Rhodes Island does not exist.

"You can call me Doctor," the Doctor began his self-introduction to the dazed Fleur. "My purpose in coming to the thirteenth floor is to find a woman I know named Warfarin. Do you know her?"

"Warfarin, I know her."

Furong nodded.

Faced with the doctor's sincere question, Furong felt that she would feel guilty if she didn't answer, so she finally chose to explain the doctor's question.

"So……"

“But I can’t tell you more.” Fleur waved her hand at the professor, her expression apologetic yet innocent. “I’m so sorry.”

"They're really wary." The doctor's expression was somewhat helpless.

Facing his former operators, the Doctor felt only absurdity.

"So, what else can I do here?" Thus, he could only seek Furong's opinion again, maintaining the utmost goodwill and sincerity.

“If you want to rest, perhaps you can sit down for a while…?” Hibiscus looked at the countless tables and chairs in the hall, and almost every table was decorated with desserts—albeit fake ones.

“Alright, then I’ll rest here for a while.” The Doctor sat down on the bench next to Hibiscus, then spoke to her again, “If I’m not mistaken, you’re not in charge here, so you don’t even have the freedom to talk to me, is that right?”

"Th-th-this, I..."

Furong's eyes became uneasy.

If she answers this question, it means she acknowledges that there are other people living here besides herself.

But if she doesn't answer, she can't explain her bizarre behavior.

Ultimately, due to her lack of independent thinking, she has gradually led herself into a trap called language.

“Actually, you don’t need to answer.” The doctor shook his head. “Your actions and words have already proven the answer to this matter to me—in this restaurant on the thirteenth floor, there is a controller, or rather, a manager.”

"Woo..."

Furong burst into tears.

Although the phantom does not shed tears, and her body remains a blurry image throughout, without any visible expression of sadness.

But at least, the voice reached the doctor's heart.

"I'm so sorry, I really didn't expect things to turn out like this." Seeing his operator crying, the Doctor suddenly felt a sense of self-blame.

Even though his former operators have become strange beings on Rhodes Island, they are still his operators.

This is probably something like a PhD's instinct; he himself can't quite explain it.

"You're really something. I've seen monsters tortured and killed, but I've never seen a monster made to cry."

"Could it be that you're some kind of genius at making girls cry?"

came a voice.

A voice that a PhD would never mistake.

Chapter 280, Part 278: She Who Lost Her Crown

How would you describe Exia?

"Exusiai? Why are you suddenly asking about her?"

"It's nothing, I just wanted to ask. Anyway, no one can hear us whispering to each other in private, so just tell me, okay?"

"Isn't it a bit inappropriate to talk about someone behind their back?"

"Tell me, tell me."

"Then tell me?"

"Ah."

"You know the Sarkaz race, they're all hypocrites. Most Terrans' stereotypes about Laterano come from these hypocritical Sarkaz."

"Yeah, I guess I'm like that too."

"But Exusiai, although she is a Sarkaz, she is indeed different from ordinary Sarkaz."

"You mean her optimistic spirit, and that 'as long as I'm happy, nothing else matters' attitude?"

"And her legendary experience of blowing up her alma mater seventeen times in three years."

"Is this for real? I always thought it was some kind of urban legend from Rhodes Island."

“It’s true. I heard it from other Lateran monks, so it must be true, because monks adhere to the code of conduct and do not lie.”

"But after saying all that, what's your opinion on Exusiai?"

"I've teamed up with her before, so I'll just tell you in one sentence."

"Uh-huh."

"You might find her annoying when she's on your team, but believe me, you definitely don't want to see her on the opposing side."

—Excerpt from a recording of two Rhodes Island operators in the game room.

-

The voice doctor would never be mistaken.

It's the Angel of Power.

Within Rhodes Island, the voices of the female operators may all be quite distinctive, but Exusiai's voice is probably one of the least likely to be mistaken.

Of course, this has nothing to do with the tone of her voice, but rather with the vitality contained in her voice.

For the doctor who lives a life of exhaustion every day, Exusiai's voice is probably the best antidote.

Moreover, although she is an operator dispatched abroad, Exusiai does show respect to the Doctor in every aspect of her work, which makes the Doctor have a very good first impression of Exusiai.

But... does she still remember the doctor?

"A black coat with a hood, wow, I'm not saying this, but your outfit looks quite suspicious." A phantom with the voice of Exusiai appeared from a corner of the hall and then slowly walked towards the Doctor.

When the doctor saw the outline of the phantom, he became even more convinced that the person in front of him was Exia.

Although she no longer had the halo above her head and the wings on her back, the doctor could still recognize that it was her.

