Saria's Irritation / Ho'olheyak's Visit

"Is it self-generated... or..."

After muttering to himself for a while, Ahrens Parvis subconsciously raised his head, his gaze sweeping thoughtfully over the people around him.

Ifrit, have any strange people come to see you recently?

After reviewing the results of the second examination, Saria didn't pay attention to the state of the others. Instead, she leaned down and asked Ifrit in a slightly gentler tone.

The substance that was just detected in Ifrit's body was unknown not only to the researchers present, but also to Saria.

However, regardless of what it is, there are only two possible origins: either it is produced naturally, or it is injected artificially.

If it's the former, that's fine, but if it's the latter... in Saria's eyes, that would be a major dereliction of duty.

After all, she was the head of the Rhine Lab Defense Division. For her to have someone inject a patient with this strange substance right under her nose... wasn't that a dereliction of duty?

"No."

Upon hearing this, Ifrit quickly shook her little head and replied.

P. S.: Oh dear, there's nothing we can do to save it, it's terrifying. Best regards everyone.

Chapter 83 Saria's Frustration

"No."

Upon hearing this, Ifrit quickly shook her little head and replied.

"..."

Looking at Ifrit, who was shaking her little head like a rattle drum, Saria narrowed her eyes slightly. For some reason, she felt that the person in front of her was a little guilty.

However, given the little dragon's current state, Saria ultimately didn't say anything, but simply reached out and patted her little head again.

After all, Saria preferred to investigate herself rather than question a child who was in poor condition. Even now, when she had a lot of things to do and some time was tight, this was still the case.

"Hmm!"

Ifrit, sensing Saria's complicated emotions, gave a soft hum and nuzzled her hand.

Although she couldn't reveal the truth because of her promise to the Mobius, she could still comfort Saria, who was in a bad mood, in her own way.

While the two were enjoying a tender moment together, everyone else in the lab was busy with their own tasks.

Silence, in particular, was more eager than anyone else to figure out what this substance that had suddenly appeared in Ifrit's body was and whether it would be harmful to her.

However, not only her, but even Ahrens Parvis, the current head of the Structural Department, couldn't figure out what this substance was for the time being.

However, precisely because they can't figure it out for the time being, the laboratory's research focus has now shifted to this special substance.

Afterwards, while everyone was busy, it was Saria who led Ifrit had already received this "treatment," back to her room.

After bidding a reluctant farewell to Ifrit, Saria didn't rush to leave but instead chose to return to the laboratory.

She felt it was essential to have a serious talk with Ahrens Parvis.

In addition, Saria also plans to investigate the surveillance videos near the Structural Department to confirm whether there have been any suspicious or abnormal individuals recently.

If her suspicions are true, then the substance in Ifrit's body was injected artificially.

So... whatever that person's purpose was, whether it was for Ifrit's good or something else, Saria would not allow such serious misconduct to continue.

"Ah Qiu..."

Having just finished the experiment, and before he even had time to put down the recording equipment, Mobius sneezed again.

"..."

This sudden second sneeze caused Mobius had been in a good mood because he was well-prepared, to slightly furrow his brow.

Then, thinking of a possibility, she slowly put down what she was holding, silently walked to her office door, locked the door, and disposed of the excess water in the office.

Well, Mobius wasn't superstitious, but she often trusted her intuition, or rather, the intuition of a snake.

After finishing these tasks, Mobius returned to the lab table and began tidying up the mess. At the same time, he muttered to himself thoughtfully:

"Judging by the time, those guys should have noticed something was wrong by now."

Although Mobius's previous investigation revealed that the time the lab staff spent "treating" Ifrit on treatment days was unpredictable, she now calculated that it was about time.

After the treatment was almost finished, it was also discovered that there were still traces of the drug in Ifrit's body.

Although Mobius had silently decided to stay in the lab during the day for the next few days after meeting Ho'olheyak that morning, there were still some things she needed to investigate.

Because, no matter how much the Mobius tries to give Ifrit some trust, the uncertainty of a child is still there.

Therefore, the later examination directly determined whether Mobius should give Ifrit a follow-up examination tonight.

After all, maybe Saria or Silence have discovered something and are choosing to lie in wait that night?

Even if someone were lying in wait for her, Mobius had ways to deal with it, but that would still be too troublesome, disrupting her plans and wasting her time.

On the other side--

"..."

Saria's mood was even worse at this moment. The two things she had tried earlier had yielded no useful results.

The first thing was to negotiate with Ahrens Parvis, the head of the Structural Department, but the final result was completely unsatisfactory...

When Saria pointed out the problem, that guy kept dodging the question. In the end, she spent a lot of time and effort, but not only did she fail to find any clear clues about his weakness, she also felt very frustrated.

The second thing was to check the surveillance footage near the Structural Department, or more precisely, this particular laboratory. Although the surveillance footage of each department is usually quite private, Saria, as the head of the Security Department, still had some authority.

However, the final results were far from satisfactory, and she didn't find any particularly useful information.

At most, we can only conclude one thing: if the substance in Ifrit's body was injected intentionally, then the most likely culprit is someone she knows. After all, the video didn't show any outsiders near the lab.

Of course, it's not impossible that someone might possess some special Originium Arts, but that possibility is relatively small. Generally speaking, no one would infiltrate a large company's laboratory just to inject a child with painkillers.

