Chapter Ninety-Two: Katyusha and Cole

At 22:23:46 local time in the western region of the Eastern Alliance, an officer wearing the military uniform of the United Kingdom of Wales was walking alone down a corridor in an Eastern Alliance base. He seemed to be lost in thought, perhaps over tomorrow’s battle, perhaps over the political and military election in a few days’ time. Even so, he stopped abruptly before passing a certain door.

A nameplate at the entrance identified him as Major Thunder River. Clearly, the people of the Eastern Alliance did not yet know that he had already been promoted to colonel, but Thunder River himself had no wish to let them know too much about him. He used fingerprint recognition, and the heavy door slowly opened. At the same time, a special mist was sprayed onto the fingerprint scanner, forcibly erasing the print left on it, just as the door opened fully.

“Ha. What a nuisance. That familiar Northern Federation scent.”

As though he had caught some kind of odor, Thunder River walked inside with visible reluctance. He slipped out of the Welsh military uniform, and at the same time a pool of silver liquid flowed out and vanished.

Under the uniform, Thunder River wore what looked like an ordinary set of clothes, but if anyone were willing to test it with a gun, they would leave at most a faint white mark. “I should wash my face. No idea whether she’s already gone.” Thinking that, Thunder River opened the washroom door, only to frown at the sound of running water.

Inside stood a woman with dark gold hair, a nearly flawless face, and a figure so alluring it could tempt someone into crime.

“Oh? You’re back?”

Her tone was warm and familiar, as though she knew Thunder River very well. But he was unmoved. Calmly, he picked up a towel from the side and turned on the faucet.

“Yes. But why are you here?”

“Because Lord Cole is here, so I’m here too!”

As if it were perfectly natural, the woman answered with that casual explanation.

“I’m not Cole. I’m Thunder River, Major Thunder River of the United Kingdom.” Even while washing his face, Thunder River found time to answer. “And, Katerina, even if I were Cole, I seem to remember that we were never officially dating, were we?”

“Cole, you treated me like a little sister ten years ago, and now you’re denying me? I know you must have some unspeakable secret. I have one too, so…” “Ha. The Northern Federation’s polar goddess, I know that. But in your eyes, which matters more: the Northern Federation, or me?”

Thunder River lowered the towel. He forced the faucet to full blast, then plunged his head into the rushing water.

“Of course it is—”

That answer, he knew better than anyone. He remembered saying to her, “When you grow up, come find me in London. I love you, Katerina.”

So now she had come to find him. But what about him?

A scene flashed through his mind. In an airport, just before boarding, he held the young Katerina in his arms, kissed her gently, and before leaving he had “personally” spoken those words. And then—

“Hah... haah...!”

Thunder River jerked his head up from the water. His hair was now golden. An indescribable expression spread across his face, like the look of a person who has lost their memories suddenly recalling the past.

“Cole! Are you all right?”

Seeing Thunder River gasping for breath, Katerina no longer cared whether she was still in the shower. She seized a bath towel, wrapped it around herself, and even so, it could hardly hide her beautiful curves. She rushed to his side in a few steps and asked about his condition.

“I remember once, when I was in Israel, I suffered a serious injury. After that, even someone like me, born with eidetic memory, began to experience amnesia. So, I’m sorry, Katerina... I...”

Clutching the painful spot, Thunder River seemed to weaken, but Katerina supported her “Cole” with her left hand.

“I know. You told me those words. I don’t blame you. You’ve only become a little more like a normal person.”

That sentence, and the scene from that time, flashed through Cole’s mind again, making Thunder River’s pain even worse.

Yet Thunder River endured it. He simply said, in a light tone, “Let me take a quick shower and relax for a bit. Maybe I still need to think things over carefully...”

“Mm. All right then... Cole, do you remember The Cat That Wouldn’t Smile?”

Before leaving the washroom, Katerina whispered softly, “The Cat That Wouldn’t Smile?”

“A cartoon. An old anime. Make sure you watch the final episode of the first season!”

“The final episode of the first season?”

Seeing Katerina leave, Thunder River thought for a moment, and a tablet quietly appeared in his hand...

...

“If I’m not here anymore, if my existence becomes nothing but a memory, then senior will forget me! I don’t want that!”

...

“I don’t want that either. I don’t want what happened to Tsukiko to become just a memory. I want to deepen our feelings together. No matter what happens today, I’ll stay by the side of the most important person to me!”

...

“So that’s how it is...”

After watching that short segment, Thunder River seemed to understand something. “You didn’t want me to forget again? So that’s why you didn’t want to lose me.”

He opened the washroom door, now wearing fresh clothes he seemed to have taken from his wristwatch. His thoughtful expression suggested he had finally understood.

“Cole, you’re out?”

At the sound of her voice, Katerina hurried forward, only for Thunder River to pull her into his arms.

“Katerina, I’m sorry... I remember now...”

“Cole...”

Held in Cole’s embrace, Katerina suddenly became unlike her usual self, looking more like she had when she first met Cole, back at fifteen or sixteen.

“Because of this, I seem to have quite a few ‘girlfriends’.”

“I know. I’m the third one, right? Israel, the Kingdom of Krastan, the Northern Federation—that’s the order in which you studied abroad back then. Do you remember?”

Soothing Cole, Katerina slowly recounted the old days.

“I remember. But right now, I want to rest... My head doesn’t feel good. I need a proper rest.”

Having just endured that pain, Thunder River finally could not bear it any longer and fainted in Katerina’s arms. Very gently, Katerina laid him down on the bed.

“Sorry, Cole. Maybe tomorrow it’ll hurt a little. But this may be the only way to restore your memories...”

As she spoke, Katerina seemed to take out something. Even as a needle pierced something into the unconscious Cole, there was no visible reaction...

Maybe there was.

Today just happened to be an autumn outing, so I wrote part of this on the bus. Now I’m under the covers writing the final part. It’s so hot...