Shiya? Shiryu!

"Gion?"

Tulip inwardly sensed trouble, but she rested her chin on her hand, pretending to ponder for a long while before speaking with some confusion:

"I think I heard Noah mention her before. He said she was his superior over in the West Blue, but I don't know anything else. Why bring her up all of a sudden?"

"I only learned that name today."

The usually spoiled and domineering Bell-mère was nowhere to be seen. Half leaning against Tulip's embrace, she looked as aggrieved as an injured kitten:

"After I finished handling my military registration, I saw a photo on the desk. There was a female rear admiral in it, and she was so beautiful that I couldn't help staring. I stood there looking at it for a long time..."

"And then?"

Tulip's expression became faintly strange. Why did this girl have the exact same reaction as she had when she first saw Gion's photograph?

That girl... really was breathtakingly beautiful. Combined with that white justice coat uniform, she looked heroic and dashing, the kind of beauty that appealed to both men and women.

Even Tulip, a mother firmly biased toward Bell-mère, had been unable to keep herself from feeling favorable toward her after seeing the photo. She had even felt a strange relief and delight, something like, "Such a wonderful girl is actually my daughter-in-law too."

"Then I couldn't help asking the major handling the transfer of my military registration. She was quite surprised and said, 'You don't even know Rear Admiral Gion?' Then she talked about her for ages, saying she was a fan too, but it was a pity Gion had been taken long ago..."

Bell-mère lowered her head. "I got curious and asked who it was. That major lady told me it was, it was..."

"Noah?"