Heart-to-Heart

"It's just that Mr. Li Ye's situation is more complicated than I thought—"

Holmes shook his head and chuckled, then walked into the room.

"It is quite complicated. Mr. Holmes finds it interesting?"

The room wasn't large, and Li Ye quickly finished a lap around it.

"If Mr. Li Ye is willing to tell me, I would be very happy to listen."

"Before that, let's examine this room. Mr. Holmes, do you see anything special about it?"

Li Ye didn't pick up on the conversation, instead stiffly changing the subject.

"This doesn't seem to be a workshop, just an ordinary room. Mr. Li Ye, have you found anything?"

Holmes, who entered last, watched Li Ye's busy back, not rushing to search the room himself.

"There is, there is—"

Li Ye, with his back to Holmes, casually picked up a notebook.

"2017—"

Li Ye slowly read out the date recorded in the notebook. It was a long span of 745 years from the present, a distance so vast it was unreachable.

"Mr. Holmes, what are your thoughts on this 2017?"

Li Ye turned and leaned against the wall, tossing the notebook to Holmes.

"2017, the year of the Incineration of Humanity. It seems this Atlas Institute was active normally from before the Common Era until 2017, and only after the Incineration of Humanity did it drift into this Singularity."

Holmes quickly flipped through the notebook and said slowly, holding his pipe.

"2017, huh? Mr. Holmes, do you know Chaldea?"

Li Ye sighed at the vastness of time and said casually, "Chaldea, the Organization for the Preservation of Human Order, an organization saving Human Order. They came from 2017, didn't they?"

Now that he had arrived at the Atlas Institute, Li Ye's last reservations about Holmes disappeared.

During their time together, Li Ye confirmed that Holmes was indeed in poor condition and unable to fight.

From Li Ye's current perspective, the weak Holmes was no match for him, in terms of both strength and speed. Moreover, if he used the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, Holmes would certainly die by his hand.

The advantage is mine!

With this progress, Li Ye felt it was necessary to build a good relationship with Holmes, after all, his brilliant mind was truly formidable.

He needed to strengthen himself as much as possible before Chaldea arrived.

Even if it meant resorting to any means necessary.

"Mr. Li Ye has also heard of Chaldea? It seems you're ready to confide in me?"

Holmes smiled and raised his pipe, his eyes deep.

With Holmes's intelligence, it was not difficult to see Li Ye's desire to open up.

"Of course, but I still hope Mr. Holmes can treat me as you would Chaldea. After all, our positions are similar; we are both working for the salvation of humanity, for resolving this Incineration of Humanity."

Li Ye clutched his chest, his expression sincere. The genuine tone made Holmes smile even more.

"Mr. Li Ye, how much do you actually know about me and Chaldea?"

"Not much, just a little—"

Li Ye pinched his thumb and index finger, smiling as he met Holmes's gaze.

"For example, which Singularity is Chaldea in now? Since Mr. Holmes has come here, they should have already resolved the London Singularity."

"Or rather, the Demon God Pillar that appeared in London has already been dealt with by Chaldea!"

Since he had decided to get along with Holmes, Li Ye could only be open and let Holmes confirm his stance.

Only after his stance was confirmed could they truly open up to each other.

"……"

Holmes remained silent, biting his pipe, his eyebrows unconsciously raised.

The information Li Ye possessed was too much, abnormally so.

"Then—Mr. Li Ye, how much do you know about the Magus King? If you are like this, you should know quite a bit about the Magus King."

After a moment of thought, Holmes slowly spoke.

"The Magus King—Solomon, the king who incinerated Human Order. Mr. Holmes, I cannot provide you with any information about this king. I have not faced the Magus King directly, so it will not be useful for your deductions."

Li Ye shook his head. "Perhaps it would be better to wait for Chaldea to arrive, and then Mr. Holmes can confirm the information about the Magus King—"

"What are you two whispering about behind Pharaoh's back?"

Just then, an discordant voice interrupted their atmosphere.

Nitocris tilted her head, observing Li Ye and Holmes. In just a moment, the content of their conversation had turned into something she couldn't understand.

"Miss Nitocris can ask King Ozymandias later. After all, him not granting you relevant knowledge also has his considerations."

Li Ye said with a smile.

The topic was interrupted, and Li Ye didn't say much more, letting Holmes ponder alone for a while.

After spending some more time confirming there was no other information, Li Ye and the others left the room.

About ten minutes later—

Li Ye, finding himself at another fork in the road, couldn't help but scratch his head. "After moving forward, the path behind us changes. Ahead, there are two routes, but going back presents three. It's like a maze, isn't it? Is this maze designed specifically for unwelcome outsiders like us, Mr. Holmes?"

"Indeed. This architecture, resembling a maze, is constructed in a way that disorients outsiders. It's easy to enter, but difficult to leave," Holmes nodded, affirming Li Ye's suspicion.

Nitocris, standing nearby, couldn't help but wonder, "With a structure like this, wouldn't it fail to stop thieves from entering?"

Holmes lit his pipe and took a deep puff. "Because more than preventing outsiders from entering, they fear their own people leaving. The Atlas Institute is an academy for geniuses, where they each bury themselves in their own independent workshops, engrossed in their research. There are no taboos here; no matter what kind of inhumane creations they produce, no one will be blamed."

"But there's only one condition: they must never bring their creations from here to the outside. This is the grand principle of the Atlas Institute, a principle they've strictly adhered to for two thousand years. If there are any exceptions, it would only be the seven Contract Documents created at the very founding of the Atlas Institute."

"Only to those who possess a Contract Document will the Atlas Institute promise to provide assistance as an exception. This must have been quite a headache for the successive directors, as these contracts were signed by their ancestors without authorization. As of the year 2000, four Contract Documents have been recovered, but the whereabouts of the remaining three are still unknown."

"How far-reaching is the effect of this Contract Document?" Li Ye asked, pinching his chin.

"Everything. The limits of what the Atlas Institute can accomplish—" Holmes's light words settled in Li Ye's heart, lingering long after.

"Now that everyone is gone, the Contract Document probably isn't very useful, is it? Or can they somehow survive the Incineration of Humanity?" After his interest in the Contract Document was piqued, Li Ye suddenly realized that the Atlas Institute was now deserted. Even with a Contract Document, it would be useless.

"Perhaps it will prove useful in the future," Holmes said, looking at Li Ye with a meaningful gaze.

A suddenly blaring alarm interrupted Holmes. He chuckled helplessly, "It seems we've accidentally triggered another Automatic Defense Device."

"This one will be easy to handle—" Li Ye turned his head and glanced at the Automatic Defense Device charging out from the depths. It was identical to the model he had encountered for the first time.

After quickly dealing with the Automatic Defense Device, Li Ye and the others finally escaped the intricate tunnels. A massive gate appeared before them.

As the gate opened—

Deep beneath the earth, within this alchemical academy, Li Ye saw the sky once again. A sharp obelisk stood tall beneath the vast blue sky. The Pseudo-Singularity Computational Unit Hermes!