When Lucian and Asta brought a Herta puppet with the serial number 89757 into Herta's laboratory, Herta herself was lazily reclining in her streamlined ergonomic chair, smiling with delight at her computer screen.
"Hmph, I've just banned forty-two of your accounts—let's see you try me again. What a pathetic little hacker."
It was obvious that Silver Wolf had already taken the hit.
In the first place, she never had a mysterious expert to back her up, so she naturally stood no chance against Herta's counterattack.
Seventy-six accounts, and she managed to save thirty-four, was already impressive.
Lucian couldn't help but picture Silver Wolf's about-to-cry expression from the game.
Even though it was Lucian who had done all of this hacking conspiracy, it was Silver Wolf who was taking the blame for him.
No wonder Elio didn't want her to mess around with him.
"Yo, you're here."
Herta saw Lucian and Asta enter and immediately stood up, pointing at the Herta puppet Asta had brought.
"There you go, your 'Herta'—free labor for a hundred years."
It had a figure similar to Herta's childhood self, with a fixed, eternally polite smile on its face, looking a bit stiff.
Lucian, however, couldn't bring himself to smile.
Just as he had feared, Herta was playing word games with him.
"I want you, not your puppet." Lucian said emotionlessly.
"How crude. Which one isn't me, the real thing or the puppet?" Herta smiled calmly. "Look at the video—'Herta' working for you for a hundred years, right? Literally, it meets all your requirements."
As these words fell, she tilted her head slightly, her violet eyes sparkling with childlike mischief, as if she could see right through the secrets of the galaxy.
"I never said the real deal had to do the work, did I?" Herta spread her hands, as if showing off a flawless work of logic.
Meanwhile, Asta, upon hearing their conversation, felt her mind almost freeze.
Was this really something the narcissistic, empathy-lacking Madam Herta would say?
'Unless Mr. Lucian has something equally valuable...'
Asta could only guess this much.
Lucian did not look at the exquisite Herta puppet at all—his gaze passed over it, falling instead on the real Herta's face, which practically declared, 'I've already won.'
In the next moment, a faint smile flickered at the corner of Lucian's mouth, like a stone dropped into a deep pool, stirring only a slight ripple before vanishing.
'Well, well, this woman really holds grudges, huh... Not willing to take a loss, not even a little... Interesting...'
Right after this thought crossed his mind, Lucian leaned close to Asta's ear and whispered something, his voice so low that only she could hear it.
In the next moment, Asta went to fetch a cylinder projector device and placed it beside Lucian.
"In that case, I should keep my promise and let you see Droidhead."
Lucian looked up, calmly meeting Herta's suddenly sharp violet gaze, then pressed a nearly invisible sensor on the side of the cylinder.
"Here you go—the Droidhead you wanted to see so much."
*Buzz—*
A faint humming sound resounded, and soon, a slowly spinning 3D hologram appeared at the top of the cylinder.
It was none other than Nous's 3D hologram.
Seeing this, the corners of Herta's mouth gradually dropped, and her smile faded.
"You... Are you playing me?" Herta questioned, disbelief flickering in her eyes.
"Right back at you." Lucian smiled indifferently and patted the head of the Herta puppet.
In an instant, the atmosphere inside the laboratory turned tense, making Asta start to panic.
One was Madam Herta, and the other was obviously no pushover.
If these two really started a fight, it would be big trouble!
"H-Hey, let's all calm down, okay? Sit down and talk it out like civilized people."
Asta grabbed Lucian's arm, trying to act as a peacemaker, but he quickly slipped his hand free from her grip and turned around.
"We're even. Goodbye."
Leaving these words behind, Lucian walked toward the exit without hesitation.
Seeing Lucian really about to leave, not caring about his relationship with her at all, Herta instantly felt a complicated mix of emotions.
Although she had only known this man for a few days—and it was barely even a partnership—she felt a strange urge to make him stay. In all her life, this was probably the first time she had ever wanted to keep someone from leaving.
Even though she didn't know why, her instincts now told her she would regret it for life if she let him go—and coincidentally, she was someone who always trusted her instincts.
