"Huh... Was that the Desert Tiger you just looked at?"
Xia Chuan was momentarily stunned before realizing that Lu Tianming's unintentional glance had fallen upon Andrew Waltfeld, who was hiding among the crowd.
Lao Lu noticed so quickly this time... He actually detected Tiger's presence before I did.
Lu Tianming nodded silently in response... He didn't know why, but he had recently developed an unusually sharp sensitivity toward others' gazes and surrounding dangers.
Am I about to awaken as a Newtype? Or is this actually spider-sense?
"...Hey, what are you standing around dumbfounded for? Do your job properly as a bodyguard, geez."
Seeing Lu Tianming lagging behind while lost in thought, Cagalli couldn't help complaining to him.
"Alright, alright—I'm coming right away."
Lu Tianming shrugged. Since this young lady hadn't noticed anything yet, he didn't offer any additional warnings and simply continued following her as her bodyguard.
As the figures of the three gradually disappeared into the distance, one of Andrew's trusted aides finally couldn't resist whispering:
"That pink-haired one over there... was that really Miss Lacus?"
"Took you long enough to notice."
Andrew laughed and tapped his slow-witted subordinate's head, though his eyes never left the retreating backs of the three.
"But Miss Lacus, wasn't she already..."
His aide asked in confusion. According to official PLANT reports, Lacus had been attacked by Naturals while traveling to a memorial service and her status remained unknown.
So how could she have returned from the dead and now appear on Earth, far from where the memorial service was held?
"Just take what the Zala faction says with a grain of salt. Whether Lacus is dead or alive—isn't the answer right before your eyes now?"
Andrew shook his head. He had never believed the reports of Lacus's death from the beginning... Seeing her with his own eyes only confirmed his suspicions.
"However... more than Lacus, I'm more interested in that young man. If I'm not mistaken, he should be the Strike Suit's pilot."
"Ah? That's him?"
The aide expressed surprise at this. How could he possibly have guessed that?
"...After all, ordinary people wouldn't be able to detect my presence with just one glance."
Andrew smiled... He had merely been sitting there and curiously glanced in their direction when the other party sensed it and looked back.
With that level of observational skill, he definitely wasn't an ordinary person.
Plus, that blonde girl beside her had been seen in the resistance's War Machine before... So the identity of that young man acting as a "bodyguard" was already quite obvious.
"But... if he detected your surveillance, why didn't he leave? Instead, he continued shopping and walking around as if nothing happened?"
"Either it means he's confident he can safely escape from here, or... he simply has no intention of running and is waiting for me to come find him."
Andrew replied, not believing that the Strike Suit pilot was unaware of Lacus's identity and status.
And knowing full well Lacus's standing, he still dared to bring her here... It could only mean one thing.
He was actively seeking him out.
"Since the young man has extended an invitation... I can't very well decline."
With that, Andrew stood up, his eyes filled with nothing but curiosity and anticipation.
————————————————
Lu Tianming deeply suspected that his job, written as "bodyguard," was practically read as "manual labor."
As Cagalli and Lacus shopped their way through the streets, they amassed countless purchases—aside from the few items Cagalli carried in her own bag, the rest were all lugged or stuffed into various large and small bags by Lu Tianming.
Lu Tianming felt that if his current state were put into a mecha battle game, he'd probably qualify as a "Full Armor Mode."
Xia Chuan, who had been watching the spectacle through his glasses, was practically laughing the whole way. After all, nothing was more satisfying than seeing a good friend in a tough spot.
If there was anything better, it was being able to laugh as freely as he wanted without his friend being able to talk back.
Seeing that the final item had been purchased, Cagalli looked at Lu Tianming, who was covered in packages, and couldn't help but burst out laughing. With a tone that held a hint of insincere apology, she said:
"Pfft... Sorry, it's rare that we get to go out, so I thought I'd buy a bit more. Looks like it might be a little too much, though."
"You're not doing this on purpose, are you?"
Lu Tianming let out a light sigh and shot Cagalli an unamused glare.
The main issue was that she really had been shopping according to a list, so Lu Tianming couldn't really say anything about it.
"Mr. Lu... are you okay? I can carry some of these, actually..."
Lacus, seeing Lu Tianming buried in packages, grew a bit worried and asked gently, reaching out to take a few of the bags from him to lighten his load.
"It's fine, I can handle it."
Lu Tianming shook his head. Strictly speaking, the number of packages wasn't excessive. It was just that there were many different types, split into numerous small bags, making it seem like more than it was.
At least he wasn't so desperate as to need Lacus's help...
"Alright, alright, since you've worked hard today, how about I treat you to a meal?"
Cagalli, seeing Lu Tianming's miserable expression, patted him on the shoulder and said with a laugh.
