Texas didn't even know what to say about this turn of events. She was utterly speechless at having such a light-hearted teammate like Croissant.
"I want to ask, if Exusiai's halo is destroyed, will it really pose a threat to her life?"
While Texas believed Jeanne had no intention of harming Exusiai, the fact that the halo had been plucked from Exusiai's head was a reality. They had no idea what kind of harm this caused a Sankta; they had never even heard of a halo being removable. Considering that even touching it usually caused Exusiai to feel dizzy, it wasn't impossible that damaging it could indeed kill her.
"Don't worry, I am currently the only one who can do this. Moreover, this halo simply cannot be destroyed. The biggest impact on her is probably that she won't need to wear an eye mask when sleeping at night."
Jeanne saw the trace of nervousness in Texas's eyes and comforted her with a smile. She twirled Exusiai's halo in her hand, demonstrating that it didn't matter how she handled it.
"Eh, can I see that? I never expected Exusiai's halo could be taken off. This saves us from needing electric lights at night."
Following Texas's reminder, Croissant also looked at the glowing "fluorescent tube" in Jeanne's hand with a face full of curiosity.
"Ah, sure. As long as you don't put it back on Exusiai's head, it shouldn't return there for the rest of the day."
Seeing Croissant's eyes practically glowing with curiosity, Jeanne obligingly handed the "fluorescent tube" over to her. Croissant took it carefully, as if it were a fragile object that might shatter if she wasn't careful. She stroked the still-glowing ring with wonder, as if appraising a rare treasure.
"Miss Jeanne, may I ask if it was the Emperor who commissioned you to come here and get us out?"
Seeing her companions either reminiscing or playing with gadgets without bothering to gather information, Texas had to step up and ask herself.
"Not exactly. Mostima told us about this. Originally, your boss asked her to come pick you up, but she seems to have spoken with your boss over the phone."
Hearing this, Texas believed the explanation. She figured the Emperor wouldn't exactly send someone like Jeanne to pick them up; that would be too "un-Penguin." If it was Mostima, it was much easier to understand. But then again, Mostima actually met with Exusiai's sister? It seemed the relationship between them wasn't as tense as feared.
"Hey, are you two finished talking? Let's head back first. Pulling a stunt like this at the entrance... people might think we really broke in."
Jeanne called out to the pair of angel sisters who were still catching up. Standing here blocking the way was asking for trouble; in a moment, the entire LGD would probably be over here to join the fun and watch the drama.
Hearing Jeanne's call, Lemuen nodded in acknowledgment. She then promptly flicked the forehead of Exusiai, who was still touching herself in disbelief that this was reality.
"Ah, it hurts! Eh, I can actually feel pain. I guess I'm not dreaming."
Looking at her sister, who had become excited just from being flicked, Lemuen felt like this child had somehow become sillier during her time away. Where was that clever, mischievous "little" sister of the past?
"Stop poking around and let's go! I really need to have a talk with you today. I just arrived in Lungmen and I can already hear about the great 'Exusiai.' In a few more years, are you going to try and blow up the LGD?"
Lemuen dragged her sister along as they left with Jeanne and the others. Exusiai was still immersed in her joy, not quite back to earth yet.
"Eh, wait! You still haven't said how you recovered so fast! Does our family have some special rapid-recovery gene? Like in those Columbian hero movies..."
"I told you not to watch so many of those superhero movies. Your already-unintelligent brain has lost its grip on reality..."
Regarding Exusiai's question, Lemuen felt she truly had nothing to say. How could she even ask such a thing? A "special gene"? Why didn't you just call it an Originium Art? Ah, right—Infected don't get to be superheroes.
Also, even though we look remarkably alike, did you forget that you and I aren't biologically related? Even if you had a super gene, where would I have gotten it?
"Eh, Sis. Have you noticed your nagging is exactly like our mom's~?"
"I'll remember that. I'm telling Mom about your 'nagging' comment the moment I get back. I'll just wait to see how swollen your backside gets when you go home..."
"Noooo!"
As the voices faded into the distance, the officer who had been pretending to be unconscious finally stood up. She looked toward where they had vanished with a face full of indignation. These people were too much! They didn't even tell her the performance was over. She had lain there on the ground cooperating for nothing, even worrying if she would mess things up if she moved.
As a police officer with a dream of acting, she had finally gotten this one rare chance to realize her long-buried ambition without excessively violating discipline.
Sss... Beep!
"You seemed to quite enjoy the performance just now. Should I find a production crew to interview you?"
At that moment, the voice of "Officer Ch'en" came through the radio on her chest. That wave-less voice made her realize the jig was up. She stood there, body stiff and motionless, silently waiting for her superior's punishment.
She knew very well that "Officer Ch'en" disliked subordinates who constantly made excuses. Such subordinates usually received harsher punishments, so the best choice was to show an obedient attitude and not try to explain anything.
"Go back and copy the LGD Code of Conduct once. Hand it to me tomorrow morning."
Hearing the punishment, the officer froze. It wasn't because it was too harsh, but because it was too light—so light she thought she had misheard, assuming it should have been a hundred times.
"Did you say... copy it once?"
She couldn't believe her ears and asked Ch'en tremulously. If she had misunderstood and only copied it once, her future would be very "promising" indeed.
"That's right, once. Why? Do you think it's too few? Do you want me to add a few more rounds for you to enjoy?"
"No... no problem, 'Officer Ch'en'! I'll go accept my punishment right now!"
With that, as if fearing "Officer Ch'en" would suddenly change her mind, she fled the LGD at the speed of someone racing to the cafeteria. Though she didn't know why, she was happy to accept this stroke of luck before anyone had a chance to change their mind and make her cry.