I am a hero of the former civilization.

Ryan jerked his head, instinctively finding the most reasonable explanation: this was a war, just as Mebius could never relinquish his pride.

I, Ryan, even if I escape and die at the hands of the Honkai, I will never allow myself to be controlled by others.

The Moth that Chases Flame cannot do it, the Herrscher cannot do it, and neither can you.

Ryan took a deep breath. He suddenly realized that Mebius seemed to have changed a bit, but something was still stubborn, like how he had deliberately brought along the twins Danzhu and Cangxuan, and he had almost been caught red-handed because of his lack of vigilance.

The seeds of disaster have already been sown. With Möbius's intelligence, he will surely seize the loophole and, at the opportune moment, deliver a fatal blow that leaves me speechless.

No wonder they let me off so easily. It's not just because they're greedy for money. Their mood changed so quickly when they called me last time. In the past, they would definitely have taken the opportunity to say something sarcastic.

Okay, you're trying to play tricks on me, huh? I almost fell for it.

Ryan exclaimed with relief, "Without Alicia's help, I really wouldn't have noticed this logical flaw!" He couldn't help but cast a grateful glance at her.

Hey, Ryan is thanking me.

Alicia had been secretly observing, her passion growing even stronger, and she quietly gave an OK sign.

Don't worry, I'll get my dear Mebius down in no time.

???

Ryan was baffled and couldn't understand why Alicia made that gesture, but he knew she had a purpose, and a sentence flashed through his mind.

The city gate caught fire and affected the pond fish.

He got up without making a sound, took the plate to the wall, leaned against it, and was about to eat some melon.

"Oh dear, you actually caught me."

The sound suddenly rang out, and Ryan's body trembled. He turned his head in surprise and saw that the floor-to-ceiling glass by the wall was twisted, revealing a groove. He peeked in and saw a person hiding inside. Wasn't that Wilvi?

After the meeting ended, the guy disappeared, and then he was startled like a female ghost.

"Why aren't you eating properly? What are you doing hiding here?"

"Performing magic tricks, and testing new equipment at the same time. You wouldn't believe it, everyone who passed by here just now was scared out of their wits, hahaha, it was really interesting."

Ryan then noticed food scraps and broken plates on the ground, showing how terrified the people who passed by had been. Looking at Wilvie, she had even changed into a bright red dress and leather boots, with a round neckline that made her breasts appear and disappear.

Her brownish-yellow and dark green hair, along with her gradient eye color, made her appear strange and mysterious.

They even changed their clothes, are they getting ready to make a dazzling appearance later?

“You’ll have no friends doing this, but this device is quite interesting.” Ryan noticed that Velvie was standing inside something that looked like a coffin, which he hadn’t noticed at all; it was just Velvie’s self-destruction.

Even if there was a reason for their complacency, it was still quite unexpected that the other party could hide right under their noses for so long.

"But you still found out. Looks like my Ultimate Concealment System V3 still needs improvement." Velvi scratched her head, looking troubled, then glanced at Ryan. "How about I explain it to you? It's based on the Mirage System, using..."

"Stop, stop, stop, can you get to the point?" Ryan didn't want to listen to another three hours of reports.

"But how can you marvel at my brilliant idea if I don't explain it clearly? How about I compress it to one hour? Hmm, I can't shorten it any further!"

Seeing that Wilvie seemed unwilling to back down, Ryan wasn't in a hurry and said slowly, "Well, if May finds out about you making a big hole in the banquet hall and dressing up as a ghost to scare people..."

Before he could finish speaking, he felt a hand cover his mouth.

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you, I'll tell you!"

Chapter 178 You want my people, and you also want my money!

Just as May treated Ryan as a self-propelled ATM, Ryan could also use his position to bully others, passing on all the troublesome tasks to them, and it seems to be working very well.

Vivi was genuinely scared, so she reduced the hour-long presentation to ten minutes, which would be easy for her to explain if she wanted to.

This device, called the 'Ultimate Concealment System V3', can isolate energy and conceal infrared, optical, and other characteristics, leaving only metaphysical intuition.

This is interesting. It is indeed an evolved version of the mirage system. It would be great if the range could be expanded so that I could avoid being detected by 'Skynet'.

Ryan had seen that thing in Snow Prison Town. It was similar to the illusion wall in a certain Souls-like work. It could obstruct his vision, but it couldn't block Honkai energy. When he controlled the 'wind' to blow over it, he could immediately see the flaw.

If they use this convoluted thing, those secret passages definitely won't be discovered, and the pseudo-Herrscher can hide.

He tested it with his authority, and the energy was deflected off the surface without any abnormality.

Ryan stroked his smooth chin, his gaze towards Wilvie softening.

Although they act on impulse, they are truly brilliant; they manage to create such amazing props.

There aren't many people who can truly convince him, but Vilvie is definitely one of them, and she's especially easy to fool.

The girl's big eyes only showed one thought: Praise me, praise me.

"Ahem, you're a genius. Find a way to make this device portable. It's not aesthetically pleasing to carry a coffin around like that. Also, the range needs to be expanded, at least enough to cover a football field."

As soon as she finished speaking, Velvi was somewhat disappointed, feeling that Ryan's reaction was too bland. This, however, only fueled the magician's competitive spirit. She grabbed Ryan's hand and dragged him outside.

"That's a great idea! Come with me, I've got something good to show you!"

Wait, why did I suddenly get so excited?

Ryan wanted to refuse, but a sinister gaze from behind made him change his mind immediately. Without turning around, he knew who the gaze came from.

Instead of helping me get rid of Alicia, you're just doing experiments right there!