Lucian had an indifferent expression as he walked away, looking like he truly didn't care.
However, as he continued forward, no one noticed that Lucian was softly muttering with each step he took.
"Three..."
One step.
"Two..."
Two steps.
"One..."
And on the third step—
"Wait!"
Herta suddenly shouted, then rushed over and grabbed Lucian's arm, stopping him from leaving.
"It was just a joke, okay?" Herta said with puffed cheeks, looking both pitiful and desperate. "No need to go that far."
Asta, seeing this scene, stood there in a daze, completely stunned.
It couldn't be helped.
In her understanding, this was probably the first time Herta had ever gone out of her way to stop someone from leaving—actually grabbing him herself while looking so desperate.
'Unbelievable... Is this really something Madam Herta would do?'
Asta thought in disbelief, trying to make sense of the scene before her eyes.
'Shouldn't she have just arrogantly given orders and coldly told someone to show him the way out like always?'
'Just what kind of leverage does Mr. Lucian have to make even Madam Herta back down?'
In the end, the more Asta thought about it, the more confused she became.
Meanwhile, Lucian's gaze returned to Herta's face, taking in her puffed cheeks full of embarrassment and frustration, her eyes showing unwillingness yet resignation.
Seeing her like this, Lucian smiled faintly, a quiet satisfaction rising within him from finally breaking the deadlock.
"Oh, it was a joke? I thought you were about to go back on your word. I should've known—the great genius and beautiful Madam Herta wouldn't be so shameless as to twist words and break promises, right?"
Lucian's words were laced with sarcasm, deliberately provoking Herta, which succeeded.
Now, Herta was so angry that she had nowhere to vent.
"Enough!" Herta shouted sharply, pulling Lucian's arm closer to herself. "I, Herta myself, will work for you for ten years. In exchange, you have to let me meet Nous in person at least five times. Deal or not?"
It was clear she really wanted to keep him and was willing to compromise.
"Deal." Lucian nodded calmly. "Alright, to make sure you're convinced, I'll let you meet Nous tomorrow, then we'll sign a contract for it."
Lucian was clearly banking on Herta's desire.
It should be known that her desire was to research Nous, maybe even ask THEM questions—to break through her knowledge singularity.
In other words, everything she wanted hinged on meeting Nous, but at this moment, only Lucian could make that happen.
Because of this, she was utterly at Lucian's mercy.
If someone treated her like how Lucian treated her right now, she would've definitely blacklisted them—or even beaten them up on the spot.
Just like that, the two reached another deal.
Lucian still gave Herta some face, agreeing to reduce her labor term from a hundred years to just ten, so for the next ten years, she herself would be his top worker.
Asta, still in complete shock, stood silently by the side.
She had only wanted to break up the fight and keep things from getting out of hand—but now... what had she just heard?
'Madam Herta... working for Mr. Lucian for ten years... meeting Nous?'
How did these words even fit together in a single sentence?
It was just so unreal!
If the IPC, the Intelligentsia Guild, the Genius Society, the Blue, or the staff of Herta Space Station ever found out, their jaws would hit the floor.
Now, Asta couldn't help but feel full admiration for Lucian, because he was the first person to ever truly have the upper hand with Herta, which, in her eyes, was something truly impressive!
Done with the new deal, Herta quickly adjusted her mood and went back to her usual self.
"Now that we're on good terms again, let's get back to going after the Stellaron Hunters."
Right after saying this, Herta video-called Screwllum with her mirror, with Lucian standing right beside her.
Before long, an intellitron appeared on the mirror—a robot with a machine head, a monocle, a fedora hat, and a tuxedo, looking like a proper gentleman.
[Herta—]
Just as Screwllum was about to speak, Herta immediately interrupted.
"Screwy, come to my space station. I need your help to deal with a big shot among the Stellaron Hunters."
[Logic: I am currently conducting experiments in a distant galaxy. I am unable to return to the space station for the time being.]
Upon hearing this, Herta quickly remembered that Lucian's teleportation ability was quite advanced, so maybe he had a way.
However, just as Herta was about to turn to Lucian to ask, his face appeared right behind Screwllum in the mirror.
Herta: "Huh?"