[Two Hours Later]
There was a large circular-shaped airport near the building, divided into several sections.
At that time, equipment and forces were being loaded onto large military aircraft, which numbered twenty in total.
Alongside these aircraft were several accompanying fighter jets, in addition to one uniquely distinctive aircraft.
This was the special aircraft of the secret unit—a stealth transport plane equipped with sufficient combat capabilities to be considered a powerful warplane.
This plane took off ahead of the rest of the army, heading toward the rendezvous point in a city located 60 kilometers away from the enemy's location. This was the closest city to the target.
Aside from Zeus and the rest of the unit members, the old man was also aboard the plane. Beatrix had informed Zeus that this old man personally leads the secret unit during such missions, while the official assault forces are commanded by the general commander of the special force.
"So what is the Green Lotus Organization?" Zeus asked Sorai, who was sitting beside him, in a low voice.
"It's a union-level specialized organization... they have hidden armies and an unknown amount of technology and unique power... and they run many covert businesses, most of which are criminal—like assassinations, drug trafficking, weapons smuggling, and organ trade. Things like that."
Sam was listening to them and added:
"But their main specialty is assassination... that's also the reason they're so infamous among criminals."
Zeus glanced at his companions, and as he recalled their abilities, he noticed two things:
The first was that Beatrix, Sam, and Sorai were the only ones considered third-level gene fighters, while the rest—including Zeus—were second-level gene fighters.
However, Zeus wasn't entirely sure if that label accurately reflected his strength. Although his genetic energy was of the second level, the mysterious energy added through the energy-storage glyph and the power of the other glyphs—one of their key traits being high efficiency with low consumption compared to conventional blue-energy techniques—were all reasons why his strength might exceed that of a typical second-level gene fighter, potentially matching that of a third-level fighter, or maybe just slightly below.
The second thing Zeus noticed was that John and Katie weren't present.
"Where are John and Katie?"
(Sam): "They're not primary combatants... you'll find them with the mecha and remote robot control teams."
"Remind me again, who among us are mechanical pilots?"
Sam answered after a moment of thought:
"You, Alia, Sorai, and Beatrix... Maybe I should remind you of other things too."
"Like what?"
"Even though we're one team, we're divided into mission partners. For example, we're rarely assigned solo missions; it's usually two-person teams."
Zeus remembered how Beatrix told him that he was her partner. He now felt confused, having previously interpreted her words emotionally—he hadn't realized she meant it literally.
"Wait, hold on. Who's partnered with whom?"
"You and Beatrix, then George and Katie, John and Hanabi, and I'm with Alia."
"What about you, Sorai?"
"I always get assigned stealth missions... so I don't need a partner. Those are solo jobs."
"And why are most of the pairs made up of one male and one female?"
(Sam): "Maybe because most of our missions are covert, and it's easier to blend in and not draw attention if the pair is a man and woman... that's just my guess, though. It's not always like that, but most teams follow this setup."
Zeus turned toward Beatrix, who had her eyes closed the entire time in complete silence.
"Are you asleep?"
She looked at him briefly, then shut her eyes again.
"It seems we weren't really lovers after all."
"!!"
Sam laughed nervously and quickly pulled Zeus aside to whisper into his ear in a very low voice:
"Bro, your current behavior reminds me of how you acted two years ago... You seriously need to stop before you regret it again."
Zeus gave Sam a look that basically said, "You're an idiot."
"You're exaggerating... I'll show you."
Zeus checked the time on his watch, and after a few minutes, Sam asked:
"What are you going to show me?"
"You'll see in exactly ninety seconds."
Exactly a minute and a half later, Zeus smiled and looked at Sam.
"I'll prove to you that this girl isn't as dangerous as you claim."
(Beatrix and Sam): "!"
"Remember when—" Zeus suddenly stopped speaking and stared in shock at the wall to Beatrix's right, who was seated directly beside him.
Because of his dramatic reaction and abrupt silence, both Sam and Beatrix quickly turned to look at the wall—and before either of them realized Zeus had tricked them, he kissed Beatrix on the cheek and immediately stood up and walked away.
"!!"
Sam remained silent. All he did was clap and whistle.
(Sorai): "This guy is playing with his life."
Beatrix recovered from the shock. With a mixture of lingering disbelief and rising fury, her ring transformed into a thin white sword. She stood up, clearly intending to cut off Zeus's hand...
But just then, the rear door of the plane opened automatically—and Zeus had already thrown himself out.
The calm voice of the old man came from the cockpit:
"Zeus and Sorai, begin descent."
Sorai immediately jumped after him, the door closing behind them. Sam remained seated with Beatrix... but when he saw her hand tightly gripping the sword's handle, he didn't dare stay next to her.
He quietly got up and went to sit with George, Alia, and Hanabi on the opposite side.
---
...
In the air, Zeus looked out toward the desert in front of him, then flipped his body to locate Sorai.
As soon as he did, he saw Sorai speeding past him. Then a voice came through the combat suit's helmet comms:
"Follow me."
Both of them free-fell until they were only 50 meters from the ground. Then their parachutes deployed, and each was holding two tubes—one in each hand—which emitted thrust from one end to slow their descent to the required speed.
Sorai detached his parachute immediately upon landing, tossed away the landing cylinders, and Zeus did the same. Then Sorai signaled to Zeus with his hand and began running between the sand hills in a specific direction.
Zeus silently followed.