As the negotiation representative for Anti-Entropy's World Bubble dealings, Raiden Ryoma's estate was also heavily guarded by a large number of Royal Guards.
Even after receiving a message from his colleagues, the Royal Guard captain in charge of security outside the estate still stepped forward to inspect the invitations before allowing the pair to pass.
Fuli and Mei strolled down a rain-slicked cobblestone path, gazing at the Victorian-style building looming in the gentle drizzle.
This was the downside of having a grand estate; there was still a fair distance to walk from the entrance to the villa itself.
It wasn't that there weren't vehicles at the gate. Rather, considering this was the first time these two men would meet, Mei didn't want her boyfriend to leave a bad impression on her father, like, "Yo, old dude, can I park my souped-up moped in front of your crib?" Furthermore, she found the idea of a romantic walk in the rain with her lover quite appealing, so she naturally didn't bother mentioning the transportation options.
Fuli, who kept glancing behind him, was a little displeased. After the Royal Guard captain let them through, he had dispatched two of his subordinates to follow them.
Fuli could understand their reasoning. From their perspective, it was simply being cautious.
But as the one being monitored, constantly watched with an attitude as if he were a criminal, he felt a sense of displeasure, even if one of the guards was a classic, cool-headed blonde beauty.
His type was Bianca "Durandal" Ataegina, not the traditional blonde knight-princess.
It is said that a competent woman must always be mindful of the expressions of the man she fancies to seize the initiative at any given moment.
"Yuan, did you know?"
Mei's umbrella, shielding them from the drizzle, moved closer to Fuli. "In its current state, Great Britain actually has no right to use the title 'Royal'."
The boy blinked. "Why is that?"
"There's a running joke online that 'the true British orthodoxy is in India'," Mei explained. "And in fact, the British title of Emperor was indeed stolen from India—or rather, the Mughal Empire."
The legitimacy of the British royal family's rule can be traced back to the Norman Conquest in 1066, when William I, Duke of Normandy, conquered England and established the Norman dynasty.
A kingdom established by a duke would naturally only have the legal title of King, not Emperor.
It wasn't until Great Britain completed its colonial unification of the Indian subcontinent in the nineteenth century, overthrowing the Mughal Empire, that the Royal Titles Act 1876 came into effect, officially granting Queen Victoria the title of Empress of India.
"I see," Fuli said with dawning realization. "So now that the Indian colony is independent, the legal title of Emperor has returned to the South Asian subcontinent. Having lost the brightest jewel in its crown, the British 'Empire' has been demoted back to a kingdom."
"You!"
Such blunt words enraged the female knight following behind them. Mei's bringing this up was clearly a jab at the former "empire on which the sun never sets," now in decline, having not only lost most of its colonies but also being repeatedly humiliated by its former rebellious child.
"We're here."
The magnificent building was reflected in Mei's eyes. She turned her head, perfectly timing her interruption of the female knight's impending outburst. "You two, you may go back now."
The young woman was equally displeased with her father being surrounded by Royal Guards. This was property legally purchased by the Raiden family. Why did they need to show an invitation and get permission to go home? What right did they have to monitor someone else's family?
The other, more seasoned Royal Knight stopped his trembling companion.
"It is our duty," he said, then shot the still-fuming female knight a warning look. They then stood guard on either side of the main door, apparently with no intention of following them inside.
Seeing that the two were sensible enough, Mei closed her umbrella, and her slender feet, clad in high heels, stepped onto the stairs. She reached out and pressed the doorbell.
Ding-dong—
A moment later, a sexy, low, and husky voice came from the intercom. "Come in, it's not locked."
Fuli tugged at his tie and followed Mei into the multi-story building, which was steeped in British style.
The dark brown wood wainscoting gleamed like honey in the light of the fireplace. A three-tiered crystal chandelier hung from the Victorian-style carved dome. The arched stained-glass windows of the second-floor gallery tinted the misty air into a grayish watercolor. Through the wrought-iron railings, neatly arranged leather-bound hardcover books could be seen in the depths of the library.
The classical decor was a work of art.
However, what made the boy most nervous was the imposing middle-aged handsome man sitting at the head of the long dining table.
