Yes, Lady Funina!

“Excellent, Lady Funina. Would you like to discuss your condition with me?” Richard clapped his hands, looking at Funina with expectant eyes.

"I'm not sick!"

"Patients never think of themselves as patients."

"Are you a patient?" Funina blurted out, then paused, wondering how she had come back to the same question.

“I can be either a patient or a doctor, it all depends on you, Lady Funina,” Richard repeated.

But unlike last time, Richard added, "However, I hope you'll think it through. As a patient, I often 'talk nonsense.' If I say something I shouldn't or reveal something I shouldn't, you should understand, Funina."

"You're threatening me!" Funina frowned.

"Oh ho ho, Lady Funina, how could you think that way? What could I possibly have to threaten you with? You are so powerful, even without the Heart of God, you have remained the Water God for nearly five hundred years. How could I dare to threaten you?"

Fu Ningna clenched her small fists, her almond-shaped eyes filled with a mixture of anger and grievance. Wasn't this already a threat? Every word was a threat!

This is no loyal minister; he is clearly a treacherous official who deceives and rebels against the emperor!

She's absolutely blind!

"We are on the same side, Lady Funina. You may not think so now, but time will tell. No matter what, I will always be the person you can trust the most."

"Hehe, the people I trust most will not threaten me."

"Heavens have mercy, Lady Funina. I really don't know where I've threatened you. Why don't you tell me where you think I've threatened you, and I'll definitely change," Richard said with a smile to Funina.

"You know perfectly well!" Funina said angrily. How could she say it? Would saying it be any different from self-destruction?

Moreover, the other party knew perfectly well that they couldn't say it, yet they still insisted on bringing it up, making their behavior even more despicable!

"How am I supposed to know if you don't tell me? I don't have mind-reading abilities. Lady Funina is asking too much of me."

"Hehe, Richard, your performance today has really opened my eyes. Or is this the most authentic version of you?"

"That's not fair, Funina. I showed you my truest self, and you should do the same in return!"

Funina:......

She realized that even several of her together couldn't out-argue Richard, so she obediently shut her mouth, trying to show Richard her attitude through silence.

However, Fulina didn't know that the skill of silence wasn't something to be used casually. Just like when facing someone like Richard, if you remained silent, he would speak up for you.

"Furina, I thought we were friends, but I never expected you to be so wary of me. So you've been wearing a mask all along when you talk to me? Underneath the mask, which one is the real you?"

Richard even sang in the form of an aria: "Oh~ poor Mr. Richard, so easily manipulated by Lady Funina~"

"Who's playing you!" When Fulina saw Richard slandering her like this, she immediately lost her composure and fell silent. If she remained silent any longer, she would be seen as a heartless woman who started something and then abandoned it!

"Fine, fine, you didn't play me. It was all my own choice. I have only myself to blame..." Richard lowered his eyes and revealed a sad expression, which drove Funina even more crazy.

"you you……"

"Lady Funina, please don't be angry. It makes me look bad."

Funina: ###(p￣ Pan￣)

Funina couldn't hold back any longer and lunged forward, wanting to take Richard down with her. But perhaps because she rushed too hard and lost her balance, she ended up falling straight towards Richard.

From an observer's perspective, if you ignore Funina's exasperated expression, the whole process looks like Funina throwing herself into Richard's arms and being embraced by him.

"Let go of me!" Funina struggled to get out of Richard's arms and teach him a lesson.

Just then, the office door was opened by Claurind. She heard the commotion inside and thought that Lady Funina and Richard were about to fight because they disagreed, so she hurriedly prepared to come in and mediate.

Unexpectedly, I stumbled upon such a shocking scene.

— Fighting, but in a different form.

"I'm so sorry, I thought something had happened inside..." Klorinde's eyes were filled with shock. Even at a time like this, Lady Frinna was still thinking...

Wait a minute, doesn't this mean those rumors aren't rumors?

Sure enough, the more the government denies something, the more likely it is to be true.

Secretary Richard, Lady Funina, could they really be...?

Clarinde belatedly looked at Funina, whose ears were already bright red, and Richard, who was holding Funina with a helpless expression on his face.

This helplessness, in Claurind's view, is an indulgence of her spoiled young wife's willful behavior, a higher form of pampering.

It's actually kind of cute?

A ridiculous thought flashed through Clorind's mind.

