The twilight spread across the River Thames like spilled blue ink. A final rose-gold hue lingered on the cathedral dome, and the old bookseller on the South Bank lit a brass kerosene lamp.
"Nice to meet you, you two cute little things~"
Facing the young man and woman she had long admired, Mobius smiled profoundly.
She wasn't lying. Officially speaking, this was indeed their first meeting.
Previously, she had only been observing them in secret through various means... Hmm, why did that sound a bit like a stalker?
And on the other side—
Mobius?
Hearing this familiar yet unfamiliar name, Fuli and Mei exchanged a knowing glance.
The latter, of course, knew who this person was: the up-and-coming executor of the reformist faction, a super expert in the field of life sciences who had single-handedly supported Anti-Entropy's progress in human research. Mei had often stayed up all night reading her published papers, such as the one on soul distillation and liquefaction that Theresa had mentioned earlier.
The modifications to Yaeji came from this person's hands. Its effects were so powerful that even if it were chopped into mincemeat by the Shadow Weaver Sword's energy, as long as the nano-core wasn't shattered and there was sufficient energy, it could regenerate in tens of seconds.
And as for Fuli—
After a moment's hesitation, he asked in a low voice, "I feel like... you're not quite the same as the person in the magazines."
Before today, the boy had only seen photos of Mobius in news media and the like.
In them, this famous beauty of a doctor was indeed very well-preserved, but one could still see the traces of time on the corners of her eyes and skin.
But now?
Fuli's gaze once again swept over the Mobius before him: she was wearing a form-fitting, breathable, thin, pure white woolen sweater. The V-neck design revealed her delicate and alluring collarbones, like the wings of a butterfly. A custom-made Ouroboros necklace hung on her full bosom, and on her wrist was a rose-gold Cartier ladies' watch.
Her long, green hair was meticulously styled, and her long, slender legs under the hip-hugging skirt were clad in 20-denier black thigh-high stockings. Paired with her youthful and charming face, she looked every bit the pure and innocent university student, unversed in the ways of the world.
"Rejuvenation?" he whispered.
In summary: he wanted to do her.
"Is it possible that I was deliberately dressing old when I was on the magazines to avoid some perverts with silver worms for brains from bothering me?"
In the shadows, Mobius leaned against the wall with her arms crossed, carefully examining this delicious-looking young man.
''I want to devour him...'
Feeling her mind quicken under the influence of some power, the beauty couldn't help but lick the corner of her lips.
For a scientist like Mobius who spent her days with test subjects, the outward appearance and beauty of others were meaningless.
Her serpent-like pupils could easily discern how Fuli's soft-colored lips drove the movements of his facial nerves and muscles. Her straight, delicate nose could smell the pheromones mixed with a hint of wariness in the air. The tip of her tongue, peeking from her thin lips, could even taste the sudden, aggressive rise in the boy's body temperature.
It was the male hormones inevitably produced when seeing a suitable, age-appropriate member of the opposite sex for procreation.
However, the beauty was more concerned with something else.
As a master in the field of life sciences, Mobius's control over her own body far surpassed the millimeter-by-millimeter precision of a scalpel gliding across a test subject's organs.
She was certain that from the moment she set foot in this small seaside town, her body had undergone a peculiar chemical reaction.
Her once viscous and sluggish thoughts suddenly broke free from their seals, as if billions of neurons had fired at once. The ripples on a calm lake swelled into a monstrous tsunami.
Every rolling neural synapse was releasing electricity, transmitting information, observing, recording, and computing. Fragments of consciousness floated like supernova remnants in the vacuum of her neural circuits.
Under this effect, Mobius even wanted to abandon all her objectives for coming to Britain and simply lock herself away to swim freely in the sea of inspiration's cage.
Right now, I can do anything!
However, the reason geniuses are geniuses is because they understand the importance of knowing not just the "what," but also the "why."
With immense willpower, Mobius forcibly suppressed the tempestuous surge of thoughts.
After hundreds of self-examinations, she realized the problem wasn't with her. She then began to wander the small seaside town, searching for the mysterious factor that made her thoughts gush like a spring.
It didn't take her much effort to solve this puzzle. The answer was one of the beings she had been closely observing all along.
Fuli.
Mobius remembered the Anti-Entropy researchers she had sent to Nagazora to assist Cocolia. When asked why they hadn't continued monitoring Raiden Mei as planned, their post-incident reports were all largely the same:
Inspiration had inexplicably erupted. The mental blockages that had stymied them for years shattered like a rocket breaking through a barrier. They had subconsciously cast aside their trivial mission to seize every second for their experimental work.
