Chapter 225: Why is there a woman next to you?

In the early morning, Ryan stood on the roof, peering through the cracks in the tiles. Inside, Pardofelis lay on the floor, spread out in a starfish shape, drooling from the corner of her mouth. Her sleeping position had a wild beauty to it.

What a terrible sleeping posture. She was wrapped up like a caterpillar last night, but once she fell asleep, she let her guard down completely.

Her slender legs were spread apart, her right hand occasionally scratching her flat stomach. She mumbled something like, "Canned peaches are really good," sleeping like a dead pig—she wouldn't wake up even if a stone hit her head.

At first, Ryan had covered her with a blanket a few times, but later gave up on that useless effort. After two days of interacting with Pardofelis, he couldn't quite put his finger on the strange feeling she gave him.

A little shy, a little kind, a little passionate, and a little brave.

It was comfortable, like dealing with a simple girl who didn't drain too many brain cells to get along with.

"But fate is still quite stubborn. Now the Herrscher of Ice is hiding, yet Kalpas still comes to Sundown Alley."

Ryan sighed helplessly. In the original timeline, Kalpas had been injured after killing the Herrscher of Ice and was picked up by Aponia. Now, the Herrscher was hiding somewhere, and here he was, showing up in Sundown Alley.

It didn't matter. Ryan wasn't particularly interested in Kalpas's past, but this made Sundown Alley even more dangerous.

That man didn't seem like someone who could have a civil conversation. His intuition was extremely sharp, and he wasn't sure if Vil-V's toys could fool him.

Ryan was troubled. If Kalpas discovered him, it would definitely lead to a bloody battle. Although he was far stronger than he was in the desert, and could probably match Kalpas, he didn't come to Sundown Alley to make enemies.

"Dealing with Kalpas will require all my strength. But that would expose me, and there's still an unknown number of Herrschers waiting for me. Is there any way to make Kalpas reveal himself first?"

If he started a fight with the Fire Moth or the Herrschers and then jumped in to assist, he might gain some goodwill. But there was also a problem.

"Aponia hasn't undergone the fusion surgery yet, so she might not survive the aftermath of the battle. If she dies, my plan will have to be delayed significantly."

Among the thirteen elite warriors, two were specialists in targeting humans—one was the physical-type Sakura, and the other, the psychic-type Aponia. In Ryan plan, this nun was incredibly important—irreplaceable.

Ryan paced on the roof, trying to think of a perfect solution, but couldn't come up with one. However, thanks to Pardofelis, the groundwork had already been laid.

The grain she had brought contained trackers on those people. The nursing home would inevitably come into the Fire Moth's line of sight, as they probably thought there was some kind of transaction between them. After all, no normal person would think that the commotion last night was just to get Pardofelis to deliver a few bags of rice.

And now there was something even more important—

Ding-a-ling!

The phone rang. Ryan didn't even need to check the contact name before answering. "So, have you found any information on 'Dusk'?"

"Could you not be so practical and just ask right away?" Mobius was sitting at her computer, quietly rolling her eyes. She flicked her pen and looked at the notebook filled with information on her desk.

"What do you want then? Small talk?"

Why can't we just talk? This bastard goes out, and all he ever does is ask me for this and that, has he ever considered my feelings?

And on top of that, he doesn't even pay me—always freeloading!

Mobius silently raged in her mind, of course, not daring to say it out loud. She had to act serious, or she'd be ridiculed and lose face.

"Fine, if it weren't for the fact that Mei was pulled in to observe the virtual space, I wouldn't bother helping."

"But you helped anyway."

"That's because I had conditions. Remember, tell that Wooden pole to find its own place to stay. Why should it come in and occupy your room?"

"But you stayed at my place too, and you clearly had your own place..."

"Hm? You dare go back on your word?"

"Fine, fine, I'll call her when I have the time. But this is a covert operation. Don't waste time. Even with interference, the Intelligence Department can locate the signal," Ryan quickly responded, sounding anxious.

Heh, I don't know when I'll have time. You guys treat my room like an entertainment hall. Without Hua around, it's probably going to turn into a garbage dump.

Heh, I knew you were in a hurry and wouldn't negotiate.

Thousands of miles apart, both of them laughed, mocking each other's foolishness and naivety.

Mobius stopped spinning her pen, cleared her throat, and said seriously, "I accessed the central database through the backdoor Mei left behind. Listen carefully to the anomalies below."

The central database... is that your public restroom? You just come and go as you please?

Ryan mentally complained while jotting down every word. According to Mobius, the codename "Dusk" didn't exist within the Fire Moth. It was likely a fake identity within another fake identity. However, she had found "The Dusk Project" in the database.

This project was proposed about fifty years ago to study the long-term effects of Honkai energy on the human body and then use genetic technology to adjust these effects.

Unfortunately, the detailed data had long been lost due to the passage of time. All they knew was that the Fire Moth's predecessor had set up five experimental sites worldwide. Later, when the organization restructured, this research, which had massive negative public opinion, was terminated.

"This is normal. The Fire Moth's original purpose was to eradicate Honkai energy. I remember their initial slogan was to establish a 'blue and clean world.' Later, they realized Corruption couldn't be eradicated and changed the slogan."

"Out of fear and unwilling to change, they viewed all evolution as negative. Such foolish behavior," Mobius scoffed.

