I participated in the development of EVA

"Can't sleep."

The two stood side by side like this, and after a long silence, Fumihiko Ikari broke the silence.

"When Naoko disappeared that day, she asked me if I loved her..."

Ritsuko Akagi was stunned for a moment, and then did not say anything. She just stood there silently waiting for Fumihiko Ikari to continue speaking.

"..."

"I changed the subject at the time and didn't ask or answer the question... Do you think she knew the answer?"

Ritsuko Akagi was silent for a moment before she spoke.

"You should have realized it."

Ikari Fumihiko sighed, "Yeah, I should have realized the answer."

After another long silence, he spoke again.

"In fact, besides that method, there is another rescue plan. No... should I say another plan."

Ritsuko Akagi realized what Fumihiko Ikari wanted to say and subconsciously gave the answer.

"You're the one who's going to die...right?!"

Ikari Fumihiko responded with a hint of relief in his tone.

"Ah."

At this moment, he really had an urge to die. Yes! He didn't die to save Naoko Akagi. He just wanted to die. Saving Naoko Akagi was just a side event.

Ritsuko Akagi shook her head nervously.

"That would give the mother a strong enough stimulus, but it would also make her even more reluctant to return to reality."

Ikari Fumihiko fell silent.

Hearing this, he was a little confused for a moment.

Did he say all this to Ritsuko Akagi because he wanted to die, or did he say this in the hope that Ritsuko Akagi would stop him?

"During this period of time, I have been thinking that if I had made other choices, things would not have turned out like this."

Ritsuko Akagi knew that Fumihiko Ikari was talking about something related to his mother.

"..."

She didn't know how to comment.

The reason why his mother chose to inject her soul into the Type 02 prototype was not only because she was forced by the situation, but also because she wanted to escape. If we follow this logic to reverse the cause and effect of the incident, the result is self-evident. If Ikari Fumihiko had not chosen to be with his mother at that time, things would not have turned out like this.

But Fumihiko Ikari refused at that time. Will things really change?

She felt the results would not change.

because……

The mother chose to be with Ikari Fumihiko because she was already in love with him. Even after being rejected and things developing to the same situation as they did then, the mother would still make the same choice.

She was silent for a moment before speaking.

"It is highly likely that things will turn out like this... The most fundamental problem is not you and your mother, but the second impact that messed up everyone's fate."

Ikari Fumihiko was stunned for a moment before he realized that there was nothing wrong with this way of thinking.

"yes……"

Naoko Akagi, who deeply loves her husband, would definitely look at him more, and Ritsuko Akagi, who is younger than him, would not meet her.

Everyone's fate will change...

Uh.

If that were the case, without the memories of the previous owner, my life would be miserable.

wrong!

In fact, it may not be that bad. Even if the previous owner has no savings, he can still apply for a bank loan through his identity as a genius doctor. In this way, he can rely on his understanding of the gaming industry in his previous life and start a gaming company. Even if he cannot become the best in the world, at least he can thrive in the gaming industry and live a life of feasting and revelry from then on.

Of course, the premise of this assumption is that he, as an outlier, can be included in the category of "restart".

"These problems are all caused by the void left in people's hearts by the second shock, which needed to be filled with something."

When saying this, Ritsuko Akagi felt relieved. When she first realized that her mother was secretly together with Fumihiko Ikari, she was not completely indifferent. She also hated her mother for this. She even wanted to do it with Fumihiko Ikari to provoke her mother at first. In addition to the logical legitimacy, she also wanted to take revenge on her mother, but this thought was not very strong.

It was not until today's conversation with Misato Katsuragi that she realized that although her mother was capable, she was still a woman in the final analysis, and at most a woman who was good at scientific research.

Of course, even though she was relieved, she still couldn't completely let it go.

but……

Today's conversation with Misato Katsuragi also made her face the reality.

If she really did that, there would be no benefit except torturing each other. It was precisely because of this that she did not activate her mother's vest tonight to continue to pester him. It was just that for more than a year, there was someone by her side every day. Now that she suddenly slept alone, she couldn't sleep because she was not used to it.

Ikari Fumihiko took a deep breath at this time.

"Ritsuko, go get ready."

Ritsuko Akagi was a little slow to react.

"what to prepare?"

“Rescue work.”

Ritsuko Akagi stood there in a daze, and the content of today's tutoring class with Misato Katsuragi suddenly emerged in her mind. She subconsciously asked a question absentmindedly.

"Are you asking me to take a shower?"

After he reacted, he hesitated for a moment and then waved his hands in panic.

"No... I've figured it out. We can't do that..."

