socalfunplaces Chapter 1406 The Great Good Man
Chapter 1406 The Great Good Man
Diluc, seeing her suddenly displaying her professional instincts, shook his head helplessly and offered a friendly reminder on how to get along with others.
"It's actually quite simple to get information about him. As long as you don't provoke him and prepare a good meal, he might be able to chat with you for a whole day and tell you anything."
Upon hearing this, Nefer was clearly surprised that it would be so easy.
She blinked and questioned, "Is it that simple? Is he really that guarded? After all, he has so many secrets to hide; he shouldn't open up to strangers so easily."
She could hardly believe that someone with such a legendary and dark past could be so approachable.
Diluc slowly shook his head. This was never due to a lack of vigilance, but rather the absolute confidence that came with absolute strength.
"It's not that he was unguarded, but that almost everyone who provoked him is dead."
"He is absolutely confident that he can kill all those who have ill intentions towards him, just like a lion on the savanna. Even when he is lazily resting in the sun, he never worries that the antelopes around him can hurt him. There is no need for him to bother to guard against him."
After hearing these words, Nefer gently pinched her chin with her fingertips, lost in thought, and murmured, "Hmm... I see. It is absolute strength that gives him the confidence to act recklessly."
Seeing her deep in thought, Diluc said nothing more, slowly stood up, straightened his clothes, and took his leave:
"I'm leaving now. The Flower Feather Society is still waiting for manpower, and I have to go fulfill my duties."
……
On the second floor of the Morning Sun Winery villa, in a luxurious yet warmly decorated room, the warm sunlight streamed through the windows onto the soft cashmere carpet, and the air was filled with the faint aroma of grapes and woody fragrance.
The large bed was covered with black and red velvet bedding, fluffy and soft like clouds.
As soon as Yakoda entered the room, her eyes lit up with excitement. She rolled around on the big bed, crumpling the velvet quilt into shallow wrinkles. As she rolled, she couldn't help but let out soft giggles.
This was the first time in her life she had stayed in such a spacious and luxurious room, and the first time she had slept in such a soft bed, which made her feel both novel and satisfied.
Just then, the door was gently pushed open, and Nefer carried Asher in, only to find Yakoda rolling around on the bed.
She gently stroked Asheru's soft fur in her arms, her tone tinged with affection, and teased, "Let me see what I've found? A mischievous kitten is rolling around on the bed."
Upon hearing Nefer's voice, Yakoda immediately stopped what she was doing, braced herself on the soft bed with one hand, and sat up with a swift but childlike recklessness.
She then ran to Nefer, tilted her little face up, her smile radiant with undisguised joy, and said in a clear, melodious voice:
"Nai-jie! Look! The room Mr. Diluc prepared for us is absolutely wonderful! It's so big and soft, better than anywhere we've ever stayed before!"
Nefer looked down at her bright eyes, her gaze unconsciously falling on her empty right arm, a look of heartache flashing across her eyes.
The tenderness quickly faded, replaced by a gentle and reassuring smile.
“I’m glad you like it. I’ve already reached an agreement with Mr. Diluc. Our Secret Archives will temporarily be based at the Dawn Winery in Nata. This will be our temporary base from now on.”
Upon hearing that the Secret House finally had a permanent location, Yakoda became even more excited. She raised her only left hand high and cheered:
"Really? That's great, Sister Nai! What kind of work do you need me to do? I'm willing to do anything!"
Nefer looked at her empty right arm, then at her eager expression, and then an idea popped into her head.
She played along, ruffling Yakoda's hair and speaking in a gentle tone that brooked no refusal:
"Of course I have work to give you, and this is the most important task: you need to rest well and take good care of yourself until I find a way to fix your mechanical arm. No slacking off, and no overexertion."
Upon hearing that the so-called "work" was just rest, Yakoda immediately shook her head vigorously and said urgently, "Sister Nai, I'm fine!"
"Look, I can do all the work with one hand. Organizing intelligence, cleaning rooms, running errands and delivering messages—I can do all of these without needing to rest!"
As she spoke, she raised her left hand and shook it, trying to prove that she could really do it and didn't want to become a burden to Nefer because she was missing an arm.
Nefer was both angry and heartbroken to see Yakoda's stubbornness and refusal to listen to reason. She deliberately clicked her tongue twice and made a face full of disgust.
"Tsk, your employee is really stubborn to no avail. Can you really work as efficiently with one hand as with two?"
“You’re so clumsy. If you accidentally spill coffee on the Secret Archives’ stuff—like intelligence or files—you’ll have to work for me for the rest of your life to pay for it.”
Yakoda didn't catch the teasing and heartache in her words at all. When she heard "work for Sister Nai for the rest of her life", her eyes lit up instantly and she nodded in agreement without thinking.
"Okay, okay! Then I'll work for you for the rest of my life, Sister Nai. Thank you for taking me in!"
In her eyes, being able to stay by Nefer's side and contribute to the Secrets House was the happiest thing.
