Chapter 34

Why do we always meet here?

The advisor decided this; if you have any opinions, you can direct them at her.

The Round Valley Exhibition Hall at night was undeniably quiet; after that quiet was easily shattered by footsteps, it became the setting for their Q&A.

Moonlight from the skylight above shone through the glass wall of the corridor and fell upon the display case.

A small portion of the light was scattered by the glassware, but most still reached the giant model resembling a moth, as if recreating a famous scene, giving the model the vitality of a living creature.

Both sides of the Q&A paid no attention to this wondrous sight; clearly they also enjoyed the cover of the scattered light.

But in the Hei'an, a pair of eyes watched the moth bathed in soft light, unblinking, as if receiving a response.

The moth's radiance also diffused in her eyes, making the Hei'an she was in no longer pure.

Advisor?

The one who had initiated the questioning upon arrival still seemed to be asking, glancing askance at the place distant from both of them, merely a petite silhouette leaning against a display case in the Hei'an.

His gaze carried a hint of contempt, due to the advisor's position, the other's absentmindedness, and their flawed state.

The advisor's impression matched their appearance, like a female high school student.

This is a title gradually spreading in the Jidong area, also emphasized by many time travelers, taking the first letter from the Japanese kana 'jyoshikoukousei', meaning female high school student.

But unlike many who long for such beings, the mercenary's evaluation of this group includes shallow experience, volatile emotions, excessive pride, and noisiness.

It is a group he rather dislikes and rejects.

So... what use is this kind of advisor?

He is disdainful, yet he is a mercenary with considerable professionalism, not meddling nor nitpicking the employer's choices.

Even though the woman standing beside the Mothra model is not actually the employer but a partner.

However, the rules are universal; avoiding extra trouble is the primary principle for smooth work.

So even if the advisor is obsessed with the model and ignores my gaze, the mercenary merely redirects his gaze to the partner: "Let's just meet here; at least there aren't many people this time."

It's not easy to say, but you'd better hurry.

The advisor, who had previously shown no reaction to being stared at, now suddenly interrupted him, voice carrying a teasing casualness: "The monster display case near the corridor will come alive, a well-known urban legend—many people are interested in it."

"Including you?" the partner glanced at the monster model before them and snapped at the advisor, "You deliberately came to see this scene, so you set the meeting point here?"

It seems even the partner doesn't understand the advisor's thoughts... the observing mercenary remained silent, following protocol, though he was curious how a stubborn old woman and a frivolous female student could have collided.

How could that be? I merely recommended a sufficiently suitable venue for conversation; the visitors here don't really care about your attire, right?

In the Hei'an, the advisor shrugged, then walked to the side with hands in pockets: 'You need to hurry up with whatever you want to discuss.'

It seemed the Hei'an in other areas would not hinder her; likewise, the mercenary and his partner, both possessing night vision, could see the girl wandering between the display cases, her gaze drifting among the models.

This also made the two suspect even more that she simply wanted to come for a quiet visit, which is why she set the meeting place here.

Regarding the advisor temporarily hired by another colleague, the woman herself was also full of dissatisfaction, but what the advisor said was also crucial; she indeed needed to hurry.

So she had no choice but to frown and turn her head to look at the mercenary.

'Report, Mataer.'

After watching such a farce, they finally got to the main point; Mataer twitched the corners of his mouth, suppressing the urge to laugh as he reported for work: 'Souls attached to massive machinery can be identified as monsters by the extractor, but they will go out of control, and the drawn cards are also such defective products.'

He said this, reaching out his hand hidden in his cloak, a card pinched between his fingers, receiving the baptism of moonlight.

It was a Mechanical Godzilla card with a backdrop resembling a lava hell; at first glance it looked no different from the merchandise cards sold by the Tokusatsu Association, and even pirated cards had cooler illustrations than it.

This is the sole advantage of the pirated version; the official card's irreplaceable advantage is that it can be identified and read by the Tokusatsu Association's deep-infiltration game, belonging to the same battle art style as Game King, though the rules lean more toward Furnace Stone and Shadow Verse.

But this card just won't do; it cannot be read by game data, its illustration is merely average, and it even has a fatal crack, making it look inferior to anyone's.

It doesn't need to compare with those; it is simply special enough on its own.

The moment the woman received the card, she almost heard the mechanical beast's roar; a sense of oppression belonging to a colossal metal construct also rushed at her, turning her originally impatient expression into barely concealed astonishment.

That astonishment flashed and was gone, but the woman, whose expression control was extremely swift, still revealed her lapse from her slightly hoarse voice: 'It can probably only be activated once, and it has become distorted into a state between organism and machine...'

'What is the cause of the loss of control? Is the soul quality too poor?'

In his words there was an undisguised regret,

The mercenary shook his head: 'Compared to soul strength, the biggest variable in numerical analysis is the proportion of abnormal emotions.'

The woman fell silent for a moment, then asked: '... Because of the twisted power?'

Using twisted power to drive the transmigrator to cause chaos, using twisted power to fuse the otherworldly soul with the steel iron giant beast, this also caused organic matter to cling onto the machinery, making it seem to lean toward its original form—she could see this obvious problem, and naturally could also think of the cause of the abnormal emotions.

'Perhaps,' the mercenary said uncertainly, 'maybe next time we should try the corrupting power; those ancient forces, though powerful, are not exactly controllable.'

After listening, the woman pondered for a moment, about to speak, when she heard the advisor's voice from afar: 'Have you considered that if it's just beastified souls, although desire is sufficient, the Hei'an side is excessive, and humans would then be unable to control it?'

'What advice do you have, Advisor Miss?'

Looking at the advisor who seemed to be walking along some set route in front of different display cases, the woman did a good job of concealing her dissatisfaction at being interrupted.

'I haven't even looked at your data, how can I give advice? I just feel you all aren't thinking from the monster's perspective.'

'Thinking from the monster's perspective?' the woman exclaimed in surprise.

What nonsense is this—do we have to consider the test subject's thoughts just for a few experiments? The still-silent mercenary sneered inside, thinking that thing isn't even a real monster, merely a machine, and only after he guided an otherworldly soul to twist into a frenzied beast fusion did the machine recognize it as a 'monster'.

He also wanted to complain that the machine's recognized 'monster' concept was truly too broad, and then he heard the advisor also mention this point:

'Since you have tools that can extract power from the monster concept, you should consider what the monster concept it recognizes is like, and what controllable tool you want, weighing the options—weigh, weigh~'

The advisor raised his hand, making a strange gesture.

It was the gesture of bringing together the thumb, index, and middle fingers, and the ring and little fingers each, causing a V-shaped gap to appear between the middle and ring fingers.

Whether it was to show off impressive finger control or just some popular JK hand gesture, the mercenary felt puzzled, lacking only a light screen that could display a question mark.

And his partner directly expressed opposition to this.

'Boring, those cards aren't even monsters themselves; if you want to play house with monsters, go do it yourself,' the woman said, and with a flick of her fingers like a conjurer, four overlapping cards slid from her fingertips, which she handed to the mercenary: 'The Belial card and that Mechanical Godzilla are both one‑time use items, but the Ace Killer and Airei King are not—use them carefully.'

'The Prophecy and Time systems will confirm your existence within three days; three days later you will appear on the wanted list of Heaven Gate City.'

'Only three days of operating time, I know,' the mercenary accepted the card nonchalantly, his sharp‑lowered eyes fully revealing sharp ferocity: 'With the chips you gave me, this won't be hard to pull off.'

"…" The consultant not far away, hearing this, turned his head to look, clasping his hands in his sleeves, with a slightly bowed posture, gave a look of looking at a fool.

The consultant not far away, upon hearing that, turned his head, clasped his hands in his sleeves, slightly bowed his back, and gave a look as if looking at an idiot.

We can translate: "…" The consultant not far away, upon hearing this, actually turned his head to look, clasping his hands in his sleeves, with a slightly bowed posture, put on a look of looking at a fool.

We need to keep it concise but faithful.

Let's produce: 【61】 "…" The consultant not far away, hearing this, turned his head to look, clasping his hands in his sleeves, with a slightly bowed posture, gave a look of looking at a fool.

Ok.

The influx of those cards into the gray zone of Heaven Gate City is completely foreseeable chaos, but the mercenary seems quite confident about fishing in troubled waters.

Translate: That kind of card flowing into the gray area of Heaven Gate City is completely foreseeable chaos, but the mercenary seems quite confident in fishing in troubled waters.

We need to keep the term as "Heaven Gate City". So line:

That kind of card flowing into the gray area of Heaven Gate City is completely foreseeable chaos, but the mercenary seems quite confident in fishing in troubled waters.

"The beta version device we got from the frontier lighthouse—remember your target," the woman said, unbothered by the mercenary's confidence, merely emphasizing, "I don't want those imitation knockoffs, and don't draw unnecessary attention."

Translate: "The beta version of the Berta device obtained from the frontier lighthouse, remember your target," the woman didn't care about the mercenary's confidence, she just emphasized, "I don't want those counterfeit copies, and don't attract extra attention."

But we need to translate that term as 'beta version device'.

