Comforted by Luo’er’s gentle words, Tangmo finally managed to stop her tears. She affectionately clung to Luo’er’s arm as they headed to the dormitory, intermittently sniffling.
"Luo’er, what’s this?" Seeing the paper package in Luo’er’s hand, Tangmo couldn’t help but ask.
"This is something Baiyue’s father left for her!" Luo’er answered truthfully.
"Baiyue’s, father?" Tangmo found the term ’father’ unfamiliar.
"I’ll explain further when we get back. It’s too complicated to explain right now." Luo’er said.
"How wonderful, Baiyue has a father." Tangmo said sincerely.
"Are you feeling uncomfortable?" Luo’er asked.
"No," Tangmo shook her head and said, "I know my origin, so I don’t understand the concept of family very well. However, I think that if Luo’er treats me this well, he must be my family."
Luo’er was taken aback and didn’t know what to say. It was rare for Tangmo to speak so affectionately. For a moment, he was caught off guard, and his face reddened as he scratched the back of his head.
The two arrived at the dormitory area, which was primarily the Advance Team’s dormitory area, so barely anyone came by. At the end of the dormitory corridor was a common rest area with soft and exquisite sofas and chairs. Hu Daoke was deeply sunk into a sofa, napping. As there were rarely any visitors, Cheng Ziang also lay down on the sofa, dozing without regard for his appearance.
Among the three, Baiyue was the only one worried about Luo’er. She stood by the beautiful window, her brow furrowed, concerned that Luo’er would be reprimanded for going to the office.
Just as she was becoming anxious, she suddenly heard footsteps behind her. Turning around joyfully, she saw Luo’er and Tangmo affectionately leaning on each other, walking towards her.
She looked at the intimate pair, and for a moment, felt a twinge of jealousy. But thinking back to what happened on the lake bed that day, her jealousy miraculously vanished.
Hearing the approaching footsteps, Hu Daoke quickly got up from the sofa. Seeing Tangmo’s tear-stained face, he couldn’t help asking, "Eh, Sister Moumou, did you get scolded until you cried?"
"That’s not it!" Tangmo quickly countered, while looking up at Luo’er.
"Or did you get screamed at till you cried?" Hu Daoke suspiciously looked at Luo’er.
"Luo’er is not like that!" Before Luo’er could refute, Tangmo interjected to defend him.
"Speaking of which, was the instructor angry with you?" Hu Daoke looked at Luo’er and carefully asked.
"It’s okay, our mission this time was just for nothing." Luo’er reassured.
"Wait, nothing?" Hu Daoke scratched his head.
"We didn’t succeed, nor did we fail!" Luo’er explained.
"I don’t get it," Hu Daoke scratched his head then waved his hand to dismiss it, "Never mind, as long as it’s okay, what are we gonna do next?"
"We don’t have to do anything now, we can take a vacation!" Luo’er said.
"Oh, really?" Hearing the word ’vacation,’ Hu Daoke’s eyes immediately sparkled. He gleefully kicked Cheng Ziang and said, "Did you hear that? We can take a vacation!"
Awakened by the kick, Cheng Ziang grumpily swore, "Shut up!"
"But, what is that in your hand?" Hu Daoke noticed the large paper package in Luo’er’s hand, so he pointed at it and asked.
"This is something Baiyue’s father left for her." Luo’er’s statement surprised everyone present.
"You mean, Baiyue’s... father?" Hu Daoke pointed at the paper package and incredulously asked.
They had initially thought Baiyue was also the product of the Origin Project. However, they didn’t expect she indeed had a father. If their understanding was correct, considering this context, Baiyue and Luo’er would be among the few natives in the Haiya Academy.
"I haven’t mentioned this before because I wasn’t certain," Luo’er cleared his throat and pointed at Baiyue, "Baiyue’s father is Dr. Anatoli, one of the contributors to Russia’s Origin Project and a member of the United Nations Exclusion Zone Investigation Team. As for her mother, if I’m not mistaken, it should be Meila village headman’s daughter, Aniya. Thirty years ago, after she took part in the Otherworld War, she disappeared. It’s likely she met Dr. Anatoli around that time. Of course, the truths about these secrets might lie within this."
As Luo’er spoke, he shook the thick paper package in his hand, then handed it to Baiyue: "Here, Baiyue."
"Thank you." Luo’er had once promised to help her investigate her past, and now he had actually found some information. This made Baiyue extraordinarily excited, her voice trembling.
"It was my duty." Luo’er said, smiling.
"Baiyue, Baiyue, can you open it and show us?" Hu Daoke, all hyped up, approached Baiyue and eagerly asked.
Baiyue glanced at Luo’er, who showed no reaction. She looked around at everyone else then hesitantly nodded her head.
