Baby Catastrophe

Her slightly pink hands precisely adjusted the hot and cold water valves, and soon, just the right amount of warm water cascaded from the showerhead.

Having just resupplyed in Lungmen, and with the ship set to Lungmen soon, the water supply for this journey has been plentiful, sufficient for routine daily use.

Tap, tap tap.

Boots tapped on the floor, and a swaying black silhouette slowly approached the bathroom. She clasped her hands together in a prayerful gesture.

Oute was startled. He looked out through the frosted glass and, sure enough, saw that familiar figure.

It appears to be Specter.

"It must be very painful?" She looked him up and down, as if she could see through frosted glass and into Oute body.

Oute was unsure of her intentions for a moment, and let the warm water wash over him.

During a semi-performative treatment, he came into direct contact with the spell-wielding FrostNova during the "diagnosis," resulting in extensive frostbite. After Fate Reconstruction, creation-from-nothing treatment, he was literally "reborn," his skin now physically "baby-like."

This process is undoubtedly extremely painful, but Oute won't gamble with his willpower. Therefore, the one who mainly bears this pain... is actually W, who is connected to Oute's spirit.

"Considering that we've avoided a direct confrontation with the Patriot, thus avoiding a significant waste of combat resources, and instead received full support from the guerrillas... and the dismantling of the keel has already begun, then these costs are worthwhile."

"Otter, you really do like Terra," she said.

Oute frowned and replied, "To say 'like' is an irresponsible statement."

"I wouldn't place such a private term on a vast ethnic group." The unnaturalness in the details made Oute become more vigilant. "If you want to 'like' an abstract ethnic group and project your limited love and energy onto that group, it will inevitably lead to the neglect of specific individuals."

Certain keywords seemed to pique her interest, Specter's voice inquired, "Since you, Otter, are so reluctant to spread your limited love and energy, then you already have someone in your heart?"

"..."

Oute turned the valve, trying to let hotter water dispel the chill.

A drop of hot water squeezed through the gap in the showerhead, partially evaporating the moment it was exposed to air. It passed over Oute's new skin and headed straight for the thin curtain of water on the ground.

Oute had a vague guess.

Drizzling.

Time seemed to begin flowing again.

He let the water flow aside, allowing it to scatter and enter the Rhodes Island ship circulation system.

"I'm not sure," Oute. "Like you, I have gaps in my memory."

"That's exactly what's recorded in the files," she said, neither confirming nor denying.

Intentionally emphasizing how the archives are...

Oute replied, "I lack memories of a specific period; if I hadn't seen some of my personal features, I would have even thought I had a new body."

Oute looked down at his palm and found that there were no longer any black spots.

He suddenly realized: that part of the flesh had been frostbitten and replaced by the Fate Reconstruction.

"You haven't answered that question yet," she inquired. "Do you already have someone you like?"

"I do have a sense of... loss, but I'm not sure what it comes from." Oute emphasized, "The people of Rhodes Island call me Doctor, but in my remaining memories, I haven't earned Doctor —I haven't even entertained the idea of pursuing it."

The water flowed straight onto the ground, quickly accumulating into a thick mist on the frosted glass.

"Would you like to marry again, Otter?" She seemed quite satisfied with the reply, and replied with great interest, "That would definitely be a great experience."

"Following the conventional academic process would take up a lot of my free time," Oute said tactfully. "But if we disregard the conventional academic process, I still have several Doctor."

"It seems Rhodes Island is indeed taking up a lot of your energy."

This is a strange saying borrowed from what Oute said not long ago, which is a reconstruction of "dispersing love and energy".

"Gradually accumulating advantages and achieving strategic goals is exactly the kind of game I like."

"Speaking of accumulating advantages, Rhodes Island's native defense system is still off; you need to manually bring it online." It was still Specter's voice.

Defense system?

Is it in the off state?

The person with the authority to shut it down... was it really me who plotted to kill Theresa?

No, now is not the time to consider that.

If the conversation continues, she will only become more brazen in revealing the truth.

Oute made a decision and turned off the valve. After wiping himself down haphazardly, he wrapped himself in a towel and walked out of the bathroom.

Sure enough, it was Specter outside the door. A familiar smile appeared on her lips, and her red eyes were hidden within her crescent-shaped smiling eyes, almost invisible.

"My lord, your terminal." A pale yet gentle hand presented the terminal that Oute had left in his office not long ago.

But she clearly had the opportunity to switch terminals before.

Oute took the terminal; the breathing light flashed briefly.

Really.

