The next day, the group boarded the return flight.

They had already spent three days on their trip, so it wasn’t a disappointing experience.

The incident of Kiana falling off the cliff had cast a shadow over the final leg of the journey.

Kiana was leaning against Sigurd’s chest.

The seats were quite spacious, and since both of them were children, they fit comfortably together.

Kiana wriggled in his embrace.

“Sig, they said I’m fine. I want to sit on my own.”

“Don’t make a fuss. I’m going to take a nap.”

Considering that she still had bandages on her head, Sigurd didn’t tap her on the head this time.

He just closed his eyes and ordered softly.

Kiana pouted but didn’t resist. She adjusted her position a bit to make herself more comfortable.

“Sig, you should gain some weight. Your bones are poking me.”

Actually, rather than him being too skinny, the reason why he is like that is mainly because he was too small.

Over the past half year, Kiana’s clothes had gone up a size, but Sigurd hadn’t changed much.

Half a year ago, when they sat like this, Kiana felt just right.

Now, she felt a bit cramped.

“Enough chattering…”

Sigurd’s voice was weak as he spoke.

He lightly patted her hand on his back and gradually settled into even breathing.

Sensing Sigurd’s change, Kiana quieted down completely.

Nestled in Sigurd’s arms, she sighed soundlessly.

Turning her head, she saw Sin Mal looking at her with a smile full of meaning.

Seeing Kiana’s gaze, Sin Mal put her index finger to her lips:

“Shh!”

Kiana mimicked covering her mouth, nodding vigorously.

Then, the only sounds in their ears were the rumble of the engines and Sigurd’s steady heartbeat.

Soon, Kiana yawned.

Gradually, her eyelids grew heavy.

Both of them fell asleep.

…

“(?L?)…”

Sin Mal’s expression was extremely complicated.

She undoubtedly wanted to rush forward and kick Kiana away, replacing her with herself, but she was reluctant to wake Sigurd.

Therefore, she could only bite her handkerchief with resentment, emitting a faint grinding sound from her teeth.

Beside her, Bronya had just assembled a handgun and, witnessing this scene, shook her head in resignation.

After hesitating for a moment, Bronya reached out her hand.

“Here.”

“Bronya!”

Sin Mal immediately dropped the handkerchief and tightly embraced the slender, fair arm.

Seeing the reduction in Sin Mal’s resentment, Bronya felt relieved but also reluctantly accepted the situation.

Turning to her left, she saw Kiana’s satisfied face on Sigurd embracement, and to her right, Sin Mal too wore a contented smile.

So, Bronya accepted this situation, closing her eyes expressionlessly, completely unaware of the shocked gaze directed at her from the front left, from Cocolia.

‘… Did something go wrong with my orphanage?’

Cocolia wore a bewildered expression, her hand tightly clutching her handkerchief.

Suddenly, the communicator in her hand buzzed to life, an incoming message from Einstein.

Einstein: “Did you really get rid of Brolon?”

Kiana: “Sigurd did it. But he replaced Brolon with a robot. Since that old guy was always seen using his doppelgänger, even if he met other people in the far future with a robot won’t raise their suspicion, especially with those two maid units to accompany him. No one will notice.”

Einstein: “But how do I explain this to the Alliance Leader? Although I convinced the Alliance Leader to accept Brolon back then due to survival concerns regarding Anti-Entropy and Brolon’s staunch anti-Otto stance, now that he’s an enforcer, it’s a difficult matter to handle.”

Cocolia: “I recently procured a batch of high-quality red tea and a fine tea set. They’ve been delivered to headquarters.”

Einstein: “I’ll log off now if there’s nothing else. Drop by for tea sometime.”

Kiana: “Alright, Dr. Einstein.”

After concluding a covert transaction, Cocolia put down her communicator, her gaze shifting slightly to glance at Sigurd’s slumbering form.

…

“Commander Cocolia, we deeply apologize for what happened to Miss Kiana. We will fully refund the payment for this mission and hope for your understanding.”

“It’s not necessary. Those were well-trained soldiers, and with a traitor among your ranks, it’s understandable how they managed to slip under your radar. It’s not your fault. Since there weren’t any severe consequences this time, I can overlook it. However, for the future… don’t let me be utterly disappointed in the renowned Valkyrie Unit Snow Fox Squad.”

“Yes! Thank you for your understanding. We will reinforce our training and discipline to ensure that such errors never happen again!”

“Very well, work hard. By the way, would you be interested in joining the Starfire Faction? Unlike the Radicals, we are a united and respectful faction, and we won’t place spies among your ranks.”

“Well, this…”

Until the plane landed, Sigurd, who had awakened incompletely, listened with indifference to Cocolia trying to sway the Snow Fox Squad’s loyalty.

Captain Bronk obviously looked somewhat uncertain.

Cocolia was offering a generous reward, displaying excellent attitude, and considering the prior blunder of the Snow Fox Squad, along with the unsettling actions of the Radicals, Bronk felt torn.

Cocolia took out a white card, a pure white one with no extra text or patterns, only a sequence of black digits etched on the card’s surface.

“My contact information. You can consider it and let me know your decision.”

“Yes, we will… consider it carefully.”

Bronksolemnly accepted the card.

From the moment she took the card,Bronk’s only option was to join. The variables were whether he joined voluntarily or was marginalized by the Radicals and then compelled to join.

“Ha~”

Sigurd yawned, nonchalantly disregarding Cocolia’s manipulations.

Managing forces was Cocolia’s hobby, not his.

As for his own hobbies…

“Sig!”

A certain white-haired patient darted toward him like a cannonball, stumbling him in his not fully awakened state.

“I remembered! You said that if I performed better in training, I’d get a month’s supply of high-class pastries! Quickly tell me the result, did I win?”

Kiana grabbed Sigurd’s hand, bouncing with excitement.

She was completely unaware… that from the time they met until now, aside from the initial period of austerity, had Sigurd ever given her anything other than the cheaper types of pastries?

Sigurd patted his slightly aching back where Kiana had collided with him, casting her a faint glance.

Even though she had bandages on, Kaslana’s constitution was no joke, and her lively appearance clearly indicated that she wasn’t a wounded patient.

Locking her throat, pressing her down, and delivering an unmerciful knee strike to her abdomen, he stated unequivocally:

Splurt—

“No pastries for you today.”

After delivering this message, he looked at Kiana writhing on the ground in apparent pain. A pleased smile played at the corners of his lips.

This hobby… was… not right! How could this be a hobby!?

Sigurd covered his face and took a step back, feeling like something was amiss.