In the stillness of the night,

Yuxie lay on his bed in the dormitory, staring blankly at the ceiling, deep in thought about many things.

Two years had passed, but he still wasn't close to achieving his true purpose for coming to the Hearth Manor.

Becoming the fourth seat of the Fatui executives wouldn't be so easy.

"Knock, knock, knock." At that moment, someone tapped on the window.

Yuxie wasn't surprised. He got up from the bed, walked to the window, and opened it.

As the night breeze flowed in, silvery hair danced in the moonlight, revealing the girl's charming face.

Peruere climbed in through the window.

"What's up?" Yuxie asked calmly.

"I have something to tell you." Peruere walked to the desk and sat in the only chair, as if she had returned to her own room.

This wasn't the first time she had come to Yuxie's room. There were some things she didn't want to worry Clervie about, so she would visit Yuxie for a talk on quiet, late nights.

"You want to talk about what happened today," Yuxie said.

"Yes." Peruere paused for a moment. "We both understand what the 'Knave' wants. I originally didn't plan to resist because I was confident I could survive this battle. But now…"

"Are you suggesting that I might defeat you?"

"That's not important. What matters is Clervie; I don't want to see her eliminated. So… what do you plan to do next?"

Yuxie fell silent for a moment, glancing at the moonlight outside.

"If the current 'Knave' steps down, who do you think will be the next 'Knave'?"

"I don't know. That's something the Cryo Archon needs to consider. So, do you agree with my 'assassination' plan today?"

"I agree, but not now." Yuxie took a deep breath. "And if someone must succeed the 'Knave', I hope it's you."

"I become the next 'Knave'?" Peruere looked into Yuxie's eyes.

Yuxie nodded.

Peruere fell silent for a moment, gazing into Yuxie's eyes as if trying to read something deeper within them.

But she didn't uncover anything.

Even though Yuxie's eyes seemed to hold nothing, Peruere felt that there was still some secret about him.

Everyone has secrets.

To Peruere, such secrets didn't create a rift; rather, over the past two years, Yuxie's actions had only strengthened her trust in him. Otherwise, she wouldn't have come to find him in the middle of the night.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"How is your 'curse' coming along?" Yuxie suddenly changed the topic.

Peruere raised her hands.

Two years ago, the curse was only present at her fingertips, but now it had begun to spread to her palms.

"This 'curse' is also a form of power. The 'Knave' is very aware of this; she knows us too well. To be honest, I don't know how to defeat her," Peruere said, looking at her hands.

"Don't worry, everything will be okay," Yuxie repeated his reassuring words.

"You're really optimistic," Peruere said after a moment of silence. "Imagine the worst outcome: if we can't change anything and the fighting goes on until the end, I hope… that Clervie can survive."

"And what about you?"

"I'm different from Clervie. She yearns for freedom; she should go see the outside world. That's her dream."

"Don't you want to see the outside world?"

"I don't have that many things I want to do." With that, Peruere took out the hairpin Clervie had given her earlier. "I'm just happy to have met Clervie."

"Why don't you try wearing the hairpin?" Yuxie suggested, looking at Peruere without continuing the previous topic.

Peruere paused for a moment.

"Okay."

She took the hairpin and tried to place it on her forehead.

But perhaps because she had never used a hairpin before and there was no mirror to adjust it, her movements were a bit clumsy, and she struggled to get it right.

"I'll help you." Yuxie didn't think much of it as he took the hairpin from Peruere's hand and gently helped her put it on.

They were very close, close enough that Peruere could feel Yuxie's warm breath.

"That's too close."

"Ah, sorry." Yuxie finished helping Peruere with the hairpin and quickly stepped back a little.

Peruere turned her head to the other side and said softly, "It's okay."

This was the first time Yuxie saw Peruere show such an expression, and looking at her like this made him even more determined about something.

"Clervie has to survive, and so do you. So you should let go of the thoughts you've been hiding in your heart; otherwise, Clervie will be sad, and she might not talk to you anymore."

"...I understand." Peruere fell into silence for a long time. She knew that Yuxie could see her desire to let Clervie take the position of 'king,' but she hadn't expected him to say something like that.

"Trust me, everything will be okay."

…

The next day.

On the training ground, Clervie stood face to face with another blonde girl, both of them holding weapons.

The blonde girl's name was Iyeita.

Unlike the wooden daggers used in Yuxie and Peruere's earlier match, this time Clervie and Iyeita wielded sharpened short swords.

Yuxie, Peruere, and all the other children watched the match from the sidelines, while Crucabena sat on the other side.

"Begin," Crucabena commanded.

Clervie and Iyeita rushed forward simultaneously; despite being children, their speed was impressive, and the short swords in their hands glinted with a blinding light.

Accompanied by the sharp sounds of metal clashing, their figures collided back and forth.

The children at the House of the Hearth all trained in the same swordsmanship, learning similar techniques. In a contest, it came down to who was more skilled and who had more talent.

Yet, differences between individuals always existed.

Today, however, Clervie and the girl named Iyeita had exchanged many moves without showing any significant disparity.

Time flowed slowly as the sounds of clashing blades continued.

Clervie and Iyeita stared at each other, not daring to let their guard down as they closely observed each other's movements, but their breaths were already ragged.

Both were reaching their physical limits.

But as long as Crucabena hadn't called for a stop, they had to keep going.

They worked to steady their breathing, preparing to engage once more.

Crucabena watched everything unfold.

Finally, she called out:

"Stop! That's enough for today."

After Crucabena finished speaking, she didn't linger and walked out of the training ground.

As soon as Crucabena left, a barely noticeable smile appeared on Clervie's lips, and her eyes seemed to relax.

Exhausted, she felt unsteady on her feet and started to fall back.

But instead of hitting the cold ground as she expected, someone caught her.

What came into view was Peruere's face.

"Peipei…"

"Just take a moment to rest," Yu Xie's voice also reached her ears.

Clervie closed her eyes in peace.

The result of the match was a draw, as agreed upon by Clervie and Iyeita.

If losing meant elimination, then a draw could prevent anyone from being eliminated, right?

This was a small trick Clervie had found.

She knew it wouldn't solve the fundamental problem, but for now, it was all she could do.