As the commanding officer of the combat division of the military private armed organization Mithril, West Pacific Fleet, flagship Tuatha de Danaan, callsign TDD-1, the submarine's captain Teletha "Tessa" Testarossa was waiting on a piece of news.
It was extremely important news. News that could immediately change the world, news that could push human history into a completely new era.
If it succeeded, the world would become a much better place.
"I really hope Mr. Gold is a good person, and that he didn't lie."
"Mr. Gold?"
A middle-aged man with glasses, rigid and unsmiling, the sort who treated people severely and demanded strict standards, turned his head.
He was the executive officer: Richard Mardukas.
Recently, he had noticed something off about the captain. She seemed less attentive to her duties than usual, and at times she looked tense, distracted, and absent-minded.
Most notably, half a day ago, the captain had suddenly produced a formula.
She had ordered that this formula be treated at the highest level of secrecy. Richard Mardukas had immediately placed the submarine under full security lockdown, because the captain claimed it was new black technology obtained through her status as a Whisperer.
With that in mind, her strange behavior over the past several days became more understandable.
Most of the crew had not noticed anything in particular, but as her XO, Richard, along with a few others, had clearly noticed the captain's baffling shifts.
After all, the captain was still a teenage girl. She was brilliant, and she had become increasingly mature in how she handled matters, but it was still necessary to monitor her carefully to prevent any mishap.
According to the formula the captain provided, it was a pharmaceutical recipe called Earth Elixir. She claimed it could cure the vast majority of diseases in the current world, essentially a panacea.
It sounded absurd, unreal, but since it came from a Whisperer, it had to be taken seriously.
However, after reading the operating steps for how to actually manufacture it, Richard Mardukas fell silent.
Normally, even if a Whisperer provided a piece of black technology hidden in the brain, turning it into a practical technique or product could not possibly succeed immediately.
Yet the "procedure" written here looked like a joke.
Anyone who could read, anyone with a normal IQ, could follow these steps and synthesize the so-called Earth Elixir.
Seeing that, Richard's doubts about the captain returned.
Still, doubt was doubt. Testing it posed no real issue.
The materials required for the experiment were not particularly restricted, and if it succeeded even once, it would be a product capable of shaking the world.
In that case, global disorder and warfare would likely drop drastically, because one of the major root causes of conflict was disease.
So they had already used a special confidential communication line to contact Mithril's land-based facility, ordering their research institute, which also worked on pharmaceuticals, to accelerate replication of the formula and attempt Earth Elixir production.
And now, Richard suddenly heard the captain's muttered words, and his brows lifted.
"Who is that?"
"Huh?"
"Captain, who is this 'Mr. Gold' you mentioned?"
"Huh?"
Tessa's face stiffened this time.
Damn it. She had been too excited, too anxious, and she'd let it slip.
If she did not explain clearly, this overly strict executive officer would absolutely dig into it. This uncle was such a hassle.
"He's the provider of the Earth Elixir formula."
Tessa did not lie. It was true.
That answer only made Richard's brows knit so tightly they could crush a fly.
At the same time, another senior figure on the bridge turned his eyes toward them with a measured seriousness.
Andrei Sergeivich Kalinin, commander of Mithril's West Pacific Fleet Marine Corps Special Response Team (SRT).
After all, Tessa had never left this submarine. How, then, had she come to know some "Mr. Gold" whom nobody had ever heard of?
"Do you think a Whisperer's black technology comes out of thin air?"
"Of course not," Richard replied.
"Yes. There are multiple hypotheses," Kalinin said. "One of them is that it comes from some form of future technology, transmitted back into the past and stored inside human infants. Those children become what we call Whisperers."
"In other words," Richard said, pushing up his glasses, "Captain, this time, the person who developed this technology, the person behind this formula, is someone you have actually confirmed exists?"
"Yes."
"Truly?"
"Truly."
Facing Richard's gaze, Tessa held eye contact with a very serious expression, while inwardly panicking.
In the end, the XO seemed to accept it and did not press further, which made her quietly exhale in relief.
As for the formula, it was, of course, something Tessa had copied in full while peeking at a livestream.
The entire process had been broadcast without omission. That was exactly why Mr. Gold had specifically asked Miss Shiko Busujima to spread the technology to everyone.
So Tessa had immediately ordered her people to reproduce the experiment.
If technology from Mr. Gold's world could be used on Miss Busujima's side, then it should also be feasible in Tessa's world.
Still, even if they replicated the steps exactly, it might not work.
Even if both were "Earth," even if the environment was similar, pharmaceuticals could differ.
For example, the same painkiller might have the same active ingredients, but be produced by different manufacturers, different brands.
During synthesis of Earth Elixir, there could be issues.
There might be subtle differences in the painkiller used, differences in ingredient ratios. Some medicines list components but not precise proportions, describing only the effect. And some "similar" drugs were, in practice, not identical.
So ideally, Mr. Gold would come to her world once and bring that hard drive.
Then there would be no problem at all.
Since the XO was no longer questioning her, Tessa decided to "rest her eyes" and check what Mr. Gold was doing right now.
Hyperdimensional Channel. Whisperer login.
The moment she entered the channel, a warning wall popped up:
[Tendo Civil Security Company: Don't enter the stream. Red alert. You will regret it!!!]
[Tendo Civil Security Company: Don't enter the stream. Red alert. You will regret it!!!]
[Tendo Civil Security Company: Don't enter the stream. Red alert. You will regret it!!!]
She immediately saw the harsh warning text from Miss Kisara Tendo, repeated three times.
From the emotional intensity of the typing, it was as if Kisara was shouting with a flushed face.
So, naturally, the curious Tessa clicked in anyway.
What could possibly make Miss Kisara Tendo react like this? It was strangely cute.
The livestream image that appeared made Tessa freeze for a moment.
What was this?
Miss Shiko Busujima had something… held beneath her collarbone, pressed at her chest?
Tessa didn't understand at first.
But then she pulled the camera back.
Yes. The livestream, the "god's-eye view," could apparently adjust zoom distance now.
When she had been copying the formula earlier, she had zoomed very close to see the details.
Now, as she zoomed back out—
Uh?
Ah?
Eh?
E-eh-eh-eh…!
(End of Chapter)
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