"This really is astonishing. No matter when it happens, you always bring surprises.
My respect to you, Mr. Su Ran."
After witnessing Su Ran's miraculous handiwork once again, Screwllum couldn't help but offer sincere praise.
Sure enough, having such a genius participate in the Simulated Universe meant there would always be unexpected breakthroughs in their research.
"Your manner of speaking is gentle and refined as well—quite pleasant, Mr. Screwllum."
Su Ran returned the compliment with ease.
Only Ruan Mei stood there, staring at Su Ran with eager eyes.
The cold reception last time had left this socially awkward scholar feeling down for a long while— she'd barely spoken to anyone since.
"Hello."
Seeing that Su Ran didn't seem inclined to acknowledge her, Ruan Mei could only take the initiative.
"You too, Ruan—"
The familiar pause appeared again.
A long, awkward silence.
At this point, she was already used to it.
In fact, perhaps because he was still willing to tease her like this, she felt a rare flicker of happiness.
Screwllum found the interaction puzzling.
No one had ever addressed Ruan Mei like this before.
What's more, her virtual avatar was actually showing a hint of… happiness?
It was deeply baffling.
"…Mei."
"There's really no need to pause for that long."
Ruan Mei quickly followed up.
Screwllum, having witnessed the entire exchange, was utterly stunned.
So the problem was just that the pause was too long?
Was this some kind of special interaction between them?
"Hey! You two—this is the Simulated Universe, not a dating sim!
And since when did you get so close?!"
Herta abruptly cut in, wedging herself between them.
She genuinely didn't understand— why did Ruan Mei seem closer to Su Ran than she was?
"We haven't even met in person. How does that count as being close?"
Su Ran flatly denied any particular familiarity with Ruan Mei.
So far, all of their interactions had been limited to online exchanges.
The same went for Herta, actually.
The person he was truly most familiar with was Asta, since she was the only one who had met him in person.
"Then that's fine."
Herta immediately dropped the topic.
After all, she had seen Su Ran in the flesh.
Ruan Mei hadn't.
And Herta had no intention of letting Ruan Mei find out that Su Ran was currently on the Herta Space Station.
With a biologist's curiosity like hers, she'd probably rush over immediately.
Herta was lazy.
While Su Ran's personal visit delighted her, she didn't feel like making the trip herself right now.
More importantly, she didn't want Ruan Mei meeting Su Ran before she did.
"Today, we are gathered here to celebrate the expansion and optimization of the Simulated Universe— and for that reason, I bring you a brand-new surprise!"
Halfway through his speech, noticing that no one was bothering to respond, Su Ran simply revealed the surprise outright.
"The Aeon of Eternity — Baal!"
Screwllum: ...
Ruan Mei: ???
Herta: !!!
Their reactions differed slightly, yet were strangely similar.
All three were wondering the same thing—
What the hell is an Aeon of Eternity?
Did such a Path even exist?
Could it be older than Order's Ena or Preservation's Qlipoth?
"Everyone, no need to be shocked.
This Aeon of Eternity is something I made up."
The clarification made all three of them feel dizzy.
The trio: ...
"So… does that actually help the Simulated Universe in any way?"
Herta couldn't help but admire Su Ran's imagination.
Could merely fabricating an Aeon help uncover the mysteries of Aeons?
How was this any different from a Fictionologist?
"Introducing a Path that has never existed before, and observing how the Aeons react—
isn't that a fascinating idea?"
Screwllum was the first to voice his support.
"Conclusion: An intriguing concept. Worth attempting."
As for Ruan Mei, she chose not to comment.
She neither approved nor opposed it—simply waited to see what would happen.
"Are you sure this will work?"
Herta didn't object either.
The reason was simple.
Although she and Su Ran often seemed to bicker, whenever it came to research, she always stood firmly on his side.
Because among them all, she understood his talent best.
"I swear on Herta's name—if this fails, let Herta's reputation be utterly ruined."
Herta: I swear I'm going to your early-morning class.
Though she desperately wanted to curse him out, limited by both her upbringing and her rather small swear-word vocabulary, she ultimately gave up arguing with Su Ran in public.
"Then what's the setting?"
Su Ran began explaining the background he had come up with in less than three minutes.
"Please allow me to elaborate…"
"On a planet untouched by the Trailblaze, there lived a civilization isolated from the wider universe.
Baal and Beelzebul were sisters. One day, the Antimatter Legion under Nanook invaded their homeland.
In resisting the destruction, Beelzebul tragically died in battle."
A very clichéd origin story.
Thankfully, Su Ran wasn't a novelist— otherwise Herta would've slapped him with a one-star review.
"Witnessing her sister's death, Baal came to understand the fragility and brevity of life."
Herta: "Why does the elder sister have a shorter name, while the younger one's is longer?"
Her utterly off-topic question left even Su Ran speechless.
"Because the elder sister was born first and got the base name.
The younger one came later and just added a patch to it. Isn't that normal?"
How was he supposed to know why their names were like that?
In Teyvat, there was Beelzebul without Baal— so in the Star Rail universe, why couldn't there be Baal without Beelzebul?
"Suggestion: This detail seems largely irrelevant to the setting.
Lady Herta need not dwell on it."
Screwllum gently tried to steer her back on track.
"I know. I was just picking a fight for fun."
Herta openly admitted she'd been nitpicking.
Fortunately, her puppet body was still adorable— otherwise Su Ran might really have dismantled one.
"Looking upon her fallen sister, she realized the fleeting nature of life.
At that moment, she began to ponder— if everything in the world could exist eternally, would loss still exist?"
Now all three understood.
Su Ran was clearly borrowing elements from the birth stories of the Aeons of Destruction and Propagation as references.
Viewed this way, the emergence of an Aeon of Eternity actually made a lot of sense.
Meanwhile, inside Herta's office—
Raiden Makoto had no idea that, without realizing it, she had just stepped onto the very same path her sister Ei once walked.
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