They traveled through time at the same time, but the villainous scientist

Chapter 158 Ayanami Rei

After the remains of the Day Angel were removed, Tokyo-3 seemed to be reset. After a brief period of panic, everything returned to its orderly operation.

For Shinji Ikari, life had turned a new page.

He is no longer that boy who huddled in a corner, isolating himself from the world with headphones.

The taste of victory and the recognition of his value, like the first rays of morning sunlight, dispelled the thick fog that had accumulated in his heart for many years.

He started to share interesting stories from school with Zhang Qi, and even at the dinner table, he would show the refreshing smile that a young man should have because of a joke.

Meanwhile, in the battle against the Angel of the Day, NERV demonstrated its formidable combat power, especially the new high-frequency katana equipped with Unit-01, which attracted unprecedented support from countries around the world.

Funds, resources, top talent... are constantly flowing into this massive underground organization in Japan.

On this day, Zhang Qi unusually ended the meeting early and appeared in the underground of Old Tokyo.

Within the vast space, cold metal and complex wiring intertwine to form a massive device.

This is the core component of the positron cannon, which was originally proposed by him after completing the Arc Reactor in the MAX Power Project.

This is naturally a project of the same name from the TPC world of Ultraman Tiga, a propulsion device that uses the annihilation of electrons and antielectrons to generate energy.

His reason for proposing this project was naturally to deal with the Angels. In the original work, it was already shown during the battle against the Thunder Angels that even super-creatures like the Angels could not withstand this kind of antimatter weapon.

After all, a positron cannon is essentially an attack at the very root of matter... at the atomic level.

By utilizing the encounter between positrons and negative electrons in the target material, annihilation is triggered, thereby completely collapsing the material structure and releasing devastating gamma rays and energy.

This attack ignores physical defense and biological characteristics. Even an apostle would be annihilated if hit head-on.

However, due to a lack of relevant resources, this plan had been stalled for a long time.

Now that we have the resources, if we can simply transform this project into a weapons project, we can get funding.

In this process, since it's his company and he left a backdoor in MAGI, it shouldn't matter much if he uses a little more later.

There's still some time before the final day, and he needs to hurry up with his plans.

……

Meanwhile, at the Third New Tokyo City First Junior High School, the lunch break bell had just rung.

Shinji Ikari hesitated for a long time, but finally mustered up his courage and walked up to the girl who always sat alone by the window, so quiet that she seemed to be isolated from the world.

"Um... Rei Ayanami-san."

Rei Ayanami raised her head, her blood-red eyes as calm and still as ever, simply gazing at him quietly.

"This... was given to you by Zhang Qisang."

He said the old cards had too low access levels, and this new one would be much more convenient for entering and exiting the base.

Shinji Ikari felt a little nervous under her gaze, his palms slightly sweaty. He took out a brand new NERV access card from his pocket and handed it over.

Rei Ayanami extended her slender white fingers and took the card. As her fingertips touched the card's cold surface, the corners of her mouth, which had remained expressionless, twitched slightly, revealing a faint yet genuine smile.

Shinji Ikari froze instantly, as if he had seen something unbelievable.

He always thought that Rei Ayanami never smiled; her world, like her eyes, was always calm and colorless.

"what happened?"

Seemingly noticing his stunned reaction, Rei Ayanami tilted her head slightly, a hint of confusion appearing in her red eyes for the first time.

"Ah... no, it's nothing!"

"It's just... somewhat unexpected that you actually smiled..."

Shinji Ikari then realized his rudeness and quickly waved his hand, his cheeks burning.

He scratched his head, using the gesture to hide his embarrassment, and then, as if possessed, asked the question that had been lingering in his mind for days.

Zhang Qi said it's good to laugh often...

Rei Ayanami's answer was direct and frank, without any embellishment.

"Huh? Zhang Qisang?"

Shinji Ikari was somewhat curious; how could he possibly hear Zhang Qi's name here?

"Hmm~"

Rei Ayanami nodded, a look of reminiscence on her face.

"Could it be... that Rei Ayanami and Zhang Qisang... have a very good relationship?"

Shinji Ikari was taken aback when he saw this, and he almost blurted it out.

As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted them; the question was extremely rude.

"Yes, he is a very gentle person."

However, Rei Ayanami wasn't angry. She simply thought about it seriously for a moment, then nodded gently.

"Yes! Zhang Qisang is indeed...very gentle!"

