All Sides in Motion

After returning to his apartment, Li Ming finally let his guard down completely. He grabbed some clothes and headed into the bathroom. Out of habit, he looked at his right wrist, only to find that the faint red patterns there had become intermittent.

"Ah, I wonder if this is a good thing or a bad thing."

Rubbing his wrist, he touched the bruises on his abdomen. They no longer hurt as much as when he had first noticed them, and even the symptoms had eased considerably. Still, that was probably the effect of the suppressant.

With that thought, his previously decent mood immediately sank. After agreeing to Welt Yang, everything that followed had gone far beyond his expectations. He had originally thought he would join Anti-Entropy directly. Even if he did not, they would erase his memories and then get rid of him to prevent him from turning into a Honkai-zombie.

"But what the hell is this Alahato business supposed to be?!"

After showering, Li Ming dried his hair while keeping an eye on the news. Sure enough, there was nothing about him. There were only reports that the location attacked yesterday had apparently suffered a second explosion.

"A second explosion, my ass." Grumbling inwardly, he turned off the hair dryer, ran a hand through his hair, then walked over to the mirror and narcissistically said, "I don't look any different. Looks like that suppressant really only suppresses Honkai Energy erosion."

Then he suddenly noticed something off. "This... was it like this before?"

He tugged at the hair over his forehead. The tips of that lock of hair carried a dark red sheen. After thinking it over, he ultimately gave up. "Maybe it's a side effect of the suppressant. Still, I need to hurry up and deal with the remaining loose ends at H&K Company's other bases."

"After all, it's our Alliance Leader—no, our Executor's—first mission. The sooner it's done, the sooner it's over. But is Anti-Entropy really that short on manpower? There seemed to be plenty of people back in Shenzhou!" Li Ming stretched, then turned toward the bedroom. "Sleep, sleep. I need to make up for all the sleep I've missed these past few days."

While Li Ming happily caught up on his sleep, Welt Yang and Einstein were discussing Li Ming in the office.

"Is it really all right to leave the H&K Company cleanup to a young man who is only twenty-two?" Einstein did not particularly approve of Welt Yang giving Li Ming that information and revealing matters related to Anti-Entropy to him.

Welt merely took a sip of coffee and smiled. "Wasn't I young back then too?"

Einstein sat silently in her chair. She knew Welt understood what she meant. Now, she was waiting for his explanation.

"Besides, aren't we short on manpower right now? Ryoma is preparing the Silver Bullet plan to deal with outside threats, and with the H&K operation from not long ago, we can only spare a small number of people to deal with the aftermath. Isn't it good to find a capable fighter to handle the trouble?"

He set down his cup, rummaged through his desk, and eventually pulled out an opened letter and handed it to Einstein. "Schicksal has already begun moving in Shenzhou. Our top priority now is to withdraw our personnel or change our approach. Once things over there are settled, we can deal with Li Ming's situation. At the very least, he can still keep himself under control."

After a moment of silence, Einstein accepted Welt's decision. Unless necessary, she did not want to simply eliminate Li Ming. It would be best if they could resolve the problem with him in a more reasonable and effective way.

Picking up her lesson plan, she prepared to leave. She had no intention of listening to Welt Yang say more, but before leaving, she still reminded him, "At three this afternoon, E.T. Studio will hold a press conference in Washington to prepare for the premiere of the 'Heavy Mech Alahato' film. Don't be late, producer and screenwriter."

Hearing that, Welt's face fell. Li Ming was not the only one who had been sleeping poorly these past few days. Welt had been the same. Even with a Herrscher's physique surpassing that of ordinary people, going three days without sleep still left him exhausted.

But E.T. Studio was not merely meant to solve Anti-Entropy's funding problems. It also contained a few of his own private ambitions. Otherwise, when persuading Li Ming, Welt would not have needed to say so much unnecessary nonsense.

When the class bell rang, he finally realized that the next class seemed to be his. He hurriedly grabbed his lesson plan and ran for the classroom.

Schicksal Headquarters

After Nagako had kept Otto working through two days' worth of affairs, all the backlog from the past few days was finally cleared. Otto casually opened an unprocessed document, glanced at it, and raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? Has this matter already reached this point? Then it's time to deal with it. By the way, Amber, contact Fu Hua. Since it concerns the Shenzhou region, it'll be more convenient to send a local."

Otto merely instructed Amber to handle the matter he had just reviewed, appearing not to care much about it.

Yet his fingers continued to rub the armrest of his chair. In the end, he marked the document, picked up another file from today, and said, "Exploration beyond Earth... what is Anti-Entropy doing now? And the large-scale migration in Mexico... Hmm..."

