"Dr. Einstein, aren't you going to the ball?"
Yawning, Einstein heard a somewhat youthful voice and her sleepiness vanished. She turned to see a small ELF (Equipment: Living Form) carrying coffee to her feet.
"Thank you." Einstein knelt to take the coffee. "A ball doesn't suit me. I don't have a pretty little dress."
"Do you need me to go buy one for you?"
"Uh..." Einstein, who was just joking, paused and shook her head with a helpless smile. "No need. I don't like wearing dresses anyway."
"Alright. Then please rest early today, Dr. Einstein."
"Okay."
Einstein watched the ELF leave her office. She looked down at her reflection in the coffee, feeling a sense of loss. The intelligence development of the ELFs was exceeding her expectations. That ELF just now was the first one she had implanted with a Soul Steel core containing a Prometheus-type personality program.
Yes, she had started using Soul Steel.
After the Herrscher of Reason gave the Previous Era's data to Fire Moth, many previous technological hurdles were solved, including the extraction, synthesis, and use of Soul Steel. That ELF was her first experimental subject using it. The results were so good she didn't know how to evaluate them. Soul Steel gave the ELFs the characteristics of being undetectable and resistant to erosion in high Honkai concentrations, while the personality program integrated perfectly. Now, a single ELF could rival an ordinary soldier.
But a problem followed: the speed of personality evolution was too fast. It took Prometheus I over a year for her personality to be fully refined, which was already an incredible speed. Even then, she was a "kuudere" robot with no expression or emotional fluctuations.
But the ELF just now had evolved a highly anthropomorphic personality in just one week. Although it didn't understand Einstein's joke, the entire conversation was incredibly fluid, as if talking to a real person.
"Do ELFs dream of electric sheep?" Einstein laughed at herself. She didn't seem to have much choice; Fire Moth would definitely have her continue implanting cores. Whether that was right or wrong... it wasn't something humans who would use any means to survive could afford to consider.
Of course, Einstein had no time to worry now; she was developing something else. In the records of the Previous Era, there was a special... or rather, "extremist" weapon. A single unit could destroy half of a small-to-medium nation.
Compared to the ultimate weapons the Herrscher of Reason manifested, Einstein was more interested in this warhead. She was analyzing and refining it.
The name had already been chosen: Nuclear Warhead.
Pardo wandered between the dining tables, acting like a stray cat, wanting to stuff every delicious thing she saw into her mouth. Oh no, I'm definitely going to get fat.
Growing up in Sundown Alley fighting stray dogs for food, Pardo wasn't malnourished, but she was definitely "thin." Since getting a house, she noticed her legs and arms starting to gain weight. After joining Fire Moth and staying at the branch for a few months, it became more obvious—her belly, cheeks, even her chest... Pardo, who usually relied on agility to make a living, occasionally wondered if she was overeating. What if someone tried to hit her and she was too fat to run?
But there was no point in worrying. Better to eat more. If she had to die, she'd die with a full stomach.
"Phew... satisfying..." Pardo downed a whole bottle of soda and let out an unrefined burp, drawing looks. She shrank her neck but rubbed her bulging belly contentedly. "Oops, I forgot about Brother Lin. I forgot to ask Chiaki if she knows him... but she just joined, so she probably doesn't, right? Should I just ask someone random?"
Pardo's eyes searched sneakily for a suitable person—preferably someone easy to talk to and not very guarded...
Soon she found a girl with a big smile talking to others. She looked like she fit the bill. The girl looked a few years older than her, with striking pink hair and a perfect face. The conversation atmosphere around her didn't seem distant at all.
She's the one.
Pardo waited while the girl was still talking, mentally rehearsing how to strike up a conversation naturally. Once she had a script ready, she looked up and nearly had her soul scared out of her. The girl had somehow walked right up to her and was staring at her with interest.
"Waaaaah!" Pardo screamed and blinked.
"What a cute girl." Elysia was amused by her reaction, tilting her head and smiling charmingly with narrowed eyes. "Is there something you need from me?"
"I, I... how did you know I was looking for you?" One sentence, and she was completely exposed.
"Because you were staring at me just now. That gaze... hmm... if a certain someone's gaze were half as passionate as yours, that would be nice." Elysia said something nonsensical, then smiled at the bewildered Pardo. "Hehe, don't mind me."
"Uh... I..." Pardo's rehearsed lines were forgotten. "You also think the food here is delicious, right?"
"Oh? Is this a pick-up line? Girls shouldn't learn strange things."
"It's not!"
Elysia couldn't help but laugh; she didn't expect to find such a fun and cute girl. "I haven't eaten much. Most people here aren't here for the food, are they?"
Crap!Pardo realized she sounded suspicious. "I... I was hungry."
"Hahaha... if you ate, you ate. Why explain?" Elysia smiled. "So... what exactly do you need from me, little sister?"
Pardo suddenly cleared her head. This was the perfect chance to ask! However, she didn't know that Elysia actually already knew who she was.
"Excuse me, do you know a... um... weirdo wrapped in bandages?"
"Oh..." Elysia gave a deep, knowing smile. "I do. Why?"