Dr. Mobius disappointedly marked the new experimental report with a red cross.
With a long creeeak..., the laboratory door was pushed open, and a researcher in a bulky protective suit entered with heavy steps.
She was Dr. Mobius' assistant for the day.
Dr. Mobius' assistant was replaced every day to prevent her from being bribed, brainwashed, or controlled by Dr. Mobius.
The research assistant reported in an emotionless female voice, "Dr. Mobius, Experimental Subject Earl3-006, codename 'Landro,' has been confirmed dead. Cause of death: tissue liquefaction caused by gamma-ray bombardment."
The voice came through the protective mask with a metallic echo. It was obviously not a human voice, but one broadcast through a communication device.
"It seems those people... no longer intend to send actual humans to monitor me? A remote-controlled robot?"
Before the assistant could reply, Mobius waved her hand dismissively. She did not care whether the assistant was human or ghost. Either way, it was of little use.
After all, nearly every assistant assigned to this place had been sent by MOTH's upper management to monitor Mobius.
In this place, Dr. Mobius did not even have the right to privacy.
A robot was actually better. At least it would not eat, drink, relieve itself, or sleep in front of her.
"Mm, I understand. Earl3-006 was nothing more than a defective product. If he died, then he died."
Her gaze deepened. It seems Vill-V already has a proper solution and has no need for my involvement.
That suits me perfectly. I have no interest whatsoever in what is about to happen in this city. I only want to finish my research as soon as possible.
As long as they do not interfere with my experiments, I do not care even if they slaughter one another.
Naturally, Dr. Mobius would not reveal those thoughts to her assistant, so she explained aloud:
"The vampires' fear of sunlight is the greatest flaw in the CMV branch of the current MANTIS Project."
"Although the subjects have already developed various special abilities, granting them limitless possibilities..."
"The flaw of dying upon exposure to light is enough by itself to terminate the entire project."
"Just imagine. While fighting Honkai Beasts, the MANTISes are swept by gamma rays, which can be found practically everywhere, and then turn to ash with a poof. How wonderfully dramatic."
"Their thirst for blood is another major problem. There will not be an adequate supply of blood bags for them in the future. Moreover, they have extremely demanding requirements regarding blood. Different blood types can cause hemolytic reactions. Only type O blood lacks A and B antigens, and even that is merely relative. Even after matching the blood type, the quality of the blood must still be examined."
"Judging from the current tests, vampires have the highest acceptance rate for the blood of young women. Drinking other types of blood causes various allergic reactions. The blood of elderly people is particularly problematic. After vampires drink it, they exhibit obvious signs of aging as well. Conversely, if a vampire continuously consumes the blood of young women, they could theoretically attain immortality."
"Although I very much wanted to conceal this report, the restrictions imposed by MOTH's upper management meant that it still fell into those people's hands."
There was no need to guess what they intended to do.
Dr. Mobius had not said all this out of kindness, hoping to warn those people against acting rashly.
She believed that those greedy fools would never heed her warnings. Otherwise, she would not be trapped here in the first place.
Those malicious warnings were actually meant to direct their attention toward the most obvious advantages and defects while causing them to overlook the greatest hidden danger.
The greatest flaw of this vampire branch of MANTISes was that they were all firmly under Mobius' control.
A vampire's supernatural ability allowed them to use their own blood to control the blood inside another person's body. However, one must not forget that every vampire had a trace of Mobius' blood flowing through their veins.
This fact had practically been placed in plain sight. Unfortunately, everyone focused entirely on their fear of sunlight and thirst for blood. None of them noticed the trap Mobius had left behind.
So be it. Those people truly are courting death. When I deal with them later, I will not even need to waste time disposing of their corpses.
Naturally, she had not disclosed any of these plans to the assistants assigned to monitor her. The relevant experiments had also been concealed beneath other research.
A trace of contempt appeared in Mobius' emerald eyes. "Hmph. That is the full extent of their intellect. Removing their prefrontal cortex would make no difference whatsoever. Once they become vampires, they will have even less need for an organ like the brain."
"Please mind your words, Dr. Mobius," the researcher reminded her. Perhaps one of MOTH's senior officials was sitting right beside the machine.
"It doesn't matter. I know you must report every word I say. Since they enjoy hearing me speak the truth, let those fools hear more of it. Listening to the truth is good for their health!"
Mobius said this partly to express her dissatisfaction and partly to display her apparent helplessness, thereby lowering their guard.
Simply put, there was no reason not to curse them when she had the chance. Usually, those people sitting above the clouds could not even hear her insults.
Mobius casually took Landro's death report from the researcher, and then...
Her eyes flickered.
She had known Vill-V would kill the little lab rat she had lured over, but she had not expected...
The death report listed an entire row of times of death.
"It seems that little lab rat died in a most spectacular fashion."
After carefully examining them, Mobius found that the times of death appeared on the surface to form a string of Morse code with varying lengths.
First, she could rule out the possibility that it was actually Morse code.
Knowing Vill-V's personality, Mobius understood that Vill-V would never use such an outdated cipher. The Morse code was obviously intended for prying eyes.
Even if an interested party wasted time deciphering it, they would probably obtain nothing more than a meaningless string.
In truth, those times of death formed a biological scale, or rather, an evolutionary-tree scale.
An ordinary person would never think of such a method. Only Mobius could decipher it.
As expected of Vill-V. Even the codes she designs are extraordinary.
Mobius plotted the coordinates in her mind and connected them, producing a single image.
Helix and Divinity... is that it?
"Hahahaha! Hahahahahaha—" Dr. Mobius suddenly burst into laughter for no apparent reason.
So the clue I have been searching for was with you all along? Hehe. How very like you, Vill-V.
Mobius slowly raised a hand adorned with green nail polish and lightly tapped her slender fingers against her cheek. But godslaying... Yes, that certainly interests me. When the God-Slaying Spear pierces your heart... Hehe. What kind of expression will you show me then, Vill-V? I can hardly wait to see it...