Upon hearing this answer, Shinji Ikari nodded in deep agreement, and then, as if he had found an outlet for his frustration, began to mutter a complaint under his breath.
"However, he can be quite unreliable at home sometimes! He always leaves things lying around, and the room is a mess. If I didn't clean it every day, it would be unbearable to look at..."

He kept talking non-stop, completely unaware that Rei Ayanami was listening intently across from him.

Those "flaws" that he described as belonging to Zhang Qi and full of life were completely unknown territory to her.

The atmosphere between the two of them gradually became more harmonious. "By the way, Ayanami-san."

In a few days...it seems to be Zhang Qisang's birthday. Should we...go together to pick out a gift for him?

After chatting for a while, Shinji Ikari suddenly remembered something and made a suggestion.

"Birthday? A present?"

Why do we give gifts on birthdays?

Confusion resurfaced in Rei Ayanami's eyes.

"Because...because it's a very important day for everyone."

"Although... I've never received a birthday present in my entire life."

Shinji Ikari replied, but his voice unconsciously lowered as he spoke, and his words seemed rather unconvincing.

However, he quickly composed himself and raised his head again.
"However, I really want to give Zhang Qisang a gift... to thank him for everything he has done for me."

"Is this so..."

Rei Ayanami looked at him, seemingly trying to understand his complex emotions.

She nodded and, in her distinctive, cool, and clear voice, agreed to the request.

A few days later, in an elegantly decorated upscale barbecue restaurant, the charcoal fire was burning brightly, and the dripping fat made a sizzling sound, filling the entire private room with an enticing aroma.

Zhang Qi looked at the two exquisitely wrapped gift boxes on the table in front of him, his face full of undisguised surprise, especially at one of them, which was from Rei Ayanami.

Due to technical reasons, he made in-depth improvements to the clones of the Ayanami series, and thus spent a lot of time taking care of this always taciturn girl.

But he never imagined that this girl, who seemed indifferent to everything, would actually give him a gift.

Shinji said that gifts should be given to important people.

Rei Ayanami sat opposite him and explained calmly, her clear eyes devoid of any impurities.

"Forehead……"

Shinji Ikari, standing to the side, scratched his head awkwardly.

Judging from Ayanami's reaction, it seems that he completely misunderstood back then.

The "liking" she spoke of didn't seem to be the kind of romantic love she was thinking of...

"Ha~"

Zhang Qi chuckled softly, his gaze sweeping meaningfully toward Misato Katsuragi, who was engrossed in a battle with a piece of the finest Wagyu beef.

"This is much better than that guy who only knows how to freeload and whose bills are outrageously high."

"what the hell!"

Misato Katsuragi finally managed to swallow the mouthful of meat and retorted confidently.

"Didn't you say you could order anything? Besides, Ritsuko didn't send anything either."

She tried to drag her friend next to her into the mess.

"Hey~ how did you know I didn't deliver it?"

Ritsuko Akagi, who had been quietly sipping her sake, smiled knowingly upon hearing this, a hint of cunning in her eyes.

"Okay, okay, I'll make it up to you later~ You're so stingy!"

Misato Katsuragi muttered to herself, then realized that the two of them might have exchanged gifts while having sex.

Who would have thought that both children would give her gifts? Her plan to be a freeloader was thus thwarted.

"Let's save the money and buy our own bar,"

Zhang Qi didn't hold back in his criticism.

"I'm not an alcoholic!"

Misato Katsuragi glared fiercely at Zhang Qi, then picked up another piece of grilled meat and stuffed it into her mouth.

"Thank you, I really like it."

Amidst laughter and cheerful conversation, Zhang Qi opened the gifts: a tie and a pair of glasses.

A shy yet satisfied smile appeared on Shinji Ikari's face.

The girl nodded slightly, and a hint of warmth from the charcoal fire seemed to tinge her blood-red eyes.

However, the warmth and laughter inside that private room were transmitted in real time to the deepest part of NERV, to the perpetually dark and cold commander's office, through a hidden camera.

Gendo Ikari silently watched the image frozen on the screen—Zhang Qi smiled as he received gifts from Shinji Ikari and Rei Ayanami.

That joyous scene, like a needle, pierced deeply into his heart...

His expression behind his glasses became quite complex, and for a moment, a hint of indescribable wavering seemed to flash through his eyes.

But that slight wavering was quickly swallowed up by a deeper chill, eventually turning into a deathly stillness and hardness.

He had already embarked on a path of no return...

(End of this chapter)