He asked bluntly.

He made no attempt to hide it in front of Zoe Pierce.

Erin Xavier wasn’t the only one who had noticed Nathan Lockwood’s odd behavior. Who couldn’t see it? He would suddenly climb into his mecha in the middle of the night, only to come down about ten minutes later.

It didn’t happen often, but if one paid close attention to the timing, they would realize that Nathan Lockwood hid inside his mecha at a fixed time almost every day.

Sometimes it coincided with a battle, other times with a rest period.

The only person this timing lined up with was Zoe Pierce.

Chase Shaw had just noticed it. The way Zoe Pierce looked at Nathan Lockwood now was no longer as helpless or even as indifferent as before.

She was much more reactive.

Although nothing seemed to have changed between them on the surface, Chase Shaw was starting to panic.

He desperately wanted Zoe Pierce to see him, to acknowledge his existence.

The scene fell silent for a moment.

Only Nathan Lockwood’s gaze remained unchanged. He stared straight at him, a smile not reaching his eyes. "There are still a few days left."

Hearing this, Chase Shaw just glanced at Zoe Pierce again, then tilted his head back and covered his eyes with his hand. "I’m heading back," he said.

Miles Sherman remained silent, his expression complex as he looked at Zoe Pierce.

Ultimately, he too decided to leave.

The only one left was Nathan Lockwood.

The atmosphere from just a moment ago had completely disintegrated in an instant.

Nathan Lockwood looked at Zoe Pierce, whose expression had clearly soured. "Don’t mind them."

"It’s just not their turn yet."

Nathan Lockwood had clearly anticipated this situation, but his words obviously didn’t comfort Zoe Pierce.

"Nathan Lockwood, if one day I have to choose just one person," Zoe Pierce looked at him, "will it really not affect the others?"

She didn’t believe it.

Especially now, after seeing this.

She and Nathan Lockwood were caught in this ambiguous relationship. Afterward, could he really watch calmly as she chose someone else?

Nathan Lockwood stared at her intently. "It will."

’It would hurt even more than never having had her at all.’

Nathan Lockwood didn’t explain the rest to Zoe Pierce then. In the blink of an eye, the intimate mood that had enveloped them grew thin.

Zoe Pierce returned to her room.

As the door clicked shut, a message from Nathan Lockwood arrived.

"Zoe, we’ll never meet anyone like you again."

’Falling for her is as easy as breathing.’

’She has no idea how attractive she is to them.’

’If only we could give up on her so easily.’

’It’s precisely because we can’t that we came up with such a terrible idea.’

Moreover, Nathan Lockwood had thought much further ahead than anyone else. He, in fact, understood where this was all ultimately heading.

But that outcome was too shocking, too unconventional to be revealed to others.

It was something that had to remain even more hidden than their current situation, lurking in the shadows.

That path, one that not even Zoe Pierce was aware of yet, was even harder to walk. Nathan Lockwood had considered countless possibilities. They were all top-tier Alphas, possessiveness etched into their very bones.

They could make an exception for Zoe Pierce, but not by much. Every one of them desired her, wanted her all to themselves.

And yet, each one of them was clearly aware of the others’ strengths. If they truly had a falling out, the one who would be hurt the most was Zoe Pierce.

’From that day, the day they wanted to become her family, they could no longer let go.’

’Right now, perhaps I’m the only one who has accepted that answer.’

But Nathan Lockwood had no intention of spelling it out. Some things couldn’t be explained with words; they had to be experienced to be understood.

Nathan Lockwood wasn’t in a hurry. Once everything was over, he believed the others would understand too.

’They’re not fools.’

’How could you give a rose away to someone else?’

’Of course, you nurture it in your own greenhouse, give it plenty of nourishment, love it, support it, and watch as it slowly blooms into its most beautiful form.’

"Don’t overthink it. Relax, I’ll go talk to Chase Shaw," Nathan Lockwood sent after a moment’s thought, his brow furrowed.

Zoe Pierce: "..."

’Are you sure that won’t just add fuel to the fire?’

But Nathan Lockwood was indeed capable. At the very least, when they all went to the cafeteria to eat together, Zoe Pierce noticed that Chase Shaw’s attitude was much milder than before.

’So, what on earth did Nathan Lockwood say to Chase Shaw?’

"Ah, real food at last! Nutrient solution is disgusting," Erin Xavier exclaimed, unable to hold back after drinking the stuff for more than half a month and finally getting to eat rice again.

Zoe Pierce smiled faintly. At times like this, she felt a little envious of Erin Xavier.

He could still speak so naturally.

The serious look on Miles Sherman’s face also softened. Thanks to Erin’s comment, the whole atmosphere immediately became much more comfortable.

’That was something only Erin Xavier could pull off.’

Zoe Pierce thought for a moment, then took out two small snacks from her Space Button and placed them in front of Erin Xavier. "Here, for you."

Erin Xavier looked up at her. "Did the teacher give you these? I don’t want them."

He pushed them back to her.

"I brought them myself," Zoe Pierce said.

’They say an Omega’s Space Button is like a treasure chest, filled with everything.’

’If he doesn’t want them, fine.’ Just as Zoe Pierce was about to take them back, she saw Erin Xavier’s hand shoot out, snatch the two snack packs, and stuff them into his pocket. "You should have said so earlier next time."

If the teacher gave them to her, he wanted her to eat them herself.

Zoe Pierce smiled. Erin Xavier hadn’t changed. He was still the same—a little awkward, a little tsundere.

This was the most pleasant meal Zoe Pierce had eaten in a while, and the smile on her face was much more genuine.

She suddenly remembered what the teacher from the First Military Academy had said and mentioned it to Miles Sherman and the others. "Teacher Lynch said that for the field training, they’ll be adding an extra Alpha to the First Military Academy’s team."

That meant it would be six Alphas and one Omega against them.

"Teacher Lynch was the one who trained me at the First Military Academy. She said the Omega the school specially trained is completely useless this time, so they’re just adding another Alpha."

It wasn’t exactly fair, but the goal was training. If the exercise didn’t serve a training purpose, there would be no point in doing it at all.

This time, Miles Sherman actually smiled faintly. "Director Quinn already told us about your recent performance."

So, Miles Sherman wasn’t surprised by this outcome.

"Six won’t make a difference. Their five lost last time, and they won’t win this time either," Erin Xavier said nonchalantly. "It’s not like we’ve been standing still. We’ve even faced two Xenobeast Tides and done extra training."

’If we still manage to lose after all that, we might as well not even go to the friendship match.’

"Besides, you can even take on an instructor one-on-one. What are they thinking?" Unless spiritual power was involved—but even then, Erin Xavier didn’t think Zoe Pierce was without a chance of winning.

"This field training probably won’t be in the joint-exam format," Nathan Lockwood said. "The format for the friendship match is still undecided. This training involves many different categories, so it will likely take a different form."

Erin Xavier was full and put down his chopsticks.

"What kind of format could it be? It’ll probably be more of the same, just packaged differently."

Two teams, either turn-based or an all-out brawl. Nothing new.

Chase Shaw said, "We’ll know in two months."

To be precise, in less than two months, the officials would surely release a complete set of procedures.