That look...
Just returned from the dark snowfield, Ryan felt a surge of anger rise up instantly. He thought to himself that Mobius was simply unscrupulous—she let her guard down just a little, and now she's fallen into the trap.
And I can't even explain that I know these twins; there's no way to explain it.
This is infuriating.
Ryan felt his brain suddenly speed up, his expression stern as he lifted his head.
"You two, be careful. Mobius is really good at exploiting people. If you can't handle it, request a transfer."
"Hey, could you be a little more subtle when talking about me?" Mobius grumbled.
"No, I hate heartless capitalists. Besides, now that you're a fusion warrior, you can handle any job as long as you focus."
"But I need help too. Who's the one always running around outside?" Mobius crossed her arms, looking like she'd been waiting for a long time.
"I never signed a contract to sell my soul to you." Ryan huffed, turning and walking away.
That bastard, changing the topic again.
Mobius realized her plan had backfired. She had intentionally brought the two new assistants to seize the chance to mock Ryan, but he skillfully deflected her, turning the conversation into a critique of her instead.
While she stood there stunned, Ryan had already walked off. She stomped her foot and hurriedly chased after him, staring at the man's emotionless profile, unsure of where to start. She pressed her lips together.
I heard from Mei that you were psychologically shaken? How come you're acting like nothing happened?
She didn't quite understand but felt if she took the initiative to ask, Ryan would just mock her back, saying things like "Are you that concerned about me?" or "Don't treat me like a child," making it hard to explain.
Mobius glanced at her feet, while Ryan stole a glance at her, quietly puzzled.
Does she not know that I killed those people in Europe? Could it be that she's been too busy lately and hasn't been paying attention to my movements?
This doesn't make sense.
Ryan, too, hesitated. If he brought up the topic, Mobius would undoubtedly seize the opportunity to mock him, saying something like "Your overthinking is quite cute."
So neither of them spoke, walking silently towards the depths of the underground, only exchanging subtle glances, as if silently testing each other.
"Fuxi, they're so strange. Does this remind you of an old anime?"
"'I Really Want to Die'?" The black-haired, blue-eyed girl observed carefully and whispered, "They do seem a bit like that, but they're both very proud people. They must suppress each other. Now you know why Dr. Mobius wanted us to come here."
Nuwa tilted her head. It was Sunday, and she had planned to sleep in, but she was called here by a phone call, and the introduction felt a bit too rushed.
I see now. She wanted to grab the chance to punish Dr. Ryan, but he's also a skilled person. He turned the topic around effortlessly. No wonder she was stomping her foot in frustration.
Anyone who could be Mobius's assistant wasn't foolish, but connecting all the dots left Nuwa even more confused.
"Sister, what's the point of all this?"
"I don't know. Maybe it's just a quirk of geniuses. They have to complicate simple matters. For Dr. Mobius, it's probably because she's afraid of rejection." Fuxi glanced at her younger sister and smiled faintly. "You should've heard the rumors. Dr. Ryan is in love with Miss Elysia."
"Not only that. I heard Miss Sakura from the security department has an ambiguous relationship with Dr. Ryan too."
The two girls' gossip spirits were in full swing. It was like they were imagining a love triangle. They glanced at Mobius's back, their eyes filled with some sympathy.
Their voices were very soft, but to beings like Ryan and Mobius, who weren't human, they could vaguely hear everything, making them both uncomfortable.
"Cough, your assistants are quite lively."
"They're just talking nonsense. Don't worry, I'll give them three times the work when we get back. That'll keep them too busy to think about things." Mobius gritted her teeth, her face dark with anger.
Ryan grieves silently for the twins but also sees an opportunity to speak out.
"Don't worry, those things won't affect my mood, or rather, I've already mentally prepared for them. You should go out more often."
"Not interested. I'm not like you, always meddling in other people's business." Mobius lightly curled the corners of her mouth, letting out a subtle sigh of relief. "Hmm, I feel like I've heard that kind of thing before."
"That's Elysia 'true self.' No matter how the world changes, I stand firm."
"Don't praise that fat woman in front of me!" Mobius's smile quickly disappeared, and she suddenly quickened her pace, walking ahead.
Can't even mention her???
Ryan lips twitched. He thought that Mobius's hostility was a bit too much, and he turned around to look at the girls behind him, who were stifling their laughter. He gave them a friendly smile.
But in an instant, both of them stopped smiling.
The conference room was ten floors underground. When the automatic doors opened, Ryan saw that the room was already filled with people. It was a tiered conference hall, with a massive screen at the front. Dozens of researchers in white lab coats were talking to each other.
