Ex-Machina on a Dimensional Journey

He tried to guess her intentions, but remembering how straightforward she had always been, he felt that she was genuinely just urging him to rest.

And because of Xiu Er's various actions, Fujimaru Ritsuka was already struggling to cope. The night had not even gone on for long, yet he had already lost count of how many times he had been shocked.

At this moment, he truly felt physically and mentally exhausted.

The young man nearly wanted to cry. He really was tired and wanted to rest, but absolutely not now.

"No, that won't be necessary..."

"Notice: Individual 'Fujimaru Ritsuka' has been detected experiencing declining mental condition..."

"Conclusion: Forced continuation will reduce conversational efficiency."

Xiu Er stared at the young man with her golden, inorganic eyes and spoke in her usual measured manner. After all, she had been the one to approach him, so it was only natural for her to care about efficiency.

Yet her actions only made the young man feel even more awkward.

At that moment, Fujimaru Ritsuka felt a faint throbbing pain in his temples.

"No, I can keep going. Besides, I care deeply about the next question, and I don't have time to 'rest.'"

"..."

Seeing the strained expression on his face, Xiu Er said no more. She merely nodded silently and "withdrew" the chair.

Then, right in front of him, she constructed a chair behind herself and sat upon it properly.

"..."

"..."

Their eyes met.

"...?"

Xiu Er tilted her head and blinked, seemingly wondering why he was suddenly looking at her like that.

One minute later...

"Phew..."

Within the pure white space, surrounded by a circle of "Xiu Ers," Fujimaru Ritsuka sat across from Xiu Er with an exhausted expression.

"Alright, let's continue."

The young man looked blankly at his