Chapter 189

Chapter 189

Days later, the base building remained as imposing as ever, its light-gray facade soaring skyward. Researchers in white coats and armed soldiers on patrol moved with purpose, while the first-floor lobby buzzed with young faces, eagerly awaiting their classmates' return. The atmosphere was lively, almost festive.

Yet, a closer look revealed a subtle awkwardness etched on many faces.

Just like in the first round, helicopters were dispatched to various points on the competition grounds to retrieve the participants. First Empire Academy had once again claimed victory in the second round of the Five-School League. This time, however, the expressions of the other students facing them were noticeably strained.

Whether it was the so-called "miracle cockroach killer" or that audacious act of looting… was this truly the conduct expected of students from the empire’s most prestigious institutions?!

Adding to the absurdity, the perpetrators themselves seemed utterly unconcerned, even radiating pride as they disembarked from the helicopter, waving and smiling with such nonchalance that even the "victimized" students began to question themselves: could it be that they were merely compelled by the competition, and the students of First Empire Academy weren’t actually so bad after all?

Murphy inadvertently voiced this thought aloud and was promptly rewarded with a punch from his friend.

"Have you lost your mind?" Yang Haibo stared at him in disbelief. "No matter how much you prioritize looks over loyalty, you can’t just forget your roots like that!"

Had he forgotten who had snatched away all the supplies Blue Star Comprehensive had exchanged with their hard-earned points? And now he was defending those bullies from First Empire Academy!

Faced with his best friend’s shock, Murphy could only offer an awkward smile.

He had indeed been thoroughly exasperated in the end. With the paltry points he had left, vying for a higher ranking was out of the question. After casually exchanging for a few random items, he listlessly powered down his wrist device.

However, it was true, as he had said, that Murphy wasn’t particularly invested in winning the competition. He was there for the experience—winning was a bonus, but losing wasn’t worth dwelling on for too long. Perhaps it was this very mindset that allowed him to view things more objectively than others.

"It’s not so bad. First Empire didn’t actually break any rules, and they were much more polite than the Capital People's University folks," he nudged Yang Haibo’s shoulder. "Aren’t you interested in their school’s Medical Chief? Since the competition’s over, if you want to pick her brain, just go for it."

Even before the competition concluded, Murphy had learned from Yang Haibo the true reason behind First Empire Academy’s soaring points. He had initially assumed it was the brainchild of the young lady from the Medici family, so when he suddenly heard the unfamiliar name Lu Qing, his surprise quickly morphed into intense curiosity. If he felt this way, Yang Haibo, as an alchemist, would only be more intrigued.

Moreover, he had also heard that this Chief Lu was not only the mastermind behind the cockroach repellent but also the de facto commander of First Empire Academy in the latter half of the competition. She appeared unassuming, yet her cunning was truly formidable. Murphy found himself genuinely itching to know more.

But before he could approach her, someone else made their move.

"Chief Lu, may I have a word with you?"

The Military Academy President, renowned for her intellect, called out, but her arms were already spread wide, blocking the path of First Empire Academy’s team.

Imperial Arts and Sciences, with their students widely dispersed, hadn't returned much earlier than First Empire. Their president, Zhou Huixue, had been visibly distracted since disembarking from the helicopter. It wasn't until she spotted a particularly memorable figure at the base entrance that she seemed to regain her focus. Her eyes lit up, and despite her fellow students' attempts to hold her back, she darted over—though small in stature, she was remarkably agile. Even the chief of Imperial Arts and Sciences’ Mecha Department, standing nearby, couldn’t stop her.

After a quick glance at the other students, who had been forced to halt, and the subtle, assessing stares directed their way, Eve sighed at Zhou Huixue’s strangely persistent gaze. She adjusted her collar and nodded. "Let’s talk somewhere else."

The base offered numerous empty rooms and training facilities. Before the announcement of the Five-School League’s third round, students would train and live there for a period. The insectoids bred on Santa Star also served as excellent practical combat targets.

The two found an unoccupied spot with little effort. Closing the training room door behind her, Zhou Huixue cut straight to the chase. "Do you have any insights into the third round?"

"Me?" Eve replied, a hint of surprise in her voice. She hadn't expected Zhou Huixue to actually be here for serious business. The second round had just ended; she’d assumed the other girl would at least mention the previous results first. Instead, she dove right into the main topic—truly living up to her reputation as a cold, calculating figure, almost like a sentient supercomputer. "Why would you think to ask me about this?"

