On the high-speed speedboat, Rey Za Burrel, wearing the uniform of the Kingdom of Foundation military, frowned as he looked at the two individuals who were like drowned rats, wrapped in blankets.
"Falling into the water during vacation time and sending out a distress signal, you really are something else." Rey sighed, lecturing Shinn. "I don't remember you being so impulsive. There's no bonus for this kind of heroic act."
Both Shinn and Stellar were holding energy bars, replenishing their meager physical strength.
"I know there's definitely no bonus. I just happened to see it, and I also saw her about ten days ago, so I had some questions." Shinn glanced at Stellar, who was gnawing on the energy bar like a hamster, and after confirming her condition was stable, he spoke to Rey.
"Ten days ago?" Hearing that timeframe, Rey's expression changed.
This was a highly sensitive time point. Shinn was still on a ZAFT colony then. Why would he have seen a girl from Earth there?
Rey didn't display any killing intent, but he subtly rested his hand on a toolbox, close to the pistol on his waist.
Previously, every time Rey attacked Le Creuset during training, he was dodged. Now, under Le Creuset's guidance, Rey could skillfully conceal his killing intent, preventing others from seeing through him.
But perhaps it was the girl's sixth sense? Rey watched Stellar move even closer to Shinn.
"She's probably a relative of a captain of a logistics organization's transport ship. She seems to have some mental illness. Her previous appearance there was probably for unloading goods at the colony?"
Relying on the name Stellar had mentioned, Shinn offered his speculation.
It must be said that the logistics organization Stellar mentioned was real. When the three enhanced pilots initially entered the ZAFT colony, they used the channels of this logistics organization, and ZAFT also had records of that cargo ship. However, the identification documents they used for authentication were provided by their inside contact.
Now, lacking specific information, and with Stellar clearly exhibiting signs of some mental illness—she might look fine on the surface, but a wrong word could trigger a breakdown like before—Shinn could only rely on minimal information to deduce an answer that was completely off the mark.
"Though, her being there might have been for a doctor's visit, who knows."
"...Forget it, we don't have the means right now." Rey listened to Shinn's speculation. Although he felt something wasn't quite right, they had to maintain a low profile in the Kingdom of Foundation. If they interrogated this girl, setting aside Shinn's comment about "mental illness," if her family showed up and involved the police, it would be extremely troublesome.
"Anyway, let's take her to the police station first. The place where you fell into the water is quite far from the nearest station."
"Also, Shinn... you won't get a bonus for being a good Samaritan, and the distress signal you sent out during your vacation time might result in a deduction..."
"Shut up!"
Hearing Rey's words, Shinn, who moments ago was soaking wet, shivering in the sea breeze, and had to hug Stellar for warmth, now felt like he was entering a state of intense internal heat (Red Zone).
He had just managed to down some Daggers and accumulate a decent bonus. If it was all deducted in one go, Shinn felt his heart might shatter. Those three MS that escaped were still a thorn in his side; he had watched his prize money run away.
Perhaps sensing Shinn's anger over something, Stellar leaned against him again.
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To Shinn and Rey's surprise, Durandal was actually waiting for them on the shore.
"The wind is quite cold tonight. You didn't catch a cold, did you?" Durandal raised an eyebrow, looking at Shinn and Stellar wrapped in blankets.
Rey quickly walked to Durandal's side and whispered something to him.
"...Understood." Durandal nodded calmly, then turned to Shinn. "I know the situation. I won't deduct the bonus this time. You two should take this young lady away first."
Although Shinn and Rey were wearing the military uniforms of the Kingdom of Foundation, the longer the girl stayed there, the higher the risk of the Minerva's presence being exposed when her relatives came looking. The safest course was to take her to the Foundation police station now.
"Also, Shinn, although the bonus won't be deducted, remember to write a report when you return."
Hearing Durandal's last sentence, Shinn's expression instantly crumpled.
Frankly, while fighting and making money filled Shinn's mind, writing reports was a form of torture for him.
Seeing Shinn's reaction, Stellar slightly widened her eyes, tentatively reached out, and, standing on her tiptoes, stroked Shinn's hair as if petting a cat.
Since boarding the speedboat, Stellar's eyes had been fixated on Shinn, completely ignoring Durandal.
However, after Rey explained that Stellar had some kind of mental or psychological disorder, Durandal didn't pay it much mind.
"...Also, be mindful of your personal emotional issues."
Seeing Stellar's action, Durandal narrowed his eyes and coughed lightly a couple of times.
Durandal had no doubt about Shinn's pursuit of prize money, but it was better to eliminate interference from other factors.
"Let's go. The car is ready."
At that moment, Rey sat in the driver's seat, adjusting his hat.
