The Matter of Me Being Picked Up and Adopted by Talula

W stared blankly at Orson, who had just uttered those incomprehensible words. Orson retracted his dagger, stood up, and rubbed his throat.

"That's enough for today, alright? Don't make me say it a second time."

Orson kicked the remote control next to W into a nearby deep pit before leaving. This time, W didn't pursue him further.

After temporarily dealing with the unexpected assassin, Orson found Lumen, who was still hiding.

"Classmate Orson!"

"Classmate...? Uh, anyway, I couldn't defeat that mercenary. I only managed to hold her off. You should take this chance to find something to help you escape from here."

"Okay, got it..."

Lumen felt something was off, but escaping was the priority. She decided not to question why this person who suddenly appeared looked so troubled.

As for Orson, the reason for his distressed expression was simple:

—He had clashed with W right from their first meeting, and even kicked away her detonator. If this were about building favorability, he'd probably started with a negative score of 100.

Meanwhile, on W's side.

"...The wound is lighter than I expected."

W wrapped a bandage around her right palm. The dagger, as it pierced her palm, seemed to have had its physical properties altered, leaving behind only an extremely fine wound that had already stopped bleeding due to the heat.

Thump!!

W slammed her left hand against the wall beside her, her smile gone.

"So, it was I who was fooled? Heh... The silent guy who manipulates shadows... Next time we meet, I'll definitely blow you to the sky."

W etched Orson's face into her DNA. After all, it was the first time she had experienced such 'humiliation' since becoming a mercenary.

Orson sneezed.

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30. My Home Was Robbed!?

In the Reunion gathering place, Talula was recording something on a map while discussing upcoming supply transport with an agent via intercom.

"Talula, still dealing with the trade network?"

FrostNova pushed open the door and entered the "HQ," asking Talula, who was sitting in front of the intercom and map.

"Yes, two villages near the south have voluntarily expressed their desire to join Reunion's trade network. However, our transport vehicles are already stretched thin. I'm contacting an agent to see if we can acquire more transportation tools from Koschei's legacy."

After initiating the "Integrated Network Link," Talula truly realized how many villages had been abandoned by those dukes and left to the Enforcement Team to pocket their resources.

Some Enforcement Teams weren't even affiliated with the lords of their territories. If they could be contacted through legitimate channels, perhaps these villages could be directly separated from the Enforcement Teams.

"So, what is it, FrostNova?"

Talula put down the intercom and turned to Snow Rabbit, asking her reason for being there.

"Hmm... Aren't you worried about Orson?"

"The scheduled contact time hasn't passed yet, and I don't think Orson will encounter any difficulties. His [Rest Note] and [Soul Tuning] are enough to handle most situations. Moreover, he also has that cheat-like [Curtain Call]—the first time he defeated me with that move, I thought something was wrong with me."

"Ah, that... Ha."

Mentioning how Orson had defeated her, Talula sighed, and FrostNova's ears drooped. After all, both Talula and FrostNova had considered themselves leaders second only to Patriot, only to be defeated by the unknown Orson.

"After that, I even started learning dagger combat from a special forces team... No, that's not what I wanted to talk about. Aren't you worried about Orson meeting other girls?"

FrostNova shook her head and voiced her concern.

"Why would I worry about such a thing? Orson and I are just comrades with a common goal. Like everyone else, if Orson finds someone else, I'll bless him—"

"Ring ring ring ring ring~~~"

"Hey, I can hear you."

Talula was interrupted mid-sentence by the intercom. The Sankta, without finishing her sentence, immediately "flashed" and answered the intercom.

FrostNova shook her head watching the smooth sequence of actions.

"Yes, yes. Very clear, Orson."

"What do you mean, 'Sister Tazi, whatever I say next, absolutely do not get angry'…?"

"You've already infiltrated Chernobyl, hmm."

"And you've obtained a relatively legitimate identity, hmm."

"You've connected with the new noble forces of Rostov, hmm."

"You're currently living with the Rostov family's daughter, hmm—Hmm? Orson, wait a minute! What exactly—Orson!!"

The conversation wasn't particularly long or short.

After a brief silence, FrostNova twitched her rabbit ears.

"He encountered someone after all?"

"...Don't make wild guesses about the phone call, FrostNova."

"You've melted the phone call, Talula."

FrostNova pointed to the walkie-talkie in Talula's hand, its earpiece already melted into a puddle.

"...Haa, why does that guy always run into weird things?"

Talula rested her cheeks on her hands, leaning on the table and sighing.

"I thought about this possibility before, so—want to go with PLAN B?"

FrostNova looked at Talula mysteriously. After a moment of confusion, Talula immediately understood.

"I'll handle the sneaking route," FrostNova said confidently.

"Then I'll be in charge of creating downtime," Talula replied with equal confidence.

The two hit it off, preparing to sneak to Kazimierz City to catch the mistress.

