Yuto didn't know that he had been interpreted as a special task, or rather... even if he knew, he wouldn't comment on it.
At this moment... he was having afternoon tea with Furina.
Furina glanced at the familiar small cake and fragrant black tea in front of her, feeling a moment of trance.
This trance didn't come from the sudden return of the small cake, but from... her confusion about the current situation.
Some things are easy to say, but when it comes to actually doing them... that's a different level of matter.
Although Furina already had the idea of severing ties with her past identity as the Water God Furina, it's not something that can be cut off just by saying so.
The principle is the same; even though she felt she had become an ordinary young girl named Furina, she didn't know how to become such a person.
Her understanding in this area... was completely blank.
Yuto naturally saw Furina's discomfort. He gently placed a chair next to Furina, poured himself a cup of black tea, and then softly spoke:
"Furina, what's troubling you?"
Furina was startled at first, then gently nodded her head.
"I thought... with my ability and standard, I would quickly adapt to this identity, but... but I was too naive."
"Five hundred years of continuous performance have made it a habit for me, to the point where... I don't even know who I am..."
At this point, Furina paused slightly, shook her head gently, and then said:
"Perhaps that's not accurate enough. I know I am Furina, and that is indeed my name, but..."
"How do I switch from the identity of Water God Furina to just Furina?"
As Furina spoke, she looked up, her beautiful eyes filled with confusion, as if she couldn't see her own future.
Yuto gently stroked Furina's head, as if comforting an anxious kitten.
"Just do what you've always wanted to do but couldn't because of your identity."
"In the past... you performed on stage because of your duty, but now... you should listen to the rhythm of your own heart."
Yuto's voice was like a feather gently landing on Furina's heart, softly soothing her heart, which was a little flustered by the sudden change in circumstances.
"Things I didn't dare to do before..."
Furina lowered her head slightly, seemingly deep in thought.
Seeing this, Yuto sat quietly beside Furina, silently drinking black tea, waiting for Furina's decision.
Although five hundred years of performance had become deeply ingrained, making Furina carry a bit of her old way of doing things, if every single thing she did was something she genuinely wanted to do from her heart... then other things would seem less important.
"I need to think about how to let Furina rest well next... and also arrange for a successor, I can't just leave everything to Neuvillette..."
"Are thirty-six people enough? Or should I get more? If all else fails... I'll find time to visit Ritou and see how the Sea Moon Pavilion operates?"
However, just as Yuto was thinking this, he suddenly felt his hand being squeezed by something.
This sudden touch instantly pulled Yuto's consciousness out of the vortex of his thoughts. He looked down slightly... and found that Furina had placed her hand on his at some point.
Seemingly noticing Yuto's somewhat surprised gaze, the temperature of Furina's face gradually rose, but even though her small face was almost completely red... she still didn't remove her hand.
And Yuto's brain also experienced a brief shutdown.
Although from their previous few conversations during afternoon tea... he could sense Furina's emotional changes towards him, but...
He hadn't expected this little blue cake to take the initiative.
In Yuto's original plan, Furina would need a long time to adapt to her identity before considering their relationship.
But... Yuto underestimated the impact of his four hundred eighty-nine years, one hundred seventy-eight thousand four hundred eighty-five acts of companionship on Furina.
For the current Furina, she not only needed to properly thank Yuto but also clearly tell him what she was truly thinking.
As for Yuto's ability to foresee the future... that wasn't important to Furina.
Although he knew the future and understood what would happen, his companionship was genuine.
For Furina herself, Yuto could have remained silent after knowing everything, keeping himself uninvolved in these matters to avoid trouble.
—After all, the documents he had to deal with every day were already headache-inducing; taking on such a responsibility...
It was truly overwhelming.
And when Yuto just said, "Do what you've always wanted to do but couldn't because of your identity"... she immediately thought of this.
She wanted to properly express her feelings to Yuto.
Thinking of this, Furina slightly closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Just as she was about to say something rather... sappy, Yuto spoke first:
"Miss Furina, may I ask... are you in need of a pastry chef?"
"Huh?"
Hearing this, Furina suddenly opened her eyes, looking at Yuto, who was still smiling gently at her, with some confusion, unsure of what he was saying.
"If Miss Furina, who loves cakes, plans to leave Palais Mermonia and return to a normal life later... then she might be troubled by small cakes, right?"
"Hotel Debord's sixteen slices of small cake per day are not only expensive but also not as delicious as mine... the cost-effectiveness is truly low."
"So... I'm offering my services. I wanted to ask if Miss Furina needs an excellent pastry chef by her side."
Hearing this, Furina first blinked, and the temperature on her face suddenly rose.
As intelligent as she was, she naturally understood Yuto's hidden meaning, and his true intention.
Her face flushed, she stammered a bit:
"Um... this... I..."
Looking at the somewhat shy Furina in front of him, a gentle smile appeared on Yuto's face. He then gently pinched Furina's cheek and said:
"It seems Miss Furina is troubled by the employment period and salary..."
"The salary... one hundred mora a month, and the employment period... is forever."
"How do these terms sound to Miss Furina?"
Hearing this, Furina's face grew redder and redder, and she finally chose to lower her head to avoid Yuto's gaze.
Yuto was not in a hurry. He smiled gently, quietly waiting for Furina's answer.
—From the moment the girl placed her hand on his, he knew what would happen next.
But how could such a matter be so directly borne by a young girl?
Thinking of this, Yuto looked at Furina, who wished she could bury her head under the table, and a faint smile appeared on his face.
About half a minute later, Furina still didn't speak, but once again placed her cool little hand on his.
After doing this, the young girl slightly raised her head, her face flushed, and gently nodded to Yuto, saying in a voice as soft as a mosquito's:
"Pl-please take care of me... Pastry Chef... Mr...."
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