The sky grew darker as the mission continued, and as night fell, the sound of helicopters approached the base. When the vehicles landed, Takemichi was the first to disembark, with quick, determined steps toward the gates.

All around, the walls of the base were brightly lit by security spotlights, casting long shadows on the surrounding terrain and creating an intense, watchful atmosphere. The strategically positioned spotlights illuminated every corner of the perimeter, ensuring that nothing went unnoticed.

“Captain!” the scientists said, saluting.

“I want a report!” Takemichi ordered.

“All the recruits managed to master the new form. Among them, Lena was the only one who managed to fly!” Fernanda informed.

“So she can really... Who is fighting now?” Takemichi exclaimed, intrigued.

— The last one is your daughter, but she has already mastered the suit, Captain — Fernanda replied, looking back at the monitor screen.

— So why are you fighting? — he asked, watching the screen.

— It's just that your daughter's ghoul is more brutal. She's trying to control the strength of her tentacles! — Fernanda explained.

— Just a little more! — Kay instructed Mira from the training field. — This is an extension of your body. Imagine that you are holding an egg and apply enough force so as not to break it!

— That's not the best comparison for this situation — Mira replied, as one of the tentacles projected towards the ground.

— You're right, Mira. Try to stop the attack before it hits the ground. Can you do that? — Kay encouraged.

— Yes! — Mira replied, determined.

Mira's tentacle descended towards the ground, but stopped before touching it.

— That's it! Now repeat it several times and gradually increase the speed! — Kay instructed.

“I’ll try!” said Mira.

One of the tentacles lifted her up, while the other three attacked the ground and stopped before hitting it. She repeated the movement several times, increasing the speed with each execution, until the air around her began to be affected by the force of the blows.

“That’s enough!” ordered Kay.

Mira stopped her attacks, and within seconds, the air returned to normal.

“Mira, catch it!” Kay said, throwing an orange into the air.

One of Mira’s tentacles caught it, and she returned it to Kay.

“Why did you do that?” Mira asked, approaching him.

“It’s intact! Your training is over!” Kay declared.

Mira’s tentacles retracted, and the suit returned to normal.

“I did it! I did it!” Mira said, hugging Kay.

He hugged her back.

“Congratulations!” Kay said, smiling.

“And my reward?” Mira asked, looking at him with a glint of expectation.

Kay kissed her, and she smiled.

“And mine?” he teased.

“Wouldn’t it be the same?” she asked, laughing.

“It’s different!” Kay insisted.

Mira kissed him again.

“I told you it was different!” Kay said, blushing.

At that moment, Mira pushed him aside, and Takemichi's fist passed through them, almost hitting Kay.

"Stop interrupting our moment!" Kay complained, irritated.

"You bastard! What do you think you're doing to my daughter in front of everyone?!" Takemichi shouted, furious.

"I asked you to, Dad! It was to motivate me!" Mira explained, trying to contain her laughter and embarrassment.

"You're staining my daughter's purity, you damned worm! I'm going to kill you!" Takemichi said, advancing threateningly.

"It's a good time, Mira has already finished training. Now it's your turn, captain!" Kay taunted, getting up from the ground.

"Don't provoke him, Kay!" Mira warned, distressed.

"Are you trying to die, brat?" Takemichi growled.

"That's not it!" Since the captains' compatibility is greater than that of the soldiers, the ghoul will come out easily, it will just be harder to control, since you haven't done the meditation yet! — Kay explained, smiling nervously.

— You didn't even notice him coming, if you fight now you'll get hurt! — Mira warned.

— I think they still have coffee... I'll have some and I'll be right back! Come with me, Mira! — Kay said, moving away.

— But... — Mira said, worried.

— Let's just train, you can go! — Takemichi replied, giving Kay a look that promised anything but friendly training.

"He's definitely lying!" Mira thought, worried as she followed Kay.

— I'm just sleepy, and that punch would hurt me, but it wouldn't kill me. Your father isn't foolish enough to kill a soldier; it's just training! — Kay said, trying to reassure her.

— Come back in one piece, both of you! — Mira replied.

— Without a scratch! — Kay assured, smiling.

— What a kiss you gave, huh? The camera captured everything! — Fernanda said, laughing.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

— The camera! I forgot about that! — Kay exclaimed, surprised.

— Oh, no, delete it! — Mira asked, embarrassed.

— We'll delete it later. We'll use the recording as a source of study, so it won't leave the base! — Fernanda replied.

