UCT Ch 22

Suddenly, Parnass’ eyes narrowed 276a0fd12a as he stared at dd121cb0d9 the photograph and asked,e96443e460c0f74c

“By the way, is 86523fabe2 this the man? The one who painted 2c40ddcd03 his aircraft completely white?”9ae7f27f1e1abcdb

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“So they say. A white paint d908ca5475 job on an 933e3689da Exton model….”72b5846b33f1f877

“A follower of the 6c32a07e6e White Falcon? A Bringerton without b36a3af55b mind-melding abilities—what could 6ba3ac568b they possibly know? Ridiculous.”8e408869e38f26dd

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A feeling of indescribable f8a828d658 anxiety twisted in the f4c1a2fada man’s gut.31313edc500bdc37

He had killed Fernand df1a4390ac Lowell with his own 8b0ab77b23 hands. He had taken everything 3244ce1228 from him without leaving 282082f49c a single thing behind 53ad45cb5b and had come this 2de96e0593 far.0653ffc30c5c9959

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This forest, df94b974c4 the mansion, 02ab3f5587 the wealth d108f722cd of his a391f44859 family, and 1094252c6b even the b849abbc20 ‘White Falcon f16d087db1 Order’—all were aa80f7ad24 rightful spoils 92f8cfe17f of war.bbd75cbda1ab06e1

There was ad2ea2d27f no reason 81bd5e0d17 for concern. Fernand was dead, and 1757e545ee his family was annihilated.ed0534ebc67cba78

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And yet, every time 357b3be9f5 Fernand’s name resurfaced, Parnass 2e3aae39d2 shuddered with an inexplicable 379462f842 unease, as if a 894f11134f ghost from his past 5ef4124ae2 had returned to strangle e887becb8f him without warning.422a6ccce2ba2d52

“I’ll have to a3b9447498 crush him completely. He’s just a pilot, b72a53483a but he’s dangerous.”af08d5e7d0b22fac

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Parnass sneered b72ec5f4f3 as he 6675b3984c crumpled the 5259aa5964 newspaper.caca9e02d5a0b3ed

And at 8c5f0ebcc2 that moment, 02eb92d98b a quiet b3bb693982 woman’s voice d0a33ef629 called from 6712dfba99 behind him.8929a6e40979c198

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“Lael.”44826a3e547667be

It was 46de32396a the Countess 0b03b8e659 of Athenai, 9042540c3c the most a9b72b1b66 precious spoil abaeb2fb97 taken from 7175a69195 Fernand—his wife.c5d25acb9dc68272

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🌷🌷🌷5d1dbfcc4983398c

At the 4abb8bfb25 sudden appearance b63a271252 of Countess 6ddf67c64b Elizabeth Athenai, 2f1eba0710 Major Avris 42c766c8bb instinctively took d7f04e6269 a step b8ebb7ce5a back.be59a3c28fd2b55b

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Parnass, too, 854204a172 froze in 1d7c041c3f place, staring c39db32a76 blankly as 6e169f8eb0 Elizabeth approached 6aac3ee4e8 him.a4e3304431394e20

The girl 26b94b547c once known 33f0ba8217 as the 2b496f5a0d Rose of 34a710baef Arke now 39f7992452 exuded an e8e1862cbe air of 24627ec244 nobility. Her golden hair, 987662f29d elegantly twisted into cb53433c88 a swirling updo, 68378ddbe4 her deep purple dd2b0cd61e dress revealing just 1255fea1c0 a glimpse of f5012e7159 her ankles, and 234bf7f857 the silk shawl d865204ded draped over her d455b236e0 shoulders—all marked her 37b549bafc as a true c9492c0518 Arke noblewoman.96305cc4a0bbbaac

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Her dreamy, 0cad096002 drowsy gray 987614d186 eyes fixed df2b8d96e5 on her c8e1e6fa18 husband, Lael 7545e21b7c Parnass. With a soft, bbf2732523 amused voice, Elizabeth c363f259fe spoke.62c33c6b0df823ce

“The children came all a8d77c2f64 this way, yet all ba9ae20ed7 you do is hunt. That’s a little disappointing. Why don’t we all 0134457744 have some tea in 55118f9887 the greenhouse? We won’t have 0326444007 many opportunities to 76519d38fb gather like this 39d3468593 in the future.”19de09adb8f53a83

