Bronya: I'm Well-Developed, Just Young in Age

"No, this news is too important..." Schrodinger said excitedly, about to get up and leave.

But the sudden movement made her vision go black, nearly causing her to fall. Fortunately, Joyce was right beside her and caught her just in time.

"Doctor Schrodinger," Joyce's voice turned serious. "You should rest now. I'll handle informing everyone else..."

After helping Schrodinger steady herself, Joyce headed for the door.

"In about two hours, we'll bring everyone here to discuss matters. I hope you'll be in better condition to participate in that discussion."

With that, Joyce left without looking back. Shu glanced at the departing Joyce, then back at Schrodinger who remained standing there.

"Doctor Schrodinger... you..."

"Aih..." Schrodinger sighed, then bent down and laboriously picked up Little Sora. "It's alright... Joyce has always been very firm when it comes to these official matters... Even Albert can't do anything about it."

As she spoke, she offered Shu an apologetic yet weary smile. "Actually, Joyce is the most tired one among us... She hasn't slept for three months, just relying on her data-based body..."

"Normally, she's the one everyone teases. She only becomes assertive when discussing serious business... I believe you'll see that side of her soon enough..."

"Are you so certain our relationship will become very good?" Shu paused for a moment, then asked.

Schrodinger looked down. "Yes... I'm certain... From the moment you reached out and rescued Little Sora, I already understood. You're a good person too..."

"And Joyce... she has a fatal attraction for any good person..."

She smiled. "See? You've only just met, and weren't you already half-dragged by her into a strange lady's house?"

Is that supposed to be a good thing?!

Shu covered his eyes, muttered "yes, yes" twice, then practically fled Schrodinger's house, following Joyce's footsteps.

Watching the closed door, Schrodinger let out an exhausted yawn.

"A pity... you already have Fire Moth... You must have invested a lot there too... Little Black, let's go sleep for a bit... just a little while..."

"Meow~"

---||---

Outside, Joyce stood by the door, waiting until Shu had closed it before speaking. "Shu, do you know any other [Settings]?"

Heh... Since when did Joyce stop adding 'Mr.'?

After Schrodinger pointed it out, Shu realized he had inexplicably lost that initial sense of distance towards Joyce.

And Joyce herself acted as if it was perfectly natural...

"I don't know much either... After all, I'm an adult... There are many things about children's thinking I don't understand... For example, I don't know why these children like Homu so much..."

Joyce's eyes widened. "Shu, you don't like Homu?"

Shu: "..."

He'd forgotten. Anti-Entropy was a place with an extremely high concentration of... something. For a military organization to seamlessly transition into an entertainment company, that required some serious foundation, right?

Don't even say it was Old Yang's doing. A Joyce who could declare, "Tyrant of the heavens! Witness the stars shatter!" was no pushover either!

It was just that certain industries weren't as developed back then... Who knew what this Joyce would be like?

"Ahem... Maybe I'm just special..." Shu coughed. Suddenly, he remembered something. "Right, Joyce, do you know... no, wait. You're the author of Homu Brave Fights the Evil Dragon, aren't you?"

Joyce: "...I am... I was very young back then."

It really is you... So you were born in 1900?

Shu's eye twitched. He sighed and pointed to the profession above his head. "Then what's your [Setting] for the [Demon Lord]?"

"Very strong, very terrifying, but will be defeated by the hero," Joyce answered honestly.

"Then, may I ask, what does this [Defeated] refer to?" Shu glanced at the top of Joyce's head. There was nothing there, which was another point that puzzled him.

It wasn't just Joyce; none of the underground residents had professions, as if the Spring Festival hadn't affected them.

Except for one—the Homu that had told him to calm down.

"Hmm... Perhaps this is also a [Setting]?" Joyce thought for a moment, understood, and then immediately said.

Shu looked at Joyce speechlessly. "Alright... you were indeed very young back then..."

The Demon Lord will definitely lose to the hero... That's truly a [Setting] only a young child would believe... Justice will always triumph over evil, and all that.

After all, any slightly older adult would always parrot the phrase "the victor is justice."

...Heh, what boring adults. Himself included...

But if that was the case, another headache arose.

None of them now could truly understand a child's way of thinking. He had become somewhat accustomed to being cautious. Joyce had lived for over a hundred years; she definitely didn't have her former way of thinking anymore.

Schrodinger and the others were even less likely to understand a child's simple, sometimes fallacious, logic...

Shu's eyes suddenly lit up.

Wait a minute... A child's way of thinking... Future City might not have it, but that didn't mean Fire Moth didn't!

Bronya and Kiana! One was close in age, and the other's mental age...

But his primary goal was to rescue Kiana, so he couldn't count on Kiana's input for now...

"Joyce, is there any way for me to contact my companions again?" Shu asked immediately.

Joyce nodded. "Of course. But may I ask why? Maintaining communication risks exposing this place. I can only leave here freely when fully equipped."

Shu nodded. "It's fine. As long as I can contact them whenever needed."

"One of my companions is not very old. She should be able to understand these children's thoughts..."

Joyce's steps abruptly halted. She looked at Shu with an indescribable expression.

"This 'not very old'... how old are we talking?"

"Um... around fourteen..." Shu didn't think too much and truthfully stated Bronya's age.

The Ural Silver Wolf was so famous; Joyce could find out Bronya's age with a quick search. What was there to hide?

Having seen many petite women, Joyce, who had subconsciously assumed Bronya was also someone who wouldn't grow much, fell silent for a moment before speaking faintly.

"You Fire Moth... also exploit child labor?"