"Crash! Crash! Crash!"
Loud impacts shook the ground as Zeke repeatedly slammed Mobius's head into the earth with immense strength, treating her like a helpless doll for venting frustration.
Bloodied and disoriented, Mobius's consciousness started fading, gradually transporting her back to their first encounter years ago.
"You expect me to conduct experiments with this plan?"
Bound by black tentacles and suspended in mid-air, Zeke frowned disapprovingly at Mobius, who had presented him with an experimental proposal report.
Since entering the World of Elysium, he first silenced the incessantly chatty Ellie with a voice-loss potion, then engaged in a passionate yet friendly exchange with Kalpa. Following that, he complimented Eden's singing, receiving some rather useless but ornate gemstones as a result. He also humiliated Hua into self-isolation, leaving behind the words - "Left hand lacking precision, right hand devoid of strength. To compete on equal footing with me, wait another fifty thousand years..." among other remarks.
After all these activities, Zeke lost interest and decided to thoroughly analyze the ancient machinery of the Elysian Realm, aiming to develop new applications for it.
Just then, Mobius appeared, making a routine request for experimentation.
"I've found you, dear lab rat brother. Would you like to join Mobius in doing something intriguing? It could grant you evolution, making you even stronger—a truly unprecedented and marvelous experience, oh~"
"Sure." Zeke's expression remained indifferent as he flashed a thumbs-up sign.
Mobius's enigmatic yet charming smile momentarily froze, and she tilted her head innocently.
"...Huh?"
"Hurry up; time is life. Show me another human body modification path from the previous era. I've heard you're quite knowledgeable," Zeke said impatiently. He grabbed one of the flying device's metallic tentacles beneath Mobius and directly headed towards her personal area.
As the flying device carried Mobius forward, her thoughts were somewhat disarrayed, instinctively sensing something amiss. She exclaimed, "Wait, aren't you being too hasty?!"
"I did say time is life. Surely you didn't invite me without having an experimental plan ready, right?"
"How could that be? I'm a genius! I have countless perfect transformation plans at my disposal! Come, let me show you!"
With a lift of her full, rounded chest, Mobius maneuvered the flying device past Zeke, reclaiming control to lead the way.
Following that, Mobius bound Zeke's limbs and hoisted him up.
And then after that, Zeke requested to examine the experimental plan. With great confidence, Mobius swiftly transformed the experiment outline they had spent three minutes constructing into paper form and flipped through it page by page for Zeke's inspection.
Now, here they were at this moment.
"What do you think? Can't follow along? Should I go slower or explain each step individually?" Mei asked cheerfully, her laughter sounding like tinkling silver bells filled with mirth.
Zeke sighed.
"No need. Just flip faster."
From their very first meeting, efficiency seemed questionable. Could this seemingly underage child truly be a genius scientist?
As if reading the skepticism from Zeke's deadpan gaze, blood rushed to Mobius' head. They hastily finished flipping through the experimental plan and then spoke with a forced smile:
"Alright, satisfied now? Let's get down to business!"
"You expect me to conduct the experiment with this plan?"
"... Are you deliberately provoking me?"
"Step 16's synthesis formula has issues, Step 25 is missing a fitting calculation, and Step 56 lacks—let me be blunt: the overall experimental framework is overly aggressive, showing clear signs of rushed work. It lacks proper simulation validation, and furthermore, you seem to have given no consideration to genetic stability. This proposal is unacceptable; send it back for revision."
"Yes sir!" Mobius, overwhelmed by Zeke's relentless barrage of criticism, instinctively responded loudly and turned to amend the plan, reminiscent of being reprimanded by her professor when she first started.
Whizz... Whizz... Whizz...
"Snap!"
Mobius flung the proposal report onto the ground.
"You're truly provoking me, aren't you?!"
She grabbed Zeke by the collar, while black substance surged from her other hand, transforming into a sleek metallic-looking spike. Her vertical slit-like pupils emitted a chilling intent to kill.
Three seconds later.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
And that marked their initial encounter.
Back to the present moment.
"Crack! Crack! Crack!"
Amidst loud thuds, Zeke relentlessly smashed Dr. Mobius's bleeding head against the ground, holding her by the hair.
The scene mirrored their past encounter.
After a while, having finished his brutal greeting, Zeke tossed the limp girl onto the floor like a lifeless doll and wiped the blood from his hands with a tissue.
As he glanced back nonchalantly, he noticed that all the girls who had vowed just minutes earlier to protect him were now stepping backward—except Kiana and Sin, whose legs buckled as they clung to each other, managing strained, ingratiating smiles.
Zeke remained silent, turning his gaze back down at Dr. Mobius lying beneath his feet.
"It's been a long time, Dr. Mobius," Zeke said formally.
Although this woman was undeniably insane, she was genuinely a genius—the creator of both the engravings and this World of Elysium, among many other achievements. The current Mobius likely hadn't changed significantly from her counterpart fifty thousand years ago.
Dr. Mei's Stigmata research and Fusion Fighter Experiment offered hope for survival. On the other hand, Mobius's experiments on beastification and Artificial Collapse endowed the Thirteen Heroes with combat prowess capable of rivaling or even overwhelming Herrschers, bringing forth hopes of victory—though ultimately, it ended in utter defeat.
Zeke indeed criticized Mobius's experimental plans repeatedly, even labeling them as "utterly disastrous." However, to be fair, Otto, Einstein, and Tesla were not spared his scathing remarks either.
Genius clashing with genius often stemmed from ideological differences rather than questions of capability.
With great effort, Mobius lifted her head, glaring at Zeke through bloodied eyes as she gritted her teeth.
"One day, I will devour you whole!"
"Oh."
"What do you have to be proud of? Just because I'm trapped here, lacking materials and test subjects, my body enhancements can only go so far within the confines of my existing genetic framework. There's no way for me to evolve!"
"You're right. Your talent represents an immeasurable variable, and releasing you recklessly could easily throw the world into chaos. Nevertheless, this time, I'll grant you an opportunity."
Zeke leaned forward, extending his hand towards Mobius.
Mobius hesitated, her eyes flickering, seemingly wavering.
Then, she reached out with her small hands, slowly approaching Zeke's friendly gesture.
As their hands clasped, Mobius, her face stained with blood, flashed a smile.
"You... truly are too naive!"
"Chuckle!"
In an instant, Mobius's face approached Zeke's hand. With her sharp fangs emerging, she viciously bit down on his wrist.
"Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!"
Zeke felt his blood draining rapidly as Mobius swallowed, consuming large amounts of it into her stomach.
Before Zeke could retaliate, Mobius swiftly withdrew.
"Hahaha! Thank you for crafting your body so perfectly, and even more grateful am I that you've presented such a flawless specimen right before me once again! Just wait, I'll be back soon to devour each of you one by one, celebrating my escape from captivity and ascending to greater heights! Hahaha!"
Mobius vanished without a trace, leaving behind only her chilling laughter echoing through the air, which eventually faded completely.
Zeke lifted his hand, watching the two puncture wounds slowly heal on his wrist, expression blank.
"Dr. Mobius, truly intriguing," he remarked, gradually revealing a warm smile like a gentle breeze.