The cultivation with Ruan Mei and Chiori only came to a stop late into the night.
Mainly because after Ruan Mei discovered that being closely attuned with Nolan could elevate her life level, she suddenly felt that her experiments could be postponed for a while.
So the three of them continued cultivating until nightfall. In the end, Ruan Mei even collected the impurities from their bodies, making bathing unnecessary.
However, going to the hot spring bathhouse was not just about cleaning the body. It also nourished the body and improved cultivation speed, among many other benefits.
Thus, the group still went to the bathhouse to continue cultivating for a bit before heading downstairs for dinner, where Nolan also introduced Ruan Mei to everyone.
After a short rest, by the time it was past midnight here, it was already around seven or eight in the morning at the Herta Space Station.
Today, Nolan planned to continue grinding affection with the girls at the Herta Space Station.
After all, Asta and Herta were both not far from reaching maximum affection. As long as he found a way to spend some time with them, it should be enough.
Asta was easy enough, but for Herta, he needed to find a way to meet her real body.
Otherwise, his ability that continuously increased affection through floral fragrance would not work on a mere puppet.
Given Nolan's relationship with Herta, she probably would not refuse his request to meet. He just needed a reasonable excuse.
With that in mind, Nolan teleported to the Herta Space Station.
Recently, Stelle and the Astral Express crew had been exploring Jarilo-VI, so they had not come over much to play the Simulated Universe. Nolan himself had also not visited these past couple of days.
Mainly because his recent focus had been on clearing monsters and searching for World Bubbles, since both methods provided far more Adventure EXP and cultivation progress than the Simulated Universe.
Naturally, his priorities had shifted. On top of that, Herta and Screwllum had not yet introduced any new gameplay updates to the Simulated Universe, which made it somewhat stale.
This was the perfect opportunity to explain to Herta why he had been slacking off recently. As a scholar, she should be interested in the Sea of Quanta.
Using that as a reason, he might be able to get a chance to meet Herta's real body.
After all, researching the Sea of Quanta would require going there in person. But as an unknown dimension with barely any records in the entire galaxy, its secrecy was extremely high.
Herta's puppets were not like Nolan's sword-god incarnations. They might not be able to be controlled across the Sea of Quanta.
Wouldn't that mean her real body had to act personally?
Nolan's little scheme clicked perfectly into place, and in a good mood, he walked toward Herta's office.
As he passed through the Master Control Zone, Nolan spotted Asta. She seemed to be receiving a guest.
The guest was a girl with shoulder-length silver-gray hair, with the inner layers and bangs dyed red.
She wore a sleeveless collared bodysuit, predominantly black, with a small white section at the chest and button details.
At her right hip was a large oval cutout, revealing her fair skin, decorated only with a red ribbon tied into a bow.
Below were her smooth, full thighs, and she wore black short boots.
At this moment, Nolan used his affection skills to obtain her detailed information:
[Level: 132]
[affection Skill Potential: Gold]
[Topaz: A P45-level executive of the Strategic Investment Department of the Interastral Peace Corporation, leader of the Special Debts Picket Team, and one of the galaxy-renowned "Ten Stonehearts." She possesses the cornerstone "Debt-Collection Topaz" bestowed by the Preservation Emanator "Diamond," granting her considerable power. She is often accompanied by her pet partner, Numby.]
So she was from the Interastral Peace Corporation, and at P45, no less. That was already among the higher ranks within the company, a genuine top executive.
Someone like her coming to the space station… was she here to seek cooperation with Herta?
Well, while that was quite likely, it did not rule out the possibility that she was simply here for a visit.
As Nolan appeared in the Master Control Zone, Asta spotted him from afar and waved, seemingly calling him over.
Nolan walked up and greeted the two of them.
"Good morning, Asta, and good morning, Miss."
"Mm, good morning." Asta smiled, then looked at the young woman beside her and gave a brief introduction.
"This is Topaz, an executive from the Strategic Investment Department of the IPC."
"Hello, I've heard about you. Not long ago, when the Herta Space Station was invaded by the Antimatter Legion, it's said that you, the security advisor, handled it. I've long admired your name."
Topaz extended her hand toward Nolan.
"It was nothing special, just part of my duties." Nolan shook her hand and replied modestly.
"Nolan, Miss Topaz is here to visit Madam Herta. You should be heading to test the Simulated Universe now, right? Could I trouble you to bring her along?"
Asta explained what she needed help with.
So she really is here for Herta… It wasn't anything troublesome, so Nolan naturally had no reason to refuse. He nodded lightly.
"Alright, please follow me."
Originally, he had planned to go increase Herta's affection first anyway. Now there was an extra girl joining, which didn't feel bad at all.
Nolan glanced at the character panel that had popped up with a affection notification:
[Topaz Has Developed Good Feeling Towards You, Obtained 1 Affection Point. Current Affection Level: Lv.1 (1/100)]
After parting with Asta for the time being, Nolan and Topaz… along with her Warp Trotter companion, walked toward Herta's office.
"Miss Topaz, it feels like your trotters are much smarter than the others," Nolan said casually, lowering his gaze to the creature that was white on top and black on the bottom, somewhat resembling a small pig.
After all, it would be awkward if neither of them said anything.
Nolan had actually seen Warp Trotters before. They often appeared around the space station, and he had also sensed them while observing Jarilo-VI.
They were a type of dimensional creature that could appear anywhere in the universe at will. However, they were usually timid, basically fleeing through space the moment they saw someone, making them seem not particularly intelligent.
Because of that, it was rare to hear of anyone capturing one as a pet.
Topaz's was different. Not only did it have a good relationship with her and wasn't afraid of people, it also seemed to understand human speech and appeared quite intelligent.
Just now, upon hearing Nolan's praise, the little fellow even looked like it was about to raise its tail, though Warp Trotters didn't really have tails.
"She's called Numby, my partner. As for why she's so smart, well, that's naturally because I've put in quite a bit of effort raising her."
Topaz was also quite interested in Nolan. After all, he was a powerful security advisor of the space station, so she casually chatted with him as well.
In truth, she was also gathering information about him through their conversation.
...
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