It was evident that after hearing the names Cagalli and Kisaka, the ORB official responsible for communicating with the Archangel showed a noticeably odd expression.
To be honest, Kisaka's presence was somewhat inconsequential... After all, ORB might have issues with military branches, and the navy welcoming them might not recognize Kisaka from the army.
But Cagalli... probably no one in ORB was unfamiliar with her.
As the Prime Minister's daughter, even if people hadn't seen what she actually looked like, most would have heard her name through various news reports.
Sure enough, when Cagalli rushed to the Bridge and revealed her identity, ORB quickly completed the identity verification for the Archangel and smoothly granted them passage.
With everything settled, Cagalli turned and left with a refreshingly straightforward demeanor, giving off the impression of someone who had accomplished their task and quietly withdrawn.
"I thought it was something serious... Turns out it was just this minor issue."
Cagalli let out a light sigh and spoke casually to Lu Tianming, who had walked out with her.
She had hurried over immediately after hearing from Miriallia that Lu Tianming urgently needed her, without even asking for details... only to find out upon arrival that he just needed to borrow her identity.
She had thought it was something major.
At this thought, Cagalli fell silent for a moment before curiously turning to Lu Tianming:
"Speaking of which... when did you figure out my identity? Since you thought of coming to me right away, you must have known all along, right?"
Cagalli looked at Lu Tianming with curiosity... Could he have discovered her identity back in the desert? Was that why he set ORB as the next destination, intending to bring her aboard?
"Who knows? I've known for a long time anyway."
Lu Tianming smiled mysteriously. He couldn't very well say—he had known her true identity even before meeting her.
That would sound a bit too creepy, making him seem like some kind of strange stalker.
"Fine, keep it to yourself... It's not like I care that much anyway."
Cagalli snorted lightly and turned away with a hint of tsundere.
To be honest, even if he had deliberately chosen ORB as the destination to trick her into boarding the ship, it didn't matter—she hadn't joined the ship for ORB's sake in the first place.
She genuinely wanted to see for herself... how Lu Tianming planned to achieve the peace he spoke of.
She wanted to know just how many profound thoughts Lu Tianming still hadn't shared with her.
"By the way, we're almost home... How do you feel about it?"
"Not great."
At the mention of this topic, Cagalli couldn't help but sigh deeply, her previously imposing demeanor vanishing completely as she slumped down like a deflated balloon.
Whenever family matters came up, she couldn't help but feel troubled... She had originally run off to the Desert Tiger out of anger after disagreeing with her father, and now, after all this time, she was circling back home.
It was just frustrating.
The thought of seeing her father again, likely leading to another round of arguments, made her heart ache.
But she also knew she probably couldn't hide outside forever... which left her feeling quite conflicted.
"Still... thanks to you and Lacus, I'm no longer the person I used to be. If that old man wants to argue with me again, I'm confident I can leave him speechless."
Cagalli seemed to recall something and let out a light laugh... a peculiar confidence flashing in her eyes.
"Oh? That confident?"
Lu Tianming raised an eyebrow at Cagalli's words.
"I've learned quite a bit from you and Lacus after all... If I remained as naive as I was at the beginning, wouldn't your efforts have been wasted?"
Remembering how politically inexperienced she had appeared when first interacting with Lu Tianming... Cagalli momentarily felt like her embarrassing past was being exposed.
"Well then, I'll look forward to seeing your results... If you lose the argument, remember to come find me and Lacus. We'll help you review what went wrong."
Lu Tianming teased with a laugh, while genuinely feeling some anticipation... wondering if this silly girl could actually win a verbal battle against her father after his tutelage.
Who would prevail between Cagalli, who had received proper political education, and the seasoned politician from the SEED world?
For a moment, Lu Tianming felt like he was watching... electronic cricket fights?
————————————
Guided by the ORB navy, the Archangel gradually docked at the port and established contact with the shore.
After their long voyage, Kira and others received permission to return home and visit their families—they were originally residents of ORB, having only been studying at Heliopolis previously, with their parents still living in ORB territory.
Upon hearing this news, Sai and several others immediately became excited, rushing off the Archangel to meet their respective parents under ORB personnel's guidance.
Even Kira rarely emerged from the hangar, joining his friends to find their families.
Watching Kira's cheerful figure disappearing into the distance, Lu Tianming suddenly remembered... the current Kira still didn't know about his origins, unaware of anything about being the Ultimate Coordinator or Ulen Hibiki's involvement, still simply believing that the Yamato couple who adopted him were his real parents.
Moreover... due to changes in the timeline, he might never even encounter these matters in this lifetime.
But Lu Tianming thought this was just fine—this way Kira wouldn't need to get involved in messy conflicts, and could continue living happily with his "complete" family.
This was probably what his mother had hoped for when entrusting him to the Yamato couple.
"Tianming, I remember you were also a soldier from Heliopolis... isn't your family here?"
Noticing Lu Tianming wearing sunglasses while watching Kira and the others depart, Mu found his silhouette inexplicably lonely and approached to pat his shoulder with the question.
"No, my home is very far away... I probably won't have a chance to return anytime soon."
Lu Tianming shook his head and replied with a smile, though his tone inevitably carried some sorrow.
While Kira now had his complete family, he... might never have another chance to see his own relatives in this lifetime.
The barrier between worlds stood firm. If the miracle of crossing couldn't occur again, it truly meant he had bid eternal farewell to his family from the previous life.
At this thought, he couldn't help but feel somewhat desolate... and sorrowful.
As if sensing Lu Tianming's low spirits through their connection, Xia Chuan let out a soft sigh and comforted him through the glasses near his ear.
"Look on the bright side... at least you didn't cross over to this side alone, right?"
Xia Chuan's tone was uncharacteristically free of his usual flippancy and teasing, instead genuinely filled with concern.
He rarely spoke his mind directly, but that didn't mean he was incapable of doing so.
Hearing Xia Chuan's words, Lu Tianming simply smiled and lightly tapped the temple of the glasses—a gesture roughly equivalent to nodding.
That guy Xia Chuan was right... at least he hadn't come to this unfamiliar world alone.
At least he still had a good brother like Xia Chuan, someone who was like... 'family'.