"..." He stared at the girl in Aegir for a long time, then found a topic to talk about, saying, "Where are the clothes I just put here?"

Specter remained unfazed and said, "That outfit is stained with too much blood. I've prepared new ones for you."

As she spoke, Specter opened the wardrobe in the dormitory and took out a set of protective clothing. In the double dormitory room where the three of them lived, in addition to Kal'tsit and Specter's clothes, Oute's spare protective clothing was also piled up in the wardrobe.

"The one stained with blood has already been disposed of by Kal'tsit; the one I put here is new."

Due to the Fate Reconstruction, the inside of that protective suit was covered in Oute's own blood.

Specter said with a fake smile, "Even so, those clothes are stained with sweat. Since you've already showered, it would be best to change into new clothes."

Her thinking was very clear, and her way of speaking was completely different from that of the nuns!

"..." Oute stared at her for a while, and seeing that Specter's eyes were fixed on her, he asked, "I need to change my clothes, aren't you going to leave?"

"As a believer, it is my duty to venerate the Lord."

This guy isn't Xiu Nvren at all—it's Laurentina, and he's pretending to be stupid!

Oute placed the terminal back into Specter's hand, took the full set of clothes including the protective suit, then opened the frosted glass door and returned to the bathroom.

"My Lord?"

Oute dried it again and redid the process he had just scrambled through.

Shortly after, he emerged from the bathroom wearing protective gear.

Specter maintained its composure, holding the terminal in its hands as if it were a precious treasure.

Familiar footsteps could be heard outside again.

The sound and rhythm... seem to be Kal'tsit's newly changed leather shoes.

Oute stroked his chin, his expression serious.

No, what weird thing did you use your super intelligence for!?

Chapter 161 Baby's Catastrophe

While devoting some threads to analyzing the sound source, Oute also looked at Specter's hands. Just like the last time Oute saw it, Specter held the terminal in its palms as if it were a sacred object.

PRTS monitors the entire ship's movements; from this perspective, she could have detected Kal'tsit's arrival beforehand...

The footsteps stopped at the door.

"The door isn't closed, come in." Oute didn't even look up, still deep in thought.

PRTS's sudden silence might not be because of my interruption...

The newcomer was indeed Kal'tsit. She warily surveyed her surroundings, and her breath caught in her throat when she saw Specter holding the PRTS terminal.

Regardless of how it's used, Oute's "super intelligence" is indeed quite super—after only hearing it a few times, the sound of Kal'tsit's little leather shoes hitting the floor has already been burned into his brain.

Oute remained silent, but he seemed to have some guesses.

Aside from lacking the ability and willingness to confront me openly and honestly, PRTS's sudden silence is quite likely due to detecting Kal'tsit's arrival.

Based on this, we can deduce... that PRTS is evading Kal'tsit?

Why?

In her relationship with Kal'tsit, she should be the one in control... No! PRTS and Priestess are not the same person.

In the most extreme cases, PRTS and Priestess could even become enemies.

Are you thinking of stealing my man?

Without batting an eye, Oute retrieved the terminal from Specter's hand. This small token, which linked to the Rhodes Island main ship's PRTS system, was heavy with emotion, yet it also injected another surge of adrenaline into Oute.

No, is the abyss of XP really that deep?

Even if this possibility exists, restarting the native defense system would still do more harm than good—under proper operation, the probability of Rhodes Island's main ship being infiltrated is extremely low.

In the few breaths it took to retract the terminal into his pocket, Oute made a new decision: to leave Rhodes Island's native defense system silent.

If the native defense system is activated, PRTS's mobility will become an extremely unstable factor: the possibility that Oute will be locked in the basement by PRTS and have all three of his legs broken will no longer be zero.

Oute casually put his hands in his pockets, striking the same pose as Kal'tsit, and said to the cat, "Sorry to keep you waiting, let's go."

In the hallway, Amiya joined the line carrying another stack of documents.

Throughout the journey, the little rabbit's worry was practically written all over its face.

"Don't worry," Kal'tsit said with a complicated expression, "He... knows what he's doing."

"Sense of propriety!?" A familiar voice came from outside.

As the metal gate slowly rose, sunlight streamed in.

The Sarkaz girl, with a sour expression, stood with one hand on her hip and arrogantly said, "Give me an inch, huh!?"

It seems that after taking on some responsibilities for Oute, she felt she could be a bit more unrestrained in front of Oute. That's not entirely wrong. Oute has always been very tolerant of heroes who are good at individual combat, commanding squads, and have charisma and influence in large-scale operations.