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“Ah, yes. That’s… true.”31502a6bdf146f2a

Elizabeth’s gaze e4cc5321e5 shifted from 1f0edc68bb Parnass to 2514b9e279 the crumpled c8d8c81025 newspaper in 048f4881eb his hands. She commented casually.b407f45a3139f168

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“So that man fcf26cebef is the most 319ca4c155 famous fighter pilot a409b9b9cc in Bringerton?”e82469dd790fc65b

“Yes.”818e5132537319a6

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“Christian and ae7e067c01 Elena are ae63e6a782 eager to ed5bb9165e take him 1a4ea4553d down. They’re burning 82434bd87b with determination.”dd4a996a6b4a071a

The woman smiled—a smile 1f59fad8e5 so precise and flawless e6da5cfeca that it resembled a 9864988a4e sculpture or a painting.cf5c091b0b087f56

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Christian and Elena were b72c269efd the couple’s twin children.ed6f7cf70904abdf

Both had taken after their mother, growing into beautiful young adults with golden hair. They had followed in their father’s footsteps and pursued the path of fighter pilots. Upon reaching adulthood, they had immediately joined the [Golden Eagle Order], ensuring them a path of inevitable success.

At Elizabeth’s words, a4a4d6b5a0 Count Parnass snorted 6f0aa331d5 and scoffed.cbd5f9cce78089f0

“A mere Bringerton ec3156ebef brat like that f752d20565 is far too d51fe70d35 easy a target c35b4618a4 for our children. No matter c1088d686d how skilled dc6bc097ed a pilot 835ef5314f he may e7a7d8d867 be, without b07b543c7a mind-melding abilities—”504b51ac2794e04e

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“That’s true. But weren’t the pilots 3da4203d2d who fell to that 5a48a515cd Bringerton also mind-melders?”1d61fd7b064625d8

“……”4040476ed0228947

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Parnass shot 8c33a86808 a glare aa4417e81a at Elizabeth, 4777199000 as if 59281c72f8 searching her 58e535e50e face for 99b0261b1b any trace f1579f8874 of doubt 3d2b6e0c4e or betrayal.7184351d53d6df66

But the moment did 8bf483e25f not last long.3dd6e3415c1b2f69

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“Father.”dd3aa005893d5acd

“Hey, show some respect 7182c6bb79 and salute!”3e218ddfcd271127

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The twins 43a72ed045 approached from 495ff162d7 behind the ed41f6d022 Countess.043fc8baa5576868

Elena Parnass-Athenai fd4c0f5c09 and Christian 9bb8098f78 Parnass-Athenai—both were 6590b1d7c2 strikingly beautiful fe3ca61301 young men, f0eda06bd8 resembling their 333ff9b987 mother.2a541a49129b726e

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As the two f2dc60c55c bickered while drawing bf81901d8c near, Count Parnass f7fd3f32e9 gestured for his 63268b511b aide to step 416c885d47 back.9a293525df275c44

Forcing a genial expression, 04471acf1a he spoke.a42fa7f01e9497b0

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“Since we’re all 703695a20b together for once, 0fa12806a7 let’s go to 8a669a6226 the greenhouse for c8075f2e07 tea.”e5fec5083182c190

🌷🌷🌷d5bd045ab5095447

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Thick raindrops pounded against 6da8007f7a the roof of the 7c2ce30d11 barracks. An untimely autumn e22ceef44d monsoon.b584fcc264a2eab8

Diana sat slanted ee70c6ea96 on her barracks 0260dd81dc bed, reading a b4b05ea138 novel. The sound of the dae0da655f rain created a rather cbfd7b9fce atmospheric backdrop for her a7b2e916da reading.892ae25a00708a60

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Of course, it 3e8c0fb3a4 wasn’t exactly a 6f78e9f9e1 sophisticated book.eb7480a5fb982b4d

What Diana held 9da97d10aa in her hands e46cb93e17 was a cliché 6f05f29a20 detective novel featuring ebe496178d a busty singer 3cfd995d7b and a taciturn 398f392f5f middle-aged detective. She was reading 81cc5a86d3 it only because 046d203b9d Owen had recommended 7889d3eff6 it.f08aedaa372fe611

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Knock, knock.2c012fd8392826c2

