Wager agreements were not uncommon within MOTH. With its numerous departments and divisions but limited funding, competition for resources often took the form of such agreements.
Using wager agreements for this kind of competition had even received approval from the upper echelons. After all, it helped stimulate the researchers' vigor and fighting spirit—qualities essential in the battle against the Honkai.
Upon hearing that Edison intended to lock her teacher Vill-V in prison, Newton snapped angrily, "You call this a 'wager'? No matter what, we're the ones who lose here whether the prison gets built or not!"
Of course, Dr. Edison knew very well whether the agreement was fair. Judging from the absurd remarks he had made earlier, Dr. Newton would never have agreed.
He had merely been laying the groundwork with a classic negotiation tactic—proposing an unacceptable plan first as a battering ram before revealing his true bargaining chip. "Alright, alright. Then I'll sweeten the deal. If you succeed, I, Edison, will hand over my position as Minister of the Third Science Energy Department to her."
Dr. Edison made it sound enticing and melodious. Any ministerial position within MOTH's Science Division meant standing just below the Council of Permanent Directors and above tens of thousands.
MOTH's Strategic Department was responsible for combat, while the Scientific Department handled research.
Within the Scientific Department, there were five major science divisions, and there was no overall head of research. The highest positions were the five division ministers.
In other words, aside from the existence of the Council of Permanent Directors, a minister stood at the very top of MOTH's hierarchy. If Vill-V—who was not even officially a researcher—were to obtain a ministerial position, she would gain direct access to MOTH's highest-level resource allocation.
Moreover, if Vill-V became Minister of the Third Science Energy Department, then counting Dr. Mobius herself, there would be three ministers within MOTH aligned with Mobius.
The Scientific Department had only five major divisions in total. If Vill-V, Newton, and Mobius formed a bloc, they would effectively hold the dominant voice within the entire research department. Any proposal they put forward would stand unless the Council voted it down by an overwhelming majority. Otherwise, no one would be able to stop them.
But would Dr. Edison really be so generous? In truth, the Energy Department minister position he dangled was nothing more than an empty promise.
If Vill-V failed to escape the prison, the ministerial seat would naturally remain his. Edison would suffer no loss whatsoever.
If Vill-V did manage to escape, that would be even better. It would prove that the so-called "inescapable prison" was a sham, incapable of confining any inmate.
Dr. Newton would then have to take responsibility for squandering MOTH's vast time, manpower, and funding through negligence, and either relinquish her position as minister or submit herself to strict supervision by the upper echelons.
As for whether Edison was worried about losing his own ministerial seat, of course he was. But if he failed to entangle Dr. Newton and pull her away from Dr. Mobius, then forget the ministerial position—he might soon have to worry about whether his head would remain where it was.
Since that was the case, why not simply throw out his own ministerial seat as bait? It would serve as motivation for Dr. Newton to accept the agreement.
Hearing Edison's so-called bargaining chip, Dr. Mobius paused in the middle of organizing her documents and suddenly looked up at him. "I didn't expect you to propose such a pointless treaty. Anyone knows that a ministerial seat isn't something you can simply swap at will..."
When it came to ministerial matters, Dr. Mobius worried that Vill-V and the others might not fully understand the intricacies. After all, they had only recently joined MOTH and might not yet be familiar with its unspoken rules.
While wager agreements were commonplace within MOTH, they were not so commonplace that ministerial positions could be used as stakes. A minister was meant to be a beacon guiding humanity toward the future—not a chair to be traded on a whim. That was why Dr. Mobius spoke up, lest Vill-V and the others be deceived.
"Oh—no need to worry about that," Dr. Edison waved dismissively. He pulled two documents from the pile before him and displayed them to Newton and the others.
"I've already spoken with the higher-ups. They've given their tacit approval. Look closely—this is the official agreement."
Dr. Mobius noticed the red seal of a Permanent Director of the Council already stamped upon the document. This was clearly a breach of standard procedure. Normally, contracts were signed first and stamped afterward.
However, violating procedure did not necessarily mean violating the rules. It merely broke with customary practice. In other words, once both parties signed, the agreement would still take effect and carry legal authority within MOTH.
It was obvious this had been premeditated. Someone among the upper ranks was deeply dissatisfied that Dr. Newton had failed to restrain Dr. Mobius' authority. This time, they had stepped in directly. Yet it would have been inappropriate for them to act openly, so they arranged for Dr. Edison to serve as their weapon.
Dr. Newton's rapid promotion to Minister of Engineering had originally been the result of multiple factions working together. One faction sought rapid advancement of human technology. Another hoped Newton would curb Mobius' power. There were also other latent parties with similar interests, such as the Human Exodus Organization.
Now, the faction that had wanted Newton to suppress Mobius saw the two growing increasingly close. Naturally, they could not tolerate it. Using this as a pretext, they sought to reclaim Newton's ministerial position.
The other factions, meanwhile, chose to remain silent. They neither intervened nor obstructed, likely wishing to test Dr. Newton's flexibility and capability. Thus, this absurd wager agreement had come into being.
Although Dr. Mobius had long known that MOTH's upper echelons were rotting from within, learning that even ministerial seats could now be casually tossed into a wager left her even more disappointed. "Oh... those people..."
Dr. Mobius did not finish her "praise" of the higher-ups—not because she suddenly lost the urge to curse them, but because something unexpected occurred.
She heard Vill-V agree to Edison's nonsensical demand.
"Sure. I accept."
Vill-V replied in that light, airy tone.
Even Dr. Edison failed to react at first.
A long silence followed.
Dr. Mobius looked at Vill-V's delicate face, yet as always, she could read nothing from it—except for the words seemingly written all over it:
I'm exhausted. I just want to go back and sleep right now!