Did Something on My Face?
Next morning, the transport vessel touched down on the floor of the hangar in Terminus Sector 7.
“Everyone, please wait here for a moment.”
“Don’t overdo it. We already owe you a huge debt.”
Chief Han’s wrinkled hand gave my shoulder a light pat.
“A debt? I did it because I wanted to.”
I reassured them and immediately headed to Kaien’s office.
Just like usual, she was buried in a pile of documents until she spotted me and greeted me with a cheerful smile.
“Jinwoo, what’s this time?”
She flicked her eyes playfully, as if she had already predicted this situation the moment she lent us the transport vessel.
I smiled awkwardly and got straight to the point.
“The thing is, there are technicians from the Kronos Mercenary Group who came with us. They’re all skilled.”
I paused for a breath and continued.
“Are there any suitable places in Terminus where these people can settle and work?”
Kaien rested her chin on her hand and thought for a moment.
“There’s a closed spherical industrial complex on the outskirts of Sector 7… just as you said.”
She manipulated her data pad and showed me the information for the industrial complex.
“The facilities are rundown, but the basic infrastructure is still there, and the space is quite spacious.”
Kaien happily accepted my proposal.
“Small maintenance requests or part production should be fine.”
“Again, I’m indebted to you.”
“What? With more talent here, we’ll all benefit.”
Our conversation ended satisfactorily, and I stood up from my seat.
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
“Alright.”
As I turned to leave the office, I saw a familiar figure approaching from the corridor.
Nyx.
Just as I was about to greet her cheerfully, she stepped in front of me and spoke in a firm voice.
“Let me talk to you for a moment.”
It wasn’t her usual sharp tone; it carried a strange weight.
“Eh? Y-yeah, sure. What’s wrong?”
Before I could finish my confused question, Nyx grabbed my wrist and pulled me along.
“Hey, Nyx! Where are you taking me?! Wait, let’s talk like normal people!”
Paying no attention to my shouts, she led me toward a small door at the end of the corridor.
Are you going to lock me up and interrogate me?
Opening the firmly shut door, I found a narrow storage room used for storing supplies.
Nyx shoved me inside and followed, closing the door behind her.
Alone in the tight space, an awkward and heavy silence filled the air.
I had no idea why she had brought me here, and I was frustrated, but I waited for her to speak first.
Finally, Nyx lowered her head slightly and spoke in a low voice.
“You…”
Her voice seemed to tremble just a little.
“Just like last time… and this time too… Why don’t you ever ask me for anything?”
Nyx lifted her head and stared straight at me.
Her black eyes were shaking.
“With Scarlet or Kaien-nim, you ask for all sorts of things… but with me, you never say a word?”
She placed a hand on her chest, looking frustrated.
“I can help you too! Do you think I’m inferior to them? Or… do you just think I’m unnecessary?”
Her voice grew louder and more passionate.
What is she saying?
I couldn’t read the sudden emotional outburst.
“...I heard through the soldiers that you rented the transport vessel.”
Nyx avoided my gaze and muttered.
“Why didn’t you consult me at all or ask for my help? Are you that untrustworthy? Or… do you just see me as a useless hothead who only knows how to fight?”
Deep resentment filled her voice.
The sharp edge was gone.
She looked like a girl who felt excluded from her friends.
I hesitated, unsure how to react to this sudden personality shift.
Was it really the stern woman who had pushed me to the brink of death in the training room?
Maybe she had a twin? Or had I missed some head injury during the two-year coma?
Wait a second. What did I do wrong?
Even if I reviewed my actions, I had no memory of being rude or ignoring her.
Instead, I had praised her skills and tried to show respect.
“Nyx, it’s not like that…”
“Never mind. I don’t want to hear it. Who would want to be with a woman who only knows how to fight and has a sword on her body?”
She rubbed the scars on her arm with a self-deprecating voice and turned away.
Her gaze was fixed on the floor, and her shoulders drooped.
“...I misunderstood everything.”
Those words struck my heart like sharp glass shards.
No, that can’t be right.
A strong instinct told me I couldn’t just let her go.
I reflexively grabbed her arm.
“Wait, please listen to me.”
She tried to shake me off, but I held on.
I even gave her a little more strength and turned her toward me.
Her eyes were already red, and tears were about to spill any second.
“Nyx, I’m serious.”
I stared directly into her trembling eyes and spoke from the heart.
“I didn’t want to burden you. The situation was too dangerous, and I didn’t want to drag you into it. Scarlet… was unavoidable.”
I took a breath.
Nyx’s eyes were still full of suspicion, but she seemed a little more relaxed.
“The situation was too urgent for me to think about anything else. It wasn’t that I ignored you or thought you were unnecessary.”