Then they were both discovered by Alina, severely reprimanded, and their plan was aborted on the spot.

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Meanwhile, in a room in a mansion somewhere in Kazimierz City.

"Haa..."

Orson put away the assembled walkie-talkie and sighed heavily. He then glanced at the identification tag on the table:

[Senior Security Officer, Rostov Chain Enterprises]

"I feel like things are getting more and more ridiculous..."

Orson covered his face and began to wonder why he was now in a villa belonging to the Rostovs.

After dealing with the W crisis in a way he thought was cool, Orson had intended to just ask Lumen for a general contact method. However, White Bear said that since Orson was looking for a job, he could try his own family.

"You've proven your abilities personally, and I believe you are fully capable of handling our family's security work."

"Uh... that works, I guess?"

Orson hadn't expected his casually fabricated unemployed status to be used so quickly.

Logically, Orson hadn't obtained legal identification yet, so he shouldn't have passed the interview. However, being able to get close to the Rostov family and make an impression was a win-win situation, no matter how he looked at it.

With the attitude of just going through the motions, Orson met Lumen's father, the current head of the family, Vladimir Andreevitch Rostov.

Lumen's father only said one thing upon seeing Orson.

"Good, very spirited, hired!"

"Huh??"

Orson was inexplicably drawn into the Rostov family, even getting a position and identity in one go.

"What is going on..."

The memory ended, and Orson sadly realized he was still completely bewildered. Whether it was Lumen, W, or the Rostov family, the mysteries were as dense as the mini-map in a Ubisoft game, scattered everywhere.

"Whatever, I'll take it one step at a time. At least before Talula and Snow Rabbit get me, I need to get familiar with Lumen... Snow Rabbit?"

Orson paused, not knowing why he thought of FrostNova at that moment, but he didn't dwell on it. He pinned the identification tag to the uniformly issued suit, then wrapped a strip of bandage around his throat before leaving the room and knocking on the door of Lumen's bedroom next door.

"Come in, Orson. I know you must have many questions. I'm sorry, I didn't expect my father's decision to be so decisive, even though he's usually a bit reckless with things other than investments."

Lumen, wearing a casual white shirt that matched her hair color and adorned with decorative patterns, opened the door with a wry smile and apologized to Orson.

"No, I won't come in. It doesn't feel quite right..."

"Please rest assured, there's nothing improper,"

Lumen invited Orson with a smile, and Orson could only accept the request of this noble lady.

Upon entering Lumen's bedroom, Orson found that it was indeed as she had said. The room's decor was simple yet exuded understated luxury, and it was impossible to tell the owner's gender.

"So, although I inexplicably got this job, I still need to ask Miss Natalia—how did you get involved with those Sarkaz mercenaries?"

Orson asked Lumen, who was sitting on the bed. He still didn't understand how W got involved with this student council president.

No... actually, if Koschei's information was correct, Orson probably guessed the reason.

"Um... I don't know the specific details, but I know one thing clearly now—Chernobyl is turning into a furnace, a furnace for war."

Lumen's voice was soft, but Orson could hear the fear and trepidation in the noble lady's tone. If not for her noble status as a support, this young council president would probably be hiding under her covers and trembling right now.

Because of his interference, perhaps the Catastrophe event in Kazimierz City and the Peterheim incident would not happen.

But also because of his interference, this girl from the Rostov family had fallen into another kind of crisis.

"Haa... as the instigator, how can I just stand by and do nothing?"

Orson sighed, realizing that perhaps he was just as Talula said, a fool who rushed in whenever faced with difficulties.

"Since you've become the security administrator for the Rostov family, can I ask you to carry out the task you should be performing, Orson?"

Lumen looked at Orson from the bed, her eyes filled with expectation and fear.

—In this situation, could it be...!

Hmph, you can't fool me. Based on experience, the next thing she'll say is something like "Please help me turn off the lights."

"Can you stay with me for the night?"

"See, I knew it— Huh!?"

Orson's eyes nearly bulged out as he looked at Lumen in disbelief.

"No... I'm sorry, I said something strange. Please don't mind me."

Lumen realized her request was indeed too odd and lowered her head, retracting what she had just said.

"While I can't actually stay the night with you in your room... I'll be guarding the door the whole time, Miss Natalia."

After a moment of panic, Orson understood why Lumen had said that.

Being chased, nearly dying, attacked by an explosives expert, threatened with death—these things had genuinely happened to Lumen today, to this woman who was still just a girl, this "illegal older sister."

"Mhm... I understand. Thank you, Orson."

Lumen smiled at Orson before preparing to lie down on the bed and end this somewhat long day.

Orson gently closed the door and leaned against the doorframe of Lumen's room.

About 10 minutes passed—

"Orson?"

"I'm here."

"Mhm..."

About 45 minutes passed—

"Um... Orson?"

"What is it?"