20:48:27

752. It’s Not Like I Have Never Experienced This Before

When Ikari Fumihiko heard this, he realized that what he said was indeed easy to be misunderstood.

At the same time, I felt a little surprised and sad.

I was surprised because Ritsuko Akagi had figured it out...I felt sad because Ritsuko Akagi had figured it out.

He calmed down immediately.

"Don't let your imagination run wild. I'm just trying to mentally synchronize with the Type 02 prototype to see if Naoko will see me."

Ritsuko Akagi responded blankly with a look of disappointment and relief.

"Oh."

But I reacted the next moment.

"What! You want to pilot an EVA!?"

Although she didn't know why, she knew clearly that Fumihiko Ikari had always been very resistant to driving EVA.

"Correct."

Hearing the affirmative answer, she didn't know what to say for a moment.

Because she didn't know why Fumihiko Ikari refused to drive the EVA.

"..."

Only when she saw Ikari Fumihiko stand up and walk towards the locker room did she come to her senses and had a bad feeling in her heart.

"You don't want to inject your soul into the Type 02 prototype, do you?!"

Ikari Fumihiko responded without turning his head.

"No."

"Promise me! You must come back. If you disappear too, I will collapse."

Ikari Fumihiko hesitated for a moment before responding.

"Ah."

Compared to Naoko Akagi, he has become accustomed to lying to Ritsuko Akagi.

This time he really didn't know if he could ever return to reality.

Because that depends on whether Lilith will interfere.

He first went to the bathroom to rinse his body, then he changed into his combat uniform and returned to the laboratory to insert the plug.

Between the cockpit and the core module, he chose the latter.

He still hesitated for a moment before entering, but finally went in.

He activated the implantation program by pressing the button inside the plug, and soon after the hatch was locked, he felt the plug being picked up by the robotic arm... When the plug was successfully implanted into the core compartment of the Type 02 prototype, he felt a familiar scent in the LCL liquid. It was the smell of Naoko Akagi.

The Type 02 prototype, like the second-generation machine, is housed in a biological brain, so the startup procedure can be completed from within.

When you reach the step of activating the spiritual connection device...

In the end, he lacked the courage to press it.

"Ritsuko, help me activate the mental link device."

When Ritsuko Akagi heard this, her bad feeling became even stronger.

"Or... forget it. Haven't I tried this approach before?"

"It's different, never mind..."

Ikari Fumihiko struggled for a while, but still activated the connection program himself.

As the program was activated, the presence of Naoko Akagi became stronger, as if she was standing next to them.

He looked around almost instinctively, but couldn't find Naoko Akagi.

"Do you want to activate the infiltration program!?"

"activation."

As I pressed the confirmation button, I felt a trance and a strong sense of weightlessness.

However, this feeling only lasted for a moment and then disappeared.

He opened his eyes and found himself in an unfamiliar room, a luxuriously decorated bedroom. Naoko Akagi was lying on a double bed. He subconsciously moved over, but then he found a huge wedding photo hanging on the wall. The bride was naturally the young Naoko Akagi, and the groom was a man he had never seen before.

The man's eyebrows are somewhat similar to those of Ritsuko Akagi, and it is obvious that this man is Ritsuko Akagi's father.

He reacted when he recognized the man's identity.

I became a substitute again.

Naoko Akagi chose to be with him just because she was looking for the shadow of her husband.

The reason why he made such a judgment was naturally because this was a true reflection of Naoko Akagi's inner thoughts. If he was not a stand-in, the groom appearing in the wedding photo should be him.

Realizing this brought him peace of mind.

This is because he also does not love Naoko Akagi, and he has become accustomed to this kind of thing.

He came to the bedside, wanting to wake up Naoko Akagi, but... the two of them seemed to be in a different dimension. Not to mention touching Naoko Akagi, he couldn't even touch the objects around him. In fact... he was not standing on the ground, but floating in the air like a ghost.

While I was surprised by this, I also figured out some things.

Naoko Akagi's extreme reactions were because she regarded him as a substitute for her deceased husband.

Just as he was thinking about how to carry out the rescue, Akagi Naoko woke up from her sleep, but she couldn't see him at all. She took off her pajamas, took a shower and changed into casual clothes.

Naoko Akagi changed into casual clothes and came to the living room.

"Madam, this is today's breakfast. The owner has gone to send the young lady to school."

After hearing the words pouring in, Akagi Naoko just responded calmly.

"Oh."

After breakfast, she set off for the company's research institute.

The day passed uneventfully. She was immersed in her own scientific research project and left the rest to her husband.