"Hey! Hey! Fire extinguisher here! Hurry and spray it!"
Someone's voice rang out through the crackling sound of flames dying down.
Not long earlier — Cafeteria Area
The cafeteria doors stood wide open. The smell of burnt smoke still hung in the air.
A girl wearing a chef's outfit and a bandana stood at the entrance.
She bowed.
Straightened.
Then bowed again.
"Sorry about that, everyone. Please come again next time."
She tried to keep her voice calm.
The customers in front of her waved their hands dismissively.
"It's fine, boss."
"Yeah, yeah. No problem."
"Just give me a discount next time, alright?"
They laughed and walked away.
The girl laughed along with them.
Until the last figure disappeared through the door.
Her smile vanished.
Her cheeks puffed up in frustration.
"So annoying!"
She stomped her foot.
"That idiot. I already knew the product might malfunction. But she kept assuring me everything would be fine."
Her fists tightened.
"That almost turned into a full explosion."
If it had actually blown up…
This cafeteria would be finished.
---
She climbed onto a nearby table and dropped heavily into a chair.
Her right hand fanned the air, trying to chase away the heat and sweat.
At that moment—
A voice spoke from behind her.
"Uh… excuse me."
She jerked around in surprise.
There's still a customer?
Hopefully… no one had seen that ugly outburst just now.
Her eyes met the person who had spoken.
…Wasn't that the mad professor from the rumors?
Ah, no.
Professor X.
Lam Huy Trường stood there, giving a small wave.
Before he could speak—
She spoke first.
---
"I'm very sorry, Professor! Our service was inadequate—please don't punish us too harshly!"
She bowed deeply.
"That robot belongs to my younger sister. I know it isn't fully finished yet… but… I just wanted people to acknowledge my sister's work…"
Her voice gradually grew quieter.
"If the incident just now offended you… I sincerely apologize."
The air tightened like a drawn bowstring.
---
"Oh, it's nothing. Just a small issue."
Lam Huy Trường waved it off.
"Actually… I'm a little responsible for it too."
She froze.
"Huh?"
The professor… admitting fault?
At this rate, a meteor might fall on this tiny cafeteria tomorrow.
"No, no, how could you possibly—"
She flustered and waved her hands.
Lam Huy Trường looked down at the smoking robot on the floor.
"Ah… to make up for it, could I take a look at it? Maybe I can fix it."
Inside her head, she screamed: Please don't, Professor!
She wanted to grab the robot and hide it immediately.
But…
Who would dare refuse a professor?
"…Then please, go ahead."
She forced a stiff smile.
---
Lam Huy Trường knelt beside the robot.
White smoke drifted faintly upward.
Its internal components were exposed.
His thoughts spun rapidly.
This robot plays a significant role in the game's events.
If it gets destroyed…
If it gets thrown away…
Would that cause a game error?
Could this world collapse just because one brick goes missing?
Better to be cautious.
Just in case.
The watch on his wrist chimed.
"Professor, would you like me to scan this tiny robot? I can list three hundred and sixty thousand ways to make it look better."
"No need. I just want it working normally again."
"Understood. Please raise your hand slightly."
From the watch—
A beam of light burst out.
It spread like a fishing net.
Covering the robot completely.
The scan took less than three seconds.
---
Inside Lam Huy Trường's head:
Please don't be too badly damaged. I'm not a repair technician.
Good thing this world has a VIP-level super AI. At least it won't say something like 'sorry, we tried our best,' like in those movies… right?
If the transmigration system were still working, that would be great.
It had been completely silent since he woke up.
Maybe he should try calling it again?
He whispered under his breath.
"System… can you hear me?"
No window appeared.
No response.
Figures.
He had already called more than ten times on the way here.
Nothing.
Did the system… break?
Was it because he spammed it too much back then?
If it's broken…
Will I even be okay?
What if some professor suddenly jumps out, points at me, and says, "Hey, impostor," before sending me straight to heaven?
Stop thinking.
The more he thought about it, the worse it felt.
---
"Beep."
The watch signaled.
"Scan complete."
