Chapter 289: Winds of Change (Part 4)

"Alright, ahead is Athrun Zala's room. Here is the key card. For what comes next, I ask that you play the role of his fiancée well."

In the hotel corridor late at night, Meer stared blankly at the room card in her hand, the "mission" her agent had just assigned echoing in her ears.

She knew very well that she could never resist the Chairman's will.

Tonight, she was destined to enter this room. But as her hand gripped the card, she couldn't help but let the image of that gentle, music-loving green-haired boy flash through her mind.

That was... the first mission the Chairman had ever given her.

The first time she met that green-haired boy was in a sterile hospital room. He had been sitting listlessly on the bed, his eyes devoid of any life.

His forearms, having just been fitted with prosthetics, were still in the observation period and lacked artificial skin; the somewhat gruesome mechanical limbs formed a stark contrast with the boy's delicate face.

In an instant, it stirred a boundless sense of pity in her heart.

And so, she accepted that mission without a hint of resistance, helping the boy named Nicol Amalfi find his footing once more.

Appearing in the image of Lacus Clyne—with the same appearance and the same voice—Meer easily gained Nicol's trust.

By focusing on Nicol's love for music, Meer gradually helped him step out of his psychological shadow bit by bit. In the process, she keenly sensed the love for Lacus Clyne hidden deep within Nicol's heart.

It was said that he had suffered such grievous injuries on the battlefield while trying to save his good friend Athrun. At that time, did this delicate, gentle boy harbor a sliver of guilt and relief in his heart when he took that action?

Without realizing it, Meer Campbell felt a spark of curiosity toward this boy.

Perhaps it was the trickery of fate, or perhaps everything was within the Chairman's expectations.

During their time together, as she helped Nicol emerge from his shadow, the two of them—sharing the same love for music—unwittingly developed a different kind of ambiguous affection.

And once Nicol successfully emerged from his shadow, he naturally came into contact with the Chairman, becoming yet another tool in the Chairman's arsenal.

Admittedly, some might think a mere disabled boy wasn't worth such calculation by the Chairman.

But it could not be denied that Nicol's father was indeed a man of brilliant talent.

Even after losing his seat on the Council following the war, this man's status in the PLANT scientific community remained unshakable.

He had personally developed the Neutron Jammer to seal away the demons, then developed the Neutron Jammer Canceller to break that seal, and finally developed the Neutron Stampeder to prevent the Alliance's sudden nuclear attack on PLANT after the war began.

It is no exaggeration to say that this was a man who held the most powerful weapons of mass destruction in human history in the palm of his hand.

By assisting Nicol in stepping out of his shadow and bringing him into the fold, the Chairman gained the support of the scientific faction led by the former Councilor Amalfi.

As for the talent Nicol displayed after recovering, that was merely an unexpected bonus, and the Chairman was happy to go with the flow and grant Nicol a certain status.

But, all in all, Meer Campbell, as a tool, had indeed performed in a way that satisfied the Chairman.

And now, under the Chairman's control, she was continuing with her next mission.

Taking a deep breath, she reined in the emotions belonging to Meer Campbell and, with the same composure as Lacus Clyne, pushed open Athrun's door.

The next morning, Shihe, who was staying in the room next to Athrun, pushed open her door with a weary expression.

Although the hotel environment was indeed much better than on the Minerva, she hadn't been able to get any good rest, having spent the entire night thinking about Li Boyong.

Just then, Cagalli happened to run into Lunamaria and Nicol coming around the corner.

"Yo, Cagalli, you don't look so good," Lunamaria said with concern upon seeing Cagalli's exhausted face.

"I'm fine, just couldn't sleep after changing environments," Shihe replied, then looked toward Nicol. "Nicol, why are you here?"

"I was planning to call Athrun for breakfast, and I just happened to run into Lunamaria, so we came together," Nicol said, gesturing to Lunamaria. "Speaking of which, is Athrun up yet?"

"I don't know, there hasn't been any movement this morning," Shihe shook her head, then checked the time. "It's about time to wake him up."

"Indeed," Nicol nodded and began knocking on the door. "Athrun, Athrun, are you awake?"

Inside the room, the two who had been startled awake were left completely dumbfounded.

"Meer?" Athrun looked at Meer, who was in her pajamas, with a blank expression. "Why are you here?"

This... did he drink fake alcohol at dinner with the Chairman yesterday?

Athrun's brain was in chaos, but the knocking on the door continued relentlessly.

Meer's brain was equally chaotic. She had followed her mission to come to Athrun's room, but knowing that Athrun already knew her true identity, she couldn't bring herself to fawn over him like a cheap woman.

So, last night, while Athrun was fast asleep, she had simply changed into the pajamas her agent had given her and snuck into Athrun's bed.

That would be enough; creating a sufficient illusion would suffice.

With that thought in mind, upon waking up the next day, she was met with the knocking of that green-haired boy.

Why!

Why did it have to be at a time like this?

No!

She didn't want Nicol to see her like this!

The feeling of shame burning in her heart made her subconsciously cast a pleading look at Athrun, shaking her head slightly and whispering, "Please, don't open the door."

"Seriously..."

Athrun covered his forehead; he felt he had probably guessed Meer's intentions. Her playing the role of Lacus probably required being a bit more intimate with him for political propaganda purposes.

But, if she was going to be shy about it, she shouldn't have pulled this night-raid stunt!

Now they were stuck at the door, and it was incredibly awkward...

Athrun put on his pants while secretly checking himself.

He didn't find any strange marks...

Athrun breathed a quiet sigh of relief, then held up a finger to Meer in a "hush" gesture.

"Sorry, I just woke up. Is something the matter?"

Athrun replied to Nicol in a voice that sounded like he had just woken up.

"Nothing much, just wanted to call you for breakfast," Nicol replied.

"Alright, I'll be up in a moment," Athrun closed the wardrobe. "Sorry, I just woke up. Why don't you guys head to the restaurant first? I'll be there in a bit."

He prayed that the people outside would leave first, but unfortunately, Nicol laughed upon hearing this. "It's fine, we don't mind waiting for you a while."

Athrun covered his face. Nicol, there's no need to be this friendly at a time like this...

And, "we"?

Was there a whole crowd waiting outside?

In an instant, Athrun's complexion turned "Athrun-green." ===== CHAPTER 290 =====