People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

"Mmm...one..." Saria's lips trembled slightly, a rare moment of losing her composure.

Christen stepped forward, her brow furrowed in suspicion.

"Huh? Didn't you send a message saying you had some kind of visit scheduled for today that required me to come back?"

I did send a message, but will you actually reply?

I've never seen you this proactive when I used to say "we have to do this or that".

Saria opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Christensen picked up the bag of coffee and pushed it against Saria's chest.

“There’s construction going on everywhere in Ulany Castle, but the Rhine Life Park is doing quite well. I also saw a coffee shop on the way, so I brought some coffee for you and Muirses. You can give it to her together.”

After she finished speaking, she repeated herself:

"Where's Ernst? Hasn't he arrived yet?"

Seria glanced at Christensen, then looked down at the coffee bag on her chest, then looked up at Christensen and the coffee bag in her other hand, and exclaimed in shock.

"Kristen?"

Christensen paused, blinked, and responded somewhat bewildered:

"I'm here, what's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Saria took a deep breath, accepted the bag with awe, and solemnly said to Christensen:

"I'm going to the restroom, I'll be right back."

A moment later, in the restroom on the ground floor of Rhine Lab, Saria looked at Ernst, who was bending over the sink to cool down with water. Ignoring Ernst's embarrassment at being caught red-handed, she stood in front of another sink and turned on the tap.

Ernst, somewhat bewildered, stepped forward and asked with concern:

"Director Seria? What happened? Why are you here too?"

Saria raised her head, her wet hair plastered to her forehead and cheeks, making her look somewhat feminine!

She looked at Ernst and shook her head with utmost solemnity and seriousness:

“Mr. Ernst, please forgive me, I take back what I just said.”

Chapter 591 An Invitation to Travel Together Across the Vast Starry Sky

Today is the busiest day at Rhine Life's Kjerag branch.

Even though there was no one in the corridor, when Christensen and Ernst passed by, they could always hear screams of surprise coming from the departments on both sides, as if they had won the lottery.

On the way to the general manager's office alone, Ernst saw Palvis carrying a steaming cup of black bean tea, passing by three times, and nodding and greeting Christensen and himself three times.

He was relatively restrained.

For example, Ferdinand passed by four times with a robot that Ernst had never seen before, but which looked like it was covered with solar panels, ostensibly to "test the power armor's ability to withstand pressure in extreme environments."

What kind of extreme environment is the corridor of Rhein Life Sciences Labs? If you just went outside and climbed any random mountain, Ernst might believe this nonsense, okay?

As for Muirsey, probably because the World Summit gave the great god Yeragand an opportunity to "go to work by imperial decree," her classes were temporarily suspended, so she didn't stay at Manju Academy and returned to the Rhine Lab branch.

Although she didn't appear directly in front of Ernst, to be honest, Ernst felt like he was being watched all the time.

After thinking it over, it was you who was spying on me, wasn't it, Muirsey?

Only someone like Muirsay, with his ability to dissolve in water and multiply into eight different forms, could pull off such a feat.

Ernst, however, had no idea where Muirsay was hiding. He hadn't come into contact with any water either; could it be the restroom?

But isn't it a bit far-fetched to speculate that a water sprite is hiding in the bathroom to spy on you? Are you also the master of the bathroom?

It's fair to say that, although it doesn't make much sense, Rhine Life did manage to make a fool of themselves in front of Ernst in this way.

What? You're asking where Levi and Nastya went?

Nasti continued to demonstrate the effects of the [Gravity Contempt Mechanism] at the World Summit venue, while Levi went to find Nian and Xi.

As a biologist, Levy's curiosity about these legendary creatures, such as giant beasts, was irresistible.

Previously, since he had only come into contact with one behemoth, Yeragand, he naturally couldn't bring himself to ask Ernst for help. But now, with two more behemoths from Yan Kingdom, although there were still risks involved, he decided to give it a try and see if he could get some "experimental material" from Nian and Xi.

It could be a strand of hair, a small tube of blood, or a complete medical examination following the Terran medical examination procedures.

Ernst had subtly mentioned this matter to Nian and Xi. Nian didn't care much and said that if Levi was a good person and could fulfill some of her small requests, she wouldn't mind helping him out.

