It was like an ancient siege against a city gate.
The massive battering ram drew back again and again before slamming into the gate.
Every impact made both the doors and the structure behind them tremble.
Then came another tremendous collision. The ram failed to force the gate completely open, but it finally created a sizable gap.
Immediately afterward, a large quantity of fluid resembling MURU was forced through the opening and into the chamber beyond.
The mysterious chamber already seemed completely full, but it possessed an unusual degree of elasticity, allowing it to stretch and expand.
As more of the milk-like substance was forced inside, the chamber expanded even further.
Yet the chamber's owner completely ignored the besieger's warning.
Someone was approaching.
In fact, that person might already have noticed something.
The reason Murrue refused to believe the warning was that it had become like the story of The Boy Who Cried Wolf.
After being falsely warned about the wolf so many times, no one would believe it when the wolf finally slipped inside.
The first interruption had been a call from her former executive officer and closest friend, Natarle Badgiruel.
To prevent Natarle from sensing that something was wrong and coming over to investigate, Murrue had naturally accepted the call.
Natarle had only contacted her about official business.
To better facilitate military cooperation between PLANT and Earth, they needed to establish a framework that would allow both sides to exchange information immediately whenever an emergency occurred.
Natarle had already drafted a preliminary proposal for such a framework. She wanted Murrue to review it and help prepare several additional recommendations.
Murrue could only skim through the documents and give somewhat perfunctory answers.
She simply could not concentrate on Natarle's proposal, so she suggested that they continue the discussion the following day.
Natarle agreed that it was already late, and the first call ended with them promising to discuss the matter in greater detail tomorrow.
Soon afterward, Natarle called a second time.
This time, several people had asked Natarle to act as a matchmaker. They had given her a list of names to pass along to Murrue.
Murrue had no choice but to accept the files. Faced with Natarle's extremely serious expression, she promised that she would consider the candidates.
After all, if high-ranking officers led by example, it would be easier to promote integration between Coordinators and Naturals.
When the third call arrived, Murrue was beginning to resent the interruptions.
This one concerned security for Lacus's concert the following day.
The primary concern was not Lacus's personal safety. Natarle trusted that the three people assigned to her would protect her properly.
Instead, the security measures were mainly intended to protect the visitors from Earth who would be attending the concert.
Natarle wanted to review the contingency plans with Murrue one more time.
After comparing their arrangements and confirming the details, they finally ended the call.
Murrue seriously considered shutting down her communications device so that Natarle could no longer contact her.
All three calls had arrived at the worst possible moment, just as a certain sensation was about to reach its critical threshold.
Once that threshold was crossed, she would enter an overwhelming state of bliss, even more wonderful than soaking in a hot spring on a freezing winter day.
Yet every time she was about to reach that point, another call interrupted her.
Now, the owner of the battering ram suddenly issued another warning.
Natarle herself was secretly approaching.
Murrue treated it like yet another false warning from The Boy Who Cried Wolf.
She was once again approaching the critical threshold and assumed he was deliberately trying to frighten her.
Instead of stopping, she declared that if Natarle saw them, then she saw them.
They would leave the rest to fate.
...
Natarle Badgiruel had called her superior and closest friend, Murrue Ramius, several times because she had sensed that something was wrong.
Under normal circumstances, Natarle would simply have transmitted the proposal for the new communication framework and ended the call.
The entire conversation should have lasted no more than a few seconds.
However, she gradually noticed that Murrue appeared unusually tense in the communication window.
Murrue's eyes repeatedly flicked behind her, almost as though she feared something might be lurking out of sight.
At one point, Natarle even saw her suddenly bite her lower lip, as though desperately suppressing something.
That suggested one terrifying possibility.
Murrue might have been threatened or taken hostage.
They were currently on PLANT territory. Although both sides had formally agreed to a ceasefire, a small number of extremists were undoubtedly unwilling to accept the outcome and might attempt some form of terrorist attack.
In fact, several suspicious incidents had already occurred since the ceasefire was signed, although all of them had been resolved quickly.
Had someone targeted Murrue?
It was entirely possible.
To confirm her suspicions, Natarle called again.
She wanted to see whether Murrue could provide any information. Perhaps she would use a phrase or physical gesture that only the two of them would understand.
However, Natarle obtained almost no useful information from the next two calls.
Her heart sank.
Murrue refused to reveal anything and seemed desperate to convince Natarle that everything was normal.
That meant the situation had to be extremely dangerous.
The slightest abnormality might place Murrue's life at risk.
It might even endanger Natarle or everyone nearby.
Natarle decided against making a fourth call.
If she continued, the enemy might realize that she had noticed something.
She immediately picked up her pistol, left her room, and quietly approached another suite in the VIP guesthouse.
Murrue's room was directly next to hers.
Rather than using the door, Natarle climbed out through her own window. She carefully made her way across to Murrue's suite and pressed herself against the balcony outside the living room.
The balcony door was locked.
That was perfectly normal.
However, the lock posed no difficulty for Natarle. She was extremely cautious and had prepared several countermeasures in case an emergency occurred at the guesthouse.
She passed a special magnetic strip over the lock.
A faint click followed.
The door had unlocked.
Natarle silently slid open the glass door and crept inside on her toes.
Nothing appeared unusual in the living room. There were no signs of a struggle.
She focused on the bedroom and cautiously approached it.
When she pressed her ear against the door, she heard strange, muffled sounds coming from inside.
Natarle passed the magnetic strip across the second lock.
She carefully pushed the door open, creating only the narrowest gap through which to look.
What had happened to Murrue?
Huh?
What?!
Natarle's pupils widened.
For one brief instant, her mind stopped working entirely.
The scene before her was so far removed from anything she had imagined that she could not process it.
How much time passed after that?
She had no idea.
Then someone's gaze suddenly shifted toward her.
It seemed that she had finally been noticed.
Natarle jumped in fright.
Like a burglar caught in the middle of a crime, she panicked and tried to flee.
She immediately sprang to her feet, only to realize that at some point, she had ended up sitting on the floor.
She had remained there for so long that both of her legs had gone numb.
Rising too quickly caused her to lose her balance.
Instead of retreating, Natarle fell forward and crashed through the partially opened door into the bedroom.
Now she was truly doomed.
(End of Chapter)
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