Story Reader / Event Story / Summer Memoir / Story
Having fallen asleep to the sunset, you are woken by the clear moonlight outside. Pushing open the door, you see the stars glisten in the sky, painting the night in a cold silver.
The ocean breeze has dissipated any hint of drowsiness in you. Awake, you decide to take a walk to the shimmering shore in this comfortable weather.
You walk along the foamy traces left by the waves, not realizing how far you have traveled. By the time you turn around, all the lights are far behind you.
Under the milky moonlight stands a familiar figure.
Good evening, Commandant.
The firefly in his hand glows gently as if breathing, calling out to its companions in the night.
It's not the first time we've met at night.
You two exchange a smile, looking up at the starry sky at the same time.
Want to take a walk together? I... want to talk to you.
He walks toward you, standing closer than usual.
The two of you cast long shadows under the clear moonlight, and you are reminded of the night you followed Noan's shadow into the forest.
Yeah. It feels like not that long ago when I came back with you.
He looks back at you with a smile as if asking why you would think that.
Many people were wary of Noan's connections with the Ascendants when he first arrived on Babylonia. Seeing him as a dangerous figure, many were reluctant to share a training room with him.
That's no longer a problem—well, not as much of a problem. It's hard to change everyone's opinion, but I can start with the little things.
The instructor in the training room even gave me a small bag of cookies not long ago when Dark Aries was deployed outside Babylonia.
I'm sorry... I really didn't know he was allergic to sesame. Thankfully, the symptoms weren't severe.
I see.
Because of what happened in the training room? Well... without that, Commandant Simon wouldn't have been able to get me the role of a librarian.
I'd definitely pick the library if I had to choose between it and the training room.
He laughs at your guess, offering neither confirmation nor denial.
You did not know what tests Noan was participating in until the day you visited the Science Council to fetch Lee's test results...
And you saw the young man with a dismantled frame sitting amidst his limbs and parts.
Well... That was the condition for my stay on Babylonia, and I intended to fulfill my end of the bargain. Besides, I was quite curious as well.
What did Lithos do to grant me the powers of Ascendants when I'm neither an Ascendant nor a Transcendant?
Since my M.I.N.D. is now verified stable, it means those tests were safe. They also explained why the tests were necessary.
Hearing you, Noan steps a little bit closer without a word.
He reaches out and gently pinches your cheek.
He spreads out his hands with a smile.
Thinking back, you remember a troubled Simon asking you how he could foster a sense of camaraderie in his squad like Gray Raven after that incident with Kurono.
Like all commandants, Simon has learned a lot about how a commandant should manage a squad and develop combat strategies in F.O.S.
In theory, a squad should function normally as long as the relationship between the "commandant" and the "squad members" is maintained.
But after several unanticipated squad reforms... Simon has begun trying to explore approaches beyond a commandant's duties.
To help come up with a more comprehensive plan, you would occasionally consult Simon and Noan, whom you know relatively well.
In doing so, you have gradually become closer to Noan while aiding Dark Aries.
After the escape from the library, the two of you have silently reached some sort of agreement.
Noan would help you avoid socializing and troublesome events whenever you ask.
If he could not, he would stay with you and help you with the tedious reports, plan approvals, and even video conferences where he would stand in for you using a disguise program.
Because you were giving lectures and having online meetings in the preparation room at the same time?
They didn't ask much anyway. I was mostly reading the reports we prepared through a voice changer.
I'd love to, but all I can do right now is prescribe you the wrong medicine so you can feign illness.
I've collected a lot of video materials. I'll be ready for the first aid certification exam after I go through them and practice for a bit.
Noan slows down as he says that.
We've been walking along the shore for a while now. Do you want to sit down and take a break?
You two sit on the beach against the soft hums of the waves, gazing at the starry sky until the moon eventually hides behind the clouds.
It's been a while since I last saw you so relaxed... You're not on a mission, and you're not in a hurry to leave.
...The last time was on Babylonia, right?
For some reason, you could not sleep the night before Dark Aries was dispatched to Constellia. You decided to walk around the square, but you somehow ended up near the library.
This is not the first time you meet at night, just as Noan said.
At first, you were just chatting about recent events—Liv's recovery, the Purifying Force's reform, your latest missions...
Before you knew it, you started sharing everything that was troubling you.
The endless defectors, the changes in the Hetero Zone, the missing people, the surveillance on Lucia, and Gray Raven's delayed reunion...
Noan was an excellent listener.
He never offered shallow comfort, proposed unattainable plans, or questioned whether your sadness stemmed from something trivial.
Your conversation lasted until the sky began to turn bright. You were finally sleepy, but you had a strategy meeting in two hours before being dispatched to the surface immediately afterward.
Hearing the regrets in your tone, Noan picked up an iced coffee from the bar and gently touched your cheek with it.
You said you wouldn't be able to sleep even if you went back.
Just hang in there. You'll be on a transport craft soon. You can sleep then.
You took the coffee and said goodbye to him. Neither of you was aware of the storm that would follow.
I tried to look for you after I heard you were missing, but Dark Aries was still more or less grounded. I couldn't leave.
Those who would know what happened were the ones who were most wary of me... I didn't know why, but I was sure there was a reason for it.
Then you came back... and I found out the real reason from you.
He sighs deeply and chuckles wryly.
Yeah. Sorry about that.
Noan quietly responds before reaching for your neck where a wound once was, as if checking if it has fully healed.
Noan is such a gentle person to most people that no one believes he would get angry for anything. Many thought that monitoring him was unnecessary.
That is why his reckless action surprised so many, including Dark Aries.
But I knew he would return, and I couldn't let him get away this time.
Noan sounds calm as if talking about another standard mission.
I told him the essential parts. Commandant Simon wouldn't talk to me about you or unnecessary things either.
I could only vaguely tell where his boundaries lied. It was only going to make my life harder if he thought it was dangerous.
Some people shouldn't be left alive. If he was coming back regardless, it'd be faster if I did it myself, especially when it involved someone I care about.
He withdraws his hand that was extended to confirm the wound.
I promise you I'll do that next time...
...Okay.
The moonlight begins to fade, and the sky gradually darkens—dawn is coming.
