Summary Meeting: Ceruno

(Ceruno)

The matter is now closed.

In the end, we benefited from this deal with Aldebaran.

Not only Betelgeuse still in our custody, but the Crystal she handed over also contains genuine data. Although those technical documents are obscure and difficult to understand, with Professor Stratos's guidance, mastering the technology of the Witch Domain is only a matter of time.

Moreover, Betelgeuse's mindset seems to have changed somewhat.

She had no one she could trust anywhere, but compared to the Supreme Council that would drop Annihilation Bomb on her, life in prison seemed a little better. Out of a blind desire for self-preservation, she decided to continue living in this small cell.

"Phew~ It's so hard~"

Back at the City School, Miluno's witch form was still intact. I touched her single horn and sighed.

But Miluno brushed my hand away, her face flushed with shyness.

"Stop fooling around, we're having a big meeting."

"Oh~"

Having not seen Miluno for two days, the pent-up longing made me feel clingy, but I didn't dislike this feeling. Just sitting next to her made me feel as sweet as if I'd been coated in honey...

But it seems like some people see me that way too?

"Serunno~"

As I linked arms with Miluno, Mono climbed onto my back and started wriggling around.

"I miss you so much! Can I hug you too?! Oh?!"

As a result, Miluno chopped her on the head with a chop.

"What are you doing! Ceruno belongs to everyone!"

"Get serious."

The small conference room of the Zodiacal was filled with familiar faces.

Liu, Achernar, Metal, Chris, and others, as well as Sirius and Miss SpiCa, were all present.

"Ahem, the purpose of this emergency meeting is to compile a report on the situation during this period and to exchange intelligence from various parties."

The meeting was chaired by Xiao Yi.

"So firstly... regarding the prison, does Eridanus have anything to report?"

Upon being addressed in this way, Ms. Yi from the Achernar hesitated slightly as she picked up the microphone.

But I still reported it quietly:

"As we are holding this meeting, the Hawaii Branch's engineering team has already entered the prison and is repairing the damage to the buildings and grounds caused by Aldebaran. Some guards sustained minor injuries in the battle, but none are seriously injured. Apart from the two witches who were taken back by Aldebaran, no one took the opportunity to escape. In addition... the engineering team has also made a preliminary calculation of income and expenditure. The large amount of gold that Aldebaran left in Midgard and the prison is enough to make up for the losses caused by this operation, and there is even a surplus."

You can make money even if you're attacked?

Perhaps Aldebaran should come more often.

"Eridanus Bojiang. And Sister Metal! Is there any progress on the Ancient Computer that Sirius sent Past?"

Ancient? Computer?

These two words together feel somewhat contradictory.

"Here."

Miss Metal pulled out a dull blue square Crystal from beside her.

"Sirius doesn't understand it, and the professor doesn't know how to turn it on either. This thing can only be left to Betelgeuse to mess with... Is this really a computer?"

As she spoke, she tapped the device with her finger, startling Miss Sirius, who quickly moved the "Ancient Computer" in front of her.

"Be careful! There might be secrets from another world hidden inside. What if you break it!"

SpiCa also remarked:

"If this is genuine, then it's truly remarkable that Miluno was able to steal it back."

Mono, sitting next to me, casually interjected, "Well! The 'Supreme Council' probably doesn't even know about this Superbrain, after all, it's something buried deep in the very core of the World Center! If I had to describe it, it's probably the 'Great Will's' secret diary hidden under his bed?"

What's with this inexplicably girlish metaphor?

SpiCa followed up with:

"Since it was hidden so well, how did you find it?"

Miluno also looked at Mono, who seemed equally unaware of the situation.

"It was Betelgeuse that discovered it. To avoid the witches sent by Sun Ji, Miluno directly opened the teleportation channel to the bottom level. Betelgeuse has a special lens on its eyepiece that can see through Crystal... Oh right, Betelgeuse also said that it's a computer."

Metal narrowed his eyes and asked:

"Is she just making things up? And trying to trick you into digging up a brick?"

The "Ancient Computer" really does look like a brick, so it's no wonder she thought that way.

"In short, this thing Achernar and given to Betelgeuse."

After handing the Ancient Computer to Achernar, SpiCa turned back to look at Miluno.

"The Annihilation Bomb, it seems, ultimately failed to detonate?"

"Well, to be precise, it can't be detonated."

SpiCa raised an eyebrow.

"How so?"

Miluno simply pulled out her helmet and tossed it Past. SpiCa understood and took out the video memory card from it, then read it from the computer.

They moved quickly until they actually entered a warehouse.

"That thing on the shelf is the Annihilation Bomb."

A pitch-black sphere.

There are four in total.

"Is this a bowling ball?" I asked.

Miluno said:

"It looks similar to a bowling ball, but this thing has very unique properties... Let's drag it out a bit more."

SpiCa continues fast forward until a group of witches also enter the storage room.

At this moment, Miluno was hiding behind the door, remaining invisible.

A witch with insect antennae and compound eyes opened the nine-compartment Crystal cabinet containing Annihilation Bomb and slapped one of them away.

... Wait, it's scattered?

The meeting room erupted in an uproar before Miluno offered her explanation.

"The Natives on the 'The Other Side' have installed safety measures for this weapon of mass destruction. If it is not detonated through a specific procedure, it is quite safe and stable. It will disintegrate with a single touch. Even if it is brought back along with the cabinet, it will only play into their hands, since the detonation procedure is still in the hands of the Supreme Council."

It seems there's really nothing we can do about it.

I couldn't help but sigh, "Alas, must we continue to endure this threat?"

"That's not right?"

Miluno, however, was against it.

"I think after this incident, the 'The Other Side' will be more cautious when dropping Annihilation Bomb."

"Why?"

I didn't quite understand, but SpiCa offered an explanation:

"Miluno can open a teleportation channel connecting the two worlds, and the Supreme Council has confirmed this. In addition, their time flow is slower than ours, giving us ample time to deal with missile attacks from the Other Side... Simply put, if they dare to use Annihilation Bomb on us, they should be prepared for Annihilation Bomb to fall on their own heads."

Thinking about it, something didn't seem right, so I asked again:

"But isn't the bomb's detonation program still in the hands of the Other Side?"

Miluno shook her head and explained:

"The 'The Other Side' also couldn't precisely control the detonation timing; the missile used a collision-triggered fuse. In other words, when the missile was launched, the Annihilation Bomb in the warhead was already in a state of imminent detonation, which is why it detonated directly when hit by the City School's laser defense system."

I understand what Miluno means.

Even the slightest possibility of being thrown back.

The Other Side wouldn't dare take that risk and drop Annihilation Bomb...

Excuse me.

Ryu, sitting next to SpiCa, raised his hand and asked:

"But if suicide squad members come charging in with bombs and detonators, do you have a way to stop them?"

He was speechless for a moment.

Miluno wouldn't dare make that guarantee either.