It's Alive

"Aetherine Omega? Madam Chairperson?" Rosaline gasped, covering her mouth after hearing her teacher read the words aloud.

She had seen the woman before, back in her dreams, though it was on the large television in the Wright Apartment. Aetherine, dressed in finery and exuding grace, had been presiding over a charity event, passionately soliciting donations for local orphans. Her speech was incredibly moving, her eyes welling up with tears at the emotional peak, which had brought Rosaline, watching from her couch, to tears as well.

Although her impression of Black Tower Pharmaceuticals had soured somewhat during her time in the Blackwater District, it hadn't significantly impacted her overall view of Aetherine.

After all, in a way, they were both noble ladies. Their social classes were similar, and they both possessed kindness and sympathy for those less fortunate. If anyone were to accuse Aetherine of being hypocritical or attention-seeking, Rosaline would find herself empathizing deeply, feeling a pang of discomfort.

— Of course, that was all based on the assumption that Aetherine was genuinely a good person.

Yvette hummed in acknowledgment, not surprised. If the apocalypse were to suddenly descend, the Abyss Base hidden within the crater lake would indeed serve as a natural sanctuary. As the CEO of Black Tower's Ish division and the "granddaughter" of a powerful Black Tower family, Madam Aetherine would certainly have the right to seek refuge at the Abyss Base.

What truly mattered were the last two sentences.

The "Divine Molt" of the Abyss of Divine Erosion—what was that? It sounded connected to "gods." Could it be some transcendent existence that even Black Tower Pharmaceuticals couldn't comprehend, hence the use of the word "god"?

Did the anomalies from the sea mean that mutations began in the ocean? And when they spread to land, their sheer scale led to the destruction of the Origin Civilization?

It was a distinct possibility... The reason she hesitated to cross the sea was because the ocean was a massive petri dish, incredibly perilous. Who knew what kind of colossal Aberrations lurked within, ready to swallow small fry whole?

She continued flipping forward, only to find nothing more. In other words, Madam Aetherine's final words were just this meager fragment. Anything that should have been in a dying person's testament was completely absent.

So, proving her family's innocence was her sole dying wish?

Yvette put down the notebook and noticed Rosaline rummaging through drawers and cabinets like a thief, or rather, a little detective, engrossed in her task.

Then, she pulled out a heavy file from a dark corner. Most of the documents inside were rotted and moldy, but some fragments were still legible. She carefully selected a few pages with writing that was somewhat decipherable and handed them to her teacher.

Yvette took them, reading and translating for Rosaline as she went.

"Experiment Log F#933, Year 2146, August 9th. Project: Eternal Life, Phase VI nearing completion. Results summary."

"Recorder: Leo Klaus."

"...(unintelligible)... Success rate: 33% (details in appendix), a significant increase of 14% compared to Phase V."

"The new generation Metamorphosis Potion Type VII greatly contributed to the increase in success rate."

"Addendum: Dr. Dillon Dempse's mental state has returned to normal and he can resume leading the experiment."

"Request: Expand experimental authority and rapidly commence Phase VII."

"Board Approval: Granted."

Undoubtedly, compared to Madam Aetherine's suicide note, this experiment log revealed far more information. Yvette was stunned for a while before she began extracting the noteworthy details one by one.

August 9th, 2146?

She clearly remembered that her first dream, where she woke up as an orphan in the Abyss Base, was dated 2125. The year before that was when she had her second dream and interacted with the Hoffman family.

So, this report was generated 21 years after the original host's first involvement in the Metamorphosis Project?

Did the apocalypse not occur during that entire 21-year period?

The new terms "Project: Eternal Life, Phase VI" and "Metamorphosis Potion Type VII" immediately made her think of her own unique situation and the drug she took when she participated in the Metamorphosis Project.

However, the drug she took back then was Metamorphosis Potion Type II, while this mentioned "Type VII"... Was this an iteration?

Could it be that the Metamorphosis Project was just a public alias for the Eternal Life Project? The claim of conquering genetic diseases was fake, and the real goal was research into eternal life?