At first, Mobius had thought they were just making excuses to avoid participating in large-scale human experiments. But now, it was clear the problem stemmed from the boy right in front of her!
'An extremely rare, permanent-type development ability. Not only does it affect a MANTIS like me, but its range also covers several square miles... The skill rank must be at least A. Combined with the reports from the Nagazora researchers and the current boost I'm feeling, it either has the potential to develop to a higher rank, or its effect is linked to the user's strength!'
Effortlessly deducing the nature of Fuli's ability, a covetous, profane light gleamed in Mobius's serpentine eyes.
The insatiable curiosity of a top-tier researcher raged like a storm within her, constantly tempting her to devour the walking treasure before her.
"I was lying," she teased, flicking her green hair like a schoolgirl deliberately picking on her crush. "The real Dr. Mobius died long ago. As her only daughter, I simply inherited her name and identity. That's why I look so young."
"Really?" Fuli was shocked.
Since when did the eternally single Dr. Mobius have a daughter?
"It's fake!" Mei retorted irritably.
As the former vessel of Sesa and the current master of Kurikara, she could clearly feel a familiar, surging life force within the other woman.
Her physical rejuvenation was the effect of the Sesa factors within her body.
Simply put, she was a MANTIS who had integrated with Sesa's genes.
But that was precisely what worried Mei!
Despite the Previous Era's MANTISs typically walking around in human form, every single one of them could be classified into different biological orders.
This was because they had each transcribed the genes of different Honkai Beasts—some that flew, some that ran, and some that swam. Each was a unique individual and could not possibly be classified in the same category.
Therefore, even among MANTISs, reproductive isolation existed.
Theoretically, Mobius should have been no exception.
Until Fuli, using the properties of his PeerlessNine Rotations Peerless, replicated Sesa's super-mutated organ within his own body.
All Mei could think was that if she had known earlier that Mobius had also fused with Sesa's factors, she would never have provided them to her own boyfriend.
The two of them were now the only mutually compatible bodies in the world.
To put it more bluntly, aside from unorthodox methods like cloning, Fuli was the only person on the entire planet who could naturally procreate with Mobius.
They were the only two of their kind in the world. In this situation, it would be strange if they weren't wildly releasing hormones to attract each other!
Procreation is the sacred duty of life. If these two stayed together any longer, who knew if their chat would end up with them rolling around in a hotel bed!
Hilariously, it seemed Miss Raiden's self-sabotaging cuckolding aura had activated again. It was recommended she get a Dream-Shattering Blade to go with it.
"Since you've found what you lost, shouldn't you be leaving now?"
Having decided to get rid of her quickly, Mei's tone became very impolite.
Mobius's previous actions had been flawless, so Mei only knew that Cocolia had brought the Divine Key of Domination; she hadn't blamed anyone else for inducing her Herrscher transformation.
And Mobius, due to Fuli's prior causal tampering, had mistaken the Herrscher of Thunder's vessel for "Raiden Makka Pakka," so she had no reason to be timid in front of the genuine (former) Herrscher, Mei.
"Originally, I was indeed planning to leave after getting my things. But the current scene is something I just can't ignore."
The beauty crossed her arms, her index finger tapping rhythmically on her arm as she withdrew her gaze from Fuli. "The Sage's Cat that has roamed the Thames for a thousand years is to be reduced to a plaything due to a human woman's selfish desires. Such a development is simply too cruel and unseemly, isn't it?"
Following her line of sight, Mei glanced at the Pardo cat, which was lying in Fuli's arms, nodding its little head vigorously.
You don't want to come with me, Pardo...?
For some reason, a faint sense of disappointment surfaced in the girl's heart.
She quickly composed herself and continued to taunt, "If you can't have it, you don't want anyone else to have it either?"
"Yep," Mobius shrugged. "Watching you two walk away with the prize is more painful than killing me empty-handed."
The thought of Mei, who was also a researcher, being able to enjoy the buff of Fuli's inspiration aura every day was enough to make her grind her teeth in secret.
Let go of that boy and let me at him!!!
"You! Yuan?"
Mei wanted to argue further, but she caught Fuli shaking his head out of the corner of her eye.
On one hand, he was wary of their opponent's hidden strength. On the other, he didn't want to imprison the cat's freedom for his own selfish desires.
But it's so cute, so chubby and fluffy, with big round eyes that look like they can talk...
Seeing the boy choose to let go, Mobius's smile widened.
