While Athrun was still lost in his tangled thoughts, Flay had already happily stepped forward and tightly embraced Lacus.
"Lacus, you look so beautiful~!"
"Thank you~"
Following Flay's lead, Athrun and the others around them also stepped forward to offer a few formal words of congratulations.
However, since none of them were particularly close to Lacus, they only exchanged a couple of sentences before leaving the backstage area.
...
In the special VIP seating area of the opera hall, Fred surveyed the lively scene before him, his eyes sweeping across the venue.
The lineup in the special VIP section for Lacus's first concert was nothing short of extravagant.
Siegel was, of course, present. Lenore, whom he hadn't seen in a long time, had also come. Surrounding Siegel were high-ranking members of the Clyne Faction and some neutral factions.
As for the Zala Faction, only Lenore was present.
The Clyne Faction, however, had a much larger turnout.
Although most of those who came had no role in the original storyline, they were all genuinely influential figures of significant status.
With Fred's arrival, the gazes of everyone in the special VIP section instinctively turned in his direction.
Most people didn't recognize the masked young man.
After all, aside from his research, Fred maintained an astonishingly low profile.
It was only natural that most unrelated individuals hadn't heard of him.
The question on everyone's mind was: which faction did this unfamiliar, seemingly very young man belong to? And what was his identity?
Surely, he couldn't be Lacus's little boyfriend, could he?
As several people pondered this, members of the Clyne Faction also glanced toward Siegel.
Siegel, however, merely gave a slight nod in Fred's direction.
In contrast, Lenore from the Zala Faction walked over to stand beside the masked young man.
Seeing this, everyone grew even more curious.
Was he from the Zala Faction? But they hadn't heard of him.
He couldn't possibly be Zala's illegitimate child, could he?
"Yuri, who is that?"
Irene Kanaba couldn't help but ask her colleague beside her.
Although she didn't know who he was, it was a fact that children from several families were accompanying him.
Otherwise, they wouldn't be so curious.
"Uh..."
Yuri felt a bit awkward upon hearing the question.
After all, directly stating it was confidential might only pique their curiosity further.
After a moment's thought, Yuri quickly came up with an idea and said,
"He's their tutor."
"A tutor?"
Hearing this, several people nodded in understanding.
That would explain it.
After all, it made sense for Lacus to invite her tutor to her performance.
"But a tutor can come here too? What does he teach?"
"Uh... combat?"
Caught off guard by the follow-up question, Yuri could only brace himself and answer.
At the same time, his gaze shifted somewhat guiltily toward Siegel.
"Combat? What?!"
Someone caught on, realizing that if this were the case, then Lacus must also be learning combat.
A princess? Learning combat?
What was the point of that?
With this thought, everyone's eyes on Fred grew a few shades more peculiar.
As for Yuri, under Siegel's helpless gaze, he raised his eyes high, looking up at the sky with an expression of speechlessness.
He was just telling the truth—it really wasn't his fault.
Meanwhile, Fred, unaware of the commotion his presence had caused, was chatting with Lenore, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.
"Aunt Lenore, what brings you here?"
Fred asked curiously.
"I happened to have some free time recently with no urgent experiments."
"And it's all thanks to you."
Lenore smiled, then quickly added.
"But aren'tt you going to go over and greet them?"
As she spoke, she tilted her chin toward the direction of several Clyne Faction councilors.
"Given my position, it wouldn't be appropriate."
Hearing this, Fred shook his head.
Earlier, when Siegel greeted him from afar, it was clear he had no intention of introducing him to others.
Even if Siegel had intended to, Fred would have declined anyway.
Generally speaking, knowing more people does expand one's network, but since he already had connections with Siegel, Lacus, and others, there wasn't much point in seeking out their subordinates.
Moreover, getting to know them might even make others wary of him, which would be even less meaningful.
So Fred was content to keep things simple.
Hearing this, Lenore's smile widened slightly.
Fred, as always, knew exactly where he stood.
It made Shiva's worries seem a bit unnecessary.
"You're right about that."
"But what about the agriculture matter? Did he mention it to you?"
"Yes."
Although Lenore didn't specify, Fred understood she was referring to Patrick's earlier remarks.
"I'll try to persuade him. Now isn't the time to make it public."
Lenore shook her head.
Clearly, she didn't want to see tensions escalate because of her research.
"Thank you for your trouble."
Fred lowered his gaze and said.
Lenore had a gentle temperament, much like a brake for Patrick.
With her around, Patrick probably wouldn't do anything too extreme.
Hopefully, that would be the case.
But placing all hope in others was foolish, so he needed to take precautions on his end as well.
The two didn't talk for long before returning to their respective seats. Athrun and the others also went back to their parents, leaving only Fred and Flay sitting in the corner.
"It's a shame Mom and Dad couldn't come."
Flay looked at the grand scene before her, her voice tinged with regret.
"There's no helping it. Too many eyes around."
Flay hadn't made many public appearances, and he wore a mask, but their parents were different—they had left traces in the past.
Living in the Plantation was fine, but going outside might lead to them being recognized.
Although the Plantation was vast and fully equipped, allowing ordinary people to stay there for a lifetime, it was still a limitation.
That was why he needed to dismantle Blue Cosmos even more urgently.
Only then would they truly regain their freedom.
"But it won't last much longer."
Fred said earnestly.
"Mhm..."
Seeing Fred's expression, Flay nodded along.
She continued softly.
"Brother... I'm sorry."
Thinking about her poor performance when piloting the Powered Armor earlier, Flay's eyes reddened slightly.
"It's alright. It's generally difficult to pilot."
Fred affectionately patted the girl's head, then added.
"Flay can start by practicing basic piloting skills for Mobile Armors and MS. When the time comes, you'll naturally be able to pilot them."
Of course, even as he said this, Fred only hoped his sister would have the ability to protect herself, not to participate in war.
But he didn't voice any of that.