"We are also curious about this," Kewis said somberly, staring at Fernand, "Racial bonds, after all, outweigh everything..."
Fernand, puzzled, then with eyes wide open, exclaimed, "You suspect me?"
Connet frowned and scolded, "Kewis!"
Kewis shrugged, his expression becoming restrained, while Connet shook his head, "Misunderstanding, we do not suspect you, but we must thoroughly investigate inside the base."
Fernand’s gaze swept coldly over Kewis before he continued, "Only a handful of people know the specific action plans."
"No, on the way back, I’ve thought it through; indeed, only a handful of people know the specific action plans."
"But what if someone could collect lots of scattered information and piece it together?" Connet rubbed his fingers together, having clarified his thoughts, and was determined to find the leaker at all costs.
"They might not know exactly what we’re doing, but they could guess where we went. The last failed sacrifice, quite a few people inside the base knew about it."
Fernand was slightly stunned; for some reason, the image of Des unexpectedly popped into his mind!
"Hmm..." As he was speaking, Connet momentarily paused, looking through the window, he saw the surface of the distant planet - the clearly visible huge crater and the spread of the gorges. These weren’t there when they left.
"What happened there?" Connet asked with a frown. Fernand wanted to report about Des, but hearing the question, couldn’t help but snort coldly, "It’s the work of the Azure Dragon, only a couple of days after you left."
"Don’t know what got into him, he just blasted Brother to death."
"Blasted Brother to death?" Connet was suddenly shocked, even forgetful of the matter about the traitor, "He killed Brother?"
"Yes." Fernand still felt some trepidation as he spoke, "It was Brother, fully armed, wearing Des’s Mecha, and carrying custom-made Level A weapons."
"He didn’t even get a chance to fight back."
"That’s impossible!" Kewis immediately interrupted, his tattered black robe rustling, "With Brother in that state, he would be a match for Connet in arm-wrestling."
"See for yourself." Fernand, not wanting to elaborate further, threw over the recording of the battle.
"Eight Nanometer Energy Cannons?" Connet gasped at first glance.
To avoid the leakage of their whereabouts, they didn’t contact the base right away after their plan failed.
Instead, they returned covertly, but they never expected such a commotion within the base.
Kewis’s face was pensive, suddenly asking, "Are you saying, the Azure Dragon acted just a few days after Connet left?"
"Uh-huh." Fernand’s expression shifted slightly, "What are you implying?"
"Isn’t it too coincidental, is there a possibility that he knew Connet wasn’t at the base and thus dared to make such a fuss, or rather, he wanted to see if Connet was actually there?"
Kewis speculated boldly, "Azure Dragon, this mysterious and unpredictable Mechanic, he has the ability to contact the outside world, it seems quite normal."
Connet’s brow furrowed tight, Fernand’s expression was indescribable, then he shook his head, "On the contrary, it wasn’t Azure Dragon who instigated this."
"Hm?" Kewis hesitated, looking at Fernand.
Fernand brought up a new surveillance video, showing the scene of Brother fully armed, strutting back and forth in the corridor.
"It was obviously Brother provoking on purpose. If we follow your theory, actually the most suspicious is Des."
Fernand explained, "After Connet left, for three consecutive days, he requested to meet Connet, claiming he had critical issues to discuss face-to-face with Connet."
"According to your theory, actually, he was probing to see if Connet was really there."
"Actually, my biggest suspect is also him." Connet finally spoke, his gaze through the window settling on the distant planet’s surface, "Azure Dragon did us a favor, by killing Brother, Des is within our grasp."
"Des? Just a Mechanic." Kewis also revealed a vicious smile, "Does he really think he’s someone important?"
Seeing both of them furious, Fernand couldn’t help but interrupt them, then bravely said, "Gentlemen, there’s more bad news I haven’t had the chance to report yet."
"Just two days ago, Des... disappeared."
As the words fell, Connet’s face suddenly darkened, and a fiercely ominous aura burst from Kewis as he stared coldly at Fernand, "You’d better explain clearly, what do you mean disappeared."
"Gone means gone!" Fernand snorted coldly, then called Ted standing outside the door inside, asking him to explain the whole matter.
The atmosphere in the room was almost freezing, Ted felt a tingling on his scalp, but he still had to boldly clarify, "Three days ago..."
He recounted the rough details, during which the expressions of Connet and Kewis changed unpredictably.
"Impossible, is our main base some kind of a free-for-all place? Even if he’s a grand Mechanic, so what?" Kewis said angrily:
"To breakthrough layers of security, to disappear without a trace?"
Ambushed once, their plan failed, both were holding a grudge, wanting to find the leaker.
And now, upon their return, they discover that the prime suspect has vanished.
"Gone after the success?" Connet frowned, "Doesn’t seem right, if he really managed to leave here, it would imply that the base’s coordinates have been leaked, and Asimara would have already attacked us by now."
Fernand nodded, "Correct, there’s also this analysis from intelligence, so they believe he is actually hidden inside the base."