Otto only pondered briefly. Anti-Entropy's actions did not seem simple. Perhaps they were a series of counterattacks against Schicksal. He said to Amber, "Have G048, G056, and G097 monitor Mexico. Report immediately if anything unreasonable occurs."

"Yes!"

Following Otto's instructions, Amber issued all the orders. Then, a new message suddenly arrived in Otto's communicator through a private channel.

"A new spacecraft. Interesting. Nagako discovered traces of technology similar to that of the Previous Era, but it has suffered severe damage and can no longer operate normally. It is similar to the Fourth Divine Key." His slender fingers tapped the armrest before Otto finally rose to his feet. "Amber, which personnel within Schicksal have outstanding achievements in aerospace research?"

"Reporting to Lord Bishop, the personnel in that field are primarily Saint 7308 Research Institute, led by Director Ryusuke Murata, and Saint 7905, where Director Space Tachi is stationed."

"Ryusuke Murata... the research institute director with considerable courage from last time?" Otto recalled for a moment before remembering Ryusuke Murata's appearance. "What are Director Space Tachi and our Director Ryusuke Murata doing now?"

Using the central processor, Amber quickly located the information. "Director Space Tachi is leading Saint 7905 Research Institute in developing a mobile satellite communication system. Due to the previous incident, Director Ryusuke Murata is temporarily leading Saint 7308 Research Institute in the Fourth Divine Key restoration project. Shall I contact them?"

"No need. Director Space Tachi is working for a brighter future for humanity, so we should not disturb him. But our Director Ryusuke Murata is a meritorious contributor. Five hundred years ago, he would have been granted a title and land. How can we let him be buried in obscurity just because he is participating in the Fourth Divine Key restoration project?"

Amber, who had always remained by Otto's side, naturally understood what he meant. She merely asked, "Then where should Director Ryusuke be reassigned?"

Otto extended a finger and manipulated the screen. "Here. Nagako recently discovered a spacecraft suspected to have been invented by the Previous Era. I believe Director Ryusuke would be especially delighted to see it. After all, it would be no ordinary breakthrough for modern aerospace technology."

"Understood." Amber followed Otto's orders, postponing the Fourth Divine Key restoration project under Ryusuke Murata and the entirety of Saint 7308 Research Institute. She marked it as pending, added them to the project Nagako had just established, and issued the relevant orders.

Otto, meanwhile, looked at the device suspected to be a Previous Era satellite and chuckled.

"Director Ryusuke, Director Ryusuke, good news!"

Ryusuke Murata was studying the restoration blueprints currently derived from the Fourth Divine Key. When he had learned that Saint 7308 had been barred from participating in other affairs after the previous incident and ordered to focus solely on restoring the Fourth Divine Key, he had not been particularly disappointed. Instead, he had felt somewhat pleased. These past few days had been the easiest since he joined Schicksal.

When one of his subordinate researchers suddenly ran over shouting, Ryusuke Murata was quite confused. The researcher stopped before him and said, "Director Ryusuke, Lord Bishop said that in recognition of your contributions, we will participate in an exploration project concerning a Previous Era spacecraft."

"A Previous Era spacecraft?" Ryusuke was stunned. Ever since his institute's spacecraft development program had been halted and cut, how long had it been since he had heard the word spacecraft?

Seeing Ryusuke still standing there in a daze, the researcher hurried off. "Director, I'll go tell the others this good news first."

After the researcher left, Mint Candy jumped out of a wormhole and looked at the still-dazed Ryusuke Murata.

"Ryusuke, um... are you okay?"

Mint Candy spoke hesitantly. He could clearly sense the violent fluctuations in Ryusuke's emotions. Although they felt like happiness, he still had the feeling that this would not end well.

After snapping out of his daze, Ryusuke Murata pulled at the corner of his mouth. He took a long while to compose himself before saying, "I'm fine. I'm just too happy. It's been a long time since I felt like this. And being able to participate in research on a Previous Era spacecraft... if we develop anything, it will be an enormous contribution to humanity. I'm just too happy, that's all. Yes, I'm just too happy..."

Though worried inside, Mint Candy did not try to persuade him further when he saw Ryusuke like that. He simply silently handed him a piece of mint candy he liked.

Ryusuke looked at the lollipop-shaped mint candy and smiled. It somehow felt out of place at a time like this, but he still accepted it with a smile. After unwrapping it and putting it into his mouth, he said, "It's good. Thank you, Mint Candy."

"It's nothing. As long as you're okay, Ryusuke. We're partners!" Mint Candy smiled, but then his expression abruptly changed. He quickly dove back into the wormhole. "Oh no, Elder Konpeito is calling for me again. I have to go, Ryusuke! Bye!"

With that, the wormhole vanished into the air. Ryusuke Murata looked at where it had disappeared and let out a laugh that was both carefree and relieved.