As Mobius said, I was placed under observation for the duration of the whole battle with the 7th Herrscher, and even after it ended, I had to prove my theory that Imaginary and Honkai energies are the same before I could leave my semi-isolation. Luckily, after Mei heard my assumption, she quickly confirmed it by having me infuse Imaginary energy into a living Honkai beast, causing it to evolve and proving that Imaginary energy could be converted into Honkai energy, not just used as a replacement.
Thanks to that, I was free again, but what had occurred had caused all of Fire-Moth to be turned on its head, so I had a lot of work to do. Pushing the research back for now, I became something of Eden's assistant, compiling what we found about the board of directors and helping her prepare speeches and presentations for the United Nations and similar occasions.
In two months, I visited almost all major cities with her, meeting countless politicians and members of high society. Mingling with those crowds was as tiring as always, but Eden would always stand by my side, helping me when I was overwhelmed, as if she could feel when I was getting annoyed. I could only say that she truly brought all her talents beyond the realm of music and art, implementing them in all her actions and traits.
The only thing that troubled me was her habit of drinking. She wasn't a poor drinker, quite the opposite, but she would drink wine as if it were water, sometimes finishing three bottles before the sun even set. At first, I didn't think much of it; I just took care of her when she was tipsy. But one evening, when she was truly drunk, things changed.
It was normal at first; I myself have drunk more than enough to be tipsy, so I just hoped to help Eden to rest and take a shower, but as I was lying her on the bed, she embraced my neck, dragging me to the bed with her. Before I could react, I felt my lips being covered, and that was enough for my rationality to snap.
The next morning, I woke up with a woman whom all wished to possess, but none could; the proof of that was still visible below us. I looked at her with mixed emotions; all the days spent together brought us close enough to be considered close friends, but it definitely wasn't enough for either of us to develop stronger emotions. I was worried that this would become a drunken mistake, something I didn't wish to happen not only due to my possessiveness, but also so that she wouldn't feel any regret.
As I was lost in thought, Eden also woke up. She wasn't lost or surprised about being in my arms; instead, she smiled and moved closer to me. Seeing me in a daze, her smile widened further, her whole being exuding charm beyond what words could describe.
-"Good morning. Should I call you husband? Or maybe my dear?"-She leaned her mouth next to my ear and whispered seductively.
-"You…"-I looked at her in shock.
-"I believe you have many questions, but how about some morning coffee first?"
-"Just no wine."
-"Sure."-She giggled and kissed my cheek before getting up from the bed.
I watched her dress in a thin bathrobe, not hiding from my eyes, before she left the room. After collecting myself for a while longer, I also changed into some casual clothes and joined her in the other room.
As neither of us was a good cook, we would order breakfast to be delivered, so it would wait for us when we woke up. Today we woke much later, so it was already somewhat cold, but after briefly heating it up, it still tasted palatable. Throughout the meal, I could feel her watching me with unveiled amusement; she was clearly enjoying my confusion.
-"So, what do you wish to ask, my dear?"-She asked after we finished.
-"Are you ok?"-I asked first, worried she was forcing herself.
Hearing that, her eyes narrowed slightly, seemingly pleased with my question.
-"Don't worry, not only am I not forcing myself; I'm genuinely happy."
-"Why?"-This time I asked the core question.
-"Hmm… I'm happy because I finally found my soulmate, and I can feel his care for me. As for why I did that, that's a little harder to answer, but it's mostly because of two things: first, it was you; second, it was because of what happened."
-"Me? I don't believe I did anything that would win your heart."-I genuinely thought so.
-"It's not what you did, but who you are."-She corrected me.-"While we indeed only met two months ago, I knew about you for much longer. At first, it was interest in a famous figure, but later, I got to know you through Ely, making me look more closely at your actions. I respected what you did, not only your research, but more so your actions during the 3rd and 6th eruptions. So when I finally met you, you might say I had heavy expectations about you."
-"And how did I do?"
-"Beyond perfect. I never truly thought about who my partner would or should be, but as I live surrounded by music, I had subconsciously believed that he would also exist in this world. As such, when you played that song, I couldn't help but agree with Ely's whimsical idea to bring you on stage; more so, I even made you stand by my side as a duo. And when you managed to keep up with me… That duo was something that made me truly think of you as a soulmate I was waiting for."
-"Isn't that too hasty?"
-"Maybe, but I'm afraid that if I wait, it might be too late. I felt this more so when that fire erupted. When you shielded me and the audience, this was the moment I truly fell for the you I imagined. After that day, I wanted to get to know the real you, to get rid of that last layer of my expectations and see only the true you. And I believe I now know the Eno who sits before me, not one who exists only in my imagination."
-"I'm not a good partner. I can't be faithful to you. Not to mention all the secrets I can't share with you."-I looked her in the eyes.
-"Tell me, who in our positions can be called faithful? Who doesn't hide mistresses and lovers? It's not like you'll throw me away or abuse me."-She met my gaze, the smile never leaving her face.-"As for secrets… Without a few of them, you wouldn't be so charming."
-"Sigh. I shouldn't be so indecisive."-I shook my head to clear my wayward thoughts.-"Eden, I promise you to not disappoint your trust and feelings."-I walked up and sat next to her, taking her hand in the process.
-"Then I leave myself in your care, my dear."-She leaned on my shoulder, enjoying the clarity after making her feelings known.
And so, Eden became part of my life in a somewhat unexpected way. After securing all the support we needed, Mei made quick work of the previous directors, sending most into early retirement, while a few were even convicted. Having discarded the dead weight, the whole Fire-Moth seemed much lighter, increasing not only morale but even the work effectiveness by a noticeable degree.
