Ruan Mei's smile instantly froze on her face. Herta's announcement was like a bucket of cold water poured over her head. What did she mean... Himeko was Sāmu's qualified mother? Herta, are you joking?
"I didn't expect the famously arrogant Ms. Herta to also read ancient tales from the Xianzhou Chronicles."
In the distance, a handsome man with blue hair and red eyes walked towards the group in front of the Astral Express with a calm and unhurried pace. He seemed to always be holding a book, with a piece of white chalk of unknown significance in his pocket, and an olive leaf crown on his head that gave him the elegant air of an ancient scholar.
Herta had long since noticed his presence but had ignored him. Now that he had shown himself, she greeted him politely. "And you are?"
"..." The blue-haired man paused for a moment, then shook his head helplessly, showing his understanding of the genius's behavior, and introduced himself. "I am Veritas Ratio, a scholar, and a teacher."
"I saw what Ms. Herta did just now, and I respect it deeply."
"According to the Xianzhou Chronicles, there was once an official of the Realm-Keeping Commission who encountered a difficult case of two mothers fighting over one child. Both claimed to be the child's birth mother, and no one could prove who was lying."
"His solution was to draw a circle as a prison and have the two mothers each hold the child's arm. Whoever could pull the child out of the circle would be the mother. The child cried out in pain from his arms being pulled, and one of the mothers, unable to bear it, immediately burst into tears and chose to give up, while the other mother was triumphant."
"In the end, the official naturally made a just ruling. The child's birth mother was indeed the one who felt his pain."
"A similar story exists in the ancient West, of a king who declared that the winner of a tug-of-war with the child as the rope would be the mother. The true mother will always love her child and let go."
"Perhaps times have changed. This era has asexual reproduction and artificial life; children can come into the world without a birth mother. But the core of the story—that maternal love is the standard for judging a mother—has remained unchanged through the ages."
"I admire the just ruling made by Ms. Herta."
With that, Dr. Ratio raised his arm to his chest in a gesture of respect towards Herta. It was his way of showing reverence. The man then cast his gaze over the others present. But for some reason, when his eyes were about to fall on Stelle's face, he quietly averted them. Otherwise, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to resist the urge to take out his chalk. Ratio had a pet peeve: when he saw an idiot, he felt like he was going to die...
Stelle: ? Are you saying I'm an idiot?
Finally, the doctor's gaze rested on Sāmu's face, and he smiled gently. "Long time no see, young fool."
As his voice fell, he summoned his chalk, holding it between two fingers as if plucking a leaf. After an extremely brief but immense calculation, the man's muscular arm, with the most precise control, suddenly threw the chalk!
"Swish!"
The chalk flew like a bullet, following a pre-calculated, absolutely accurate path! It struck the back of Ruan Mei's hand, which was still tightly gripping Sāmu's arm! The chalk hit its mark, leaving a round mark of white dust on the woman's hand!
"Ah!" Ruan Mei cried out. She was caught off guard, or rather, she had never imagined that Dr. Ratio would, or would dare, to attack her! Her hand, influenced by a neural reflex, immediately let go!
Sāmu took this opportunity to desperately break free from her grasp, stepping over the circle Herta had set, and throwing himself into Himeko's arms.
"...Mom!"
Finally back in his mother's embrace, Sāmu's eyes filled with tears, his whole body trembling. He didn't forget to immediately turn his head and cast a grateful look at the familiar yet strange handsome man.
To this, Dr. Ratio simply closed his book with one hand, the corner of his lip slightly raised, and said nothing more, as if it were a simple gesture of goodwill. The appreciation of one fool for another.
"Ra... tio, how dare you...!" Ruan Mei was beyond furious. Her voice trembled, having lost its usual composure and elegance. As she clenched her trembling fist, the piece of chalk that had fallen to the ground was first covered in frost, completely frozen, then shattered into ice crystals and vanished from the world!
As a scholar who had not received the gaze of Nous, the Erudition, and had never set foot on the Path of Erudition, Ratio was able to do all this because of his persistent, never-slacking training, and a group of "stupid" students who now were experts in various fields but had driven him mad teaching them back in the day.
But he was undoubtedly too rash, to openly provoke an Emanator of Erudition for Sāmu, a child who had no relation to him! Or was it that... for Ratio, he revered power, but he revered truth even more?
And the truth before them now was this: —No one had the right to stop a child from running to his mother!
So, even though he knew he was no match, he was still willing to stand against an Emanator of Erudition! For the sake of truth, this man was willing to give everything!
Herta quietly narrowed her eyes, a faint smile seeming to play on her lips. Heh, Ratio, is it... I'll remember that.
As for Ruan Mei's attack, she had already quietly neutralized it with her higher-level power of Erudition. A sharp, chilling plum blossom burned to ashes in mid-air after traveling two-thirds of the way.
"That's enough—Ruan Mei." Herta's tone grew slightly heavier. She came before Ruan Mei, lifted her cute, young chin, and looked seriously at this friend with whom she had developed the Simulated Universe. The girl truly did not want to see Ruan Mei like this. It was just... too ugly.
Pick up your elegance, your wisdom, and stop acting on emotion. Go and reflect properly on what you have done wrong! Maybe then, there might be a chance... This was what Herta thought, unilaterally. It did not represent the views of Sāmu, Himeko, and the others. Oh, right, and Kafka.
Ruan Mei lowered her head, not saying a word.
Herta continued. "The people of the Astral Express are my guests, and you are my guest as well. To cause such a scene at the host's home is truly rude. Give me some face and accept the result of the test." Herta attempted to activate her "face-giving" ability.
