"Norman, my child…"
The mont he heard the voice calling from inside the room, Yago's body froze in place. His hand, which had been reaching for the doorknob, stopped midair. At this mont, only an inexplicable tremor filled his heart. How could this be? How could his na be spoken? Was it just a coincidence?
But Harry didn't notice Yago's stiffness at all. Hearing the voice from inside, he shrugged indifferently and said,
"Eh, your grandmother is calling your uncle's na again. No wonder your father used to hate her so much. Think about it—his own mother always cared about the older brother and not him, and even after the brother died for more than ten years, she still keeps talking about him. If I were your father, I'd lose my mind too."
Yago asked in confusion,
"Uncle?"
Harry looked Yago up and down suspiciously.
"Yeah, your uncle—Norman Russell. He was quite famous back then, the dream lover of a whole bunch of noble girls. My aunt used to like him a lot too. Wait, Loya, what's going on with you? Why do you look so absent-minded?"
"Norman Russell… so it's just a coincidence after all…"
Yago muttered to himself, then ignored Harry and opened the door.
As soon as the door opened, a strange sll of disinfectant mixed with sothing faintly rotten rushed into his nose, making Yago frown slightly.
Inside the fairly spacious and bright room, a large bed was placed in the center. On the bed lay an elderly woman with silver hair and a face full of wrinkles. Her eyes were tightly shut, and because of her fever, fine beads of sweat covered her forehead. Her lips were sowhat cracked, and she kept muttering Norman's na over and over. This was Loya's grandmother—Madam Sara Russell.
Seeing the situation, the maid quickly stepped forward, picked up a wrung-out towel, and wiped the sweat from Madam Russell's forehead.
Harry leaned close to Madam Russell and softly called,
"Madam Russell? Madam Russell? Loya is back—your grandson is back."
Hearing Harry's words, Madam Russell slowly opened her eyes. But her eyes were dim and cloudy, as if a grayish-white film covered her pupils.
"Loya? Where is Loya?"
Madam Russell murmured with difficulty. Then, under Harry's guidance, Yago was led to the bedside, while Harry kept chattering about Yago's achievents on the battlefield.
"Loya is incredible now. He's already surpassed Uncle Neuman. He's a colonel now, madam—you should be proud of him."
Madam Russell fumbled and grabbed Yago's hand. Yago could feel how light and thin her hand was, the veins and wrinkles clearly visible on the back, as if only a layer of skin remained.
"Neuman? He's my child too… Loya, Loya is Neuman's child… yes, Neuman's child…"
Yago looked at the frail Madam Russell, opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say. He didn't even know how Loya used to treat this grandmother. So he cautiously called out,
"Grandma?"
Although Madam Russell couldn't see, that single word made a tear slide down from her cloudy eyes. She murmured,
"If Norman's child were here… they would be about as old as Loya now… It's all my fault. I shouldn't have scolded him. If I hadn't, Norman wouldn't have left ho in anger… and he wouldn't have been killed… it's all my fault…"
Hearing this, Harry's expression imdiately changed. As Loya's childhood friend, he knew very well that, just like his father Neuman Russell, Loya deeply disliked hearing Madam Russell constantly ntion her long-dead eldest son. Harry turned his head—and sure enough, Yago's expression looked extrely strange.
Harry quickly instructed the maid to take good care of Madam Russell, then pulled Yago out of the room.
...
After quite so ti, Russell Manor had been completely renovated under Harry's lead, looking brand new. At the entrance of the manor, Harry patted Yago on the shoulder and said earnestly,
"Old people are just like that—they love to ramble. You're the younger one, so don't argue with your elders."
Yago nodded noncommittally, then handed a small leather bag to Harry.
Harry froze, not understanding what he was doing. When he took it and looked inside—good lord! It was full of cash!
Harry: "Loya, what do you an by this?"
Yago: "Didn't I owe your family money? I'm repaying it."
Harry was montarily speechless, but a trace of embarrassnt and annoyance appeared on his face. His pale face turned slightly red as he shouted,
"You idiot! I already said I'm not here to collect debts! Don't you trust ? Damn it! If I could beat you, I'd have punched you already!"
Just in case, when returning from the front lines, Yago had specifically contacted Azumabito Kiyomi, hoping to get so financial support. Unexpectedly, she was extrely generous and directly sent over two large boxes of cash along with quite a few Lute gold coins. Hizuru really was absurdly wealthy.
After much persuasion, Harry finally accepted the money. Before leaving, he even invited Yago to visit his ho when he had ti.
After saying goodbye to Harry, Yago returned to the villa. He also deliberately gave the maid a large sum of money. While receiving her thanks, Yago learned that her na was Daisy. He then asked Daisy to find a few more maids to help manage the manor, and she agreed without hesitation.
After that, Yago entered a room Daisy had already cleaned. The windows were spotless, the bedding neat and tidy. Near the window stood a desk and a chair. Yago walked over to the window and looked down at Russell Manor.
This place was quiet and secluded. He didn't know whether Marleyan nobles all liked to build their hos in such locations, but it was indeed very suitable as a base of operations and a place to stay for what ca next.
The money given to Harry and the maid could be considered compensation for borrowing Loya's identity—and the cost of using Russell Manor.
Just as Yago was thinking about his next move, the door was suddenly knocked on. Annie's A-One walked in carrying two large boxes.
As soon as she entered, Annie impatiently tore off the hardened disguise on her face, revealing her original pretty face. After letting out a comfortable breath, she looked at Yago, her light blue eyes clearly carrying a hint of irritation.
Yago gave an awkward smile. This really was partly due to his own bad sense of humor.
A-One also removed the hardened disguise from his face.
To ease the atmosphere, Yago pointed at the two boxes and asked,
"What's inside?"
Hearing this, A-One nudged the boxes with his foot. The boxes opened, revealing two sets of black uniforms Yago had never seen before, along with two sets of familiar gear and harnesses.
Yago's expression turned serious.
"This is…?"
Swish! Annie bent down and drew a blade from its sheath, the cold edge gleaming.
"The latest Vertical Maneuvering Equipnt. Didn't you say we'd be taking action next? It's been over two years—Yago, don't tell you've forgotten how to use it?"
Looking at the familiar blade, scenes of fighting Titans on Paradis Island flashed through Yago's mind. A smile curled at the corner of his lips.
"An old friend… how could I ever forget?"
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