Acheron's eyes trembled as she looked at Bai Ming, so close she could almost feel her breath.
"…I didn't expect this either. I thought I'd stay calm."
She had thought she'd be more proactive, more composed. After all, it wasn't like they'd never been this close before—there had been plenty of moments like this in the past.
But reality turned out far more absurd than she imagined.
Just a single word of agreement, a simple embrace, and she couldn't even get her words out properly.
It was honestly hard to accept.
Watching the complicated expression on Acheron's face, Bai Ming couldn't help but laugh softly.
Then she lowered her head slightly—and pressed a light kiss against her lips.
Originally, Bai Ming had only meant to tease her a little, just a fleeting touch before pulling away, but just as she was about to lift her head—Acheron suddenly raised a hand, cupped Bai Ming's head, and kissed her back, taking the initiative.
That look in her eyes—like she'd thrown caution to the wind, like she'd decided to just go all in—almost like she'd stopped caring about the consequences.
After a while, Acheron let go.
Her lips were damp, catching the light with a soft sheen as she breathed lightly, saying nothing, just staring straight into Bai Ming's eyes.
Being kissed so boldly like that stirred something in Bai Ming too.
"Acheron…"
Just as Bai Ming softly called her name, about to continue, Acheron suddenly shook her head.
"Call me something else. Use my real name."
To her, whether it was "Acheron" or the title she carried, both had come from nothingness.
They were responsibilities she had imposed on herself—a reminder of everything she had done.
But now—that responsibility had faded into nothing.
So she no longer needed that title, nor the name "Acheron." Even if Izumo could never return, she herself had truly stepped onto a path toward the future.
So this name, stripped of its meaning, could finally be set down.
She would use the name that had always been hers: "Raiden Mei. Just call me Mei… don't call me Acheron anymore, okay?"
Acheron—no, Mei—looked at Bai Ming with slightly misty eyes.
Her voice was soft, somewhere between a plea and a quiet statement.
And faced with her like this, how could Bai Ming possibly refuse?
"Alright, Mei."
"Thank you."
Mei's eyes brightened at that, and she tilted her head up more eagerly, wrapping her arms around Bai Ming's neck as she kissed her again.
This time—Mei shifted her body, pulling Bai Ming down with her onto the sofa.
Their long hair spilled loose, white cascading over dark, nearly swallowing both of them and the couch whole.
As things deepened, Bai Ming realized Mei was surprisingly passive—or rather, she seemed to be waiting, almost longing, to be taken the lead by Bai Ming.
It felt like she wanted to reclaim everything she had taken the initiative on before.
Yet her expression remained restrained.
Though, for various reasons, she couldn't quite keep that composure intact.
That contrast made her all the more alluring.
Whether she was even aware of it… who knew.
Their closeness continued for quite some time.
It wasn't that they lacked restraint—but perhaps Mei had been suppressed by that long stretch of emptiness in her past.
Now that she'd finally tasted something different, she had clearly grown fond of this kind of intimacy.
As she put it herself, being able to press close, to feel everything about the other person—it gave her the real sense that she had been reborn.
And so, in the end, Mei became a little… clingy.
When sitting or lying down, she would stay close to Bai Ming; when walking, she would quietly hook a finger around Bai Ming's hand, silently asking to hold it.
No matter what she was doing, she'd let Bai Ming know…
And yet, the problem was—her expression stayed as cold and composed as ever.
After all, she had lived that way for so many years; now it was almost second nature.
She couldn't keep that relaxed smile all the time.
And so, with that cool expression paired with such subtly affectionate behavior, it created a striking contrast.
That day, Mei brought Bai Ming to one of Izumo's most distinctive viewpoints, overlooking distant snow-capped mountains and the roaring river below.
They began talking about where to go next.
"This place is nice, but in the end, it's meant for dealing with Sin Thirsters. And with so many outsiders running around, it's not suitable for long-term living."
"That may be true, but aren't you also someone without a fixed home? We can't just go to the space station—I wouldn't fit in there either."
Mei knew well that this place was only suited for a short visit, not for settling down.
But the problem was, Bai Ming herself was just as nomadic.
The only place she appeared at more frequently was the Simulated Universe's space station, but now that the Simulated Universe had essentially "evolved" into a Genius, staying there long-term felt… strange.