"The beta version device obtained from the frontier lighthouse, remember your target," the woman didn't care about the mercenary's confidence, she just emphasized, "I don't want those counterfeit copies, and don't attract extra attention."

Of course, I get it, you're 'Yinzhě'.

Translate: "Of course, I understand, you're the 'Hermit'."

But we need to decide whether to translate the term or romanize it. Since we decided to treat it as a name and romanize it, we will output Yinzhě. The line includes quotes around the term, so we will keep the quotes and output: "Of course, I understand, you're 'Yinzhě'."

You and I both like staying 'low-key', which is why we met. I hope you can continue to keep this 'low-key' attitude and carry on. Alright, you can go now—don't attract attention.

Translate: "We both like keeping a low profile, that's why we met; I hope you can continue to keep this 'low profile' and live on. Alright, you can go now, don't attract attention."

We need to keep quotes around 'low-key'. The Chinese term is 'low-key'. We'll keep the quotes.

"Naturally." The mercenary nodded, turned and left. This time he made no sound, his whole body slipping out of the spilling moonlight and sinking into complete Hei'an.

Translate: "Naturally." The mercenary nodded, turned and left; this time he made no footstep sound, his whole body broke free from the scattering moonlight and sank into complete darkness.

Note: the term must be translated as "Hei'an". So "complete darkness" becomes "complete Hei'an". We'll output: "sank into complete Hei'an."

In contrast, the cherry-haired consultant slowly walked from the Hei'an into the moonlight, smiling lazily and making a sarcastic remark.

Translate: On the contrary, it was the cherry-haired consultant walking slowly from the darkness into the moonlight, smiling lazily and saying sarcastic words.

Of course, I understand, you're 'the Hermit', huh.

We both like keeping a low profile, that's why we met; I hope you can continue to keep this 'low profile' and live on, alright, you may go now, don't draw attention.

"Natural." The mercenary nodded, turned and left; this time he made no footstep sound, his whole person slipped out of the scattered moonlight, sinking into complete Hei'an.

On the contrary, it was the cherry-haired consultant walking slowly from the darkness into the moonlight, smiling lazily and saying sarcastic words.

I think his first step is already not low-key—have you guys discussed it?

Translate: "I think his first step is already not low-key~ Have you guys discussed it?"

We need to keep the tilde? We'll keep as is.

How? Are you scared? Or are you saying you were there at the time? Xin Tiaoxi?

How? Are you scared? Or were you there at the time? Xin Tiaoxi?

Thus line: "How? Are you scared? Or were you there at the time? Xin Tiaoxi."

The woman frowned at the girl who clashed with her in every respect—age, interests, demeanor. A classical Victorian lady and a modern-day JK simply don't go together, especially with the girl's sly cleverness and affected cuteness, which the woman found utterly vulgar.

Translate: The woman looked displeased at this girl who didn't get along with her in any way—whether age, hobbies, or even temperament; a classical Victorian lady and a modern-day JK simply don't mix, especially the girl's petty cleverness and affected cute tone and posture, which made her find it utterly vulgar.

We need to keep 'JK' as is (Japanese slang for high school girl). It's a generic term, not a name. Keep as 'JK'. The phrase meaning 'classical Victorian lady' and the phrase meaning 'modern-day JK' are to be kept.

I just think he's unreliable; the first solution I came up with ended up on the city's news, sending so many people to the hospital and the graveyard..." The girl said, half-disgusted and half-amused, "Now I don't even know how many people are looking for him."

Translate: "I just think he's unreliable; the first solution I thought of ended up on the city's news page, and sent so many people to hospitals and graves..." The girl said, seeming disgusted yet amused, "Now I don't even know how many people are looking for him."

We need to keep ellipsis.

Such directness—skipping the topic to seize the initiative—makes 'Yinzhě' quite disdainful.

Translate: Such directness, jumping over the topic to seize initiative, this petty cleverness made the 'Hermit' quite disdainful.

We need to keep quotes around the term. The Chinese has "Yinzhě". We'll keep quotes but with romanized name: Yinzhě.

I think his first step is already not low-key, huh~ Have you guys discussed it?

What? Are you scared? Or are you saying you were there at the scene? Xin Tiao Qian.

The woman looked displeased at this girl who clashed with her in every way—whether age, hobbies, or even demeanor, a classical Victorian lady had nothing in common with a modern-day JK, especially the girl's petty cleverness and affected cute tone, which made the woman find it utterly vulgar.

"I just think he's unreliable; the first idea I came up with ended up on the city's news page, and it sent so many people to hospitals and graveyards..." the girl said, seeming both disgusted and amused, "Now I don't even know how many people are looking for him."

