Chapter 151: Exposure, It Is Focalors!

Splash!

Amidst her shock, the small cake in Furina’s hand suddenly dropped onto the table. Yet, she paid it no mind, staring blankly at "Lu Mingze" outside the shop. She even rubbed her eyes subconsciously, repeatedly confirming that she hadn't seen things wrong.

She was utterly shocked!

Lu Mingfei’s world and her own were two completely different realms. If the Lu Mingze from Lu Mingfei’s world could reach Teyvat, then could he also...

At this thought, Furina’s heart rate accelerated significantly, and her gaze toward "Lu Mingze" grew increasingly intense and fervent.

On the other side of the glass window, Focalors was also starting to panic.

Watching the cake hit the floor with puppy-dog eyes, she thought: *Oh dear, why did you have to drop the cake? That piece clearly looked so delicious! To waste something so good—you—you—you are simply guilty of a crime deserving a million deaths! Ahhhhh!*

*Dammit, something I can't even eat even if I want to, and you go and waste it like this. How hateful!*

Gradually, however, Focalors began to realize that Furina’s expression looked a bit off. The way she was looking at her seemed far too intense, almost as if she were staring at something of paramount importance, gazing into a brand-new future.

*Why is she looking at me like that?*

After a brief moment of puzzlement, Focalors suddenly realized that she was currently using Lu Mingze’s appearance, and Furina happened to know Lu Mingze. Since Lu Mingze was Lu Mingfei’s younger brother, it was completely natural for Furina to be familiar with him.

And now, I have been seen by Furina—

"Gulp!"

Focalors swallowed hard. She suddenly realized the gravity of the situation; if handled improperly, the affair between her and Lu Mingze might be exposed to Furina and Lu Mingfei.

Oh no, this is a huge disaster!

"Lu Mingfei! Lu Mingfei! I just saw Lu Mingze in our world!" Furina hurriedly shouted inwardly to Lu Mingfei on the other end.

"Huh? Lu Mingze?"

Lu Mingfei was stunned on the spot. He looked at the little devil sitting beside him, snacking and eating popcorn, and asked in confusion, "Did you see wrong? Lu Mingze is right here with me. He's enjoying his popcorn, and he's holding a bunch of cakes too, looking like he's about to taste-test every single flavor—heaven knows what's going through his head."

"Huh? He's right beside you?"

Furina was also frozen. She stared at the shadowless "Lu Mingze" outside the bakery and was one hundred percent certain that this guy was a spiritual body, and furthermore, that he was Lu Mingze. But why...

"Never mind all that, let's just open a video call right away. Show me the Lu Mingze on your end, and then take a look at the one on mine, so we can see if something went wrong," Furina recovered quickly and said.

"Alright, starting the video right now."

Lu Mingfei replied.

*Idiot, run away already!*

Lu Mingze, inside Focalors' body, was anxious. He could completely anticipate Furina and Lu Mingfei's next moves, but Focalors couldn't; her understanding of Lu Mingfei and Furina was still far too shallow.

Because of this, Focalors, currently appearing in the guise of Lu Mingze, remained blankly frozen in place, at a loss. She was so flustered that Lu Mingze almost wanted to manifest directly and drag her away.

*Oh no! She definitely has designs on me!*

Focalors was the Hydro Archon, after all. While she lacked a certain sensitivity regarding the communication between Lu Mingfei and Furina, she knew Furina well. Judging by Furina's expression, she could roughly guess what the woman was planning to do.

Therefore, although a bit slow on the uptake, she bolted at top speed without the slightest hesitation. Alas, she was ultimately a step too late.

Lu Mingfei had already caught sight of her retreating figure.

"What the hell! Lu Mingze!"

Lu Mingfei glanced at the Lu Mingze tasting small cakes beside him, then recalled the image he had just witnessed. He was one hundred percent certain that the two Lu Mingzes looked identical, which gave him a profound shock.

"Brother, why are you looking at me like that? Do you want to share my cake?" Lu Mingze asked in confusion.

"Um..."

Lu Mingfei looked at him suspiciously, then reached out to pinch his cheek to confirm that this fellow was truly the little devil. But if this guy was the real deal, then what on earth was the Lu Mingze in Teyvat? Why could Furina see him?

This was way too bizarre!