Klein sat on the inner side with several empty seats next to him, but Ryan stopped in his tracks. He wanted to sit next to Mei and ask about the progress, but when he glanced at her, seeing her slow pace, he threw her a helpless look and quickly caught up.
This scene was naturally noticed by Mobius. The discomfort from before disappeared in an instant. She had the two assistants go in first and then sat next to Ryan.
"I thought you hated meetings," Ryan joked, opening a bottle of mineral water on the desk.
"It depends on the meeting. I hate bureaucracy, but this one has some substance." Mobius lightly fiddled with her long hair and crossed her long legs. "The Divine Keys's research is partly under my charge. I've put a lot of effort into it. Otherwise, it would take much longer."
This was almost a hint, and Ryan glanced at Mobius, who had lifted her chin, and lightly clapped his hands.
"Well, you're great."
"Are you mocking me?"
"Of course not. I'm sincerely praising you." Ryan thought to himself, 'This twisted woman is unpraiseable and unmockable.'
"That's more like it." Mobius shook her head in satisfaction.
...
Are you in kindergarten? Your emotions change so quickly?
Ryan couldn't help but complain, guessing that it was probably a side effect, but at least it was better than going crazy. In a strange way, it was quite cute.
He opened the computer on the desk and glanced at the conference agenda, frowning slightly.
"Four Herrscher cores being developed in parallel?"
"Yes. The principles are similar. Want me to explain what mass production means?"
Ryan didn't mind the jab and nodded lightly. This was an industrial world, not a magical novel where divine artifacts were hand-crafted one by one. A key feature of technological civilization was mass production.
Under Mei's coordination, five research institutes, thousands of researchers, and with Vil-V design, this was humanity's greatest intellectual achievement, representing the highest level of technology. It couldn't have been created by just some genius.
"What about Vil-V? She should be leading today's meeting, right?"
"Her? Hmph, you'll see in a minute."
Ryan could hear the resignation in her voice, but before he could ask, the lights suddenly went out. A spotlight flickered in front of him, and he couldn't help but feel his eyelid twitch.
Boom—
Just as he was confused, a burst of white smoke erupted from the spotlight, like steam pouring out.
The smoke quickly dissipated, revealing a figure draped in a long robe. She was facing away from everyone, gently tapping her foot to a rhythm.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Please enjoy the magnificent performance I have prepared for you."
She pulled the robe open dramatically, revealing her true form.
Vil-V wore an elaborate long dress, brown boots, and a gear-shaped hairpin. She raised her hand high, deliberately stretching the tone of her voice.
"The crystallization of human wisdom, the symbol of harnessing the terrifying Corruption, the fantastical yet scientific weapon—"
"The Divine Keys!"
The room fell silent, everyone staring blankly at the stage. These were battle-hardened individuals, but they had never seen such an eccentric opening.
A perfectly normal high-end forum now looked like a circus show.
Ryan watched the stage, feeling awkward down to his toes. He instinctively glanced at Mei, only to find the girl's face completely green with displeasure.
That's not right. Why isn't she reacting?
Vil-V also froze, thinking that she should have been met with thunderous applause, but the room suddenly turned cold. Just as she was about to repeat her opening speech, she noticed Mei's murderous glare.
She tried to brush it off by sticking out her tongue, quickly moving to the main topic.
"First, I will present the first Divine Keys created using the first Herrscher core, the Core of Reason. I have named it—"
"Void Archives!"
A golden regular hexahedron appeared on the giant screen, followed by dense data and flashing information. The elite audience gasped in awe, even those who had participated in the development of the first Divine Keys.
It was a divine weapon, and yet, incredibly unscientific!
"The ability of the first stage is to replicate weapons and tools based on the user's understanding of their construction principles." Ryan quietly read the text and gradually fell into thought.
In other words, this thing was like a Philosopher's Stone that never consumed resources, capable of creating objects from thin air—of course, the user must understand the object they want to create.
Indeed, Honkai Energy could do anything. This was the materialization of energy. If it weren't created by humans, it wouldn't be much different from magic.
And this was just the first stage. Ryan remembered that the complete version was a library, even with self-awareness.
Clap, clap, clap.
Thunderous applause erupted. Ryan also clapped enthusiastically.
This was the feeling! Absolutely fantastic!
Vil-V raised her head proudly, greatly satisfied with her performance. It was worth the months of research, though this thing was still a half-finished product. As Ryan suggested, the 'power mode' had yet to be added.
Seeing Vil-V strutting like a victorious rooster, Ryan couldn't help but smile, his expression almost as if giving up on trying to fix things.
Either don't do it, or change the world line completely. Now, under my influence, both fusion warriors and the Divine Keys have appeared several years ahead of time. Humanity's combat strength has skyrocketed.
Honkai, how will you respond now?