"Hehe... It's alright."
Ryn patted mei's head, comforting her.
"Just think of it as an idle question. You don't need to trouble your mind with this world-class problem."
"Mm..."
mei kept her head down, lost in thought.
But Ryn already knew her answer.
It was like how some people would, without a second thought, say they would choose to save the world, but when the world actually needed them to make a choice, they would abandon it for their loved one.
And those who hesitated... most of them would ultimately choose the greater good.
But what did that have to do with Ryn?
Ryn opened mei's notebook to the first page and looked at her name. He then wrote the characters for "Mei" on a small sticky note and placed it below mei's name.
"mei... let me tell you a little tidbit. In my hometown, one of the ways to pronounce 'mei,' when translated as a name, is 'Mei.' Oh~
"Mei? That name... it sounds nice..."
mei tilted her head, her big, curious eyes blinking. Mei. It was such an ordinary name, yet it felt so warm and gentle.
"So, Miss mei, may I call you Mei?"
"Er... I'd prefer you call me by my original name, like mei... But if Dr. Ryn is more accustomed to calling me Mei, I suppose that's acceptable..."
Dr. mei pushed up her glasses, somewhat wanting to refuse Ryn's request. Using nicknames was a bit too intimate, but if it was a custom from where Ryn came from, mei felt she could respect it.
"Yay! I'll call you Mei from now on, then. Mei, are you interested in learning a few things with me?"
Ryn chuckled happily. Who cares about mei or not-mei, it's just like hua or not-hua. Calling her Mei or Fu Hua sounds much better~
Alright, mei was starting to regret it. Being called a nickname that wasn't her own still felt strange. Especially with how smoothly and affectionately Ryn said the name "Mei," it sent a shiver down her spine.
As for Ryn's invitation to study with him, mei didn't agree right away.
To be able to learn from a "famous" doctor was indeed a great blessing for an ordinary person.
But mei couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. This Ryn fellow was very, very strange.
Although Ryn's name often appeared alongside Dr. Einstein's published works, after becoming a doctor himself, Ryn hadn't published anything except for those few trolling books...
It could even be said that if mei hadn't been following Dr. Einstein's publications on quantum mechanics, she wouldn't have even noticed Ryn's existence.
"Dr. Ryn, may I ask what we would be studying?"
"What to study... You've given me something to think about. How about we learn how to plunder the Power of Finality?"
"!???"
Dr. mei stared at Ryn, utterly baffled, and asked in a small voice, "What is the Power of Finality?"
"What is the Power of Finality..."
Ryn turned slightly and whispered in mei's ear:
"The Power of Finality is one of the fundamental essences that make up our world...
mei, have you ever wondered why the solar system exists? Why is it that within several light-years, only the solar system contains humanoid life?
Why is the sun so different from other stars...
Tell me, is it possible that... the solar system was actually created by some unknown existence, and it's an experimental ground where some kind of screening is taking place?"
mei's brows knitted tightly as she looked at Ryn in disbelief.
"So... the end of scientific research is theology? Dr. Ryn, are you planning to teach me theology? In that case, I must decline your invitation. I am a steadfast materialist."
"Theology? Gods exist in this world, but if one were to speculate about them using only theology, it would be far too demeaning to the gods.
As for what I just said, just consider it me rambling. It's fine if you don't accept it."
Ryn waved his hand dismissively, a look of indifference on his face.
Ryn had some understanding of the Power of Finality in the Honkai 2 world, but for the Honkai 3 world, he was still in the speculative stage. Only when the Power of Finality appeared could Ryn discern its true nature.
"......"
mei silently took her notebook back from Ryn's hand, already considering whether she should run for it.
She now seriously suspected that the person in front of her was not Dr. Ryn at all, but an imposter!
"If you only came here to mock me, I must admit, you've succeeded. You successfully made me waste a precious afternoon of self-study.
Class is about to start. Please excuse me."
After speaking, mei slung her backpack over her shoulder and left without a backward glance.
Ryn remained in his seat, downed the two cups of milk tea in his hand with a gloomy expression, and then left the library as well.
"What a pity... I've been studying that Power of Finality for a long time.
I wonder how many years it will be before the Herrscher of Finality descends... By then, I'll be able to verify my hypothesis and plunder Her power."
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As Ryn walked out of the library, he happened to run into mei again.
Except this time, she was standing red-faced in front of the library counter, her fingers intertwined, standing there helplessly as the librarian lectured her.
The librarian was holding the book written by Ryn that mei had been reading. With every few pages she flipped, her blood pressure seemed to rise a few points.
"Young lady... it's fine to borrow books, but how could you scribble and draw all over them? This is considered damage to library property, and you will have to pay for it."
"Th-th-this... its original content was already like this... the layout was a mess, and there were a series of strange illustrations... I didn't write anything in it..."
"Enough!"
The librarian's expression was not pleasant. Damaging a book was one thing, but lying about it was another.
She pointed to the new notes on the pages. Anyone could see they were freshly written.
"How could it have been like this originally? This is a published book. If there were layout issues, it would have been rejected long ago. Besides, look, this handwriting was clearly added recently!"
"Ah, this..."
mei followed the librarian's finger and glanced at the page. Her vision went dark, and she nearly fainted.
She really hadn't written in the book, but that didn't mean Ryn hadn't...
She only remembered asking Ryn to help her add to and revise her notes, forgetting that in order to help her understand more clearly, Ryn had also modified some of the book's content.