"Didn’t you send your people to copy my exchange list? You must have sensed something. Even if not, you should have gleaned clues from the list."

Zhou Huixue spoke with such conviction, her thoughts leaping ahead, that it took Eve a moment to untangle her rather peculiar logic.

While her deduction wasn't entirely wrong, Eve couldn't help but let out a small laugh. "President Zhou, copying your list might simply mean we wanted to borrow the famously sharp mind of Imperial Arts and Sciences’ president. You don’t have to assume everyone is as brilliant as you just because you lost one round."

At the very least, neither she nor the other students of First Empire Academy had the audacity or certainty to immediately identify all functional items and bet all their points on them the moment they realized the third round might hold a trap.

Thinking about it this way, there was indeed something oddly intriguing about Zhou Huixue.

"You’re not just anyone," Zhou Huixue stated, her gaze fixed on Eve, a hint of frustration in her tone. "I barely gathered any useful new intelligence about you this round."

Although the Mist Ravens had been diligently flying around the competition grounds collecting information, not all of it qualified as valuable intelligence. The intercepted information about the new drug from Imperial University of Science and Technology was intelligence, but it was time-sensitive and lost its value once the competition ended. Observing the habits and behaviors of key players from each school during the competition was another form of intelligence, one that could be carried over and utilized in the next round.

Unfortunately, Zhou Huixue hadn’t managed to glean any new information she considered exploitable from this young chief with the silver mask.

As for being an alchemist, that had already been submitted as basic information to the league committee before the competition, when she was reviewed as the Medical Chief. Her exceptional mecha piloting skills were indeed a surprise to alchemists, but Eve had already gained some fame for this before the competition—the video of her battle with the military training instructor had spread like wildfire on campus forums, even reaching neighboring Imperial Arts and Sciences.

Beyond that, there was little new information. Being clever and having unconventional thinking counted for something, but wasn't that basic for alchemists? As for her Spiritual State, it hadn’t been displayed at all. All her personal information, much like her habit of hiding behind a mask and robes, remained completely concealed.

Zhou Huixue was deeply dissatisfied, a feeling that even surpassed the embarrassment of losing the round.

"Ah… I see. But everyone has their secrets, don’t they?" Eve replied, actually relieved. She had been worried her disguise might have been exposed.

The intricate patterns on her silver mask were not merely decorative; they were part of an alchemical tool designed to block most probing methods. It seemed Zhou Huixue’s Spiritual State was among those effectively screened.

"I won’t give up," Zhou Huixue stated flatly. Her expression, serene enough to suggest monastic detachment, gave no hint as to what exactly she wouldn’t give up on. Seeing that she couldn’t extract any more information from Eve, she quickly lost interest in continuing the conversation—not that she disliked Eve, but she wasn’t fond of idle chatter that yielded nothing useful.

She had said enough for today.

She pressed the door handle. "See you next time."

Thoroughly bewildered, Eve looked at her, then at herself, unable to fathom why Zhou Huixue had specifically called her out just to… warn her?

"What a strange person," she muttered, crossing her arms and involuntarily shuddering. "She feels almost… non-human."

"Oh? Do you look down on non-human species?"

A woman’s laughing voice sounded. A strand of green hair draped over Eve’s shoulder. Turning, she saw Gu Zhaoxi, who had appeared out of nowhere, leaning lightly against her side, her deep jade-green eyes blinking mischievously. A closer look revealed the smile didn’t quite reach their depths.

Eve paused, then turned her head calmly. "Why did you follow me here?"

"I'm a major sponsor of the league. It's perfectly normal for me to check on my investment," Gu Zhaoxi said, slightly disappointed she hadn't startled Eve. She smoothed her hair before adding, "But I'm not the one looking for you right now. Hold off on switching back to your other identity and come with me first."

Eve, who had been about to shed the stifling disguise of "Lu Qing," made a sound of confusion but quickly understood what was happening.

"......"

Unlike the cramped training room, Gu Zhaoxi led Eve to a spacious, brightly lit formal conference room. However, after glancing at the few sheets of paper placed before her, Eve wished she could just faint.

Black text on white paper, formatted like a strict financial statement. The official seal of the Santa Star base was stamped in the bottom left corner of the last page. Every line item, every number, was staggering.

