The credits began to roll.
"It's over!" Elysia stretched lazily, showing off her curvaceous figure.
"Hua had it so rough too. She was actually left homeless in the story." Pardo watched Fu Hua's silhouette disappear into the darkness.
"Welt is actually still alive?" Su's eyes widened.
"Don't be so impatient. It's not over yet."
Yaqing suddenly spoke, making Kalpas, who had already reached the cinema entrance, return to his seat.
There was a post-credits scene. In the darkness, only the sound of leather shoes striking the floor could be heard. Otto came before a culture tank and gazed at the young girl inside. He was conducting a mad experiment—one meant to revive the Second Herrscher. The previous 422 test subjects had all failed.
"Or perhaps, Second Herrscher, you simply don't wish to wake up?"
The test subject recalled that false illusion in her mind.
When the 423rd test subject opened her eyes—
Otto knew his experiment had succeeded.
"I want to hear your voice one more time."
"Ich liebe dich."
"That bastard! He actually dared to use Kiana's DNA for experiments!" Kevin had developed a favorable impression of the little Kiana in the story, so seeing Otto use Kiana's DNA for an experiment immediately enraged him.
At the same time, Ziegfried nearly smashed the sofa's armrest to pieces with his fist.
Otto suddenly had an ominous feeling. After this film, the employees of Schariac would probably never give him a pleasant look again. Still, he did not care. What he wanted to see more was what came next in the story—for the Saintess.
Mobius's Bluntness
The three-hour film had ended. After the buried post-credits scene came a long succession of acknowledgments, and the lights in the theater finally came on.
Director: Yaqing Schariac.
Voice Acting Supervisor: Shub-Niggurath.
Visual Effects: Cheng Lixue, Frederica Nikola Tesla, Salome Jokanaan, Yaqing Schariac...
Character Modeling: Patricia Highsmith, Liesel Albert Einstein...
Screenwriter: Walter Yang
"Pfft!" When Walter saw that the screenwriter section contained only his own name, he sprayed out the mouthful of water he had just drunk.
"What the hell?" Walter was dumbfounded. Not only him—everyone in Anti-Entropy was dumbfounded. Even Dr. Einstein could not understand Yaqing's move. Why put the credit for a perfect film under Walter's name?
Walter Yang suddenly had an ominous feeling.
In the grand living room on the first floor of the Golden Courtyard, everyone looked at Yaqing strangely. Yaqing stretched and said, "He wanted to be the screenwriter himself back then, so I simply did him a favor. Besides, it lets me create without holding back."
"Hehe." Kevin laughed awkwardly, took Mei's hand, and prepared to make use of their rare day off by taking Mei out on a date.
"Kalpas, we won't be back for dinner tonight," Mei told Kalpas.
Kalpas, the five-star chef in charge of dinner, nodded to show that he understood.
Yaqing suddenly said, "Just not back for dinner?"
In an instant, everyone's attention turned toward them. Kevin, however, was already used to this. He tightly held Mei's hand when she tried to pull it away, then mocked Yaqing instead. "Yaqing, a single dog like you can't understand us."
"Hehe." Yaqing dismissed him disdainfully.
"Professor Mobius, would you like to go shopping with Elysia~?" Elysia grabbed Mobius's arm and shook it back and forth.
Mobius hurriedly pulled free, turned around, and yawned. "Elysia, find someone else. I'd rather run an experiment with that time. Mei and her little follower would probably be happy to take you along."
Elysia puffed out her cheeks. "Miss Fairy doesn't want to be a third wheel."
"Then that has nothing to do with me." Mobius yawned as she went upstairs to her room.
Yaqing sat on the sofa, took out his phone, and searched for reviews of the film. It was nothing but glowing recommendations, and the rating had even reached 9.8. When he saw the premiere event, Elysia had somehow already leaned over beside him.
Elysia stared at the women walking the red carpet amid flashing cameras, her eyes sparkling. Then she suddenly muttered to herself, "Elysia really wants to walk a red carpet too~ Elysia really wants to attend a premiere too~"
Yaqing said helplessly, "Elysia, I don't even want to attend my own film premiere. Otherwise, why would I be holed up in the courtyard watching movies?"
"Mmm..." Elysia sat beside Yaqing and sighed from time to time.
Yaqing truly could not stand Elysia's feigned gloom anymore, so he agreed that when his next film was released, Elysia could be his date at the premiere. Only then did she finally let it go.
Elysia left with a radiant smile.
Now it was Yaqing's turn to sigh. He rubbed the orange-gray fur of the plump little cat sprawled on the sofa, a cat as large as an oversized tabby. Canned Food tilted his head and meowed a few times.
