gogogo, Let's Go~

After a series of utterly inhumane—crossed out—Zero-human—crossed out—warm and friendly sibling conversations, Mira finally figured out where the problem lay.

"So, because you followed me and were afraid of being discovered, you only heard things vaguely, guessed what happened on your own, told Elfman, and then caused all this. Is that right, Li... Sa... Nna...?" Mira's face was red with anger as she glared at her younger sister, who was sitting obediently on her knees.

"I'm sorry, Mira..." Knowing she was in the wrong, Lisanna did not dare act cheeky at all and meekly admitted her mistake.

"Honestly, Lisanna, you need to be more careful about this kind of thing next time." Elfman, who had suffered this Zero-Wrong disaster, voiced his dissatisfaction as well.

Lisanna straightened her kneeling posture even further. "I'm sorry, Elfman. Next time, I'll make sure I have the facts straight before telling you."

"You still want there to be a next time?!" Mira exploded again, reaching out with both hands to grab Lisanna's cheeks and pull hard.

"Wah... That hurts! I'm sorry, I know I was wrong >.<" Lisanna immediately begged for mercy.

"Haah..." Mira felt exhausted, but what could she do? Lisanna was her only little sister, so she could only let her go.

"Just ask me directly next time." Mira paused, seeming a little embarrassed. "Even... even if I started dating someone, I wouldn't hide it from you two. We're family, after all."

"Mira..." With tears in her eyes, Lisanna threw herself at her. "Mira, you're the best~"

"W-Wait, let go! I can't breathe!" The Mira siblings returned to their usual lively and bustling dynamic.

As for Ed, after parting ways with Mira, he headed straight to the guild. After paying off his debts, ordering kunai, and buying a Spatial Bag, Ed successfully returned to the ranks of the utterly impoverished.

Looking at the pitifully small amount of cash in his wallet, Ed's heart bled. He immediately decided to look for delivery jobs or something similar during the days before departure.

At the very least, he had to make sure next month's rent was covered. Not to mention how long he would be away on a mission with Mira, an S-Class mission could still fail.

As Ed worked like a crazed deliveryman, time arrived at their agreed departure date. Early in the morning, Ed packed the luggage he needed and headed to the best blacksmith in town.

"Morning, boss. I'm here to pick up my order~" Ed greeted him.

"Oh~ Morning, kid. It's all here." Townsmith hauled out a box about the size of a slightly larger suitcase and placed it before Ed. "Whew~ It's pretty heavy. So, how are you taking it away? Need me to arrange delivery? Just 10,000 J~" Townsmith looked from the box to Ed.

"There is Zero need to worry, I'm prepared." Ed activated his Spatial Bag and stored all the kunai inside, then handed over the money. "Here's the payment. Want to count it?"

After counting it, Townsmith said to Ed, "You're already a regular customer. How could I not trust you? Alright, I'll take the payment. Come find me again if you need anything next time. I'm the best blacksmith in town!"

"Then don't say that after you've finished counting it!" Ed shot back, then shook his head and prepared to head to the station to wait for Mira and the others. "Alright, I'm off. I'll commission you again if I need anything next time." "Sure!"

After arriving at the station, Ed checked the time. It was still a little while before ten, so he planned to go inside and find a seat to wait. But the moment he entered, he saw Mira and her two siblings.

"Yo, Mira. Morning!" Ed greeted her.

"Ah, oh, morning, Ed." Remembering the misunderstanding Lisanna had caused two days ago, Mira blushed slightly when she looked at Ed. "?" Ed was baffled by Mira suddenly blushing for no apparent reason.

"Um... Morning, Ed. Although we've met before, we haven't properly introduced ourselves. I'm Lisanna, and this is Elfman. We're Mira's younger sister and brother." Lisanna greeted him and introduced herself alongside Elfman.

"Mm, morning to you two as well." Ed looked at Mira with some confusion, but did not think much of it. He turned to greet Lisanna and Elfman, then added, "I'm joining you for this mission. Mira told you, right? If you run into danger, get behind me immediately."

"Mm-hm, I understand, Ed." "Mm-hm." Lisanna and Elfman nodded repeatedly.

"Alright, now that everyone's here, let's get going. We still have a full day on the road." With a wave of her small hand, Mira led everyone aboard the train.

Once everyone was seated on the train, Ed took out the kunai from his bag and began placing Flying Thunder God Marks on them. Watching him, Mira asked, "Isn't it a little early to mark them now?"

"Let me tell you a secret: Flying Thunder God Marks never disappear~ So it's better to prepare them in advance, just in case something unexpected happens." Ed explained.

"Oh! That's amazing. As expected of such rare spatial magic." Mira was a little envious. Ed casually handed her a marked kunai and said, "Then this is for you. The mark is already on it. As long as you channel magic power into it, I'll be able to sense it. Zero matter where you are, I'll immediately come to you." Ed slipped in a confession while he was at it.

"I don't need it!" Elfman's words about eloping from two days ago flashed through Mira's mind, and she suddenly became embarrassed.

"Oh, Mira, just take it. It's a token of Ed's feelings, and it'll help with this mission too, right?" Lisanna winked at Ed and persuaded Mira. Elfman was not good with words, so he merely echoed, "Mm, Lisanna's right!"

"Since you two put it that way... I'll take it. But! You are absolutely not allowed to suddenly appear in front of me when there's nothing wrong!" After thinking it over, Mira felt her younger brother and sister had a point. She stubbornly said that, but honestly accepted it anyway. For some reason, Elfman's words about her eloping with Ed kept flashing through her mind, making her blush again.

Ed looked utterly confused and asked Lisanna, "What's wrong with Mira?" Lisanna looked a little awkward, while Elfman nearly could not stay seated.

"It's nothing, nothing. Mira just rarely goes on missions with other people, so she's a little unused to it. Oh, right, Ed, tell us about your last mission. I'm really curious how you dealt with an entire dark guild." Lisanna changed the subject and voiced her question to Ed.

"That? It was partly a coincidence. At the time, I..." As Ed told his story, time slowly passed, and they gradually drew close to their destination.