While overseeing the inspection, Adele's sharp gaze scanned the dockyard like a falcon circling above prey. The moonlight glinted off the metallic crates, casting long, angular shadows that stretched like claws across the ground.
Suddenly, from behind a stack of sealed containers, Bernard emerged, cloaked in the same silence he always wore. His presence wasn't announced by sound—but by the sudden unease in the air, as if the night itself recoiled from him.
He leaned in close to Adele and whispered, "Ma'am, it's time."
Adele's lips curled faintly, but the gleam in her eyes could've frozen blood.
"Oh?" she murmured, her voice calm yet threaded with steel. "Finally."
Major Radii, noticing the subtle shift in her tone, stepped closer with a frown. "What happened, Lady Lela? Any inconvenience? Are the products not to your satisfaction?"
"No," she replied flatly. "The goods are fine. But it seems we have… mice sniffing around."
