Shrouded Seascape

"What do you mean this has nothing to do with me? This has everything to do with me! It's my child!" Roy said with measured conviction as he stood before her again.

He had just wrapped up his final mission, but a complication had arisen during the process. His emotions were in a tailspin. Despite his frustration, however, Roy couldn't just pretend that nothing had happened and walk away.

This was his responsibility as a man; he had to take responsibility for what he had done regardless of the circumstances.

"I've already completed the request to be transferred out of active duty," Roy said, "If you're willing, I'll stay by your side and be the father this child needs."

Li Lu felt a sudden tug on her heart as she lifted her head to look at the man before her. This was the first time they had faced each other after putting away their personas and disguises.

Roy still looked like the same Roy she knew, but the fervor in his eyes was gone and had been replaced by a steady resolve.

"This isn't some pretend game. It's a lifetime commitment. Also, you're thinking too highly of yourself; I have high standards when it comes to a partner," Li Lu expressed her refusal in a gentle tone.

"How about we just give it three months?" Roy countered, "We'll try for three months and start with dating. If you decide that it's not working out after the three months, I'll leave."

Li Lu let out a sigh as she leaned back against her pillow. "This line of work isn't exactly the cleanest. You could find someone better."

Roy reached out to grab Li Lu's hands under the blanket, only to feel the sticky dampness of her earlier tears and snot.

Despite being a seasoned agent, Li Lu still felt a flicker of embarrassment under her current situation.

However, Roy merely pulled a few tissues from his pocket and carefully wiped away the lingering traces before he held her hands again.

"I know. I'm not exactly the cleanest myself."

Being from the same field, Li Lu could tell that Roy was speaking the truth. Besides, there was no room nor reason for lies of this kind.

She looked down at her cleaned hands, and then she glanced at her rounded belly. She lowered her gaze and said in a soft voice," Alright, let's try. I guess there's no harm trying."

A smile surfaced on Roy's visage as he stretched out his arms and gently pulled Li Lu into his embrace, savoring the stillness of the moment.

As veteran shadow agents who need to deal with people from all walks of life, both of them had already grown accustomed to the darker sides of humanity. Love, in its profoundest sense, was beyond their belief.

Instead, they had found something softer in each other—a faint sense of kinship and trust. The sensation was infinitely precious to them, who had grown accustomed to deception. The sensation was so precious that they both felt an intense urge to protect it.

After a long quiet embrace, they released each other. Roy then sat down next to Li Lu and started to cut the fruits for her.

As they began to converse in an attempt to know each other better, they maximized every conversation skill they had learned—managing the pace, seamlessly shifting the conversation, and reading each other's expressions and moods with precision.

Rather than holding a conversation, it was more precise to say that it was a sparring match of words. However, this didn't hinder their bonds from deepening.

As they talked, Roy's gaze drifted to a file resting on the bedside table. He picked it up and flipped through its pages thoughtfully.

Li Lu's smile faded as she asked, "How do you think the higher-ups will deal with that madwoman?"

Roy immediately understood her concern and snapped the file shut. "Don't worry. Her existence is too dangerous and risky. There's no way the organization would let her stick around. There are too many unpredictable variables.

"Once they have figured out her origins, HQ will definitely eliminate her," Roy concluded, a cold glint appearing in his eyes.

Although Anna had been captured, Roy couldn't get rid of the unease in him every time her unsettling abilities came to mind.

If the IMF hadn't noticed her and she was allowed to roam free to spread the so-called Fhtagn Covenant, the consequences would have been disastrous.

Li Lu picked up an orange slice and chewed on it. With a hint of hesitation, she asked, "Say, do you think that the God Fhtagn she keeps mentioning actually exists?" ℝ𝘈₦ƟᛒЕＳ

Memories of what he had glimpsed in Anna's dream flooded Roy's mind.

Then, he recalled the crushing presence that had blanketed the air during the latter's ritual. The word "impossible" teetered on his lips, but he couldn't quite bring himself to say it.

"Don't worry." Roy gently placed his hand over Li Lu's and gave the latter a reassuring pat. "So what if it does exist? IMF has contained or eliminated hundreds of powerful anomalies with all sorts of abilities. That would just be considered one more."

With that, Roy seemed to want to shift away from the heavy topics. He stood up and extended his right hand to Li Lu.

"It's not good to stay cooped up in a room all day. How about we take a walk? Honestly, this is my first time coming back to HQ."

Li Lu took his hand and slipped her feet into her slippers. As she walked toward the door, she said, "This isn't HQ. There's no way they'd build the HQ in Antarctica. This is SITE 24; HQ doesn't handle Anomaly containment."

After confirming their schedule at the front desk, the two headed for the hospital exit. Before they left, the nurse had made a special reminder that they were to keep their phones on standby at all times.

Outside the hospital, a massive, transparent glass dome curved over them. They looked up to see the perpetual night of Antarctica gleaming with green auroras, shifting like silken waves in the sky.

"SITE 24 is built in the middle of an uninhabited Antarctic zone," Li Lu explained as if giving a guided tour while gently cradling her abdomen. "There isn't a single trace of human life within a radius of five hundred miles. It's also minus seventy-one degrees here most of the year.

"Every anomaly contained in this site goes through a careful and meticulous selection process. Even if they ever break out of containment, they still have nowhere to go."

"Have you been here before? I thought shadows weren't supposed to know the existence of these sites?" Roy asked.

"My handler came to visit me yesterday and filled me in," Li Lu replied.

There was another implication in her words. Now that they knew of this site's location, if they ever had to go undercover again, they would have to accept a full memory wipe.

However, that hardly mattered anymore since their latest mission was likely their last.

Within the glass dome, the facility of SITE 24 resembled a small, bustling city. Crowds moved purposefully along the streets as people filed in and out of various rooms.

There was a distinct military air in the way they held themselves, straight-backed and purposeful. Amid this disciplined flurry, Roy and Li Lu stood out as the only ones at leisure.

"Actually, I'm wondering why they sent us here. Now that 315 has been contained, our mission should technically be over," Roy muttered as he watched the steady flow of people.

"It's not that simple. None of us can leave until 315 starts talking." A booming voice sounded from behind them.

The two turned around and spotted old Captain Roger. Clad in a black trench coat, he strode toward them.

Though they didn't know each other before this, the old caption's move had saved their lives. A sense of camaraderie sparked within them, and they both moved to greet him.

Glancing at the couple before him, Roger, as a man with years of experience, seemed to have understood something. However, he said nothing of it and continued with the conversation.

"From what I've heard, the mysterious research lab seemed to have decoded some parts of those sacrificial rituals tied to 315. Whatever they found has alerted those above."

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