Zhou Tianming didn't recognize the voice. Putting down his phone, he glanced at the caller ID—Athrun.
"You're Athrun's mother? Go ahead."
Lenore let out a long sigh, seemingly relieved. "Lately I've noticed something strange around our neighborhood. I'm worried our identities have been exposed. I was hoping you could escort us back to PLANT."
"No problem. Start packing your things. I'll be there around..." Zhou Tianming raised his left arm and tilted his chin toward his wrist. Lacus, standing beside him, nodded and showed him her phone with the time. "It's about 9 AM now. I'll come by before 1 PM."
"Alright, thank you."
"Don't mention it. Athrun and I are good friends after all."
"No we're not!" Athrun's voice suddenly came through the phone. "We're not friends! We're rivals!"
"Hmph." Zhou Tianming chuckled dismissively. "Brat!"
"Ah!!"
"Athrun! Where are your manners!" Lenore's stern voice cut in, and Athrun immediately fell silent.
"Heh~" Zhou Tianming laughed briefly before turning serious. "Be careful until I arrive. Especially if anyone comes to your door—make sure to verify their identity before opening it."
"Understood."
After hanging up, Zhou Tianming contacted an airline to book a shuttle for their return to Cosmic Space.
"Let's go. We've got work to do."
Zhou Tianming waved for Lacus to follow. She tilted her head. "Is this about Athrun Zala?"
He paused in surprise. "You know him?"
"My father took me to play at his house when we were children, but they moved away after some incidents." Lacus asked curiously, "Did something happen?" "Similar to your situation. Sister Lenore suspects someone is targeting them and asked me to escort them back to PLANT." Hearing this, Lacus's expression darkened with concern.
Zhou Tianming smiled reassuringly. "It's fine. Patrick has probably anticipated this—he might have already sent people to pick them up. We're just going as an insurance policy."
Kira's probably there too. Now the three kids are gathering ahead of schedule.
He glanced at Lacus.
Who knows what might happen when these three meet earlier than planned.
Kira-Athrun, Athrun-Lacus, Lacus-Kira...
He couldn't suppress a grin at the amusing possibilities.
"Brother Tianming, I think you're plotting something mischievous.""
Lacus's sudden comment startled him.
"N-no, of course not." Zhou Tianming turned away guiltily. "Let's speed up. The shuttle's waiting."
He quickened his pace.
Lacus followed closely, watching his back thoughtfully. "I can't sense it again. Is it because what he's thinking about involves me?"
Copernicus City, Athrun's home.
After finishing the call with Zhou Tianming, the mother and son began packing their belongings.
"Athrun, you can come back for your things later. Just take the essentials—we have everything else at home."
"Okay."
Ding-dong—ding-dong
Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
Lenore stood up to answer it, but then remembered Zhou Tianming's warning and Patrick's past teachings.
She raised a finger to her lips, signaling "quiet" to Athrun, then tiptoed to the door and activated the peephole camera.
Outside stood three people in ZAFT red uniforms—two men and a woman—pressing the doorbell.
Seeing this, Lenore let out a sigh of relief.
The man ringing the bell frowned briefly, then relaxed. "Mrs. Lenore, we know you're there. We've been sent by Defense Committee Chairman Patrick to escort you."
He pulled a card from his inner uniform pocket and held it up to the peephole.
Smith-Landon, affiliated with...
After carefully reading the information, Lenore felt somewhat reassured but remained cautious. "I need to contact Patrick to confirm."
She kept her eyes fixed on the people outside.
"Of course, go ahead."
Lenore then contacted Patrick, who confirmed that he had indeed sent people and praised her caution.
She held her phone up to the intercom as Patrick's voice came through: "Mission code, verification code.""
The people outside stood at attention, saluted, and recited a series of letters and numbers.
"Lenore, it's fine. They're definitely the people I sent."
Lenore relaxed.
