Asta froze. Madam Ruan Mei... she?! Could she be...?
In an instant, the injury from Asta's fall had healed.
Ruan Mei smiled faintly and slowly rose to her feet.
"Just a small dose of healing agent. There won't be any lasting effects."
Asta had never experienced anything like this. The winter plum blossoms, the thin mist in the pale daylight—a distant grace filling her sleeves.
She couldn't help but lower her head meekly, not daring to meet Ruan Mei's eyes. She stammered:
"Madam Ruan Mei... you... you're so gentle. Thank you."
"I'm glad you're alright."
"Madam Ruan Mei, you—"
Herta pushed between Ruan Mei and Asta, glaring at her with undisguised jealousy.
"Asta! This doesn't concern you. Go back and deal with the aftermath of the phase flame incident."
Seeing the hint of anger in Herta's composed gaze, Asta forced a smile and instinctively nodded, stepping back.
"Oh. Then... Madam Herta, Madam Ruan Mei, I'll return to work now."
Just as Asta took five steps away—
A crucial memory suddenly resurfaced in her mind: she had completely forgotten to add Ruan Mei's contact information a few days ago!
And she needed to ask Ruan Mei what gifts she liked.
Asta stopped in her tracks. She quickly straightened her bangs, then turned back.
"Madam Ruan Mei, could you tell me your contact information? And what kind of—"
Before Asta could finish her question, Herta teleported her out of the laboratory. She couldn't help complaining:
"Instead of working hard, you waste time asking for her contact information? Don't you know how precious a genius's time is?!"
The jealousy in the air had drowned out everything else. Seeing this, Ruan Mei simply smiled and said nothing.
"Stop laughing! Honestly! What steps does your experiment need? Tell me already!"
Ruan Mei silently shook her head. To be honest—confessing to Herta, fulfilling Wisteria Cake's wish for "family"...
Both were a blank slate to Ruan Mei.
But the gift brought by the stars and moon—that which was connected to "divinity"—the ripples of the past and memories of that distant place would ultimately make Ruan Mei take that step.
Herta stepped forward slightly, a teasing smile on her face.
"Madam Ruan Mei. You've wasted a full hour of my precious time."
"Mm. Herta. I think we should have a proper chat. Somewhere outside the space station, perhaps. A 'date.'"
The one who had just been so haughty, so eloquent, froze. She instinctively stepped back.
Then she hurriedly turned away, her face full of proud aloofness mixed with shock and panic.
"Wh—what!! A date?! I... I... after all these Amber Eras, s-someone actually asks me on a date?!"
"Ruan Mei, what... what's wrong with you? Is this some strange research? Or has some bizarre curio influenced you?!"
"This is utterly preposterous! Absurd!"
Ruan Mei's expression remained cool as she stepped forward, step by step, until Herta could retreat no further.
"You... you!! You... hah—"
"Herta. You look very flustered right now. Heart rate, blushing, and... all your vitals are far above normal."
Herta gritted her teeth and glared at Ruan Mei. Just a few casual words from this woman—or even a subtle glance—could leave her, a proud genius, completely at a loss.
Ruan Mei continued studying Herta. She removed the magic hat, revealing the panicked expression Herta had been hiding beneath it.
"So, Herta. Are you also afraid of the unknown?"
Normally, Herta would have retorted to such a clumsy provocation. But now, she had already lost her calm.
"I... I... Fine! A date, is it? Madam Herta accepts your challenge! Somewhere outside the space station? How about the Xianzhou Luofu?"
"The Xianzhou Luofu?"
"Yes, the Xianzhou Luofu. At least there won't be any familiar faces there! See you tomorrow!"
Herta snatched the magic hat from Ruan Mei's hands, placed it firmly back on her head, and fled.
When Dr. Ratio and Stelle appeared outside the laboratory door, they only caught a glimpse of Herta vanishing into thin air.
"Was that the real Herta?"
"It seemed like it. Though her demeanor was... a bit off."
Ruan Mei offered freshly brewed tea to Ratio and Stelle.
"Thank you both for your efforts with the phase flame incident."
Ratio said nothing. He silently turned and left. In his eyes, Ruan Mei was a terrifying presence.
What if there was truth serum in that tea? If he was tricked, his reputation in the Intelligentsia Guild would be completely ruined.
"Stelle. Come run the Simulated Universe. I'll observe from the side."
Stelle scratched her head and grinned sheepishly.
"Well... Madam Ruan Mei, I promised March 7th I'd be back on the train by five. I think we agreed to play chess? Honestly, I don't really remember."
Ruan Mei's expression remained unchanged. With a casual gesture, a small mountain of Stellar Jades appeared before Stelle.
"A promise you don't really remember isn't a promise. Wouldn't you agree?"
"Right, right! March 7th doesn't even know the basic rules of chess. I should probably run the Simulated Universe first."
---
On the blue planet, within an ancient tower.
Herta tossed her magic hat aside. She stood before a mirror, studying her own reflection.
The anger on her pretty face had not yet faded. Even a trace of... something else lingered.
Clearly, even far from Ruan Mei, everything that had happened had left her deeply unsettled.
Ruan Mei's every word, every expression, every smile—even those cool, distant eyes, and the way she had taken Asta's hand—all these memories kept surfacing in her mind.
Herta clenched her fists. Through gritted teeth, she recounted everything.
"Ruan Mei!! You!! First it's a 'social experiment,' then 'family,' then Wisteria Cake."
"And now a 'date'?! Is this how a genius behaves? Is this how you torment me?!"
"If it were anyone else, I'd have thrown them into the sea to feed the fish—or tossed them into a star to be incinerated—countless times by now!"
A faint scent of plum blossoms drifted from the ancient mirror. Herta looked up and realized: this mirror was a gift Ruan Mei had given her an entire Amber Era ago.
Herta snatched up the mirror. She raised it high above her head—then immediately came to her senses.
Everything was Ruan Mei's fault. This mirror was innocent.
Herta took a deep breath and began carefully reviewing everything that had happened these past few days.
It started with Ruan Mei saving a dying Xianzhou foxian.
Then, something seemed to happen to her. Herta made her rest.
The moment Ruan Mei woke up, there was a subtle change in those cool, distant eyes. Then she asked:
"Herta. Is there someone you like?"
...
"Herta. Will you go on a date with me?"
(T/N: Say yes!)