Chapter 111: Like

“Eh?”

Yukina was taken aback.

“If the person who appeared before you was just Yanase Naoko, would you fall in love with her?”

“Th-That kind of thing… of course I’d still… love her…”

Yukina didn’t know why Ephnel suddenly asked that.

She stammered for a moment, momentarily at a loss for how to answer.

Indeed, the most direct reason she fell in love with Ephnel was that first encounter.

If not for that, Ephnel wouldn’t have been much more special to her than any other Agent.

In that case… what would have become of her and Yanase Naoko?

Yukina had never imagined it.

Ephnel was quite fond of the fleeting look of helplessness on Yukina’s face and smiled.

“Alright, it’s about time. Our mission here is over. Let’s go back to the rendezvous point.”

…

(‘If I wasn’t Ephnel, would you still love me?’)

‘Why did Naoko suddenly ask such a question…’

Sitting in the borrowed military vehicle, Yukina leaned tightly against Ephnel, her small hand holding Ephnel’s arm.

In her mind, Ephnel’s words kept replaying.

At that time, Yukina had indeed hesitated.

Of course, of course she loved her.

But what kind of love was it?

She felt Ephnel’s body heat from her palm, and Yukina lowered her gaze.

As a result, Yukina and Naoko were now together.

This was undoubtedly the love of “romance.”

But Yukina’s love for Ephnel originated from that first encounter.

Without that opportunity, Yukina herself didn’t know if she would have fallen in love with Ephnel.

On the other hand, what kind of love did Yukina have for “Yanase Naoko”?

It seemed to be familial love.

But it also seemed a bit different.

That day at the sports stadium, Yukina herself was a little confused about her own feelings.

But, thinking about it from another angle, perhaps it was destined for Yukina to fall in love with Ephnel.

If Yanase Naoko wasn’t Ephnel, then on that day, she might not have noticed her danger, might not have appeared before her.

Perhaps another Agent would have saved Yukina, or perhaps Yukina would have already died.

All sorts of possibilities existed.

But Yanase Naoko was Ephnel, so the only outcome left was that Yukina would fall in love with Ephnel.

And perhaps, the reason Yukina fell in love with Ephnel was because she felt something from her.

That sense of security that was hard to put into words couldn’t be faked.

How much of these subtle details came from the tacit understanding and trust between her and Yanase Naoko? She herself didn’t know.

“Yukina, you should cancel your Sync first. If you stay in a deep Sync state, you’ll run out of energy soon.”

Ephnel’s voice came from her side, interrupting Yukina’s thoughts.

Ephnel had already canceled her Sync; only Yukina was still in her banished form.

As an Agent, controlling the Power of Order was a crucial part of training.

Only by maintaining an optimal state at all times could one better exert their combat capabilities.

“Mmm…”

Yukina followed Ephnel’s advice and canceled her Sync state.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“No…”

Yukina shook her head.

Her mind was still preoccupied with “love” or “not love,” and she was a bit absent-minded.

“Want some? To replenish some energy.”

Ephnel handed Yukina a piece of bread, which she had taken from somewhere.

“Although it tastes very ordinary, it can fill your stomach. You didn’t eat much earlier, did you?”

Dinner was only half-finished when Ephnel received the mission.

Naturally, Yukina hadn’t eaten much either.

Yukina took the bread from Ephnel’s hand and took a small bite.

“Onee-chan…”

Finally unable to hold back, Yukina asked in a low voice.

“What did you mean by that question you asked me just now?”

“Hmm? Which question are you talking about?”

“The one about… whether I would still love you if you weren’t Ephnel…”

“Oh, that…”

Ephnel gently swallowed the bread, looked at the apprehensive Yukina, and paused.

“Maybe I just wanted to hear you say ‘I love you’.”

“Eh?”

She had imagined a whole host of answers, but Yukina was stunned by Ephnel’s casual remark.

“Is… is it that simple?”

“Yeah!”

Ephnel smiled.

When she asked that question, it was probably just a whim, or perhaps she was just yearning for the day she could say goodbye to the identity of Ephnel, or maybe she just wanted to hear Yukina say “I love you.”

What was it really? Actually, Ephnel herself wasn’t very clear.

However, Ephnel really liked the expression on Yukina’s face when she was troubled by her affairs.

“B-But… are you an idiot, Onee-chan!?…”

“You shouldn’t talk to your older sister like that.”

“Mmph!?”

Yukina seemed to have more to say, but Ephnel silenced her with a small piece of bread.

And Yukina, not to be outdone, took the bread, along with Ephnel’s fingers, into her mouth in one go, pouncing on her with a playful ferocity, and also tore off a piece of the bread she had bitten and stuffed it into Ephnel’s mouth.

Ephnel and Yukina started a game of stuffing bread into each other’s mouths, while the soldiers escorting them in the front row looked at each other in bewilderment.

These two young girls… if they hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, they would never have guessed that they were the Agents who had just helped them repel the Erosion disaster.

…

“This is Ephnel.”

After borrowing a car to leave the area of the Erosion disaster, Ephnel sent a communication request to Erincia.

Outside the area permeated by the Erosion, the interference with communication signals was greatly reduced.

So, soon, a jumble of chaotic sounds came through the earpiece, and then the sound gradually became clear.

Ephnel connected to Fushihara Ayaka through Erincia, requesting a helicopter while also reporting on the combat mission and the suspicious man.

“You’re saying that this was all man-made? Is that so…”

On the other end of the earpiece, Fushihara Ayaka fell into a brief silence.

She had both anticipated and been surprised by what had happened on Ephnel’s side.

“This matter is not that simple, Ayaka. The same kind of people have probably appeared on Canary and Ayse’s side as well. In my opinion, these people are probably just tools used to stall for time. We still can’t guess what will happen in the end.”

“Ephnel, keep a close watch on that guy. I’ll send people over soon.”

“Mmm.”

With that, she cut off the communication, and it switched back to Erincia’s side.

“Senpai.”

Erincia’s voice was as flat as ever.

Ephnel paused for a moment and asked, “Erincia, have you heard from Canary and Ayse?”

“Not yet.”

“I see…”

Ephnel trusted in Canary and Ayse’s abilities, but this mission was different from the past, and Ephnel couldn’t predict the outcome.

“Wait for me to get there.”

With a sigh, Ephnel looked out the car window.

In the distance, there was a small black dot the size of a sesame seed, which was the helicopter heading this way.

…

Not long after, Ephnel and Yukina returned to the rendezvous point, bringing with them the tightly bound man.

By this time, the man had woken up, but he remained silent as before.

When Ephnel arrived, Fushihara Ayaka was also there.

“Why did you come in person?”

“I need to handle this matter with caution.”

Fushihara Ayaka quickly glanced over and saw the man behind Ephnel.

“Is that him?”

“That’s right.”

“Bring him over.”

Fushihara Ayaka ordered her subordinates to drag the man to the side.

Seeing this, Ephnel asked, “Are you going to interrogate him here?”

“That’s why I came here.”

Just then, a burst of static suddenly came from the earpiece.

“This is Ayse… can you hear me?”

“This is Ephnel. Ayse, are you two not injured?”

“We… senpai, we’ll talk about that later. I have something very important to report right now!”

“Go ahead.”

“We’ve already figured out the ‘Apostles” plan! We urgently need backup!”

…