A Temporary Alliance / Darkness Descends

That's right. Only Herrscher would destroy humanity without purpose or mercy.

Their powers are unpredictable. For example, if the Third Herrscher wants to kill someone without leaving a trace, she only needs to use her ability to manipulate electromagnetic fields to invade the system of the Firemoth.

Furthermore, they also fit the characteristics of this message of consciousness erosion.

In the end, did it all come back to the considerations of the Herrscher?

Lin kept thinking, but he was eventually stumped by a difficult problem.

So why would Herrscher do this?

"If she were Herrscher, she wouldn't make such a 'small' move." Mei's analysis was also Lin's thought. "No matter how human-like Herrscher, she is still Herrscher. As long as she kills someone, it means that her goal is to annihilate humanity. If she launches a sneak attack at this time, it will be difficult for headquarters to defend against her attack."

That's right. No matter how cautious or anthropomorphic Herrscher, once they harbor murderous intent, it's unlikely they can keep up the act.

Unlike the Herrscher of Reason in Previous Civilization.

In other words, this wasn't done by Herrscher...

Contradictions, doubts, and suspicions.

At this moment, the only thing that can be proven is Vill-V's innocence; what she said to Lin can be verified as true.

Her death serves as proof.

"One item is missing from the collection of Vill-V's creations: a longsword equipped with a new technology." Furthermore, May had other speculations. "To seize Vill-V's inventions? But..."

Lin understood what Mingmei didn't say next.

If the target was some novel technology or weapon, then the attack should have been directed at the Research and Development Department, not Vill-V.

That is, it should be an attack on Mei.

Ultimately, they were still unable to uncover the killer's motive.

"... Are you very sad, Lin?"

Prometheus's voice reached Lin's weary heart. He turned his head and saw Prometheus's expressionless face.

"And you?"

"...I don't know." Prometheus's face, which seemed devoid of emotion, was as if it were merely a sticker. "Dr. Vill-V created my body. She helped Lin. She let me test many strange and wonderful inventions... She shouldn't have died."

This "emotionless" robot hugged Lin, trembling, but unable to shed a tear.

It seems like I've tested positive for COVID-19 twice.

I started feeling weak and had a low-grade fever around noon today, and my throat was also a little sore. I don't know if I've tested positive for COVID-19 again. The symptoms are much milder than last time, but I still feel very uncomfortable. I'll rest, take some medicine, and sleep tonight to see how I feel when I wake up. I'll take the day off now.

Looks like I should try to stay up less late to update in the future. My immune system is weakening, so I'll probably start updating earlier.

Chapter 141 Temporary Alliance

Let's try changing our approach first.

Last time, Lin was completely led by the nose by the mastermind behind the scenes. Even though he found some clues, he was unable to piece them together into a complete logical chain.

This time, he prevented the mastermind from stealing the database, Qianqi from being mentally attacked, Erwin from dying, and Pardo from disappearing, but Vill-V still died.

Why Vill-V?

Following conventional logic, the only explanation is that Lin left precisely at the time of the previous murder of Vill-V, which is why she couldn't escape.

Is that really the case?

Vill-V's death was almost identical to the last one: the location of the wounds, the place of death, the remaining information... except for her...

So, could we shift our perspective and look for similarities rather than differences between these two experiences?

Since the same result will occur, did he do something similar to the last time that led to Vill-V's death?

...No.

Lin could conclude that his behavior pattern this time was completely different from the last time, which was why Erwin was able to survive.

However, Lin did have some "doubts".

He considered a possibility.

"... Did you think of anything, Lin?"

The white-haired man, with an indifferent expression that seemed to never change, asked his quick-witted friend a question.

Lin Jingjing took a light breath, raised her head slightly, and shook it.

Having dismissed that vague suspicion in his heart, Lin could not find a deeper reason for the time being.

However, Kevin's next words caused him to once again dredge up that doubt and torment it repeatedly in his mind.

"Alright, I'll take over the investigation from here on out. Do you have anyone you particularly suspect?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Forest?"

Lin forcefully exhaled the air from his lungs, hearing the sound of his breath coming out of his nostrils, and then slowly backed away.

"No."

That sharp, mocking laughter continued to reverberate.

Qianqi popped the bubble in her mouth, stuck out her tongue to lick the chewing gum stuck to her lips, and after seeing Lin walk out with heavy steps, she sighed, "Would you like something to drink?"

"... Only Coke?"

"Don't make me sound like some kind of shut-in girl who only drinks carbonated beverages." Qianqi shook her head in dissatisfaction, seemingly hating being stereotyped. "Take whatever you want, it's on you."

Lin casually suggested, "Coffee bar."

"Huh? Coffee again."

"What?"

Qianqi shrugged her delicate eyebrows. "Do you people from the Fire Chaser only drink coffee? I haven't been here long, and everyone I see when I pass by has a bottle of coffee in their hand. Even the vending machines sell all kinds of coffee. Are you coffee fanatics? Or is coffee the representative drink of the Fire Chaser?"

Lin recalled that everyone around her really loved coffee. Only Mobius would occasionally drink milk tea, but it wasn't because she liked it, but Klein did. So she set a rule that whoever arrived at the lab last would treat everyone to milk tea.

Lin sighed and explained, "Caffeine can..."

"I know that caffeine can stimulate the central nervous system and keep the body excited." Qianqi interrupted Lin's explanation. "Hackers also need to stay alert a lot of times, but I don't do it by drinking coffee. I hate coffee."

