For Sylvia, running tests in the Simulated Universe genuinely felt like playing a fully immersive holographic game.
Stelle seemed to think the same way.
As soon as they dashed into Herta's office—before Herta could even finish explaining everything—Stelle had already charged up the platform.
With a loud shout of: "Time to simulate!"
Stelle dove straight into the Simulated Universe.
Even Herta, standing nearby, looked a little stunned. She glanced at Sylvia and asked curiously: "Was this kid always… this enthusiastic? Last time she made me beg her to test it."
"Heh, she probably just wants to play a game."
Sylvia chuckled, watching Stelle with her eyes already closed, before adding:
"So you added the Aeon of Permanence this time?"
"Yeah. Even if that annoying guy just wanted to stir up trouble, the Permanence data was too good to waste. Now you can choose the Path of Permanence and their blessings in the run."
"Speaking of which, this update took a while—was designing a new Path that troublesome?"
"Of course! Did you think I just randomly threw together the effects for each Path's blessings?"
Herta shot Sylvia a sidelong glance, then halfway through lost the will to explain.
"Whatever, just get in and start testing."
Clearly, Herta wasn't about to stand around wasting time and began urging Sylvia to hurry up.
Seeing this, Sylvia didn't say anything more and stepped onto the platform, entering the Simulated Universe.
--+--
This round of testing didn't feel all that different to Sylvia, aside from the new Permanence Path.
Not much had really changed since the last time.
Of course, thanks to the experiences of Stelle and Sylvia recently, new maps had been added to the Simulated Universe—Belobog, Penacony, and parts of the Xianzhou Luofu.
The variety of enemies had also expanded, and Bella and Mount No. 1 had been incorporated by Herta.
But during this test, Sylvia didn't attract the gaze of any Aeon.
At least, not until she was more than halfway through—no Aeon had taken notice.
Instead, Sylvia, by continuously selecting Permanence Path blessings, began to undergo a gradual draconic transformation after accumulating a certain number.
It started with horns, then a tail, followed by scales on her limbs.
By the time she neared the final stage, Sylvia had fully transformed into a true dragon!
A slender, elongated body, four sharp claws, and a majestic draconic head.
Even without a mirror, Sylvia felt she bore a striking resemblance to the Permanence Aeon from the light cones.
'Whoa, this is something else. With this update, Herta actually let me experience the wonders of becoming a dragon.'
Sylvia assumed this transformation was something Herta had prepared for her.
After fully transforming, Sylvia realized her sensitivity to the Permanence Path had increased dramatically.
She could even manipulate it more effortlessly, as if she had been born from Permanence itself.
It was an incredibly profound feeling—she never expected that testing the Simulated Universe would advance her understanding of the Permanence Path so significantly.
'Herta's really something, pulling this off…'
Just as Sylvia was marveling at the experience, Herta's voice suddenly cut in.
"…Sylvia, Sylvia, can you hear me?! This wasn't me! Damn it, there's something wrong with the data that jerk left behind."
When designing the system, Herta never intended to alter the user's appearance to match that of a real Aeon.
That was never part of the original plan!
Who knew what that Aha was thinking, making Sylvia look like the Permanence Aeon.
"Sylvia, are you okay? I tried contacting you as soon as you started transforming, but the system glitched for some reason…"
"Sorry, this was my oversight. How do you feel? Do you still know who you are? Can you speak?"
Herta's tone was urgent—it was clear that such a major flaw in her experiment had her fuming, especially since it could potentially endanger Sylvia.
"I'm fine, really. I'm Sylvia. Don't worry, Herta, my sense of self hasn't been affected."
"Phew… Looks like your mind's still intact for now. Log out first, then we'll run some checks. Tch, I knew that guy couldn't be trusted."
With the project gone awry, Herta had no interest in letting Sylvia continue testing.
She needed to examine the code carefully.
Just what had that jerk added to the Permanence data?!
Sylvia wasn't clinging to the sensation either. With Mei by her side, her understanding of the Permanence Path could progress steadily, eventually reaching at least Mei's level.
So, when it came to something from Aha, Sylvia was wary—who knew what kind of trap might be hidden in it?
"Got it, I'm logging out now."
Sylvia deftly twisted her dragon body a few times, and as Herta forced the logout, everything went black as she returned to her original form.
"Good, you're back safely. How do you feel? Adjusting okay?"
Herta's puppet walked over to Sylvia, ready to take her for a full-body scan.
Sylvia followed for a few steps, not feeling any discomfort, but something felt off—like she was missing something.
"I'm alright, just feel a bit… constrained somehow. Doesn't feel quite right…"
Sylvia twisted her body left and right, realizing her current form wasn't as comfortable as the dragon body in the Simulated Universe.
"That's normal. That dragon was modeled after an Aeon—of course it'd feel more freeing than a regular human body. That's exactly why I rushed to pull you out."
Herta wore a matter-of-fact expression and began coolly analyzing the situation.
"No more Simulated Universe tests for you today. If you stay in that form too long, I'm worried you might have issues in reality."
"Oh, understood."
Sylvia nodded, not objecting.
"Head to the infirmary later. I've already scheduled a full physical and psychological evaluation for you. Today's incident has significant research value."
Once she saw Sylvia seemed unharmed, Herta's curiosity kicked in.
Though the glitch was annoying, an experience like Sylvia's was one-of-a-kind—a precious sample.
Right then.
Herta's expression suddenly stiffened:
"Crap! Something's gone wrong with the Stellaron kid's side too! Damn it, just how much did that jerk tamper with my project?!"
As she spoke, Herta quickly terminated Stelle's test session.
But Stelle seemed perfectly fine—even energized.
Sylvia watched as Stelle opened her eyes, flashed an excited grin in her direction, then bounded over in a few quick steps.
She even ignored the fuming Herta puppet nearby.
Just as Sylvia was wondering what was going on, Stelle raised a hand and gave her a goofy, silly smile:
"Hey, wifey!"
Sylvia's eyes went wide with shock.
Utterly floored!
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.