"Seeking marriage?"
Mobius paused the hand that was mixing the liquid solvent. She raised an eyebrow, recalling the words Lin said yesterday that she hadn't quite heard.
Could what he said then have been...
She cleared the chaotic thoughts from her mind and let out a strange laugh, saying, "And what does that have to do with me? Is it possible that because even he wouldn't look at you, you came here to complain to me? I regret to inform you that all you'll get is ridicule."
Elysia narrowed her eyes, seemingly having been partly hit by Mobius's remark.
"Dr. Mobius is quite leisurely, I see."
"I'm not as bored as you people. The fragile connection of a marital relationship, which guarantees nothing, and the act of reproduction, which has been thoroughly researched, both leave me unable to grasp the significance of marriage," Mobius curled her lips. "Though his sudden idea of getting married is quite surprising to me."
Elysia seemed used to Mobius's venomous tongue; wasn't this a sign of their good relationship? She squinted and smiled at Mobius's busy back: "Aren't you going to go see Lin? He's very entertaining when he's seeking marriage."
"Hmph, boring."
Go see him?
Mobius scoffed dismissively in her mind.
He comes here punctually every day with food. Why would she need to specifically go out to see him?
Wait, is that guy coming a bit late today? It's already this time and he still hasn't arrived.
Mobius inadvertently glanced at her watch and realized that it was almost mealtime, yet Lin hadn't shown up. Normally, he would arrive half an hour early.
"Oh? Is Dr. Mobius waiting for someone?" Elysia playfully poked her head out from Mobius's side, smiling mischievously.
"Tch, didn't you already know and come here to wait?"
Elysia never visited without a purpose. Even if she occasionally bored into her lab when she had nothing to do, coming right at mealtime today clearly meant she had learned from somewhere that Lin brought Mobius food every day and specifically came to join the fun and get a meal.
"Hehe, just mixing in for a meal. Lin practically become your personal chef. It's hard for me to get a meal from him."
Elysia also noticed the time ticking by: "By the way, is Lin usually this late?"
"..." This voiced Mobius's own question, but she opened her mouth and said nothing.
"Ding-a-ling-ling."
Mobius's communicator sound echoed through the private laboratory. She picked up the communicator from the nearby table, glanced at the source of the call, paused, then glanced at Elysia and chose to answer.
"What is it?"
"I have to cook for someone else today. Solve your own lunch."
"...What?" Mobius hadn't expected the first sentence to be this. She immediately retorted, "Then what am I going to eat?"
"Instant noodles, I guess."
"Beep—"
The communication was cut off.
"Dr. Mobius? Hello?"
Elysia saw Mobius suddenly zone out after taking the call. She waved her hand in front of Mobius's eyes.
Gradually, a look of grinding teeth appeared on Mobius's face.
That guy, how direct he was about flaking! He'd let her eat instant noodles just to cook for someone else? And... how dare he hang up on her communication?
Mobius turned her head coldly: "What flavor of instant noodles do you like?"
"...Huh?"
...
Kevin walked to Mei's side and watched with her as the Core of the Herrscher of Reason was placed into the most robust containment chamber in the world.
"Are you done with your work for today?" Mei didn't turn her head, but she knew the person who came was Kevin; their silent understanding was etched into their souls.
"I have less work now. I spend most of my time in the gym."
As the chamber door closed, this Herrscher of Reason Core, from an unknown era, was temporarily sealed. Its unsealing might be the moment when the Soul Steel discovered alongside it would be forged into weapons capable of utilizing the Herrscher Core.
Kevin's attention wasn't on the Herrscher Core, nor was it on Mei. It was as if his body was merely standing there, but his mind was a thousand miles away.
"Is that so?"
Kevin knew why Mei asked this. It was because he had a lot of spare time, yet he had visited Mei less frequently.
He spent more time alone.
"Mei, Lin has changed."
Kevin abruptly turned his head and said to Mei with a cold tone.
Lin? Mei actually frequently left the R&D department to visit other departments, unlike Mobius's habit of staying indoors. She was aware of Lin betting pool and this marriage-seeking endeavor.
"I'm starting to be unable to see Lin clearly. Will this change be a good thing?"
"Good and bad are not for us to define." Mei quickly stopped Kevin from falling into a deeper thought loop. "Can you clearly say which is better: your current self or your former self?"
"..."
Kevin remained silent, and this silence answered Mei's question.
"Furthermore, I don't believe Lin has changed."
"What?"
Mei did not elaborate. Her statement seemed to be merely an unintentional remark, and even Kevin wasn't sure if he had misheard.
Soon, Kevin began observing the multiple chambers behind the transparent wall.
Even during the Great Purge Incident, these chambers suffered no damage. They were not designed as some kind of shelter but simply used the sturdiest technology and materials for isolation.
Because once the contents inside returned to the human world, they would trigger unimaginable disasters.
"Will all these Herrscher Cores be made into Divine Keys?" he asked.
"At least, that is the current decision," Mei replied. "The Divine Key made from the Sixth Herrscher's Core should be handed over to Lin for use."
This was a joint decision made by the higher-ups of the Fire Moth and herself.
Lin had previously used the power of the Sixth Herrscher, so his compatibility with the Divine Key of the Herrscher of Death should be very high.
"A Herrscher Core is essentially a key. Judging from the Herrscher's manifested power, they connect to something that allows the Herrscher to use their authority. Forging them into a Divine Key cannot reproduce this connection, which means they can't fully exert their original authority."
"But this is the safest approach."
"Perhaps there are other ways to reproduce their function as keys, allowing humans to fully unleash the Herrschers' authority." Mei's gaze remained fixed on the chamber that had just contained the Core of the Herrscher of Reason.
All the Herrscher Cores had set plans for Divine Key creation, which kept her "Blank Key" design at the drafting stage, lacking a suitable Herrscher Core for testing.
Would this latest, "extra" Core of the Herrscher of Reason, along with the matching Soul Steel, be a new possibility?