Wait, Lu Mingze was immensely powerful, and Xia Mi’s knowledge of alchemy had also been passed down through him. In other words, there was a high probability that Lu Mingze possessed vast alchemical knowledge as well. And since Norton and Constantine, who mastered alchemy, could both perceive the reality of Teyvat's existence, if that was the case, could Lu Mingze also see—

*Was I just putting on a show for him this whole time? What the hell?*

"You knew Teyvat was real?"

Lu Mingfei’s heart rate began to accelerate.

"If it's Brother, I've always believed you. It's just that I thought acting along would make Brother a bit happier, so I played along! Look at how considerate I am, aren't I?" Lu Mingze said with a smile.

"!!!"

Lu Mingfei’s expression shifted, and he asked, "Then is the other you in the Teyvat world real too?"

"Hmm?"

Lu Mingze paused for a fraction of a second—a subtle detail that Lu Mingfei precisely caught. He quickly returned to normal and said, "Who knows? Perhaps that's part of my arrangement? That's entirely possible, you know."

"Oh."

Lu Mingfei responded softly.

He had already noticed Lu Mingze’s "abnormality," so he could roughly guess that he was lying. In truth, he didn't really understand that fake Lu Mingze either; he simply wanted to appear unfathomable and mysterious, which was why he had adopted that stance.

Lu Mingze didn't overact either, knowing that when it came to acting, going too far was as bad as falling short.

Lu Mingfei possessed formidable and meticulous observation skills, and his personal competence was fine; it was just that Lu Mingze knew him too well and could tailor his reactions precisely to his personality traits. Anyone else would find it immensely difficult to fool him.

"The Lu Mingze on my end is real. He can chat with me normally, and he doesn't seem to know anything about the Lu Mingze on the other side," Lu Mingfei said in his mind.

"Lu Mingfei, I have a theory. That is... there isn't just one pair like us connecting with each other in our worlds, and the people on the other pair's end happen to know Lu Mingze, which is why he chose to appear in Lu Mingze's guise," Furina analyzed slightly.

"Highly likely."

Lu Mingfei nodded, agreeing that the Lu Mingze over there was a fake. He continued, "I also felt that his running form looked a bit off—not the kind of running posture Lu Mingze would use... It felt a bit feminized to me."

"And he didn't even have a shadow. He looked just like a spiritual body—a spiritual body that people could actually see," Furina chimed in with her own analysis.

Feminized, a spiritual body, visible, and in Fontaine...

Soon, Lu Mingfei and Furina across the two worlds slowly connected the dots in their minds, simultaneously uttering the exact same name—

"Focalors!"

In the real world of Dragon Raja, Lu Mingze watched Lu Mingfei’s micro-expressions and directly decoded his thoughts, suddenly feeling a bit suffocated. He muttered inwardly: *This foolish kid, how does he manage to expose himself the moment he steps out? Not even I can save him from this!*

*Sigh!*

Immediately afterward, Lu Mingze sensed Focalors' communication link. This girl must have just bolted back inside the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale and was now desperate to meet with him to hash out countermeasures—such a silly child.

"Ge, do you want some cake? I have one piece left, I'll give this one to you," Lu Mingze smiled as he handed over the final slice.

"Guess that works."

Lu Mingfei reluctantly accepted the cake. On the surface, he looked somewhat unwilling, but inside, he was actually quite happy.

He wasn't really a person who cared for sweets, but watching Lu Mingze eat cake subconsciously made him want to join in. It was like watching your dormmate snack on something—you instinctively want a bite too, whereas if you were just staring at a snack by yourself, the craving might never arise.

Simply put, food stolen from a brother always tastes better than your own!

The moment the cake was handed over, Lu Mingze naturally vanished. His timing wasn't triggered by Furina seeing Focalors nearby; rather, the moment Focalors slipped up on the Traveler's end, he had immediately manifested before Lu Mingfei to establish his presence.

Because he was afraid of accidents—

Stepping out as a precaution cost him nothing, but if he hadn't done so... fooling Lu Mingfei and Furina afterward would have been a nightmare! Even if he could clear his suspicions if Lu Mingfei called for him, lingering doubts would remain.

But if he had been there from the very beginning, Lu Mingfei’s suspicion of him would be vastly reduced.

Focalors was different; Lu Mingze only needed to lay the groundwork carefully to dispel everyone else's doubts, whereas Focalors was busy worrying about whether the food tasted good or not.

Dreamscape—

"Lu Mingze..."

