Under the sharp gazes of Kirika Tachibana and numerous squad members, Luo Shu followed Lacus into the ship's cabin amidst a chorus of "Haro" greetings.
The two entered the corridor and soon arrived at a room. Upon stepping inside, Luo Shu raised an eyebrow.
Because he saw Kisara, gently placed on a white hospital bed by several female nurses.
Luo Shu watched as the nurses prepared to fasten black restraints on Kisara, but this action was stopped by Lacus's intervention.
"Wait a moment, there's no need for those measures just yet."
"And, could I trouble you all to step outside temporarily?"
Hearing Lacus's words, the nurses paused, then nodded and exited the room in an orderly manner, closing the door behind them.
When only Luo Shu, Lacus, and the forcibly unconscious Kisara remained in the room, Lacus turned to Luo Shu and said:
"Luo Shu-kun, you must be from a different world than me, right?"
Though phrased as a question, the look in Lacus's eyes told Luo Shu she was already certain of this fact.
Hearing this, Luo Shu opened his mouth slightly before responding somewhat ruefully:
"Wasn't that exposure a bit too quick?"
"It's not that my exposure was too quick, but rather that Luo Shu-kun's pretence didn't match my understanding."
Lacus walked to the stool beside Kisara's bed and sat down. A pink Haro robot hopped lightly onto her lap, where she held it in place:
"In the world I was born in, Coordinators born through genetic modification and Naturals born through natural reproduction have, for various reasons, reached a state essentially equivalent to racial opposition."
"So if Luo Shu-kun were from the same world as me, if you were a Natural, your gaze towards me would carry some degree of fear. And if you were a Coordinator..."
At this point, Lacus covered her mouth and chuckled softly:
"Though this might be presumptuous of me, before I came to this world, my debut single was still in production."
'This enchantress...' Luo Shu couldn't help cursing inwardly upon hearing this.
So all that earlier questioning about whether he knew her from TV or songs had been a trap.
The fact that her debut single was still in production meant Lacus's timeline from the Abyss was very early, possibly even her childhood, long before she became PLANT's top songstress.
And a childhood version of Lacus would most likely not have appeared on television programmes, as far as Luo Shu knew—she didn't have the child star background.
"You've got me there."
After the lie was exposed, Luo Shu sighed, casually pulled over a chair from the side and sat down directly, looking up at Lacus as he said:
"So then, what's the reason for specifically dragging me here to meet?"
"What do you plan to do next? Imprison me, this visitor from another world? Or send me to a research lab?"
Hearing the two options Luo Shu presented, Lacus' expression clearly froze for a moment before becoming somewhat exasperated as she said:
"Although I'm not sure exactly how you came to know about me, Luo Shu-kun, but could it be that the descriptions of me you've seen portray me as particularly brutal?"
"Not that extreme." Luo Shu shook his head, then calmly stated: "At most, they say you're a scheming, calculating woman who orchestrated the deaths of PLANT's two chairmen, ultimately allowing yourself to successfully rise to the top and control PLANT as its national leader. That's all."
Hearing this, Lacus' expression finally became uncontrollable:
"I can understand being called scheming and calculating, but orchestrating the deaths of PLANT's two chairmen... PLANT's first chairman was my father, you know?"
'I actually killed my own father?' Lacus began to suspect Luo Shu might be pulling her leg.
Hearing this, Luo Shu spoke in an extremely casual tone:
"Oh, I didn't finish. It was the two chairmen after your father - one was Patrick Zala, the other was Durandal, if I recall."
"Uncle Patrick and Dr. Gilbert Durandal?"
Lacus recognised both names Luo Shu mentioned - one was her father's close friend, the other her father's follower. Alright, she still couldn't comprehend why she would have orchestrated both their deaths.
Could it be that Luo Shu came from a parallel world of the one she previously inhabited? A world where her counterpart became some terrifying, ambitious schemer?
The sheer volume of information made Lacus sigh in a rare moment of distress, showing a troubled expression:
"I think we should stop this conversation here."
"Then let's talk about how you plan to deal with me instead?"
Luo Shu leaned back slightly against the chair, his tone casual.
"I won't handle it that way." Lacus spoke with absolute conviction: "I will never issue harmful orders against ordinary citizens who've committed no wrongdoing. Never."
At this point, Lacus tilted her head slightly in puzzlement: "Somehow, I get the feeling Luo Shu-kun seems rather unsettled?"
"Me? Unsettled?" Luo Shu blinked, then pulled a strange face: "Do I look like someone feeling unsettled right now?"
Though slightly embarrassing to admit, he was quite confident in his ability to instantly escape from Lacus Clyne's presence. Moreover, understanding Lacus's character, he was fairly certain there was a good chance she wouldn't attack him.
With this double insurance, where would any unease come from?
Yet Lacus nodded firmly:
"Not unsettled because of me, but something deeper - like the unease of finding yourself in completely unfamiliar surroundings, uncertain whether danger might appear."
This conclusion came from Lacus after reviewing Kirika Tachibana's submitted report on Luo Shu and meeting him in person.
While Kirika's evaluation described Luo Shu as valuing transactional relationships—requiring payment before providing equivalent labour—Lacus interpreted this differently after meeting him.
She saw it more as wariness against becoming too deeply entangled, maintaining readiness to sever ties at any moment.
In fact, Lacus suspected Luo Shu kept reminding himself their relationship was purely transactional so that if he ever became Kirika's enemy, he wouldn't hesitate to act.
This was why Lacus said Luo Shu lacked a sense of security.
Facing Lacus's gaze, Luo Shu opened his mouth, then chose silence.
Recognising she'd struck a nerve, Lacus tactfully changed the subject to Luo Shu's earlier concern:
"Though you might doubt this, SDS actually permits members to resign."
Luo Shu's expression turned peculiar:
"You're sure this isn't killing the goose that lays golden eggs?"
"Quite sure." Lacus smiled and nodded.
"No strings attached?" Luo Shu probed again.
Luo Shu fell silent for a moment, then suddenly crossed his legs: "Apologies, but I refuse to resign from SDS."
"..." Lacus's expression became wry, torn between laughter and exasperation:
"This is exactly why I said you lack a sense of security, Luo Shu-kun!"