—Raiden Ryoma, Anti-Entropy Executor, head of ME Corp, the Hyperion's prospective sponsor, and most importantly, Mei's own father.
At this moment, Fuli felt as if he were carrying the weight of the entire Ming Dynasty on his shoulders. If the man before him was not satisfied with his performance, then the Hyperion, even with the Well of Fuli, might not sink into the Pacific to watch the Sea Serpent God bare its fangs, but they would certainly have to tighten their belts until the next round of funding arrived.
Without a doubt, this was a make-or-break moment!
Clockwork Trick, activate!
Usage conditions not met!
Fuli raised an eyebrow, thinking something was wrong.
It was true that Mei, a master of the Hokushin Itto-ryu, had been taught by Raiden Ryoma himself, but this executor, codenamed "The Entrepreneur," much like Cocolia, "The Arms Dealer," was not known for his martial prowess. Fuli himself was now nearing the A-rank breakthrough, so how could the skill fail?
[Clockwork Trick does not work on individuals whose current strength exceeds the user's. Although it's unclear how Raiden Ryoma obtained this power boost, the host can use it forcibly after beating him up.]
Dr. MEI's teasing voice echoed in his ear: [Stigmata of Thunder + Sun-Swallowing Armor. A conventional Thunder Herrscher wouldn't even be able to fight a thousand-day war with the host.]
Does Hokushin Itto-ryu count as a thunder-type?
Yes, brother, it does.
Look, his surname is even Raiden!
[Go away! Stop giving me bad ideas!]
Fuli suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and showed a pure and innocent smile to his future father-in-law (?).
At the same time, Raiden Ryoma across from him was also observing him impassively.
In the eyes of the older generation of Shenzhou, a man should ideally possess the looks of Pan An, the endowment of a donkey, the wealth of Deng Tong, the patience of a needle wrapped in cotton, and an abundance of leisure time.
Ryoma didn't care much about wealth. Having regained his seat as an executor, the scraps that fell from between his fingers were enough to cultivate countless major taxpayers that local governments would worship as their own father.
He was mainly concerned with Mei's feelings, wanting to see if the boy his precious daughter had chosen was truly worthy of her.
Fortunately, due to the Herrscher of Thunder incident, Ryoma's favorability towards Fuli started at a natural +50.
This effectively cancelled out the -50 favorability for stealing away his precious little girl, bringing the situation to the next stage.
In terms of appearance, Fuli wasn't devastatingly handsome, the kind that would make people fall in love at first sight and ruin their lives. However, he was more delicate and handsome than 99% of the men Ryoma had ever seen, and his temperament was more agreeable.
He passed this test.
As for the donkey... ahem!
Recalling the bizarre Partial Expansion Jutsu in Fuli's file, the man's gaze subconsciously swept over his own lower body, and his confrontational aura diminished sharply.
No comparison. There's no way I can compare.
Mei will definitely be happier than her mother. I just wonder if that skill can be taught to others.
With this thought, a hint of affection crept into Ryoma's tone. "What are you standing there for? Sit."
He then gestured with his chin towards a bottle of wine that Fuli couldn't name. "Have a drink?"
"Sure—"
"Father, Yuan doesn't drink."
Mei interrupted with a displeased expression.
Little Kallen floated nearby, snickering to herself. She knew this girl was 100% thinking about what happened at her birthday party.
But soon, her cheeks flushed, clearly also remembering the incredibly satisfying ripple dream after the party.
"Uh, alright then."
His daughter's lack of deference made Ryoma a little awkward, and the stern expression he had deliberately put on began to crack.
"If you don't drink, then eat."
He clapped his hands, signaling the servants to bring out the dishes that had been prepared.
It was impossible for such a large villa to be without servants. Fuli and Mei had anticipated this.
"Hee hee hee, the chicken soup is here!"
Seeing the green figure gliding towards them, Mei slammed the table and stood up with a CRASH. Thunder and wind raged around her.
"It's you!"
"It's me, my dear little Mei~"
Mobius winked playfully at her and, with a sway of her snake-like hips, placed a silver platter on the table.
