Arknights: The Prophet of Penguin Logistics — Chapter 105

Chapter 105: Returning to Normalcy…?

Three hours later, the heavy doors of the Penguin Logistics meeting room were shut tight against the outside world, sealing in the raucous noise of a celebration.

“To sum it all up, our Prophet made it back alive and in one piece! That’s worth more than any payout!” Exusiai’s voice rang out, bright and infectious as she hoisted her glass high into the air. “And let’s not forget our newest partner in crime, Lappland—cheers!”

“Cheers!!!”

The members of the Penguin Logistics Field Operations Team happily slammed their glasses together, the amber liquid sloshing over the rims.

Despite the grand-sounding title of the ‘Field Operations Team,’ the roster was remarkably small. It consisted of exactly six people: Sora, Lynn, Texas, Exusiai, Croissant, and now, Lappland.

Yes, the silver-haired Lupo had officially integrated herself into the ranks of Penguin Logistics. She didn’t have anything better to do with her time anyway, so she spent her days lounging around the safehouse, sharpening her twin blades, and generally causing a menace of herself alongside the rest of the crew. Occasionally, she even tagged along on official missions. The general consensus was simple: if someone as physically frail and utterly chaotic as Lynn could secure a permanent spot on the payroll, there was certainly enough room for a combat maniac like Lappland.

Her identity was a tangled web of mysteries, and her past was painted with enough dark history to fill a Lungmen criminal archive, but hardly anyone in this room qualified as ‘normal.’ Lynn’s own origins still left the girls scratching their heads in absolute bewilderment, so a few unhinged quirks from the Sarkaz-obsessed Lupo were easily brushed aside.

As for the big boss, Emperor, the rap-loving penguin seemed entirely preoccupied with his own grand schemes. He had only sent down a single directive from his penthouse office: as long as the company didn’t bleed LMD and the delivery contracts were honored, he didn’t care who they brought in.

There was a very practical reason why Emperor allowed the Field Operations Team to sit idle for such extended stretches. Over the past few months, Penguin Logistics had forged incredibly lucrative relationships with the highest-ranking officials in both Lungmen and Kazimierz. They were rapidly shedding their image as a mere underground courier service and showing the distinct signs of evolving into a major corporate powerhouse. Terra was a brutal world, but it ran on favors just as much as it ran on Originium. Having political use was equivalent to holding raw capital, and naturally, the more favors they hoarded, the better.

Emperor wasn’t just being a compassionate boss. Treating the Prophet and his team like VIPs was a calculated move to maintain the delicate interpersonal relationships holding those political bridges together. So, for the time being, the Field Operations Team was essentially left to their own devices, free to eat, drink, and slack off.

Rumor had it that branch offices were being established in other mobile cities, but the crew was far too lazy to investigate. Only Texas, the ever-stoic model employee, felt a lingering sense of melancholy. She was a senior courier who had bled for this company during its grittiest days. Now that they were being sidelined into comfortable luxury, she couldn’t help but feel a quiet, nostalgic ache for the rain-slicked streets and high-speed chases of the past.

However, that fleeting sentimentality was quickly drowned out by the bubbling warmth of the hotpot and the sheer joy of the welcome party.

“Speaking of which, the last time we threw a welcome party like this, it was for the Prophet, wasn’t it?”

Croissant, who was expertly swishing thin slices of marbled meat through the boiling, spicy broth, popped the cap off a cold beer with one hand. She took a long gulp and looked thoughtfully over at Lynn, who was quietly focusing on grilling a skewer of mushrooms.

“I remember back then, Texas absolutely couldn’t stand you,” Croissant laughed, her cheerful merchant persona shining through. “She even got into a shouting match with Exusiai right in the middle of the office. She kept calling you a useless freeloader and swore there had to be some shady business going on between you two. She was convinced Exusiai had been conned by a pretty face. I thought it was pretty harsh when I heard it.”

“Was there really a rumor like that?”

Lynn paused, a piece of freshly grilled meat hanging halfway to his mouth. He blinked, turning to look at the Lupo sitting quietly in the corner. He looked genuinely shocked.

“Yes. I really did hate you back then.”

Texas let out a soft sigh. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a cigarette—the first real one she had touched in a very long time. She struck a match, the brief flare illuminating her sharp, beautiful features, and lit the tip. But she didn’t bring it to her lips. She simply rested her elbow on her knee, holding the smoking cigarette between her slender fingers, and stared at Lynn through the thin veil of gray smoke.

