Void Archives: Otto, Are You Planning to Play the Loving Father and Dutiful Son? / Otto: I Have a Son!

Gwen tried moving his body now that sensation had returned, but he had overestimated his soul's recovery ability. His figure swayed, and he collapsed directly into the soggy mud.

However, Gwen paid no attention to his sorry state and continued studying the Chat Group in his field of vision with great interest.

Compared to the system, which was currently empty aside from basic ability values, the Chat Group had far more to investigate.

Rather than immediately examining the chat function, Gwen first found the settings.

Message notifications, file management...

Among the row of functions, Gwen spotted an option that made his eyes light up—

"Help."

Without hesitation, he tapped Help and opened the service agreement first.

Though plagiarism was not a good civilization, familiar things were always easier to use.

With the determination of cramming before an exam deadline, Gwen patiently read the unexpectedly concise Chat Group service agreement sentence by sentence.

Although part of it was clearly missing, it still allowed Gwen to understand the Chat Group's general rules.

First, just as Gwen had initially guessed, the Chat Group could transcend time and space, allowing entirely different lives from two completely different worlds to communicate and exchange information.

Second were the usual functions like "red packets" and "world travel," which allowed supplies and personnel to move between group members.

Finally, there was the Chat Group's currency—points.

Whether transporting people or stuffing items and supplies into red packets to send them, points had to be spent to complete the transfer.

Besides supporting these basic functions, points had other uses as well. For example, there was supposedly a gacha machine containing everything from simulated star-creation charts to instant noodles flavored like beautiful girls, and then there was... the shop.

After searching through the Chat Group interface, Gwen finally found the shop icon beside his avatar in the upper-left corner. It looked like a gray treasure chest.

However, Gwen, who had expected to see countless amazing things that would make him drool, was stunned after opening the shop. It was completely empty, with only a single line of large text displayed inside—

"The shop is under maintenance. Please wait patiently..."

Though he really wanted to complain that it was false advertising, that it would not even let him feast his eyes on anything, Gwen's mindset remained relatively steady. He was not so greedy as to ask for a yard after getting an inch.

After closing the shop, Gwen examined the Chat Group's other functions one by one while summarizing and speculating based on the information he had obtained.

Compared to the empty leveling system, the Chat Group contained far more content and offered far more things to analyze—

"Part of the service agreement is clearly missing, and I couldn't find it anywhere else.

If nothing unexpected happened, part of its contents must have been lost after I smashed a portion of it earlier.

Since the Chat Group suffered damage, the leveling system should be the same. Perhaps it would have contained more features in its complete state.

Perhaps the shop system currently under maintenance is related to this as well, such as integrating and selling both sides' items.

Of course, it's also possible that the collision made many items in the shop unavailable for purchase, and it's trying to repair or sort things out..."

Although he had reached some less-than-pleasant conclusions, Gwen did not feel even the slightest disappointment or regret.

After all, if he had done nothing back then, he might have already exploded into a cloud of blood mist... no, a pile of mental fragments. And he still wanted to obtain these two cheat systems? Dream on!

Besides, considering how enthusiastically the system and the cheat system had fought earlier, perhaps they had both been young and reckless. Now that they had beaten each other into idiot systems, that might not be a bad thing.

Such was the meaning of "a loss may turn out to be a blessing."

As he pondered, a wave of drowsiness gradually rose within him. Before Gwen could resist, it dragged his already exhausted mind into a peaceful, tranquil darkness.

After Gwen's soul closed its eyes, the Chat Group interface before him transformed into a streak of blue-gold light and flowed into his soul...

While Gwen received the two cheat systems in his mental world and his utterly exhausted mind finally had a chance to rest, the person standing beside his bed also let out a huge sigh of relief—

The doctor, wearing a white coat and medical mask, with his thick hair completely covered by a blue cap, confirmed that Gwen's mental fluctuations had returned to calm. Only then did he straighten up and let out a long breath.

