The Plan

Li Ming's new dish was ultimately not served, thanks to Himeko and Welt's strong refusal. However, Himeko's curry rice was released because she had deliberately bought extra ingredients for it when she went grocery shopping.

The main course remained Welt's specialty – grilled meat. For snacks, there were Li Ming's potato balls, and the side dish was Himeko's curry rice. In the end, Li Ming and Welt decided to just use a little less curry.

Just as the three were about to eat, there was another knock on the door. When Himeko opened it, she saw a woman with short blue hair and a beautiful woman with red twin-tails standing outside. It was Einstein and Tesla.

Welt had been waiting for them. After Li Ming and Himeko arrived, he had simply urged them to come over and join them for dinner. In the spirit of "misery loves company," Welt Yang was ultimately corrupted by Li Ming.

"Um, is it... Welt, why are you rushing us?" Tesla asked, hands on her hips. Her gothic-style short skirt and knee-high socks gave her a youthful and energetic appearance. She had almost let something slip just now, and her face looked a little awkward.

Einstein observed the situation inside before speaking, "It looks like you're having dinner. Li Ming and Miss Murata are both here!"

Einstein's comment served as an introduction for Tesla. In reality, Tesla only didn't recognize Himeko. However, seeing the girl with the same hair color as herself, combined with some things she'd learned from Lieserl and Welt, she felt a sense of approval for the hardworking, genius girl.

"Hello, I'm Frederica Nikola Tesla." After a brief introduction, the two women walked into the room, and the five of them sat down at the dining table.

Himeko was somewhat shocked. "She's the president of E.T.Studio, Frederica Nikola Tesla! We watched 'Heavy Mech Alahato' which she supervised and directed last time. Li Ming, do you think I can ask Ms. Tesla for an autograph later?"

Seeing Tesla, Himeko was a bit excited, feeling the thrill of meeting a star. After all, both 'Heavy Mech Alahato' and 'Demon Mech Alahato' were shows that many people in the Americas and the Far East grew up with.

"Alright, alright, don't get too excited. I'll ask Dr. Tesla about it later. For now, let's just enjoy our meal."

Li Ming quietly soothed the somewhat excited Himeko. He felt that Himeko was unusually hyped up. Over the past three months, Li Ming had become familiar with Tesla, one of the executives of Anti-Entropy. After all, the inhibitors he had been using for the past three months were all handled by Dr. Tesla.

Although Li Ming didn't understand why the leaders of such a large organization as Anti-Entropy seemed so relaxed, even idle.

He supposed that Mr. Raiden Ryoma and Ms. Cocolia were the true workhorses.

"This is quite a feast!" Tesla said, not bothering with formalities as she sat down. She speared a potato ball with her fork and popped it into her mouth, showing no concern for her ladylike demeanor.

Einstein, after putting away her bag, sat down properly. She looked at the greasy grilled meat and the tender potato balls in front of her and ultimately chose the potato balls.

Meanwhile, Welt was enthusiastically serving the two women Himeko's ridiculously spicy curry rice. Li Ming knew from Welt's actions that Old Yang had some ulterior motive.

However, to ensure his future comfort, Li Ming meticulously served both of them a cup of water.

After the two finished eating, they simply commented, "The taste is good!"

They even wiped their mouths with napkins. Their actions, however, left Welt and Li Ming bewildered. They exchanged glances, each then served themselves a bowl of curry rice. After just one bite, Welt felt a familiar sensation flood his tongue again, a feeling that made his body tremble.

After eating the curry rice, Li Ming didn't experience the extreme spiciness. However, the dryness in his throat made his stomach clench. He knew, the chrysanthemums in his hometown were about to bloom again.

"It's not bad, keep eating!" Tesla said, wiping the sweat from her forehead and taking a sip of water. Himeko was present, otherwise, they would have heard Dr. Tesla's familiar telegraph sound.

"The flavor of this curry rice is indeed quite good, but it's just too salty, and a bit too much chili powder was used," Einstein commented seriously, though the fine sweat on her forehead betrayed her inner turmoil.

The two who had been tricked were now utterly defeated, on the verge of tears.

Fortunately, Himeko hadn't made a lot of curry rice, and with two extra people, it was quickly finished.

After eating, the two prepared to leave.

Why else would they stay? To watch the show?

Who knew if they'd be silenced if they saw too much!

With that thought, Li Ming pulled the reluctant Himeko away. Himeko hadn't wanted to leave initially, but after Li Ming took a photo of Himeko and Tesla together and got her autograph, he forcefully dragged her away.

After all, if you're crashing a meal, you should have the courtesy to leave. The two also took out the trash from Welt's apartment.

Inside Welt's apartment.

Tesla and Einstein held cups of milk, drinking as they watched Welt chug an entire bottle of milk.

"Lord Alliance Leader, isn't this a bit much? Was he trying not to lose face in front of his students?" Einstein's eyes narrowed slightly.

"He's such an idiot, so childish, using such a childish method." Tesla said irritably, as she had been quite affected by the spice earlier.

Welt didn't have the energy to reply at the moment. After a while, the three of them finally recovered.

