The ride back to campus was rather uneventful. Eunbi managed to get her spy lens deactivated thanks to Sakura, but aside from that, everyone was just tired and needed some rest. There was a lot of information that needed to be processed, and it could wait until they were all back to safety.
"Chaeyeon and the others just got back. She asked how you were doing." Eunbi tells Sakura after ending a call, still occasionally rubbing her eyes. All it took to remove the lens was a simple touch from Sakura, but that didn't make it sting any less.
"Well, I'm still alive, right? That must count for something." The Japanese girl says with a sigh.
"Yah, you didn't have a choice. We'll stop KYB. Don't be too hard on yourself." Eunbi replies, sensing her friend's down mood.
Sakura had mentioned the model 5 androids she'd helped design, but as much as she wanted to say that she planted some secret failsafe they could exploit, she knew that wasn't the case. They'll be hard to beat, and the guilt was eating her up.
"Get some rest, Kkura. We can compare notes with Chaeyeon and the others later. They just came from the water plant after all." Eunbi says when Sakura doesn't respond. Her words, though, catch the tech-girl's attention.
"Wait, did you say a water plant?" She asks.
"Yeah, they brought Yujin there. Another long story." Eunbi replies with a nod. Sakura now thinks back to the email she'd seen at Chuncheon Robotics.
This might be the missing piece...
~~~~~
"Kkura, thank goodness you're safe!" Chaeyeon says the second Sakura and the others step off the van. She'd practically zipped over to hug the Japanese girl.
"Yeah, I'm glad you're okay too. I'm sorry for worrying you." Sakura replies.
"Nonsense, you're back and that's all that matters." Chaeyeon says. Though she was seen as a secondary leader figure in the group, Chaeyeon always acted differently around her girlfriend. She allowed herself to worry for Sakura instead of keeping the calm and dauntless disposition she had for the others during missions.
While this was happening, Eunbi had walked up to Yujin who she was seeing for the first time since the accident.
"Hey, unnie. I guess I took your advice a little too literally, huh?" The puppy says sheepishly.
"You had us all worried, that's for sure. Wonyoung never gave up on you though. She was one of the ones who was pushing to go to Jirisan as soon as possible." Eunbi replies, nodding at the aforementioned girl who was helping Yena bring Yuri to the infirmary.
Yujin follows the leader's gaze towards the bunny and stares longingly.
"Yeah... what would I do without her?" She mumbles to herself which gets a chuckle out of Eunbi.
"Okay, Romeo. Let's head to the war room already. There's a lot to talk about." She then says before walking ahead.
~~~~
"So, where do we start?" Eunbi asks when everyone was seated sans Yuri who was being tended to by Hongki and the other healers.
"How about the common thing that's shown up between almost all our missions? The water." Chaeyeon suggests.
"I agree. It's been popping up way too much to be a coincidence now." Sakura says. "Nako-chan, you said you downloaded information on it, right? Jirisan Spring Water? I want to compare it with mine."
"Wait, Jirisan Spring Water? Isn't that the brand you had a commercial for, Minjoo?" Chaewon asks when she recognizes the name.
"Yeah... when it was pitched to me, I didn't think much of it. Is it dangerous?" The brunette replies, suddenly feeling on edge.
YOU ARE READING
Project IZ*ONE III
Action*IZ*ONE superhero AU* Six months have gone by without any big trouble for IZ*ONE. The girls, along with their new members from IVE and Le Sserafim, have been going about their daily lives, but continued to train in anticipation of a looming threat...