Her usually cold, guarded expression softened, the sharp edges melting away in the warm light of the room.

“I thought you were nothing but a slick-tongued, irresponsible coward. I thought you were a cruel person who possessed incredible abilities but selfishly refused to use them to help anyone.”

‘Has my springtime of youth finally arrived?’Lynn mused, his mind immediately derailing.’Has the plot finally entered the legendary harem development stage? Am I actually popular now?’

He looked at Texas’s dead-serious face, the way her golden eyes locked onto his, and carefully weighed the atmosphere. A second later, his terrifying intuition kicked in, and he realized he had definitely misunderstood the situation.

Texas’s next calm, measured words confirmed it. This ‘liking’ had absolutely nothing to do with romantic confessions. It was something far heavier. It was the absolute bond of comrades who had bled on the same asphalt.

“It’s not just me who likes you,” Texas continued, her voice quiet but carrying clearly over the bubbling hotpot. “Lappland, Exusiai, Sora, Croissant—we all like you very much. Working together, bickering over stupid things, fighting side by side when things go wrong, and then coming back to a warm room to eat, drink, and just exist together… I think this kind of life is the best.”

She looked down at the burning ember between her fingers. “I feel like this is the best way to live. It’s completely different from the life I used to lead. And it’s different from the pasts all of you left behind, too.”

The room grew quiet. Even Lappland stopped sharpening her blade, her pale eyes fixed entirely on Texas.

“Because of that, I don’t want the people I care about to meet with unexpected accidents,” Texas said, looking back up at Lynn. “And I especially don’t want to be forced to stand by and do nothing when they do. That suffocating feeling of absolute powerlessness… I refuse to experience it a second time. That is why I have a request.”

She leaned forward slightly, the smoke curling around her dark hair.

“No matter what you feel in that head of yours, no matter what terrifying future you eventually sense, please discuss it with us. At least give us the basic respect of knowing the reasons behind your choices.”

Her voice dropped to a near whisper, carrying a rare, raw vulnerability. “That feeling of standing over your hospital bed, watching you hooked up to those machines, and knowing I couldn’t do a single thing to fix it… I don’t want to go through that again.”

Ah. So that was what this was really about.

Lynn watched as the rest of the girls slowly lowered their chopsticks. Exusiai, Croissant, Sora, and even Lappland all turned their heads in perfect unison, fixing him with identical, heavy stares. A deep sense of understanding settled in his chest.

He knew that exact brand of powerlessness. He had tasted it bitterly in his own past—not for comrades on a battlefield, but for his own family. He knew that life constantly forced people into corners where they were utterly helpless to stop the bleeding. Some costs could be borne, and others simply shattered a person. Looking at the genuine concern etched into the faces of the girls around him, Lynn felt a deep, quiet warmth spread through his heart.

However, it was precisely because he understood the weight of those feelings that he could not give them the answer they wanted.

“I can’t guarantee that,” Lynn said, his voice calm and understated, breaking the heavy silence.

He met their gazes without flinching. “Because sometimes, my intuition tells me that speaking the truth aloud will only trigger a chain reaction that leads to even worse consequences. If I see a disaster that can only be averted by keeping my mouth shut… then I will keep it shut. So, I have to refuse.”

Looking at the sudden tension gripping his companions, Lynn let out a soft sigh of his own. He set his skewer down and replied with the exact same suffocating seriousness Texas had shown him.

“I don’t know what the future holds. I don’t have a script. I can only rely on my own flawed judgment and my intuition to handle the chaos, so I rarely know what is ultimately right or wrong until the dust settles. Regarding this, I can only promise that I will do my absolute best to keep us alive. But I will not promise to share everything I see. Because I’ve learned that there are many times in this world where a person truly has to face the dark alone.”

Texas stared at him for a long, silent moment. The cigarette burned down closer to her fingers. Finally, she let out a breath, the tension leaving her shoulders.

“…Then, as a secondary request,” she compromised, her tone returning to its usual cool cadence, “we need to know at least a fraction of the truth when things go wrong. Is that acceptable?”

“Of course.”

Looking at the circle of girls watching him, Lynn finally let a genuine, relaxed smile cross his face.

“I will never do anything to harm any of you. Just as I promised Exusiai and Texas a long time ago.”