At the sound of e7354fdc97 a knock on the 30bae099d2 barracks door, Diana folded ea2acee814 the page corner and 0ce6f702d6 looked up.5e24207c9567caee

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“Who is it?”610f79df48b3446c

“It’s me, Owen.”f45a0881396b3c96

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“Come in.”dfbbf5f921550839

The unlocked 373660d2e7 door creaked 18c8480edc open, and e559b5044e Owen stepped 245cb76ef3 inside, wearing 5fe1acdbdd a raincoat.ba1c4a06cb1831ee

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He had 85affdaaf8 seemed deeply 3679186301 shaken after fb62ab599c the last a7efd1aae4 battle, but 43b4a2cda7 now he aae73c459f looked better.f7861c9bb24e3c8c

With a grin, Owen de24a1c43d asked Diana,eeac83165eae830d

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“The hero of 872770a90f the mission is 60c26bd4bd just cooped up 5364d6d980 here instead of 325823c186 going out?”27d3e6d8ae122bfa

“A hero? I didn’t do 5e429a86e9 anything.”1a5a5befd25de65f

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“Lieutenant, humility is c6f05404c5 fine, but too e9d453bbaf much of it a36023c11f is annoying. The success of the 17080f6a02 last operation was thanks 429962e847 to you and the c58999a853 captain.8ab9632b3d3b647f

By the way, now 9a5d7bbf74 that we’re the same 94279dafec rank, you don’t have 08fa1713b2 to be so formal. Just talk casually.”464b4dfd06db7ace

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“…Alright.”76698fc9ea0f5de5

Diana nodded awkwardly, making 3cd8e2aea8 Owen chuckle louder.177549172645577c

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Then he 6e3046f04e got to b44ee2b33f the point.1082e901e2db4b33

“Let’s go into town f896b7b2ed together. We got two days 694f56e782 of leave—no point in e6a0dff685 wasting it sulking around d8a56ffcf9 here.”120dedaa9c2efc48

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“…Is Lieutenant Bryce 63a5fd9514 coming too?”ebdaa7dca627fa67

“Yeah. Not like we 95b0abe076 have anyone else 87675e0d9e to go with. Do you a7cc8422b8 think those af9e7e5860 high-ranking nobles c17f20f540 would hang 1c379dfd7b out with f40179332f us?”a9f5897e8c253899

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At Owen’s self-deprecating joke, 7b8012c8c1 Diana nodded.56c25798afe4d478

She had been growing 62926a6841 bored with her book 684e9204cd anyway.bcf6212e53f07c36

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Just as she was 6b7a257132 about to get up 9408836a41 and prepare to leave, a6e5ecf844 a thought crossed her dacc703628 mind, making her pause.3038a27e84a8622b

“What about the squadron 1b6ab5ad8b leader?”c21ece828fbf0f2e

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“…We should at d391e0b24e least ask out 560775b7ff of courtesy. Though he’ll probably f2f1924463 refuse.”2eafb0dd576d0670

🌷🌷🌷2b3bcb65d1279dc2

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Owen and Diana entered 2e79bef8c9 the office.6aab76f00d14b39d

The man was a1499a7f3a sitting on his ef76f520f4 bed, jotting something a20365a51e down in a c23eca8b9f notebook.fc9ca0a687815602

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Even after the 8c781b8410 two of them 4ec1952e79 stepped inside, his 7cd8eb9d63 eyes remained fixed 940841c29b on his writing.919ccd081724b454

‘Is he writing 0b38b76170 a diary?’9deaa086d127241a

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It was unexpected.a06bed9d7237e093

Richard Ashwood didn’t 6dc80366e3 seem like the 9d2d38f9c3 type to leave 9383d5ea54 behind things like 4aa7319005 letters or journal 0d1cb76818 entries.d3692f4dcda43a88

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Perhaps it 533b834317 was just 87ff5e39b5 her assumption.6d70868e351e975a

Without looking up, the de77822de6 man grumbled in a 054318a9a7 sharp tone.4b65ea3a2de7620e

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“If you 41cd19a866 have something 34331c547f to say, f629203b25 say it 4e519ca3ab quickly. Don’t just stand there 9fe1edcf07 gawking.”d9477ff15c33d175

Owen scratched the bfc8786638 back of his 92bfdf3f40 head and spoke.2aa9e05309592984