As she carefully unwrapped the parchment package, a small stack of photos slid out. Hu Daoke picked up one and excitedly shouted, "Wow, Baiyue was so cute when she was little!"
"Let me see!" Cheng Ziang suddenly appeared behind him and reached out for the photo.
"Weren’t you sleeping?" Hu Daoke scornfully asked. This guy, who obviously loved gossip, always feigned sophistication.
"I was sleeping soundly until some jerk kicked me awake!" Cheng Ziang complained, snatching the photo from Hu Daoke’s hand.
Luo’er and Tangmo crowded in for a share of the fun. These photos spanned from Baiyue’s first steps until she was around five or six years old. The photos were slightly wrinkled, indicating they had been held in hands frequently.
In the pictures, Baiyue was small, but unlike now, she resembled a little white bunny. Big eyes, silvery hair, and fluffy hanging ears. Every photo showed her being held by someone, clearly demonstrating the scientists at the academy adored this little girl.
"Ah, Luo’er!" Tangmo spotted a certain picture and picked it up with glee.
The photo was of Luo’er and Baiyue, with two adults standing behind them, one being a young Wang Xu, and the other a foreigner. Notably, this foreigner’s hair color was almost identical to Baiyue’s.
"If I’m not mistaken, this must be the last picture Dr. Anatoli took with Yue’er," Luo’er said after a glance, scratching his head.
"The last? Where did Yue’er’s father go?" Hu Daoke asked.
"He got arrested by the Russian Federal Security Bureau," Luo’er looked at Baiyue and sighed.
"Why?" Hu Daoke asked.
"It’s all because of Yue’er," Luo’er explained how the Academy had saved Baiyue from her mother’s body.
"So, because her father sought help from Haiya Academy, he was arrested by the Federal Security Bureau," said Hu Daoke.
"That’s all old news now." Luo’er sighed. Hearing their comments, Baiyue cast her eyes down.
"Is he still in jail?" Hu Daoke asked.
"Yes," Luo’er nodded, then comforted her, "Don’t worry, when it’s convenient, we’ll have our headquarters negotiate to get Dr. Anatoli released."
"Thank you!" On hearing this, Baiyue muttered softly.
"Luo’er, you looked like a girl in your childhood," Tangmo intently studied the photo, drooling.
Luo’er was nine years older than Baiyue, but they could pass for peers. Being a mixed-race elf, Luo’er’s growth cycle was much longer than a regular human. In the photo, he looked delicate and cute, inheriting his Wood Elf mother’s features. His short black hair made him look like a short-haired girl.
"It’s all Wang Xu’s fault for not knowing how to cut hair. The long hair is why I looked like a girl," Luo’er blushed at Tangmo’s comment and couldn’t help complaining.
"You still look like a girl," Hu Daoke murmured.
Spread out, the photos revealed an ancient black leather diary beneath. As Baiyue excitedly opened its cover, she found a line written in Russian, "To my dearest daughter, Diana."
"Diana?" Hu Daoke was startled by the name.
"Diana is the goddess of the moon and the hunt, nothing’s wrong with that." Cheng Ziang scoffed.
"You can read the diary yourself." Seeing Baiyue about to flip to the next page, Luo’er quickly advised.
"Yeah, yeah. You go through it yourself. We won’t interfere," Hu Daoke chimed in.
Baiyue nodded at the two, then closed the notebook, pressing it against her chest.
"But speaking of the mission, I really can’t make head or tail of it," Hu Daoke, holding his chest, complained.
"Ideally, this issue should be resolved through diplomatic channels. But our headquarters have preferred to take shortcuts, so they sent us," Luo’er explained.
"What does that mean?" Hu Daoke asked.
Luo’er then recounted their conversation from the office. It was then Hu Daoke had his aha moment, "So, Mu Lansi wants to propose a truce to the CIA by capturing us."
"What’s happening with that guy now?" Cheng Ziang asked.
"From what Wang Xu said, he’s apparently been put under house arrest by Mooer," Luo’er answered.
"So Mooer is aware of the domestic public opinion but is pretending otherwise. He hopes to get more intel from our headquarters by pretending to oppose collaboration!" Cheng Ziang analyzed.
"However, Wang Xu has warned him. His old trick probably won’t work anymore," Luo’er reckoned.
"So, does that mean Ronisca is now leaning towards the collaborative faction?," Cheng Ziang inquired.
"Probably. Mooer has control over the country’s military. He can easily sideline the King to establish a Shogunate system," Luo’er hypothesized.
"So, we did contribute in some way." Hu Daoke patted his chest proudly. Soon after, he sighed, "Only if I could get my darling gun back."