What does it mean that the group members have given me back the light?

Kiana gradually lost confidence as she searched in vain. Could it be that she had really made a mistake? Was that Honkai Beast, which looked like it had been modified, just a simple mutation? She had been so certain that it was a Super Beast before.

“If they really are Yabo people, then this situation is not surprising,” Gu Nuo said.

He had actually anticipated this outcome.

Hermit's Purple didn't work, and they didn't have a strange, unconventional tech tree like the TAK team, so they couldn't directly use the principle of the Möbius strip to send humans into another dimension to explore.

Lacking direct means of investigation, it is almost inevitable that we will find it difficult to confirm the existence of the other party and can only passively wait for clues, as we are doing now.

Ultimately, the idea of ​​searching for the evil alien Yapool from the Ultraman universe in a broken world sounds a bit strange in itself.

Its absurdity is probably second only to the level of "You are in a hospital loophole, your teammate is on a crashed passenger plane, and you are piloting a fighter jet, both of you are falling to the ground at high speed, but you are still busy sending messages to each other asking 'Quickly help me think of a way to escape!'"

However, despite this, Gu Nuo did not intend to wait passively for the opportunity to come to him.

His fingertips unconsciously touched a spot in his arms, where the Evolution Trustee lay quietly, as if responding to his emotions, sending a faint yet firm throbbing.

He wasn't unfamiliar with such things—since the other party had deployed modified Honkai Beasts in the city, they probably had some other purpose. With Nexus's flight speed, searching the entire Changkong City would likely yield some clues.

"Click——"

The crisp sound of the door lock turning broke the slightly somber atmosphere in the living room.

Gu Nuo and Kiana looked up almost simultaneously, subconsciously glancing at Raiden Mei's door—they both assumed she had finally calmed down and left the room.

However, the door remained tightly closed as far as the eye could see.

The sound came from the apartment's main entrance door.

The door was gently pushed open, and a petite gray-haired girl with long, strangely spiraled double-drill-shaped hair walked in expressionlessly. She was carrying a slightly worn Homura doll in her arms. Her steps were steady, and her gray eyes swept across the living room. She seemed unsurprised by the two people in front of her.

"Ah! It's you, you little rascal!"

Kiana, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, instantly forgot her previous frustration and stood up with her hands on her hips: "Why did you just barge into Mei-senpai's house again!"

The petite girl raised her eyelids, glanced at her indifferently, and said in a completely flat tone: "Idiot Kiana, Bronya has the key. It was Mei who allowed Bronya to stay."

"Who are you calling an idiot! You shorty!"

"Bronya isn't short and stout; it's Kiana, the idiot whose IQ is inversely proportional to her height, who has a cognitive bias in her visual system."

"You! Say that again! You little Siberian potato!"

Bronya reiterated, "It's that stupid Kiana."

"little guy!"

"To reiterate, it's Kiana who's stupid. Height and intelligence aren't directly related, but Kiana doesn't meet the standards for either."

"you……!"

Kiana was furious and wanted to continue arguing, but the girl who called herself Bronya seemed to have lost interest in this inefficient interaction. She just glanced indifferently at the unfamiliar Gu Nuo next to her, her eyes showing neither doubt nor curiosity, as if he were just a new piece of furniture in the room.

Then, completely ignoring the two of them, she hugged her Houmu doll and went straight to her room, slamming the door shut and shutting out Kiana's unspoken protest.

Gu Nuo looked at Bronya's tightly closed door, then glanced at the sulking Kiana, and asked, "You... are friends?"

"Of course not!" Kiana decisively made an X in front of her chest: "Who would be friends with that kind of clueless little brat!"

She gestured towards Bronya's door and explained, "She was found by Mei-senpai a while ago. It seems she has no parents and nowhere to go. Mei-senpai took pity on her and kindly took her in to live here."

Her words carried a hint of reluctance, but not much real malice; they were more like a childish complaint.

Kiana didn't seem to want to dwell on the topic any longer. She shook her head, as if trying to shake off all the unpleasantness of losing the argument.