Alicia is such a formidable character. She's still in high spirits. I might even break down if she messes with me. How dare she go up there and get herself killed?

I can't help you, goodbye.

He decisively gave up resisting and followed Vervière out of the banquet hall. When the doors closed, completely cutting off the sound of people, he breathed a sigh of relief.

We're safe now.

He glanced at the excited Wilvie ahead, quickened his pace to catch up, eager to see what strange things this 'green-skinned' had come up with in the past six months.

The various departments of the Fire Moth have gradually integrated, so there's no need to go to Wilvi's old lair on some island. After passing through many guards, taking the elevator, and then going deeper underground, you have to go through several heavy blast doors.

The corridor is still being tested, and the ceiling is not yet finished, but the area is already taking shape, and there are no construction workers in sight.

Small robots, about the size of a palm, crawled all over the place, either working together to move equipment or flashing welding lights from their 'fingertips'. A corridor was taking shape at a visible speed, with its ventilation system and circuits all matching the design drawings without the slightest error.

Ryan finally understood why the fortress had been built so quickly. With these things working tirelessly day and night, their efficiency was hundreds of times faster than that of humans. He slowly squatted down, placed his hand on the floor, and used electromagnetic vision to 'see' the scene below.

A giant tunnel boring machine is excavating in the rock strata, scattering beams of light in all directions like a shower of flowers. Then, a hole about 100 square meters in size appears, and hundreds of small robots immediately follow to reinforce the surrounding area.

'What sci-fi architectural scene? Now I understand why the Moths of Fire retreated so decisively.'

No wonder the Fire Moth dared to abandon vast swathes of land and people. In terms of fighting the Honkai, most humans are a burden and completely useless. Even for logistical support, one Velvet is enough to replace a million people.

It's cruel, but that's the real world. People like Alicia are so rare.

At that moment, several robots resembling traffic lights approached, their beams of light sweeping over Velvi.

"Beep beep, verification complete. Welcome back, Your Excellency the Great Magician."

"Beep beep, permissions granted. Welcome, mentor of destiny."

Their bodies light up green; aside from their somewhat childish names, they're quite useful, at least possessing some level of artificial intelligence.

What is a "mentor of destiny"?

"Joining Moth gave me the opportunity to showcase my talents, and these are all changes you brought about."

A sudden compliment came from above, and Ryan was about to nod happily when he realized the tone was off.

"The id?"

“It’s been a long time, Mr. Ryan.” Velvet turned around and gave a slight bow. The seamless transition between her personalities caught Ryan off guard.

What wind blew you out here?

Is this considered a thank you?

"Yes, I will prove my worth with results. Please follow me."

The last blast door opened, revealing a pitch-black corridor. Ryan hesitated for a moment, then followed.

No matter what Vilvie is up to, her 'id' personality is easier to communicate with than her 'magician' personality; at least her blood pressure will be more stable.

The corridor was lined with transparent glass on both sides, and lights kept turning on as they walked. Ryan's expression and eyes changed.

The robot, a robot that only appears in science fiction novels, was in the hangar outside the glass. It was about ten meters tall, covered with cables, and its thick armor reflected a dim light.

It really is a Gundam.

The dark, thick muzzle looked very imposing, and the armor was made of a special alloy, much stronger than the scrap metal that Wilvi used to collect from the junkyard.

"If you had used this thing back in Changkong City, I definitely wouldn't have been able to beat you."

“But you are growing too.” Now, Wilvi seemed quiet and introverted as she explained, “The space below will be built into an assembly plant, and the display cases here will be constantly filled.”

Display cases? They do resemble shop windows filled with toys, except each one is a terrifying killing tool.

Ryan walked through the corridor, looking at each one and occasionally asking questions. In addition to the robots used directly in combat, there were also the latest Honkai energy cores, with a 200% increase in output power, enough to support some terrifying weapons.

In addition, weapons made of Soul Steel were placed in various places, ranging from firearms to melee weapons. As for some strange and unusual items, their functions could not be determined from their appearance.

Wilvi finally stopped, turned around, and gave a slight smile: "Mr. Ryan, are you satisfied with my work?"

“Absolutely satisfied. Your value is immeasurable.” Ryan wasn’t good at praising people, so after thinking for a moment, he said, “You and Mebius have extended two technological trees of human civilization, and your importance is on par with each other.”

Of course, it would be great if we could correct the problem of wasting money. Color-changing stockings are completely unnecessary.

He silently added to himself, but didn't say it aloud to dampen Vilvie's enthusiasm.

"really?"

“Absolutely true, I think every piece of your work is a treasure of civilization.” Ryan said righteously, anyway, 'Ideal' Wilvie was a socially awkward person, so no matter how much she was praised, she wouldn’t get carried away.

Wilvi tilted her head slightly and patted the wall. A mechanical arm extended out, splitting open from the center to reveal a strange structure.

Ryan was initially curious, but eventually discovered that this fancy-looking thing was essentially a coffee machine, only the coffee-making technique was very elaborate, and Velvi thoughtfully added bionic skin to one of its hands.

He immediately understood why May had cut the budget; Velvet was always unusually persistent about things that were meaningless.

"Including this one?" Velvi picked up the cup from the prosthetic arm and snapped her fingers.

The ceiling also cracked open, and a conveyor belt appeared in front of Ryan, then the cup of coffee was handed to him.

Ryan took a sip, and as a coffee lover, his eyes lit up.

The temperature was just right, the taste was superb, just like it was brewed by a professional barista, and then...

Is that your reason for spending hundreds of thousands of euros?