HQ,
The Apostles of Mr. Fool
The various labs spread through the underground lava-tube system had undergone a major overhaul over the past week.
Luke had not set up many labs, anyway.
There was one Nomu Research Lab, where he experimented on how to make the bestowed Quirks last longer. It was the largest lab, with multiple halls linked by well-secured corridors.
The Nomu Research Lab contained the three Nomu corpses that Luke had collected from Hosu City in one hall. There were three separate halls for other sophisticated machines, chemicals, and miscellaneous apparatus. The last hall was the most insulated, the place where he carried out surgeries and other delicate procedures.
Often, Luke also brought the live specimen, the Upper Tier Nomu from the USJ incident, here, too. However, as that carried an insane amount of risk because of both Conformity and being found out by other scientists, he limited those visits to a minimum.
The second-biggest structure was the Monitor Tunnel.
As the name suggested, it was a long, tunnel-like lab, spanning at least a hundred meters of a lava tube.
From here, not only did Luke keep an eye on all the labs themselves, but he also kept an eye on the private zoo he had created on the island.
By permanently mutating the trees in a roughly circular area around the labs, Luke had created a natural barrier before throwing many exotic species into the jungle from around the world.
Instances of monitoring the entire forest and the counting of animals by authorities were few and far between. Through a bit of Quirk-based manipulation and mental cues among the locals, Luke had ensured that whenever a formal notice of such visits arrived, they would inform him first.
To minimize satellite monitoring, Luke had refrained from introducing large animals that could be spied or heard over long distances. Calling elephants, rhinos, giraffes, and the like during a battle wasn't practical, anyway.
However, lately, with so many animals, it had become a headache for Luke to keep an eye on them, making sure that they wouldn't just end up eating each other.
Even in his previous life, he had never contemplated that he would experience such an issue someday.
With the outside events requiring his attention the most, this zoo would end up killing itself if he didn't take any solid measures.
That's why, more than a place to monitor, Luke had needed help in the monitoring itself.
Mushroom-nimi solved that problem, barging into his life like a storm.
Of course, the cyborg also created its own problems.
The third-largest part of Luke's HQ had been the Conference Hall before, situated in the middle of the Monitor Tunnel and the Nomu Research Lab.
Now, a fourth structure was springing up, growing exponentially.
It wouldn't be long before it even surpassed the size of the Monitor Tunnel.
And the reason behind its appearance was the 12-ft-tall cyborg, who had taken a sudden, inexplicable interest in… farming.
At first, it was just coffee, which, by the way, had turned out to be a disaster for Mushroom as the underground environment didn't suit it.
Then, refusing to give up, the cyborg had added various fungi to the mix.
Now, ignoring failure upon failures, it went back to coffee.
In the Conference Hall, Luke sipped the freshly brewed coffee, the smell of it bringing a smile to his face.
"Say anything about Mushroom," Luke pointed out, "but it does know how to brew a damn-good cup of coffee."
Putting the cup on the table, Luke eyed the Crystal Globe in front of him, with Nyx perched opposite it with her eyes closed.
"Anything?" Luke asked.
The Clown opened her eyes, her red pupils letting out a suffused, spiritual glow. "… Sigh!"
Luke frowned.
Day after day, they had been trying to find Dr. Samuel Abraham through all kinds of Divination. However, it all resulted in them meeting blackness. That made little sense to them, unless either Radiants or Claws had got their hands on him. But all the clues so far indicated that it wasn't the case.
The bald scientist seemed to have just… disappeared into thin air.
[Will you go to Vestiges today, Luke?] Miss Justice asked, her words ringing in Nyx's mind as well.
Luke shook his head. "There's a lot to be learned from Yoichi Shigaraki," he admitted. "There's no way that this matter of his being the first Radiant didn't exist in my previous life. Otherwise, there must have been a written account of it, especially after the Final War. Even if someone managed to hide it, the scientists of Blue Site would have acquired that knowledge anyway. It means… this is a new development because of my actions so far."
Nyx nodded along with him. "First Radiant suggests that the next users of One For All might also be second, third, and so on Radiants. What if Deku is a Radiant, too? There was one more person at the Detention Center with Bakugo, remember?"
Luke's frown deepened at the mention of Bakugo.
He had sent Nyx to use Spirit Vision on him, confirming the doubt that it was indeed him there, through the presence of concentrated Spirit Particles in the soles of his feet. The confirmation hadn't prevented him from experiencing a massive shock, though, as Katsuki Bakugo was the last person he would relate to a title like Radiant.
"Anyway," Luke said, taking another sip of coffee, "we do need to visit the Vestiges, but with ample time on our hands. It's better to do it with the boost in Spirit Points the next potion would grant me."
[Yeah.] Miss Justice nodded. [You are already very close to digesting Astrologer.]
"Spying on the supposedly most-secret conversation between my father and other Top Heroes did the trick," Luke commented, agreeing. "Other cases were nothing more than blurs, but they also added up over time. Let's see… I guess it's time to bring her in…"
Suddenly, loud thumps rang, and the cyborg entered the Conference Hall, the little mushrooms on its tall body glowing wildly.
It's excited… Luke noticed. That's not a good sign…
"Master…" Mushroom said, smiling. "… We need a few things."
It placed a stack of documents on the table in front of Luke, Nyx hopping over the Crystal Globe to read the contents.
Humidifiers. Hygrometers. Temperature and humidity control systems. Airflow and filtration equipment. UV and LED lighting. Substrate & production gear. Irrigation systems. Fertilizers.
And the list kept going on.
Luke blankly looked up at Mushroom's proud smile, looming there like an evil grin under the large mushroom-cap. "… Climate control?"
"Yes, Master!" the cyborg admitted cheerily. "We need these pieces of equipment. We have included all the designs… for your Blood Creation. Mr. Fool will reply to you fast if you sacrifice the best quality of coffee and mushrooms…. We guess."
Luke and Nyx looked at each other, their jaws hanging low.
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