NIKKE, when the stars bloom

Phoenix could not have imagined that when he was secretly practicing love words, Marian and Yinhua would accidentally hear it.

Not only that,

Instead of alerting its host that someone was eavesdropping, a certain vengeful AI cooperated with the two, chatting away with Phoenix in its mind in an effort to distract the unscrupulous individuals.

As the saying goes, no matter how exciting it is, Anik has good intentions in order to make the host fall into the Shura field frequently.

no way,

She loves watching it so much.

……

……

The next day.

Phoenix, knowing nothing about the future, woke up soundly from his bed.

I opened my eyes and looked out the window. The sun was already high in the sky. Judging from the position of the sun, it was probably close to noon.

Marianne didn't wake me up?

The man who got up from the bed and fell asleep in his combat uniform walked out the door with a lot of doubts.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he opened the door, a strong smell of burnt coals hit him in the face.

Turning out of the corridor, I saw six girls sitting around a campfire, staring at dozens of strips of meat hanging above the flames.

Smoked meat over an open flame?

Seeing the almost black strip of meat from afar, Phoenix did not seem too surprised.

There is a method of smoking jerky over open fire for survival in the wild, and the color of the roasted jerky is indeed black with a hint of red.

As for the taste, it’s definitely not that good.

But compared to the fruit wood smoking method that takes more than ten or twenty hours, the open fire roasting method is definitely more suitable for the current situation.

"Thanks for your hard work."

Phoenix could tell at a glance that Marian and the others had worked all night for these dozens of pieces of jerky, so he thanked them as a matter of course.

Who knows, it's better if he doesn't speak.

This remark suddenly gave Marianne the illusion that "when the husband got home, he was very grateful to his wife for preparing dinner for him."

Therefore, the girl's face inevitably turned red again.

As for Yinhua, he glanced at someone with a sidelong glance, as if to say "Don't bother me, I'm in a bad mood", which really made Phoenix full of question marks.

what happened?

One has a red face, the other has a white face, are they putting on a play???

Here, the commander was still reflecting on which small detail he had used to provoke Yinhua.

Over there, Honglian, who had some experience in grilling meat, waved confidently at his "comrade" and said with a smile:

"Sir, come and taste what we achieved last night.

This time we drained all the blood, boiled it in water and then baked it."

bass--!

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a flash of silver light, and a dagger that seemed to be homemade was held in Honglian's hand, and he cut a large piece of jerky from the bacon strips.

Then the tip of the knife poked forward again, and the rapid force instantly pierced the dried meat in mid-air.

Honglian walked to Phoenix with a dagger in his hand and handed the wooden handle to him.

"Please taste it, sir."

……

……

The meat was roasted very dry.

The salt content is also controlled just right, and there is no problem of being too salty.

Apart from the fact that the taste is not very good due to the lack of spices, these dozens of pieces of jerky can be used as dry food that can be stored for a long time.

then,

After confirming that there was no problem with the food, Phoenix asked everyone to pack up the necessary luggage and prepare to cross the H area again.

……

"Are you sure you want to go this way?"

In the narrow tunnel, Honglian looked at the vertical passage below that was only wide enough for one person to pass through, and her expression was not very good.

She could pass through a narrow path that was half a person's width, but she couldn't carry her beloved hat.

This won’t do. Absolutely not!

"Is there really no other way to go, sir?" The unwilling white-haired girl said with a droopy face like Yinhua, "Is there really no other way to go?"

"The road conditions are actually similar. This narrow road is the only way to go."

At the bottom of the passage, Phoenix poked his head out from the "wellhead" with a very helpless expression.

"How about this... you put your hat here first, and I'll find a chance to bring you back to get it next time. Or I can get it for you, and you can come get it yourself when you're free."

As soon as these words were spoken, Marianne and others immediately looked at him sideways.

next time?

How come there is a next time???

Hearing someone say this, Honglian, who was worried about having no excuse to kidnap someone, had no reason to let go of the opportunity. His frowning brows immediately relaxed, and he smiled happily:

"Great! Then I'll wait for you to bring me here to get it next time."

After saying this, the old girl didn't give Yinhua and Marian any chance to refuse. She took off her hat, took the beloved knife across her waist in her hand, and jumped down in front of Phoenix without thinking.

Boom-!

The hundred-kilogram weight combined with Honglian's strange high-heeled shape easily poked four holes in the extremely solid soil surface.