Gu Zhaoxi sat beside Eve, chin in hand, watching the scene with amusement. The base's negotiator, dressed in a dull gray military uniform, sat across the long table, speaking methodically. "My apologies, Student Lu Qing. We know the timing is rather abrupt, but certain matters must be discussed with you. Regarding the drug you released during the competition..."

"It has now caused a widespread problem, affecting an area far beyond the map provided to the league by the base..."

"As a military training planet, our insectoids are specially selected breeds, having undergone harmlessness and specialized strengthening experiments. The costs involved..."

The negotiator spoke with terrifying density. Eve's head spun as she read each line of specific compensation amounts, which culminated in an astronomical figure on the final page. Even Gu Zhaoxi, glancing at it, couldn't help but flinch. "Why so much?"

How many insectoids had died?

"Actually, this is the result of our efforts to contain the toxic drug," the negotiator said expressionlessly. "The quantity released was too great. The base's experts can no longer trace its spread through simulation."

As if sensing the topic was too heavy, he changed tack, pointing to the overhead light. "Do you know why we have the lights on in broad daylight?"

Eve: "Atmosphere?"

Gu Zhaoxi: "To showcase the Empire's bright future."

...The moment she spoke, her professionalism as a high-ranking official from the Education Ministry shone through. Even Eve couldn't help but glance at her.

"Neither," the negotiator shook his head with a slight smile. "While simulating the drug's transmission path, the lab's mainframe wasn't sufficient. A new researcher used the base's central brain as a supercomputer to run the data… and overloaded it. One of the consequences is that now all the lights on the base can't be turned off."

"......"

"Of course, we haven't included the electricity bill in the compensation claim, though everyone knows who the one to blame is."

The one to blame was obviously the new intern who didn’t bother to memorize the lab operating guidelines! Eve stared at him in shock, never expecting such a convoluted way to shift blame.

"This accounting clearly doesn't add up," she finally snapped, pushing the bill back toward the negotiator and retorting with practiced ease. "For such an outcome, the first to blame should be the base’s negligence in environmental factor impact assessment. This is a reagent that's been around for three days, isn't it? Knowing the effects yet failing to take timely preventive measures—the base bears primary responsibility here. Second, the organizing committee, as the provider of the reagent materials and the intermediary leasing the base’s grounds, should at least have someone sitting in, given the chaos that erupted during their event."

"Or is this lady here the representative from the organizing committee? I can't imagine the committee being that unconcerned."

Eve stood up, her gaze—half-smiling, half-mocking—sweeping over Gu Zhaoxi before returning to the negotiator, who appeared calm but with beads of sweat forming on his forehead. "To dump this outrageous bill in front of me without even looking into other parties—do you think alchemists are swimming in money, or is it just because I’m a student and an easy target?"

The large meeting room fell into dead silence. Aside from the unsurprised Gu Zhaoxi, everyone else stared, stunned, at Eve’s sudden aggressive tone. Even the guards at the door seemed taken aback.

No one expected a mere student to possess such nerve, daring to challenge representatives from a military base.

This is what negotiation is about—once you start, you can’t show weakness. The gray-suited negotiator was only stunned for a few seconds before losing all his earlier momentum. Meanwhile, Eve stopped playing nice, tossing the thin stack of papers onto the table and stating flatly, "I can guess what you really want from a student like me. But this isn’t the way to ask for a favor. Please leave. Until someone actually qualified to discuss this shows up, I won’t waste any more time with you."

"You—"

"Enough. No more talking. If you can’t even handle a young girl, you need more training, Yuri."

A new voice cut through the room, interrupting the exchange. At the gentle reprimand, the negotiator named Yuri paled and stepped aside. Eve heard Gu Zhaoxi, seated to her right, let out an almost imperceptible scoff.

"The sly old fox shows up," she muttered under her breath, displeased.

The newcomer finally stepped into the spot previously occupied by the negotiator. Instead of sitting down immediately, he smiled and extended his hand toward Eve.

He was a middle-aged man who seemed amiable, with blond hair and bright green eyes that felt strangely familiar to Eve.

"You must be meeting me for the first time. Allow me to introduce myself—I am Jacob Oliver, currently serving as the Minister of the Imperial Ministry of Education," the man said with a gentle smile. "Well then, young lady, let’s skip the pleasantries and get straight to the point. Regarding that remarkably effective reagent you’ve newly developed against the bug-like creatures, what price are you asking for it?"