Not far from the Babylon Laboratory, a girl with pale violet eyes was knitting a scarf.
In cold climates, people wear thick scarves woven from wool for warmth. In places that are dry, dusty, or have severe air pollution, a light scarf can be wrapped around the head to keep one's hair clean.
These are the functional uses of a scarf.
However, as times have changed, the so-called scarf seems to have acquired new uses.
For example… as a small gift to express one's feelings.
Miss Mei, who was clearly ready to embrace the wonderful life that awaited her, was happily knitting a scarf, planning for it to be the first little gift after their relationship was officially confirmed.
She wondered if Zihan would like it.
The girl, deep in the throes of love, hummed a lovely melody as she knitted, her thoughts drifting.
If you're giving someone a gift, it's usually best to do a little research beforehand. However, she truly couldn't figure out what hobbies Li Zihan had.
His Chaotic Impulse—his Origin of "Hunting"—had pushed his focus to an unbelievable level. Aside from the things he truly cared about, he was almost completely indifferent to everything else.
At this thought, Miss Mei couldn't help but snort softly to herself.
There weren't many things that could capture his attention. Among them, cute girls took up the largest share.
That guy, unless there was an emergency, spent basically all his time getting close to girls!
Jerk! Big pig trotter!
The girl knitting the scarf mentally berated her lover.
Still, it was a relief that she was the one who won in the end.
The girl, who would soon be having her wedding, wore a bright and charming smile. A hint of flirtatious allure mixed with a beautiful purity, making one want to drown in the ripples of her smile.
So what if Seele confessed successfully so early on?
So what if Bronya spent nearly all her time by Zihan's side?
So what if Sirin and Zihan were as close as siblings?
And then there were Ana, Wendy, Kiana, and the others. In the end, didn't they all lose?
But, speaking of which, what was it that Zihan had apologized to her for in advance?
The girl, who had a vague premonition, furrowed her delicate brows.
Did he sleep with someone?
At that thought, Miss Mei, who had previously said she would forgive him, felt her mood sour.
She…
DID! NOT! CARE! AT! ALL!
Miss Mei, who was well aware of how much the girls around her wanted to place a green hat on her head, recalled each one who had given her an apologetic look, trying to uncover the truth.
And then—
Her entire world came crashing down.
Aside from the ever-smiling maid, Rita, and the Dull Goose, who was an absolute titanium-alloy straight man after being gender-bent, it seemed like every other girl her age had given her that "I'm sorry" look.
Miss Mei felt an inexplicable urge to smack that guy with the Magnetic Field Heavenly Blade she had just learned.
But…
When she inexplicably thought of Kiana, that urge diminished considerably, and her resolve wavered. Kiana's attachment was almost pathologically codependent. If Mei were to keep a tight leash on Zihan and forbid her from getting close, something terrible would probably happen.
And besides… she was the candidate for the Herrscher of the End, wasn't she?
The girl, vaguely remembering Li Zihan saying that Kiana was practically the designated Herrscher of the End, felt her expression stiffen. If Kiana fell into despair, the entire world would be on the brink of destruction.
And… the core of the Herrscher experiment was Jizo Mitama, right? If that was the case… the affection the other artificial Herrschers held for Zihan was also pathological, wasn't it?
Miss Mei vaguely recalled him saying that he had made many attempts to ensure his own mind wouldn't be twisted during the Herrscher experiment.
Those girls… they were actually quite pitiful, weren't they? They had sacrificed their own emotions for the future of humanity.
Miss Mei sighed in her heart.
She was completely unaware that the boy in question had been on very good terms with those Herrscher candidates before the experiment, and that due to his own will to survive, he had dumped almost all of the dangerous trials onto the Herrscher of Rock, Chen Tianwu.
Forget it. As long as he doesn't go too far, it should be fine.
Perhaps out of pity, the girl's standards were unconsciously lowered by a great deal as she continued to knit her scarf.
Then, a ripple appeared in the space before her eyes.
Is Zihan back?
The outcome was just as she expected. The boy, whose eyes had turned a beautiful gold after his Herrscher transformation, emerged, holding the hand of a very frail-looking girl.
The male was, of course, Li Zihan. The girl was wearing thin experimental clothing with a nameplate that read "52."
It was someone she didn't recognize at all. But the only person Zihan would bring here would be Sirin.
Remembering that he had told her Sirin was sold to a laboratory, the girl stood up, a trace of heartache in her eyes.
Sirin was even more unfortunate than she had imagined. Her skin was a sickly pale, and her body was so thin she looked malnourished. One could only imagine what kind of life she had lived in that laboratory.
A surge of anger rose in Raiden Mei's heart.
Human experimentation refers to experiments conducted on people (patients or healthy individuals) to obtain data. It is a practice that has built medical knowledge on a scientific foundation and is vital to medical progress. In the past, many doctors, in order to better understand the nature of diseases, would compile and analyze the phenomena they observed, speculate on the causes, and use every available method to treat them.
Human experimentation wasn't some shameful, hidden practice.
But—
The very first ethical principle of human experimentation is informed consent! Even the Artificial Herrscher experiment, which had virtually no side effects other than planting green hats on her head, required signed voluntary declarations and official procedures. Adopting children and then sending them to a lab to be used as guinea pigs… what kind of atrocity was that?!
"Are you Sirin?"
Mei, who held nothing but goodwill for Sirin, unhesitatingly walked around the master of the house and stopped in front of the purple-haired girl, asking with a gentle and pleasant expression.
And then—
To her surprise, the girl did not respond to her friendly attitude with kindness. Instead, she clutched tightly to the corner of Li Zihan's clothes, staring at Mei with the wariness of one facing a great enemy.
Her expression was strangely reminiscent of a little girl whose favorite toy was about to be snatched away.
Being ignored, Miss Mei's expression turned a bit awkward.
"Sirin… is a little shy with strangers."
The boy, who knew perfectly well why Sirin was giving Mei the cold shoulder, smiled and patted Sirin's little head as he explained.
"Oh, I see."
The slightly embarrassed Miss Mei smiled, then, as if just remembering something, quickly said, "Should I go prepare a room for her?"
"I've already prepared Sirin's room."
The boy, who was always thorough in his planning, smiled. Then, under Miss Sirin's somewhat icy gaze, he glanced at the time and spoke.
"Next, it's time to rest, isn't it?"