said, "Some things can be ignored, but some things cannot be ignored. Kage, just tell me, I can handle it. You don't want to see me lose my appetite and sleep because of this, do you?"

You're a woman too; you should know how much damage sleep deprivation can do to a woman.

Yae no Miko kept rambling on, but in reality, seeing that Kage hesitated to tell her the truth, she had already guessed pretty much what was going on.

“I’m not the first, am I?” Yae no Miko said, voicing her suspicion.

"...Whether you're the first or not isn't that important, Divine Child," Shadow tried to comfort her.

"But...but I was here first." Tears welled up in Yae no Miko's eyes, and she looked like she was about to cry.

Sometimes, being beautiful really does give you the freedom to do whatever you want. A beauty like Yae no Miko, once a tear appears on her eyelashes, even the hardest-hearted person would want to comfort her...

Oh, except for one person, Richard.

Upon seeing the goddess's tears, he charged even more fiercely.

Take the current Shadow for example. Seeing Yae no Miko in such a pitiful state, he was at his wit's end, wanting to comfort her but not knowing where to begin.

Saying it's like someone helped him practice his skills feels like adding fuel to the fire, and saying Richard is a scumbag is just common knowledge and doesn't offer any comfort.

However, before Ying could figure out how to comfort Yae no Miko, she heard the other party continue, "I'm already so sad, can't you at least offer some comfort?"

"...How can I comfort you?"

"Give me the general's position for two days, and I will punish Richard in the name of the general!" Yae no Miko changed her tearful demeanor and said seriously.

After the goddess realized she wasn't the first, she wasn't really that heartbroken... In fact, back when they kissed, the goddess Yae had already prepared herself for Richard's experience.

Now, the second one is truly an unexpected surprise. After all, the other party has the advantage of being in a good position. There's nothing we can do about it. We can only blame Richard for being a womanizer and ourselves for being too indecisive and failing to win him over.

As Yae Shinko was thinking this, she saw Kage silently put down the naginata in her hand, then pick up her wooden clogs. Before long, two gray-black shoe prints appeared on the buttocks of Shinko's white shrine maiden outfit.

The goddess was trembling from the blow, which puzzled Ying. Although she used a slipper to hit her, she had actually held back her strength, making it a blunder that didn't hurt her buttocks.

But why did Yae no Miko react so strongly?

Ying stopped, somewhat bewildered, and then saw that although Shenzi didn't say anything on the surface, her beautiful eyes were still filled with tears.

"Stop, stop! You're aggravating the wound." Yae no Miko's voice was urgent, tinged with a hint of embarrassment and annoyance.

After all, some internal injuries are not so easy to heal. Although with the fox spirit's constitution, walking normally is definitely not a problem, but if there is external force, she will still feel pain.

Moreover, this pain is not the kind of sharp, stabbing pain; it is usually mixed with other strange sensations, which involuntarily remind the child of what happened before she lost consciousness last night.

Then my body started to heat up involuntarily, and then I started to feel strange.

"A wound?" At first, Ying really thought that the Divine Child was injured, but after seeing the strange expression on the Divine Child's face that seemed to be in pain but not in pain, and that seemed to be crying but not in crying, she immediately realized what was going on.

"You lecherous fox!" Ying spat to herself.

However, Yae no Miko was also a little annoyed. If it weren't for your habit of using force to solve problems, would the atmosphere have become so awkward?

For a moment, the two fell silent.

After a while, the feeling that Richard was still inside her body finally subsided. After being disciplined, she became much more obedient and stopped trying to tease Kage.

Instead, seeing that there was no more fun to be had, he prepared to take his leave and obediently go back to recuperate.

Once I've rested and recovered enough, I'll go and meet with Richard to get back at him for what I lost.

Yeah, it's just about finding a place to settle scores.

As Yae no Miko pondered, her gaze involuntarily fell upon her own god.

If she were alone, although Yae no Miko was very reluctant to take the blame, with Richard's superhuman stamina, it would be virtually impossible for her to get revenge.

It's fair to say that she went there alone, essentially delivering herself into the lion's den, and was bullied mercilessly.

But if we add one more person, and that person happens to be in pretty good physical condition... then when dealing with a heretic like Richard, forget about chivalry and gangsters, let's go side by side!

Yae no Miko has never been a conventional person; she often has many whimsical ideas in her mind, including some that seem quite daring to ordinary people.

"Ying, when you figure things out someday, remember to come find me. Then we sisters will be united."

"?"

Then, Yae no Kami was lifted up by the shadow and slowly walked towards the door.

Even as the divine child was being dragged along, he remained restless, muttering as he walked, "What did you and Clarinde talk about just now? It wasn't what I'm thinking, was it? I'm practically an insider now, so you can ask me anything you want to know. I'll tell you everything I know..."

Before she could finish speaking, Yae no Miko was thrown into the corridor outside the door.

“…granted.”

Yae no Miko glanced at the closed door, shrugged, and then turned and walked toward her room. Although her walking posture seemed normal on the surface, a closer look would reveal something slightly awkward.

Or perhaps this awkwardness is the difference between a girl and a woman?

------

"Achoo!" Clorind couldn't help but sneeze. She rubbed her high, delicate nose and looked at Furina in front of her, saying, "Lady Furina, you wanted to see me?"

In fact, the reason Clorind sneezed was because Frynn kept hovering in front of her, and the tuft of white hair on Frynn's head almost poked into Clorind's nose several times.

Furina didn't answer, but instead moved a little closer to Clorinde, her nostrils twitching slightly as if she were sniffing something. Her expression and actions reminded Clorinde of the poodles she often saw on the street.

However, describing Furlinda's actions as a poodle would be somewhat disrespectful; Clarinde now cherishes this hard-won job.

Because if I lost this job and was truly unemployed at home, Richard might do all sorts of things to me, this 'idle person'.

"Lady Funina?"

"Clorind, you smell wonderful."

Furina didn't get any closer to Clorind. Instead, she took a few steps back, went around behind Clorind, and put her hand on her shoulder, asking her to sit down and talk.

"Smells nice... Lady Funina, I didn't wear any perfume. I think I just smell like regular laundry detergent, right?" Clarin sniffed her clothes but didn't smell the pleasant scent Funina described.

“Hmm, but you’re not smelling it carefully enough.” Furna reached out and took Clorind’s hand from behind, then held it to her nose and said, “Smell it more carefully.”

Despite having many questions in her mind, Clarind did as instructed. After carefully smelling the detergent, she could not detect any other scent besides that of laundry detergent.

Just as Clarinde was truthfully expressing her feelings, she heard Funina follow up with, "Besides the laundry detergent, did you also notice a strange smell?"

"Smell of sweat?" Clorind said somewhat uncertainly. She had clearly taken a shower before coming, and she wasn't the type to sweat easily.

Even when she used to wear tall boots and thick stockings on long journeys, the smell on her body at the end of the day was only slightly sour. Although there was an odor, it was not unpleasant.

“Wrong, Clarinde, you smell wonderful, how could you possibly have body odor? If you did, Richard would be disgusted with you!” Furina said.

“You’re right…eh?” Clorind nodded subconsciously, then froze on the spot.

Clarin turned around stiffly and saw Funina, who was smiling but whose smile didn't seem genuine. She couldn't help but swallow.

When...?

However, it's too late to discuss when Frynn discovered her affair; the most urgent task is to figure out how to get through the current crisis.

Clorinde's brain was working at high speed, and in less than a second she spoke up: "I am on your side, Lady Furina."