"This little brother is as kind-hearted as he is beautiful, unlike a certain daughter of Raiden Ryoma, whose mind is filled with nothing but maximizing profits."
"Not exactly."
Since he had backstabbed Mei earlier, Fuli had to stand on her side this time. "As the price for its freedom, all the things the cat stole earlier belong to me."
"MEOW!!!"
The cry was tinged with a hint of despair.
The Pardo cat, with tears in its eyes, leaped up, swiped his face with its big fluffy tail, and then disappeared over the wall, its backpack now completely empty.
[Hmm?]
Prometheus, observing from the moon, suddenly felt that something was wrong. In her perception, the Finality system had just experienced a slight stutter.
Such a phenomenon was extremely rare. After all, the system was built upon the Key of Domination #0017 that Fuli had obtained in the previous loop, fused with the remnant power of her own "personified Honkai Will."
The little AI immediately began searching for the source of the bug and quickly located it in the system store.
[Holy crap!]
Opening it cautiously, she was immediately blinded by the multitude of glittering gold items that had just refreshed.
...
The brass gears in the old clock shop's window began to engage with the dusk. Big Ben's shadow crept over the stone lions of Trafalgar Square.
The last jackdaw skimmed over the rose bushes of Regent's Park, its wings tinged with the fading twilight, as if carrying a piece of the melting Milky Way.
According to Mobius's initial plan, if Fuli hadn't been accompanied by Raiden Mei, she would have found a way to take this inspiration generator back to her secret base in Cuba.
In that isolated island nation, in a sunless underground space, a place no one could ever find...
Unfortunately, having only recently become an executor, she wasn't confident enough to have a falling out with Raiden Ryoma and the conservative faction behind him.
Yes, Raiden Ryoma alone did not represent the entire Anti-Entropy conservative faction. But some things are trivial until they're put on the scales, and then they're a force of a thousand tons that can't be stopped.
Once things escalated and Fuli's possession of the ability was exposed, a crazed Einstein and Tesla would surely join forces with Raiden Ryoma to snatch him away.
The girl with the natural cyan hair: Have you seen my little red button? The one that's the ultimate solution to all problems.
The twin-tailed drunkard: Hey, Bro! Ever heard of the Tunguska Event?
They were the two greatest scientists of the twentieth century. Their usual low-key demeanor (compared to Cocolia) was due to their dedication to research and lack of political skill. If they truly went berserk, even the Schicksal Overseer would have to back down.
Weighed down by these considerations, no matter how regretful or reluctant she felt, Mobius could only pretend that her goal was to free the Pardo cat and turn to leave.
She took a step, then paused.
"Speaking of which, one of the reasons I came here was because the descendant of an acquaintance asked me to help with something."
The beauty looked back, her interest piqued. "It's about a married couple. The wife has multiple personality disorder. Originally, there were four personalities in one body, but she ended up giving birth to the three split personalities. So, four wives became one wife and three daughters."
At first, Mei was quite cold, thinking this woman was being endlessly annoying. But as she listened, she was so horrified her soul nearly flew out of her body.
No wonder Mobius couldn't help herself. If it were her, she would probably have to find someone to share this insane case with too.
"So what happens when the three daughters grow up?"
Fuli scratched his head. "It's fine if they don't get married, but if they do, wouldn't that be pure NTR?"
"That will be up to their own choices," Mobius said with a shrug. "I can either put the daughters' personalities back into the wife's body, or I can create new bodies for these personalities. But in that case, the daughters' original bodies would become empty shells, like vegetables."
"That's a difficult problem," Mei's mouth twitched.
"What about you?" Mobius stared at Fuli with great interest. "If you were the husband, what would you choose?"
"I wouldn't choose at all. It's like the 'save your mother or your wife from drowning' dilemma. Once you set a precedent, it's endless," Fuli retorted. "My girlfriend doesn't have multiple personality disorder, so why should I worry about someone else's problems?"
"Achoo!"
Far away on the Hyperion, Kiana sneezed, then continued to munch on her hidden snacks while Mei was away.
"Hmph, what a boring man."
Mobius was not satisfied with this answer.
"But never mind."
She strode toward them, her legs wrapped in black stockings. The moment she passed by the boy, she stood on her tiptoes.
Mmph!
The sudden serpent's kiss left Fuli stunned. The distant lights and the starry sky above blurred into spots of light in his peripheral vision. Only the tingling numbness on his lips and tongue was as clear as an electric current, shooting up from his spine to the crown of his head.
"This is a thank-you gift. For all your hard work during the Third Honkai Eruption."
