Skadi, I Have a Girlfriend Now

"Sir, does our previous agreement still stand?"

"Of course. Whether or not you manage to capture E001, Columbia will always welcome you as one of us. Besides, haven't you already experienced it?"

As he spoke, the middle-aged man's voice beneath the mask grew low and sinister, carrying the fervor unique to fanatics.

"Immortality is such a wonderful thing."

"How many people suffer because of birth, aging, sickness, and death? How many can only sigh over the passing years in their twilight days? Surely you understand that, don't you?"

Looking at his arm, free of wrinkles and age spots, the Cat Gang's current second-in-command—or rather, its former leader—gritted his teeth and made up his mind.

How could he not know that feeling? In his old age, the slightest drop in temperature made all his old injuries ache. If it were merely life and death, what was there to fear? It was the aging and sickness in between that tormented people most.

He had to capture that person. No matter what, he never wanted to experience the pain of growing old again.

His still-fair arm gradually yellowed, and age spots reappeared. At least his old ailments had healed. The youthful second-in-command had turned back into the gang leader.

Seeing this, the middle-aged man casually pulled a vial from his pocket and tossed it over.

"Here. You can only use this imperfect product once more, or there will be risks."

The middle-aged man did not explain what those risks were, and the aged former Cat Gang leader did not ask. He merely put away the vial, intending to use it tonight after meeting with those subordinates harboring dissent.

Even an incomplete trial drug could restore two or three days of youth. According to the middle-aged man, this drug had not even brought out one percent of its intended effect.

With the temptation of immortality laid before them, who could resist falling for it?

Mizuki, Your Sister Is Here!

Skadi strode across the land, irritated, her greatsword on her back as she headed for Rhodes Island's Kazimierz office.

Her unpleasant meeting with Muelsyse earlier had left her deeply annoyed. Mizuki's girlfriend? She refused to acknowledge it! If she did not acknowledge it, then it was fake!

"The next time I see that Muelsyse, I'll chop her to death!"

Muttering this under her breath, Skadi entered the office. As an external mercenary operator for Rhodes Island, her status was not low. She walked up to the front desk and knocked on it.

"Miss Skadi, correct? Your room has been prepared, and we've also readied a bathtub. In addition, there's a message from the main ship asking you to head to Lungmen as soon as possible."

After confirming Skadi's identity, the office receptionist took a letter from a cabinet and handed it to her. In this world, where communications had yet to cover the entire continent, letters were sometimes more reliable.

"Lungmen?"

Skadi took the letter curiously. As she wondered what it could be about, she opened it—and her eyes widened.

"Get me a vehicle!"

"You aren't planning to rest?"

"No need."

As an Abyssal Hunter, she sometimes had to fight continuously. Going three to five days without rest was nothing unusual. Skadi stared intently at the letter in her hand. Its contents were brief, only a few words, yet they were enough to turn her world upside down.

[Mizuki may be in Lungmen.]

That one sentence was enough to make Skadi abandon everything else. She knocked herself on the head in regret. If she had gone straight to Lungmen with Rhodes Island back then, she would have arrived by now.

Still, Ursus and Kazimierz were close to each other, with flat wilderness stretching between them. Driving straight there would take roughly three days.

She had searched for so long, chasing him across nearly half of Terra. Skadi had almost been ready to plunge into the northern snowfields and leave, yet now she had received news that Mizuki might be in Lungmen.

"Mizuki, wait for me! Your big sister is coming to marry... no, coming to find you!"

Seeing Skadi suddenly blaze with determination, the office staff thought it over and replaced her vehicle with a modified high-speed off-road model. It had originally been meant for elite operators on urgent missions. It could reach 270 kilometers per hour and withstand ordinary Laterano firearms. It suited Skadi quite well—the thing had never been built for normal people in the first place.

Meanwhile, at Lungmen's entrance, An Xin, a guard officer who also worked part-time as a Rhodes Island operator, checked the documents in his hand and nodded once he confirmed they were valid.

"Welcome to Lungmen, Miss Amaia and Miss Laurentina."

"You are too kind."

Amaia politely thanked An Xin, then entered Lungmen hand in hand with Laurentina. She deliberately kept her distance from everyone else, focusing only on her companion.

Laurentina wore a devout smile. Dressed in a nun's habit, she curiously surveyed the city. At last, her gaze settled somewhere, and she raised a hand to point.