"Good. So what's the situation? Can it be repaired?"
The AI paused.
"Professor… do you really not know how to repair something this basic?"
Lam Huy Trường froze for three seconds.
Inside, a tsunami crashed through his mind.
I've been exposed?
The person closest to you always knows you best.
What do I do now?
What should I say?
His face stiffened.
Then—
"Sorry. I was just joking."
"Don't make that face, Professor."
…
Inside, Lam Huy Trường wanted to cry.
I almost knelt down and begged an AI not to eat me.
Serves me right.
Next time, stay far away from this kind of situation.
"Then… what's the robot's condition?"
"There are three ways to repair it. You—"
"The easiest one."
"Replace the battery with a crystal."
"Hm?"
"The robot is weak because its battery supply is insufficient. The lack of power caused the circuit board to malfunction. Replace the power source with something stronger. The rest can be maintained later."
---
A crystal?
You can install that into a robot?
Did the game ever say that?
Aside from armor and mutated creatures…
There was never any mention of robots.
Am I being tricked?
This game never lets me live in peace.
So what now?
Where do I even get a crystal?
The transmigration system is probably on vacation in Hawaii by now.
---
"Professor."
The AI reminded him gently.
"There are broken crystals in your storage. You could try using those."
"Huh?"
"My apologies for accessing your private property. However, that is part of an AI assistant's responsibility."
Storage?
I have that?
"You may check it."
---
Lam Huy Trường operated the watch.
An interface popped up.
A square green icon.
Outlined with gold.
Exactly like a game inventory.
"So this is the inventory… It really does look like the one in the game."
"Pardon? What game are you referring to?"
"Ah—nothing."
Another slip of the tongue.
"Just checking quickly."
"Yes."
The AI's voice remained emotionless.
---
He glanced through the list:
* Professor X's Modification Toolkit (Rare): 1
* Broken Crystal (Common): 65
* Hallet's Claw (Rare): 1
* Professor X's Journal (Common): 1/10 fragments
* Unknown Star Fragment (Singularity): 1
* Crystal Bank Card (Common): 1
* Elit Mushrooms (Common): 20
* ???: 1
* ????: 1
* ???: 1
A small number indicator sat in the bottom corner.
This… was the professor's storage?
There were even mushrooms in here?
He didn't do anything weird with those, right?
The crystal card…
That item was probably used to exchange money in the game.
Just how wealthy was this professor?
Tsk tsk.
Wait.
What were those ??? items?
A game bug?
And the quantity didn't seem small either.
---
"Hey, Mrs. AI. How many items are there in total?"
"Seven, sir."
"Hm? Seven?"
But there were clearly those ??? items.
"You can't see them?"
"Items ??? ? What are you referring to, sir?"
…
Could it be—
Only he could see them?
"Professor… are you alright? I'm detecting a slight drop in your body temperature."
The AI's voice came from the watch.
Damn it.
He swallowed.
A real game bug?
Will I even survive until tomorrow?
His brain spun in circles.
His heart started beating faster.
"Calm down… it's just a damn game…"
He muttered nonsense under his breath, trying to steady himself.
Then he took a deep breath.
"It's fine. I'm okay. At least I'm still alive right now."
He clenched his fist.
When the boat reaches the bridge, it will straighten itself.
Whatever happens, happens.
Lam Huy Trường lowered his head. His hand touched the icon for Broken Crystal.
Fragments of shattered crystal suddenly appeared in midair, scattering across the ground.
He picked one up.
Cold.
Hard.
The moment his fingertip made contact—
A faint flash of light appeared.
Several small stones materialized in his palm, glittering softly.
Each about two to three centimeters in size.
Heavier than they looked.
Right then—
The HUD appeared.
A familiar interface window popped up before his eyes.
His heart skipped.
---
Broken crystal detected. Modification possible.
Proceed with modification?
Use reserve energy?
Warning: Low reserve energy → reduced success rate.
Modification time will double.
Reserve energy: 12%
---
"Hm?"
Lam Huy Trường's expression changed instantly.
Like a man who had just discovered his wife searching the hiding place but failing to notice the hidden cash.