Having achieved her goal, Mobius took two steps back, flitting like a butterfly among flowers.
"And, I really envy Raiden Mei, being able to stay by your side all the time..."
Before her ambiguous words faded, she vanished completely.
BOOM!!!
A bolt of violet-white lightning struck the spot where the beauty had been standing. The missed lightning spread out in all directions.
All the household appliances and traffic lights within a radius of several hundred meters went out, causing numerous innocent passersby to roar and wail.
Mei paid them no mind. With lightning still crackling at the tips of her hair, she rushed to the boy's side. With a panicked look on her face, she reached out her small hand and wiped away the silvery thread of saliva from the corner of his lips.
"What is she doing! What is she doing!"
She repeated the sentence seven or eight times, a clear sign of how triggered she was.
Our poor little Mei, her heart broke when she saw her crush being forcibly kissed by a bad woman. She cried and screamed, sob sob sob, so pitiful.
During this time, Fuli just stood there awkwardly. Mobius's strength had skyrocketed after becoming a MANTIS, so it was perfectly understandable that he couldn't react in time.
But wait, did the first rotation of the Nine Rotations of the Peerless just complete with that kiss? Could it be that 'intimate contact with a member of the opposite sex who possesses the same factors can accelerate the construction of super-mutated organs'?
"Damn it, damn it, damn it!"
After thoroughly wiping away the traces of another woman from her boyfriend's mouth, a blinding flash of lightning erupted from Mei's fair fingertips. The arcing electricity on the sword's guard illuminated her suddenly cold eyes. A thunderstorm exploded around her, and with a flick of her sleeve, she held her tachi in her palm.
A three-foot blade can sever mountains and seas, but it cannot cut through the shadows of rampant desires.
She was going to blast this green-haired snake who dared to touch her reverse scale to smithereens!!!
"Hmph hmph."
The serpent, having long since left and now in a safe place, let out a triumphant hum.
Behind her, the neon signs of the plaza lit up one by one in the night, blue and red spots of light blurring in the fog.
A communication screen opened in front of her. Klein, in a white lab coat, sighed helplessly. "If you wanted to thank Mr. Fuli, why not be more direct? Doctor, your actions just now were nothing but teasing and provocation toward those two."
"Thank him? No, no, I didn't," the beauty retorted seriously. "I just wanted to see that desperate look on Raiden Ryoma's daughter's face. Isn't it exciting to see a usually cold person get triggered by all sorts of things?"
NTR-ing someone to their face is the best!
"Yeah, yeah, right."
Klein thought to herself, I wonder who it was that rushed to the Far East before the Third Honkai Eruption was even over and only relaxed after confirming there were no major problems.
In the end, the battle between Shesha and the Engine of Creation took place over the Pacific Ocean. If Mobius had truly been after the Judgment-class Honkai Beast's genes, it would have been impossible for her to get from North America to Nagazora in a matter of minutes.
For her, using the Third Honkai Eruption to plot against Theresa, making her deploy Divine Prayer's barrier to perish with the Herrscher, was something that carried no psychological burden.
Schicksal and Anti-Entropy were enemy organizations with a grudge. It was equivalent to plotting the assassination of a high-ranking enemy general and his troops who had a blood feud with them. No matter how many good deeds they had done, the enemy's hero is our foe. Any normal person on their side, as long as their allegiance wasn't skewed, wouldn't have much of an issue with it.
The greatest respect for an enemy is to utterly annihilate them.
Indirectly causing the deaths of a large number of civilians was another matter entirely. Even if Mobius's definition of "human" was vastly different from the common understanding, it was still a whole city.
Because of this, she did have some favorable feelings toward Fuli for stopping the Third Honkai Eruption.
Of course, the serpent herself would never admit it.
She just muttered things like "a mere lab rat," "the mutual attraction between Shesha factors," and "I'm just after his development aura," and the air was suddenly filled with a cheerful atmosphere.
'I'm afraid that even if the Earth is pierced by the Herrscher of Finality's spear one day, Dr. Mobius's stubborn mouth will continue to shine with an unyielding light in the universe.'
Looking at her doctor's flushed cheeks and her flustered, incoherent words disguised as calmness, Klein thought helplessly.
She's just so damn stubborn.
BZZZT—!
A sudden communication interrupted the interaction between the understander and the understood, drawing their attention.
The serpent cleared her throat and, under Klein's gaze, put the phone to her ear.
"This is Mobius. Yes, what?"
Her pupils constricted. "Wait a minute. What do you mean the cargo I had someone transport was stolen?"
...