"Oh right! You must be hungry after all this commotion, right? It's almost lunchtime anyway, so why don't you... stay here and have a meal before you leave?"

She paused, then added, "Mei-senpai's cooking is the best in the world! Although she might be a little... uh... not feeling well right now, she should be fine soon!"

Upon hearing this, Gu Nuo nodded, his gaze sweeping over the quiet door again, without asking any further questions.

……

……

The door shut out the remaining noise from the living room.

In the dimly lit room, only the terminal screen emitted a faint blue light, reflecting on Bronya's expressionless, youthful face.

She was still holding the tattered Houmu doll in her arms, but her eyes remained indifferent, only now the warmth contained in that indifference had decreased slightly.

On the screen, encrypted instructions from "Mom" were displayed.

[Target: The unfamiliar young man who appeared near Kiana Kaslana.]

[Assessment: There are unknown variables that may interfere with the 'plan'.]

[Command: Ural Silver Wolf, eliminate it.]

Assassination.

Bronya's fingertips unconsciously tightened around the Houmu doll.

Her gaze swept over the word "plan" in the instructions, but another figure involuntarily surfaced in her mind—the mechanical creation that always appeared beside Cocolia's mother, exuding an ominous aura, "Grey Serpent."

It was this mysterious "Grey Serpent" that provided technologies that transcended the current understanding of civilization, whether it was the modification and control of Honkai Beasts or the manipulation of other dimensions. Those technologies were extremely dangerous, yet contained unimaginable possibilities.

If the plan succeeds... and Cocolia's mother really gets those technologies...

The chances of finding Seele in the Sea of ​​Quanta will then increase significantly.

With this in mind, Bronya's gaze hardened.

For Seele.

This thought, like the most resolute program instruction, overshadowed all unnecessary hesitation.

Without almost any pause, Bronya's slender fingers tapped rapidly on the terminal.

[Silver Wolf...Received.]

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Chapter 43 Cocolia: Holy crap, a box! (4k1)

The atmosphere was subtle at dinner time.

Raiden Mei finally emerged from her room. Although a faint blush still lingered at the base of her ears, her demeanor had largely returned to the elegant grace of a Yamato Nadeshiko. She served the dishes one by one, simple home-style fare, but the care and attention of the cook was evident.

The four sat around the dining table. Kiana wolfed down her food, praising Mei-senpai as the best in the world. Gu Nuo thanked her politely, while Bronya ate quietly in small bites, her expression as usual.

Raiden Mei's gaze fell on Gu Nuo several times, and then she finally couldn't help but try to start a conversation: "Um... Nuo Nuo, I haven't heard Kiana mention you before, you two are...?"

She planned to find some excuse to get to know the other person better, and then wash away the label of being a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) sufferer—she was such a grown-up, yet she was caught by a stranger imitating Ultraman's human form transforming? If this kind of dark history was going to follow her for the rest of her life, she might as well just let Yapool capture her and send her to another dimension!

Gu Nuo put down her chopsticks and politely replied, "Yes, I am..."

"A like-minded person I met on the website!"

Kiana abruptly interrupted, her voice muffled by food in her mouth. She swallowed hard and added, her eyes darting around:

"Yes! We're Ultraman fans! We met in a tokusatsu chat group! We got along really well, so we...we agreed to meet up in person!"

As she spoke, she gently nudged Gu Nuo under the table with her foot, then sent a private message in the chat group, signaling him to cooperate.

She didn't want Mei-senpai, an ordinary person, to get caught up in the trouble of being lumped together with the Yapools or something. If possible, it would be safest for Mei-senpai to remain an ordinary person who knew nothing.

“…Yes, Kiana is right.”

Gu Nuo glanced at Kiana with a hint of helplessness and nodded in agreement.

He could understand the white fluffy creature's feelings, but was it a bit... to treat him as a naive young man who would casually reveal his identity to ordinary people?

"A fellow enthusiast? Really?"

