Not a paragraph...

Andy, who unexpectedly showed strong attachment to being assigned to Madeira, reassured Ellen when asked that he maintains a clear separation between work and hobbies, so there's no need to worry.

Regarding Andy and Ellen's relationship, it seems Andy understands that, since Madeira recognizes Shinnosuke as her master, there's no opportunity for him to insert himself.

To begin with, to Andy, Madelia in her maid outfit with bunny ears is so incredibly impressive—she's practically a deity on par with the gods of heaven. Andy doesn't think he could ever do anything about it himself. It's enough just to work alongside her and revere her. Shinnosuke, do you know why Andy, who loves maids so much, never made me wear a maid outfit?

There's no way he could know...

"If I wore a maid outfit, he'd just say 'Eren isn't a real maid.' He's completely set in his ways. I'd rather not be forced to go along with Andy's peculiar tastes. So as long as it doesn't interfere with my work, I let him have his way."

Whether Madeira is a real maid or not remains questionable, but Ellen seems to have reached a state where she knows Andy completely, has given up, accepted him, and treats him like a toy in the palm of her hand.

"I can see a future where Andy is completely dominated by Ellen."

Though Shinosuke is quick to point fingers at others, Ellen doesn't react to that remark.

"That's perfectly fine. You need to hold onto a few weaknesses or vulnerabilities if you're planning for the future."

Whether it's Milena, Velvet, or even Celia, women who sail the stars are strong.

(Then again, if Andy didn't want Ellen in a maid outfit, how did the topic even come up? Could it have been Ellen herself...?)

Ellen smiles warmly, as if reading Shinnosuke's thoughts.

"The heart of a woman who sails the stars is wider than the universe itself."

Elen winked and then returned to Tsukikage.

With the long-standing feud with the space pirate Velvet resolved and the new companion Madeira now aboard, the next matter at hand was Milena's license upgrade.

Having completed the required practical training hours with her private cruiser license, Milena was now eligible to take the examination for her professional certification.

"Then, I'm off for a bit."

Although she would be undergoing classroom instruction, interviews, and practical exams over the next week, she spoke as if heading out for a simple errand nearby.

"Milena-san, you took your practical training seriously, but you only skimmed through the textbook data. Still, you've memorized it perfectly. That's incredible."

Seyla seeing Milena off alongside Shinosuke.

It seems Milena’s exam is going to be completely fine.

With Milena’s exam settled, the three of them from Tsukikage—Shinosuke, Marks, and Seira—immediately took on a transport mission and set off to the nearby Iruku stellar province just one week later, giving Shinosuke, Marks, and Seira a brief break.

Just as they were about to start cleaning up the ship, as usual, Shinosuke suddenly received a visit from Lieutenant Sireka Cruze of the Space Navy Intelligence Division.

Coming straight to the dock in uniform is completely different from his usual behavior.

"Captain, does coming here in uniform mean there's some significance to today's visit?"

After inviting the captain into his office, Shinosuke instructed Marks to check the dock's security and confirm whether there were any suspicious individuals.

"That's right. Deliberately drawing attention by wearing his uniform was intentional."

The captain smiled faintly, his eyes hinting at some hidden agenda.

Although Seira had considered stepping out, she declined and remained seated, and the lieutenant showed no concern about her presence.

"Has something been happening within the military?"

The lieutenant shook his head in response to Shinosuke's question.

"Not quite an operation, but since Ms. Kasimura arrested Velvet, she should be safe from assassination attempts for the time being. So you're free to return to your regular duties."

"For the time being, that is... Lieutenant, it seems your plans didn't go quite as you expected."

Even Shinosuke, no matter how sharp, wasn't foolish enough to take the lieutenant's words at face value.

"That's right. I was arrested by Lieutenant Kasimura, couldn't even recover the velvet, and ended up handed over to the Coast Guard. I thought I'd at least catch a glimpse of the tail end of the trail, if not grasp it fully, but I was mistaken—no trace of the admiral or the Empire's connection was found. Still, you won't have to worry about Kasimura being targeted again in the near future."

"For now, yes,"

Lieutenant Commander shrugged in response to Shinosuke's words.

"Anyway, it's fine. We'd actually prefer they keep trying to kill us, but the enemy knows when to stop. Once they learn I've been contacting Kasimura following Velvet's arrest, they won't be fixated on eliminating Kasimura. My presence here today was, in a way, a demonstration of that very point."

Shinosuke stared intently at the lieutenant commander.

The lieutenant commander nodded at Shinosuke.

"It seems your words are indeed true."

"Yes. This time, despite Mr. Kasimura being targeted for assassination, he deliberately confronted Velvet and managed to subdue and arrest him. Yet, we failed dismally in cornering the rear admiral. That is why we've changed our strategy."

Although the lieutenant seems unwilling to give up, it appears he may help reduce the risk of Shinsuke getting drawn into the Intelligence Division's investigation—somewhat.

"I understand. I'd rather avoid any trouble myself, so I'll trust what the lieutenant says."

"I'm glad to hear that. In the future, I'll be contacting Mr. Kashimura directly, so I appreciate your cooperation."

"So all contact except from the lieutenant himself is to be considered false, then?"

"That's right. Then..."

The lieutenant did not even touch the tea served to him before standing up.

"Come to think of it, the Velvet Line wasn't the only one—when we traced the flow of funds from Lieutenant Colonel Langlitt in supply, we found nothing suspicious, right?"

The lieutenant paused as he turned to leave.

"Is there something more?"

You might find it interesting to look into the flow of supplies. For example, aren't there stocks of consumables just sitting at unmanned supply bases, never actually delivered to the troops?

...

"There should be stocks of supplies—food, medicine, ammunition, and so on—left untouched in the back of warehouses, never delivered to the troops, even though they're brought in later. Of course, since these are consumables, they wouldn't sit idle for a year or two; they'd be moved to another base after about ten months. Over time, as this cycle repeats, don't you think some of these supplies just get used up without anyone noticing?"

"An interesting point."

"No, something similar happened before. Back then, it just ended with the end being cut off. Colonel, who was a major at the time, didn't even reach him."

A small act of poetic justice from Shinosuke to Captain.

Velvet was arrested, but it doesn't seem like the situation will settle down anytime soon.