Einstein was the first to speak. Welt created a transparent barrier around the three of them to prevent their voices from escaping, and the door was triple-locked, making it impossible for anyone except special individuals to enter.

"The base in Mexico is now basically established, with only the Silver Bullet project left to be set up. However, based on current calculations, asteroid number 439 will not reach Earth for at least two more years. Professor Kol's research in this regard is quite convincing."

"All remnants of the H&K Company have been received over the past three months. There's only one last location, which I'll have Li Ming handle. However, Ryoma will need to secure market share." Tesla paid more attention to matters concerning the H&K Company.

"Li Ming's current condition needs attention. Don't let him overwork himself; his headaches haven't been resolved yet." Hearing Li Ming's name, Welt frowned.

"Even if I don't ask him, he'll push himself to the limit for money. After he returns, I'll arrange for him to get another check-up at St. Dote, and he won't need to be involved after this." Tesla spread her hands helplessly. Welt could only temporarily agree to this arrangement.

Then, Welt Yang rested his chin on his hand. "Destiny in Schicksal has made significant adjustments, transferring many Titan troops to the northwestern part of Schicksal. Many of our contacts are under varying degrees of surveillance. After the recent adjustments, I plan to have the endangered contacts evacuated to Qinghe Port on the East Coast."

"Are you planning to act personally?"

At this, Einstein and Tesla said in unison. If Welt Yang were to act personally now, who knew what outrageous actions that Lord Bishop might take. After all, he had directly launched a Honkai fission bomb back then just to eliminate them.

"Don't worry, I won't go personally. However, those contacts are people we've painstakingly trained, so we can't just abandon them. I've already contacted Schicksal headquarters, and they'll send Cocolia there with the [Type II Clone]. There shouldn't be any problem with just the escort."

Hearing that Cocolia would be leading the team, the two breathed a sigh of relief. However, Tesla expressed some doubt, "Cocolia has been making a lot of moves lately. I'm a bit uneasy about letting her lead the team."

"She won't betray us now, but she does need a reminder."

A red light flashed in Welt Yang's eyes, and his gentle demeanor slowly receded, revealing his full aura as the Alliance Leader of Anti-Entropy.

"Yes, Lord Alliance Leader!" Seeing this, the two no longer questioned him. However, Einstein raised a new concern: "We don't know yet if that unknown special radio wave will affect the [Type II Clone]. Is it too risky to send them out on a mission like this?"

At this, the three fell silent. Finally, Welt Yang spoke, "Then, we'll temporarily set a power level limit for the [Type II Clone]. Exceeding this limit will indicate loss of control or other phenomena. Tesla, notify me immediately."

The plan was finally decided. Meanwhile, on their way back to the apartment, Himeko and Li Ming were chatting about gossip.

"Huh? What's the relationship between Professor Welt, Professor Lieserl, and Ms. Tesla, anyway?"

Himeko, standing nearby, was a bit confused by Welt's earlier actions.

Li Ming naturally saw that Himeko had misunderstood. He simply said, "Teacher Welt, Dr. Tesla, and Professor Lieserl have been friends for a very long time. The three of them even founded E.T. Studio, so you shouldn't overthink it."

Li Ming knew much more, of course, but how could he dare to speak of those things carelessly? He didn't even have an intel source. If Welt and the others found out, wouldn't they silence him?

"Oh, I see. It seems Ms. Tesla and Professor Lieserl are like family friends to Professor Welt. Then Teacher Welt's Christmas will definitely be lively!" Himeko thought for a moment and said with a smile to Li Ming, though her tone carried a hint of envy.

Li Ming just nodded. After all, Himeko wasn't wrong. It was indeed like that. After all, our Alliance Leader Welt was raised by Dr. Tesla herself. Calling them family wouldn't be wrong, though it's the kind of family that might need to visit an orthopedic hospital at any moment.

After Li Ming saw Himeko to her apartment door, she hopped inside. "Okay, I'm here. You should hurry back!"

But just as Li Ming was about to leave, Himeko suddenly poked her head out. "Oh, right. Do you want to come find me tomorrow for Christmas Eve? We could go out together?"

"Sure!" Li Ming readily agreed.

"Then it's settled. I'll come find you tomorrow night. If you're not there, you're a dog!" Himeko made an agreement with Li Ming.

Li Ming just nodded. After Li Ming confirmed, Himeko quickly retracted her head. Li Ming didn't say anything more, just silently returned to his own apartment. However, he was inwardly ecstatic. But before he could even get comfortable, he received an email on his mobile phone.

"Ah, tomorrow is Christmas Eve. The boss shouldn't make us work overtime like this. But if I go, it's another chunk of money. Forget it, I'll risk it for the money!"

This message was sent by Tesla to his mobile phone. It not only told him he needed to go deal with the last remaining resistance groups of the H&K Company in Mississippi but also included the time and flight tickets.

The time was nine o'clock tonight, and a pick-up car would arrive in half an hour. Li Ming was stunned. Was it really necessary to be this stingy just for crashing a meal?

Despite his inner grumbling, he grabbed a waist pack and quickly ran downstairs.