— No! Depending on Takemichi's result, it might be advantageous for the other squads to have access to it too! — Kay commented, pouring herself a cup of cold coffee.

— I agree, but it's a hard thing to explain... You'd be very busy! — Fernanda observed.

— Put this on the captain and the other leaders. I have my own training to overcome! — Kay replied, drinking her coffee. — It's cold!

— What training? You already have control over your ghoul! — Mira said.

— He's one of the special ones who can fly, but he's still missing body parts. By absorbing more ghouls, he'll be able to fly! — Kay explained.

— Why do the cool things always end up with you? — Fernanda exclaimed.

— I don't know. I'm going to help the captain — Kay replied, leaving.

— Will he be okay? — Fernanda asked, worried.

— He promised, don't worry! — Mira said.

Kay returned to meet the captain.

— I thought he was going to run away! — Takemichi teased.

— I don't care who's the strongest. The important thing is to cleanse this world of ghouls. And I already said: if we have to cooperate, I'll cooperate! — Kay replied.

— That's not what I'm saying! — Takemichi said, irritated.

Kay released his killing intent.

— Anyway, now I'm going to kill you! — Kay said, defiant.

The captain remained still, staring at him. His tentacles appeared.

— What did you say, brat? — Takemichi exclaimed.

— Impressive. This training will no longer be necessary. Do the first one, and if you succeed, you'll have control of the ghoul! — Kay explained.

— Aren't you going to fight me? — Takemichi asked.

— Your ghoul is scared; he already knows that you are stronger and decided to follow your order. Wings were not made for fighting, so facing you here would be a waste of energy! — Kay said.

— And how do I control that? — Takemichi asked.

— Intent. If you want to fly, just fly. If you want to stay in place, just stay. The ghoul responded to my killing intent. Next time, you will have to make the wings appear on your own. So come to an agreement with your ghoul; use the first training! — Kay instructed.

Kay withdrew. Takemichi's wings retracted, and the suit returned to normal.

"Wings... that might be useful!" Takemichi thought.

Kay approached Mira.

— I came back without a scratch! — Kay said.

— Is it over? — Mira exclaimed.

— Maybe it's the time he's been using the suit; he doesn't need to force a connection now, he just needs to make the ghoul understand. If he meditates, he can do it! — Kay explained.

“That’s it! Impressive as always, Captain!” — Fernanda said.

“I thought it was something more complicated,” Takemichi commented.

At that moment, Kay received a call.

“We’re going ahead!” — Kay said, holding Mira’s hand.

“Excuse me!” — Mira said, leaving with him.

Kay answered the call.

“Hi, Emilia!” — he said.

“Hi, brother! How was your day?” — Emilia asked, laughing.

“Do you still call me brother? Were you thinking about the festival?!” — Kay said.

“Yes! I can’t get it out of my head; I had a lot of fun!” — Emilia replied happily.

“I had fun too! We should go out more often!” — Kay said.

“Speaking of which, brother, the royal family is going to visit Mineford next week. That will give you time to get ahead on your work! I think I’ll go too, then we can meet there!” — Emilia said.

— How cute! — Mira whispered to Kay.

— Is anyone there? — Emilia exclaimed.

— Yes, it’s Mira! I told you about her! — Kay said.

— Your girlfriend? We saw each other at the awards ceremony, but we didn’t get to talk. I’m Princess Emilia, but you can just call me Emilia! — she said.

— Did you tell her about me? — Mira exclaimed.

— When we were talking at the castle, before the festival! She wanted to meet you! — Kay explained.

— That’s right! I tried to talk to you there, but you were already talking to my brother in the garden, so I missed the opportunity! — Emilia said.

— She’s referring to the prince! — Kay added.

— I know, I get it! — Mira said. — Like Kay said, I’m Mira, his girlfriend. Kay tells me a lot about you, and I want to meet you in person too. Who knows, maybe we’ll become friends? — Mira said.

— Yes! I’m going with my family next week. We can talk there; I have so much to ask you! — Emilia replied excitedly.

— I would like that too! — Mira said, smiling.

"There is hostility in those words of hers... I wonder if she's jealous?" thought Kay.

"What's wrong?" asked Mira.

"It's nothing. Today was a busy day... Can we talk tomorrow, Emy?" asked Kay.

"Emy?" thought Mira.

"Sure, brother. Good night! I'm so happy to meet you, Mira. Good night!" said Emilia.

"Good night!" they both replied.

"Me too, Emilia!" said Mira.

"See you tomorrow!" said Emilia.

