Firefly's eyes widened instantly.
"You... you... how do you know?"
"Don't tell me besides Silver Wolf monitoring everything, you're monitoring us too?"
Evan nearly choked on his drink.
"Excuse me?"
"Why would I monitor you?"
"Do I look that free?"
Firefly blinked.
Then thought about it carefully.
Actually...
Evan really didn't seem like the kind of person who would secretly monitor others.
Silver Wolf, on the other hand...
That sounded exactly like something she'd do.
"You really aren't?"
Firefly asked cautiously.
"No."
"At most, I know Silver Wolf's personality."
Evan spread his hands.
"Besides, the moment you entered Jade's room, I already knew how the conversation would end."
"The conversation would end?"
Firefly tilted her head.
"How?"
"Simple."
"Because Jade isn't interested in curing ELS."
"At least, not yet."
Evan leaned against the railing and looked toward the dreamscape below.
"The IPC doesn't conduct charity."
"Everything they do revolves around value."
"If they cure you today, what do they gain tomorrow?"
Firefly fell silent.
She knew that was true.
The Strategic Investment Department never invested in something without expecting returns.
"Then..."
"Does the IPC actually have a cure?"
Firefly asked softly.
This was the question she cared about most.
Evan thought for a moment.
Then nodded.
"Maybe."
"But not in the way you're imagining."
"The Glamoth Empire created the Iron Cavalry."
"They also created ELS."
"If someone understands the disease best, it would be the people who designed it."
"Unfortunately..."
"They're gone."
Firefly lowered her head slightly.
"However."
Evan suddenly continued.
"The IPC possesses resources from countless civilizations."
"Thousands of Amber Eras of accumulated technology."
"If anyone in the current universe has the possibility of finding a solution..."
"The IPC is certainly one of them."
Firefly's eyes brightened.
Then dimmed again.
"Then why didn't Jade tell me?"
"Because she doesn't know."
Evan answered directly.
"Or rather..."
"She doesn't know enough."
"The Jade you met today wasn't offering a cure."
"She was offering hope."
"Those are completely different things."
Firefly froze.
Hope.
Not a cure.
"Think about it."
"If Jade really had a cure, what would she have done?"
"She would've immediately started discussing terms."
"Conditions."
"Contracts."
"Collateral."
"But today she didn't."
"Instead she said things like 'there may be a possibility' and 'I can only say this much.'"
"Which means even she doesn't possess the answer."
"She only knows that the answer might exist somewhere."
Firefly slowly understood.
That explanation actually fit perfectly.
"So..."
"She was testing me?"
"Exactly."
Evan nodded.
"Jade was evaluating you."
"Evaluating the value of Firefly."
"Evaluating the value of a Stellaron Hunter."
"And evaluating the value of the entire Stellaron Hunter organization."
"To her..."
"Today's meeting wasn't a negotiation."
"It was market research."
Firefly couldn't help laughing.
Market research.
That sounded absurdly accurate.
Then she remembered something.
Her expression became strange.
"Wait."
"If you already knew all this..."
"Then why didn't you stop me from going?"
Evan smiled.
"Because there was no reason to."
"Firefly."
"Sometimes hearing the answer yourself is more important than hearing it from someone else."
The sea of dreams shimmered beneath the airship.
For a moment neither spoke.
Finally Firefly asked the question she'd wanted to ask ever since leaving Jade's room.
"Then..."
"What about you?"
"Hm?"
"You said before."
"You could cure my ELS."
Her voice became softer.
Much softer.
"Was that..."
"Really true?"
Evan looked at her.
The Stellaron Hunter who had spent her entire life fighting against a predetermined fate.
The girl who wanted nothing more than to live as Firefly.
Not as a weapon.
Not as SAM.
Not as a disposable soldier.
Just Firefly.
Then he smiled.
"I never joke about things like that."
Firefly's breathing stopped for a moment.
"Really?"
"Really."
"Then..."
She took a step forward.
Her eyes sparkled brighter than the dreamscape itself.
"What do I need to do?"
Evan grinned.
"First?"
"Tell Silver Wolf to stop trying to hack my terminal."
A brief silence followed.
Then Firefly's face instantly turned red.
"Silver Wolf!!"
"You're actually listening again, aren't you?!"
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