Mission 86 (
Summary[]
Fiona knows Loid is lying about his feelings
After defeating Winston, Fiona prepares to move in for the kill but is stopped by Loid, who has just come to. After they tie up the unconscious Winston, Fiona worries about when exactly he woke up and if he heard her speech about her love for him to Winston, grimacing in embarrassment at the thought of it. On the other hand, Loid sees Fiona's upset look and assumes it is because he lost, and he admits that he might be losing his edge. Fiona asks if the wound on his arm was from Winston, but Loid states that it was from Yuri, who he says he was unable to finish off due to how it could affect Yor and hinder Operation Strix. Knowing that he framed his analysis as part of the operation so she could not object to it, Fiona thinks to herself how Loid played dirty.
Loid and the WISE Agent carry Fiona and Winston out of the sewers
With the SSS approaching at any time, Loid wants to leave but cannot carry both Winston and the injured Fiona. Suddenly, Gascoigne appears behind Loid, but it is quickly revealed to be the WISE Agent who has arrived to help. Exiting the sewers, the Agent carries Winston while Loid carries Fiona on his back. While the two banter, Fiona internally screams to herself about being carried by Twilight.
The WISE agents leave Shellbury undetected and discuss how they have succeeded in protecting their country's intelligence assets in Ostania by catching Wheeler, although it was not a clean win after losing their mole in the SSS. The Agent invites Loid out for a drink when they return to Berlint, but Loid declines, explaining that he left home under the pretext of a work emergency and must be home soon. He shares with the other agents his squabble with Yor, saying he is having trouble reading her feelings. Sensing an opportunity to steal the wife role, Fiona proposes going home with Loid, but she is quickly shut down because of her injuries and sent home.
Yor welcomes Loid home
Returning home, Loid thinks about how long of a day he has had, then shifts his focus to worrying about how to handle Yor's grievances. To his surprise, Yor welcomes him home with a smile, which relieves Loid so much that he falls to his knees. After making up an excuse for his facial injuries, Loid asks about Anya, who Yor says fell asleep as soon as she got home after having so much fun and suggests Loid do the same. Wanting to correct what happened earlier that day, Loid tries to apologize to Yor for his failings, but she explains that she only made up gripes to appear normal to her co-workers. Astounded, Loid loses the energy to act or think and completely collapses to the ground.
The weary Loid asks Yor to take over his share of housework for the next two days, which she happily agrees to. Loid asks why she is so happy, and Yor tells him that what she really wants is to be able to take care of Loid and have him rely on her a little. She tells Loid that he does not have to be perfect all the time and admits to being happy when he asked her for help. While Loid thanks Yor for telling him that, he thinks to himself how he has become aware of his weaknesses and, after fighting Winston, reminds himself that he must be perfect in order to survive the world he lives in.
Yuri suspects Loid is Twilight
Suddenly, Yuri bursts in to see Yor, and Loid quickly gets up. After the men share their alibis for getting injured, Loid decides to make tea, but Yuri notices Loid's right arm twitch in pain, the same arm that he shot Twilight with. Remembering his theory that Twilight could be someone close to him, Yuri suspects Loid might be Twilight. He rushes to Loid, rolling up his sleeve and checking his arm, but finds nothing. As Yor questions his actions, Yuri backs off, remembering how Twilight has disguised as people Loid is not close to. After hurrying Yuri out of the house, Yor tells Loid to get a shower and rest, which he thanks her for.
"Pull yourself together!"
In the shower, it is revealed that Loid disguised his wound. Loid realizes Yuri must have figured out his injury just by watching him and that he cannot be underestimated. Loid reminds himself that once a seed of doubt takes root in someone else, it will spell the end for a spy, and he tells himself to pull himself together. Heading out of the bathroom, Loid smells something burning and worries that Yuri might have returned after acting on his suspicions. However, the burning was from Yor, who attempted to iron Loid's shirt but accidentally set it on fire. Thinking about how hopeless things might be after all, Loid collapses to the floor in exhaustion.
Characters[]
Trivia[]
- Yuri begins to suspect for the first time that Loid might be Twilight.
- In the volume release of this chapter, Yor's face is drawn slightly differently on page 17.
References[]