She walked to the vending machine, swiped her card with her ID, pressed the button, and with two clangs, two bottles of drinks fell out.

Qianqi pushed open the lid, took out the two bottles of drinks, and handed one of them to Lin.

It's still Coke.

"... Why is it still Coke?"

"Because I like drinking cola." Qianqi's fingernails were neatly trimmed, with not a single bit of excess at the edge of her pink nails. It seemed that she had specially trimmed them short for her hacking work. She flicked the can open with her fingers, and as the gas hissed out, she opened the cola can. "Besides, doesn't cola contain caffeine?"

It doesn't really matter, since Lin won't get to taste it anyway.

"However, cola alone is far from enough. To concentrate on a tough battle for several hours, you need to rely on medication."

Qianqi tilted her head back, tossed her silver ponytail behind her head, and gulped down her cola in a few gulps.

After finishing the drink, she crushed the can and threw it into the trash can.

"For example, I often get my hands on Ritalin by manipulating online pharmacies."

Ritalin primarily works by inhibiting the release of norepinephrine through the intercellular spaces of brain neurons and preventing its reabsorption, while also reducing the inactivation of norepinephrine. This inactivation increases the concentration of norepinephrine in the intercellular spaces, and its effects can last for up to four hours.

Simply put, it's a relatively mild stimulant.

"But the Moth of Fire is indeed the Moth of Fire. Here, you can take Ritalin without any dosage limit, you just need to register." Qianqi tossed Lin a small bottle. "Here you go."

Lin caught it casually; the sound of the pills hitting the bottle was like thunder.

He glanced at the detailed instructions for use on the medicine bottle.

Lin Cong, because his mental state and concentration usually did not require the help of drugs to maintain. The "drugs" that Mobius gave him did not fall into the category of stimulants; they could be called poisons.

However, given his current mental state, he definitely needs this type of medication to improve his concentration and alertness.

"I can see you're already in a daze. You'd better be careful. Finding the murderer won't be an easy task."

"... Can you help me?"

"Help you? How can I help? I'm just a small-time hacker. At most, I can cheer you on from behind to help you solve the murder case as soon as possible. Besides, I haven't been completely cleared of suspicion yet, and they don't want me getting involved." Qianqi's expression was a little strange at this moment, but she quickly hid it.

Lin bluntly extended his hand. "I need you to fix the jammed surveillance."

Qianqi paused, glanced down at the hand extended in front of her, and raised an eyebrow, asking, "Why not go find Prometheus Unit 2, with its computing power..."

"May said... Prometheus Unit 2 is undergoing an upgrade, and there's no way to repair the headquarters' systems."

Is that a coincidence?

It was quite a coincidence that the upgrade of Prometheus Unit 2 happened at this critical juncture, and the entire headquarters lost the support of Prometheus Unit 2.

"Do you really want to believe me? I can't be considered a full member of the Moth of Flames yet."

"It's okay, I promised you I would find out the truth."

"... Don't say things that are so easy to misunderstand."

"Who will misunderstand?"

"I."

Qianqi reached out and shook hands with Lin, forming a temporary alliance.

At this moment, a pair of blood-red, cold-blooded eyes were silently staring at them.

Chapter 142 Darkness Descends

"I've been wanting to say this since earlier: do you have someone you suspect?"

In the room of the entire monitoring center, Qianqi's fingers danced across the various touchscreens, leaving afterimages. Data streams and codes flowed across the screens like a dazzling sea, and she could still ask the above questions in her spare time.

"... Why do you ask that?" Lin was curious about how she figured it out.

"Because you give me a different feeling now than before. You seem more like you're looking for evidence than clues." Qianqi stared at the vast expanse of chilling green code and said expressionlessly, "Besides, you've come to me for cooperation."

This means that instead of seeking out more formal personnel, they are conducting a clandestine investigation in private, a practice that clearly indicates they are hiding from someone.

"..."

"You know each other? No, you must know each other... Are you two very close?"

"Don't ask anymore."

"Okay, I guess I was just being nosy."

Qianqi shrugged, not caring at all. She was used to the members of the Fire Moth treating her coldly, except that Lin was slightly better than the others.

After a while, Qianqi was engrossed in repairing the data. Lin kept an eye out for anyone coming to the monitoring center. Half an hour later, Qianqi frowned and muttered, "This is really... terrible."

"... What happened?" Lin Cong the door and walked to Qianqi's side, who was frowning.

She pointed to a seemingly disordered block of data with her fingerless gloved hand. "This error is not human-made."

"What's the meaning?"

"It means exactly what it says. This type of error correction is impossible for humans." Qianqi swiped her finger, and more error data blocks appeared before her eyes. "Only a system error could cause this phenomenon."

"To give you an analogy, if we are a system like moths drawn to a flame, then artificial intrusion and disruption is like a knife to our vitals—fierce, swift, and fatal. And this kind of error is like us getting sick; it will also harm our bodies, but the treatment is completely different. Just finding the lesion is a troublesome matter."

"So, this is a system-generated error?"

"No, no, no, even if someone gets sick, it could be intentional. For example, getting caught in a downpour for an hour and catching a cold could be a mistake made by Prometheus Unit 2, the system in charge."

Prometheus Unit 2...

Lin then thought of the fact that Prometheus Unit 2 needed an upgrade at that time, and the doubt that had sprouted in his heart once again took over.

"Can it be repaired?"

"It's hard to say, it depends too much on luck."