Hearing this, a look of surprise appeared on Cagalli's face as she turned to Athrun, voicing her confusion.
"Isn't she your fiancée?"
Athrun's mind flashed back to his father's words and what Lacus had said back then. A bitter smile crossed his face as he shook his head.
"She was. My ex-fiancée."
The words "ex-fiancée" echoed in Cagalli's ears, stirring a flicker of joy she hadn't even realized she felt. She looked calmly at Athrun and spoke evenly.
"I see."
With that, her gaze shifted to Felix and Lacus ahead.
Meanwhile,
With Felix and Lacus,
"Felix, I have another favor to ask of you."
"Go ahead."
Felix gave a faint smile as he looked at Lacus.
Hearing this, Lacus voiced her request.
"Although we managed to bring Gai Murakumo and Elijah out with us, we don't have any corresponding MS for them to use."
At this, Felix immediately understood. He looked calmly at Lacus and spoke.
"You want me to prepare some MS for you?"
"Yes."
Lacus nodded in acknowledgment, then fixed her large, shimmering eyes on Felix, quietly awaiting his response.
Seeing those watery eyes, Felix's smile softened. He turned to Heine, who, noticing Felix's gaze, understood at once.
"Understood!"
Replying to Felix, Heine then contacted the Athena via communicator.
A dozen seconds later, Heine reported back to Felix.
"Captain, the Blue Astray stored in our battleship and one CGUE Mobile Suit will be brought over shortly."
"Mm." Felix nodded in reply, then turned his gaze back to Lacus, a gentle smile playing on his lips as he continued. "The MS you need will be delivered soon."
Hearing this, a hint of embarrassment crossed Lacus's face. She lowered her head, staring at her toes, and spoke in a small, somewhat guilty voice.
"Could I possibly have a few more?"
"Lacus, aren't you pushing it a bit too far?"
Hearing Lacus ask for even more MS, Felix was both amused and exasperated by her audacity. He feigned anger as he questioned her.
Listening to the displeasure in Felix's tone, Lacus felt even more embarrassed. She lowered her head further and explained in an even softer voice.
"I did consider bringing some MS with us, but ever since the Freedom was stolen, security at the factories and hangars has tightened significantly, making it impossible for us to get our hands on any. In the end, all we managed was to bring out the Eternal."
She trailed off, falling silent.
Watching Lacus's subdued demeanor, Felix could only let out a quiet sigh.
"Sigh..."
With a sigh, Felix handed Lacus a slip of paper.
Lac
"Not all my people are in PLANT or the ZAFT Forces."
"I see!"
Lacus understood immediately upon hearing this, feeling even greater admiration for Felix while privately realizing her own efforts paled in comparison to his work.
A trace of apology surfaced on her face as she spoke remorsefully.
"I'm sorry, I've been holding you back."
"You really should reflect on that."
Felix smiled, pretending to be serious.
After saying this, Felix dropped his feigned expression and spoke with genuine seriousness.
"Lacus, there's something I need to ask of you."
Hearing this, Lacus responded earnestly.
"Please go ahead!"
Looking at her, Felix raised his arm and placed a hand on Lacus' shoulder, giving solemn instructions.
"Since I'm currently in ZAFT, I can't directly lead those outside PLANT and ZAFT. I plan to entrust these people to your leadership.
I hope you can guide them to intervene in the war when necessary and do what must be done."
Hearing this entrustment, Lacus felt a wave of happiness from being trusted. Looking at Felix, she nodded firmly and replied with grave seriousness.
"Please rest assured, I will lead them well."
Satisfied with her response, Felix checked the time and said to Lacus,
"It's getting late, I should head back now. We'll talk more another time."
Hearing they were parting, Lacus unconsciously felt disappointment and reluctance welling up inside her. These emotions gradually spread across her face and finally emerged in her voice.
"Are you leaving already?"
'This girl's emotions seem off!'
Hearing the disappointment and reluctance in Lacus' voice, Felix murmured inwardly. After brief consideration, he reached a surprising conclusion.
'Could she have feelings for me?'
Beneath this conclusion, Felix wondered in astonishment.
'When did this happen?'
Meanwhile, Cagalli understood the reluctance and disappointment in Lacus' voice. Glancing at Lacus and then at her nominal brother, she said to him,
"Brother, could you stay a bit longer? There's something I'd like to discuss with you."
"What do you want to talk about?"
Felix looked at Cagalli with a slight frown. Cagalli stepped forward, linking arms with Felix as she smiled and said,
"Just ordinary conversation to strengthen our sibling bond!"
Hearing this, Felix thought about the troublesome matters awaiting in Orb later. He glanced at his nominal sister and remarked,
"I'd be thankful if you could just avoid causing me trouble."
"What do you mean by that!"
Cagalli showed clear displeasure on her face as she responded.
Seeing Cagalli's unhappy expression, Felix flicked her forehead while recounting her illustrious achievements: "Joining resistance fighters in the North African desert, taking Earth Alliance Forces battleships into Orb's territorial waters without permission - aren't these incidents enough to make anyone's blood pressure spike?"
Hearing these glorious achievements of hers being recounted, Cagalli's expression instantly turned awkward. She gave an embarrassed laugh and immediately released Felix's arm.
"Forget it, I'm done talking with you."
Muttering in frustration, Cagalli strode away without looking back.
Watching his sister leave, Felix turned to Lacus. Recalling the conclusion he had just drawn, he spoke to her.
"Lacus."
"I'm here!"
Hearing this, Lacus looked up at Felix, responding with a gentle smile and a soft voice.
Seeing the tender smile on her face, Felix took a deep breath and said,
"Do you like me?"
"Wha—!!! (•'╻'•)꒳ᵒ꒳ᵎᵎᵎ"
The crowd behind them gasped in shock at Felix's blunt and direct question, their voices filled with astonishment.
Cagalli, who had only taken a couple of steps away, felt both amused and exasperated upon hearing her brother's straightforward, emotionless query.
'Brother! No one asks that way!'