Thus, under the astonished gazes of everyone, Shenhe left her seat and walked slowly toward La Signora.
Seeing this, the audience members who had been scolded by La Signora perked up with anticipation, looking eagerly at Shenhe, hoping she would teach the arrogant Harbinger a lesson. Not only the audience, but even La Signora herself assumed Shenhe was there to pick a fight. She put on a cold expression. "A disciple of the adepti? How laughable. Surely you don't actually think you can defeat me?"
Having taken Shenhe for an enemy, La Signora naturally had nothing kind to say. She was as arrogant as ever.
But hearing her provoking words, Shenhe did not get angry. She showed no hostility at all. Instead, she let out a helpless sigh.
They were not enemies. From a certain perspective, they were more like sisters—sisters brought together by Li Mo.
Shenhe spoke slowly. "You misunderstand. I didn't come here to fight you. I came to invite you. If you don't mind, please come sit with us."
Her gaze toward La Signora held no malice, only pity. Yes—pity. Like La Signora, Shenhe was someone who had formed a bond with Li Mo. She knew the storyteller on stage was Li Mo, the one they had all been waiting for. But La Signora knew nothing. Instead, she had put on a show of arrogance before Li Mo, even speaking harshly to him. How pitiful and tragic.
Hearing this, not only La Signora but also the audience who had hoped for a fight were dumbfounded.
What was going on? Logically, Shenhe, a disciple of the adepti, should not even know La Signora, let alone have any connection with her. Why would she suddenly invite La Signora to sit with them? Was it on Yuheng Keqing's orders?
Thinking this, the audience all turned to look at Keqing in the corner.
Keqing: "…"
To be honest, she was just as baffled as the audience. She too could not understand why Shenhe, who had always been indifferent to worldly affairs, would do such a thing.
The next moment, La Signora gritted her teeth. "Are you mocking me?"
Shenhe said calmly, "Of course not. As you can see, the knight you are waiting for is the same person I am waiting for. I only want you to readjust yourself before you see him again. To welcome his return with a new face."
She had seen the light novel in La Signora's hand. She knew La Signora had read it and understood the story of her own past life.
Hearing this, La Signora could not help but let out an arrogant laugh. But then she glanced at the corner where the Raiden Shogun sat—there was no seat for her there. She looked at the corner where Keqing sat and snorted. "Since you've invited me, how could I refuse? Let's see what tricks a disciple of the adepti has up her sleeve."
Though she accepted Shenhe's invitation, after five hundred years, she had lost all trust in others. So even as she agreed, she did not lower her guard. She remained watchful of everyone around her.
A moment later, Shenhe led the alluring La Signora to sit with them. The moment she sat down, La Signora sneered, "Yuheng of Liyue, a cook from Wanmin Restaurant, a coffin-bearer, a ship captain—what an amusing group of people."
At her mockery, Keqing snorted coldly and shot her a sharp look. If she mocked them again, Keqing, as a member of the Liyue Qixing, would not hesitate to use her sword techniques on her.
Xiangling looked wronged. "Hey, that's mean. My job is cooking, but please call me Xiangling, the great chef of Wanmin Restaurant."
Guoba: "Lulu lu—"
Hu Tao laughed unconcernedly. "Coffin‑bearer? Hehe, that's an interesting title. Since you know I carry coffins, it's simple. Come, choose the package that suits you best. Become my customer. I'll carry you next for sure."
La Signora: "…"
Among them, Beidou, as the captain of the Crux Fleet, naturally would not tolerate La Signora's rudeness. "An old woman who's lived for five hundred years—what's there to be so arrogant about? I suggest you tone it down, or you'll look very ugly when you start crying."
La Signora sneered at Beidou. "Crying? Hahaha—how ridiculous. No wonder the Tsaritsa looks down on Liyue Harbor. You're all just naive and childish."
Beidou smirked. "Hmph. The naive one is you. Let's see if you can hold back your tears."
La Signora: "Hmph."
Keqing: "…"
Shenhe: "…"
Though they had not yet heard the story of the eleventh life, they believed that since it involved La Signora, the storyteller would surely make her cry, just as he had with everyone else. Looking at La Signora, they suddenly felt a strange pity. She was about to be moved to tears, yet she had no idea what was coming.
...
While these dramas unfolded below, Li Mo sat on stage watching everything. He saw Shenhe invite La Signora over. He saw La Signora mock the others. He sighed in relief. Fortunately, Shenhe had helped him solve a major problem.
After exchanging a look with Shenhe, Li Mo turned his attention back to the story.
"Around five hundred years ago—"
"Rostam, born of a farming family, and Arundolyn, born into a knightly lineage, became the closest of friends because both shared the dream of becoming heroes. Fortunately, both displayed immense talent for knighthood and received focused training from the Knights of Favonius."
"As they grew up, Arundolyn was elected Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius at a young age, while Rostam, through his own efforts, became the Deputy Grand Master."
"The story of the eleventh life begins here."
"After becoming Deputy Grand Master, because Arundolyn excelled at training knights and practical combat, he left most administrative affairs to Rostam. Things like a missing chicken, like repairing a house in Mondstadt, and so on—trivial matters."
"For the young Rostam, it was his first time handling administrative affairs. He had no experience with such trivialities. He worked all day, his face filled with worry, his head aching. Gradually, he lost his smile."