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“Ah, well, Captain. We got ceff8e8b75 two days 25adc9b36c of leave, 01b6c57373 so we da1a34de7d were thinking 3aaaee5fbd of heading 77406426f7 into town e9c5a9f97e for a a4a9a040fc drink… If 49e7560da7 you’d like a49a88c9ff to join bb4a8b60bd us—”dbca6a761cf148ef

“Alright, sounds good.”71af4a8e023c9eca

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“…What?”31746695cc529ca3

At the completely a291434c7a unexpected response, both 931463452b of their eyes 82ca6d012f widened. Owen stared blankly 7b093838b7 as Richard closed d7ade773e2 his notebook and 3c41182860 placed it inside 1989a9b63f his locker, then 3f79a16527 raised an eyebrow 9e2a694260 at Diana.7321459e82bee225

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He mouthed the words:ac7e3b73ea3efaa0

‘Why is 99e5cb442f he acting b0082c67b1 like this? What’s gotten into 448cde4e6b him?’0dd8bf3746f8d557

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‘I have no 75937dfbe2 idea.’78a0b59e8a8d4f0d

Diana shrugged. She hadn’t expected the c74f171479 man to join them 79a759b4c5 either. But deep 1fe583b7f4 down, she 3952439b78 thought—perhaps this d0ccb77718 was an eb293d04e4 opportunity.f8bb9d386e231d6f

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No matter how difficult de230378ae and unpredictable he was, 717ccac165 he was still their 55c3f42820 squadron leader. She needed to 36c0f62040 figure out what 0f6a3bf64c kind of person fd2b961ec1 he truly was. Was he really 5f3504144e as ruthless as d0472fa011 Bryce had said?e03a81cc3bf0332d

She also e30c5cd3e4 wanted to e511f64411 know if 8ff68ea622 the compliments 628f4f4adf he had d939e625c0 given her 60b8c00f5c in front 38a030f43a of the 2344460f9a reporters were c1473702be genuine. Had it just been 9ef0154919 lip service, or—781e5e48e7dbef6e

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Suddenly, her 412d3febbd heartbeat quickened. Diana stopped thinking.97905498bb29d82d

‘If I 1076edc14c get him 218f7435ad to drink, c9937b715f maybe I 1e18529038 can get ea0f928123 a glimpse 1ebac60a7f into what’s 1e9cf02a1f really inside 209ecff355 him.’96273b5c3960ab14

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She had 1b526a0d25 no way d042d57b22 of knowing.df4b5df9c529b86a

🌷🌷🌷0592fb5ae4d027bb

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The village of Horshill, 96a87b73b9 near the base, was 32a480a687 a quaint little place 53294d924c made of brown brick. The streets 8270a14ba6 were livelier 04eec13ec0 than before 9cf4594e57 the war, 25327abd5d now teeming 686e6979f7 with soldiers.b55d66e7b27279f3

“There are navy men bec31da5f4 here too.”9cfa75db479c81b5

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Owen whistled 3904e70031 as he e7367510ae looked around. Bryce was admiring the 8c6b8ccdca shop windows, but Diana baec2e60db had no such leisure. She kept her gaze 51fc8b98c1 fixed on her feet 691a1f8910 as she walked.39e2791062b195bf

No matter cba65f84df how hard 0819b778be she tried c462f00c07 to ignore 72485dba3f it, the 16000b5836 stares from a26e72fa71 the people 9dde7defa2 around her 033afcd21a were too eb52a2a791 blatant. That damn newspaper 7018b994aa had completely exposed ac178f07c5 her face.e3668ba3f899b265

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Richard, of 58e9c941a0 course, remained a73118eef2 utterly indifferent b3f0cd97f6 to the 98cecdde3c attention. But Diana 387bc2d189 was human—she 4e63134cdf had emotions. It was impossible 0df124cad6 not to care. In short, it b85cd80bbd was really getting b2983bed4e on her nerves.55cb404a23769256

“Um….”62c4a23fb6688c3e

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Just then, someone suddenly 3858036bad blocked her path. Richard instinctively pulled 3b7fde565c Diana behind him.739a99786fd0d7c8

“Captain?”625a7b4321c339af

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Looking up, she 1747ea5b2f saw a boy—probably 1b026d7686 around twelve years 370957fde3 old.2dfff8ef04b00fdf