"Is that so? He is there. Come, Laurentina. Let us meet this ignorant god known as the Firstborn."

As Amaia's words fell, the woman named Laurentina followed behind her. Yet Amaia failed to notice that, after she turned away, a flash of clarity and hatred passed through Laurentina's eyes.

That clarity lasted only an instant. The next moment, Laurentina became that devout nun again. Looking ahead, her eyes brimmed with fervor—the fervor of faith.

For some reason, Mizuki, who was cooking, suddenly shivered, as though something bad was about to happen.

"Caught a cold?"

Texas, who was helping chop vegetables, looked concerned. Mizuki had taken quite a bit of rain last night while helping her escape, even with an umbrella. He had also made do with a night's sleep afterward, so catching a cold would have been normal.

"Probably not. It just feels like something bad is about to happen."

"Is that so?"

Texas walked over to Mizuki and placed a hand against his forehead. Well, she could not tell anything from that. Mizuki's body temperature really was lower than that of ordinary people.

"We're planning to raid the Cat Gang tonight. Are you going?"

Mizuki was not weak. That was the conclusion Texas had reached after this morning's fight. Although he had forgotten many things, the instinct for battle was still etched into his bones. He did not look like a novice at all.

"Of course. They're after me, after all."

He answered with a smile to reassure Texas, then continued working. Mizuki was thinking about where his sister might be. His past was a tangled mystery, but as long as he found someone who had known him before, he would surely be able to recover his former self.

Texas instinctively avoided meeting Mizuki's gaze. She silently returned to her position, wondering why she had so naturally reached out and put her hand on his head just now.

That's not right. He's Exusiai's boyfriend, not Texas's boyfriend. Why am I so concerned? No, no.

"Mizuki! I'm hungry!"

Just as Texas convinced herself that her concern for Mizuki was simply concern for a friend and teammate, Exusiai casually barged into the kitchen and threw herself onto Mizuki's back.

Not caring in the slightest that Texas was nearby, Exusiai gently bit Mizuki's ear and beamed brightly.

Ever since Mizuki had helped erase the scar on her face, she had grown even more attached to him. Anyone unaware of the situation would never guess these two had known each other for less than a week. They were practically a couple in the throes of passionate love.

"A-Neng, wait a little longer. It'll be ready soon."

"Oh, don't call me A-Neng. Call me Xiao Le. That sounds nicer."

A-Neng did not sound intimate enough, while Ale sounded far too boyish. After thinking it over, Exusiai felt that having Mizuki call her by her nickname was more affectionate. Mostima and the others called her that anyway.

"Fine, Xiao Le. But I can't cook properly if you're like this."

"Sorry, sorry. Still, it smells amazing. How about we stop doing logistics and open a restaurant instead? If you're the chef, our business will definitely thrive."

"Exusiai, you're too loud!"

Texas frowned and could not help saying it, her voice slightly raised. The kitchen was already cramped, and Exusiai was making such a fuss that it was bound to become chaotic.

"Oh, okay. I'll head out first. Let me know when you need someone to carry the dishes."

Watching Exusiai leave at top speed, Texas sighed softly. She did not know why, but seeing Exusiai pressed against Mizuki had filled her with an indescribable frustration and discomfort, as if she could not catch her breath.

What is wrong with me? What exactly am I angry about?

Unable to figure it out, Texas moved her hands faster. However, distracted as she was, she accidentally sliced her finger with the kitchen knife.

"Tch..."

Well, that made her already foul mood even worse. Texas could not help frowning.

"What happened?"

"Nothing. I just cut my finger by accident."

"Let me see."

Mizuki set down the ladle and gently took Texas's hand. She did not resist at all, merely watching blankly as Mizuki gently enclosed her injured index finger in his mouth.

Something wet and soft touched the wound. Texas felt it itch. The sensation was strange. Her fingertip could feel Mizuki's tongue, and she subconsciously stirred it slightly.

Mizuki was clearly puzzled by her reaction. He gently released Texas's finger from his mouth.

"Mm, it's healed now."

The wound on her hand was gone. Texas froze. Watching Mizuki turn back to his work, she almost unconsciously placed her index finger into her own mouth.

Sweet. It unexpectedly tasted like flower nectar. Is this what Mizuki tastes like?

Thinking this, Texas mechanically turned around and resumed working.