Nyx just looked at me in silence, her expression still hard to read but no longer sharp.
I carefully placed my hand on the scars covering her forearm.
She flinched but didn’t pull away.
“And these scars… I don’t think they’re ugly at all. Instead… I think they look good on you.”
My words were sincere.
Her scars weren’t flaws; they made her even more special.
“They show how strong you are and how much you’ve overcome… I think they’re cool.”
Her hardened expression slowly softened with my touch and words.
Tears welled up in her eyes and rolled down her cheeks.
“Ah…”
Nyx quickly lowered her head to wipe the tears with the back of her hand, but
it was already too late.
“...Really? You think that?”
“Of course. I’m not lying.”
With my confident answer, Nyx looked silently at the scar where my hand rested on her arm for a moment.
Then she slowly and carefully placed her own hand on top of mine.
It was warm and soft.
“No one has ever said something like that to me before.”
And then she added words I never expected.
“If you want, you can touch me more.”
Her gaze shifted slightly from her arm to somewhere else.
...I think I misinterpreted her meaning. Anyway, as long as she feels better, that’s fine.
I sweated inwardly while trying to keep a calm face.
In this situation, if I tried to clear up her misunderstanding, it might only cause more confusion.
“Ah, no. It’s okay. This is plenty… it’s cool.”
I awkwardly smiled and tried to pull my hand away, but Nyx held on tighter.
She seemed unwilling to let go.
“……”
There was a strange silence in the narrow room again for a while.
“Sorry. I got angry too suddenly earlier.”
Finally, Nyx loosened her grip on my hand and let out a small sigh.
“I must have been too emotionally involved without realizing it. Like a child.”
“No, I was the one who didn’t properly understand your feelings. From now on, I’ll consult you about everything first. I promise.”
Nyx lifted her head and soon smiled faintly.
“Really?”
“Of course. There’s no one more trustworthy than you.”
****
Two days passed.
Chief Han continued his life at the workshop provided by Kaien and was busy with the subcontracted work.
Too peaceful.
I was lounging on Scarlet’s sofa, killing time.
The lack of contact from Belzero was part of the reason, but looking back at the past few weeks, I had been busy living, so this felt like a gift for me.
“Until when! Are you going to stay like that?”
Scarlet lifted her welding mask and scolded.
“Just a little longer…”
I stretched my body like a slug, and suddenly Nyx appeared beside me, crossing her arms and looking down at me with disapproval.
She was dressed in her training gear as usual.
“One spar and you’ll be wide awake. Want to do it?”
“...Nyx, it’s the weekend, so you should rest, right?”
As I let out a groan, Scarlet scolded Nyx this time.
“Jinwoo’s right! On weekends you should go out and play a little, not come to my workshop all the time!”
Nyx was at a loss for words from Scarlet’s teasing question, coughed awkwardly, and answered in a small voice while avoiding my gaze.
“...There’s no one to go out with.”
I sensed the atmosphere shifting and quickly stood up from the sofa.
“I don’t have any close friends except you guys either.”
“That’s right! I’m hungry, so should we go to Judie’s restaurant?”
Scarlet replied as if she had been waiting for me to say it.
She smiled slyly and put her arm around Nyx’s shoulder.
“Instead of modification fees or repair costs, I’ve always told Jinwoo I’d buy him dinner all the time. I have to really pull out his backbone!”
“Nyx, if you want, I’ll buy it for you too.”
Nyx hesitated briefly at my words, then nodded slightly.
“...Okay.”
So the three of us headed to Judie’s restaurant for the first time in a long time.
Amid the noisy atmosphere, eating greasy food and drinking cold drinks, we were able to ease some of the fatigue and tension we had built up.
After finishing our meal, we parted ways, and instead of going straight back to the lodging, I sat on a small open space nearby.
I wanted to organize my thoughts.
About future plans and what direction I needed to go in this world.
“Excuse me… could you…”
Before I could even lift my head, a sweet ice-cream scent and the voice of a woman I didn’t recognize reached me.
“Looking at your outfit… you seem to be a pilot.”
She looked like a tourist who didn’t belong at all in Terminus’s rough and rugged atmosphere.
She wore a pristine white off-shoulder dress with long black hair.
In one hand she held a delicious-looking strawberry ice cream, and with the other she lightly touched her forehead as if shielding her eyes from the sunlight.
“Do you happen to know where Scarlet’s workshop is?”
She took a small bite of the ice cream and asked in a sweet, flirtatious voice.
Where have I seen this face before…?
I couldn’t say a word.
I just stared blankly up at her face.
“Did something on my face?”
Even though she wasn’t wearing the usual dark uniform, I immediately recognized who she was.
Admiral Belzero Karmail of the notorious Red Veil Pirate Group.
Why was she here?