With the help of the unmanned car from Heliopolis, Zhou Tianming quickly located the area where Kira frequented.
Athrun, watching from the side, looked delighted. "Brother Tianming, hurry up."
"What's the rush?" Zhou Tianming said impatiently. "Look at the time. Let's rest first and go tomorrow."
"Ah~" Athrun's face fell. "It's not that late."
"Applying for port entry takes time. This is Orb's satellite."
Hearing this, Athrun glared fiercely at Heliopolis.
Zhou Tianming's gaze shifted back and forth between the two.
Was this the worldline converging?
Heliopolis was ultimately going to be destroyed by Athrun.
This probably isn't my fault, right?
He suddenly felt both amused and exasperated.
"Go rest. We'll try to find Kira's house early tomorrow and give him a surprise."
"Mm-hmm!" Athrun nodded repeatedly and turned to leave the Bridge.
As the door opened, he happened to meet Lacus who was about to enter.
"Hello," Athrun said somewhat awkwardly, averting his gaze from Lacus's face. "How's Mom?"
"Aunt Lenore has gone to rest. She asked me to tell you to get some sleep early."
"Thank you, I'll go right away."
After speaking, he quickly left.
Zhou Tianming shrank back in the captain's seat, peeking over the headrest to watch the scene.
Lacus looked over. "What are you looking at?"
He pouted, looking bored. "Nothing."
"I feel like you're thinking about something related to me."
Zhou Tianming narrowed his eyes.
So perceptive.
Is this an effect of the Coordinator talent?
"Not at all, I was just curious. Your families should have a good relationship, right? Why aren't you two close at all?"
"Just because Dad and Uncle Patrick get along well doesn't mean we're close. Athrun hasn't spent much time in PLANT anyway." Thinking about it, that seemed to be true.
Feeling bored, Zhou Tianming sat up straight and began studying improvements to the Pilot Suit.
Lacus walked over and curiously peeked at what he was doing. After watching for a while, she looked away. "Brother Tianming, aren't you going to rest?"
"I'm on duty. I'll rest later."
"On duty?" Lacus tilted her head. "But there's White Rabbit."
His movements paused. Zhou Tianming smiled faintly, a nostalgic expression appearing on his face. "Someone once told me this is a good habit that should be maintained whenever possible."
"Did your girlfriend say that?" Lacus asked with a smile, curious. "What is she like?"
Turning to look at Lacus, he raised his hand and pushed her forehead. "Don't go prying into adults' love lives, kid. Go to sleep."
"Hmph!" Swaying slightly from the push, Lacus let out an unhappy hum before turning to leave."
At 2 a.m., Zhou Tianming completed the improvements to the Pilot Suit.
The inspiration for this suit didn't come from himself, but from theories found in East Asia's technology database.
Just a few years ago he'd been complaining about East Asia's lack of super-technology, but once his [Psycommu System] was uploaded, East Asia suddenly exploded with numerous derivative theories like they'd been injected with adrenaline.
Their progress along the Mental Power technology tree grew as rapidly as if they were cheating.
It made Zhou Tianming suspect that East Asia might have conducted prior research, though he couldn't find any evidence.
Eventually, he could only attribute it to this world's East Asia having high compatibility with the [Psycommu System]—the two were perfectly matched.
The prototype of this pilot suit was based on a theory: if Mental Power could negate damage, could it also counteract G-force bodily harm? Was there a way to alter the judgment conditions for Mental Power?
After reading this, Zhou Tianming immediately knew the idea was correct—[Iron Wall] could indeed block damage from G-forces. However, the judgment conditions for the [Mental Resistance Device] weren't that broad and required Zhou Tianming to fine-tune them gradually.
By personally comparing differences through using [Iron Wall], he identified the judgment point in less than 100 attempts.
During this mission piloting the Vermilion Bird, he performed a series of complex maneuvers and also measured the Mental Power consumption.
The pilot suit was basically complete. He had no intention of participating in further refinements—such work requiring extensive data and testing could be left to East Asia while he waited to reap the benefits.
With his tasks finished, Zhou Tianming felt somewhat tired.
"White Rabbit, once the application is complete, dock yourself and handle the procedures."
"Understood."
"How much did you pay Kira?" Zhou Tianming asked curiously before leaving.
"Nothing," White Rabbit declared righteously. "As the operation champion, what's wrong with asking them for a favor?"
Zhou Tianming gave a thumbs-up: "White Rabbit, when it comes to being stingy, I declare you the strongest!"
"Thank you, I learned from the master."
"Don't pin that on me, spare me please."
The next morning around 9 AM, guided by Athrun's Kira radar, a group found their way to his new home.
When Caridad opened the door and saw Zhou Tianming's face, she immediately turned and rushed to the kitchen to grab a kitchen knife.
Raising his hands, Zhou Tianming faced the others' gazes with a helpless expression: "I really didn't do anything, believe me."
Athrun: "Liar!"
Lacus: "Brother Tianming must have done something bad."
He looked at Lenore with hopeful eyes.
Lenore: "I'll help explain things to Caridad for you, don't worry."
Caridad had been extremely tense, but upon seeing Lenore she looked completely bewildered, then hastily put away the knife when she noticed the two children.
After explanations were given, Caridad's face turned bright red, and she hung her head, not daring to look at Zhou Tianming.
"Am I really that scary? You dislike me this much?"
"I was just afraid you might go crazy."
Patting his chest: "Minor issue, mostly resolved now."
Caridad sighed in relief: "That's good, but I still hope you won't disturb Kira unnecessarily."
The other three showed curiosity at their conversation but didn't press further.
Caridad proactively invited everyone to sit and chat about recent events.
The unwelcome Zhou Tianming sat in a corner, when an idea suddenly occurred to him.
"How about we..."
At 3 PM, Kira walked out of school with his backpack.
"Kira, want to hang out?"
With a gentle smile, Kira shook his head: "I need to go home and help Mom with grocery shopping. You guys have fun."
"Bye."
He waved goodbye.
His gaze swept the surroundings as Athrun's voice echoed in his mind: "I wonder how Athrun is doing. Will he be angry that I haven't contacted him for so long?" With a troubled expression, Kira walked along the path home.
Suddenly, he felt a prickling sensation on the back of his head, like being jabbed by a needle. He turned to scan the area.
People came and went behind him, but even upon closer inspection, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Caridad's warning resurfaced in his thoughts: "There's a terrible villain trying to capture you. That's why we had to move in such a hurry. Until it's safe, you mustn't contact anyone you know to avoid being found!"
Kira had initially thought his mother was making it up, but now... could it be true?
After one more glance behind him, Kira turned and broke into a run.
He hadn't gone far when that piercing gaze returned. He swiftly changed direction and ducked into a nearby alley.
Familiar with the area, he zigzagged through side streets and emerged onto another main road.
Yet before long, he felt the gaze again.
Turning to look, he spotted a figure clad entirely in black—wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a mask—standing across the street.
Though the sunglasses obscured the person's eyes, Kira was certain they were watching him.
As people passed between them, the black-clad figure vanished in the blink of an eye.
Kira scanned the area but couldn't find the person. Remembering Caridad's warning, he hurried home.
Arriving at his building, Kira looked up at his apartment window and his heart sank—the curtains were drawn tightly shut.
Rushing upstairs, he found the door slightly ajar, darkness looming within.
His heart raced with anxiety, but he stayed silent. Slinging his backpack over one shoulder, he slipped sideways through the doorway.
"Kira Yamato."
A low voice suddenly spoke from behind him.
Turning, he saw the black-clad figure standing outside the door, watching him through the narrow opening.
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