Focalors looked at him with tear-filled eyes, resembling someone who had suffered a grave injustice, with a thousand words she wanted to pour out.

"Sigh!"

Lu Mingze let out a deep sigh, looking at her helplessly as he said, "Spit it out, what happened?"

"I ran into the Traveler..."

"She's so smart, it's terrifying!"

"Paimon is super smart too!"

"Furina almost found me out as well. Good thing I ran fast! But... she seemed to have seen my face. I went out wearing your appearance at the time."

Lu Mingze stared at her coldly.

"Heh heh?"

Focalors channeled her previous vibe, flashing a pure, innocent smile on her petite face.

"Get down here!"

Lu Mingze directly pinned Focalors across his lap. The latter stared nervously at the ground, her body trembling slightly—she was terrified.

"Stealing my skin, are you? Smack!"

"Ah~ I was wrong, I was wrong!"

"And you got caught by Furina too, huh? Smack!"

"I didn't mean to~"

"And the moment something goes wrong, you remember me, right? Smack!"

"When things were fine, I didn't forget to use your appearance to go out either, so you can't really count that—"

"Still talking back! Smack!"

"Sob, sob~"

After a few swats, Lu Mingze’s mood improved considerably. Looking at Focalors, who was sprawled across his knees and gazing at him pitifully, a fresh wave of helplessness welled up in his heart.

This silly child, there's truly no doing anything with her.

"Heh heh?"

Seemingly sensing Lu Mingze’s softening heart, Focalors smiled again, expertly crawling up his body like a little darling, rubbing against him affectionately as she whined, "I'm sorry~ I really didn't mean to~ I was just thinking about you and it slipped my mind. Who else is there besides you that I spend all my time with anyway~ Am I right?"

With you acting like this, what else can I even say?

Lu Mingze helplessly stroked her glossy hair. The silky-smooth texture was fantastic, feeling much like high-quality silk. Unlike silk, however, her hair retained an exceptional moisture and a far more delicate, refined tactile feel.

"Will you impersonate me next time?"

Lu Mingze asked.

"I probably don't dare anymore," Focalors said with a hint of hesitation.

"Probably?"

Lu Mingze raised an eyebrow and glared back angrily.

"Definitely, I definitely won't dare anymore!"

Focalors quickly corrected herself, her two little hands sliding back and forth across his chest as if trying to smooth away the anger in his heart.

"Sigh~"

Looking at Focalors like this, it was hard for Lu Mingze to stay genuinely angry. With those pitiful little eyes and that decisive attitude of admitting defeat, how could he bear to pursue the matter further?

Besides...

He used Focalors' skin far more often; it was just that he hadn't been caught yet.

"Heh heh, Lu Mingze, you're the best to me. Come on, help me think of a way out~ mua~" Focalors nuzzled against him intimately.

"Alright, alright, I'll figure something out for you."

Lu Mingze pushed her face away with his hand, but Focalors immediately leaned right back in. When he pushed her a second time, his hand somehow refused to "budge."

Such a clingy pest, I give up~

"The current situation is even more dangerous than you think. Lu Mingfei looked at me just now, which means he already knows what happened on your end through the connection. So there's a high probability they're starting to suspect it's you."

"Ah? Why would they suspect me?"

"Feminized movements, a spiritual body, visible to others, able to manifest in broad daylight, and knowledgeable about Fontaine's history—who else meets the criteria besides you, Focalors?" Lu Mingze replied helplessly.

"Ah, well... I suppose that's true."

Focalors began to panic. The way she looked at Lu Mingze grew increasingly pitiful, her moist eyes blinking as they silently conveyed her sorrow and helplessness.

"Under these circumstances, my brother will likely pull you into a dreamscape tonight. Think carefully, what are you going to do once you're in the dream?" Lu Mingze guided her step-by-step.

"Then what should I do?"

Focalors echoed his question.

"..."

Focalors' reaction left Lu Mingze speechless. But what could he do? She was his own silly Fu-fu, after all. With a sigh of resignation, he continued, "The best way to dispel suspicion is to confirm that a part of their suspicions is true, while proving that another part is false. Simply admitting or denying everything won't easily dispel their doubts."

"I don't understand."

Focalors tilted her head slightly, looking endoearingly foolish—whether genuinely clueless or putting on an act, her gaze remained thoroughly pure from start to finish.

"We can do this and that... like so and so..."

"Abba abba... abba abba..."

Lu Mingze: (▼_▼)