"You think everyone is as suicidal as you are."

"Heh, I have one more important piece of information. Looks like you don't want to hear it."

"Don't. I'm talking about myself."

That's more like it. Ah, I think I've figured out how to handle this bastard. When it's serious business, he won't be sarcastic.

Mobius suddenly became cheerful again before becoming serious. "I found an unusual movement in the council. A Punishment Sword squad was deployed to Southern Europe, and two high-ranking fusion warriors, one of them being 'Ice-Breaking Fist' Andewich."

"Ice-Breaking Fist? The one guarding the South Pole sanctuary? A warrior from the Russian region," Ryan recalled, remembering the warrior's file, number CM006.

Due to his influence, at least the order of the fusion warriors had been completely disrupted. Mobius had become number 1, the previously top-tier Kevin had become number 4, and the recently operated Vil-V had dropped to number 17.

This included Ryan as 002, Sakura as 003, Hua as 010, Ken as 011, and Elysia, who still hadn't undergone surgery. Counting them all, there were eighteen high-ranking fusion warriors.

Compared to the billions of humans, this number was pitifully small, but it was still much greater than the original timeline, where the number of fusion warriors at this point was zero.

"What are you thinking? Why have you suddenly stopped talking?" Mobius asked, her perception sharp.

"Nothing. Just thinking that if it weren't for the two of us pushing things forward, these high-ranking fusion warriors might have died at the hands of some Broken Beast. They would have never lived to undergo surgery, or they'd have become experimental materials."

Ryan shook his head. This was his biggest contribution. He had simply corrected many mistakes, reducing unnecessary losses. Like the "King of Assassins" he had killed before, if he hadn't come out to take the risk, there would likely be nineteen fusion warriors now.

"Then you've dug your own grave. In the Fire Moth, aside from that fat woman, no one else is your match."

"Not necessarily. Among these eighteen, besides you all, the others are not specifically against me. They're neither friends nor enemies." Ryan remained confident. He thought of Coleman.

This warrior, nicknamed "Void," with the code CM015, was of this type—carrying out orders, but with his own opinions.

"Do as you wish. I'm only responsible for the surgeries," Mobius smiled subconsciously. She liked Ryan confident tone. It was as if there were no problems in the world. "But let me correct something. There are no longer eighteen of them. Some have already fallen, but some you need to pay special attention to."

File transfer. Ryan opened his email and briefly looked through it. He noticed a few names—like a cross-dressing tough guy and a pair of rather beautiful twin girls. He wondered if they had appeared in the original timeline.

The butterfly effect was too strong now. Maybe, in a city saved from destruction because of Ryan, there was a genius who could become a "superman." Maybe they had already joined the Fire Moth but had died in some insignificant raid.

Ryan didn't think much about it and switched back to the audio: "Got it, but that red-robed person doesn't seem to be in the file?"

"That's normal. I don't know the identity of another high-ranking fusion warrior. It was that one who did the surgery."

"Damian? Has his skill level really reached this point?"

"He's a genius. If he can't do it, he should go back to elementary school. So there's more to this than just the obvious. You need to be careful."

"I understand. Their positions are not easy to predict."

"Do you really understand?"

"Do you think I'm an idiot?" Ryan hummed, then turned his head.

Pardofelis jumped onto the roof, rubbing her eyes, and asked, "Who are you talking to? Hey, why does your voice sound different?"

Ryan had been speaking with Mobius, so he had to use his normal voice. Otherwise, he'd be laughed at for sounding like a woman.

Adam is obviously a man. Listen to that name, how domineering.

"Hey, why is there a woman next to you? This voice is so unfamiliar?"

There was noise on the other end of the phone, and Mobius's ears were sharp, but Ryan didn't have time to explain.

He hung up and switched back to Adam's voice: "A companion. Did my voice change?"

Pardofelis thought she had woken up groggily and didn't think much about it.

"What are we doing today?"

"What do you want to do?"

"Of course, I want to lie comfortably on the roof and bask in the sun. The weather is really nice today." Pardo yawned, ready to lie back down, but her ear was suddenly pinched.

"Ouch, ouch, okay, let's talk."

"From now on, I'm going to teach you how to read and write. So, we need to go to the street to buy something and grab some lunch. Hey, what kind of look is that?"

Ryan saw Pardo staring at him with a strange look. It was a mix of joy, disbelief, and a little hesitation.

"I thought you were just saying that casually. In Sundown Alley, a strong person like you wouldn't waste time on a weakling like me."

"First, a strong person must be human. And you're not weak. You've managed to stay true to yourself in a place like Sundown Alley, becoming unique. At least you're more determined than most people." Ryan said casually, but there was no trace of pretense in his red eyes.

"Or are you scared of me? If you don't want to learn, it's fine. I won't force you. I don't want to waste time."

Pardofelis was still in a daze, but it had nothing to do with fear of strength. She felt that after getting to know Ryan for a few days, being treated to food, and being offered to learn reading and writing, even agreeing with her little theft, yet never being asked to do bad things.

In the dark forest of Sundown Alley, she had never seen a strong person like this, because even the best ones were like the madmen in the nursing home, making people not dare approach them.

"I'll learn, it's just... just..." Pardofelis twisted her slender waist, paused for a moment, then raised her head and smiled brightly.

"I suddenly don't fear you anymore."