If you want to help me financially, you can do it on
https://ko-fi.com/neverluckysmile
After returning, Arthur wasn't set free for nearly two full hours.
Now walking through the corridors of Camp Lehigh with Tony, he couldn't help but grumble, "I really think you guys need to simplify this process. I agree safety comes first, but the whole thing was just way too drawn out, and not exactly efficient either."
Tony replied, "You've got to understand the pressure on the researchers. They're not only dealing with a completely new and unknown lifeform, but they're also constantly worrying about their boss breathing down their necks. Of course, your personal experience might get… overlooked."
Though he sounded like he was explaining in good faith, the barely concealed smirk of schadenfreude at the corner of Tony's mouth betrayed him.
Arthur shot him a glare and asked, "How's the progress?"
"You do realize this thing just got to us, right?" Tony raised an eyebrow. "Even the strictest boss can't expect progress reports one second after handing over the job."
"Sorry, maybe you have met the strictest boss in history," Arthur said dryly. "And I'm not just asking about the comet research. I'll be needing much more than that."
Tony smiled. "Well, you're in luck. We might be able to deliver. You remember that warship we recovered from the Dark World? Our studies didn't come up empty... And of course, I've already shown you that spaceship in all its glory."
"Is there more?"
"Absolutely," Tony said with a confident nod. "That can definitely be arranged."
Arthur squinted at him suspiciously.
"So let me interpret what you just said in more detail: You didn't have any ideas originally, but now that I brought this up, and especially after this recent event, you've suddenly had a breakthrough. Judging by how smug you are, not only is this solution feasible, but you've got enough materials and tools on hand to actually pull it off soon?"
Tony's face darkened a bit. "Perfect summary. I have nothing to add."
Arthur smiled in satisfaction. "Good. I hope you can deliver soon. Only when everything here is in order can I fully focus on the mission I've already planned."
"You'll get a surprise tomorrow morning," Tony said with a sigh. "Thank my brilliant creativity. Šumer's mechanical arm might just be the greatest invention ever. Do you know how much time that thing saves me?"
"…Sure." Arthur didn't argue. Though frankly, he had no idea how long Tony's "God only knows" really meant.
After parting ways with Tony, the important thing Arthur had meant to discuss never got mentioned.
But he knew Tony too well.
Tony was a man ruled by his passions; when something excited him, it took over everything else in his head. And once he was locked onto a project, good luck redirecting him.
Maybe it came from growing up rich, a boy born with a golden spoon, who never lacked anything and got whatever he wanted with minimal effort. That led to a tendency to indulge his impulses, eventually growing into a full-blown genius-level brat.
To him, everything in life could be divided into two categories:
Things he likes doing.
Things he doesn't.
And as far as the second category goes, if Tony didn't want to do something, he just wouldn't. Period.
Among the things he did enjoy, there were levels, but if something sparked his curiosity, it could take over his entire world.
So right now, Arthur figured it was better to let him stay obsessed with the comet and the engineering project. Once that was finished, then he'd bring up his wild plans from the comet, when Tony would be more open to getting excited all over again.
While thinking over all this, Arthur returned to his room, changed clothes, and with a flash, vanished from the base.
Standing outside Camp Lehigh's main gate, Arthur sighed softly.
"Yep… I really can't help myself."
"Looks like I've been given an afternoon, maybe even a whole evening, off. And if I don't use this rare downtime to see my girlfriend, especially when we're in the middle of this passionate phase… then I'm probably the worst boyfriend ever, right?"
He casually pulled out a mirror from his Disassembler space, checked his reflection, then, after thinking for a moment, his appearance began to shift…
His body shrank slightly in height, and his face took on the look of someone slightly older, now appearing as a middle-aged East Asian man.
"This should do." Arthur sighed inwardly. He honestly had no idea who he should shapeshift into, so he simply… took on the form of Lily's father.
"Let's just hope seeing her supposedly dead father come back to life doesn't scare Lily to death."
He then pulled out his communicator and placed a call.
"Book me a plane ticket, yes, I'll send over the ID info in a minute. One that departs in an hour would be great, thanks."
Once the call ended, Arthur casually released Little Black (his companion).
"To the airport. I'm going to catch up on some sleep. Wake me when we arrive."
The school entrance wasn't crowded. People came and went, but it was relatively quiet.
When Arthur parked outside the university where Lily studied, he suddenly felt an odd sense of nostalgic disconnection, like he was returning to a world far removed from everything he had just experienced.
He had known Lily for quite some time now, well, not necessarily been with her for a long time, but they'd been acquainted for a good while. And yet, this was his first time ever visiting her school.
"Even though I'm squeezing in time during a busy schedule, I definitely could've come earlier… I really had the time."
He quietly scolded himself before driving the car through the campus gate.
To his surprise, there was no security check. The university was open to the public during the day, and vehicles could come and go freely.
Lily had never mentioned this before. But she had told Arthur all sorts of other things, exactly where her dorm was, what classes she had each day, what she ate, even when she went to the bathroom...
Arthur honestly had no idea why she felt the need to share such details.
Driving slowly through campus, his mind began to wander.
Where would she be right now?
Classroom?
Dorm?
Out with her girlfriends?
If she was in class, it would probably be over by now. If she was out with friends… well, that was rare, but still possible. Hopefully, he wasn't about to just miss her by dumb luck.
As he pondered this, he suddenly caught sight of a familiar figure, walking alone by the side of the path, two books in her arms.
She wasn't paying attention to her surroundings, totally absorbed in the phone in her hand. A delicate, pretty face twisted into a frown, brows furrowed in worry, her whole expression looked like a grumpy pug.
Arthur watched her lips move as she mumbled to herself. Out of curiosity, he enhanced his hearing to eavesdrop.
She was grumbling under her breath: "Why haven't you texted me yet? Do you even know how long it's been since you last messaged me? What kind of boyfriend are you supposed to be? Just because you're some superhero, you think you can get away with this? You want me to bite you or something?!"
Arthur's expression turned a bit strange. Then he casually raised his phone and sent a single-word text message: "Here."