Chapter 273 - 245: The Final Mission is Still Her
After ending the call with the young female, Andrew returned to his desk. After hearing her voice, even the tedious pile of documents before him seemed more agreeable.
But the document Cyril placed in front of him the next moment was far less agreeable.
"Admiral, Alex left his post without authorization. How do you wish to handle this?"
Cyril impassively observed Andrew’s expression and said, "Regarding the last incident, you already gave Alex a chance. You allowed him to join the Military Department, yet he took it upon himself to alter his mission without contacting us beforehand."
Andrew’s expression cooled. He pinched the document and flipped through it casually. "The last incident?"
A flicker passed through Cyril’s eyes, his mind racing. He didn’t respond to Andrew’s question directly. Instead, he said, "Alex might have left his post after hearing that Miss Gu Ning’s convoy was attacked by a Mutant Species. He has violated protocol, but given his situation... I’m not sure how to write up his report."
After speaking, Cyril waited for Andrew’s reply, a turbulent undercurrent flowing beneath his calm exterior.
’The last time, Alex used a female’s scent to lure a King Seed and was even suspected of hiding a female—such a serious matter, yet Andrew covered it all up for him.’
’Of course, I know Andrew only did it to bring Alex to heel and gain better control over that alpha wolf, but to let him off without any punishment at all... isn’t that a bit too lenient?’
Andrew tapped his fingers on the document for a long moment before speaking. "Before they departed, I had you seal a file. Go get it."
Cyril paused, then did as instructed, retrieving the sealed file from the safe.
"Open it." Andrew didn’t touch the file, merely nodding for Cyril to look at it.
A trace of doubt flickered in Cyril’s eyes, but he obeyed and opened the file.
After reading its contents, Cyril’s expression slowly darkened.
It was an emergency protocol for Vine’s team’s core mission: escorting the young female.
If Vine and his team encountered a force majeure event that prevented them from continuing the mission, or if the mission objective was in danger, the emergency protocol would activate other teams to take over and complete the task.
’I knew escorting Gu Ning wouldn’t be easy, but we have support teams stationed along the route. I assumed the Admiral would have them handle any situations that arose.’
’But I never expected there to be an "emergency protocol."’
It even bore the official seal of the Beast Alliance.
This meant that for anyone involved in the mission, any action taken, as long as it was related to Gu Ning, was justifiable.
Cyril’s fingers tightened slightly on the edge of the file. ’So, after all this, Alex’s ultimate mission is still her.’
’Is the Admiral doing this because he values talent and wants to use the young female to control Alex, or is it for...’
"Go on," Andrew said placidly. He sat as immovable as a mountain, his eyes filled with the calm certainty of someone who has everything under control. "The little lion and his team should have reached Zone 15 by now. While you still have a signal, get everything arranged."
"...Understood."
Cyril took the file and turned to leave.
"As for Alex..."
Cyril stopped in his tracks and turned back to Andrew.
Andrew said, "You probably can’t reach him right now. Communicate with Vine first and get a status update on their situation."
Cyril acknowledged the order and quickly left the conference room.
He didn’t stop until he reached the turn of the staircase, where he looked down at the file in his hand.
He stared at the cover for a moment, then entered his inner office, closed the door, and tossed the file onto his desk. He activated his terminal, found the contact labeled "Miao Ning," and sent a message:
[Miss Gu Ning, are you free?]
Gu Ning was not free.
The moment her call with Andrew ended, she immediately tried to contact Alex.
A series of beeps sounded in her earpiece, indicating that Alex was in an area with no signal.
Gu Ning sat on the edge of her bed, staring down at Alex’s profile picture on her terminal as the rhythmic no-signal tone echoed in her ear.
’Where is Alex right now?’
’He’s probably not in Zone 19 anymore,’ she guessed.
’I just spoke with Andrew, and there’s a signal in Zone 19. Could he still be out in the wilderness?’
Throughout the journey, Barto and the others had deliberately tried to hide news about Alex from her, and she had to pretend she didn’t know. But now that she couldn’t reach him, she couldn’t help but worry.
’Is he following our team, or has he gone off on another mission?’
As Gu Ning was lost in thought, a knock came from the door.
She looked up. The bedroom door was half-open, and Vine was standing in the doorway, watching her.
"May I come in?" he asked.
Gu Ning ended the attempted call to Alex. "Please, come in."
Vine stepped inside, closing the bedroom door behind him, and sat down beside her.
Gu Ning felt the spot next to her sink down significantly.
Vine had just showered, and a cloud of warm, damp air enveloped her.
Overwhelmed by his scent and towering presence, Gu Ning shifted slightly to the side in discomfort.
Seeing her movement, Vine showed her the hair dryer in his hand.
Gu Ning’s gaze fell on the hair dryer. She looked up, met his eyes for a moment, and immediately understood. Reaching for it, she said, "Captain, thank you..."
Vine moved his hand away from hers. "Don’t use honorifics with me."
Gu Ning: "?"
Vine: "And stop thanking me all the time. It makes us seem like strangers."
Gu Ning was used to his blunt way of speaking. She smiled slightly and held out her palm. "The hair dryer. Give it to me."
’After spending a few days with these captains, she had more or less figured out how to communicate with them: less nonsense, no beating around the bush, just say what you mean.’
Vine glanced down at her palm, then took it in his, his thumb stroking the light calluses there.
Gu Ning snatched her hand back as if electrocuted, looking at Vine in astonishment.
’What in the world is he doing?’
Vine didn’t say anything. He switched on the dryer, gathered a handful of her wet hair, and began to dry it for her.
Gu Ning: "Captain, I can do it myself."
She tried to take the dryer, but Vine pushed her hand down. "Alex didn’t take good care of you."
Gu Ning: "..."
"He..."
"Don’t you dare speak up for him." Vine cut her off with a grim expression, as if he knew exactly what she was about to say. "Enough people have covered for him already."
Gu Ning: ...Fine.
’It seems Vine still holds a huge grudge against Alex. I’d better not try to play peacemaker here.’
The dryer whirred next to Gu Ning’s ear, the hot air making her face feel flushed. Vine, though unfamiliar with the task, was incredibly focused, drying her hair strand by strand.
No one spoke. Gu Ning sat ramrod straight, as if standing at military attention.
With Vine here, she couldn’t focus on anything else. Her attention was entirely on his hands, and she found herself stealing glances at him from time to time.
He held her hair with an expression as serious as if he were carrying out a critical mission.
After a while, he figured out the trick to drying it faster, running his fingers through her hair and tousling it at the roots.