City B, inside the People's Hospital.
A nurse with a stethoscope around her neck walked out of the medical room.
As soon as she came out, Feng Xuan, who was sitting in the hallway, urgently asked her a question.
"How is she, nurse? Is this girl all right?"
The nurse took the stethoscope from her ears and answered calmly.
"Don't worry. This young lady doesn't have any problems at the moment. Aside from her blood sugar being a little low right now, she's perfectly healthy. Once her glucose infusion is finished, you can take her with you."
Feng Xuan breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank you, nurse."
"It's all right. It's our job."
The nurse waved a hand, then went off to attend to her other duties.
Feng Xuan glanced through the crack in the door of the medical room. Seeing that the girl had gotten dressed and was sitting quietly on the bed with an IV, he sat back down on a chair in the hallway.
In another corner of the hospital, Sun Hai checked the time on his phone, then entered a string of digits and held it to his ear. As soon as the call connected, he asked directly:
"Hello, Nanming. Did you find out who that girl is?"
On the other end of the line, Nanming replied:
"Yes, we found her, Captain. The records show that the girl's name is Hela. She was born on December 1, 2012, and she's already seventeen this year.
Her father was from the Eluo Nation, and her mother was a native of the Great Xia Nation. Her family lived in the Eluo Nation until she was sixteen, but when she was sixteen, her father died in an accident. After that, she and his mother returned to the country and lived in City C, Shan'an.
Also, according to hospital records from City C, her mother was diagnosed with a terminal illness six months ago."
At that point, Nanming paused, seemingly out of sympathy for the girl named Hela.
After all, so much had happened to a girl not yet seventeen in less than a year. It truly was enough to make anyone feel sorry for her.
"Also, the girl seems to have been born with albinism, which is why she was snow-white all over when we saw her.
And there's something else...
It's about you, Captain."
Sun Hai frowned slightly, seemingly having guessed something.
"The higher-ups said that because you gave the order for us to retreat without authorization, you're to be suspended at home for two months." On the other end of the line, Nanming sighed and spoke earnestly.
"Captain, I actually think you should go back for two months too. After all, everyone can see what state you're in right now. You really should go back and get some rest."
Sun Hai didn't refuse. He simply answered "Okay" and prepared to hang up.
"Wait, Captain!" Suddenly, Nanming called out to stop him from the other end of the line.
"What is it? Is there something else?"
"There's also the matter of Hela. I already reported it to our superiors, and the higher-ups said we should handle it ourselves." Nanming sounded a little embarrassed.
Sun Hai suddenly had an ominous feeling.
"Captain, you know I'm the vice-captain. You'll be suspended for two months, so the team can't do without me. Si Xiaobei's home is too far from the base, and as for Liu Xiaogang and Feng Xuan, those two can't be relied on.
So...
Captain, until the newcomer arrives, I'm afraid we'll have to trouble you to look after her. You're going to be suspended at home for two months anyway, so you'll have a chance to take care of her."
"Huh?" Although he had been prepared for it, he couldn't help letting out a startled sound when he heard Nanming's decision.
"Captain, you should give it some serious thought. If you still won't take care of her, we'll have no choice but to send her to a psychiatric hospital.
After all, her family is all gone now, and she's having mental problems too."
Sun Hai listened without answering and silently hung up the phone.
He leaned against the hospital wall and exhaled deeply, staring at the ceiling with a complicated look in his eyes, as if he were pondering something.
After an unknown amount of time, Sun Hai looked up at the countless stars outside the window and finally made a decision.