Skadi, I Have a Girlfriend Now

"Couldn't you have remembered me sooner?"

"I didn't run into you any sooner, either."

Mizuki scratched his head helplessly as Muelsyse climbed over from the back seat and settled into the passenger seat beside him.

"Then why didn't you tell me that doll could restore your memories?"

"I didn't know either."

He had remembered, but not completely. That was Mizuki's current state. Muelsyse was somewhat relieved, at least he had remembered her too.

But whenever she thought about what had happened to her last night, Muelsyse's anger flared up. She had nearly boiled herself alive. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She wanted to hit Mizuki, but she could not beat him, and she could not bear to.

"You knew nothing. You didn't even know you had a girlfriend, so you went and found another one... When are you coming back to Columbia to marry me?"

"Columbia? No, no."

Mizuki hurriedly shook his head and rejected the suggestion. What kind of joke was that? The people in Columbia would love nothing more than to send an army to capture him. Going to Columbia would be no different from walking into a trap.

"Tch. Do you really like that Sankta girl that much?"

"Well... Let's put it this way. She really isn't my ideal type of girl."

His tentacles buckled Muelsyse's seat belt for her. Mizuki knew she was unhappy, but the matter was already settled.

"But I really do love her the most. Miu Miu, I'm sorry."

"You think one apology is enough to brush me off? Do you think my feelings are cabbages?"

As a pure, cheerful girl with a slight mischievous streak, Muelsyse rarely showed such a straightforward side. Mizuki remembered the last time had been several months ago, on the night before he was preparing to leave, when Muelsyse had chosen to confess to him.

But unfortunately, the memories he had recovered only went as far as after Muelsyse finished saying those things. He could not remember anything from the following day.

"I don't care. I'm not backing down anyway. She and I are going to compete and see who's the senior and who's the junior!"

This is going to be troublesome. But Miu Miu has always been like this. She never gives up easily.

Mizuki let out a soft sigh. He could not say how happy he was; all he felt was deeply troubled. Losing his memories had truly brought both good and bad. The good parts went without saying. He had joined Penguin Logistics, met a group of interesting friends, and found someone he loved. He did not regret meeting Exusiai and the others at all.

But the bad part was here too. Muelsyse, Skadi, and surely more old friends would come looking for him in the future. Fortunately, he had recovered quite a bit of his memory. Mizuki was fairly certain that although plenty of women had some connection to him, only Muelsyse and Exusiai had actually achieved girlfriend status.

Come to think of it, I wonder how Lappland is doing. She's the one who worries me the most.

Thinking back to that elegant yet crazed white wolf gave Mizuki a headache. The hardest people for him to deal with in his life were probably blunt, half-crazy types like Lappland. Once she said something, she would do it without delay.

"Miu Miu, is it really okay for you to follow me like this?"

"Don't call me Miu Miu. It makes us sound like we're close, you heartless bastard. Are you trying to ditch me again?"

Muelsyse was still rather irritable, having completely tossed aside her usual playful and adorable demeanor. Anyone in her position would not have a good temper. The fact that she had not gone and torn Penguin Logistics apart was because... she could not beat them. Fine. She could only sulk.

"All right then, Muelsyse. You're from Rhine Lab, a renowned scholar in Columbia. Is it really okay for you to act with me? I won't be taking the front door this time."

For certain reasons, this operation had to be carried out in secret. Chernobog was an Ursus city, while Muelsyse was an important figure in Columbia. Though she did not hold public office, she was still someone worth watching. If the operation went wrong, she would be in serious trouble, and Rhine Lab behind her would be dragged into it as well.

"What's there to fear? I've never been afraid of anyone when it comes to infiltration."

Muelsyse lightly wound a strand of hair around her finger. She was an elf who could turn into water and control water. Blending into water made her perfectly suited for infiltration work.

"I'm worried you'll get hurt."

Mizuki opened his mouth and bit down on the potato chip offered by his tentacles, not looking at the brief stiffness on Muelsyse's face.

"Kal'tsit told me this operation would probably be extremely difficult. There's even a high chance we'll run into danger. We won't just be dealing with people from Ursus, but also some rioters."

"..."

Muelsyse did not answer. It was not that Mizuki's words had moved her that deeply. Well, perhaps a little, but not much.

The main thing was that Mizuki was actually worried about danger. What danger? Would Ursus send several army groups to surround and eliminate him? Others might not know, but how could Muelsyse not understand? Perhaps Mizuki was not at the very top in every aspect of combat, but what he feared least was facing too many enemies. One rainstorm from him could kill everyone in Lungmen.

"I can protect myself."

"The last time you said that, you almost got frozen into an icicle."

"Don't bring that up! Who knew that Sami snow priestess would be so strong? Next time I see her, I'm bringing Saria with me to beat her up!"

