Nighttime, in Mobius's laboratory.
It was already two in the morning. The lab staff had long since gone home, and even Klein had returned to her dormitory to rest.
Inside the dim laboratory, aside from the occasional beeping of an instrument, there were no other sounds.
As a laboratory with the highest security clearance, it was practically impossible for an outsider to intrude, with the exception of one person who was the undisputed master in a certain field.
"Phew... what a pain... I must be crazy. If Sister Snakey finds out, I might really go from being Pardofelis to just Pardo and Felis."
Inside a narrow and cramped ventilation duct, a petite figure in black soft armor moved cautiously.
The figure's owner was trembling slightly, a clear sign of her fear. But even so, she stubbornly pressed forward.
Although she had Fu Li's ID card and could move through here without obstruction, she knew that if she dared to use it, it would definitely leave a trace in the system.
She was just a shrewd merchant, not a highly skilled hacker, so she could only resort to such a clumsy method.
"Hmm, let's see... life detection system, no heat source... infrared alarm... Hiss, there are quite a few. A pity they're no match for me."
After confirming it was safe, Pardo used a tool from her armor to easily remove the grate covering the vent. Placing it aside, she leaped down lightly, entering the most dangerous place in the entire building: Dr. Mobius's office.
"Hmph hmph~ This level of difficulty is a piece of cake~ If you don't count the subsequent retaliation from Sister Snakey, that is."
Arriving at the desk, Pardo carefully avoided the surrounding infrared beams and pressed the computer's power button. The screen immediately lit up, illuminating her small face.
Surprisingly, Mobius's computer had no password.
Is it because Sister Snakey has too much faith in the security here? That's really not a good habit. I'll have to remind her about it after this is over.
With that thought, Pardo quickly began searching through the files.
Most of them were research and experiment records that she couldn't understand at all. Although she couldn't read them, she knew that any one of these files was worth over a hundred million.
Of course, even she, who loved silver coins more than anything, wouldn't do something like that. She just skimmed through them as quickly as possible.
Her objective was twofold: to find something like a project plan or a secret communication log.
"Hmm... let me see... Research Report on the Herrscher of Domination... Ouroboros Project Plan... Memory Awakener... what is all this stuff... Huh? Found it."
After skipping past a pile of things she completely failed to comprehend, Pardo finally found a secret communication software. It was one Fu Li had developed, and she had used it before.
"As I thought..." Pardo paused, her breath catching in her throat as large blocks of dialogue filled her vision.
"Mobius, please believe me. The Herrscher of Domination is about to awaken, and I am one of them."
Fu Li became a Herrscher?! It's okay, it's okay, little Seele was a Herrscher once too, Pardo's heart skipped a beat, her breathing becoming more difficult as she tried to comfort herself.
"Aponia can help me maintain my sanity, and the individuals of the Herrscher of Legion can communicate with each other. Therefore, I've formulated a plan."
Here it comes, Pardo swallowed hard.
"p-246 island. I will gather all of them there, then use Kevin's Judgment of Shamash to eliminate them. [Appendix - p-246 island]."
Finally found the location! But the Judgment of Shamash? Isn't that a weapon only Kevin can use without getting hurt? Pardo's pupils contracted, her trembling hand nearly touching an infrared beam.
Despite her extreme anxiety, Pardo patiently read through to the very end.
After reading their entire plan, Pardo's face was grim as she shut down the computer.
What on earth is that guy thinking? If he became a Herrscher of Domination, couldn't he just obediently use the Second Divine Key to pull out the Core? Why does he have to do this?
No, I have to go find him.
Pardo shot up from the chair. After restoring the surroundings to their original state, she leaped back into the ventilation duct.
Ten minutes later, Mobius slowly emerged from the shadows. She calmly sat down at the recently used computer, her body temperature rapidly returning to normal.
As the other developer of Pardo's armor, Mobius was naturally well aware of its weaknesses.
"What a silly little cat. Did she really think my laboratory was so easy to break into?"
Mobius turned on the computer, set a new password, then sank into her chair and dialed another number. She spoke calmly into the phone.
"Eden, Pardo already knows Fu Li's whereabouts. You can tell Ely that the fleet is ready to depart. We need to time this perfectly. We must clear out the Herrscher of Domination before Pardo arrives."
The other end of the line was silent for a moment. Then, a celestial voice replied, "Alright, I understand. But are you sure it's okay not to restore Hua's memories in advance? Won't it disrupt our tempo?"
"Hua..." Mobius sighed softly. "Let's just leave it. Her memories will return soon enough anyway."
"...That's true."
"Alright then. You guys head out first. I'll be there shortly."
Hanging up, Mobius picked up a remote control. With a few clicks, the security measures that had been intentionally turned off came back online.
---o---
At the same time, Pardo had already reached the landing pad. Using her identification, she commandeered a helicopter. Although she knew the journey was perilous, Li was her family.
For his sake, even if every cell in her body was screaming at her about the danger ahead, she still had to go.
But what she didn't know was that just as she was preparing to depart, 50 kilometers away from p-246 island, Eden was already leading a fleet of four airships toward that very location.
To be honest, while they were also worried about Fu Li's safety, their experiences from the previous life told them that Fu Li would not fall at the hands of the Herrscher of Domination.
Therefore, the purpose of their trip was simply to retrieve Li and Aponia, take them to a safer place to face the subsequent challenges, and better prepare for the cycles to come.
Although they couldn't reveal themselves to Li just yet, they had to work hard for the sake of their final reunion.
Under the deep blue night sky, the moon slowly rose. Eden looked up at it, and the hand swirling the wine in her glass paused for a moment. Her face was a little pale.
And on the not-so-distant p-246 island, Fu Li and Aponia were together. In a secret space at the lowest level of the base, they leaned against each other, waiting for the dawn to arrive.