Upon hearing this word, Raiden Mei's eyes lit up slightly, and for a moment she even forgot her previous plan. She asked with some joy, "Then, Nono, which Ultraman do you like the most?"

“…Recently…it’s Ace, isn’t it?” Gu Nuo replied.

"Ultraman Ace..."

Raiden Mei tapped her chin thoughtfully with her finger: "Ultraman's passion is unquenchable... it's just that his methods are a bit cruel when fighting monsters..."

"Yeah yeah!"

Kiana quickly chimed in, trying to completely steer the conversation away from "how we met":

"I like it too! Uh... and Ultraman Jack! Hideki Go is super cool! Hasn't Mei-senpai been really into Leo lately?"

"Ah."

Raiden Mei nodded, a glint of light flashing in her eyes as she mentioned what she liked:

"Leo Ultraman's experiences always give me a lot of strength. Even after losing his homeland and being defeated by powerful enemies time and time again, he never gave up protecting and fighting! That will and strength forged in desperate situations is truly..."

She became more and more excited as she spoke, then suddenly realized something and stopped. Looking at the few people at the table who seemed to be watching her, a faint blush crept up her ears again.

I've said too much again... We were just feeling awkward about this a moment ago...

Raiden Mei coughed lightly, her gaze abruptly shifting to the girl across the table who had been quietly eating, trying to divert everyone's attention from her.

"Well, what about Bronya? Although I've been dragging you along to watch it, do you have a favorite Ultraman?"

"..."

Seeing that the topic had turned to her, Bronya raised her head, her gray eyes sweeping over the group, and answered in a completely flat tone:

Bronya believes that Ultraman Taro's design is the most distinctive.

Her answer sounded like a statement of objective fact, without any hint of personal preference.

But in reality, Bronya doesn't really like these kinds of movies.

She had no problem with Mei, who took her in without hesitation, but most of the time, she felt that Mei was a bit too naive.

Bronya thought coldly to herself, but on her face she maintained an expressionless face and continued eating with her head down.

Selfless dedication? No expectation of reward? A race that would sacrifice its life to protect Earthlings who are completely unrelated to it? This premise is full of naive idealism and irrationality; how could it possibly exist in reality?

"What? I was clearly asking which one you like, and you little brat, you just know how to give irrelevant answers?" Kiana said, pouting.

"Kiana, don't be so mean to Bronya," Raiden Mei quickly said.

"...Okay..."

Bronya ate quietly in small bites, but the white fluffy ball was still being nosy, clamoring that she needed to eat more to grow taller, and then pushed her favorite dishes closer. Mei's gentle voice of dissuasion was as always.

Her gaze swept over the familiar daily routine, finally landing on Gu Nuo, who was also eating in silence, her fingertips unconsciously tightening their grip on the chopsticks.

……

……

After finishing their meal, Kiana and Raiden Mei went downstairs to take a walk to digest their food, while Gu Nuo also planned to take his leave at this time to find the Yapool as soon as possible.

And just then...

"Brother Nuonuo."

Gu Nuo turned around at the sound and saw that Bronya had changed into a thin white slip dress at some point. She looked up at Gu Nuo slightly, pointed to the air conditioner in her room, and said in a calm voice:

"Can you help me take a look? My computer seems to be having some problems. Mei-neechan and Kiana-dummy can't figure it out."

She subtly puffed out her chest, intentionally or unintentionally—a move she'd learned from Far Eastern films. Judging by its consistently high success rate in those movies, Bronya believed no man could resist such a subtle hint.

"...I might not understand, what kind of question is it?"

Leaning back slightly, Gu Nuo faced Bronya, who was leaning closer. After his gaze swept over a certain part of her body, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

No effect?

Bronya was taken aback; this was a reaction she hadn't expected.

But she quickly came up with an excuse she had prepared long ago.

"Bronya wanted to play large-scale games, and she heard that those games could only be played on Steam, so she downloaded an app called Steam Game Manager,"

She looked at Gu Nuo and said seriously:

"After that, the system frequently encountered compatibility errors and pop-up ads, and now the computer is unusable."

"..."