Yes, Lady Funina!

She's stopped pretending now, and has completely abandoned her previous excuse of inviting Richard to the command center, instead walking to the control panel.

While working at the counter, Fukaros said to Richard without turning her head, "If you're thirsty, there are drinks in the window. If you want to drink alcohol, there are too, but don't drink too much. I've heard that it's okay for women to get drunk, but if a man gets drunk, he might waste the whole night."

"...Where did you hear all this from?" Richard was speechless after hearing Fukalos's words.

"Isn't that right?" Fukalos stopped what she was doing, turned around, and winked at Richard, asking.

“Yes,” Richard replied.

Indeed, if someone is truly drunk, you can hardly even get them to sit up, let alone stand up.

Generally speaking, "drunken misconduct" refers to acting recklessly while partially intoxicated, although it's also possible that alcohol is simply used as an excuse...

“That’s it then. So, would you like a drink?” Fukalos chuckled and resumed operating the control panel.

"No."

Afraid of getting drunk?

“I’m afraid I won’t be able to control you and you won’t be able to handle it,” Richard replied irritably.

Upon hearing Richard's words, Fukaros blushed slightly, but still stubbornly replied, "Who knows who won't be able to handle it later!"

Richard is nothing special. Even if you are very strong, those kinds of things don't take strength into account.

Even if you have great strength, can you really control your physiological instincts?

Haven't you heard the saying, "There are only oxen that die from exhaustion, not land that is over-plowed"?

Fukaros decided that if Richard were to pass away later, she would make sure to return those words to him no matter what.

"What are you doing?" Richard asked, noticing that Fukalos was fiddling with the control panel and seemed busy with something.

"You'll find out soon enough... Alright." Before Fukaros could finish speaking, she suddenly stopped.

Richard then felt a tremor beneath his feet—no, to be precise, the entire room was trembling! Then, a huge screen suddenly descended in front of Richard's wall. This screen was made entirely of crystal and looked extremely expensive.

"What is this?" Richard asked, looking at the large, azure crystal screen.

“Projection crystals,” Fukalos replied succinctly. “The principle is similar to a mirage, capable of projecting everything on stage into the room.”

After saying that, Fukaros snapped his fingers, and the azure water elemental power gradually permeated the entire room. The stage of the Opiclie Opera House slowly appeared, making it seem as if one was on a stage even though one was in the room.

"Is this what you used to watch the trial?"

"It can also be used to watch operas; you need to change things up once in a while."

Is the projection location fixed?

"There are limitations, but as long as it is inside the Opiclie Opera House, the projection crystal can project the image into the room."

To verify the truth of her words, Fukalo deliberately manipulated the projection crystal to zoom out and include the audience seats in the front row.

“Actually, you could originally see the entire Fontaine, but that required the Heart of the Water God as an aid. Now that the Heart of the Water God is gone, unless you build me into the Prophecy Machine, the range is limited to this.” Fukalos shrugged.

However, Fucaros didn't feel it was a pity. In fact, Fucaros preferred to experience everything firsthand rather than observe it in the projection crystal.

She's had enough of being a shut-in for the past five hundred years.

"Speaking of which, Shadow and Divine Child are also in the theater today. Would you like to meet them?" Fukaros said with a smile.

Before Richard could answer, Fukaros had already manipulated the projection crystal to direct its 'gaze' toward the VIP seats where Shadow and the others were.

Soon, Kage and Yae no Miko appeared in the room, with members of the Inazuma delegation sitting behind them, their expressions ranging from tense to excited.

Clearly, for them, being able to sit under the same roof as the general and watch an opera was more important than the opera itself; the honor alone made them feel that their lives had been worthwhile.

But as the saying goes, serving a ruler is like serving a tiger. Right now, everyone in the private room, except for Yae no Kamiko, is being extremely careful in their words and actions. They don't even dare to breathe loudly. They don't look like they're here to watch an opera, but rather like they're here to be tortured.

"You did this on purpose?" Richard asked, looking at Fukalos.

“How could that be? We just happened to run into each other.” Fukaros sat down next to Richard.

“In that case, I suggest we look away as soon as possible,” Richard kindly advised.

"Why?" Fucaros revealed a sly smile. "Could it be... that you're feeling guilty?"

“No, but don’t underestimate Shadow’s perception.” Richard finished speaking.

Then, the figure in the image appeared, and their gaze seemed to pass through the projection and through space, meeting Fukaros's eyes.