And Ruan Mei probably also realized that she couldn't achieve her goal with the combined forces of the Astral Express and Herta. One could see her clenching her slightly trembling fists, her eyes dimming. She no longer appeared strong, but rather somewhat pitiably weak.
"But..." Ruan Mei's voice trembled, like a candle flame in the wind. "But I was the one who created him..."
Himeko gritted her teeth, Dan Heng frowned, and Welt adjusted his glasses. March 7th and Stelle exchanged glances. It had to be said, this was indeed an issue the entire crew couldn't avoid. But it was never Sāmu's problem.
The boy spoke in a cold voice, with a tone of utter finality.
— "I have already returned it to you."
— "Everything, all of it, I have returned it to you..."
— "Can you please stop disturbing my life?"
Hearing this, Ruan Mei's face, for some reason, instantly turned deathly pale. Her slender body seemed unable to support the heavy weight of her sinking heart, and she staggered back, as if she would collapse at any moment.
Everyone's mind was shrouded in a heavy fog. Only Dr. Ratio, who had witnessed it all, had his eyes deepen for a moment. He knew the whole story, but that was Sāmu's eternal wound, and he would never expose it.
And reality was just as Sāmu had said. From that day on, he and Ruan Mei could never go back.
Herta shrugged. For her, it was enough that this incident had been quelled. If the space station had survived the destruction of the Antimatter Legion only to be destroyed by a dispute between Ruan Mei and the Astral Express, even she would find it absurd and ridiculous. And it would make that child Asta sad, wouldn't it?
Of course, Herta didn't care if Asta was sad or not.
Everyone began to gather around Sāmu. Even Asta and her stupid little dog Peppy, who had rushed over from the Master Control Zone, were no exception. Only Ruan Mei was left alone, like a plum tree that could fall at any moment in the biting cold wind, standing forlornly in her spot. It was a stark contrast to the lively atmosphere in front of the Astral Express.
The liveliness belonged to them; Ruan Mei had nothing.
Being surrounded by everyone, Sāmu, held in Himeko's embrace, was clearly a little shy. A faint blush soon spread across the boy's snow-white cheeks.
"Ms... Herta! Mr. Ratio!"
"Sister Asta! Ah, and Peppy, Sister Stelle!"
"Why am I being listed together with a little dog?" Stelle puffed out her cheeks, voicing her confusion.
Sāmu quickly explained nervously, "I-I was just going in order..."
But unexpectedly, Stelle's expression suddenly changed, and she grinned. "I know, I was just teasing you!"
"Sāmu, I knew you would come back!"
"Next time, don't leave me alone again, okay?"
It was hard to imagine Stelle having such a serious and warm moment. Sāmu's eyes reddened slightly, and he nodded. Although he couldn't fully recall his experiences with "Sister Stelle," it didn't stop him from considering her a very close existence. And hadn't Mother Himeko and Sister March 7th also said that Stelle was his good friend from the past?
"Little fellow with a Stellaron in you, don't you understand the concept of first-come, first-served?" Herta, with her cute, girlish face, spoke in an old-fashioned tone. But this, far from diminishing her cuteness, added a touch of endearing contrast.
Stelle's impression of Herta was "the little spinning top person." But after witnessing the girl's power, she immediately upgraded her in her mind to "the little spinning top person you don't mess with"! So the girl immediately made way, leaving space for Herta and Sāmu to be alone.
"Ms. Herta!" Sāmu called out respectfully.
But Herta herself pouted as if in a cute tantrum. "What's with the 'Ms.'? That's too formal."
"Why don't you call me..."
-------
Enjoying the story? Support the author and get access to early chapters by joining my Patreon!
Find me at My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (390 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (254 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (140 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (158 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (400 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (140 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (166 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(80 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (200 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (190 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (120 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (96 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (140 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (160 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (Ending)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (70 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (80 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (140 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (165 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (70 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (100 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (100 Chapter)
Heartbreak Simulator: I Broke Them and Made Them Cry (80 Chapter)
The Talentless Trainer Doesn't Want to Restart (80 Chapter)
A Journey Starting as a Quincy (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: The Master of Romance Obstruction (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: You Can't Be a Hero Without a Little Chemical Enhancement (40 Chapter)
Honkai Impact 3rd Your Boyfriend is Really Amazing (40 Chapter)
Warhammer 40K: My Fiancée, Fulgrim (168 Chapter)
Classroom of the Elite: Trying to Capture Me! (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact My Named Senji Muramas (150 Chapter)
A Chef, the Vice-Captain of the Rocks Pirates? (160 Chapter)
Naruto : My Uchiha Girlfriend is Too Tsundere (130 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Reincarnated in a Lostbelt, I Became the Alien God (90 Chapter)
The Way These Horse Girls Look at Me Is Terrifying! (160 Chapter)
Naruto: Tsunade's Deskmate (130 Chapter)
I Just Want to Live a Normal (50 Chapter).
Genshin Impact: A Hundred Confessions? It's Just a System Task (70 Chapter)
OnePiece : Starting as a Veteran of the Roger Pirates (60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : I Have Special Horse Taming Techniques (180 Chapter)
Uma Musume : My other self is a Horse Girl (110 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen : All Affection Stats Maxed Out (170 Chapter)
Satou Kazuma's Decision to Live by Swindling, Starting from Re:Zero (60 Chapter)
Bleach : Ichigo! Take Over the Soul Society (60 Chapter)
Crossover Anime: The Master of Plagiarism with a 'Love Obstacle (110 Chapter)
Arknights Succubus Nurturing System, But I'm a Quiet Office Worker (60 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: Using My Personas to Break the Hearts of Players (50 Chapter)
One Punch Man : i am King? (80 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it