Was she, with her seemingly ageless and immortal body, the successful product of this project?

But if that were the case, why was she the only one who survived until after the apocalypse?

Was it like the moon landing, where the path to success was unfathomable and unreplicable? So, apart from her, even a Black Tower Pharmaceutical "granddaughter" like Madam Aetherine could only watch helplessly as she waited to die?

In that light, could the 33% success rate refer to the Eternal Life Potion? It sounded quite high already...

As she pondered this, unable to find an answer, Yvette's gaze fell upon the name "Dillon Dempse" again.

She knew that name because the female physician who took care of her during her first dream, "Tebesa Clovelan," was a student of this Dr. Dillon.

However, Dr. Dillon didn't seem to be involved with the Metamorphosis Project. At least, when she was on the ninth underground level, she had never seen Dr. Dillon, only heard him mentioned when Dr. Tabitha chatted with other researchers.

In this log report, Dr. Dillon had a mental breakdown but had since recovered... Was his mental issue related to the Eternal Life Project?

"Teacher, are... are you alright?" Seeing Yvette fall into a stupor as if petrified after reading the experiment log, Rosaline finally couldn't help but call out worriedly after waiting for more than ten minutes.

"Mmm... I'm fine," Yvette shook her head. This document revealed too much information, allowing her to glimpse the tip of the iceberg regarding the secrets hidden within the Abyss Base before the apocalypse. Although it didn't explain the origin of the apocalypse, it provided some reliable evidence regarding her own origins.

As expected, the original host was highly likely to be an immortal created by Black Tower Pharmaceuticals, which was why she woke up here.

It was just that the people who created her had died, and she was the only one who survived the apocalypse. There must be some other hidden mechanism at play.

Then, she looked through other legible experiment logs.

The remaining logs were the concluding parts of "Project: Eternal Life, Phase VI." Since they were daily records rather than "results summaries," the content was much more mundane. They simply recorded the status monitoring of test subjects, without delving into further secrets or mentioning the mysterious "Divine Molt" from Madam Aetherine's suicide note.

She put down the logs and asked, "Are there any other places we haven't checked?"

"No," Rosaline shook her head. She was completely clueless about the potential implications behind those projects and potions, but the archaeological investigation itself was quite interesting. Therefore, she had searched thoroughly, even finding many professional books in the medical field, which she planned to pack and take back to the manor later.

"Then let's move on to the next floor," Yvette said.

Leaving the eleventh sub-level and continuing down to the twelfth sub-level, the residual sense of daily life significantly decreased.

It was normal, though. This was the "main control hub" of the Abyss Base, which was, to put it plainly, where the server data center was located.

It was a metal room with few functional divisions and was generally quite spacious. Luminescent Magic Light Vines climbed the cold metal walls, intertwining and coexisting with "cloud containers" that had been covered in dust for hundreds of years, illuminating the entire room.

In the center of the room stood a massive columnar machine, enclosed in a sturdy glass casing. Its exposed, obsidian-like mechanical surface was covered with a multitude of fine lines. Although they resembled decorations, Ivette was certain that within those fine lines were densely packed rune arrays, invisible to the naked eye, representing the Origin Civilization's most proud knowledge and power.

She tried to activate it, but there was no response. Trying to input magic power through the magic conduit also didn't work. As for what exactly was wrong, she had no idea.

However, here, Rosaline, the expert at rummaging through things, still found log records stored in file bags, likely left by the machine room maintenance personnel. Quite a few of them were relatively well-preserved.

Compared to the experimental logs of the Eternal Life Project, this was far less valuable, as it was merely machine room maintenance.

But after searching for the parts that hadn't rotted and carefully sifting through them, one record still caught Ivette's attention.

It was an experimental record from 2128, three years after the original host participated in the Metamorphosis Project.

Amidst the widespread decay, only one line of text, blurry but carrying a strong sense of terror, crossed time and space to enter Ivette's view:

"Oh my god..."

"The Firefly Core..."

"It... it's alive..."