"Hmm?" Ying Qing exclaimed in surprise. Was that... Fukaros just now?

"What's wrong?" Yae no Miko, who was standing nearby, heard Kage's soft exclamation and turned around to ask.

"It's nothing, I just find it a bit novel." Ying shook her head and didn't tell Yae no Miko that she had just felt someone watching her.

Yae no Miko mocked mercilessly, "Who told you to hide in the Pure Land of One Heart for a hundred years, becoming out of touch with the times and seeing everything as something new and exciting?"

Ying glanced at Yae no Miko but did not reply, while the Inazuma delegation members behind him were already trembling.

Oh no, should we not be here? Is this conversation even allowed to be heard by us?

"Sigh, look at you, you've locked yourself up for hundreds of years. Apart from having a more imposing aura, you can't even speak properly anymore... Hiss!" The Eightfold Divine Child was still being cheeky when Shadow silently pinched his soft flesh, causing him to gasp in shock.

With the strength of Shadow's hand, Yae no Miko felt that there might already be a bruise on her slender waist.

However, thanks to this, Yae no Miko became much more well-behaved afterward, and stopped teasing Kage. Instead, she muttered under her breath things like "country bumpkin," "you don't know your own strength, what if you break it," and "Richard will deal with you later."

The most striking feature is that it's a case of a fox borrowing the tiger's power.

On the other side, because of Ying's fleeting glance, Fukalos was so frightened that he immediately interrupted the energy output of the projection crystal.

She never expected that Ying's senses would be so sharp that she could even detect this.

"What did I tell you?" Richard looked at the still-shaken Fucarus and couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.

"How was I supposed to know she could notice that?" Fukaros couldn't help but say after regaining her senses, her voice tinged with guilt...

She probably didn't know that she was the one 'watching', right?

"Sensitive? For a god, that should be a basic operation, right?"

"So I've been excommunicated?" Fucarus slapped Richard in dissatisfaction, then couldn't help but laugh.

After the joke, Fukaros learned her lesson and dared not do anything outrageous again. She obediently restarted the projection crystal and then fixed her gaze on the stage.

Soon the lights in the Opiclie Opera House went out, and the lights in the Prophecy Room followed suit.

About a minute later, the stage lights came back on, and tonight's show finally began.

Richard hadn't seen the show tonight before. After all, he'd been incredibly busy these past few days, spending his time after get off work either interrogating investigators or exorcising demons, sometimes doing both at the same time. He simply had no time to pay attention to new musicals.

Moreover, Richard was more interested in the projection crystal than the musical. Just using it to watch the musical felt like something was missing. The moment he saw the projection crystal's effect, Richard had already imagined at least three interesting ways to use it.

Thinking of this, Richard couldn't help but glance at Fukalos, who was pretending to be engrossed in watching the musical.

Why use the word "pretend"?

Because our water god, although his eyes were fixed on the projected image, his body had already leaned towards Richard.

That would be one thing, but even though she started it, every time Richard retaliated, she would always reply with:

'Stop fooling around, we're watching a musical!'

The wicked person accuses the innocent first.

Chapter 204 Fucarus (Part 1)

Typically, a musical lasts about 2-3 hours and is divided into two acts with an intermission.

In the first half, Fukaros did everything he could to provoke Richard, constantly increasing his temper. He was like a newborn calf unafraid of tigers, completely unaware of the seriousness of the situation.

Of course, this kind of provocation is a Pyrrhic act, which angered Richard, and in fact, Fucarus himself was not happy either.

The best evidence of this is that during halftime, Fukalos hurriedly ran into the restroom.

That's right, Fukaros even added a bathroom inside the Prophet's Machine. This is hardly an office space; it's practically a love hotel with the Opicley Opera House theme!

To do this in a sacred hall of music and judgment—you, the god of justice, are really going too far.

Richard never imagined that he would one day be inside the Prophecy Machine, doing this and that with Fukaros. At most, he guessed that he would be in the other's mental space, bringing about a dual transformation of body and mind for her.

But Fukaros is clearly more skilled at this, having been preparing for a long time. In terms of early preparation alone, she is arguably the strongest.

In comparison, a surprise night raid like Lynette's seems less impressive.

When Fukalos came out again, she was much more well-behaved. She knew that if she continued to play around, she didn't know if Richard could take it, but she herself was about to reach her limit.

In that case, all her previous preparations would likely be wasted.

This was unacceptable to Fukaros. She had been preparing for this day for a long time and was determined to follow the plan without leaving herself any regrets.