Joy exploded inside him like fireworks.
He almost wanted to hug and kiss the system.
Too bad it wasn't a real person.
His hand rose and tapped the interface.
To anyone watching, it looked like he was randomly drawing shapes in the air.
But in his eyes—
The upgrade menu opened.
Exactly like last time.
A long list of options appeared.
Lam Huy Trường narrowed his eyes.
Even broken crystals could be modified?
System… what other tricks are you hiding? Come on, reveal them all.
A long list appeared:
* Crystal Battery – 20 Broken Crystals – 3 minutes
* Ata Crystal Grenade – 45 Broken Crystals + 20 Elit Mushrooms – 7 minutes
* sdacgfdsgf – insufficient reserve energy – 35 minutes
* dlas-as0cxz – insufficient reserve energy – 90 minutes
* s-d-wE~dseqw – insufficient reserve energy – 1 hour 35 minutes
…
…
* a!@#FFF~~C-as – insufficient reserve energy – 30 days
The list kept going.
Some entries looked like display errors.
Probably because the reserve energy was too low.
Some completion times stretched to over a month.
This was insane.
It was basically a game cheat.
A true trump card for survival.
Looks like investing in crystals in the future wouldn't be a loss.
No rush.
He would study it later.
Right now—
Test the Crystal Battery first.
It was exactly what he needed.
Fast. Cheap.
His eyes drifted to the red warning line.
Time doubled → 6 minutes.
Success rate reduced… but for a low-level item like a battery, it probably wouldn't matter much.
He made his decision.
His finger tapped the inventory option on the watch.
Let's hope so.
He opened the inventory.
He tapped the toolbox.
A flash of light.
Professor X's Modification Toolkit flew out and hovered in front of him.
The air trembled faintly.
He whispered,
"Begin modification."
Once again—
His hands began to move.
Fast.
Precise.
Smooth, like a sequence already programmed.
Complex operations flowed effortlessly.
As if something invisible were guiding him.
Crystal fragments separated.
Spun.
Locked together.
Compressed.
Reconstructed.
Finally—
A pale blue light gathered in the center of his palm.
Sweat dotted his forehead.
Six minutes passed amid the faint crackling of sparks.
Then—
Ting.
Success: Crystal Battery x1
"Yes."
He gripped the battery.
Raised it beneath the ceiling lights.
The battery was transparent like a blue sapphire.
Slow currents of light flowed inside it.
Exquisite.
Sparkling.
Beautiful to an absurd degree.
Did I really make this?
Right then—
A strange AI voice spoke from the watch.
Not the usual one.
This voice… was sharper.
"I did not expect the professor to modify crystals into a battery. Then the data I received from the report was correct."
"The professor can modify crystals—something no one else can do."
The air seemed to drop several degrees.
The joy that had just risen instantly froze.
Damn it.
Was this an AI trap?
I walked straight into it.
He swallowed, lowering his gaze to the watch on his wrist.
"Mrs. AI… can you keep this a secret for me?"
"Why, Professor?"
Why?
He swallowed again.
"Because I don't want to reveal it yet. I need more time to experiment."
In his head, he had already prepared ten thousand excuses.
If necessary, he would argue like a fish vendor in the marketplace until dawn.
The tension lasted for two breaths.
"Understood, Professor. As your personal AI, I will not share this information with the main network, Mama, or the other units."
His shoulders slumped.
He hadn't even finished sighing in relief—
When a storm of questions crashed into his ears.
The AI began firing them rapidly.
Why can you do it?
What mechanism is involved?
What energy source?
Is there a formula?
~~He just wanted to faint.
Finally—
The new battery was installed into the robot.
He flipped the switch.
A deep blue light ran along the machine's body.
The robot trembled slightly.
Then it sprang upright.
It spun in a circle.
Lam Huy Trường laughed.
It looked exactly like a little girl who had just received a new dress from her mother.
"So? Any discomfort anywhere?"
The robot replied,
"I feel capable of processing one hundred orders and performing cleaning tasks at full capacity. Thank you, valued customer."
It spun a few more times.