She lifted the cloche, and an indescribable sour and pungent smell swept through the hall.
To put it eloquently, it was the product of the five grains' reincarnation. To put it bluntly, it was shit.
Ryoma's face changed drastically as well. "Mobius!"
This woman! Is she here to crash the party?!
"Don't you two father and daughter wrong me."
Mobius's pure face was filled with grievance. She tapped the edge of the platter and very seriously explained, "This treasure is called Luosifen, a famous local snack from Shenzhou with a unique flavor. See, little brother Fuli isn't reacting as strongly. He's clearly recognized it."
Ryoma immediately looked at Fuli and found that he too was frowning.
Noticing Ryoma's gaze, the boy scratched his head. "It is Luosifen. I made it once on a whim following a recipe."
That night, Fuli dreamt that he entered the kitchen, lifted the pot lid, and found a huge pot of simmering shit.
Since then, even though Luosifen did taste good, he never touched the stuff again.
"That's not what I'm concerned about."
Mei stared at the pure university student-like Mobius. "Father! Why is this woman here!"
Damn it, you played dirty and kissed my Yuan right in front of me before running off, and now you dare to show your face here? Just watch as I activate the Realm of Jishin and blast you to smithereens!!!
You two know each other?
Ryoma clearly had no idea what this old pervert Mobius had done before, but he gave her a look, signaling her to introduce herself.
"If you don't like Luosifen, I've made other things!"
The excited serpent completely ignored his hint and brought out another platter.
What's so fun about teasing an old man? I'm not some Dilf-loving thief.
Fuli peeked at it. "Your dumplings are boiled to pieces. Did you throw them in the pot after they thawed?"
"No, no, this dish is called Chive and Egg Noodle Skin Soup," Mobius insisted stubbornly, while secretly cursing Klein for stopping her.
She had been about to use super glue and a stapler to stick the broken dumplings back together. If she had succeeded, this little brother wouldn't have been able to see the flaw, right?
Seeing that Mobius was ignoring him and was busy teasing his prospective son-in-law, Ryoma had no choice but to explain to the furious Mei why this person was in the Raiden residence.
"She's here to help me stabilize the side effects of the Meta-Morph surgery."
Take-Mikazuchi, a deity from Far Eastern mythology, worshipped as the god of thunder, swords, archery, war, and the military.
The Honkai Beast that Ryoma had fused with was an Emperor-class beast named after this deity.
And that was why Clockwork Trick hadn't worked on him.
He was originally a prodigy among A-ranks. After becoming a MANTIS and spending some more time adapting, he would be able to reach the Herrscher level, corresponding to an Emperor-class Honkai Beast.
"Helping Father with surgery?" Mei frowned. "Isn't Mobius an executor of the reformist faction?"
"Belonging to? No, no!" The serpent, who was trying to force-feed Fuli Luosifen, took a moment to argue. "In Anti-Entropy, every executor is an independent individual. I'm just temporarily staying under the banner of the reformist faction for certain reasons."
"So you'll switch sides as soon as things go south. Such a flexible moral compass," Mei sneered with full force. "And Father, I don't know what price you paid for this deal, but to hand over your life and fortune to a woman like this... I really don't know what to say."
Such a sharp tongue! I love it!
Fuli thought, a little disappointed that Mei wasn't scolding him.
The young woman's concern was perfectly valid. Responsible researchers like them loved to leave all sorts of little backdoors in their programs for emergencies.
In the previous chapter, Fuli had been completely immobilized by the Soulium Battlesuit, which was why he couldn't effectively stop Mei's greedy advances.
If Mobius and Ryoma were to become enemies one day, with just a flick of her wrist, even if she only interfered a little, the latter would be dead without a burial place.
Faced with his daughter's complaint, Ryoma gave a bitter smile. "I don't want what happened in Nagazora to happen again."
As the uncrowned king of Nagazora, with the colossal ME Corp under his command, the reason he had been defeated so quickly was essentially because his own strength was too weak, allowing Cocolia to capture the king to win the game.
If Ryoma had been able to hold out until he got back to the Raiden Building, a veritable fortress, even if Cocolia had deployed the S-rank combat power of the Engine of Creation, the full power of Genesis would have taught her that a powerful dragon cannot suppress a local snake!