Therefore, after coming out of the bathroom, Fukaros seemed to have become a different person, transforming from a hot and charming girlfriend into a cold and aloof goddess. She sat back down next to Richard with a stern face, while also reminding Richard to be careful.

"Just enjoy the musical and don't think about anything else."

"Is it really what I want?"

"..."

Fukalos didn't reply, but turned her head to the side, focusing her gaze on the stage and refusing to look at Richard.

Richard tried to place his hand on Fukaros's slender waist, but as if she had eyes in her hands, she precisely slapped away the groping hand that was reaching out.

Richard had successfully defended against several attacks, but unexpectedly, he changed his tactics and gently blew a breath of hot air into Fukaros's earlobe as he reached out.

Immediately, Fukaros softened, her aloof expression crumbled, and even her beautiful eyes softened.

"Ugh, you're so annoying!" Fukaros slapped Richard on the shoulder angrily, but this time she didn't stop Richard's groping hands.

Perhaps Fukaros realized that it was better to guide than to block, so she simply let Richard put his hand on her waist, but taking it any further was absolutely forbidden.

Fukaros was determined not to back down any further, and to ensure that, she nestled against Richard's chest while her small hands quietly crept up to Richard's soft flesh.

She would launch a retaliatory attack if Richard made the slightest move.

Fukalos's actions made Richard realize where her bottom line was, so he stopped testing her and obediently held her while waiting for the second half of the musical to begin.

The night was still long, and Richard wasn't in a rush to do it yet, after all, Clarinde and Yae no Miko had already helped Richard reset his temper last night.

Richard hadn't noticed anything amiss until now, when he was holding Fukaros in his arms.

Is Fukaros wearing too much today?

In addition to the blazer I usually wear to work, I actually wear another layer of clothing underneath.

No wonder it felt a bit strange earlier, like it had gotten bigger; it turns out it had an extra layer of clothing...

Fortunately, Fukaros didn't know what Richard was thinking. If she had, she probably would have immediately launched a reciprocal sanction, or even bitten the guy to death.

With most of the intermission over, spectators who had gone to the restroom or gone out for some fresh air gradually returned to their seats.

As the curtain fell, the lights inside the Opicclay Opera House gradually dimmed, and the slightly noisy chatter of the audience disappeared along with the light.

As the entire opera house fell silent, the curtain rose, the lights illuminated the stage once more, and the actors of Act II of "The Daughter of Water" began to appear.

Compared to the setup in the first act, the pace of the second act is significantly more intense. The crisis that was foreshadowed earlier begins to emerge: fresh water is disappearing, the land is drying up, plants are withering, and the people who notice the abnormality are thrown into panic.

The daughter of water, Corio, and her lover take on the responsibility and work together to investigate the truth. They eventually discover that due to long-term waste and pollution by humans, the water seems to have gained consciousness and is fleeing this place.

Corio tells her lover her true identity and the truth of the matter. Her lover accepts her and works with her to find a solution to the problem. But at the same time, someone overhears them.

The daughter of water is seen as the culprit who stole fresh water, and is caught in a dilemma...

The initially promising situation took a sudden turn for the worse, and the audience below the stage were captivated by the protagonist's fate.

Ultimately, the protagonist of the story, the daughter of water, [Colio], decides to sacrifice herself to save her lover and all of humanity.

Seeing this, Richard inevitably thought of the situation between Funina and Fukaros. Just as he looked at Fukaros, wanting to ask her if she had written the script, Fukaros quietly broke free from Richard's embrace.

Following the stage lights, he quietly disappeared into the darkness. Although the darkness did not block Richard's vision, Richard wisely refrained from searching for Fukaros.

As the stage lights gradually came on, Fukaros appeared on the stage, now dressed in the same pure white divine attire she wore when they first met.

Barefoot, to the rhythm of the music, Fucarus walked to the center of the stage, his figure overlapping with the actors on the real stage. Eventually, the actors' figures gradually disappeared, and the projection quietly turned off at some point.

Accompanied by a melodious yet slightly melancholic tune, Fucarus began to dance.

Richard subtly sensed the meaning that Fukalos was trying to convey from her dance.

Just as Richard was admiring the dance of the person in front of him, the real Fucarus quietly hugged Richard from behind.

The image of Fukaros dancing in Richard's video was actually a pre-recorded clip!

"If it weren't for you, perhaps I would have ended up like the protagonist in the story, performing my last dance?" Fukaros's voice rang in Richard's ears.