Hearing that, Bai Ming frowned, looking troubled.
That really was a problem.
She had wanted to find somewhere brighter for Mei to settle down—but she herself had always drifted from place to place, freeloading wherever she went, never staying anywhere for long.
Even though, technically, she had quite a few subordinate factions.
Especially with the reach of the Land of Light, there were plenty of habitable planets suitable for long-term living.
Even the Land of Light itself had been transformed into a rather pleasant place.
But in the end, the main issue was—Bai Ming didn't live there either.
After thinking for a while, she decided to take herself out of the equation.
"For finding a place to live, don't worry about me. I wander around anyway—just pick somewhere you like and settle there."
Mei didn't answer right away, lost in thought.
It wasn't clear what she was thinking.
Seeing her silent, Bai Ming assumed she didn't have a clear idea yet and continued:
"Then how about I take you to Amphoreus? There are a lot of newly developed habitable planets there, funded by the IPC—they're pretty well-built. Or the Land of Light, there are plenty of options. You could also check out The Blue—it's very livable."
Bai Ming was just suggesting places she was familiar with.
There were actually many more options—like Planarcadia, Jarilo-VI, Leyaris, and so on.
She didn't know much about Planarcadia, only paying it some attention because of Himeko.
There had been some serious incidents before, but in recent years it seemed to have stabilized.
Leyaris had that supreme dragon watching over it, making it a rather harmonious world.
As for Jarilo-VI…it was said that hundreds of years ago, one of its Supreme Guardians had turned into a Giant of Light.
Though they struggled against the Fragmentum for over a century, they eventually broke through the Stellaron blockade and reconnected with the Land of Light.
Now, it had regained some of its former prosperity, making it a decent option.
Though it made Bai Ming wonder what Belobog was like now—no longer a frozen apocalypse—and what Cocolia, Bronya, Seele, and the others were like.
Maybe she'd go take a look someday.
As Mei listened to Bai Ming's suggestions, she snapped out of her thoughts.
Looking at her, she nodded.
"That could work… but do you have time to go around with me?"
"Yeah, I've got some time lately. Besides, I don't have anything urgent to deal with."
Bai Ming shrugged. She really didn't have anything pressing.
And honestly, wandering around with Mei sounded pretty nice.
Just as Bai Ming started dragging Mei around to explore—on the other side, news that the Simulated Universe space station had somehow undergone a complete transformation and become Genius #85 spread like a storm.
Within the IPC, it even sparked serious internal division.
One faction—led by Diamond—believed that, given their good relationship with Bai Ming, this new Genius posed no threat and didn't need attention.
But another faction remained highly wary, afraid that a third Mechanical Emperor might rise again.
One Screwllum was already enough to keep people on edge—now there was a new #85.
If either of these mechanical geniuses were to fall into anti-organic equations, it might end up being a "buy one, get one free" situation—two Emperors at once.
Of course, in reality, the previous two Mechanical Emperors had been reduced to Geniuses through Nous's intervention because they had the potential to become Aeons of Destruction.
So unless something like Irontomb—where one was deliberately cultivated—happened again, a third Emperor was highly unlikely.
Which meant the IPC's fears were probably unfounded.
But such secrets were known to very few.
And considering that Bai Ming had once created a massive, rather suspicious-looking mechanical Herta…
Now that a mechanical head resembling Madam Herta had appeared so suddenly, some imaginative members of the IPC began to speculate that Bai Ming's earlier creation might have been a precursor to this new Genius.
Their arguments even sounded convincing.
To the point that this faction's voice within the IPC wasn't small at all.
There were even extremists who, despite knowing that #85 had ties with multiple Geniuses and even an Aeon, still wanted to attack, destroy, seize, or control it.
Meanwhile, the Intelligentsia Guild affiliated with the IPC found the whole situation absurd.
It felt like they could strive their entire lives and never reach the threshold of a Genius—yet a space station had done it.
And it hadn't even been a sentient machine before—just a supercomputer.
Who knew what had happened to it to become what it was now?
Countless scholars became intensely interested.
For a time, invitations, research requests, and exchange proposals flooded in.
The last Genius had gone straight to the Land of Light, leaving nothing for other factions, but this one didn't seem likely to leave Amphoreus anytime soon.
And so, in a short span of time, Amphoreus became lively once more.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL