Steven coughed twice.
To be honest, the elemental abilities of these two didn't really affect him much—he could completely ignore them if he wanted to.
But even he could tell that today was not going to be a simple day for just sitting back and enjoying the drama.
Because no matter how he looked at it, this whole situation seemed to have grown out of him.
He really didn't get it.
Why were these two suddenly butting heads?
And why did they both seem so eager to drag him into it?!
"Well, you know, a name is just a code name, right? Like how I didn't know you had a name like FrostNova. It's not a big deal."
Steven casually explained to Yelena before glancing over at Talulah—who was now smirking triumphantly, clearly pleased to learn that Yelena hadn't known his real name before.
"And you," he added, turning toward her, "don't forget why you're here in the first place. Can you at least fix your attitude a little?"
That one sentence was enough to shut Talulah up instantly.
Because he was right.
She had come here to seek help from the Guerrilla Fighters.
And if this girl in front of her was really FrostNova, then her influence within the guerrillas was not something to be taken lightly.
Hearing Steven's explanation, Yelena huffed softly, clearly not too happy about it, but still reluctantly let go of his arm.
It was obvious that Steven wasn't just here to see her—he must have had more important business to attend to.
And just then, the awkward atmosphere was finally broken by the sound of heavy footsteps.
Patriot, the towering Wendigo, strode over with his usual imposing presence.
His gaze swept across the three of them before he finally spoke.
"Have you settled on the terms of the deal?"
Steven nodded without hesitation.
"Of course. From now on, just talk to her. You can think of her as my representative for this matter."
With that, he shoved Talulah forward, forcibly assigning her the new role.
"Hey! Since when did I become your representative?! You never mentioned this before!"
Talulah shot him a glare.
"Well, isn't this a good opportunity for you to connect with the Guerrilla Fighters? Besides, you owe me so many favors—being my representative is the least you can do."
The two of them whispered back and forth for a while, and in the end, Talulah—though clearly reluctant—had no choice but to step forward.
She forced a smile at the intimidating Wendigo elder.
"For any matters regarding the trade, you can contact her directly. I won't always be here."
As soon as Steven said those words, he failed to notice that both Talulah and Yelena had suddenly turned their heads toward him.
"What did you just say? You mean… you're leaving? Where are you going?"
Yelena was the first to speak, even beating Talulah to the question.
Steven had never mentioned anything like this before.
Didn't he live in that village nearby?
Why would he say he wouldn't always be here?
"Yeah. I've said it before—I'm a traveler. There's no way I'd stay in Ursus forever. Besides, I originally came here just to mine. Now that the Guerrilla Fighters are helping out, I don't need to spend any more time worrying about that, right?"
Steven scratched his head.
He had already stayed in Ursus for quite a while.
He'd seen plenty of interesting things, done everything he needed to do, and now…
It was about time he moved on to the next adventure.
As for his original goal, Steven had only come to Ursus for mining in the first place.
That ultimate goal had already been achieved long ago.
If it weren't for all the fun he'd had along the way, he would have run off a long time ago.
"..."
"Then how do we obtain supplies in the future?"
Compared to the two girls who were now filled with mixed emotions, Patriot was much more practical.
He knew very well that all the supplies were kept on Steven's person.
If Steven just up and left, then even if they negotiated with Talulah, what good would that do?
"Obviously, I'll keep in contact with her. Whenever you guys need supplies, I'll bring them over myself. It's not that big of a deal."
Steven spread his hands casually.
With a contact person like Talulah, what was there to worry about?
At worst, he'd just spend a little of his WAP to unlock a teleportation Mod like the Portal Gun Mod—something he was bound to unlock sooner or later.
Once he had that, coming back would be as easy as snapping his fingers.
"So you will come back…"
Hearing this, Yelena finally let out a small sigh of relief, murmuring softly to herself.
She didn't even understand why she had felt so unhappy when she first heard that he might be leaving.
But now that he had said he'd personally return to deliver supplies, that meant…
At the very least, he wouldn't be going too far.
Seeing him again wouldn't be difficult.
"This is also something you never mentioned before. Is this just another one of your whims?"
Talulah frowned at him, but she, too, felt relieved.
She knew Steven wouldn't lie about something like this.
Even though she had no idea how he could come and go as he pleased, she had never once seen him go back on a promise.
Still, even so, she was a little annoyed that he had kept this from her.
"It wouldn't have made a difference if I told you, right? Anyway, let's talk about something else—like you, for example."
Steven smiled at her before shifting his gaze to Patriot, who had been silently watching the three of them the entire time.
"So, Patriot, my friend here is also an Infected. She wants to travel with your Guerrilla Fighters for a while. Would that be possible?"
Steven carefully avoided the word "join"—because Talulah wasn't actually joining them.
She respected the Guerrilla Fighters and admired what they had accomplished in the frozen wasteland…
But in her eyes, their efforts were far from enough.
At least, for the Infected, just this was not enough.
"Are these Infected related to her as well?"
Patriot did not immediately accept the request—despite Steven's supplier status.
Instead, his sharp gaze turned toward the Infected they had been rescuing.
He had noticed the way they looked at Talulah—there was something odd about their expressions.
So he decided to ask first.
"Yes. They are my companions. I was the one who saved them from the nomadic city. If your Guerrilla Fighters hadn't arrived, I would have come looking for you myself."
Before Steven could even say a word, Talulah had already stepped forward.
Her voice was calm, her tone firm—neither humble nor arrogant.
Talulah lifted her head and locked eyes with Patriot.
Even as the sheer pressure radiating from him bore down on her, she refused to be intimidated.
Her gaze remained steady, meeting his scarlet eyes hidden beneath the skull helm.
"The Guerrilla Fighters do not accept those unwilling to become warriors."
His voice was cold, and although Patriot did not outright reject her, Steven could still sense the refusal in his words.
And something else—something unexpected.
A hint of… wariness?
That was strange.
Why would Patriot be wary of Talulah?
Sure, she was strong, but nowhere near the level of a threat to him.
Yet, it didn't seem like he was wary of her strength specifically.
So then… what was it?
Steven was momentarily puzzled, but when he glanced at the lingering Status Ailment above Talulah's head, realization dawned.
If Patriot was wary of that, then it made sense.
The old Wendigo was truly sharp—in just a brief encounter, he had already noticed it?
Or perhaps…
Did he already know Talulah?
Steven was curious, but he didn't intervene.
At the end of the day, this was Talulah's battle.
He had helped her as much as he could—now, it was up to her to convince Patriot.
"I will fight."
"I will learn from you what it means to be a true warrior for the Infected."
"But at the same time, I also hope to go further—not just be confined to the title of 'warrior.'"
Talulah's resolute gaze bore into the towering Wendigo.
She knew he could tell if she was lying—so she spoke only the truth.
Just like Steven had said:
If she truly wanted to live in the present, then perhaps the first step was to become a real warrior who fought for the Infected.
After all, if she didn't even have the courage to fight for them, how could she talk about the Infected's future?
Steven's face softened with a rare expression of pride.
The girl who had once spoken only in ideals…
She was finally starting to grow.
And then, after a long moment, the Wendigo warrior finally shifted his gaze away from Talulah.
His next words were just as cold as before—
"Then, if you think you can keep up, come."
<+>
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