Chapter 66 98: Can Loyalty Be Considered an Invasion?

Days passed normally. No one knew when the Angels would come, and First Middle School became increasingly lively.

Ever since that day, Shinji had further reduced his time spent at headquarters, commuting between school and home every day. He discovered that his mindset had undergone some subtle changes.

Initially, he was quite disdainful of the "time-wasting" act of attending school. He thought, Can studying kill an Angel? He believed it would be better to organize everyone to go outside the city and dig trenches.

Later, he slowly grew accustomed to it, treating it as part of his work while taking the opportunity to foster unity with his battle-brothers, Rei Ayanami and Asuka.

But now, he had begun to actively accept this daily routine.

Misato Katsuragi was right; it was time to consider life after the war, unless the Emperor ordered him to return to service in the dark galaxy. As for what kind of life to choose, Shinji now had the answer.

It was this kind of ordinary, noisy, yet relaxed daily life. Even if the war was still ongoing, he could open his heart more fully to become familiar with it.

"Have you noticed? Ikari-kun has changed a bit lately."

"It's true! He doesn't seem as unapproachable as before. Asuka, did something happen?"

By the windows, the girls were chatting excitedly while enjoying their lunch boxes. Rei Ayanami and the others had formed a small social circle; she no longer had to sit alone in a daze.

'Huh?'

Asuka, who was busy eating boiled shrimp, lifted her head in confusion when she heard this, noticing another small group in the middle of the classroom.

The boys were gathered around Shinji, discussing the school festival. Shinji was the undisputed leader, with Toji Suzuhara and Kensuke Aida serving as his "protectors." The group looked serious, constantly nodding—they looked exactly like they were holding a military strategy meeting.

"What could possibly happen to that idiot? Isn't this just like always? A bunch of idiot boys surrounding a big idiot, talking about things no one else can understand."

Hikari Horaki and the others offered a bitter smile. In the entire school, Asuka was probably the only one who dared to evaluate Ikari-kun like that. But, thinking about it from the other side, didn't that just prove how close the two of them were?

Asuka had a twisted personality and a stubborn mouth, but if she truly overcame her psychological issues, her straightforward nature would surely lead her to confess first.

'But what about Rei?'

She was always acting so dazed—did she even realize the severity of the problem?

Several of them began to feel anxious. Rei Ayanami was like the group's pet; after all, who wouldn't like a soft-spoken, beautiful, and endearingly dazed girl?

"What's with those looks you're giving me?"

Asuka chewed her food, looking back and forth. Since she had grown familiar with this group, she couldn't be bothered to pretend to be a "good girl" anymore.

"Oh, let's get one thing straight: this lady doesn't pay much attention to idiots. But an idiot is an idiot; you can tell just by one look."

'Oh, never mind then. Asuka-san is just being a tsundere.'

"Ikari-kun is probably thinking about what to do after defeating the Angels," Rei said silently, carrying a faint, elusive smile.

"He has finally realized this problem, and I am very happy."

Shinji had been putting ninety-nine percent of his energy into saving the world. Now, for some reason, he had started thinking about the future and was gradually accepting his daily life; this was a good thing.

"Huh? You mean to say Shinji has opened his heart?"

Asuka looked at the center of the classroom again, seeing a group of boys bowing their heads in low prayer.

"Isn't this just like usual? What's the difference?"

"It's different. This is no longer passive coping."

"It's exactly the same."

"It's different."

"It's the same!"

Those two were at it again.

Hikari Horaki covered her face. This was the daily life that belonged to Rei and Asuka—their personalities were opposites, like water and fire, and they were both quite stubborn, but... how to put it? Their relationship was actually very good. If there were true resentment, they couldn't possibly bicker like this.

"I feel like there's going to be some fun to watch in the future," Rin Chiharu grinned, whispering, "I'm curious about who Ikari-kun will choose. Neither of these two is easy to get along with."

Rei and Asuka were extremely popular at school, but aside from Shinji, no one could get close to them.

"He'll choose Rei. She's so soft and dazed; how comfortable she must be to hold," Ibuki Yu said without hesitation.

"I think Asuka is better; it's more interesting to be in a relationship with her."

"Hmph, should we start a betting pool?"

"Sure, let's do it."

"Alright, all of you, keep your voices down."

Hikari Horaki quickly stopped their gossiping, her gaze filled with the kindness of an old mother.

"In any case, I'm glad Rei has become the person she is today."

She had watched Rei change—from a lonely person who acted like a doll, to someone who now had many friends; from someone who spent every class in a daze and constantly asked for leave, returning covered in wounds, to someone who now participated in rehearsals, ate sweets with everyone, and laughed and talked together.

"Class President, don't talk about that mushy stuff. Just tell us straight: which side are you betting on?"

"Uh." Hikari glanced at Shinji not far away and smiled. "I'm betting on a draw. After all, Ikari-kun isn't an ordinary person."

"You mean both? Wow, Class President is so bold!"