"Doctor, how is he?"

Seeing this, You Lan Dai Er hurriedly asked, her little face full of anxiety and worry.

He had been awake with his eyes open when she left just moments ago. How had he fallen unconscious again by the time she returned, with his complexion alternating between red and white?

"Don't worry. He's basically fine now."

The doctor waved his hand, his voice carrying a hint of relief.

"Something may have happened before he fell unconscious. After waking up, recalling it may have been mentally difficult for the child to accept.

His mind has calmed down now, but he's extremely exhausted. After he sleeps and wakes up, he should be fine."

"That's good, that's good..."

Hearing the doctor's answer, little You Lan Dai Er finally let out a huge breath of relief, a relaxed smile appearing on her face.

Void Archives: Otto, Are You Preparing for Fatherly Love and Filial Devotion?

Opposite the doctor, Rita stood by the bedside. Though a faint smile had also appeared on her pretty face, her personality kept her from displaying her emotions as openly as You Lan Dai Er. Instead, the movements of her hands became even more careful—

At that moment, Rita was carefully using a handkerchief to wipe away the sweat seeping from Gwen's face. Yet because she had been bent over for so long, a light sheen of sweat had appeared on her fair skin as well. The bangs on her forehead were no longer as fluffy as usual and had clumped together, revealing the eye normally hidden beneath them, which reflected Gwen's pale face.

Just as Gwen had guessed, his physical condition was not healthy. His face was thin, he had been weak since birth, and his vital energy was deficient.

That pale little face, so weak and fragile, made even Rita feel a little heartache.

"Shh..."

The doctor standing opposite glanced at Rita, who was carefully wiping Gwen's sweat away, then looked at You Lan Dai Er and made a gesture for silence.

"..."

Seeing that, You Lan Dai Er hurriedly covered her little mouth with both hands and nodded firmly, indicating that she would not disturb the patient's rest.

A moment later, after Rita had wiped the sweat from Gwen's face and straightened up, the doctor opposite them finally spoke in a low voice.

"I've adjusted the equipment, and the nutrient solution is being administered steadily. Let him rest properly for now."

"Mm..." *2

After putting the damp handkerchief back into her pocket, Rita raised a hand to wipe away the sweat trembling at the edge of her chin. She and You Lan Dai Er nodded in agreement, then gave Gwen one final look. Though his face was weak, his expression was peaceful, as if he were wandering through a pleasant dream. Then Rita followed You Lan Dai Er out of the ward.

After leaving the ward, You Lan Dai Er and Rita said their farewells and departed. They had only come to visit during the noon break, and they still had training in the afternoon, so they had no time to linger.

As for the doctor, whose only visible feature had been those emerald-green eyes, he returned to the empty medical office.

After closing the door, the doctor, who had just moments ago seemed calm and unflappable, dropped into a chair without the slightest concern for appearances. He casually pulled off his blue cap and mask, revealing dazzling golden hair and a handsome face that everyone on this floating island could recognize at a glance.

"What?

You actually got flustered?"

Seeing the blond man lose his composure like this, a teasing voice rang out in his mind.

"..."

Hearing that familiar voice, the blond man's gaze shifted slightly. The trace of relief on his face was instantly replaced with his usual ease, and a faint smile curled across his lips.

"Heh... I don't deny it."

"You really have never changed..."

Hearing the blond man admit it so readily, the voice carried a little more surprise, but even more mockery.

"No matter how big or small the matter, as long as it involves her, that clever mind of yours becomes ruled by emotion.

Did what happened five hundred years ago not teach you a sufficient lesson?"

"After all, I'm a clown. I was born to make people laugh."

Facing the mockery in the voice's words, the blond man's smile did not change. It was as though he were discussing some amusing topic that delighted both body and mind, rather than the foolish mistake he regretted for the rest of his life.

"As for whether I've learned enough of a lesson... at the very least, you're still here, aren't you?

Void Archives?"

