Felix quickly approached the chair and sat down, pressing the button on the communicator.
As the encrypted communication channel was entered, the call was directed to the Eternal.
After a brief moment of silence, the communication was connected.
Andrew's face appeared on the screen.
Andrew smiled at Felix and, as if understanding the situation, transferred the call to Lacus.
Lacus's face appeared on the communication screen.
Seeing his lover's face, Felix showed a happy smile.
Lacus responded to Felix with an equally bright smile.
"Lacus, how are things on your end?"
After a long moment of eye contact, Felix asked Lacus with concern.
Lacus replied with a smile.
"I'm doing quite well. How about you?"
"I'm doing well too."
Nodding, Felix responded in a gentle voice.
Then, Felix changed the subject.
"How did the conversation with Chairman Zala go?"
"The conversation went alright," Lacus replied calmly, but Felix noticed a faint trace of worry on her face.
After a moment of thought, Felix asked her.
"Did Chairman Zala make some unreasonable demands?"
Looking at Felix, Lacus nodded without hiding anything and said.
"He did make some rather excessive demands!"
As she replied, Lacus explained the details of the demands to Felix. After hearing them, Felix frowned and thought to himself.
'These demands are completely impossible to fulfill!'
Snapping back to reality, Felix asked.
"What do you plan to do?"
Lacus thought for a moment before answering.
"I intend to try and handle this matter first, but we must not abandon our original plan."
Taking a deep breath, Lacus continued, her voice growing more serious.
"I'll need to rely on you a lot for these matters."
Smiling and nodding, Felix replied in a reassuring voice.
"No problem, you can leave these matters to me."
Hearing his response, Lacus felt relieved, and the worry on her face gradually faded.
Her deep, clear eyes gazed at Felix, and the affection in them unconsciously shone through. The tenderness in her expression softened her features even more.
Beneath that gentle expression, a wave of longing emerged, and Lacus spoke with a hint of coquettishness.
"Felix, I miss you."
Hearing Lacus's words of longing, Felix's own suppressed feelings of yearning surfaced. His eyes filled with affection, and his voice was full of longing as he replied.
"I miss you too, Lacus."
As his words of longing reached Lacus's ears, she pouted slightly, her voice still carrying that coquettish tone.
"Felix, when will we be able to see each other again?"
Sensing the anticipation in her words, Felix comforted her gently.
"The time for us to meet will come soon."
His voice grew even softer as he continued.
"Lacus, please be patient a little longer."
Comforted, Lacus gave a slight nod to Felix, her entire demeanor as docile as an obedient kitten.
This sight caught Felix's eye, and gazing at Lacus's soft pink hair, he felt the urge to reach out and ruffle it.
Unfortunately, the distance between them did not permit such an action.
Half an hour later,
Felix and Lacus ended their communication.
After the call, Felix rose and headed toward his bed.
Meanwhile, aboard the Eternal,
"Miss Clyne, we have made contact with the doves of the Earth Alliance."
Andrew, seeing that Lacus had finished her call with Felix, took the opportunity to report.
Upon hearing the report, Lacus quickly adjusted her posture, sitting upright and facing forward, her tone turning more serious as she said,
"Patch the communication through!"
With those brief words spoken, Andrew followed Lacus's command and transferred the call.
Lacus looked at the middle-aged woman on the screen and greeted her with respect.
"Ms. Zola, hello!"
"Miss Clyne, hello!"
Zola's greeting then echoed through the speaker.
Lacus gave a slight nod and got straight to the point.
"Ms. Zola, I recently made contact with PLANT's current Chairman Zala, and we engaged in discussions for some time."
Hearing this, Zola's eyes lit up, and she asked with anticipation,
"How did the negotiations go?"
Seeing Zola's hopeful expression, Lacus felt a moment of inner conflict. After considering how to phrase it, she explained Patrick's demands to Zola.
As the demands reached her ears, the anticipation in Zola's eyes instantly faded, and her previously smooth brow furrowed.
A silence fell between them over the communication line.
After a long pause, Zola's voice grew heavy.
"Miss Clyne, these demands are presented entirely from the stance of a victorious nation. While we desire to end the war, we will never accept concluding it under the conditions of a defeated power."
Here, Zola paused briefly before shifting her tone.
"Moreover, the public would not support these demands."
Though she had anticipated this outcome, hearing it spoken aloud still brought a trace of sorrow to Lacus's expression.
The sorrow flashed across her face briefly before Lacus composed herself and replied calmly,
"I understand."
Listening to Lacus's response, Zola continued,
"Miss Clyne, we can accept ending the war with no clear outcome for either side, but we cannot accept ending it as a defeated nation.
I hope you understand!"
Nodding, Lacus responded from the heart,
"I do."
With that reply, Zola unilaterally ended the communication.
After the conversation concluded, Andrew turned to Lacus, his voice tinged with gloom, and asked,
"Miss Clyne, should we inform Felix of this outcome?"
Hearing the question, Lacus glanced at Andrew and shook her head.
"Someone as astute as Felix has surely already guessed the result, so there's no need to tell him."
Andrew nodded in agreement and replied,
"Understood."
With that, he left Lacus undisturbed.
Lacus remained seated in her chair, glanced down at her communicator, and began pressing buttons.
Once the final digit was entered, the call went through.
The bridge's main screen lit up!
The display split into multiple sections, simultaneously showing the faces of Captain Murrue, Cagalli, Ro, and others.
Among them, Cagalli's clear voice rang out first.
"Lacus, did you need something from us?"
Glancing at Cagalli, Lacus nodded to everyone while speaking.
"I've held separate discussions with PLANT's current Chairman and the doves within the Earth Alliance."
Murrue asked with hopeful anticipation.
"What were the results?"