"Qin Fan, you're late, you know that?" Cleyna said sternly, hands on hips, eyeing Qin Fan loaded down with bags. The academy's military transports were limited. When she'd learned Qin Fan and Lixin were assigned to her squad, she'd been surprised—at first. She'd always worked solo. But she'd quickly snapped into action, contacting Qin Fan to arrive early for assembly.

Now, she'd claimed one transport, but hogging it alone wasn't fair. Other teams were waiting. Luckily, Qin Fan hadn't been too late—he'd arrived just before she'd given up.

Qin Fan carried a shocking amount of stuff, including a strange bundle slung over his shoulder, wrapped in a quilt. Cleyna rushed to help him load everything onto the plane, deciding to ask questions later.

Her ability made moving things effortless. The two of them finished quickly and boarded.

"Phew—this huge plane for just three people feels amazing," Qin Fan wiped his brow, tapped the cockpit glass, and called out, "Hey buddy, let's go!"

"Huh?"

As the plane began to rise slowly, Cleyna looked dumbfounded. "Why are we leaving? What about Lixin?"

"………………"

At that question, Qin Fan's smile froze. Resentment filled his hollow eyes. He kicked the quilt bundle.

"Ow!"

A yelp echoed. Lixin's messy head shot out from the quilt, glaring at Qin Fan with dreamy, furious eyes.

"What was that for?! First, you nearly shook me to death on your shoulder—I let that slide—but now you kick me?!"

So angry!

"My fault?!" Qin Fan snarled, his expression twisting as if on the verge of a mental breakdown.

"I started waking you at 6:30 AM! Kept at it till 7:30! You refused to get up. What else could I do but carry you out? Wrapping you in the quilt was me being nice!"

"Oh, really? Then did you pack my luggage properly?" Lixin shrugged it off. The kick hadn't hurt much. She couldn't be bothered to argue.

"Well, I..." Qin Fan blushed, stammering.

"Something's wrong..." Lixin's dull eyes sharpened instantly. Even Cleyna sensed trouble.

"Spill it. What shady thing did you do?" Cleyna edged closer. Qin Fan, guilty as charged, felt crushing pressure.

No way he'd tell them he'd... *heh*... handled Lixin's underwear while packing.

"Whatever. Qin Fan, hand me my uniform. I'm changing." Lixin was getting hot under the quilt. Time to "wake up" and dress. "Oh, and a bottle of mineral water. I need to rinse my mouth..."

"Right away!" Qin Fan seized the escape. His favorability and flattery level toward Lixin +10.

………………………………………………………………

"So, how long till we land? Why aren't we there yet?"

"Relax. Only four hours passed. As a wise elder said eighty years ago, we can keep going."

"………………One second later. Are we there now?"

"………………No."

"Ugh, stop nagging! Let me catch a nap..."

"Huh—"

The plane suddenly slowed.

"What's happening? Finally here?" Qin Fan snapped back to life, half-asleep moments before.

"Not quite..." Cleyna stayed calm, her face grim. "You've both flown transports before. Don't you know how landing feels?"

Right. So what was this? Trouble?

"Uh, students? We've got a problem. Brace yourselves." The pilot's voice crackled over the intercom.

Great. Real trouble.

*Click!*

The cockpit door opened. The anxious pilot stepped out. As he did, Qin Fan glimpsed explosions outside the glass.

NO!!!!

Why did this final mission go wrong mid-flight?!

"Intel didn't report combat here. The sky's full of enemy fighters and Preyas Battleships. I dodged as best I could, but we got caught." The pilot yanked the cabin door open. "I set auto-pilot—it'll hold a bit. We must bail now..."

*BANG!*

Before he finished, a laser blast hit the plane. The fire centered on the poor pilot.

NO!!!!

"What now?! The boss is dead, isn't he?!" Qin Fan panicked. Sure, 2077 transports couldn't be downed by one laser—but this was dangerously close.

"Easy. Just close your eyes, lie down, and wait. You won't feel a thing," Lixin said, utterly calm.

"We may have unbreakable friendship, but I refuse to join you in meeting the King of Hell... Go die alone, you jerk!"

Cleyna dashed into the cockpit. The controls were intact—for now. But outside, the grim scene screamed disaster.

This plane would definitely be shot down.

Unless they acted.

"Qin Fan! How's your ability recovery?" she yelled out.

"Not enough! I can only use eighty percent. Full recovery takes over a month!"

"How useless are you?! That long?!"

"Surviving that hit was pure luck, okay?!"

"No choice. Deploy your light shield now. Hold it as long as you can—or we're all dead!"

It was tough on him, but Qin Fan obeyed. Cleyna's power was useless here. He didn't trust Lixin either. Only he could do this.

As Qin Fan spread his arms, bathing the transport in dazzling gold light, Lixin abandoned her own plan. Shielding the plane herself would be too obvious. Better let Qin Fan handle it. She'd save her strength for emergencies.

Why so sure emergencies would come?

Qin Fan strained to block enemy fire and lasers. Outside, human air forces seemed wiped out. The massive cannons of the Preyas Battleships were swiveling—one by one—toward them.

Clearly, Qin Fan couldn't hold out much longer.