Such directness, jumping over the topic to seize initiative, this petty cleverness made the 'Yinzhě' quite disdainful.

I don't know why the higher-ups hired you as a temporary consultant, but since you're not planning to join the work, don't worry about it. Mecha Godzilla can be detected by instruments, proving your theory works—your job is done, and you don't need to worry about anything else.

Translate: "I don't know why the higher-ups hired you as a temporary consultant, but since you don't plan to join the work, don't worry about so much. Mecha Godzilla can be detected by instruments, proving your theory successful; your work is done, you don't need to handle anything else."

I don't know why the higher-ups hired you as a temporary consultant, but since you don't plan to join the work, don't worry about so much. Mecha Godzilla can be detected by instruments, proving your theory successful; your work is done, you don't need to handle anything else.

"No way! I'm being discarded this fast?" The girl seemed surprised, raising her hands in a defensive gesture, but this startled movement itself shows she isn't really upset; her face shows no sorrow, just a feigned fear: "Won't they silence me next?"

Translate: "No way! I'm being discarded this fast?" The girl seemed surprised, raising both hands in a resisting gesture, but this sudden movement itself shows she isn't really agitated; her face shows no sadness, instead she puts on a fake fear, "Won't they silence me next?"

We need to keep the quotes.

If I notice you've leaked anything before we succeed, I don't mind taking matters into my own hands.

Translate: "If I notice you've leaked anything before we succeed, I don't mind taking action myself."

Can we go public once we succeed?

Translate: "Can we go public after we succeed?"

The consultant was surprised; this time it didn't seem feigned: 'So open-minded?'

Translate: The consultant was surprised; this time it didn't seem feigned: "So open-minded?"

"If those cops manage to pin you down, even if your body dies and your soul is destroyed, they can still dig up information about you," Yinzhě said, his face showing lingering fear, as if he had witnessed it himself or experienced it firsthand, but after saying that he also realized and snapped at the other party harshly, "You'd better act normal for your own sake!"

Translate: "If those cops really lock onto you, even if it's bodily death or soul destruction, they can still dig up information about you," the Hermit's look of lingering fear seemed like something he'd witnessed firsthand or experienced himself, but after speaking he also realized and snapped at the other party, "You'd better stay normal for your own sake!"

No text to translate.

"Cheating! I got dumped this fast?" the girl seemed surprised, raising both hands in a resisting gesture, but this sudden movement itself showed she wasn't very agitated, nor did her face show much sadness; instead she feigned fear, "Won't they silence me next?"

"If I notice any leaks from you before we succeed, I don't mind taking action myself."

"Can we go public after we succeed?"

The advisor was surprised; this time it didn't seem feigned: "So open-minded?"

"If those cops really lock onto you, even bodily death or soul destruction would still let them dig up information," the Hermit's look of lingering fear seemed like he'd seen it himself, or experienced it, but after speaking he also realized and snapped at the other party, "For your own sake, you'd better stay normal!"

Turns out it's not open-mindedness but fear of the other side... Since you're that scared, you shouldn't even think about doing this kind of thing~

The advisor smiled: "Thanks for the reminder, auntie, you better wrap things up nicely."

"..." the Hermit, suddenly addressed this way, stared, his face also turning cold, "Looks like you don't plan on seeing me again."

"Um, I'm just a high school girl, you know~ And auntie, you even mistake Baltan and Cicada People, Giraras and Godzilla... it really saps one's enthusiasm."

The girl gave a sweet smile; clearly it was late at night yet she smiled with a sunny feeling, making the woman somewhat want to retch.

"What's so strange about those two pairs mistaking identities?"

"It's pretty strange, huh, to have power related to monsters yet be so 'amateur', though I can also understand why that person hired me."

That statement is really hard to refute; the Hermit could only click his tongue.

And the advisor stretched lazily: "I'm a bit sleepy, so I'll head off; this way I can save the time I'd spend talking with you for someone else."

"You'd better be honest; don't make me interested in your chat logs."

"Spying on girls' chat logs, huh—what a scary auntie."

It hardened, his fist hardened! The Hermit watched the girl's back; just thinking that he wouldn't see her again afterward, his blood pressure eased a bit.

"But I also just chat about monsters with friends; you might not understand either, huh."

That guy's voice still came from afar, and a beam of light sprouting in the Hei'an also came from her activated phone screen; but what she was saying wasn't anything the woman would care about.

"Unread message? Oh, it's Little Snake."

"Want to go chat in the model room? Huh? I haven't gone home yet; maybe I should let him wait a bit."

After all, she's just a high school girl; the deep-infiltration equipment is still left at her home.