"Be careful on the way. I'll be waiting for you at home."
"Mm."
With Patrick's confirmation, Lenore finally opened the door and let the three in.
Smith saluted her. "Please pack a few things quickly. We need to leave immediately."
Nodding, she replied, "Right away."
Lenore picked up the phone by the sofa to contact Zhou Tianming and cancel the request.
But after pressing only a few digits, Smith pressed the "hang up" button to disconnect the call. "If it's not urgent, it would be better to contact them later. I'm concerned about information leaks. You can call freely once we reach a secure location."
Glancing at Smith, Lenore smiled and hung up the phone. "Alright."
She then turned to Athrun. "Athrun! Check if you've forgotten anything. We're leaving."
Athrun was about to nod when he noticed Lenore frowning and glancing sideways.
He caught on quickly. "Wait! I have a lot of things to take."
With that, he dashed into his room.
Smith's gaze lingered on Lenore for a moment before he tilted his chin, signaling Bonnie to check Athrun's room.
Bonnie peeked inside and immediately looked exasperated. Turning back, she said, "Captain, you'd better see this yourself."
Smith motioned for Tris to keep watch and went over to look.
Inside Athrun's room were several open suitcases, all crammed with mechanical parts and finished models.
"Young Master Athrun, just pack some simple changes of clothes. These—"
"The trip back to PLANT will take several hours, right? I need something to do. It shouldn't be a problem to bring a few extra suitcases, should it, big guy?" Outside, hearing this, Tris instinctively glanced over.
Lenore quickly opened the drawer of the coffee table in front of the sofa, pulled out a small white book, and tossed it to the floor. The moment Tris glanced back, she stood up and kicked it under the table. "Athrun, don't be stubborn. These gentlemen are here on official business."
With a dissatisfied huff, Athrun dropped his luggage all over the floor and said petulantly, "Fine, then I don't need to bring anything."
"You stubborn child."
Lenore went into the room to pack some clothes for him.
Smith glanced at Tris, who shook his head slightly. Smith scanned the living room before looking away.
"Ma'am, please hurry."
"Alright."
As mother and son packed, their eyes met. Lenore gave a reassuring smile and subtly shifted some components while arranging them.
Soon after, the five of them left.
On their way downstairs, they encountered a neighbor carrying bags of meat and vegetables. Lenore exchanged a brief greeting before moving on.
Around 11 AM, the Black Tortoise approached the Moon and began decelerating, carefully navigating through the busy shuttle traffic.
Inside one shuttle, Smith's eyes narrowed as he murmured, "The Black Tortoise... What's it doing here? Could it be...?"
He glanced back toward the room where Lenore and Athrun were staying.
After a moment's thought, he made a call: "This is Smith-Landon. I need backup..."
At 12:32 PM, Zhou Tianming arrived alone at Lenore's doorstep and rang the bell.
Ding-dong. Ding-dong.
No response.
"Athrun? Sister Lenore? It's me, Zhou Tianming."
He frowned.
Were they out? At this hour?
He took out his phone and called.
The phone rang repeatedly with no answer.
Just then, the neighboring door opened, and a neighbor emerged with a bag of trash. Spotting Zhou Tianming, they paused.
"Quite the busy day today. Are you here for Lenore too?"
"Yes," Zhou Tianming nodded politely. "Do you know where Sister Lenore went?"
"She left this morning with some people in military uniforms."
"Military uniforms? What kind?"
"Red ones. Looked like PLANT military attire."
"Alright, thank you."
The neighbor waved and left.
Zhou Tianming glanced at Lenore's door.
ZAFT personnel?
It seemed Lenore had been picked up by people sent by Patrick.
"Just as well. Saves me some trouble."
Suddenly, a playful smile crossed Zhou Tianming's face. "I wonder if Kira will cry when he finds out Athrun is gone?"
Curiosity in his eyes, he walked over to Kira's house next door and rang the bell.