Ernst asked her what her requirements were, and she only said that she had recently come up with a new idea and wanted to make a movie about a mad scientist who used Originium to modify life, creating an invincible army of Originium people to conquer the entire land.

Ernst thought the idea seemed quite interesting, and then asked, "What's next?"

The story goes that the mad scientist conquered the land to find his ex-girlfriend, wanting to offer her the entire land and make her the Queen of Terra! Then, his current girlfriend angrily breaks up with him, becoming the ex-girlfriend (new), and raises an army to reclaim the mad scientist, now the ex-girlfriend (old). This leads to a forbidden love triangle.

Well, it's a male-oriented to female-oriented story. Ernst smelled the stench of Qi's ideas turning into dog shit, so he didn't ask any further. 3

I wonder how the preparations for Swire's film are going. I hope I didn't do anything wrong by recommending this behemoth director to her.

should

Xi was somewhat reluctant, but she didn't refuse outright.

Nian said that this was because Xi's physique was too unique, allowing her to rival Ernst, a filmmaker, with the body of a mighty beast! So, from childhood to adulthood, she was constantly nagged by her older brother Chongyue and another older sister named "Shu," which made her somewhat resistant to things like physical examinations.

Incidentally, she said this to Ernst in front of Xi.

Then Xi agreed out of spite.

I never expected you to know a thing or two about strategy, Nian.

Regardless, I hope things go well for Levy; if not, I at least wish him peace.

After an "exceptionally long" journey, Ernst and Kristen finally arrived at the governor's office and closed the door.

In that instant, the world became peaceful.

Christensen sat down at her desk quite naturally, glanced at Ernst, and asked as if it were the most natural thing in the world:

"So, shall we begin?"

Ernst was taken aback: "Start what?"

Christen raised an eyebrow, somewhat puzzled, and spread her hands:

“A visit? Didn’t you want to visit? Saria told me to come back, and you wanted to visit me. I’m here now, so feel free to ask me any questions.”

Ernst fell silent.

It wasn't that he had nothing to talk about with Christensen, but Christensen possessed a frankness that was somewhat exasperating, making Ernst somewhat uncomfortable.

This is like someone suddenly asking you what your strengths are, and you can't give a clear answer right away.

As for visiting, isn't it just about wandering around and asking some unimportant questions? They've already done that.

If something really happens, it's usually resolved in a small meeting after the visit.

Seeing Ernst remain silent, Christensen took the initiative to speak:

"I do have something I want to discuss with you."

"Ernst, what do you think of the sky?"

Without waiting for Ernst's reply, she stood up on her own, crossed one arm over her chest, twirled the pen in her other hand, and began to stroll thoughtfully.

“You once described to me the world beyond the heavens. You said that the stars are the same size as the earth beneath our feet, and some may even be much larger than our home. It’s just that because of the great distance, we can only see their faint light when we look at them.”

"You also told me about our relationship with the sun and the two moons, our four seasons, and the time of day. It's not that time existed in advance as the legendary Shah decreed. He just discovered it first and brought the concept to Terra. In the universe, different times actually run parallel. The sunlight I see now may be light from a long time ago."

“You also told me that in this space called the universe, which is even more unknown than the ocean, there may even be other races. The differences between us may be greater than the differences between me, Pero, you, Felin, Seria, Vayvan, Nasti, and Sarkaz.”

She paused slightly, stopping her pen-twirling motion, and looked at Ernst with a hint of resentment in her eyes.

"To be honest, while I don't think this kind of behavior, which is almost like a spoiler, is a good thing and will greatly dampen the enthusiasm of explorers, especially when you only reveal half of the plot and then can't explain it clearly when asked, it's really infuriating—"

Ernst lowered his head in embarrassment.

There's nothing I can do, who told you to ask such tricky questions?

He mentions universal gravitation, and Kristen can ask him what the g-value of Terra is. He says the sun in the sky is a giant fireball constantly burning in a vacuum, and she can ask Ernst about the principles and methods of so-called "nuclear fusion." Even when he talks about aliens, which are most likely to involve humanistic issues rather than scientific common sense, Kristen, this polymath, can still ask Ernst philosophical questions such as whether eating canned starfish is waste utilization or a violation of human ethics.