The command over the whole organization was taken over by a new general staff headed by Mei, with Kevin, Mobius, Eden, and me as members. In total, nine people were part of the new board, but it was an open secret that the power was held mostly by Mei and me. As we rarely disagreed, I didn't care who the true leader was, but for whatever reason, I was often pushed to act as the main representative of Fire-Moth.
It was something everyone agreed on; even Kevin was surprisingly supportive despite our relationship being average at most. Well, I was, in a sense, his rival in love; even if I didn't do much about that, I don't believe he had much of a liking for me. What's more, he still held some heroic beliefs close to his heart, so our philosophies would clash at times.
But I also could understand somewhat his present mentality, as the operation to turn him into so-called MANTIS had come with some unexpected side effects. His whole body now exuded a cold that made it impossible to approach him, his internal temperature never rising above -30 degrees Celsius. This also made him give up his pursuit of Mei, so his actions of supporting me might be to repair our relationship.
As for Mei, she felt pity for him; no matter what, he was her friend. She was well aware that had few things happened in a different way, she might have reciprocated his feelings. But she remained firm in her current stance, even becoming more aggressive after Eden entered the fray. Mobius also wasn't absent from this mess, but her situation was somewhat special.
She, secretly and alone, ignoring my and others' concerns, performed MANTIS surgery on herself, and while successful, she also got inflicted with a troublesome side effect. She succeeded in becoming immortal, and it was a high-rank immortality, making her capable of revival after death, but each time she died, she would become younger, which caused her some grief.
In just the past two months, she, from a mature twenty-something woman, now looked no older than a teen, and with her tendency for 'risky' procedures, she would regularly 'age backward'. While I wasn't concerned with appearance, after all, I also appeared to be a young adult despite being in my hundreds, her personality also seemed to be affected, becoming less and less concerned with matters of morality, even losing what remained of her reverence for life.
Her actions made her previously poor reputation become even worse, to the point that even some veteran members voiced concerns. Mei was finally forced to push her away from decision-making, confining her to her lab, causing some bad blood, but after my mediation, they made a reluctant peace. Two of them often clashed, but lately their conflict seemed to intensify.
Mobius focused more on her research after that, but she would still find time to visit me, be it to assist in my own work or for more private matters. As she became younger and more… unhinged… her playfulness also entered a new level, making me afraid to drink anything in her presence, as I might also turn into a child or grow some strange thing.
But ignoring that, she managed to perform more MANTIS surgeries with a surprisingly high success rate, bringing Fire-Moth to a new high. With MANTIS, we managed to clear most of the rogue Honkai beasts, bringing a 'peace' to the world once more. This made Fire-Moth enter a peak of popularity, but also caused dangerous arrogance to sprout.
Among all of that, I was troubled by a bottleneck I hit in my research. Not only did I not manage to make further progress on my Project Holy Blood, but I even failed to understand my current state, causing me some stress. On top of that, Mobius couldn't find a way for me to undergo the MANTIS procedure, causing Mei, who had too low Honkai Resistance, and me to be the only people who couldn't even attempt the procedure.
And the straw that broke the camel's back proved to be a small accident that happened while I was working with Vill-V. We were working on the 6th Divine Key when my carelessness caused the Herrscher Core to react. Luckily, there was no real damage or any casualties; only some energy entered my body without causing any harm.
This energy caused my blood to react, making me almost jump from the happiness of finding a glimpse into a new possibility, but before I could look into it, I was taken by angry Mei, Eden, Mobius, and Sakura for a stern talking-to. As a punishment for my negligence, I was ordered to perform a task in the infamous Sundown Alley, a runabout way of keeping me away from the lab for a few days. To not anger them further, I agreed with their judgment, taking Sakura and Griseo with me for a walk.
Two days later, our trio appeared in the biggest slum on the planet. For most, this place would be dangerous, causing them to be wary of their surroundings, and while we also kept the required vigilance, both Sakura and I were used to the battlefields, so we didn't feel much pressure. Griseo, who was protected by everyone, also wasn't tense, enjoying this novel place.
Three of us looked like a young family; for many, we were like tourists wanting to see what this place was about. While little Griseo was here for fun and Sakura was our guard, I had two tasks to achieve. The first was to track some stolen equipment, while the other was to investigate reports of a high concentration of Honkai-infected patients. When I read the report, I almost couldn't believe my eyes. If everything written there was true, then it was a miracle no minor eruption had occurred there yet.
I looked around the streets as we walked, noticing few points of interest, but what I paid more attention to were the people around. The environment here was not that bad, comparable to Lungmen's slums, so while not pleasant, it was livable. The difference between those two places was the community existing there.
Lungmen slums were mostly controlled by the Rat King, with other groups deferring to him in matters such as civilians and some public projects; here, there was no such figure, only spheres of influence and fragile alliances. As such, by watching people around, one could find what to do, or more importantly, what not to do.
At some point, my eyes found a sneaky figure approaching us. To not alarm them, I pretended to not be aware of their actions, even when they managed to steal Sakura's sidearm. But the thief hadn't given up yet, trying to grab more loot, so this time, when the hand was extended into my reach, I grasped it, dragging the person to me.
With a surprisingly cute yelp, a young girl appeared before me, looking spooked and guilty in about equal measure. I looked her up and down before motioning Sakura to retrieve her things. While we were observing the young thief, Griseo circled her with a sketchbook in hand, drawing like she usually did. When their gaze met, Griseo nodded lightly in greeting before returning her attention to her sketch.
When Sakura finished searching the young thief, I made her look at me and spoke in a calm yet authoritative tone.
-"Well then, would you mind guiding us around here? I believe that rather than us taking you, you'd lead us instead."