Sorry I'm Mated To The Commander novel Chapter 117

Chapter 117 Not His Fault

Chapter 117 Not His Fault

Layla spent half the day explaining to Celia just how much money she could make from her mech suit side gigs.

She made it crystal clear that she wasn’t doing anything shady.

Celia let out a sigh of relief, then her heart ached for Layla. “You’re already so busy with school, and now you’re working part-time just to earn extra cash. That’s way too much for you, Layla.

“Money can wait, but you can’t wear yourself out at such a young age.”

Liam and a few of the older kids crowded around, chiming in, “Layla, we don’t want to be troopers anymore. Troopers are always broke. We’re gonna be mech engineers so we can earn lots of money for Ms. Brennan and you!”

Layla was speechless.

Layla couldn’t help but think, ‘Did I just give them the wrong impression?’

Annie, standing nearby, chimed in, “Mech engineers spend a ton on school. You only start making serious cash once you graduate and become one of the best.

“There’s a mech suit forum on the StarNet, and just recently, some legendary mech engineer dropped a bunch of advanced mech suit designs. He made enough to keep a hundred orphanages running for a hundred years!”

Layla’s mouth twitched.

‘Okay, that’s a bit over the top,’ Layla thought.

Sure enough, when Annie said that being a trooper saves money while you’re in school, the kids started getting all conflicted again.

Layla glanced at the little rascals and said firmly, “As long as I’m around, you don’t need to worry about money. Just follow your passion. If you’ve got the talent and the interest, I’ll support you all the way until you graduate, no matter what.”

“Layla, you’re the best!” the kids cheered.

Some of the older kids had already taken their tests, and a few had reached B-tier shift tier. Liam and a little girl named Bella had even made it to A-tier.

Even if their shift tier never goes up again, with enough effort, they could still become stellar rangers.

Or if they end up working in some other field, they’ll still be just fine.

Two hours later, the stuff Layla had ordered online started arriving one after another.

Everyone pitched in to sort everything out. To spark the kids’ interest in mech suits, Layla had also bought a few household robots, and they’d just arrived, too.

She programmed the robots, and soon the robots were busy with their assigned tasks.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

Layla said, “That should be the woman I messaged online.”

Annie quickly volunteered, “I’ll get it!”

Annie always felt like she didn’t matter, like she wasn’t good at much. But she still wanted to pitch in and help out around the orphanage.

So she was always eager to volunteer for anything.

When she dashed to the door and opened the electronic gate, she was so stunned by who was standing there that she might as well have turned into a statue.

“Mrs. Norris?! What are you doing here?” Annie blurted out.

Lynn, Randall’s mom, froze for a second when she saw Annie at the door.

After they both came inside and introduced themselves, they finally figured out what was going on.

Turns out, Lynn had to quit her job at the hospital because of her health, but she just couldn’t sit still.

Her family had always struggled financially, and now her son was getting married. Even though money was tight, she couldn’t let her kid’s wedding be anything less than perfect.

On top of that, she wanted to help the newlyw Successfully unlocked!

So Lynn started looking for part-time work online, and when he saw Layis post about helping out with the kids, she didn’t hesitate to apply.

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Chapter 117 Not His Fault

Since they already knew each other, there was no need for an interview. Once they agreed, Lynn would work six hours a day. Layla just signed her up right away.

“Mrs. Norris, we’ve got a room ready for you. Feel free to stay here whenever you want. Celia is still adjusting, so we’ll need your help around here,” Layla said.

“It’s really no trouble, I actually love being around kids,” Lynn replied with a warm smile.

Layla watched Lynn’s gentle smile, and Annie was being so well-behaved beside her. Suddenly, Randall popped into her mind.

Layla thought, ‘With a mom this sweet and kind, there’s no way her son could be trouble, right?

‘Guess I was just being paranoid back at the base.

‘No way Randall’s got anything shady going on.

‘Lynn is super gentle and patient, and she fits right in with Celia and the kids in no time.

‘With Annie hanging around.’

Layla couldn’t help but notice Annie was usually loud and hyper, but whenever she was near Lynn, her future mother-in-law, she suddenly acted all shy and well-behaved.

‘Looks like she’s really into Randall,’ Layla thought.

Before she knew it, evening had rolled around. Layla was debating whether to head back to school or just stay over at the orphanage for the night. They’d even set aside a room for her.

Just then, her phone buzzed with a call from November.

“Layla, I just wrapped up my military duties, and there’s been some progress with Nolan. Want me to come pick you up?” November asked.

Layla really wanted to know what was going on with Nolan, so she told November yes, then went to say goodbye to Celia and the others.

Celia said gently, “If Ninth is coming to get you, I can relax.”

Layla couldn’t help but wonder, ‘We only spent one Christmas together. How does Celia suddenly start trusting November so much?’

Seeing the question in Layla’s eyes, Celia smiled softly. “Ninth is a good kid. There’s real sincerity in him. I can tell.”

Layla thought, ‘Atlas really is a good person. Sure, he’s got a bit of a temper, but all these years, he’s been dedicated to looking out for Alpha Prime people.

‘But that temper isn’t his fault. It’s because of the trauma he went through as a kid, which left his psychic force all messed

‘His psychic force is off the charts, so it’s no wonder he’s so quick to lose his cool.

‘People always say boys take after their mothers, and Layla had met Leilani, who is both strong and gentle.

‘If Atlas hadn’t gone through that childhood tragedy, he probably would’ve turned out just like Leilani, gentle and powerful.’

When Atlas came to pick up Layla, he slipped on his mask before they boarded the aero-vehicle. As soon as they were inside, he started, “The energy facility where Nolan was stationed got hit hard, real heavy losses.

“Commander Victor from the Fifth Legion was nearby, so he brought his squad over fast and managed to drive off the rebels who attacked.”

Layla was puzzled. “Rebels again? Are they the same ones who went after our spaceship last time?”

“Yep, the exact same ones,” Atlas said.

Truth was, since Victor answered to Krish, and the losses were brutal, less than ten percent of the starfleet from Sector Three Command made it out alive.

Otherwise, Nolan wouldn’t have ended up so badly injured.

And Atlas didn’t even hear about it right away because the whole thing was kept under wraps.

But Atlas still managed to get his hands on the combat footage from the attack on the energy base through his own

connections.

Those guys who hit Nolan’s fleet were the same rebel group that went after Layla’s spaceship before, no difference at all.

Layla’s mind raced. “Ninth, can I see that combat footage?”

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