　"Then please continue to lead the way, sir."

After all, she was Nikki's senior. The drunkard with a hairpin on her head had no idea what "face" was. She tied her beloved sword back to her waist with a happy look on her face and said:

"Next time, you can come alone to the appointment. With me here, no one will hurt you."

blah blah blah...

The pilgrim's little calculations were clearly ringing in Nikki's ears, and Marianne was so anxious that she warned him on the spot:

"Pilgrim, you contacted the Ark commander alone. Are you trying to frame our commander?"

"Oh~ there is such a thing?"

Hearing what Marianne said, Honglian's eyes suddenly lit up, then she shrugged as if nothing had happened and replied lazily:

"I know, I know. I will pay attention."

"Then please continue to lead the way."

……

……

Time passed, and a few more days passed.

Phoenix has proved that the decision to return to Region H was wise and correct.

When he led his team to avoid the Letchers' patrol line and bypassed their sentry posts, there was no trace of the Letchers in the area centered on the secret material H.

During this period, he even went to the body of Secret Material H. When he helped Marian retrieve the gun, he also dismantled the broken Tyrant-class Letcher core of Secret Material H.

Afterwards, Phoenix led the team back to the ground.

As the process of advancing northward became smoother, the atmosphere among the team also turned from a tense state to a completely relaxed state.

Apart from the fact that each of them was on guard against the other side taking advantage of their commanders, the relationship between everyone was quite close.

Diesel revealed to everyone that she was a survivor of the train bombing; Yinhua told everyone about her past career as a commander; Marian recounted the farce she and her teammates experienced during her time in the Silver Spear Unit; and Honglian occasionally mentioned the past of the Goddess Unit.

Ark betrayed the Goddess Force.

This truth that was buried in the long river of history was told to everyone by Honglian herself.

"Hate? I have long forgotten about it. Maybe there are people among my friends who hate the Ark, but I don't want to run around for such a terrible thing anymore."

The white-haired girl drank her wine leisurely and said:

"Besides, I have made a promise with my friends to recover the captain's body. This is the most important thing to me. I don't have the energy to talk about the betrayal and hatred that have become the past."

"Ah, right!"

Just as Marian and others were feeling unfair and sympathetic about the fate of the Goddess Troops, Honglian suddenly changed the subject.

"Since we are about to reach the elevator, and Master also said that there is no danger in the short distance ahead, then I can't continue to accompany you..."

After a pause, the woman reached behind her head with her left hand and took off the hairpin that was locked in her hair.

The silky silver hair floated happily in the air because it was no longer bound, like waves on the beach, sparkling in the sun, shaking Phoenix's mind.

Facing someone's gaze, Honglian raised the corners of her mouth in satisfaction, and then she gently threw the hairpin in her hand into Phoenix's arms and said:

"In order to prevent you from forgetting the agreement with me after returning to the Ark, I will give you this hairpin. Don't forget that you have to get my hat back for me."

Now she is a free and easy person, and naturally she will not act like a shy little girl. After seeing Phoenix holding the hairpin firmly in his palm, Honglian waved her hand, turned around and left in the opposite direction.

"Well, see you later, everyone."

"Uh...see you next time."

The man, secretly feeling a little delighted, carefully put the hairpin into the lining of his combat uniform. Then he raised his head and immediately saw Marian and Yinhua staring at him motionlessly.

"..."

The atmosphere was a little awkward.

"Um... aren't you going to say goodbye to me?"

Yinhua: “…Heh.”

Marianne: “…Humph.”

Chapter 113: A Bunch of Frenchmen

Life in the Ark Military Department has always been very comfortable.

At least in Sergeant Mullens' opinion, it would be more satisfying to stay in the military for ten years and gain experience than to become a stupid commander.

As long as he can endure the abuse of the old soldiers in the first four or five years, it should be his turn to abuse the new recruits in the next ten or twenty years, right?

Is it worth going to the ground to die?

Sitting on the edge of the turret, Mullens scolded a new recruit under his command and felt that his life was sublimated by this scolding.

"Damn it, you're an idiot for not taking advantage of the opportunity."

"But...but he is the commander."

The scolded recruit stammered and refuted his superior's rebuke, his young face full of frustration and resentment.

That man is the commander!

How dare he, a mere new recruit, ask the commander for tolls?

This idiot whose brain was stuck in the door was clearly looking for a reason to disgust him again!