"See you!" said Kay and Mira.

Emilia hung up.

"Hey, Mira, did you by any chance..." began Kay.

"You didn't even finish what you were going to say!" interrupted Mira.

"She's just a child," said Kay.

"And how do you see her, Kay?" asked Mira.

— I saw her as a friend, then as a disciple, but now she's calling me brother. I've always wanted to have a little sister... so maybe it's not that bad! — Kay said.

— Captain, your daughter's heartbeat is abnormally high! — one of the scientists reported.

— That damn guy... Did he do something? — Takemichi exclaimed, watching them from afar.

— Little sister, huh? — Mira said.

— Anyway, we better go back to rest soon! — Kay suggested.

"The smell of her suit is getting stronger... better change the subject!" thought Kay, worried.

— And her nickname, where does it come from? — Mira asked.

— Emy?... — Kay began.

Mira punched him, throwing Kay into the air.

— Idiot! — Mira said, returning to the base.

— What a punch! That's my daughter! — Takemichi commented, proud.

— The level of her suit... — Fernanda thought, surprised.

Kay fell near them.

“If I hadn’t put my arm in, I would have broken some bones for sure!” Kay said, protecting the bottle of coffee she was carrying.

“Did you make her that angry? What did you say?” Fernanda exclaimed.

“For a moment, she reminded me of Rem,” Kay said, standing up.

“She’s her daughter, after all!” Fernanda replied.

“The strength in her hands was the same as I felt in her tentacles. Mira is a genius!” Kay said, impressed.

“Just as I thought, that’s her percentage when she was using her tentacles,” Fernanda said.

“The level hasn’t gone down!” one of the scientists informed her.

“That’s good, isn’t it?” Fernanda asked.

“Yes, but you better feed her suit well!” Kay recommended.

“Mira, go to my office!” Fernanda said over the radio.

“Understood!” Mira replied over the radio.

“I’m heading back to base!” Kay said.

— Hey, wait a minute! Your arm is a little crooked! — Fernanda commented, worried.

— That's right, it must have dislocated. — Kay replied.

— Doesn't it hurt? — Fernanda exclaimed.

— I've been hurt a lot more than that. It's nothing! — Kay said, trying to minimize the situation.

— I'm going to take him to the infirmary, we'll check it out. Put your things away! — Fernanda said, pulling Kay by the arm.

— Just put the bone back in place. — Kay murmured.

— Let's evaluate it and no complaints! — Fernanda ordered.

The scene changes to the infirmary.

— He suffered a fractured bone; it will take a few days to heal. — the nurse informed.

— Why did you bandage my arm? Hurting it like that is part of the training. — Kay complained.

— Training for who? Anyway, you can't train for a few days. Rest! — the nurse said.

— I'll let the captain know. And if you try to push yourself, we'll have to restrain you so you don't move. No funny business! — Fernanda warned, incisively.

— I get it! Thank you very much, nurse! Sorry for the trouble. — Kay said.

— It was nothing. Try not to move your arm, or it won't heal. — the nurse replied.

— Okay, excuse me. — Kay said, leaving the room.

After a shower, Kay returned to the room.

— How can I say... I didn't expect this. — Kratos said, surprised.

— Days of fighting and days of glory! It should be back to normal in two days, but the people here are too worried. — Kay said, lying down.

— No, man, this takes a month or more to heal! — Sky commented.

— Was it during training with Mira? They said on the radio that it would take time. — Slayer asked.

— Mira has talent, she's capable of surpassing even Rem. — Kay said, relaxing.

— Her mother? Is she that impressive? — Slayer exclaimed.

— I only managed to beat her once. — Kay commented.

— She's the captain's wife and a renowned soldier, that's no small feat! — Sky said.

— I need to sleep, good night! — Kay said, lying down on the bed.

— Aren't you going to have dinner? — Kratos asked.

— I already had a snack while Mira was training, you don't have to worry! — Kay replied.

— Good night! — Kratos said.

— Rem tested me by fighting. It was rare, but every time she faced me, I ended up with a few broken bones! Mira has her genes... I'm sure she'll be amazing! — Kay thought, falling asleep.

— He falls asleep too fast! — Sky commented.

— And it takes him a long time to wake up. As a soldier, he's amazing, but as a human, he's horrible! — Slayer said.

— Someone who lives to kill ghouls will only waste effort on that. The soldier who trained me said that we should spend energy when necessary, because we never know when we will need it! — said Kratos.

The scene changes to the next morning.