Safety Net

After hanging up the Alchemy Hotline, Gilan left the quiet room.

It was past eight in the evening. Most facilities in the public areas of the underground shelter had already been shut down, and only a scattered few lights remained lit along the corridors.

It was somewhat dim and very quiet.

Most of the soldiers had returned to their quarters, either reading or sleeping.

This was also a necessary measure to conserve energy.

Gilan crossed several corridors alone, then found the ladies' quarters and knocked on the door.

Knock, knock.

Click.

Maive answered the door. She seemed to have just finished bathing and was wearing a low-cut white nightgown, using a towel to dry her wet hair.

She looked somewhat surprised to see Gilan, but showed no embarrassment. Instead, she smiled and said:

"Mr. Gilan, would you like to come in and sit for a while?"

"No," Gilan said.

He glanced into the room and saw Theresa seated on the sofa in a gray turtleneck sweater, carefully reading through some documents.

Kaya, meanwhile, wore only a pink camisole and shorts. She lay on her stomach on the lower bunk, fiddling with building blocks while boredly swinging her legs.

"I need to speak with Madam Theresa about something."

Gilan stated his purpose.

Maive raised a delicate brow, then turned and called out to the woman on the sofa.

Theresa set down her documents and walked to the door, while Maive knowingly left.

"Gilan, what do you need from me?"

The woman smiled and spoke softly.

Gilan did not beat around the bush, getting straight to the point.

"I'd like to borrow your Alchemy Hotline to call Chairman Pala."

"You want to call the chairman?"

Theresa was somewhat surprised.

Ordinarily, when Gravediggers went out on official assignments, any issues were reported directly