On the other side, after Yulis entered, Luna, who had been as passionate as fire, seemed to have been doused with a bucket of cold water, her movements stiffening.
As for He Kui, although his toes were curling in embarrassment, he calmly zipped up his pants, picked Luna up from his lap, and placed her on a nearby chair.
Only then did he slowly turn to look at Yulis, whose face was flushed red yet still wore a teasing expression.
This kind of expression on a young girl's face gave off a vibe reminiscent of a mischievous little devil from a manga.
"Ahem, what brings you here, Yulis?" He Kui cleared his slightly dry throat and asked slowly.
"This~ I finished it~"
Yulis, of course, knew what He Kui had been doing.
After all, it was precisely because of such things that she had concealed her appearance back in Mexico.
But now, seeing her closest companion, He Kui, seemingly engaged in such an act in front of her, she surprisingly felt no disgust in her heart.
Instead, amidst a faint sense of shyness, there was a small glimmer of anticipation.
Even Yulis herself didn't fully understand her own feelings.
So, she could only put on that smile.
Fortunately, the acting skills she had honed through survival hadn't deteriorated.
And with each step she took closer, it felt as if she could smell He Kui's scent growing stronger.
"An A-grade upper-tier Haro!"
Yulis used her small hands to hold up the Haro and presented it to He Kui.
Hearing this, He Kui took it and examined it carefully.
The Haro in front of him was exquisitely crafted, and from the assembly alone, it indeed appeared to be A-grade.
He Kui pressed the red Haro, and its mouth popped open, revealing its internal structure to his eyes.
"It's indeed an A-grade upper-tier. What reward would you like, Yulis?"
He Kui's mood had already calmed down, and he smiled gently at Yulis.
"Yulis doesn't want anything."
The girl shook her head.
"That won't do. We had an agreement."
He Kui chuckled as he patted the girl's head.
"Then, can big brother take me out to play?"
Hearing Yulis' question, He Kui suddenly realized that ever since he brought her up here, she had been staying on the asteroid.
Yulis was his nominal relative, so there was no problem with her going out.
But it was indeed dangerous for Yulis to go out alone. "Alright, I'll take you out when I have time."
"Okay!"
Yulis responded happily, then turned to look in Luna's direction, revealing a mischievous smile.
"You two continue."
With that, she walked out, completely ignoring Luna's increasingly reddened face.
However, with Yulis' interruption, He Kui and Luna couldn't continue.
"I'll go check on my dad."
Using a half-hearted excuse, Luna left with a flushed face.
Seeing this, He Kui didn't stop her. There was no need to use Luna's abilities just yet.
With that thought, He Kui stood up.
It was time for him to visit the Moon.
Copernicus, as a neutral lunar city, wasn't exactly a great place to live for its inhabitants. In fact, saying it wasn't great was already being polite.
The situation here is only slightly better than in the previous PLANT. As a lunar city that primarily relies on Earth for food, the famine on Earth is bound to affect them.
Although Marukio Mentor has some influence here, making the situation a bit better than in the previous PLANT, food is still insufficient.
Under the seemingly endless dome, He Kui also saw the current state of what was once a bustling Copernicus.
The streets were sparsely populated, with only long lines at the food distribution points where ordinary people waited for their share of food resources. As for the roadside, many shops had closed down, and even those that were still open had empty shelves.
Occasionally, a Dagger series mecha would fly overhead, seemingly on alert for something.
He Kui was quite familiar with this, as many in PLANT were also eyeing the food they distributed.
If there was an opportunity, he could expand his business here.
Of course, cross-border situations like this were more complicated. PLANT probably wouldn't object—after all, making money isn't something to be ashamed of.
But the lunar city was pro-Atlantic Federation.
This was evident from their clean news reports.
The Atlantic Federation's media even helped cover for them.
The official media of the lunar city also openly expressed gratitude for the Atlantic Federation's sponsorship.
However, given that the Atlantic Federation had been the master of the moon for so long, this change was normal.
As for the Coordinators here, they had all fled after the battles began last year.
Who would dare live near the Atlantic Federation's base?
Even though ZAFT had captured the Ptolemy base here, the Coordinators hadn't returned.
This place had long been occupied by the Atlantic Federation.
Although Coordinators weren't explicitly banned from entering, attacks on them were either ignored or glossed over.
In simple terms, Naturals were the privileged class here.
There was no semblance of a neutral city left.
As He Kui walked down the street, he naturally joined the long line for relief supplies.
As the crowd grew, so did the discussions around him.
"Have you heard? Marukio Mentor is supposed to be coming soon."
"What's he going to do? He can't produce food."
"I heard he's coming to discuss the current discrimination issues in Copernicus with the mayor."
"Those Coordinators, who cares if they die?"
Hearing this, the man spoke dismissively.
"Even so, PLANT has food. We're near a ZAFT base. If we could start trading, we wouldn't have to stand in these lines."
"Marukio Mentor is probably coming to negotiate for PLANT's food on behalf of Earth."
The other man didn't argue but sighed.
Every day, they worked just to stand in line for hours for a single meal.
It was a thought that filled them with despair.
It was as if they had become refugees.
No, given the reality, they were indeed refugees.
Hearing this, the man opened his mouth but couldn't find the words to argue.
"But it's impossible for us to accept those Coordinators again."
"Who said anything about accepting them? Let's just get the food first and worry about the rest later."
"That's true. If the Coordinators behave obediently, it wouldn't hurt to let them live, especially that He Kui. His research is so impressive, we might as well keep him confined."
Listening to their conversation, He Kui didn't pay much attention, but his thoughts drifted to Mentor Malchio.
It had been the same before. Under his persuasion, Clyne had directly handed over the Warrior.
And in the end, the Warrior's data still ended up in the hands of the Eurasian Federation. Even if it had only fallen into Orb's hands, there was no guarantee that Seiran and others wouldn't sell it out.
Had he anticipated this situation, or was it just an oversight?
But as the leader of an Earth religion and Lacus's mentor, would he really be careless enough to leave such a huge loophole? What if Mentor Malchio wanted Clyne to give this technology to Earth again this time?
For a moment, He Kui also felt a sense of caution toward that k
ind-faced mentor.
Those who squint their eyes often aren't as simple as they appear on the surface.
But now that he was familiar with Lacus, he might be able to probe her side a bit.
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