100. All Mentally Ill (6k)

Some things—if you had not seen them with your own eyes—no one would choose to believe.

For example, the Black Templars having an Aeldari aboard their ship—and not as a slave temporarily detained only to be executed when the time came.

She was not a slave. One could even say she was, to some extent, their leader.

Right now, this leader was sitting cross-legged in Cato Sicarius's room, leisurely eating from a huge tub of ice cream.

What? You wanted to ask how the Second Captain felt?

Simple. He felt—

"I feel awful, Lady Lelith," Sicarius said with a frown. "Why exactly did you go to all this trouble just to come to my room and eat ice cream?"

"Because I'm scared," she said, as if it were perfectly natural.

Scared? What part of you, from head to toe, looked like that word?

Sicarius restrained the urge to sigh and said again, "We have discussed this issue many times. The Black Templars will not do anything to you. Truly, you should leave my room quickly. In another four Terran hours, Lord Steve's ship will arrive and dock with us."

"Ah, I understand."

Lelith nodded as if struck by realization, then stuffed another big mouthful of ice cream into her mouth. The precious sweetness stimulated her taste buds, making Lelith unable to help narrowing her eyes.

Wearing that catlike expression of satisfaction, she said, "You're afraid that man will see me in your room, aren't you? Afraid I'll have a bad effect on your reputation?"

"I do not deny that this is a factor."

Sicarius's face was stern as he said, word by word, "But you should not be in my room in the first place. This is. My. Room."

"Honestly, Sicarius—"

Lelith looked at him for quite a while, then