The girls giggled, drawing dissatisfied looks from the boys.

"These girls who don't know the meaning of loyalty are so noisy."

"Don't mind them. The future of humanity is something we men must bear."

Because he was strong, the boys admired Shinji, attracted by his firm willpower, and took him as a role model. Therefore, they didn't feel like Shinji had changed at all—the latter was always right, and if he wasn't, then you were wrong.

"But Shinji-kun, do we really have to design it like this?"

A delicate-looking boy spoke up; he was in charge of costume design.

Shinji looked at him indifferently. Before he could speak, Kensuke Aida cut him off.

"What's the problem? It's absolutely solemn. Didn't the Class President say the hem must be below the knee? This perfectly satisfies that." Kensuke reprimanded him, then looked at Shinji. "Shinji-kun, I didn't expect you to know how to design uniforms."

"I'm a little bit good at everything. Besides, there is a blueprint for this."

Kensuke looked at the black long dress in the sketch and the necklace with a skull pendant, and immediately understood.

"The Sisters of Battle?!"

"Yes, I made some modifications to their faith-based armor. Under normal circumstances, they would also be equipped with power armor and bolters."

"It's a pity we are all weak and powerless, not to mention those girls."

Shinji blinked. He wondered if this counted as an Imperial cultural invasion? But then he thought...

'Can acts of loyalty be considered an invasion?'

Seeing everyone so motivated, Shinji nodded with satisfaction. But just then, the lights in the classroom suddenly dimmed, and the noisy voices stopped as if a power switch had been pulled.

"Huh? Is there a power outage?"

Everyone subconsciously looked at the lights. Some ran to the window to look outside, seeing that the traffic lights on the road had gone dark and the light rail train had stopped halfway.

"It's not just the school; the entire Tokyo-3 is out of power."

"How is that possible? This is a fortress! If there's no power, what will happen when the Angels attack?"

"Relax, the backup power will start up soon."

Everyone didn't take the matter to heart; some even cheered, happy that they wouldn't have to attend afternoon classes.

"Why is there no signal?" Asuka looked at her phone, feeling a bit strange. "We don't use civilian signals. What the heck are Misato and the others doing?"

Rei didn't speak; she had already turned her head to look behind her, where Shinji had quietly appeared.

"No more classes this afternoon. Everyone, head to headquarters and stand by."

"Huh? Without power, we can't even open the doors! How are we supposed to go underground?"

Asuka complained, only to have a thick booklet tossed at her. She picked it up and saw it was a classified document.

"It contains the emergency entrances for a no-power state. I've already drawn the routes. You are to head directly to the L4 area. Misato-san has already moved Unit-02 and Unit-00 there to stand by."

They both knew about the standby situation, but this was a bit too coincidental. The power just went out, and he immediately produced a map, and the EVAs were ready.

'Wait a minute—where did you even get this map from? Why is it covered in dust?'

"You... you wouldn't happen to be hiding something from us, would you?" Asuka asked, full of suspicion.

"No. This is merely a choice based on Article 3, Item 183 of the Pilot's Manual. It states that in an emergency, the pilot must enter the EVA immediately to prepare for battle. This emergency includes, but is not limited to: power outages, leadership incapacity, military invasion..."

"Stop, stop, stop! Don't read any more! I'll go, I'll go, alright?"

Asuka couldn't stand it and looked carefully at the route map. "But many of these doors on here have to be opened manually! Are you going to do them all? Wait, why aren't you going?"

She finally realized what was wrong. Shinji hadn't mentioned Unit-01 at all during the whole conversation.

"I am heading to headquarters through a different entrance. Unit-01 is in the core area."

Shinji had been prepared long ago. He looked at the group of boys. "I need two volunteers to escort them to the destination at maximum speed."

Written as "volunteers," read as "laborers," but no one hesitated. The boys immediately raised their hands.

"Me!"

They were all relatives of NERV members, and at this moment, they had no curiosity about classified facilities; they simply wanted to contribute their modest strength to protect humanity.

'What loyalty.'

This was the conviction Shinji had been instilling in them daily. He didn't expect every single person to pilot an EVA and fight the Angels, but he believed everyone had their own value. As long as there was loyalty, even the lowliest mortals in the Underhive could contribute to the Empire.

He immediately selected Toji Suzuhara, Kensuke Aida, and a few other boys. Based on his AT Field assessment, the students in this class were prospective pilots who would have to go eventually, sooner or later.

Asuka was swept away in a daze, surrounded by boys carrying clubs, guarding her in the middle as if they were wary of someone attacking in the chaos. Rei Ayanami had already understood completely—this had been planned by Ikari-kun long ago.

But she wouldn't ask. In her heart, Shinji would never make a mistake; she just had to execute his orders obediently.

'Even these teenagers are so loyal.'

Shinji watched them walk away, then slowly pulled out his phone. Unlike the phones Asuka and the others had, his phone showed a single message.

'Hm, it has begun.'

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