A Promise Fulfilled

"Get out of here!"

With a sharp shout, Lin, disheveled, was thrown out of the laboratory and fell face down at someone's feet.

Su, with her eyes closed, twitched her facial muscles as she looked at Lin at her feet, feeling a strange sense of familiarity with the scene.

Does this mean my life has accelerated by a few years?

"Lin, are you alright?"

Lin lay on the ground, typing rapidly without looking up, and then turned the screen to Su.

Su had no choice but to open her eyes and look at the words on the screen.

Thankfully, at least she didn't strip me naked and throw me out.

What do you need me for?

"How did you know he was here to see you?" Su was somewhat surprised that Lin had guessed he was here to see Lin and not Mobius.

However, Lin didn't say anything. He slowly stood up, dusted himself off, and then continued typing.

So, what's up?

"Hmm..." A slight ripple appeared on Su Naping's usually calm face. He hesitated before saying, "It's about Dr. Vill-V ..."

"Dr. Vill-V has been experiencing mental health issues since waking up today," Su explained to Lin as she led the way. "Doctor Mei asked me to check if her condition was affected by the Eighth Herrscher, but I didn't sense any invasion of her consciousness. Instead, it seems more like... Dissociative Identity Disorder."

I'm familiar with this term; it's more commonly known as Multiple Personality Disorder, which means that there are multiple personalities with different identities within one person.

"Dr. Vill-V's personality is quite different from before after she woke up. Although she can communicate normally and has not lost her memory, she has become very... shy overall."

When Su said that word, he felt that his tone was strange. After all, the Vill-V had always given people the feeling of arrogance, self-centeredness, and unconventional genius. Suddenly, she turned into a shy girl. This contrast was too strong, no less than the difference between the person who occupied Lin's body and Lin himself.

"Although I am a doctor, I am not a psychologist. I only have a general understanding of Dissociative Identity Disorder."

"..."

Lin was not a psychologist either, so the fact that Su came to him instead of a psychologist meant that it was related to him.

"Then... Dr. Vill-V said she wanted to see you."

[Learn.]

Lin had planned to visit Vill-V, and he had noticed something was wrong with Vill-V when he was stabbed yesterday.

"We've arrived. I have other things to take care of. If there's any situation, you can contact me via communicator."

"..."

After Lin nodded, Su turned and left. Lin stood in front of Vill-V's private room, which he had never been to before, lost in thought for a long time, then placed his hand on the doorbell...

Just a second before the button was pressed, the door was opened from the inside.

Like her Spiral Workshop, Vill-V's room was laid out in a very individualistic style, like an exhibition hall of all kinds of strange inventions from around the world. Everywhere you could see some quirky little gadgets pieced together from gears, links and mechanical parts. At least Lin had never seen a robot that could spit out a lipstick from its mouth and then spit out a small robot from the lipstick.

Of course, compared to Vill-V herself now, these little things are insignificant.

Vill-V was still wearing her eye-catching retro mechanic-style bodysuit, but this time she was barefoot without boots or the hat that Lin had given her, revealing a head of hair with a unique style and color.

And... an unbearable shy smile.

In Lin's preconceived notions of Vill-V, every smile of hers was an exaggerated smile with a lot of theatricality, just like a magician would use various means to divert the audience's attention, and her smile was also part of her "magic".

So who exactly is this shy and awkward girl? Does Vill-V have this habit of looking down at a 45-degree angle and secretly observing others out of the corner of her eye?

"Lin... are you alright?" Her eyes showed obvious panic when she saw the bandage wrapped around Lin's neck.

"No problem, I just need to rest for a while." Lin Zhao often typed this message to Vill-V on his communicator.

But this action left Vill-V with an incredulous expression.

"You... you can't speak anymore?"

"..."

Lin wanted to say that he should be fine after a while, and with the medical technology of the Fire Moth, it wouldn't be a problem to rebuild his vocal cords. However, after seeing Vill-V's nervously clenched fists, he remained silent for a moment and started typing.

It's a pity.

Vill-V's face turned deathly pale in an instant.

But it's okay, it's all for you.

Vill-V's expression grew even more panicked; she opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

As long as you're not hurt, it's all worth it.

Lin watched the changes in Vill-V's expression... Sure enough, she was quite different from the Vill-V of the past.

Just as he saw that Vill-V seemed to really believe it and was so ashamed that she was about to cry, he wanted to type to tell her that it was a joke.

He was suddenly grabbed and the communicator slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground.

"I'm sorry... It's all my fault... You've already lost so many of your senses, and I still managed to make it so you can't even speak..."

"..."

Lin actually wanted to say that it wasn't her fault. If he hadn't pushed her away, then Vill-V would have been the one who got pierced, and while Lin could have survived, Vill-V would never have.

They were simply acting on instinct in that environment.

But seeing Vill-V sobbing with her head buried in his neck, Lin could only sigh softly and pat her back.

Perhaps this is the true nature of Vill-V: a fragile girl hidden beneath a genius exterior.

At this moment, Lin suddenly thought of something: which one is the dominant personality, the usual Vill-V or the current Vill-V? The usual Vill-V spends more time in the public eye, so she should be the dominant personality. But the current Vill-V doesn't seem to be affected by the usual Vill-V at all, and still has complete memories.

As he pondered, Vill-V stopped sobbing. She looked up at Lin's helmet, and a familiar determination appeared in her red eyes.

"I will definitely heal you, Lin. Not just your vocal cords, but all your senses. I will definitely heal them, if I want to..."