"Don't be angry. Didn't I help you win it back?"

Mizuki could not help shaking his head. Sometimes, his little girlfriend Muelsyse could be quite vengeful, and she was also very good at playing little tricks. For example, she had told Mizuki she could not cook when she actually made excellent food. She had also said she was afraid of the cold while walking through heavy snow in so little clothing.

"But I'm still not satisfied."

"Then we can go back to that place next time we get the chance."

Seemingly having completely forgotten what had just happened, Mizuki thought for a moment before reaching out his hand.

"So, Muelsyse, are you really planning to come with me?"

"What did you call me?"

"Miu Miu. I'm going on this operation with Sister Skadi. Is that really okay?"

"..."

Muelsyse fell into deep thought. She hesitated somewhat. After all, this sister-in-law did not like her at all. The last time they met, Skadi had directly come at her with a sword.

"No. Even so, I'm coming with you!"

However, to avoid getting beaten up by Skadi again once she saw her, Muelsyse wisely chose another method.

Before long, Mizuki drove up to the entrance of Rhodes Island's office. Skadi and Specter were already waiting for him, and they had packed quite a bit of luggage. The reason they had not returned the previous night was because they had been preparing this outfit for Specter and giving her a thorough examination.

"Mizuki!"

Upon seeing her little brother, Skadi immediately pounced at him. But while she was still in midair, Specter grabbed her hand and threw her aside.

After that, Specter jogged over to Mizuki, lowered her head obediently, and asked for praise. Having left Mizuki's side, Laurentina's consciousness had been suppressed once more, leaving Specter in control. However, Laurentina could now fully perceive the outside world and shared all sensations with Specter.

"Good girl, Sharky."

Looking at Skadi, who had been tossed into the landscaping bushes, Mizuki no longer knew what to say. This journey was probably not going to be easy. He just hoped Skadi would not pin him down in the middle of the night.

As the trio set off, Lungmen's residents discovered that the skies had actually cleared. The thick clouds drifted away with Mizuki.

Mizuki Arrived in His Loyal Chernobog

"Why isn't Mizuki back yet?!"

It had been three days since Mizuki set off for Chernobog. Exusiai felt like she was falling apart. These days, the girls of Penguin Logistics did not even speed while driving. Without Mizuki around, they did not have any energy.

"By my estimate, he's only just arrived in Chernobog. How could he come back so quickly? We still have to wait another three or four days."

Croissant rolled her eyes at Exusiai. But looking around, everyone in Penguin Logistics except her seemed to have come down with Mizuki dependence syndrome—the kind where they could not survive after being apart from him for over a month.

"Ah!! I'm going to die without Mizuki!"

"Hm?!"

The moment Exusiai said that, several girls lifted their heads and looked at her expectantly. Sora and Texas in particular were practically burning with anticipation.

"What are you doing? Why are you all looking forward to that?"

Exusiai immediately exploded, springing off the sofa and pointing at her close friends.

"Don't think you'll get to move up just because I'm dead. I definitely won't let you have your way! Sis, right?"

Faced with her little sister's question, Lemuen, deep in thought, smiled and nodded. She had even begun considering how to buy life insurance for her little sister, though she was not sure whether to list herself or Mizuki as the beneficiary.

"Don't worry, Xiao Le. You still have me."

So even if you were gone, I would not let Mizuki be too sad. Rest assured.

Completely unaware of what her dear older sister was thinking, Exusiai hugged Lemuen and rubbed against her.

"I knew Sis was the best."

Well, she should be thanking Lemuen.

Mostima could not help rubbing her forehead. She was not stupid. She had more or less guessed that Lemuen's relationship with Mizuki had definitely made some progress. Texas, however, was the person who knew best, because her Lupo nose was very sensitive. She could smell Mizuki's scent on Lemuen, as well as Jellyfish-chan's. It was far too strong. Those two had definitely done it afterward.

Seeing the trusting expression on her little sister's face, Lemuen instead felt somewhat guilty. Though it was not as if she had never felt guilty before. Mm, and then she had pinned Mizuki down even more enthusiastically.

"But this household is practically becoming unable to function without Mizuki."

Although she had only been here for a short while, Ho'olheyak also felt uncomfortable with Mizuki gone. It was not merely because she was still thinking about how to drain Jellyfish-chan dry. She liked the atmosphere at Penguin Logistics: relaxed, cheerful, and without much pressure. Though she had to visit the Lungmen Guard Department for tea every few days, there were no other downsides.

With Mizuki gone, all of Penguin Logistics seemed to have lost its backbone. No one cooked when they got home, and there was nothing else to do at night when they went to sleep.

"Mizuki, come back soon!"

"Achoo!"