Damn it, if I had known all this, I would have been a tech geek modifying Terra by now! How could I be stuck here doing clerical work?

"but!"

Christensen walked up to Ernst, bent down slightly, reached out and cupped Ernst's head in her hands, and said earnestly,

"However, I still have to admit that what you said is deeply etched in my mind."

"Compared to knowing that there is nothingness outside the isolation layer, your spoilers have given me more confidence to explore further. So, I still have to thank you."

Ernst opened his mouth, his pupils darted left and right, and answered somewhat flusteredly:

"Um, you're welcome?"

"But don't think that's enough to make you feel at ease."

Christensen smiled slightly, released her hand, and her voice became serious again.

"The journey of exploration will not stop here. It is not enough to merely know; we must also witness, experience firsthand, delve deeper, get to the root of the matter, and get to the bottom of it!"

"The magnificence of the stars lies in their mystery, and witnessing their brilliance is my lifelong wish. Ernst, don't you feel the same way?"

She asked solemnly and sincerely:

"Cast aside your half-baked knowledge, truly embark on the path of the explorer, tear apart this illusory sky with your own hands, and personally roam this vast sea of ​​stars. That will surely be a far more colorful, more interesting, and more magnificent journey than the intrigue and deceit in this corner of Terra!"

Don't you want to give it a try?

Ernst was stunned.

Kristen is drawing up a blueprint, a blueprint of being in the Milky Way, wandering among the stars.

Frankly speaking, no one would be unmoved by such a scene. "Our dream is the stars and the sea" is not just a simple slogan, but also the true thought in the hearts of many people, including Ernst.

His initial support for Kristen, his proposal of the "Star-Picking Project," and his opening of the Matterhorn to Rhine Lab were all aimed at giving Kristen, a scientist, an opportunity—a real chance to connect with the universe, a chance to realize her dream.

However, what he didn't understand was why Christensen would suddenly ask him if he had such thoughts.

Although I went through nine years of compulsory education and attended high school and university, I didn't study astronomy or physics, and I have no experience in flying spaceships or building rockets. I don't have that level of expertise.

Seemingly having guessed what Ernst was thinking, Christensen's lips curled into a smug smile:

"Ernst, you can do it."

"As long as you support me, when I break through the isolation barrier and travel through the stars in the future, I will definitely reserve a place for you by my side!"

"Believe me, this is Kristen Wright's promise, and I will keep my word!"

Does "keeping one's word" mean "working for Rhine Life for life" and then secretly coming to the mountains to be the most agile dog?

It doesn't seem wrong, after all, the person didn't quit, and they even moved Rhine Lab to Kjerag, which can be considered a roundabout way of fulfilling the oath.

However, Ernst, being an experienced man, and with Seria's reminder, could easily understand Christen's meaning.

After all that talk and buildup, let's put it simply: it's just a classic quote.

"I, Qin Shi Huang, will send you money. When I am resurrected, I will appoint you as Grand General, commanding all the armies of the world, and bury you in the First Emperor's Mausoleum!"

Ernst thought he was a master at making empty promises, but he never imagined that one day he would be the one being promised a pie. The key point is, Kristen's pie was so appealing that he actually found it tempting.

I was born too late, missing the Age of Exploration; I was born too early, unable to witness humanity's exploration of the stars.

If there were a real chance to make up for this regret, who wouldn't want it, and who wouldn't be willing to give it up?

However, these things are too far removed from Ernst's present reality.

If he were still the second young master of the Shivaesh family, the third son, he probably would have accepted Kristen's invitation without hesitation.

But now, with that heavy burden on their shoulders, how difficult would it be to take flight?

Ernst pursed his lips, shook his head with a wry smile:

"Of course I will support you, Commander Christen."

“No need to add those two words.” Christen’s voice cooled, and she seemed somewhat disappointed as she watched Ernst shake his head.

“Kristen, as long as I am in this position, as long as you are willing to continue to challenge the sky, Kjerag will continue the Star-Picking Project.”

"But in the end, the one who plucks that star may be you, but it won't be me."

Ernst had already quoted that line of poetry when he named the project "Project Star".

[With the sun and moon in my hands, I pluck the stars from the sky; there is no one like me in this world.]