"..."

Lin was stunned. He hadn't expected Vill-V to think of doing this. But even Mobius, who specialized in biology, couldn't do this. Could Vill-V do it?

But he nodded nonetheless, which brought a smile back to Vill-V's face.

Only at times like these could Lin sense her unique temperament, which was similar to yet different from her usual demeanor.

"And..." Vill-V suddenly lowered her head shyly, her eyes darting around unsure of where to look, and whispered, "When that person was possessing your body... he said you often peeked at my armpits... Do you... want to see them now?"

"...?"

Chapter 135 Keeping the Promise

Mr. Lin felt that his lack of experience in handling interpersonal relationships had led him down a wrong path, causing him to accelerate recklessly.

It felt like... like he was driving on the main road, but somehow ended up on the sidewalk, and then someone in the back seat gave him a lecture. "Isn't the sidewalk pretty spacious? Just drive on it."

As he ran over the faces of the people, their flesh and blood flying everywhere, he saw his own bewildered expression reflected in them.

What went wrong at which step did it turn out like this?

When Lin saw that Vill-V had started taking off her coat seriously, he quickly looked for his communicator on the ground to type.

Strange? Where did the communicator go?

Lin remembered that the communicator had clearly just fallen at his feet, so why did it disappear in the blink of an eye?

There was nothing beneath his feet, but he remembered being in this spot just seconds before when he was knocked down by Vill-V.

As he searched for his communicator among a pile of strange inventions on the ground, he failed to notice the sly smile that flashed across Vill-V's delicate face.

"Whoosh." The mechanic-style tunic fell to the ground.

Seeing that Vill-V had already taken off her coat, revealing her upper body only in a bra, Lin began waving his hands, trying to make Vill-V understand what he meant.

"N-no, it's okay, you don't need to worry about it." Vill-V turned her face away, her expression a sweet, girlish shyness. "It's okay if I show it to you..."

"..."

In terms of figure, Vill-V is probably the best among the girls Lin knows; even Aponia might not have a figure as eye-catching as hers.

Only after shedding her usual elaborate outer garments can one more directly perceive that the somewhat self-centered, unconventional, and slightly eccentric Vill-V is a genuine girl. Visually, she exudes a warm and comforting feeling, making one want to hug her tightly.

But that's not the point. Lin felt that the style of the painting was going in a strange direction, and he couldn't say anything, so he could only turn around and leave.

"Grab him."

At a command, several mechanical arms suddenly emerged from the corner of the room and pinned Lin to the ground.

"..."

"I'm actually quite shy, but that's okay! You can even smell it or lick it if you want! It's just that you can't taste anything right now, so I'll try... try my best to make it look better to you."

She blocked the light, her alluring shadow falling into Lin's eyes. Her fingers deftly unfastened his helmet, then slowly brought that part of her body closer, her face growing increasingly flushed...

Lin watched all of this with a blank expression.

He just wanted to play a joke and see a different side of Vill-V, just like Mobius.

So, why did it turn out this way?

Aside from Vill-V and Lin, no one knew what happened next. Ten minutes later, Lin was silently escorted out of the room by a blushing Vill-V.

He stood in the aisle, hesitating whether or not to put on the helmet.

He felt that he must be covered in the scent of Vill-V right now, especially his face, which had a strong body odor. Wearing a helmet might leave the scent inside.

Moreover, he felt something was off, a feeling he couldn't quite put his finger on.

Forget it, I should try to joke around with Vill-V less in the future.

The good news is that after confirming Lin's safety, Vill-V said her usual self would return soon. Moreover, according to her, the engineer and inventor talents are what that personality excels at, and to find a way to cure Lin's sensory problems, it is necessary to have her in her normal state.

Lin didn't care much about these things, but Vill-V confidently said that it would at least restore his dopamine secretion to normal.

... This time, he genuinely didn't care.

Lin also asked who the main personality was.

"We are actually the same person."

That's what Vill-V said.

Speaking of which, if another personality has the talent of an engineer, does that personality also have its own strengths?

Lin shook his head, putting these thoughts behind him. He had other people to meet and didn't have time to think about them.

The next destination is...

No matter how the outside world changes, this place remains dark day after day, year after year, forever filled with strange growls coming from the throats of some kind of creature.

And in the deepest part of this place, there will always be a Nun with her eyes closed, sitting quietly behind the railing, waiting for your arrival.

"Da... da... da..."

His steady footsteps sounded as if each step had been precisely measured, and he quickly arrived in front of the Nun with her eyes closed, looking down at her face.

The Nun didn't open her eyes. She sniffed in the darkness, then frowned slightly, but quickly returned to normal.

"Lin... you've come..."

"..."

Lin looked at the small table behind Aponia where she used to do crafts, and under the dim light, a small figure was sleeping soundly.

After Griseo undergoes surgery to become Flame-Chaser, she is temporarily placed in the care of Aponia because she cannot control her abilities. Aponia is able to keep Griseo under control and is herself a maternal person with experience in caring for children.

"That child... is a good child... I will take good care of her..."

Aponia naturally noticed Lin's gaze, and she chuckled as she spoke to him.

"Then, Lin, you should keep your promise."

"?"

Lin's confusion wasn't because he had forgotten what he and Aponia had agreed to; on the contrary, he remembered it perfectly well, which was why he was puzzled.

"Humanity will continue to pay the price in the Eighth Honkai War... Bianca will sacrifice herself... Griseo will become a Flame-Chaser... This is the future I foresaw, and the destiny you promised you would not let happen..."