Meanwhile, on the other side, Bronya and the others returned and entered the temporary garage outpost.
Fu Shi glanced around, her tone carrying a hint of casualness,
"This temporary base is actually pretty refined, but with a few more of us suddenly added, it feels a bit cramped. By the way, where did that guy Fu Lin go? Why don't I see him anywhere?"
Bronya frowned slightly, her gaze sweeping over the empty sofa, confusion evident in her voice, "Did he go out?"
Siegfried crossed his arms and joked, "I think he knew I was coming to give him trouble, so he deliberately hid!"
Fu Hua observed the surroundings, lightly brushing the sofa where Fu Lin had been lying. The residual warmth had not completely faded, and the fabric under her fingertips still carried a trace of heat.
Her gaze suddenly fixed on the potato chips scattered across the sofa and the floor. She pinched one between her fingers and said decisively, "He didn't leave long ago, but it seems more like he was taken away by force. The potato chips are all over the floor."
"Taken away by force?" Fu Shi immediately leaned in, her brows tightly knit, disbelief filling her voice,
"Who has that kind of ability? To abduct him without a sound and not leave behind a single trace of fighting?"
Adam's expression instantly turned grave. He stepped forward half a pace, his fists unconsciously clenching, "Could Senior Fu Lin be in danger? The situation in Saint Fontaine is so complicated..."
Carol nodded repeatedly, "Yeah, yeah! Someone who can take a person away without making a sound, could it be someone from the sky people using some kind of spatial technology to grab Senior Fu Lin from afar?"
"Grabbing someone from afar?" Fu Shi raised an eyebrow. A thought suddenly flashed through her mind as she turned and walked out of the garage, lifting her head to look at the moon hanging in the night sky,
"To be able to take him away without him resisting at all, ...other than that person, I can't think of anyone else."
Bronya's eyes shifted slightly, and she spoke almost instinctively, "You mean... Kiana☆?"
Fu Hua slowly nodded, her tone as steady as a mountain, "The Herrscher of the Void authority controlled by Kiana☆ can indeed take someone away without anyone noticing. And the Honkai energy traces left at the scene all indicate a connection to Kiana☆."
Upon hearing this, Siegfried raised a hand to scratch at the nonexistent hair on his head and let out an annoyed growl, "That girl! She actually dares to help that brat hide from me! This padded jacket really leaks wind!"
Bronya added expressionlessly, "Senior Siegfried, there's no need to be too sad. You still have another padded jacket."
Siegfried, "..."
Far away, Durandal sneezed, lifted her head in confusion, and looked toward the distance. With a serious expression, she muttered to herself, "Who's talking about me? Rita, perhaps..... I need to hurry and finish the mission and head to Saint Fontaine. Those outsiders actually dared to hurt Rita, unforgivable!"
The perspective returned to the Bay. Mei☆ gently shook her head, a trace of regret flashing through her violet eyes, "Sigh, we still arrived too late. Kiana☆ was one step ahead of me."
Elysia's fingers brushed through her hair, a sly smile flashing in her eyes, "Oh my~ no matter the situation, as long as Fu Lin is safe, that's what matters~?"
She bent down to pick up a potato chip and lightly popped it into her mouth. After chewing twice, her eyes lit up as she turned to look at everyone, "These chips taste pretty good. Want to try some?"
"No, now's not the time to eat chips, Elysia." Mei☆ raised a hand to refuse, calm filling her violet eyes, "Even if we suspect it was Kiana☆, we still need to deal with the trouble in front of us first, then take a spaceship to the Moon to rendezvous with Fu Lin."
Fu Shi returned from the garage entrance, arms crossed as she leaned against the doorframe, her tone carrying a bit of agreement, "Why don't we just go straight up and attack that floating island, give those people in the sky a surprise strike!"
Adam quietly reminded from the side, "It's called the Sky City."
Fu Shi shot him a sideways glance, ".....I'll call it whatever I want."
Adam, "..."