“It’s not what you think, Clarind!” Frynn cried out, her voice filled with despair.

“I understand, Lady Furina. Love is always blind and impulsive… I read that in a book.”

You don't understand anything! And what do you usually watch anyway?

“Clorind, you’ve misunderstood. Frynn tripped over the corner of the table, and I just steadied her.” Richard regained his usual composure; in a way, he was putting on a mask.

“Oh, I see. I thought…” Clarind suddenly realized.

"Why do you not believe me when I say it, but believe Richard when he says it? Whose side are you on, Clarinde?" Furnessa gave Clarinde a death stare.

Claude feigned deafness and changed the subject, saying, "Lady Furina, Lord Richard, Miss Charlotte from the Steambird Newspaper requests an audience. Should we bring her over?"

“Let her come over. (Don’t let her come over.)” Richard and Funina said at the same time.

Clarinde's eyes were lifeless. Heh, she's faced another life-or-death choice.

This mature woman was once again regretting agreeing to Richard's difficult task.

If I had known... I should have continued to be her duel agent.

Volume 1: Chapter 71 The ring should be worn on the ring finger!

"So, should Miss Charlotte come or not?" Clarinde asked the two who were still embracing.

Furina realized that this was not the right time to speak. She glared at Richard, then braced herself against his chest and stood up.

At the same time, he rubbed his chest with his hand. Richard's body was too hard; bumping into him felt like bumping into a wall, with absolutely no cushioning.

Richard watched Funina's actions and thought to himself, "Shouldn't she have brought her own safety equipment like a cushioning pad? You didn't choose to have it, but you're blaming me? What kind of logic is that?"

This is a classic case of blaming the road for the person's incompetence!

Why don't you look at Clarinde? If she were to bump into him, he wouldn't even dare to think about how bouncy she would be.

"Clorind, whose opinion do you listen to?" Furina tidied her slightly messy hair and looked at Clorind.

Claudia hesitated. "Then should I go and refuse Miss Charlotte?"

“Clorind, I think we should face the problem head-on. Rather than letting the reporters outside write nonsense, we should hand the pen to someone we can trust.” Richard spoke calmly, picking up the hat that Funina had dropped on the carpet and handing it to her, receiving a barely audible “thank you” in return.

Although I was angry, I was still very polite.

"Then...should I have Miss Charlotte come over?" Clorinde found the two of them really difficult to please, and she once again missed the happy times when she was a guard.

Back then, all she had to do was stand guard at the door, and she even had time to contemplate life. In Richard's words, that would be considered slacking off at work, right?

Furna wanted to say something more, but Richard, who was standing next to her, looked at her and said, "Lady Furna, didn't you also want to clear up the misunderstanding? Now that Miss Charlotte has taken the initiative to see us and is familiar with us, isn't this a good thing?"

"With her help, I believe the people of Fontaine will soon realize that the 'Lady Furina' thing is nothing but a baseless rumor, and that the Water God is still the same Water God."

Richard's words sounded perfectly reasonable, but to Funina, they took on a completely different meaning.

If Funina insists on following her own plan and chooses to resign, then the Water God might not be the same Water God she once was.

This is clearly another threat against her!

Because of Richard's previous behavior, Funina now feels that every word Richard says has a deeper meaning, and she must carefully consider and respond accordingly, otherwise she will fall into his trap if she is not careful.

However, the naive Funina still didn't realize that once Richard had her weakness in his grasp, there was no need for her to resort to any tricks or schemes.

Cleverness is ultimately a minor path, and scheming and plotting will only lead one astray.

Richard has always preferred to use overt strategies; so-called conspiracies and tricks are merely compromises born out of insufficient strength.

Under Richard's overt scheme (threat), Furnessa had already made her choice, but she still wanted to struggle a little longer.

"It's definitely a good thing, but I still want to..."

Clarinde understood, and before Funina could finish speaking, she made her escape.

“No, you don’t want to, Lady Funina.” Richard smiled as he took Funina’s hand and removed the ring from her right little finger.

Removing the ring was very easy, because the size of the ring was obviously not quite a good fit for Funina's little finger, which was one of the reasons why she kept touching the ring...

This ring would fit perfectly on the ring or middle finger, clearly showing that Abedo had given it careful consideration when designing it.

"What are you doing?" Funina reached out to snatch back her precious ring, thinking Richard wanted to take back his gift.

