Chapter 1401: line with translation of chapter title

NO. 17: Do you want to know the secret of the horse girl? He is a demon lurking in Teleisen.

As a researcher, what is the most important thing?

Answers vary, but if Ailisuzhi were to answer, she would first nominate a 'heart of doubt'.

The foundation of research is the unknown; the motivation is curiosity about the unknown, but what truly determines research outcomes, what determines countless research processes, is a will that dares to doubt.

Questioning common sense, doubting countless 'obvious' things, even doubting the results obtained, Ailisuzhi's doubt aims to eliminate all randomness, to make results as unshakable as truth; but obviously, she always falls short on this path.

The slight juvenilization of Aimu Zhiji after taking the drug is exactly the manifestation of her misestimation, giving her reason to follow along, adding a bit of rationality to observing the test subject.

Well, is that reasonable?

All we can say is that this was indeed an accident, but everything else hardly complies with law and morality.

But she herself obviously doesn't care.

Regarding his understanding of these underling girls, Aomo often feels a sense of worry.

He worries whether, upon entering the activity room one day, he will first see Suzi tying up a person to inject a potion, or see Chazuo gripping someone's soul for questioning.

Although from their usual interactions, neither of them would go to such extremes, as a premonition, as a pessimistic prediction of the future, its existence is by no means impossible.

Especially Suzi.

From the very first moment they met, he understood what kind of person this girl was.

She pursues stimulation, she pursues challenge, possessing a frenzy that remains hard to erase despite civilization's education, and is a dangerous element who would readily cross rules if needed.

For her, never openly breaking the law is simply because there's no need to.

Because she is still a high school student, a student, and more a horse girl, she will be doubly confined by horse-racing culture and soul influence 'bound' on campus; even that dangerous nature is limited to the framework of student and athlete. Like the former Xintiao Qian, even if she had divine-level authority, her threat as a villain would be quite limited.

This is a shackle of the realm of thought; it is the term 'capacity' most easily uttered by Jidong chuunibyo, like the savior of some evil person, even if initially described as extremely evil, the goal in his heart is nothing more than to seize family property.

But when he later broadened his horizons and looked out at the world, its 'harmfulness' also visibly expanded.

In this world, everyone's view of the world differs, yet each is limited to what they see, hear, and feel; Teleisen is like an alternative demon-sealing tower, easily restraining the abnormal psychology commonly found among horse girls, making them honestly serve as students and athletes, wholeheartedly throwing themselves into career races chasing dreams; by the time they retire from their careers and graduate, they have more or less worn away their abnormalities and found their limiters.

Of course, there are also types whose nature remains unrestrained, even intensified.

And the existence that ultimately decides the outcome of these paths is obviously the trainer.

Fortunately, even though most trainers are unaware of this, they have never looked at those lovely, cute girls with the eyes reserved for dangerous elements.

But the education they receive indeed subtly guides them to fulfill this duty, and then, due to variables in the process, they head toward different outcomes.

As a small portion distinct from the majority, Lindun trainer obviously has a considerable degree of self-awareness.

He clearly understands all the authority and responsibilities this position entails, including those many coworkers fail to see.

This is precisely why he would suddenly launch the unlicensed quack psychology module this semester, and have Xiqí Feng promote it—one reason, and also why, after confirming the abnormalities in the girls under him, he did not recall the cards, letting them retain that dangerous power.

In this situation, monster cards are not just power; they are also a psychological orientation, and even a psychological measuring instrument.

The values of the adaptability test are a far more intuitive portrait of the mind than various small psychological tests, easily sketching the silhouette of their will, thereby indirectly helping Aomo in real time confirm their developmental stage in each field.

No matter how naturally or ordinarily they behave day to day, the demon's vision never relaxes, and can even, under specific conditions, draw on their power—for instance, in verifying Chazuo's condition, he is willing to list Suzi's delusion-like conclusion as a reference, precisely because he trusts her talent in this area.

Compared to Chazuo, who seems to be influenced by the cards and thus indirectly guided by them, Suzi is clearly the opposite.

Possessing a quality surpassing the cards' own ability, she has the highest adaptability in the team, and……the most conservative rate of adaptability increase.

After a few months, with an increase of zero point zero something, she has become the capable person who, at first glance, seems least in need of Aomo's attention and worry.

But in fact, Aomo has never relaxed his attention on her.

The reason is simple: she is not here to guard against the cards possessing her; rather, she is possessing the cards.

The demon understands this better than anyone.

Even if Xintiao Qian considers such speculation unrealistic, thinking Suzi-chan could nowhere have such high purity to overturn the cards' influence, he still holds firm to his view.

Because strictly speaking, Suzi's condition is not considered a rare, hard-to-confirm case.

Do you still remember his monster card 【Alien Beflas】 that, when he transformed alone, caused no psychological burden, and when used as fusion material, could even reduce mental load?

Exactly, this is precisely why he understands this better than anyone—he himself is the previous example.

Easily touching the limit of that Beflas monster card, he suffered no personality-affecting aftereffects whatsoever; even high-precision federal equipment sensed no impact on him.

At that time, he merely thought it was due to his high compatibility and the card's relatively harmless nature; only after the situation with Ailisuzhi arose did he reexamine the past and arrive at a more subtle conclusion:

What should worsen the condition still does; it's just that his own condition is more severe, so it easily overwhelms the equipment's psychological assessment results.

Once he realizes this, Aomo's gaze will not only fall on Suzi, but also turn toward Bourbon.

After obtaining the Golden Ancient Bridge card, he not only became less mechanical, but also became relatively more lively in his recent remarks.

Furthermore, considering Bai Ren, Qianming, Ludao fu, and Sirius—those he is weighing whether to lend monster cards to—the team's 'talent' might be more than he imagined.

But perhaps, because he isn't quite certain yet.

Compared to the two obvious presences of the Symbolic Family, Bai Ren and Qianming clearly have aspects that are hard for him to discern, and he doesn't know whether this counts as a personal privacy issue, so he has yet to take the first step in exploring them.

But if one were to say there is absolutely no clue, the former is not so; after all, having seen Bai Ren from another universe, Aomo still harbors a few doubts about whether his speculation might be offensive.

And after enumerating all these uncertainties, wavering between certainty and uncertainty, he cannot help but mention the sole horse girl he is absolutely certain possesses talent.

That horse girl sits on the sofa just over a meter away from him, recounting her many experiences effectively persuading her stubborn roommate, and enjoying the admiring gaze of the little younger brother of the Aizhi family.

At the same time, she also undergoes the baptism of Ailisuzhi's doubtful gaze.

Yet she responds with an air of fearlessness, even relishing it, facing the crowd's gaze and even able to turn back and give a wink.

This is true cleverness.

'Small person, big ghost' cannot describe her actions; she thinks deeply and acts prudently, with no impulsive moves.

Although she is indeed still a child, her understanding of the world is not yet mature, and her grasp of emotions is far from profound.

But whatever she decides to do will certainly be carried out with the composure and thoroughness of an adult, not limited by age.

Want to know why?

Because a little Aomo back then was just like that.