Chapter 9: Prelude to The Solitary Wave Algorithm

Watching the seemingly frozen girl and the fast-forwarded celestial movements outside, Jiang Mo's pupils widened slightly. For a moment, he couldn't comprehend what was happening.

Soon after, a translucent screen appeared in front of him.

Just like when he had first arrived here, lines of text began to slowly surface on the screen.

[After passing the test of the doll-like girl, you very smoothly became her first live-in tutor.]

[And on the second morning, you launched your first attack, throwing her an equally "unsolvable" question.]

[From that point on, the word emotion, something she had never paid attention to nor ever seriously considered, began to enter her world, planting a tiny seed in her heart.]

[After that, you started fulfilling your duty as a tutor, teaching the girl all sorts of knowledge.]

[She is smart, incredibly so. In just half a month, she had already mastered everything about imaginary energy fields.]

[Of course, this was within your expectations. After all, she's the Herta who chased away eight tutors for being too much of a genius.]

[But after today's lesson, she suddenly called out to you as if she had something to say.]

As the lines of text continued to appear, the speed of day and night cycling outside gradually slowed until it finally froze at dusk.

Herta rested her chin on one hand, gazing at Jiang Mo in slight confusion, and asked softly:

"Why are you spacing out? Do you think I couldn't possibly conduct research at this level?"

The girl's calm but slightly youthful voice snapped Jiang Mo back to reality. He looked instinctively at Herta, then froze again.

The orange sunset bathed Herta's figure. Her soft brown hair shimmered with golden hues, and paired with her flawless doll-like face, she exuded a touch of divinity that didn't seem human.

For a moment, Jiang Mo even thought... the girl before him wasn't human at all, but a goddess of wisdom bestowed by the heavens.

He suddenly understood why the producers would deem Herta's appearance her most valuable feature.

Even without the help of the sunset, this face alone was nothing short of magnificent and beautiful.

Praise be to Madam Herta.

So thought Jiang Mo.

Watching Jiang Mo still dazed, Herta frowned slightly and waved her hand forcefully in front of his face.

"If you think I can't do that kind of research, just say it. Don't look at me like that."

Compared to before, her tone had clearly turned colder, like a child throwing a tantrum.

That snapped Jiang Mo out of it, and he gave Herta an apologetic look.

"Ah? Sorry... I zoned out. What research were you talking about?"

"I want to try to crack the Solitary Wave Algorithm as my first public work in the field of imaginary energy."

"?!"

Jiang Mo looked at the calm-faced girl with a shocked expression. For a second, he was disoriented.

But this wasn't because he thought the girl was overestimating herself. Rather, it felt like his memories were scrambled.

Didn't we only fast-forward half a month? How the hell did this happen? Cracking the Solitary Wave Algorithm was something Herta did at thirteen. She's only eleven now.

Could my presence have caused her accomplishments to move forward by two years? No way, right?

Thinking that, Jiang Mo slowly closed his eyes and took a deep breath before speaking to the girl, who now wore a somewhat displeased expression.

"Miss Herta, if anyone else said this to me today, I would have doubted them and mercilessly shot them down."

"But... the one saying this is Herta, the most brilliant person I've ever met."

"Most people need at least three years to grasp the basics of imaginary energy fields. You did it in just half a month."

He paused for a moment, a knowing smile surfacing on his face.

"Now I get why those previous eight tutors left. Because you're the true definition of a genius."

As he spoke, Jiang Mo leaned back in his chair, watching the slowly shifting sunset outside, and muttered softly:

"We're all called geniuses by the outside world, some carrying that title for twenty or thirty years."

"Then suddenly, a girl even more radiant appears. Anyone would start to wonder if they've wasted their life."

"Compared to you, we so-called geniuses are actually just mediocrities. But..."

"I'm different. I've always thought I was the guy stuck somewhere between genius and mediocrity, so I never felt that gap."

Jiang Mo shrugged and turned his head toward Herta.

"I'm confident enough to keep pace with you academically, so..."

"I'll fully support your research on the Solitary Wave Algorithm and keep fulfilling my duties as your tutor."

A slight smile tugged at Jiang Mo's lips as he looked at the slightly surprised girl beside him and chuckled softly.

"Ah~ just the thought that a half-baked guy like me might be mentioned in the acknowledgments of a paper proving the Solitary Wave Algorithm makes me pretty happy."

"Since the basics of imaginary energy have been mastered, let's start moving toward solving the Solitary Wave Algorithm."

Saying that, Jiang Mo gently stretched his slightly stiff neck, then stood up and left Herta's room.

Just like he said, he was going to prepare research materials on the Solitary Wave Algorithm.

Watching his figure gradually fade into the distance, Herta tilted her head as if sensing emotions she had never felt before.

They had only known each other for half a month, and even now, she hadn't fully trusted Jiang Mo. So why...

Why did he trust her so completely?

From a rational perspective, she was just a beginner who had only grasped the basics of imaginary energy. What made her qualified to tackle a problem of the Solitary Wave Algorithm's level?

But this occasionally unserious man didn't seem to think that way.

His confidence made it seem like he had already foreseen the moment she cracked the algorithm.

"Why... is that?"

Herta murmured softly.

Then she gently shook her head, tucking away her doubts, and slowly opened the drawer beside her desk. From it, she pulled out a small purple notebook, turned to page fifteen, and began recording everything that had happened that afternoon.

[He seems to trust me unconditionally. Why... is that?]