There's no reason to ask for a gift back after giving it away. Funina was furious and decided to glare at him.

“Some things, if done too deliberately, will arouse suspicion. Who says a ring on the left ring finger has to be a wedding ring?” Richard said. “Give me your left hand.”

Funina obediently placed her left hand on Richard's left hand, her small hand in a white silk glove contrasting sharply with Richard's large hand in a black glove.

"W-what are you doing?" Despite having some guesses, Funina couldn't help but ask.

Richard didn't reply this time, but answered with his actions. He took off Funina's gloves, revealing the treasure hidden under the silk.

Her fingers were slender and long, with rounded fingertips and a faint pink hue. The skin on the back of her hand was also fair and firm, giving it a porcelain-like delicacy. If you stared at it for a while, you could almost see a layer of hazy pearly light on it, making it seem like a rare treasure, making you want to handle it carefully.

When Fulina saw Richard's gaze linger on her hand for a long time, her face flushed, and her body began to feel strange, with an indescribable tingling sensation.

Fortunately, Richard didn't look at it for too long or examine it closely, since Clarinde was watching from the side, and Funina was clearly not too happy about it either.

Richard carefully slipped the ring back onto Funina's ring finger, and the ring fit her finger perfectly.

This ring is definitely meant to be worn on the ring finger!

Considering that the people of Fontainebleau have a habit of wearing gloves, Richard carefully put away the gloves that Funina had taken off, and then took out a white glove from his own coat pocket.

This glove is clearly different from ordinary gloves. Ordinary gloves cover all the fingers, but the glove that Richard prepared for Funina only covers the thumb, index finger, and middle finger, leaving the other two fingers exposed.

-- Semi-permeable food packaging.

However, after Richard helped her put the ring on, Funina's face turned completely red. Before Richard could put the gloves on her, Funina withdrew her small hand and covered her heart with her right hand.

Thump thump, Funina felt her heart beating exceptionally fast.

"Lady Funina, there are still gloves." Richard indicated that there was still equipment that hadn't been fitted to her yet.

Such beautiful hands deserve to be worn with semi-transparent gloves.

"I...I can do it myself!" Funina snatched the white gloves from Richard's hand and hurriedly put her hands inside.

Yes, the size is just right, slightly tight but not squeezing the hand, shaping the perfect hand curve while also serving as an excellent decoration.

Two slender, pale fingers exposed against the pure white gloves complemented each other perfectly. The smooth fabric seemed to extend onto her skin. If Funina's hands were works of art before, they were now like a finished oil painting framed in a fine picture frame.

This makes it look more beautiful and attractive.

Pay attention!

Richard's desires were satisfied, and his mood improved even more. Meanwhile, Funina seemed a little awkward. Her mind was filled with the image of Richard putting a ring on her finger. As for quitting her job or staying away from this man, those thoughts had long been forgotten!

Fortunately, after Richard said "you don't want to," Clarinde went straight to call Charlotte to come and see the water god, and didn't see what had just happened.

Otherwise, the misunderstanding of this duel agent lady might never be cleared up.

To be fair, if Clarinde were there, Furynne might not have held out until Richard finished putting the ring on her finger.

She probably couldn't hold back any longer when Richard helped her take off her gloves.

Despite her seemingly carefree and quirky demeanor, Richard had actually seen right through her long ago!

She's just a clueless newbie who's never been in a relationship before!

“Richard, you…” After recovering, Funina wanted to confront Richard and settle scores, asking him what he really meant.

Just as she was about to speak, Claurinde arrived in the office with Charlotte. Helpless, Furness had no choice but to swallow her words and give her a stern look to warn her not to do anything rash.

Unfortunately, such a look had no effect on Richard; in fact, it seemed to intensify Richard's desire to bully him, truly the look of a 'thug's excitement'.

The effect is similar to 'a beautiful girl looking at you like you're trash'.

"Lady Furna, Miss Charlotte has arrived," Clarinde knocked on the door to formally announce.

"Ahem, come in." Funina gave Richard one last look, then cleared her throat.

"Lady Funina, Mr. Richard, it's been a long time." Because they had traveled together before and were considered friends, Charlotte greeted Funina and Richard with great enthusiasm as soon as she arrived.

Funina responded politely, "Long time no see, Miss Charlotte."