And most importantly—
"Father..."
Sensing the deep apology in Ryoma's eyes, Mei's nose twitched, and she felt an uncharacteristic urge to cry.
This man didn't care at all that he had been framed and arrested. Not only did he not suffer during his imprisonment, but even if he had, it wouldn't have mattered.
What truly broke Ryoma's heart was his precious daughter. As her father, he should have sheltered her from the wind and rain, but instead, she had suffered immensely during that time.
It was thanks to Kiana and Fuli bickering their way into her life that nothing happened to Mei. If something had, Ryoma couldn't even imagine what he would have become!
After a moment of silence, the man said in a deliberately relaxed tone, "Mobius is a smart woman. She'll only use something like a backdoor program at the most critical moment. You don't have to worry about it on a daily basis. We also signed the highest-level blank soul contract before the surgery. Unless she wants to spend the rest of her life in a daze, she won't betray the agreement."
Theoretically, that was true.
Mei gritted her teeth.
She knew what ICHOR factor Mobius had fused with. With Sesa's resistance, even if the contract punished the soul, she would probably recover after dying a hundred or so times.
As expected, this woman is a bastard through and through!
The young woman glared viciously at Mobius, but then couldn't help but let out a "pfft" of laughter.
"Don't waste food! Eat! Eat it for me!"
Gulp, gulp, gulp...
The tables had turned.
The roles were reversed.
Fuli, who had been bullied earlier, was now straddling the struggling, writhing waist of the serpent, pouring the pot of broken chive and egg dumplings (Chive and Egg Noodle Skin Soup) into her forced-open mouth.
Scattered around them were other dark cuisine dishes like strawberry stir-fried celery, ice cream ramen, surströmming mooncakes, and pineapple pizza, which made Mei's scalp tingle and yet she couldn't help but laugh.
After force-feeding her all the food, Fuli clapped his hands and stood up. He looked at the serpent lying on the ground, her eyes vacant, saliva drooling from her mouth, looking completely broken, and snorted coldly.
"Pah, you suck!"
Mobius, fused with the Sesa factor, had the base stats of a Herrscher, which was why she had been able to successfully sneak a kiss on Fuli earlier.
But once Fuli was prepared, her lack of combat experience was instantly exposed and exponentially magnified.
Coupled with the ridiculously overpowered defense-reducing mechanism of the Sun-Swallowing Armor and the constant stimulation of Mobius's sensitive neurons by the inspiration explosion from his ability, the boy easily suppressed her in close-quarters combat, his specialty, under the dual assault on her body and mind.
Fuli, having successfully retaliated, felt refreshed. He was a taken man! Not some Takamagahara gigolo whose lips were for everyone to taste!
If he didn't teach this woman a lesson, what would happen if she kept pushing her luck in the future!
I'm a man who can't resist even the slightest temptation!
One could say he was very self-aware.
After Fuli's antics, Mei's mood improved considerably.
She had also come to terms with it. So what if there was a backdoor?
When her own research in the life sciences surpassed Mobius's in the future, she would just perform another surgery on her father!
Because my Yuan has the development aura that you don't! That's right, having an inspiration explosion all day is a big deal. Piss you off, piss you off, piss you off!
As for Ryoma, he cleared his throat, trying to make his voice sound less like he was gloating. "You just had a post-op check-up three days ago. At that time, you said it would be another half a month before the next corrective surgery. What made you come here early, and with such a fawning look on your face, serving us food?"
Mobius, lying on the floor, played dead and remained silent.
"My big brother is asking you a question!"
Fuli's whip cracked in the air. He had also somehow acquired a pair of sunglasses, which he wore with a distinct lackey-like air.
Hearing that it was him asking, the serpent finally muttered in a low voice, "I'm here to inform you that someone has stolen the Welt Joyce clone I was cultivating."
"Hmm... Hmm????"
Ryoma's expression was now like that of someone who had just seen someone not only make coffee with cat poop, but also insist that it was the real Kopi Luwak and that what everyone else was drinking was fake.
...