"Fu Shi, acting on impulse won't solve the problem." Fu Hua spoke up to dissuade her. "The enemy is in the dark, and we're in the open. We need to think carefully and avoid falling into a trap."
Fu Shi crossed her arms, her tone tinged with puzzlement, "Come on, enemies I can handle alone, why would we be afraid when so many of us are together?"
Fu Hua opened her mouth slightly, but didn't continue. Instead, she turned to Carol and said calmly, "By the way, Carol, this is a spare weapon Rita asked me to bring you."
"Hey! Don't just ignore me like that!" Fu Shi protested unhappily.
Carol's eyes widened in surprise, "Huh? Re-really? How did the captain know my weapon would break?"
Fu Hua gently shook her head, her tone even, "Rita has always been attentive. Perhaps she guessed this might happen in advance."
Carol took the weapon, and when she saw that it was two brand-new giant metal fists, her eyes instantly lit up. Hugging them tightly to her chest, she spoke with excitement and motivation, "With new weapons, I'll definitely be able to protect everyone!"
Bronya nodded lightly, her fingers sliding rapidly across the tactical projection as she spoke steadily, "By the way, regarding the Moon Ring, we've also received messages from Dr. Einstein and Dr. Tesla. The combat data everyone stored in the Moon Ring during the battle has already been successfully transmitted back to headquarters. After analyzing the data, the two doctors believe that the conditions to activate 'Hidden Mode' have been preliminarily met."
Adam's eyes immediately flashed with excitement as he hurriedly asked, "Hidden Mode? Does that mean we can transform like on TV!"
"Team member Adam, your imagination is quite rich." Bronya glanced at him and shook her head lightly. "In simple terms, it's a mode the Moon Ring enters after breaking through its rated power. Once activated, it can greatly increase the conversion efficiency of Honkai energy."
The anticipation in Adam's eyes instantly faded, replaced by obvious disappointment.
Lyle stepped forward and asked seriously, "Then how do we activate Hidden Mode?"
Bronya's expression grew slightly solemn, "That's the problem... the doctors said that because a certain key algorithm is missing, this mode can't be actively activated. However, as long as you continue uploading data, you might get lucky and trigger it by chance, although the probability is only 0.00000001%."
Carol spread her hands, her face full of complaints, "Then isn't that basically the same as not having this function at all!"
Fu Shi chimed in from the side, "That's how the doctors are. Those of us on the front lines just need to devote ourselves fully to the battlefield, follow orders, and complete missions, but the doctors in the rear have to consider a lot of things."
Bronya seemed to share this attitude and said calmly, "In any case, it's enough to just know about it for now. Let's begin preparations."
After that, Bronya looked at Mei☆, "Mei☆, can I talk to you alone for a moment?"
A smile flickered in Mei☆'s eyes as she nodded in response, "Mm? Of course. It's been a long time since I've seen Bronya. I have a few things I'd like to say too~"
Their interaction immediately drew the attention of Adam, Lyle, Carol, and Timido, several pairs of eyes focusing on them at once.
Bronya coughed lightly twice and suggested a bit awkwardly, "Ahem, then let's talk over by the bar."
Lyle, "So curious~"
Carol, "Really curious~"
Adam scratched his head, "What are they going to talk about?"
Fu Shi crossed her arms and rolled her eyes, "Who cares what they're talking about? It's probably some nagging trivial stuff. You should hurry up and prepare your equipment, dealing with the enemy sooner is what matters."
Hearing this, everyone reluctantly withdrew their gazes from Bronya and Mei's departing backs and scattered to prepare their gear.
...
Some time later, everyone gathered together, seated around the table.
Bronya swept her gaze over those present, "Alright, it looks like everyone is ready. Mei☆, Squad Leader, Fu Shi, and Ms. Elysia will also be fighting alongside us."
She paused briefly, then continued, "Then let's continue carrying out the investigation mission of the Saint Fontaine anomaly."
Fu Hua stood up immediately and nodded, "I'll handle the on-site briefing. Let's return to Saint Fontaine first."