Tomorrow's Plan

"Shu, would shortening the teleportation distance reduce the cost?" Bronya asked, seeing Shu's distress.

"No… distance doesn't affect the energy consumption," Shu replied, shaking his head, then paused, looking at Bronya. "Wait, are you suggesting…?"

Bronya nodded. "Bronya's idea is… we abandon teleportation and instead make everyone run as fast as Kiana. Or even faster. Is that possible?"

At the same time, Shu received Bronya's [Prayer]. Increasing everyone's speed to Kiana's level… that would cost less than 10%! And if he increased the speed further…

The energy consumption would be significantly lower than teleportation!

"But I don't have any experience with… mass enhancements…" Shu said, then shook his head. "No, that's not a problem. I'll figure it out."

"Wait, why not take the train?" Kiana interjected.

Shu: "??" What brilliant idea do you have now?

Seeing Shu's expectant look, Kiana spread her arms. "We saw those light rail trains on the way here, right? They go everywhere! They must go to the train station too!"

"They probably do…" Shu said, a thought forming in his mind. "But the light rail system is shut down… are you suggesting I use a [Prayer] to power it up?"

"Exactly!" Kiana nodded enthusiastically. "Powering up a train is still an enhancement, right? You can practice, and you only need to enhance one thing. Didn't you say enhancing inanimate objects is much easier than enhancing us?"

Shu's eyes widened, and by the time Kiana finished, he was almost ready to declare her a genius.

There were a few flaws in her plan, but he could easily address them with minimal effort. Removing a stalled train from the tracks would cost far less than enhancing a child!

"Brilliant plan," Shu said, giving Kiana a thumbs-up.

"Heh, of course! Who do you think I am?" Kiana puffed out her chest, beaming with pride.

"Good job, Kiana," Mei said, patting Kiana's head as she leaned in for more praise.

Even Bronya looked impressed, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Kiana isn't always an idiot…"

The four celebrated their ingenuity, while the three children huddled together nervously.

"S-Sora… Adam… did we just hear something… classified?" Lyle whispered, his eyes darting around. "Are they going to… silence us?"

Sora blinked, then shook her head. "Probably… not. They're talking about protecting us… they're good people."

"I think as long as we don't say anything, we'll be fine," Adam said, mimicking Bronya's deadpan expression.

"Really?" Lyle was still apprehensive.

"Probably…" Adam said hesitantly.

Lyle's eyes widened. He looked at his friends, then at the others, who had resumed their discussion. He suddenly felt lightheaded.

Herrschers, Honkai beasts, teleportation, combat… Did I accidentally wander onto a sci-fi movie set? he wondered. And why do they look like members of a secret society?! Teacher, who are these people you brought back?!

While Lyle grappled with his existential crisis, Shu's group finalized their plan.

"Alright," Shu said, clapping his hands and looking at the others seriously.

"First, tomorrow I'll scout the evacuation route and try to locate the old man and the Herrscher. I'll avoid direct contact if possible. I'll be back by nightfall, and we'll start the evacuation tomorrow morning."

The others nodded.

"As for you three, gather information from Natasha about nearby weapon caches. If they're within reach, go and retrieve them. Bronya will pilot the mech. Prioritize your safety above all else." He emphasized the last part, and the girls nodded again, silently.

"And you three…" Shu turned to the children.

The three huddled closer, trembling. This is it! They're going to silence us!

Shu paused, then cleared his throat. "I'll handle the Little Tian investigation. I have a more important mission for… the Sky Bunnies Squad."

"We have a mission too?" Adam blurted out before Lyle could clap a hand over his mouth.

Shu smiled. "What? You don't want a chance to… become official members?"

The three blinked, looking at each other. Sora finally asked, "What do you mean…?"

Shu cleared his throat and put on a serious face. "I, the captain of Fire Moth's First Squad, officially invite the Sky Bunnies Squad to join Fire Moth as a… fully recognized unit." These kids are on the 'recruitment list' too! I'll bring them back for Otto to… nurture. That's a few more capable fighters for us.

The three children: "…?"

"What's… Fire Moth?" Lyle asked, shrinking back. "Are you really… a secret organization?"

"Yes," Shu replied, nodding at the thirteen-year-olds. No more explanations.

We are exactly the kind of secret organization you imagine us to be.

Lyle swallowed. He had to admit, his inner chuunibyou was thrilled. But he wasn't the leader of the Sky Bunnies Squad, so he looked at Sora.

Adam, his eyes also gleaming with excitement, looked at Sora as well. All eyes were on Sora now.

Sora: "..." She shrank back slightly, then looked up at Shu. After a long pause, she asked, "Will Teacher join too?"

Shu nodded. With the children joining, Natasha wouldn't have much of a choice.

"Okay, we accept…" Sora finally agreed, then added, as Shu smiled, "Because you're a good person."

Shu's smile instantly vanished.