Noel opened the door and came out of the room together with Anna, finding Rose and the others had just come back.
"Welcome back." Noel smiled.
"There is nothing wrong around the lake. Rose and Zion have scouted around the area and haven't found anyone near the lake. I have also checked the lake's condition and it seems the poison has mixed completely. Although the running water is diluting it, it won't be able to clear the poison at least for another few months. So, it's better if we drain it." Stella explained.
"Oh, that's good. If that's the case, we can continue our work as scheduled." Noel nodded.
"Yeah…" Stella suddenly noticed Anna coming out of the room while stroking her stomach. "Oh, wow. Your stomach is sticking out… Don't tell me, you are pregnant Anna?"
"Preg-what?!" Anna widened her eyes in shock. "I was stuffed. I ate too much because of Noel."
"I was just joking. There's no need for you to get that flustered." Stella chuckled.
Anna shook her head helplessly, trying to calm her heart down. "Supposed I'm pregnant, who's the dad? Noel, you want to take responsibility?"
"Why am I getting dragged into the rivalry between you two?" Noel looked at both of them and moved away. Instead of talking to Stella, he moved to Rose and asked her, "Alright. Let's ignore these two idiots for now. I have to talk to you regarding tomorrow's project."
"Sure. Let's ignore these two." Rose nodded and walked together with Noel.
"…" Stella and Anna paused for a moment before glaring at each other.
"Well, the more you fight the closer you are, so I have no intention of stopping you two. Just make sure you perform your duty during the mission or else Paul will report you to Captain Clara…" Zion added before running away. Of course, she didn't forget to say, "I wonder how will Captain Clara deal with you two… Maybe stitching your hands for weeks so that you have to do everything together? Or hanging you two somewhere until you look like dried fish? Ahaha, have fun."
"…" Stella, who had been in the Zero Squad for a while, obviously knew that their captain was capable of doing it.
Anna hadn't seen it yet, but she had heard of what happened in the past. So, she clicked her tongue and walked away. "You're lucky today."
"Hmph." Stella saw Anna returning to her room while wondering, 'Why does she seem so different when she's with Noel but very petty when she is around me? Is she interested in Noel or something?
'Now that I think about it, she has become Noel's partner from the start. It looks oppressive, but don't tell me… the reason why she has been together with Noel this whole time is because she likes him? Wait a minute, did she kill his family so that there wouldn't be anyone stopping her from having Noel? What's wrong with this kind of love?
'Or am I misunderstanding things? Since Noel has a grudge against the Stargaze Family, he's aiming for the daughter to pay them back. If this is the case, Noel is truly built differently.
'Either way, it doesn't seem she's hostile to Noel. In fact, she looks like she is trying to learn and impress him.' Stella had been observing her and even separating her from Noel this whole time. In fact, this was the reason why Anna became annoyed.
Anna just wanted Stella to leave her alone while Stella didn't want to do it in order to help Noel because of her lack of understanding about the relationship between the two. It just spurted conflict between them and made them look childish.
They were just misunderstanding each other's intentions.
Though, it didn't stop them from doing their work. Anna came out soon with the food they failed to eat. It would work as a snack during their meeting.
Anna just harrumphed when she passed her and continued on her way. Stella clicked her tongue while scratching the back of her head.
Meanwhile, Noel and the others had returned to their gathering room.
"…that's what I'm planning to do tomorrow," Noel explained.
"You truly have a purification ability?" Rose asked, not believing him.
"Yes. I can show it to you."
Paul thought for a moment. "Instead of draining the lake, you want to purify it… Although it's a good idea, we don't know how much Spiritual Energy do you need to purify the entire lake, you know."
"The lake is not that big, right?" Noel asked.
"True. It's not that big, but it's still a lake nonetheless." Rose nodded.
"Then, bring me with you tomorrow. I want to try to purify it. We're doing the rough calculation tomorrow, so it's the best time for me to try it."
"That's true." Paul thought for a moment before asking, "Rose. What do you think?"
"Normally, if we want to drain the lake, Jonathan will dig up a path for the water to flow to another place and seal it with soil. Of course, the rest of us will help him dig the hole for this water. In the worst case, we can still direct them around to spread it evenly. The poison might work against humans and demons, but it's safe for plants. So, it's fine if we spread it around the valley.
"But if Noel wants to purify it… Then, we'll have to see his ability first. If it's working effectively, I still don't think it's possible to purify the entire lake. But maybe half or even a quarter of the lake is possible. This way, the people don't need to wait for too long for the lake to fill up again." Rose nodded. "It's worth trying."
"Then, it's decided. Tomorrow, we'll be measuring the intensity of the poison to see our plan to drain it. So, Ben, Zion, Rose, Noel, and Anna will go to the lake. Stella and Jonathan will follow me tomorrow."
"Understood." They nodded, receiving their task. Though, they were confused why Paul wanted to bring Stella and Jonathan tomorrow. It seemed he had a different agenda.
Noel stayed silent while wondering about Paul's intention.
