In many mobile games, the vast gacha character pools and the deep relationships these characters form with the player-controlled protagonist have earned these protagonists the title of "Succubus."
Typical examples include Ritsuka Fujimaru, the protagonist of Fate/Grand Order, nicknamed the "Chaldea Succubus (Harem Protagonist)," and Stelle, the protagonist of Honkai Star Rail, known as the "Trash Panda" was very close to a lot of characters.
Elysia found herself in a similar situation. Everyone in the White Tower was exceptionally close to her, surely warranting the title "White Tower Succubus," right?
From this perspective, she truly resembled a mobile game player. Each Evolver who joined the White Tower out of admiration was like a gacha character she'd pulled. Among these "gacha characters," the Scholar was undoubtedly the rarest SSR-level unit, even though... she wouldn't actually join Elysia's White Tower.
Seeing Baldy Burke made Elysia realize it was already noon. She turned to the Scholar across from her and asked, "What would you like to eat?"
Instead of asking, "Would you like to have lunch together?" Elysia simply assumed the Scholar would agree and skipped straight to, "What would you like to eat?"
The Scholar remained silent for a moment, as if carefully weighing her options. Finally, she gave a generic reply: "Anything is fine with me."
In truth, she had genuinely considered the question, but ultimately realized she didn't have any particularly strong food preferences. She spent most of her time immersed in the laboratory, content with whatever was available. Sometimes, when deeply engrossed in experiments, she would simply gnaw on an energy bar to stave off hunger.
"Then how about Chinese food?" Elysia suggested. "I know a really delicious Chinese restaurant. Want to give it a try?"
After all, she was fundamentally a Dragon Nation native. While White Eagle cuisine wasn't bad, occasional meals were tolerable. But forcing Elysia to eat it every day would be torture. Compared to the vast and diverse culinary delights of the Dragon Nation, it simply paled in comparison.
After bidding farewell to Baldy Burke and informing him that they wouldn't need his assistance for lunch, Elysia took the Scholar's small hand and left the White Tower.
"Chinese food...?" the Scholar murmured softly as they walked. Though Chinese-American, she had moved to White Eagle with her parents at a young age and had little memory of Chinese cuisine. Still, having said "anything is fine," she couldn't very well refuse now.
Despite the restaurant being less than a kilometer away, they passed at least three Chinese restaurants on their way, not counting the two that were under renovation. This sudden proliferation of Chinese eateries was due to a rumor that had spread like wildfire: Elysia loved Chinese food. The area's Chinese restaurants had multiplied almost overnight.
While the rumor itself was harmless enough, Elysia couldn't help but feel a mixture of amusement and exasperation when she learned about it.
Soon, she led the Scholar to her favorite Chinese restaurant and skillfully ordered several authentic and flavorful dishes.
The moment they sat down, Elysia clearly felt the ground tremble slightly, as if an earthquake were beginning. Having experienced similar occurrences countless times before, she immediately looked up. As expected, a black vortex was slowly materializing in the sky nearby—a Dimensional Rift was forming.
"Running into a Dimensional Rift while out for Lunch... doesn't this feel a little too familiar?" Elysia muttered to herself.
It's worth noting that Elysia had been living in White Eagle for over a month. During that time, the White Tower hadn't received a single request to handle Dimensional Rifts. This wasn't because no rifts had appeared; rather, any that did were swiftly dealt with by nearby Evolvers.
After the Martyr's death, the White Tower's personnel in the area had dwindled. However, these individuals hadn't simply vanished; they had returned to their homes and families. As a result, the overall number of Evolvers in the region remained unchanged—only the official staff had resigned.
Therefore, any Dimensional Rifts that surfaced were handled independently by these freelance White Eagle Evolvers, without needing to be reported.
Returning to the present, the Dimensional Rift hovered quietly in mid-air, lacking both the characteristic black shroud and the emergence of any monsters. This effectively ruled out the "Veil" and "Birth" types.
Given the circumstances, it was highly likely to be either an "Attachment" or an "Otherworld" type of Dimensional Rift.
Previously, if any Dimensional Rifts had appeared nearby, Elysia wouldn't have noticed or cared, naturally. But now that one had appeared right in front of her, as the leader of this territory, she couldn't just ignore it.
However, just as she stood up and began to apologize, the Scholar opened the briefcase she had been carrying and took out two silver orbs, each about the size of a glass marble.
"Leave it to me," the Scholar stated bluntly.
The two silver orbs slowly levitated into the air and shot out of the Chinese restaurant at incredible speed.
"What were those...?" Elysia glanced at the spot where the orbs had vanished, then curiously examined the Scholar's briefcase.
The briefcase was empty inside. Instead, it resembled a laptop computer, covered in buttons except for a smooth, fist-sized indentation on one side.
Just moments ago, the Scholar had opened her briefcase, her fingers dancing across the buttons as if inputting a complex code. Instantly, two small silver orbs sprang from the slot.
"These are miniature probes," she explained. "If it's an Attachment-type Dimensional Rift, they'll swiftly locate and retrieve any special items within its range. If it's an Otherworld-type Rift, they'll immediately map its boundaries and deploy a force field wall to prevent civilians from wandering in."
"If it's the former, my two probes should be able to resolve the rift before we finish our meal. If it's the latter, I'll accompany you to investigate after we're done."
Although the Scholar was a researcher, that didn't mean she lacked combat prowess. Her position as one of the White Eagle Eight spoke volumes about her capabilities.