The room next door.
Shinji Ikari, who was practicing the Breathing Technique while wearing headphones, reluctantly took them off.
The vibrations and screams coming from the wall made him even suspect that a small earthquake had occurred.
Bang—!
Thump—!
"Yamete!!"
Listening to these terrible onomatopoeic sounds, the innocent boy's cheeks flushed crimson.
"Teacher Hansen... it's truly exhausting having to look after these two troublesome women every day..."
Shinji sighed sincerely, his admiration for Hansen rising another level.
"Is this the responsibility of a mature man? I must work harder too!"
...Click—
The sound of the door lock turning was exceptionally clear amidst the chaos.
The two women, who were wrestling in a tangle on the sofa, instantly froze.
Their current posture was extremely delicate.
Asuka was pinning Mari Makinami underneath her, but because her movements just now were too vigorous, her bath towel had completely slipped down to her waist, leaving the remaining covering precarious.
Meanwhile, one of Mari Makinami's hands was still grasping the Little Bear Panties, and the other hand was inadvertently resting on Asuka's elastic thigh.
Both of them simultaneously turned their heads and looked towards the Entrance.
Hansen was standing there, holding a portion of Oden for a late-night snack. His gaze calmly swept over the mess before settling on the nearly half-naked Asuka.
His sight slid from the delicate collarbone, past the still-youthful but beautifully shaped curve, finally landing on the Little Bear Panties that made one's vision blacken.
The air solidified for three seconds.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH——————!!!"
Asuka let out the highest decibel scream of the night, turning completely red instantly, like a cooked shrimp.
She frantically grabbed the nearby cushion to cover her chest, curling into a ball.
"Pervert! Lecher! Don't look! Get out!!"
In contrast, Mari Makinami, who was pinned underneath, was not flustered at all.
She even went a step further, whistling and winking at Hansen: "Welcome back, Darling~ Are you satisfied with tonight's welcome ceremony?"
"Mari Makinami! You idiot woman, shut up!!" Asuka was dying of shame and anger, wishing she could crawl into a hole.
Hansen sighed, closed the door, changed his shoes, and walked straight over.
He stopped in front of the two women, and his powerful aura made even Mari Makinami, who was still acting up, subconsciously suppress her smile.
"Look at the time, and you're still causing trouble."
He placed the Oden he was holding on the coffee table, then casually picked up a spare thin blanket from the back of the sofa, bending down naturally.
Asuka instinctively squeezed her eyes shut, expecting a scolding or teasing.
However, the expected ridicule did not come.
A coat carrying the man's warm body temperature was gently draped over her, completely hiding the abundant beauty on display.
"Although you're at home, as a young girl..." Hansen gently tapped Asuka's forehead through the blanket, "it's better to be a little more reserved."
Asuka was stunned.
She opened her eyes and saw a pair of deep, calm eyes that seemed capable of encompassing everything.
The feeling was like a small boat in a storm suddenly sailing into a tranquil harbor.
The heat on her face not only failed to subside but burned even hotter.
But this time, it was no longer due to shame and anger, but because of a certain indescribable flutter.
"N-nagging! None of your business!"
She buried her face in the strangely pleasant-smelling collar, her voice muffled, but the earlier momentum was gone.
"And you."
Hansen turned to look at Mari Makinami, who was trying to sneak away, and accurately pinched the scruff of her neck.
"Oops~ I've been caught, meow~"
Mari Makinami stuck out her tongue and made a cute face.
"Give the item back to her."
Hansen pulled the pitiful Little Bear Panties from her hand and tossed them to Asuka, who had wrapped herself up like a Zongzi.
"Hmph, Boss is such a killjoy... Ouch—"
Hansen chopped the mischievous woman on the head, then reached out and ruffled Mari Makinami's hair: "She came all this way, and you're bullying her?"
Mari Makinami, like a cat, pitifully rubbed her head against Hansen's palm: "But Boss, I also came all this way... Ow!"
She ended up getting another chop.
"Stop nagging, go get the bowls and chopsticks, and eat the late-night snack."
"Yes, yes, yes~ I obey your command, my Master~"
Mari Makinami ran giggling towards the kitchen, not forgetting to add a low-voiced jab as she passed Asuka.
"Princess, it seems your charm isn't enough yet. You need to work hard to change those little bears into lace~"
"Ma! Ki! Na! Mi—!"
...Continuous gloomy rain.
Tokyo-3, the air was saturated with the smell of dampness and rust.
A VTOL transport plane with special livery penetrated the heavy clouds, slowly descending with a jarring engine roar onto the underground apron of NERV Headquarters.
The hatch opened, and humid water vapor instantly surged inside.
A man in a dark suit with his shirt collar casually open walked down.
He had a casually tied ponytail and a hint of scruffy stubble on his chin.
In those seemingly cynical eyes, there was a hawk-like sharpness.
Ryoji Kaji.
He tightly held a seemingly ordinary black briefcase. Even when facing the fully armed security personnel around him, his demeanor remained relaxed.
"That was truly an unpleasant trip," Ryoji Kaji shrugged, his gaze sweeping over the cold metal walls around him, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. "But at least I made it in time."
...Deep within NERV, the Commander's Office.
The vast pattern of the Tree of Life was etched onto the ceiling. In the empty room, there was only a desk and the man whose hands were clasped in front of his mouth, seemingly merged with the darkness.
Gendo Ikari.
"Did you bring the item?" Gendo Ikari's voice was devoid of emotion, cold as deep-sea ice.
"Ah, the process was a bit convoluted. I almost lost my life at Bethany Base."
Ryoji Kaji walked up to the desk, placed the black briefcase flat on the surface, and lightly stroked the fingerprint lock on the case.
"However, I successfully completed the mission."
With a crisp mechanical clicking sound, the case lid slowly sprang open.
Lying quietly within the specialized Low-Temperature Buffer Gel was an object that was both chilling and filled with divine beauty.
It was a miniaturized specimen sealed in an amber-colored solution.
It looked like a key, but upon closer inspection, it more closely resembled a desiccated human nervous system.
It possessed the general shape of a spine and four limbs, and countless minute nerve fibers trembled slightly in the solution like tentacles, seemingly imbued with some unspeakable vitality.
The artifact used by mortals to knock open the door of God—
"key of nebuchadnezzar."
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