"Meow~"
Canned Food usually ate extremely well, and his fur was glossy and sleek, making him wonderful to pet. Whenever this happened, he would lie on the sofa and sleep. Even when someone petted him, he would not object, merely meowing as he rolled over.
Yaqing stood up. Under Kalpas's unfriendly gaze, he took a can of cola and a bag of chips from the refrigerator, returned to the sofa, and called Aunt Kallen on his phone.
In the little love nest Kallen shared with Otto, Kallen was boredly watching a mass-produced soap opera. When her phone rang, she searched for a long while before finding it at the foot of the bed, then picked it up with her toes.
"Hello, little Yaqing~"
Kallen's voice remained as sweet as ever. It seemed Otto was not with her.
"Kallen... sister, how was the movie? Did it meet your expectations?" Yaqing tore open the chips and tossed several into his mouth.
"It was great, a wonderful story. Little Yaqing, your film is part of a series, right? Then there should be more to come. You have to make it quickly." Kallen had run out of snacks, so she had sent Otto out to restock them for her.
"I know, Sister Kallen."
"Oh, right, little Yaqing, are you coming home this Christmas?"
"That depends. I don't know whether I'll have time to go back, but if I'm free, I'll definitely come see you."
Kallen and Yaqing chatted for another ten-odd minutes before hanging up. Yaqing stood up to use the bathroom, only to unexpectedly run into Mobius coming down from upstairs.
Mobius seemed to have forgotten that she was wearing a skirt suit. Leaning halfway against the railing, she looked down at Yaqing from above. If Yaqing raised his head, he could see...
Yaqing only glanced once and did not dare raise his head again. Looking at the full-length mirror at the foot of the stairs, he asked in confusion, "Senior Mobius, are you heading to the lab for an experiment?"
"If I were conducting an experiment, would you be willing to be my guinea pig?" Wearing a fitted white blouse and a skirt that reached her thighs, Mobius descended the stairs. Her slender legs were wrapped in black stockings as her beautiful eyes watched Yaqing.
"Senior..." Yaqing was deeply unaccustomed to Mobius's gaze, which carried curiosity mixed with a hint of desire. He could not help backing away a few steps.
Mobius took several more steps closer. When Yaqing backed into the wall, she extended a hand against it, leaving him nowhere to retreat. Her pretty face drew close as she said, "I'm really curious. Are you not interested in women?"
Before Yaqing could reply, he caught sight of the stunned Elysia. Just as he wanted to explain, Elysia shouted, "Everyone, come look! Mobius is finally taking that step! A kabedon! Miss Fairy wants Professor Mobius to kabedon her too~"
Hearing Elysia's shout, everyone in the courtyard could not help poking their heads out. Even Kalpas, who was cooking, came out to watch without taking off his apron.
Mobius feigned calmness and turned to leave.
"I suddenly think Elysia's suggestion is rather good. It's time to go out for a walk, so..." Mobius looked at Yaqing with a half-smile.
Yaqing had just wanted to pretend he had not seen her when Elysia pushed him out of the courtyard from behind. After this betrayal, Elysia even blinked, thinking she had done an excellent job.
"Senior Mobius, where would you like to go?" Yaqing asked helplessly.
"Anywhere."
Yaqing headed for the underground garage.
Couples Secretly Watch a "Date"
Several of Eden's luxury cars were parked in the underground garage of the Golden Courtyard. As a minor director of Schariac, Yaqing also had a McLaren parked in the garage in the Far East. Since Mobius had said anywhere, Yaqing randomly picked a large department store.
"After you, Senior."
On the first floor of this department store, jewelry and gold were sold. The second through fourth floors sold furniture and appliances, the fifth through seventh floors sold clothes and such, while the seventh and eighth floors were where the restaurants were.
Yaqing and Mobius wandered around the first floor.
Mobius was still holding a cup of milk tea, which Yaqing had forced into her hands. At first, she stubbornly claimed that only Klein liked such sickeningly sweet things, but after taking a sip herself, she was conquered. She cradled the milk tea in both hands and followed beside Yaqing, taking little sips.
"Senior Mobius, is there really nowhere you want to browse?" Yaqing asked helplessly. They had been aimlessly wandering through the mall for half an hour. Aside from the snacks they had bought, they looked like idle loiterers just there to enjoy the air conditioning.
"I don't know. Anywhere. Let's eat." Mobius gave him the classic girlfriend triple response in one go, completely leaving Yaqing at a loss.
Yaqing had gone shopping with girls before, but only once or twice, and he had been dragged along both times. He had never needed to make his own choices. Now Mobius's "anything is fine" had completely thrown him off.
