Durandal glanced at Blanca, then back at Mobius. 'Are they Oz and Fischl?'
Suppressing a laugh, Durandal waved her hand. "You've had a long journey. Go rest up—work can wait. We'll discuss it in three days, that's Saturday, so Elysia and I don't have classes."
"Classes?"
Mobius paused mid-step.
"Yep, classes. Elysia and I are students at Chiba Academy now," Durandal nodded.
Mobius narrowed her eyes. "Class 2-A?"
"Correct."
Durandal nodded again.
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort, Mobius turned and strode away.
It wasn't until all eight of them had entered the villa that Elysia finally asked, "Just now… Mobius seemed really upset? Just because we're in Class 2-A at Chiba Academy?"
"Because… the talented junior she values so highly—the one she'd even decided to recommend to Fire Moth—is in that very class," Durandal explained truthfully, looking at Elysia.
"Eh? You mean Kevyn? No…" Elysia shook her head. Kevyn had transferred in later, and her strengths didn't seem like the kind Mobius, who was always buried in her lab, would even hear about.
Soon, Elysia realized exactly who it was.
The only student from Chiba Academy's Class 2-A whose reputation could reach Mobius within Fire Moth was undoubtedly Mei, the one who'd published a paper on quantum mechanics in a major academic journal in the Mu Continent.
So… had she been wrong all along?
Durandal attending Chiba Academy wasn't for Kevyn—it was for Mei?
"You mean Mei?" Elysia asked.
"Who knows?" Durandal smiled, offering no clear answer.
Elysia: "…"
Nearby, Vill-V nudged Eden and Connie. "Have they always been like this?"
Eden pondered for a moment. "I think… Connie would be the better person to ask. After all, I only joined the organization a few hours before you did."
So, Vill-V turned her gaze to Connie.
Under Vill-V's curious stare, Connie suddenly realized that while the Flame-Chasers recruiting so many talents kept her busy, it wasn't without its perks.
For instance, back when the organization had only three members, she could still ship Durandal and Elysia, but it felt a bit lonely.
Now, things were different.
When Eden had asked earlier, she'd shared the story with her.
Now Vill-V was asking, and she could share it all over again.
And later, when Mobius and her whole crew inevitably asked, she'd get to share it with everyone.
As the saying goes, happiness is better when shared—shipping is always more fun with a crowd!
So, Connie put on a thoughtful expression and began, "It all started on that perfectly ordinary morning…"
Fortunately, Durandal and Elysia were in a hurry to get back to class—it was Wednesday, after all—so they didn't overhear.
Otherwise, they'd have been shocked to learn that Connie saw them as being in that kind of relationship.
Another three days passed. Early on Saturday morning, a knock came at the villa's front gate.
Durandal, who'd been practicing her martial forms in the yard, casually opened the door. Mobius's first move was to crane her neck and peer behind Durandal, then sigh in disappointment. "What? Elysia's not here…"
Durandal pointed upstairs. "Looking for Elysia? She's in her room."
Mobius shook her head. "No, it's not her I'm looking for. I just heard you two once went from six to eight…"
"Ah, that," Durandal glanced over Mobius, noting the typical researcher's traits—like a chronic lack of exercise. "Are you trying to…?"
The Kaslana Gun-Kata wasn't suitable for Mobius, so Durandal shook her head. "No, it wouldn't work for you."
Mobius rolled her eyes. "Of course I know it wouldn't! I'm not like you two!"
Not like your improper woman-woman relationship! she mentally added.
Durandal nodded. "Exactly."
Not like Elysia and me, with our exceptional physical fitness, she mentally added.
"Wait, Dr. Mobius, how did you hear about that?" Though it wasn't a big deal, Durandal was still curious.
Mobius jerked a thumb toward the twins behind her.
"Them. They've been pestering Connie, Eden, and Vill-V about you two these past few days. Not that I'm interested, but they were chatting right in the living room—hard not to overhear."
Durandal's gaze shifted to Fuxi and Nuwa, whom Mobius had just thrown under the bus.
The two promptly shuffled behind the tall former Fire Moth soldiers, Ato and Emile.
Alright then…
Durandal could only sigh. Gossip was in these two's nature—whether in Fire Moth or the Flame-Chasers, some things never changed.
"Alright, gossip time is over," Mobius declared. "It's Saturday, no classes for you. Time to take us to that human experimentation base, don't you think?"
She hadn't come all this way early in the morning just to chat; her only goal was to get to work.
"Fine. I'll gather Connie and the others, then we'll head out." Durandal turned and went inside, rousing Connie and Elysia—the original residents—along with Vill-V and Eden, who'd moved in later.
The two vans were still in the garage, but the drivers weren't around.
So Durandal looked to Hen and Emile. "Can you drive?"
They nodded.
The keys were promptly tossed into their hands.
Durandal gave them the address and told them to follow the car's GPS.
No one expected her to lead the way…
After all, both Durandal and a certain college student were hopelessly directionally challenged.
An hour later, the vans pulled up in front of a disguised abandoned warehouse.
For safety, all residents in the area had been relocated by the Nagazora City government—which was why Durandal felt confident about building a Flame-Chasers headquarters here.
With the area emptied out and the organization's current ties with the city government, acquiring the entire zone cheaply wouldn't be an issue.
Of course, that was assuming no hidden dangers remained.
And Mobius, now well-rested after three days, didn't hesitate. After exiting the vehicle, she directed her assistants to take proper safety precautions, then led the way into the human experimentation base.
--+--