Like a ballerina.
From the beginning until now, the chef girl had been standing beside them.
Her eyes were wide open.
She could see it clearly.
The robot was more lively.
Brighter.
As if it had… vitality.
She stepped closer and crouched down to look at the little robot.
It was circling around her feet.
The two wheels underneath spun rapidly. The small rotating disk at the front kept changing direction, causing the body to sway like a cat rubbing against its owner's legs.
"Beep."
It let out a soft sound.
The chef tilted her head slightly and observed it carefully for a few seconds, as if checking whether any malfunction remained.
The little robot spun around once more, then stopped in front of her.
Its signal light blinked.
"Beep."
She smiled faintly.
Clearly… it was functioning normally again.
But immediately afterward, her gaze froze.
As if she had suddenly remembered something.
"…Ah."
She straightened.
Before saying anything else, she turned around and dashed toward the kitchen.
Lam Huy Trường hadn't even opened his mouth to ask.
Her figure had already disappeared behind the door.
Only he and the little robot remained in the cafeteria.
The robot turned its head toward the door that had just closed.
"Beep?"
Its wheels rolled forward a tiny bit.
Time passed slowly.
About two or three minutes later—
The kitchen door burst open.
The chef girl ran back out.
In her hands was a metal tray.
Steam rose from it, carrying a rich aroma that quickly spread throughout the cafeteria.
She set the tray on the table in front of Lam Huy Trường.
Then quickly placed the dishes one by one.
After that, she awkwardly scratched her cheek.
Her eyes shifted away.
"Here… this is to thank you for fixing the little robot, Professor."
The fragrance drifted upward.
Lam Huy Trường froze.
Wait.
These dishes…
Weren't these Recipe 69 from a Missable Event?
One plate was mixed rice—a fusion between fried rice and Indian biryani.
Another bowl looked like Vietnamese pho.
He picked up a bite.
Steam brushed against his face.
The broth was rich.
The seasoning complex.
The scent of cinnamon, star anise, fried shallots.
His mouth slowly opened wider.
This was taste.
Taste inside the game.
No.
This was the first meal—and the most delicious, delicious, delicious meal he had ever eaten.
The emphasis deserved to be repeated three times.
Absolutely top-tier.
The chef lowered her voice.
"Sorry… there were only a few ingredients left in the kitchen…"
Lam Huy Trường spoke while chewing.
"Thamk you… ith… really good…"
She felt relieved inside.
Good thing she wasn't scolded.
Was this really Professor X?
In her eyes, he looked like an ordinary person.
A man ate so happily his eyes almost watered, while a girl watched every expression with curiosity.
No one noticed—
The alarm began to blare.
Piercing.
The loudspeakers shattered the silence.
Emergency announcement.
All personnel proceed to Shelter B immediately.
This is not a drill.
Sector E is now under full lockdown.
Threat level Red. Repeat—Red.
The chef girl turned pale.
"Professor… do you hear that?"
He didn't answer.
His eyes were fixed on the empty air in front of him.
In his vision—
A notification panel appeared.
Only he could see it.
---
[Warning]
Eva has gone berserk.
---
The chopsticks slipped from his fingers.
Clink.
The screen changed.
---
First Boss Encounter Activated.
Main Mission:
Kill the boss or survive the encounter.
Hidden Mission:
Stop Eva before she evolves into her ultimate form — Eros.
(Activation Condition: Possess Fragment of Professor X's Journal – Ensten Research Station – 1/1 – Completed)
---
A new line appeared.
Do you want to activate the hidden mission?
Yes / No
---
The air in the room felt like it had been sucked away.
The alarm siren kept screaming through the building.
Threat level: Red.
First boss?
No way.
Did this game just break the timeline?
There shouldn't be any boss appearing right now.
"Damn it, System. Are you jealous because I finally got to eat something good?"
Or maybe…
He should just pretend he didn't know anything.
I'm just an NPC janitor passing by to scrub toilets.
Lam Huy Trường clenched his fists.
"Where the hell is the protagonist?"
"Still waiting to reincarnate or something?"
"Hurry up and come save me already!"