Mizuki could not help sneezing. Then he looked at the city before him: Chernobog. Once an important Ursus city, it now seemed somewhat gloomy. That was probably because of the clouds stretching dozens of kilometers above Mizuki's head.

Many people who had never seen a mobile city had a misconception that mobile cities were constantly moving. In truth, that was not the case. Although mobile cities were capable of movement, they generally had fixed locations and would only move to evade a Catastrophe when one struck.

It could not be helped. Catastrophes on Terra were not simply earthquakes or storms. When a Catastrophe occurred, Originium crystals would form, devastating entire cities. Worst of all, untreated raw Originium would directly inflict severe infection upon residents.

Under such circumstances, mobile cities, created using technology developed through archaeology, had become an extremely important focus of development on Terra.

"Sis, I can't move if you do this."

Looking helplessly at his older sister, who was clinging tightly to him, Mizuki rubbed his brow. Without the girls from Penguin Logistics interfering, Skadi had tried more than once to take him right there during this period. Fortunately, Muelsyse reminded Mizuki every night, preventing him from being crushed by Skadi.

However, Muelsyse did not appear directly. Well, she was actually inside Mizuki's body in the form of water, and she particularly enjoyed the feeling.

The inexplicably powerful vitality within Mizuki's body made Muelsyse especially fond of staying inside him like this. It was like a fish on the verge of dying from thirst returning to the sea. As an elf of water, that wonderful sensation was also why she had fallen for Mizuki.

"No."

"But we're here for a mission. Stop it, Sis."

Feeling Muelsyse within him already becoming unhappy, Mizuki shook his head and removed Skadi's hands, looking at the city ahead and the dark clouds overhead.

"Kal'tsit was right. There really is something wrong with this mission."

"What's wrong?"

Laurentina stood beside Mizuki with her chainsaw in hand and reached over to pull Skadi away.

"A Catastrophe is coming. Normally, Chernobog should have begun moving to avoid it by yesterday at the latest, but there hasn't been any movement at all."

"You mean..."

"The mission report said this operation might encounter certain variables. Chernobog has already become a sacrifice. A riot organization has decided to attack the city during the Catastrophe. It seems we came at a bad time."

Mizuki lightly bit his lip. If the Catastrophe truly struck, this operation would definitely go terribly wrong, and there could be massive casualties in the city.

But then he sensed something else and raised his head in confusion to look at the clouds above him. Compared to the Catastrophe clouds in the distance, his own clouds seemed much calmer. There was neither lightning nor any oppressive feeling, yet they vaguely seemed poised to devour the former.

"Sis, let's go."

As Mizuki moved forward, the clouds above his head came into contact with the Catastrophe clouds. Meanwhile, within Chernobog, Alina was still assigning tasks to the various squads.

"Remember, important facilities must be properly protected. Everyone must enter the shelters half an hour before the Catastrophe strikes. Our goal this time may be to take the city, but everyone must pay attention to their own safety. Try not to hurt citizens who resist. Even the especially vicious ones are not to be killed."

Before Alina stood all of Reunion's current officers. Although she was not Reunion's leader, no one doubted her capabilities. Reunion's current state was largely due to Alina, who could be said to be its greatest contributor.

"Move all important supplies to the Core City. Have Patriot maintain discipline. No mercy for anyone who violates the rules. Send the Sarkaz squads out as a deterrent."

"Mephisto will handle logistics and rescue. Faust, take the high ground and set up the signal towers. Skullshatterer will mark the Ursus soldiers who have infiltrated the city."

"FrostNova and Talulah, you two... Hm?"

Before she could finish speaking, Alina raised her head and looked out the window. At some unknown point, the clouds in the sky had become much heavier, and even the distance was shrouded. Yet strangely, the clouds seemed divided into two sections. Lightning flashed on one side as it accumulated power, while the other was remarkably quiet, though it vaguely seemed to be swallowing the former.

"What is it, Alina?"

"I can feel Mizuki coming this way..."

The moment they heard that, W and FrostNova, who had been nodding off, hurriedly stood up and looked around.

"Where? Where?"

"You two, sit down."

Talulah covered her face helplessly. Those two were never serious during meetings, but the moment Mizuki was mentioned, they acted as if they had spotted treasure. They were only missing glowing green eyes.

Could they not learn to be reserved like her?

Reserved? You were practically about to fly over there yourself. Tch.

Ignoring the annoying old man in her head, Talulah was still somewhat surprised that Mizuki would come to this city. Since Alina possessed Mizuki's heart, it was only natural that she could sense his presence. This was a good chance to ask him clearly why, when Ines and the others met Mizuki half a year ago, he had said he had never been to the snowfields—yet he had saved Alina a year ago.

Could Mizuki have a brother who looked exactly like him?