She knew he had endured quite a bit along the way, so she decided to compensate him a little.
As she spoke, she headed toward a restaurant by the street. Without even glancing at the menu, she called out familiarly:
"Boss, three servings of Turkish kebabs, please—"
Judging by her familiarity... she had probably eaten at this restaurant many times before.
But the owner, upon hearing Cagalli's order, looked somewhat troubled:
"Sorry, you three... we're full at the moment. Would you like to wait, or perhaps share a table with someone else?"
"Huh? But there are seats over there, aren't there?"
Cagalli pointed puzzledly to a spot in the restaurant where an empty round table with four chairs stood—just enough for the three of them, with one to spare.
"That... has been reserved."
The owner's tone grew even more hesitant at this, as if there were something he found difficult to say.
Seeing that there were indeed no available seats, Cagalli didn't overthink it and simply sighed:
"...I see. Then there's no other choice. We'll have to find another place."
"Hey now, don't give up so quickly."
Just as Cagalli was about to turn and leave, a voice suddenly came from behind her. It was none other than the Desert Tiger - Andrew Waltfeld.
Like Lu Tianming, he was wearing sunglasses, so Cagalli didn't recognize him immediately.
He smiled and patted the shop owner's shoulder before turning to the three of them:
"That empty seat was reserved by me. With the three of you and me, we'll just fill up the table. Would you mind sharing a table?"
As he spoke, his eyes drifted toward Lu Tianming, trying to gauge the other's attitude through two pairs of sunglasses.
But as it turned out, the barrier of two pairs of sunglasses was too thick - he couldn't discern anything at all.
Cagalli looked at Lacus and Lu Tianming, and seeing that neither had any objections, she accepted Tiger's invitation to share the table.
After the four sat down at the table, the shop owner nervously hurried off to prepare their meals, leaving the four waiting for their food.
Noticing the somewhat dull atmosphere, Andrew observed the three and started a conversation:
"You three don't look like locals, especially these two over here. Judging by your skin tone, you're probably from temperate regions or Cosmic dwellers?"
Cagalli had been staying here long enough to get some sun - but Lu Tianming and Lacus' skin was indeed noticeably fairer compared to the locals.
"If you're not local residents, yet buying so many supplies... what are you planning to do?"
"Just travelers. Desert cities are rare, so we thought we'd stock up on supplies here."
Tianming smiled, then added meaningfully:
"...And while we're at it, learn about the local customs and try to make some friends."
"Making friends here isn't a good choice. We're in the middle of a war situation - you could be in danger at any moment?"
Andrew probed further - Tianming's meaning was clear enough; this guy had come specifically to 'make friends' with him.
And his response carried its own implication - "What makes you think you can sit as my equal, rather than me simply swallowing you up?"
"There's always risk when making friends. But we have our own ways of dealing with it... for example, we're quite good at sensing danger before it arrives."
As he spoke, Tianming slightly lowered his sunglasses, revealing his eyes while giving a meaningful glance to the side.
Andrew followed his gaze and was suddenly shocked - a group of armed militants had gathered on a building opposite them, preparing to launch an attack!
"Get down!"
Tianming's smiling expression vanished, replaced by a serious look as he slammed his hand on the table, flipping it upright. He quickly grabbed both Lacus and Cagalli, pulling them behind the table.
The Desert Tiger wisely took cover behind the table as well. Before Cagalli and Lacus could even voice their questions, an explosion erupted outside their cover, followed immediately by a barrage of gunfire.
Cagalli was momentarily stunned... What was happening? How dare anyone launch a terrorist attack in Tiger's territory?
"It seems you're quite perceptive, young man... I wonder how well you handle crises?"
"That depends on how many friends I have around!"
Upon hearing this, Andrew smiled faintly... then without hesitation drew two guns from his waist - one for himself, and the other tossed to Lu Tianming.
...Friends have helped all they could, now let them see what level of power you can demonstrate!
After catching the gun, Lu Tianming just released the safety and prepared to rely on his crisis intuition to wreak havoc, when he heard Xia Chuan shout beside him:
"Alright! Tactical visor activated, go on a killing spree bro!"
Then Lu Tianming saw the view through his sunglasses transform... Through Xia Chuan's incredible power, his vision became like having full map awareness - every enemy's position was clearly marked... There were even moving red triangles at the edges of his vision, indicating enemies outside his direct line of sight.
With both crisis intuition and tactical visor - one offensive and one defensive advantage - gathered upon him, Lu Tianming now felt an unprecedented sense of security.
A slight smile curled at the corner of his mouth as he made a rare exception, responding to Xia Chuan's support with a laugh:
"Perfect timing!"