Chapter 156

Persephone, when not in a hostile relationship, is always unbelievably reliable.

Miss Surtr, carrying the gift box, walked and talked, gracefully avoiding Ludmila was getting too close.

"Maybe," she said casually, stepping out of the studio and onto the street— Ludmila following closely behind, carrying the remaining two boxes.

"I used to be a mercenary for a time. I've been to many cities and many lands. I've reached the far north and visited warm Siracusa —we might have even crossed paths sometime now. Ludmila, may I call you Ludmila?"

"Yes, may I call you Surtr?" Ludmila replied hastily—unaware that she was being led by the nose by this stubborn man. "I have a feeling we've had some kind of connection before...or perhaps you've forgotten?"

"That's unlikely, Miss Ludmila. I'm very confident in my memory; after all, there are many things that need to be remembered well." She crossed the road, climbed onto the overpass, and continued walking forward—she didn't say whether she agreed or not, but used the word 'Miss' as a Ludmila for her response.

Unfortunately, this Lupo didn't seem to grasp this meaning.

"But I think..."

"No, that must be just an illusion." Miss Surtr gracefully stopped at the crossroads. "But I think we can become good friends. And I hope that friendship can be built on real experiences, rather than on ambiguous memories and feelings... What do you think, Ludmila?"

"I..." Miss Wolf, who tried to strike up a conversation and then clung to the other person whenever they responded, had her plans completely ruined.

This perfectly suited Miss Surtr's needs.

—If you stay around me for too long, you might be influenced by me and become a strange person.

—For the sake of both our physical and mental well-being, I'm sorry, but I have to keep a little distance from you.

—I hope you... won't be angry.

"Persephone's office is over there," Surtr said with a light laugh, pointing to the other side of the street. "There are no forks in the road. I'm sorry, we have to part ways here."

"See you later, Ludmila," she said, then took a light step.

Only the red-haired Lupo was left standing at the crossroads, looking completely bewildered.

"I..." Ludmila murmured, her eyes glazed over, looking utterly bewildered. "...I haven't said anything to her yet. We only...we only exchanged names."

She bit her lower lip, about to take a step and follow the red-haired Sarkaz in the direction he had gone. However, just as she lifted her ankle, her gaze was drawn back to the gift box that belonged to her.

She let out a silent sigh. She whispered, murmured.

"Oh well, at least I exchanged names with her... and even got a gift. There will definitely be more opportunities to be alone with her in the future!"

She regained her fighting spirit—though she herself didn't know why she was so persistent.

Maybe...

She shook her head vigorously, banishing the bold and outrageous idea from her mind.

Miss Surtr breathed a soft sigh of relief.

Good, we've temporarily escaped Ludmila. And when time has passed enough to heal the aftereffects of her corruption, our next encounter will likely be much better than this one.

This matter can be put aside for now.

She shook her head and began distributing the gifts she had prepared one by one—her target was the temporary command center, the area where Amiya was located. She planned to visit the busy Little Rabbit and, in the meantime, convey her sentiments to the many Rhodes Island operators in Chernobog.

The journey was smooth, and there were no unexpected incidents.

She easily found ACE and the others, and handed them gift boxes containing winter clothes one by one. Seeing their stunned and dumbfounded expressions, it was as if yesterday's greeting incident was being repeated.

Nebula M78 756365104

The PRTS forum was in chaos. The various ambiguous comments were giving her a headache... So she simply turned off the communication function on her terminal temporarily, focusing on the work she had set for herself.

She didn't run into Warfarin —which was perfectly normal. She'd just had tea that afternoon; Warfarin was probably holed up in her bat cabin right now.

After everything was finished, she finally arrived at the depths of the command center.

She saw Amiya.

I saw this incredibly busy Little Rabbit slumped over the table, half-conscious... Poor little thing, she's probably the busiest person on all of Rhodes Island. Of course, Persephone doesn't count. After all, her 'busyness' is probably different from what most people understand.

—Just bear with it for a day or two, Amiya. Things will be much easier once Rhodes Island arrives.

Miss Surtr didn't wake her. Instead, she gently placed Amiya's gift box on the table of the sleeping Little Rabbit. She intended to leave quietly, but after a moment's thought, she draped a towel over Amiya and brewed a pot of refreshing tea for the Little Rabbit.

—Amiya is only fourteen years old this year.

Even though I prevented many events in advance, is this responsibility still too heavy for her, as the person in charge of Rhodes Island?

—It seems I need to add some extra burden to myself.

The girl thought to herself, her gaze tender as she watched the girl from Casters, who was fast asleep and muttering incoherently in her sleep.

But she also knew she shouldn't stay there too long.

After all, she still had one last gift box in her hand— Kal'tsit's gift box—that she hadn't given away.

—Originally, I intended for Amiya to give it to Kal'tsit.

—Hmm, it seems we can only rely on Persephone's drones?

She thought to herself, then turned toward the door, intending to leave.

However, at that moment, an ominous premonition suddenly gripped my heart.

Someone is coming.

Someone you don't want to see, or who isn't suitable to see, is coming over.

Just as she was taking a quick step, intending to move to a safer location, a sound she least wanted to hear at that moment entered her ears.

"Surtr ... Sister?"— Amiya, still half-asleep, tugged at the hem of her skirt.

"Amiya, why haven't you replied to this document in half an hour...?"— Kal'tsit appeared at the office door, looking hurried.

Their eyes were fixed on Miss Surtr's hand—on the gift box with Kal'tsit's name on it and little hearts drawn on it.

Ah...

... It's all over.

I've overdone it _(:з"∠)_