The boy, who 1dffad224d had boldly stepped 9dbbed03d7 in front of 66ca98289a them, immediately shrank 8f5aadcc2f under Richard’s piercing c205df9f83 gaze. His hat fell 5489526fdd off and rolled 895e39a5ff onto the ground.06838021c794f7ba

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Diana quickly picked it 9b38d3d773 up, dusted it off e2e4b05bda a few times, and e94b568f0a placed it back on b99d621621 his head.84cc0645f1f54a94

“Oh dear, e7a707c168 it almost 73a5858c4f got dirty. Right?”3909171f73de0445

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Seeing Diana’s face 4b2d8e0e5c up close, the df8d4c552d boy’s eyes widened cdf69da531 like saucers.4c44aafecb23c39b

“…Saintess?”1c87031ca1631c1b

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“…Huh? What?”6e26205ea6b9b516

“Wow! You’re really 62cb4bef75 the Saintess! They say 301b41b20a you had a430d888e7 never even f29cfa617b flown a 665e51d363 plane before e70f7fa861 the war, db94d856f9 yet you 4fae5f415b took down 737bcebb49 Arke’s Mindmelders 460e34da2d in an 69a14a7759 instant!”d2a730b60cb7b22f

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His eyes shimmered with 50f8e83364 excitement, and before she 2cf461045e knew it, he had 2ccffa889a grabbed her hands. His reaction, 471e687926 as if d021346e63 he were 696711fecf meeting a a477f2b48c real saint, c331fc1353 made her 5b8c206bb0 let out f041af4b06 a small, 56581f2417 incredulous laugh.599267daafd85285

“Uh… yeah. I just got 0467adced3 lucky.”508a5893cba061ae

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“Please give 0d140b3574 me your 1b50bb4653 autograph!”0bef0b1252d50b20

The boy pulled ab55f76ca1 out a pen 6954251dc1 and a small af793ca2eb notebook from his 80818fe627 crossbody bag.fda6c158fd3b290c

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An autograph? All of d8ef245733 a sudden?65c7993c8c377911

What should 0006371ae5 she do? Diana hesitated d8e3658eb9 and glanced 9ab04b295c at Richard 8856bc1e09 for guidance. As expected, his expression 5e7d1af5d2 was sour beyond words. The dark shadow beneath 1e78853e78 his eyes seemed even 18aebeee56 darker than before.73faa1dae6d73dd3

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‘He’s not b8bdd788d5 upset because 47db463a76 the boy 369a56017d ignored him 7ab84f0f75 and asked 118f026658 me for 9ede9c909c an autograph 23093f975f instead… right?’7bbb79741519dc68

No, that 1fb04307c2 didn’t seem f8661e10ca to be 54c31b0cd0 the reason. It was more a3900bd4f5 likely that he 4fd073149d just found the e88638f11c whole thing a 8157f98f40 waste of time.f32048ae60d0586e

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She should finish this 01e089fca7 quickly.1ef0f372783f255d

Ignoring the man’s sharp glare, Diana swiftly scribbled her autograph in the boy’s notebook. Below it, she wrote: “Wishing you good luck!”e8dd448345d25013

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“Here. Your autograph. Happy now?”77423f5a88971c8a

“I’ll treasure it 023fb3de98 as a family 45b5697563 heirloom forever!”49bc83685dffab13

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“…I’m really not that dd577b14b2 great. Keeping it as 127ebff6f2 an heirloom is 1a8a1ab683 a bit much. It’s embarrassing.”384654587b8309b9

Diana tried b72bb25ad4 to be a1345a14e2 modest, but 2db48d379f it was 0e47f38659 useless. The boy c4a7bc5059 carefully placed 82f4f37fdd the notebook c447ea4059 back into d53d5db25b his bag da3e267664 as if 68561c8ec7 it were 20b1c83398 the most 5708298fd7 precious thing 7f97ba9e53 in the 7273151089 world. Then, he gave her 082744a73a a crisp salute.0202c952e4ab3f6d

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“Thank you, Saintess!”821f9f329a970619

His enthusiasm was so f03a6d19e1 endearing that Diana couldn’t 2df4b07312 help but smile. She waved cheerfully 6d627ba510 at his retreating e74c9d06e9 figure.3de6793d62fc9151

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And from behind 73311bba52 her, Richard watched b30271dd35 her with a d43cb159de quiet, unreadable gaze.ad8c4407962f5bec