Chapter 2: Seele would probably provide insurance for its members, right?

Staring blankly at the newspaper, it read, "After the extinction of the dinosaurs, the Earth faces a second meteor impact! The disaster caused by a meteor strike in Antarctica, shifting the Earth's axis, has halved the global population."

In his previous life, he had never encountered anything as bizarre as what he faced in the past few days. It was unbelievably surreal.

He had actually traveled to the world of *Evangelion*! And what's more, he was the cousin of Yui Ikari and Gendo Ikari, and the future protagonist Shinji Ikari's uncle.

Unbelievable! This is beyond ridiculous! This world was even worse than being transported to the war-torn world of *Naruto*; at least there, with a bit of luck, one could live out their life in peace. But in the *Evangelion* world... well, everyone except the main characters in the original version turned into orange juice.

In the new version, it wasn't much different. But wait! *Evangelion* is much better than ending up in something like *Naruto*. At least it's a modern setting with internet access, and there's hope of being revived after the events of the story if one dies during the final impact.

Thinking about this, he let out a sigh of relief. Great—if he remembered correctly, Misato Katsuragi and others started university around 2005. If they could attend university, then the order must have been somewhat restored. It was now 2002, which meant the external turmoil would settle within a year or two. So, once order was restored, he planned to find a way to gather some startup capital and start a game company, making some of those gacha games from his past life to earn money and live a life of luxury.

Even if he died, it wouldn't be a loss. And if he got revived, he could enjoy life for a few more decades. Either way, it was a win-win. It was regrettable that the original owner's parents died in the Second Impact. Normally, that would count as an accidental death, and there should have been a substantial insurance payout. Unfortunately, the insurance company they were insured with disappeared during the Second Impact. Otherwise, with that payout as startup capital, he wouldn't have needed to stay in the research institute to swindle a salary.

Ugh—

A shady organization like Seele should provide life insurance for its lower-level members, right?! Maybe? They should—

"Heh—at a time like this, thinking about such things... I should focus on figuring out how to stay alive."

Slumping on the bed, he forced a bitter smile. While his future plans seemed promising, they didn't solve the key issue. His body carried the surname Ikari, and he was related to Gendo Ikari's family. This almost certainly meant the original owner was a member of Seele. In a cult-like organization that wanted to turn all of humanity into orange juice, it was impossible to leave once you joined. If he showed any signs of wanting to leave, he would inevitably face death.

Using the landline in the dormitory, he called Akagi Eri.

"Is there a computer that can connect to the outside internet?"

He had been too tense before to think about playing games, but now that the situation wasn't so dire, his thoughts naturally wandered.

"I'm sorry, but the external situation is still chaotic. The domestic internet hasn't been restored yet."

"Okay—"

"Would you like me to report this request to the higher-ups?"

"Please do."

"Could you tell me what you want to use the internet for? It could increase the chances of approval."

Playing games... How could he say something so ridiculous? It definitely needed to be dressed up a bit.

"I want to browse international academic forums."

"That might not be possible even with the restoration of the domestic internet. The situation in Europe and America is even more chaotic, and it might be a while before academic forums are restored."

I'm not really looking to discuss these things with you. Forget it...

Might as well be straightforward.

"Okay, then get me a game console."

???

Akagi Eri was clearly taken aback for a moment before responding.

"Alright, I'll report your request."

Three days passed in the blink of an eye. During these three days, Ikari Fumihiko did nothing. He didn't think about anything either... No, to be precise, he stopped thinking. There was still no word on the game console request.

Akagi Eri rang the doorbell, and when Ikari Fumihiko opened the door, she spoke.

"Dr. Fumihiko, the higher-ups have requested you go to the secondary research area."

Here it is—

What was bound to happen finally happened.

Sigh!

At this point, he had no choice but to face the situation head-on. He could only grit his teeth and take it one step at a time.

"Alright, let me change my clothes."

After a quick wash, he put on his lab coat and left the dormitory for the secondary research area. After swiping his card and entering, he saw Gendo Ikari standing not far away.

Holy crap—

Gendo Ikari is this handsome in real life? Wait, no... That's not the point. The question now is how to interact with this old fox without revealing anything.

Hold on! Yui Ikari is 26 years old, and Gendo Ikari looks nearly forty. They must have at least a ten-year age difference.

An older husband and a younger wife??

In the original story, wasn't it said that they met in college and that Gendo was Yui's senior? Uh... It seems the original story only mentioned that they met in college.

Once the secondary research area door closed again, Gendo spoke before Ikari Fumihiko could ask anything.

"Fumihiko, Yui asked me to come and get you."

???

Could this be the research facility where they create EVA units?

Following the principle of saying as little as possible to avoid mistakes, he simply responded.

"Okay."

Perhaps because the two didn't have much of a relationship, or maybe due to some other reason, Gendo didn't react to Ikari Fumihiko's indifferent attitude. He didn't say anything further and silently led the way. They passed through three layers of protective gates before reaching their destination.

A door marked with the number 0.

As soon as they entered, they saw what looked like a massive, skinless creature, its terrifying appearance startling Ikari Fumihiko.

???

Holy crap—

Is this big guy... the EVA in its initial form?

The "0" marked on the door indicated that this was the experimental prototype Unit-00 from the original story?

The giant creature was submerged in a viscous, blood-like liquid, making it impossible to see its full form.

80 meters tall. Shoulder width...

???

What the hell, how did I just glance at it and immediately know the relevant numbers?

Oh, right—

He didn't inherit the memories or intelligence, but the brain was still the original owner's brain.

Seeing that Gendo continued walking forward without stopping, he quickly followed. They walked through a sensor door and into a control room where over a dozen staff members in white lab coats were busy at their workstations.

Ignoring the surrounding staff, Gendo stood in front of the transparent window, gazing deeply at the EVA submerged in the pool of liquid. After a moment, he spoke.

"During your hospitalization, most of the work here was completed. We're currently in the modification phase. For now, you'll be assigned to Professor Ishida's team."

They walked down the corridor to a door marked with the number 1. The interior layout was similar to that of the Unit-00 lab, except the red liquid contained only the head of a sample, not a complete biological specimen, making it somewhat unsettling.

Not far away, a large group of people was assembling some equipment.