As Expected of Penguin Logistics

At the Cat Gang's base that night, nearly everyone had gathered there in preparation for evacuation. Seeing the gang leader seated in his chair, the men beneath him were more or less relieved. Ever since the leader had somehow found a second-in-command, he had not shown his face. They had thought the second-in-command had murdered their boss to seize power.

To the gang leader, that was utter nonsense. How could he have killed himself?

"I heard some of you have been saying I'm dead?"

"Boss, why are we risking being hunted by Wei Yenwu and the Rat King just to go against Penguin Logistics?"

As soon as the gang leader spoke, one of the old hands could not help asking. In their eyes, the only difference between this and moths flying into flames was that the moths died slower than they would.

"Didn't I say it already? Once we finish this job, we'll leave Lungmen for Columbia. Mr. K has already arranged everything."

"You trust the words of an outsider that much? We've already lost fifty or sixty brothers!"

For the not-so-large Cat Gang, casualties of fifty or sixty people could be called a severe blow. Yet despite that, they still had to attack Penguin Logistics tonight.

"I really don't understand why you insist on capturing that kid, Boss. He..."

A throwing knife pierced the man's chest, ending both his life and his unfinished words. The Cat Gang leader withdrew his hand and looked at the people before him. In truth, he did not care whether they lived or died. As long as he could capture that boy named Mizuki—so long as he caught him—Lungmen, gangs, all of it was worth less than shit before immortality.

He was not an idiot, of course. Mr. K could not possibly take so many people to Columbia for real. But if he caught Mizuki and obtained him, then he too could attain immortality!

So tonight, everyone was bait. Even himself.

"Boss! Bad news! Penguin Logistics is attacking!"

As expected, a lackey rushed into the meeting room with a panicked report. The gang leader nodded.

"Let's go welcome our guests."

After everyone left the meeting room, Mr. K, who had been meeting with the gang leader all along, emerged from behind a curtain. His eyes beneath the mask were filled with amusement and disdain.

"The older they are, the less capable they are of resisting such temptation. Since you're so obsessed with immortality, then become a stepping stone to immortality instead."

"Then let me see what kind of existence lies at the root of immortality."

With that, Mr. K transformed into a shadow and vanished from the room. Outside the Cat Gang's base, to be honest, the Cat Gang had more people than the girls of Penguin Logistics. The gang had been secretly expanding, and they now had over two hundred members.

Even dealing with more than two hundred pigs would be extremely troublesome, let alone a crowd armed with weapons.

Fortunately, since this was their own base, the Cat Gang did not dare use explosive crossbows here. Even if they did, Exusiai was confident she could shoot every last bolt out of the air.

"Damn it, these guys definitely didn't report their real numbers to the Lungmen Guard Department!"

"Why are you talking about following the law with gangsters? This isn't Siracusa."

Texas punched one man down, then ducked behind Croissant and let her shield block several crossbow bolts.

"By the way, aren't we a logistics company? Why are we having a gang war here?"

Sora swung her staff and blasted several people away. While complaining, she skillfully grabbed her microphone and smashed another person to the ground. She was an idol, but her combat ability was rather high.

"An eye for an eye. It's Penguin Logistics's ironclad rule! We added it today!"

With the Emperor absent, Exusiai could say whatever she wanted. She was the most enthusiastic fighter among them, though she kept an eye on Mizuki as well. This was the first time she had seen Mizuki in a group fight, and his performance was unexpectedly impressive.

"Capture that kid!"

Mizuki was clearly one of the Cat Gang's primary targets, dead or alive. More than a dozen people surrounded him, but they could not even touch the hem of his clothes. With a casual swing of his umbrella, he knocked those rabble down one by one.

As expected, Penguin Logistics isn't just a delivery company, is it?

Unable to stop himself from making the same complaint internally, Mizuki did not even need to move. Invisible tentacles extending from the void automatically blocked every attack and sent his enemies flying one after another. Unable to see them, the Cat Gang could do nothing to him.

Suddenly, a tentacle extended beside Mizuki's ear and slapped away a feather-shaped dart that had been about to pierce his forehead.

Mizuki looked at the elderly Liberi man slowly approaching him. His instincts told him that this was someone like a final boss, but the man did not seem threatening at all.

Yet instinct also told Mizuki that something on the other man was drawing his attention.

"What a fascinating power. Hmm, what is that? Tentacles?"

"You can see them?"