The blond man called out the other party's name, one syllable at a time.

"Yes, I was imprisoned by you for five hundred years. Leanna and Welt Joyce chose to resist you, the tyrant, while you personally ordered one of your obedient pawns to be discarded in order to eliminate Siegfried, that unstable factor. You brainwashed that clever Theresa into a silly little brat..."

Having had his sore spot exposed by the blond man, Void Archives was not angered. Smiling, he struck back with a devastating counterattack.

"This time... let me guess.

You blurred that child's memories of the past and appeared as his attending physician...

What, are you planning to recreate on him the method you used on little Kiana?

And then stage a performance of... fatherly love and filial devotion?

Am I right, Otto Apocalypse?"

"It seems five hundred years of imprisonment has had some effect. You've even started preparing scripts for me..."

Faced with Void Archives' barrage of barbed words, Otto's smile remained unchanged. Leaning back in his chair, he casually crossed one leg over the other.

"However, you seemed to have focused too much on me just now and overlooked a few issues—

Though the child has Caslana blood, he was born weak like I was back then, and his body is frail. Even if we spared no expense to build him up, he could only barely reach the threshold of S-rank. Clearly, that would not be worthwhile.

Why not let him live as a wealthy idler instead?

Besides, ever since Siegfried defected, the position of Caslana family head has remained vacant.

Now it is time to return it to its true owner."

"Oh?"

Hearing Otto's words, Void Archives' voice took on a trace of surprise.

"Are you planning to raise another Theresa?

Hmm... You can also disgust that Siegfried who keeps ruining your plans, test the obedience of your subordinates, and conveniently divert attention..."

"Whether this child inherited his intelligence or her decisiveness and courage, he will inevitably shine with his own brilliance in the future.

Before that, however, he still needs a little hardship to grow."

"Heh... Have fun."

With a derisive snort, Void Archives said no more.

Although Otto's words sounded utterly sincere, Void Archives would swear on Otto's underwear that this guy was absolutely plotting something else.

Otto did not take the initiative to respond to Void Archives again. Instead, he calmly watched the bright sunlight outside the window.

He sat there blankly for quite some time. Then Otto, who seemed to have turned into a statue, suddenly moved again.

Drawing his hand out of his white coat pocket, Otto took a silver necklace from his shirt pocket. Hanging from it was a pendant shaped like the Caslana family crest.

Otto's fingers deftly triggered the pendant's hidden mechanism. The crest of a powerful shield and sharp sword sprang open, revealing a photograph hidden inside.

Though the photograph had become somewhat blurry with age, it was still possible to make out a married couple leaning intimately against each other.

The blond husband looked almost identical to Otto, though several years younger. The white-haired wife was beautiful, but her pale complexion made her weakness obvious at a glance.

In the wife's arms was a swaddled infant, with faint traces of white hair visible on the baby's head.

"Phew..."

Every time Otto looked at this family portrait representing the version of himself from another world who had walked the right path, the resentment in his chest felt like a mountain pressing down hard upon his heart. No matter how forcefully he exhaled, he could not ease it in the slightest.

Otto: I Have a Son!

A week ago, Bianca and Rita, whom Otto had sent to explore the Sea of Quantum, completed their mission and returned safely. They had also gained many unexpected harvests.

When the two returned, You Lan Dai Er had another person on her back.

According to Bianca and Rita, they had encountered this white-haired boy of unknown origin while returning to the Eigenworld.

To prevent him from dying in the Sea of Quantum, Bianca had rescued him and carried him back to the Eigenworld.

As Bianca's teacher, having personally watched her grow up, Otto knew her personality well and did not become suspicious.

When Bianca offered to pay the stranger's medical expenses with her future salary, Otto smiled and gently declined the straightforward girl's offer. He said that Schicksal was not short on such a small amount of treatment fees and that he would arrange for the Sea of Quantum survivor to have the best attending physician—

Namely, Otto himself.