It wasn't a black luxury sedan, but just an ordinary, open-top jeep of the same type used by the Earth Forces, commonly seen at the Kingdom of Foundation's military base. Rey found the vehicle's operating system a little unfamiliar, but fortunately, once the car was moving, it wasn't much different from ZAFT's jeeps.
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To reach the nearest police station in the Kingdom of Foundation, they still needed to follow the road Shinn had taken on his motorcycle. This meant they would pass by the spot where they fell into the water again.
The jeep sped down the highway, kicking up a breeze that made Stellar instinctively pull the blanket tighter around herself.
"We'll get the motorcycle later..." Rey glanced at Shinn's motorcycle parked by the side of the road and frowned.
Fortunately, the area was quite remote, with virtually no foot traffic. Shinn's waist bag was still sitting quietly on the motorcycle, and even the jacket thrown on the ground hadn't been touched.
"Ah... I got it." Shinn, having recovered considerably, scratched his head.
Even if Rey hadn't mentioned it, Shinn would have driven the motorcycle back on his way to retrieve the camcorder inside his waist bag.
Although my clothes aren't completely dry... with a Coordinator's physique, catching a little cold wind should be fine, right?
Thinking this, Shinn leaned back against the seat.
On the sparsely traveled road, another car suddenly appeared besides the jeep. The two vehicles instinctively switched to low beams.
"...Sting!!"
At that moment, Stellar, who had been sitting quietly, saw two familiar faces in the car and instinctively shouted loudly.
"Are they people you know?" Shinn was surprised by Stellar's reaction, carefully observing the car that had just stopped. "Quite young... are they an older brother or younger siblings?"
"This is good news, at least we don't have to drive so far to the police station." Rey glanced in the rearview mirror, switched to reverse, and backed up to the side of the car.
Stellar jumped out of the jeep and ran toward the sedan.
But after taking two steps, she stopped and looked back toward Shinn, seemingly anticipating something.
"...The romantic trouble you caused, you go solve it." Rey gestured toward Shinn, observing Stellar's situation.
"Ah... I understand."
Shinn put down the blanket. The sea breeze hitting his still damp clothes made him instinctively shiver, and he stepped out of the jeep, following behind Stellar.
"Are you two her relatives?" Shinn slightly narrowed his eyes, looking at the two young men in front of him.
"Yes... I am her older brother. It looks like she fell into the water?" Sting, the leader, frowned upon seeing Stellar's appearance. "Thank you for rescuing her."
"You need to watch over her." Upon hearing Sting's words, Shinn finally relaxed. "She can't swim, and she has some psychological or mental... well, anyway, try to keep her away from the sea. It's very dangerous."
"We understand. Thank you again for your help." Sting thanked him after hearing Shinn's warning.
"Alright, we should go too. You all head back early." After briefly checking Stellar's condition and confirming everything was fine, Shinn waved his hand and walked back toward the jeep.
"Shinn..."
Just then, Stellar spoke.
"Will we... meet again?"
Hearing Stellar's question, Shinn stopped in his tracks.
On the surface, Shinn was perfectly calm, but his brain was running frantically, guessing the meaning behind Stellar's words.
What's going on? Is she latching onto me? I just saved her life, but we've only met twice! If she really latches on, never mind our conflicting identities, there's the potential financial drain that might follow...
While the cliché scenario straight out of a novel was happening to him, after a quick mental calculation, Shinn instinctively wanted to clutch his wallet tightly.
Wallet, ahead lies the hell of love (Confirmed).
"If there's a chance... we will meet again."
Giving Stellar a smile, Shinn smoothly got into the jeep.
"There will be no chance!" Shinn roared internally.
Setting aside their respective identities, Shinn wouldn't be staying in the Kingdom of Foundation for long. Once those three stolen MS units were retrieved, he would likely withdraw from Earth and return to ZAFT.
Moreover, Shinn needed to go make money and pay off debts; he didn't have the emotional capacity to look for "love."
Anything that hinders me from making money and paying off my debts must be cleared away!
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"They're gone... that kid is quite the smooth-talker."
Looking at the jeep driving away, Auel Neidr scratched his head at Sting Oakley. "And, you saw it, didn't you?"
"Yes. They were supposedly soldiers from the logistics department of the Kingdom of Foundation military, but their driving of the jeep was somewhat awkward." Sting retracted his gaze from the departing jeep and opened the car door. "Their operation of the light switch was also a beat too slow."
"Logistics soldiers, yet they seemed clumsy driving a standard Earth Forces jeep. Doesn't that sound suspicious?" Auel asked, getting into the car and analyzing the situation.
"These are all just speculations for now. Let's go back first, and report to Instructor Clotho later." Sting said to Stellar, who was still staring blankly in the direction the jeep had disappeared.
"Stellar, get in the car."
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