"Senior, are you hungry?" Yaqing asked.
Mobius nodded. It was already nearing evening, yet her previous meal had been a cup of instant noodles in the laboratory last night.
"Then let's go."
While Yaqing and Mobius waited for the elevator, they failed to notice Kevin and Mei coming out of a clothing store.
Mei, who had just bought Kevin several shirts, suddenly spotted Yaqing and Mobius waiting for the elevator. She patted Kevin and hid behind the wall.
Although Kevin was confused, he still followed behind his girlfriend. Only then did he notice Yaqing, as well as Mobius beside him. Mobius's temperament was completely different from when she was at the company, and she carried the air of a young girlfriend.
Kevin took out his phone, switched it to silent mode, secretly snapped a photo, and privately sent it to Su.
Su replied quickly.
Physician's Benevolence: "Where did you run into them? I just checked Yaqing's room, and he really isn't there."
COOL~: "On the first floor of XX Plaza Shopping Center. Su, look at the person beside him. Doesn't that silhouette look like Senior Mobius?"
Physician's Benevolence: "It doesn't just look like her. That is her."
As someone who had sat in the same row as Mobius during the movie, Su had naturally seen what she was wearing clearly. Thus, when Kevin's covert photo came through, he recognized Mobius beside Yaqing at a glance.
"Kevin, they got on the elevator," Mei said softly.
Kevin ended his online exchange with Su, quickly pulled Mei to the elevators, pressed the button for another elevator, and carefully watched which floors the first elevator stopped on. As soon as the other elevator doors opened, they slipped inside.
"Mei, are you sure they went to the eighth floor?" Kevin looked at Mei, who unhesitatingly pressed the button for the eighth floor, and asked doubtfully.
"Idiot." Mei slapped Kevin's hand away, seemingly afraid his stupidity would rub off on her. She explained, "There were only Yaqing and Mobius in that elevator. It only stopped at the eighth floor briefly before descending to basement one, unless they had already driven away."
"But is that likely? It's already dinner time. They came to the mall for a walk, and then they'd go back to eat at the courtyard?" Mei was highly confident that they would run into them on the eighth floor.
With a ding, Kevin and Mei arrived on the eighth floor. It was the weekend, and there were plenty of couples dating on the eighth floor. After dinner, they could conveniently watch a movie, and after the movie, they could directly go...
Kevin and Mei exchanged a look. As expected of a couple with such tacit understanding, they silently took masks from their pockets and put them on.
A few minutes earlier, Yaqing and Mobius had already reached the eighth floor. They chose a barbecue restaurant with a relatively short queue and sat in the waiting chairs. Yaqing truly had not expected that one day, he would go shopping and eat with Mobius.
"Why do I suddenly have an ominous feeling?" Mobius paused while drinking her milk tea. The sensation was familiar, as though some pink fatty were spying on her.
"Senior, what's wrong?" Seeing Mobius's body tremble, Yaqing thought she was cold.
"Nothing. Maybe it's because Klein is still working overtime." Mobius did not think much of it, believing she was overthinking.
Yaqing's expression turned strange. What did that have to do with Klein? Wasn't Klein working overtime perfectly normal? She could spend all seven days of the week in the laboratory, to the point that people might nearly call the police.
Before long, Yaqing's number was called. The barbecue restaurant was not particularly lavishly decorated, but it had a certain atmosphere—one of romantic ambiguity between couples. In fact, the diners around them were all couples, and even the table next to them had a couple feeding each other affectionately.
Yaqing and Mobius both felt uncomfortable all over, but since they had already sat down, they were too embarrassed to leave.
"Ahem. Senior, what would you like to order?" Yaqing handed the menu to Mobius and had the server bring over the grill and charcoal first.
"I'm ordering? Fine, then this..." Mobius did not hold back around Yaqing at all, ordering nearly every kind of barbecue on the menu.
Yaqing watched with a smile. "Senior, I don't mind how much you order, but there's one condition: no wasting food."
Mobius's pretty face stiffened. She stubbornly replied, "You don't need to worry about that. I can definitely finish it. This is only a tiny portion for me."
Yaqing raised an eyebrow.
Just as Yaqing and Mobius's lavish platter of barbecue was served, the two sneaky figures finally entered. Wearing masks and baseball caps, they looked either like celebrities or wanted criminals.
"Look, how ambiguous," Kevin said quietly.
"Could this be your fault, Kevin?" Mei asked softly.
"Huh?" Kevin was confused.
"Did you forget? This afternoon at the courtyard, you called Yaqing a single dog. You probably provoked him, so he finally came out on a date with Mobius." Mei's eyes suddenly gleamed with insight.
Before you continue