Moreover, based on current observations, if this special substance is indeed a pain reliever, it is highly likely that it is an original human invention, or even something specifically researched and developed.

Who would believe that a stranger would do something like this, where there's no profit to be made, or even a loss?

"Well..."

Thinking it over, Saria sighed helplessly and made a new decision.

In her opinion, neither of these two things had a satisfactory outcome or progress, but if she had to compare them, the latter was slightly better than the former.

However, due to her lack of understanding of the personnel at the Silence Lab, or rather, her lack of knowledge beyond the written intelligence, Saria was unable to draw a definitive conclusion.

So later she planned to talk to Silence privately about this matter to see if there were any more clues.

However, just as Saria was pondering Ifrit's situation, her communicator suddenly rang.

"Hello."

P. S.: It's a bit early, but not completely early. I'll try to finish the second one as quickly as possible.

Chapter 84 Ho'olheyak's Visit

"Hello."

"Please be mindful of the time, busy Saria, it's almost time for our appointment!"

After Saria connected the call, Muelsyse's somewhat helpless and teasing voice slowly came through.

Ignoring her friend's teasing tone, Saria glanced at the time, calmed herself, and replied seriously, "Understood, I'll be there right away."

"Okay, then I'll wait here. Oh, by the way, I bet you haven't had lunch yet, so I brought you some. Just come over."

After hearing Saria's reply, Muelsyse also put away his playful attitude and said...

"... Hmm, this is troublesome."

Upon hearing this, Saria paused slightly, her tense face relaxing, and her tone softening considerably.

"Well, it's nothing, see you later!"

See you later.

"..."

After the communication ended, Saria glanced at the time again, and after confirming that there was very little time left, she quickly composed herself and hurried towards the agreed location.

In Saria's opinion, Ifrit's actions today really made her lose her mind... Otherwise, how could she, who is always punctual, have almost been late?

Indeed, emotions can cloud judgment and make people irrational...

Mobius's office--

Although Mobius had previously guessed that those guys might have already noticed Ifrit's unusual behavior, it was too early to go out and investigate or extract information.

With the experiment finished and preparations for the evening complete, Mobius took advantage of this "free time" to immerse herself in the knowledge of this world.

Just as Mobius herself said before, she had spent too little time in this world, and there was too much knowledge here. Moreover, much of this knowledge needed to be accumulated and practiced to be truly understood.

Therefore, whenever she had such "free time," she would immerse herself in studying.

It's important to understand that Mobius's study wasn't just about creating an antidote; it was also about trying to continue exploring the [infinity] in this world, building upon Mobius's memories and experiences.

"Knock knock--"

However, just as Mobius was immersed in his studies and oblivious to what was happening around him, there was a sudden knock on his office door.

"..."

Upon hearing the knock, Mobius glanced at the door briefly, and after identifying who was outside, he completely lost the desire to open it, lowering his gaze again to focus on the paper in his hands.

"Knock knock..."

As Mobius remained inactive, the knocking resumed, but for some reason, it was much quieter than before, even revealing a hint of apprehension on the part of the knocker.

"..."

However, this time, the person, who was so engrossed in studying, didn't even lift their eyelids.

What a joke! Once he knew who was outside, there was no way Mobius would open the door for her; that would be a complete waste of time.

And at this moment outside the door...

"Could he not be in the office? But that doesn't make sense..."

Standing outside Mobius's office, Ho'olheyak looked puzzled and hesitant.

To be honest, she still had a lot of confidence in her intelligence abilities, but if she did that now... it meant that the person inside wasn't actually not there, but simply hadn't heard her or didn't want to open the door for her.

However, after the image of Mobius's delicate face, tinged with disdain, flashed through Ho'olheyak's mind, she suddenly felt that it was more likely he was deliberately refusing to open the door for her.

But this also raised a question and a sense of curiosity in her: if Mobius was deliberately not opening the door, how did she know it was her?

Was it due to some special technology or some ancient ability?

However, Muelsyse didn't think about this problem for long, because rather than pondering it from outside the door, he decided to find a way to get inside and meet the person first.

After organizing her thoughts and clearing her throat, Ho'olheyak knocked on the door again and said:

"Knock knock--"

"Researcher Mobius, this is my name, Ho'olheyak. We met in the cafeteria this morning. To make up for my previous rudeness, I have brought a gift to formally visit you."

This time, Ho'olheyak even used honorifics.

After all, in her view, someone like Mobius deserved her respect. Besides, if she wanted to get something useful out of him, she had to show him some respect.

However, Ho'olheyak soon discovered that even after she introduced herself, the door to Mobius's office remained firmly shut. There was no sound from inside, as if no one was there at the moment.

If she hadn't actually investigated beforehand and confirmed that Mobius hadn't left the office except for breakfast, she might have truly believed that no one was in the office.

"..."

To be honest, Ho'olheyak was really feeling helpless. This was the first time in her life she'd ever been turned away like this, feeling so frustrated.

You know, normally she's the one who shuts people out or threatens them... but she can't do that now.

Ho'olheyak had a premonition that if she went too far, Mobius might just quietly crush her. In this regard, she trusted her intuition and gut feeling more.