Chapter 565

“…”

I completely forgot who you are, and yet we’re supposed to have a great relationship?

Confused by Leon’s out-of-this-world logic, Apheta opened her mouth but couldn’t think of anything to say, only managing an awkward smile in response.

“Oh… In that case, I’m really sorry…”

“It’s fine, I forgive you.”

“Then… thank you?”

“You’re welcome.”

“…”

Should I even have started a conversation with him? Realizing her brain couldn’t keep up with Leon’s train of thought, Apheta hesitated, cleared her throat, and said:

“Uh… my brainstem mapping isn’t finished yet, so I won’t bother you. We’ll chat another time!”

“I don’t mind being bothered.”

As if not understanding the underlying message in Apheta’s words, the moment she turned to leave, Leon quickly stepped forward and grabbed her wrist.

Although still unsure what method had caused Scorpion Bureau Director to sleep for so long, anyone who could get kicked in the groin and not wake up likely had some sort of issue with their soul.

And the Apheta in front of him, while perhaps not as powerful as the future Apheta 00, was definitely more knowledgeable about souls as the developer of the soul encoding technology.

“Ahh!”

Startled by Leon’s actions, Apheta was about to scream when suddenly Leon hooked his foot under the sleeping lanky man on the ground, lifting him up horizontally and presenting him before her.

“Since our relationship is so good, can you do me a favor?”

“W-What kind of favor?”

“Help me wake him up.”

As he pushed the unconscious Scorpion Bureau Director toward her, Leon explained:

“He was affected by your soul encoding tech… uh… then because of overwhelming excitement, he broke free from it briefly and immediately passed out. Can you revive him?”

Affected by soul encoding technology?

After hearing Leon’s explanation, Apheta couldn’t help but feel confused, stammering:

“B-but my soul encoding technology is only scheduled for its first human trial next Tuesday! Where did he get affected?”

“…”

Damn… I came too early.

Seeing the suspicion in her glasses-wearing face, Leon paused for a moment, then activated his [Performance Master] skill, sighing helplessly: “Guess I slipped up… Alright, this wasn’t something I wanted to reveal, but we aren’t from this era.”

“Huh?”

Expecting any possible answer except this bizarre plot twist, the glasses-wearing woman froze, stunned.

To make her “save” the Scorpion Bureau Director and help him escape from the painting, Leon began spinning a wild tale:

Fortunately, the future Princess Phelia is incredibly talented, continuing to lead the people in resistance against all odds, forcing the Mechanical Intelligence-controlled army into retreat, almost achieving victory.

But when the Mechanical Intelligence realized things were going south, they sent this controlled Cleaner back through a time machine developed in Zone 1 to eliminate Princess Phelia early, cutting off the rebellion of the Crocodile Kingdom at its roots.

He managed to break free from the soul encoding control due to an accident, but soon fell unconscious again. Meanwhile, the Mechanical Intelligence has dispatched stronger pursuers who might attack Princess Phelia again at any moment…

Following the Terminator template, Leon spun a quick story of time travel, earnestly looking at the now-dumbfounded Apheta while holding the snoring Scorpion Bureau Director:

“In short, that’s the situation. Whether or not he wakes up will decide the fate of the future Crocodile Kingdom. If you have time, could you help save him?”

“…”

Do I even have a choice? After hearing all this, if I don’t help, it would be like personally destroying the Crocodile Kingdom…

Skeptical, Apheta glanced at Leon, then without a word, grabbed several copper tubes connected to the brain model, attaching them in pairs to the Scorpion Bureau Director’s head.

His story sounds ridiculous, but there seems to be a grain of truth. It’s impossible to completely rule out the possibility that he’s a time traveler.

And while other things might be fake, my soul encoding technology cannot be faked—only I fully understand it. So, let’s check this guy’s condition.

If the waveforms from the copper tubes show traces of soul encoding, then what he said must be true—at least proving they are indeed time travelers!

“One by one, content inside, check at 69 Book Bar!”

As the glasses-wearing version of Apheta operated, the copper tubes connected by wires wobbled slightly, reflecting irregular waveforms on the instruments beneath the brain model. After studying the data for a bit, Apheta couldn’t help but widen her eyes in shock.

It’s true! This person’s soul actually bears traces of having been encoded!

“How’s it going?”

Knowing she had begun to believe him from the change in her expression, Leon immediately “anxiously” urged: “Edward’s strength is crucial. Can you wake him up?”

“His condition… is rather complicated.”

Overwhelmed by too much information, Apheta took off her glasses and massaged her temples forcefully: “This person’s soul strength is astonishingly high. If a normal person’s soul is like smoke, his is like a diamond, far harder. The soul encoding couldn’t truly engrave itself into his soul, so it just ‘stuck’ to the outside like a sticker.

The Mechanical Intelligence controlling him seemed aware this wasn’t stable enough, fearing he might accidentally break free, so they added extra safeguards within the soul encoding.

In simpler terms, if he shows any signs of breaking free, those ‘stickers’ attached to his soul will explode, covering his entire soul and completely cutting off his perception of everything…”

“Can you simplify that further? Can you save him or not?”

“I can, but it’s unnecessary.”

Apheta reassured:

“To remove the soul encoding, it would take me about three days. But given his soul strength, even if I don’t intervene, he should wake up in a day or two. So, it’s not urgent.”

Waking up in a day or two… By then, the opportunity will be long gone!

After hearing Apheta’s response, Leon’s face darkened.

Phelia has already been taken out. If I paint her into this artwork and follow her in, the Crocodile Royal Family will be extinct, drastically reducing the power of the Watchtower Palace.

However, trapped in the painting, if I want to stop him, I’d probably need the Silver Knife to cut through the world. But the Scorpion Bureau Director, the only one capable of doing that, remains unconscious. How am I supposed to…

Wait! Maybe this could work!

(End of Chapter)