Upon hearing this, Nefer was immediately amused by her innocent appearance and pretended to be angry as she raised her hand and tapped her forehead.
"You little idiot, you really want to spill coffee on the intelligence?"
Yakoda then realized she had misspoke and misunderstood, and hurriedly shook her head, her face flushing slightly, as she explained urgently and aggrievedly:
"No, Sister Nai, that's not what I meant! I just can't stay idle and don't want to keep slacking off and holding you back. You can give me some small tasks that I can manage, like organizing papers or cleaning the house. I'll be really careful and won't ruin any information, really!"
Seeing the enthusiasm in her eyes, Nefer's anger instantly vanished. She gently stroked her soft hair and gave her an easy little task.
"Alright, alright, I'm just teasing you. How about this, you go visit our neighbors tomorrow."
"It's that ranch to the south. The ranch owner is very easy to talk to. I'm sure that with the skills of our best employee at the Secrets Bureau, this small favor can be handled smoothly, right?"
Upon hearing that there was finally a mission, Yakoda's eyes crinkled with a smile, and she nodded vigorously, promising, "I guarantee I'll complete the mission! Hehe, don't worry, Sister Nai, I'll definitely visit the neighbors properly, make them happy, and absolutely won't let the Secret Archives down!"
As he spoke, he proudly waved his left hand, looking quite confident.
……
Just as Nefer was pondering how to improve her relationship with Shao Yun and gather some intelligence, little did she know that Teyvat's time was already running out.
……
Meanwhile, within the Nata region, in the canyon where the Sons of Echoes reside.
The wind whistles through the crevices of the canyon, drifting over the scattered dwellings of the tribes.
Xinoning's workshop is located in the middle of the canyon. There are some neatly polished metal parts and tools piled up at the entrance, and the air is filled with the faint smell of machine oil and minerals.
Xinoning leaned against the door frame of the workshop, her brows furrowed, her fingertips unconsciously pressing against her throbbing temples.
Shao Yun stood to one side, recounting the general situation of the destruction of Nordkale, while Chaska occasionally added to the story. The two of them spoke one sentence at a time, their rambling words making her head throb, as if countless honey worms were swirling inside.
Finally, Xinoning could no longer hold back. Suppressing the urge to explode, she abruptly raised her hand, palm facing forward, interrupting their conversation:
"Stop, stop, stop! Don't say anything yet, let me sort this out first." With that, she took a deep breath, her gaze sweeping across the two faces, and asked to confirm, "You mean, Nordkare is completely destroyed?"
Seeing the two nod, she quickly sorted through the information and summarized:
"Then a large group of refugees from Nordkalai came to our Nata for refuge. Now we don't have enough manpower, so they asked me to go to the Flower Feather Association to help receive them? Is that what you mean?"
Chaska nodded vigorously immediately, then, remembering another matter that had been put aside, added:
Yes, that's exactly what I mean. There's also something else: a year ago, the robot girl Ineff was also damaged, and a little girl named Aino was determined to fix her.
At this point, she felt a little guilty and scratched her head.
"But I was too busy with the Huayu Association at the time, so I could only give that little girl a few perfunctory words. I hope she won't be too anxious or blame me..."
After listening, Xinoning agreed without hesitation, "I see, I understand. Please wait a moment, I'll pack up my tools and go to the Flower Feather Society with you right away."
With that, Xinoning turned and headed into the workshop to take stock of the tools.
Chaska, seeing her so decisive and without a single complaint, raised an eyebrow in surprise and said teasingly:
"Oh? You're acting quite unusually today, so decisive and efficient. That's rare. You weren't this quick to agree to help me with a small favor before."
Seeing Chaska making fun of him, Xinoning rolled his eyes helplessly and pursed his lips.
"Don't joke with me, this is not the time to slack off."
"Although I hate the tedious work of blacksmiths and ancient name casting masters from the bottom of my heart, and I always like to complain, now is not the time to complain."
Shao Yun listened quietly to their bickering. Seeing that Xinoning had already agreed to go to the Flower Feather Society, he knew that their mission had been successfully completed. He nodded slightly and, according to his own thoughts, calmly and gently gave instructions:
“Alright then, Xinoning, you and Chaska go to the Flower Feather Association to help stabilize the refugees and lend a hand with the reception. I’ll go back to the ranch first to prepare some milk and dairy products for the children from Nordkalai.”
He had seen many Nordkalai children when he was maintaining order among the refugees at the small pier next to the Flower Feather Society.
Driven by a rare sense of kindness, he felt he should help as much as he could within his means.
Milk and dairy products are both high in protein, which is undoubtedly the best comfort for children who are growing and living a life of hardship.
Chaska looked at Shao Yun, who was still planning to provide dairy products to the refugees, and asked in surprise, "Huh? Aren't you going home to rest?"
Shao Yun waved his hand and said with a heart full of kindness, "I'm not tired. Besides, a cup of hot milk can soothe the hearts of these children."
……