Sure, the old guy was a bit older, but he was really good at taking care of others.


    You could see how happy Juniper was when she was with him. If they actually broke up, she might revert to being the gloomy, brooding Specter.


    "Just drive," Juniper said wearily, leaning back against the seat and slowly closing


    her eyes.


    First, she''d deal with things at the main base, and then she''d go back and deal with that damn man.


    Hunting her down? Bombing her base and her cargo ship? And exiling her to an uninhabited ind? He had some nerve! She was going to settle every single one of those scores with him!


    But the thought of Shanley... made her heart ache, and a lump formed in her throat.


    Thest time she''d felt this way was when she left home to find medicinal herbs for her grandfather. She missed him.


    At the main base, the moment the car stopped, the five masters rushed over to Juniper, overjoyed.


    "So, you finally decided to grace us with your presence?" Catherine pulled Juniper into a tight hug, her eyes red. "You little rascal, you went after the leader of the Sigma Network without telling us! What if something had happened?"


    "But it didn''t," Juniper replied with a faint smile, letting Catherine hug her.


    "You''ve got some nerve, kid," Michael stepped forward. His expression was stern, but his voice wasced with affection. "Something that big happens, and you don''t even call us."


    "And you too, Lue." After scolding Juniper, he turned his gaze to the timid, boyishly-dressed girl hiding behind her. “There''s a limit to how much you should indulge her nonsense."


    Lue kept her head down, not daring to say a word. It was true; she had almost gotten Juniper into serious trouble. Thank goodness the leader of the Sigma Network was Shanley. With anyone else, the consequences would have been unimaginable.


    "Don''t me Lue," Juniper said, her clear voice cutting in. "This was my fault, not hers."


    "But why would the leader of the Sigma Network let you go so easily?" Richard leaned in and asked curiously.


    Juniper''s brow furrowed. After a few seconds of silence, she looked up abruptly. "Is there anything to eat? I''m starving."


    "Yes, all your favorites," Catherine said, not wanting the girl to go hungry. She shot a look at the others, telling them to drop it for now.


    In the dining hall, Juniper sat at the table, eating slowly and deliberately. The five masters sat in a row across from her, their eyes fixed on her.


    "So, why did the Sigma Network let you go?" Michael finally broke the silence once


    it looked like she was about finished eating.


    "Ahem..." Knowing she couldn''t avoid it forever, Juniper made up an excuse. "It''s because I brought the newly developed micro-bomb. I told their leader that if he didn''t let us go, I''d blow him up. And then hedet us go.


    "That simple?" Michael''s brow furrowed, and he blurted out, "The great leader of the


    Sigma Network is that easily spooked?"


    "Yep," Juniper nodded guiltily, then nced at Lue, whose face was nearly buried in her bowl. "Right?"


    "Huh?" Lue nearly choked, but she


    nodded frantically. "Y-yes, that''s


    right! The Sigma Network guys wer scared to death. They were speechless."


    She would never forget the look of shock on the old man''s face when he realized Juniper was Specter.


    "That doesn''t sound much like the leader of the Sigma Network I''ve heard about Robert mumbled to himself. After a moment''s thought, he whispered, "Though, he really didn''t seem that bright."


    They were seriously starting to doubt... was the man locked up in the Cole Room


    really the leader of the Sigma Network?


    "Oh, Specter, we caught..."