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[Start of the chapter]
His consciousness struggled up from the depths of a dark ocean, finally breaking through a layer of sticky membrane.
Tsuda Takao snapped his eyes open. A sharp, splitting headache made him suck in a breath of cold air. His vision stayed blurry for a few seconds before slowly clearing. Above him was a rough, dim rock ceiling, and the air was thick with the smell of rust, dust, and a faint trace of mold.
"Where… am I?"
Fragments of memory surged into his mind like a rising tide—the Ten Rings, the kidnapping, the surveillance, a pompous, motor-mouthed genius… and the electric-shock wound on his chest that still throbbed faintly.
He remembered that he had originally been a battlefield doctor from Japan, and his name was Tsuda Takao. He had been kidnapped by a group of terrorists called the Ten Rings and forced to save the life of a rich man named Tony Stark. Later, he and Tony became friends and planned an escape together. When the terrorists noticed something was off, he had taken the fall to cover for Tony, was tortured and electrocuted, then passed out—at which point the memories of his previous life awakened.
"Wait… the Ten Rings? Tony Stark?"
Takao quickly turned his head. Sure enough, on the crude workbench beside him, a man in a dirty white shirt, hair in a mess yet with unmistakable intelligence shining in his eyes, was carefully fiddling with some metal parts. That face was all too familiar to him—Robert Downey Jr.—no, Tony Stark, the future Iron Man.
And this cave prison they were in was clearly the very place where the legend of the Marvel Cinematic Universe began.
Transmigrated?
No, he should say he had already transmigrated long ago; he had only now awakened the memories of his previous life. And he had become Tony's fellow captive? From the looks of it, he had taken over Yinsen's role and become Tony's savior.
A chill crawled up his spine.
He knew exactly what was supposed to happen next—Tony would build the Mark I Iron Man armor and then charge out of here together with Dr. Yinsen. The process would be incredibly dangerous, and Dr. Yinsen would sacrifice himself for it. As for him, Tsuda Takao, an ordinary man who wasn't even strong enough to truss up a chicken, what were his chances of surviving in this death-trap of a cave?
Just as panic was about to clamp down on his heart, a cold, emotionless voice suddenly rang directly in his mind:
"Ding! Host's past-life memories detected. Binding conditions met…"
"Artificial Waifu Manufacturing System, officially activated!"
A translucent, high-tech interface appeared before his eyes.
"This system can, by collecting precious items imbued with 'value' or 'concepts' as core materials and combining them with the host's design, manufacture 2D artificial anime-style companions who are one hundred percent loyal to the host."
"Note: The chosen material must share at least one 'term entry link' with the waifu you have in mind. Only then can the manufacturing succeed."
"Host, please gather your first material as soon as possible and begin your waifu-making journey!"
A system. A cheat ability.
Takao's heart pounded wildly. The joy of finding a way out of a desperate situation almost made him cry out loud. But the phrase "term entry link" in the system's explanation quickly calmed him down. Precious item… term linkage…
Unconsciously, his gaze drifted toward the workbench—toward the small device Tony had just finished assembling, which was emitting a soft, eerie blue glow.
The Arc Reactor.
Without a doubt, it was the most "valuable" and "concept-heavy" item in this place: a clean, efficient, virtually limitless power source. What could that be linked to?
In an instant, countless 2D waifu silhouettes flashed through Takao's mind. Waifus who could be associated with "energy," "nuclear fusion," "arc," "reactor"…
A bold and crystal-clear plan formed in his heart.
He took a deep breath, forced down his excitement, and spoke in as calm a tone as he could manage, breaking the silence in the cave.
"Tony."
Tony was fully focused on fine-tuning the reactor's output. He didn't even look up when he answered, "Hm? Takao, you're awake? How do you feel? Those bastards really didn't hold back."
"I'll live," Takao said. He leaned against the cold stone wall, propping up his still-weak body. "Tony, do you believe in magic?"
Tony's hands froze mid-adjustment. He finally looked up, staring suspiciously at Takao with bloodshot yet still-sharp eyes. His lips twisted into a helpless sort of smirk.
"You're sure there really is such a thing as magic?" He tapped a finger against his temple. "Takao, has being stuck in here too long messed something up in here? What we need is science, and this"—he rapped lightly on the reactor sitting on the table—"not some fairy-tale nonsense."
Takao had long expected this kind of reaction and didn't get annoyed. Instead, he smiled.
"Whether it exists or not, you'll know if you try it. All you have to do is, on paper, transfer the ownership of that…" His eyes flicked to the device. "Mm, Arc Reactor, over to me."
"Ownership? Transfer it to you?" Tony's brows furrowed at once, his face basically spelling out "no way in hell." He instinctively shielded the reactor with his hand like a mother hen protecting her chick.
"Hey, man, I know the situation is rough, but are you sure you're not trying to scam my invention? This is my key to getting out of here!"
Takao spread his hands helplessly, his tone taking on a teasing edge.
"Come on, use that genius brain of yours. If I really had bad intentions, why wouldn't I just wait until you were snoring like a dead pig at night and steal it then? Your snoring carries several meters, you know."
Tony's expression turned ugly at once, like someone had just stomped on his tail.
"Oh, damn it, Takao! The thing I hate most is people comparing me to a pig!"
He grumbled, but the wariness in his eyes clearly eased. He glanced at the softly glowing reactor in his hand, then at Takao's open, straightforward expression, then around at the cell filled with nothing but them and a pile of junk.
After a few seconds of silence, Tony seemed to come to a decision. His shoulders relaxed, and he spoke in a tone that was a mixture of resignation and "screw it."
"Fine, fine, you've got a point. We're stuck in this damned cave and going nowhere anyway. Handing it over to you on paper doesn't really cost me anything… Worst case, if your 'magic' flops, I'll just take it back."
Like he was completing an extremely reluctant deal, he pushed the Arc Reactor toward Takao—though his fingers still clung to the edge as he emphasized, "Listen, it's only on paper! And if you really screw something up, I'm not cleaning up after you!"
"Detected a qualifying precious item: Arc Reactor (miniature)."
"Item value: extremely high. Contained concepts: energy, nuclear fusion, arc."
"Ownership transfer complete."
"Use this item as manufacturing material?"
Got it.
Joy surged through Takao's heart, but his face stayed calm as he took the Arc Reactor, still warm from Tony's hands. The cold outer shell and the vast, surging power sealed within made his palm feel faintly hot.
"Of course. If something goes wrong, I'll take responsibility," Takao said, gripping the reactor tightly as he felt the invisible link forming between it and the system.
He hesitated no longer and silently answered the system in his heart: Yes.
"Ding! Key material 'Arc Reactor (prototype)' confirmed as voluntarily gifted. Material has been bound. Requirements for template 'Skadi (Arknights)' met. Begin manufacturing now?"
"Yes!" Takao replied in his mind, clenching the still-warm reactor in his hand.
(End of Chapter)
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