Chapter 44

Mission 44 (: 44) is the forty-fourth chapter of the SPY x FAMILY manga, written and illustrated by Tatsuya Endo. It was released on April 19, 2021.

Summary
The Thorn Princess and her colleague arrive at a garden maintained by the Shopkeeper. While she takes a moment to smell the flowers, the Shopkeeper decides to test her instincts. After successfully dodging the attack, he apologizes for his sudden attack but is satisfied that her reflexes have not dulled. Shopkeeper then briefs Yor on her latest assignment, the protection of a lady and her child aboard the cruise ship Princess Lorelei.

After explaining the background and what the assignment entails, the Thorn Princess hesitates to take on the job as she worries about her cover at work and home. However, Garden has already prepared a cover story that she is there as part of her work. With her mind at rest, the Thorn Princess gladly accepts the assignment.

On her way back home, Yor runs into Yuri, who is dozing off on the subway. She approaches him and wonders out loud why he is on a route that he usually does not ride, for which Yuri explains that he is on his way back from a work trip (but was actually arresting a dissident). She then invites him over for dinner, but he declines. Yor asks Yuri if he is taking care of himself, to which he reassures her that he is not a child anymore and can also be relied on. The siblings bid goodbye as Yuri gets off his stop, but he runs after the train in tears as it moves away. Yor thinks about how Yuri is all grown-up now and wonders to herself, because he no longer needs her help, why she is keeping her assassin job.

Meanwhile, Central Mall is hosting their biannual mega raffle, with the grand prize being a pair of tickets for a voyage on a cruise ship. Having completed their shopping, Anya notices the raffle and asks Loid for the raffle ticket they have earned to try her luck. As Anya queues for the raffle, she discovers through her telepathy that the person in charge of the event has rigged it after sticking the winning ticket to the top of the raffle box. With this information in mind, Anya pulls out the winning ticket.

At home, Anya happily parades the tickets she won as Yor arrives home. Loid suggests Yor go with Anya because he has work, but after seeing the tickets, Yor reveals she is already going on the same boat as part of her work trip. Reading Yor's thoughts that the family's presence there might complicate her assassin job, Anya contemplates going on the trip. Reasoning that she can help Yor with her job, Anya ultimately decides that she wants to go, throwing a tantrum. Loid reluctantly agrees to ask if he can get time off his work. When he does, he is surprised that Sylvia accepts his request and makes arrangements to get him time off from the hospital as well, then tells him to consider the vacation another mission.

The big day arrives, and the Forgers make their way to the port by train, leaving Bond at home with Franky. Anya is excited about their trip, while Yor feels she would enjoy it if she was not there for her job. However, she ponders making this the Thorn Princess' final job. The Forgers arrive at the port, and Anya is amazed by the size of Princess Lorelei. Before meeting with her colleagues, Yor says farewell to Loid and Anya, promising to contact them when she can.

The chapter closes as passengers board the boat with shadowy figures among them.

Trivia

 * This chapter is the first official introduction to the Shopkeeper, who, until this chapter, has been mentioned by Yor and only interacted with her through phone calls.
 * In the original digital release of this chapter, Leonardo Hapoon had a different hairstyle. For the release of Volume 7, his hair was made longer.