"So, what's going on, huh?" Exusiai stopped between the Doctor and Fleur, then glanced at them. "You, who look neither human nor monster, came here just to make my girl cry?"

Hearing these nonsensical words come out of Exusiai's mouth, the Doctor couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

After all, judging from the fundamentalist Rhodes Island operator relationship chart, the two of them shouldn't have had this kind of connection.

But there's nothing that can be done about it, since the space they're in isn't a normal place to begin with.

Even so, the fact that Exusiai called Furong "my girl" still brought the Doctor a little bit of lighthearted and simple joy.

"No, it's not."

But faced with Exusiai's questioning, the Doctor certainly couldn't treat her with a frivolous attitude, so he pretended to be calm, shook his head steadily, and prepared to defend himself.

However, there is no need to defend this matter in practice.

"Haha, look how nervous you are. Alright, alright, I watched the whole thing from the side. I know it's not your fault that she cried."

Because Exusiai had no intention of letting the Doctor explain himself.

"So you've been watching all this time." The doctor breathed a sigh of relief. "Then why didn't you come out sooner?"

"Because if I came out too early, wouldn't I miss the rest of the show?" Exusiai shrugged. "Oh, thank you, thank you, for letting me see Hibiscus cry. Whether you're a good person or a bad person, or what you came here for, I'll thank you for this in advance."

"That's certainly a strange reason for thanking you," the doctor said with a wry smile.

"Xiao Ai, how could you do this..."

Furong, standing to the side, gently pouted her lips and then looked down at the ground, appearing shy.

However, more than Hibiscus's appearance, the Doctor was more concerned about the way she addressed Exusiai.

"What did she call you just now, Xiao Ai?"

The doctor was stunned for a moment by this completely unfamiliar name.

“Yes, Xiao Ai.” Hibiscus raised her gaze slightly and nodded to the professor. “Although Xiao Ai is the general manager here, she has no airs at all.” Everyone living here likes Xiao Ai very much.

"Everyone... is that so?" The doctor said thoughtfully. "It seems there are other strange beings or phantoms living here, but why is it Xiao Ai? Why is her name Xiao Ai?"

"No, if it's you, you don't need to call me that."

The information came from Xiao Ai.

This time, the answer was given in a flash.

"Hmm?" Hearing the words from the phantom that was clearly Exia but was inexplicably called Little Estelle, the Doctor was momentarily dazed.

Shouldn't we call her that?

Could it be that she actually has memories of the past? And wants me to call her Exia?

The doctor thought to himself.

However, he was wrong in the end.

“Just call me Exia.” She looked at the Doctor and said, “Xiao Ai is just a nickname they use for me. I don’t think we’re that close yet, so just call me by my name.”

It turned out to be the case.

The doctor felt both amused and exasperated.

Thinking about it this way, the rhythm of my previous conversations with Warfarin was probably quite similar.

It seems that Exusiai and Warfarin should have a lot in common.

After all, the two of them actually have very similar voices.

But... Exia?

The doctor pondered the pronunciation of the four characters in his mind for a moment.

Exia.

What is EXA?

Exia.

"That's quite a clever trick," the doctor couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

Although it's unclear why Exusiai chose a name with the same pronunciation as hers, considering that she has lost her wings and halo and is no longer a Sarkaz, there might be some reason for it.

"So, Exia—I'll call you that from now on, is that alright?" After finishing his internal monologue, the Doctor spoke to Exia in front of him.

“Sure.” Exusiai nodded. “So, I heard you’re here to see Warfarin?”

"Hmm," the doctor replied.

“She’s not here right now,” Exusiai said. “But I can tell you where she went.”

"But there must be conditions, I understand." The Doctor noticed the long syllable at the end of Exusiai's sentence.

"Yes."

Exusiai flashed a sly smile.

Just like she used to look.

-

Thank you segment

Thank you Rabbit Lover Otakuzuka-chan for the monthly pass, the knife, and the spicy strips, thank you.

Chapter 281, 279. Twisted Logic

"Let's be frank and get straight to the point."

Exusiai used this idiom as her opening line to the Doctor.

Negotiating with his former operators—the Doctor hadn't actually foreseen this scenario.

And frankly, the current situation looks like Exusiai kidnapped Warfarin and is using Warfarin's whereabouts as leverage to blackmail the Doctor.

Even if the reality is not like that at all.

"Hmm... Doctor, I'll call you that from now on, Doctor." Exusiai thought for a moment and finally settled on the proper name for the Doctor.

"That's for the best." The doctor nodded.

"Do you know how many floors there are in Rhodes Island?" Exusiai pulled a bench out from beside the table, then casually sat down, looking at the Doctor in the opposite seat.