Hearing Cruze's words, Xiao Ran raised his brows and chuckled. He first picked up the glass Cruze had placed before him and took a sip, then let out a long contemplative hum and nodded lightly. "I did run into a little trouble. It's neither particularly big nor particularly small—the key is that it's troublesome."
"I guessed as much." Cruze leaned back on the sofa with one leg crossed over the other, wineglass in hand, and looked at Xiao Ran. "After coming back, you didn't go see Shanamia right away. Instead, you kept the few of us here. I guessed you'd gotten yourself into some trouble, and trouble you couldn't tell Sheryl, Mwu, or Shanamia about."
"So, you incurred another romantic debt in another world—and a particularly sensitive one at that... Hmm, heh heh, it was someone you knew, wasn't it? I do have one candidate in mind. If it really was that person, then yes, that would be awkward."
Xiao Ran's mouth twitched twice. Cruze had truly become increasingly skilled at grasping people's hearts. He had seen through almost everything with ease.
Xiao Ran gave a bitter smile and shook his head. "The Mission World I entered this time was a chaotic one. ZAFT, Orb, and the Alliance all appeared, along with Free."
"So it wasn't one this time, but two?" Cruze set down his glass and looked at Xiao Ran with great interest. "Heh heh, putting everything else aside, you're getting more and more capable in this regard."
"Are you being sarcastic?" Xiao Ran shot Cruze a glare. "Since you've already guessed it, there's nothing more for me to say. Tell me, what should I do?"
Rather than answering Xiao Ran's question, Cruze asked, "Was that world in a terrible state? Since you called Renard over too, I'm wondering