Bai Ming was, on the whole, fairly satisfied with her current state.
There was just one thing she couldn't stop thinking about.
Her lifespan.
A thousand-odd years wasn't exactly short. By most standards, it was already absurdly long.
And with the system around, even though each Roleplay only added a sliver of life—so little that against a base of over a millennium it barely even registered—it was still increasing. That much, Bai Ming could feel.
That wasn't the real problem.
The real issue was that the bulk of her extended lifespan came from the blessings of the Aeons.
As for the joint research she, Herta, and the others had been conducting, it simply couldn't touch the lifespan of the soul.
Theoretically speaking, Servants weren't the same thing as the Third Magic—but when it came to longevity, they should still possess extremely long lives.
Yet Bai Ming's current state was, in theory, no different from a Servant's. And still, there had been no obvious change to her lifespan.
Which meant that the true source of longevity lay in the soul dwelling within a Servant—the Heroic Spirit.
The decisive factor likely had to begin with the soul itself.
Following that line of thought, the first method of immortality that came to mind was that world's famed Third Magic: the Materialization of the Soul.
Despite the name, its essence was still about achieving the soul's immortality.
But if she were to pursue that path, Bai Ming felt it would be going the long way around.
First, she didn't even understand the structure or properties of souls in that world.
Second… if it was purely about lifespan, the Heliobi already lived so long it bordered on the ridiculous.
Rather than chasing after something as intangible as soul materialization, she felt it made more sense to figure out the difference between herself and the Heliobi.
Why could a being like that live for so long, while her own soul would dissipate so easily—so easily that something like "lifespan" even applied to it?
And besides… even Aeons unrelated to life, like Nanook and Aha, had directly and efficiently increased her lifespan before.
Which meant that, in the eyes of the Aeons, her condition wasn't some unsolvable enigma.
That was undeniably good news for Bai Ming.
At the very least, it meant there was hope—something that could, eventually, be deciphered.
Otherwise, the lifespans of Herta and Ruan Mei stretched so far into the future that you couldn't even see the end of them.
And theirs were the one-and-done kind.
Compared to that, her mere thousand years—earned by painstakingly gathering emotional value bit by bit—felt… pitiful.
To Bai Ming, the lifespan issue wasn't urgent, but it was something she needed to solve sooner or later.
Which was why she always cooperated with Herta and Ruan Mei's examinations.
So when Ruan Mei suddenly mentioned another checkup, she agreed without hesitation.
Only after agreeing did Bai Ming realize she hadn't actually heard what the check was about.
She looked up at Herta and Ruan Mei, paused, and asked, "Sorry, I didn't catch that. What kind of check?"
Ruan Mei only smiled. Herta, meanwhile, shot her an exasperated look.
"So you didn't hear a single word of what Ruan Mei and I were just discussing?"
"I was thinking about something else and didn't really pay attention."
Bai Ming gave an embarrassed smile and blinked at Herta.
Herta sighed. She had expected Bai Ming might miss a few details while distracted—but not that she'd miss everything.
Still, she summarized their earlier conversation again.
"…That's the situation. So, you didn't feel anything yourself?"
"No… I thought it was just a physical thing. But now that you mention it, maybe it is kind of strange."
Tilting her head, Bai Ming thought it over.
Looking back, when Herta had teased her earlier, her reaction really had been a bit excessive.
Theoretically, it shouldn't have been that strong, but even when she tried to compare her past and present sensations, nothing felt especially different.
Her perception was still similar to before—though her body's awareness of the world was clearly more direct.
As for why she'd become so sensitive… that part she couldn't figure out.
Still—
So in Herta and Ruan Mei's eyes, she had always existed in a state detached from the world?
That felt almost unbelievable.
She had never felt that way herself. Ever since she'd inexplicably arrived here, she'd assumed she'd already entered this world.
And now she was being told that only after obtaining her physical body did she begin to truly integrate into it.
It was like living in a house for years, only to suddenly discover you'd never actually been part of the family.
"Thinking that I'm only now truly blending into this world… it feels strange."
She looked at Herta and Ruan Mei.
If she had to guess, maybe it was because, in her former soul-state, she'd barely been able to perceive anything directly.
Even using character cards had felt like experiencing the world through a device.
Could it be related to that?
And next time she used a character card… would that feeling improve?
Now she was curious.
"Wait… so while I was doing all that just now, you were thinking about this stuff?"
Bai Ming suddenly realized—Herta had definitely said all those things on purpose just to tease her.
But instead of answering yes or no, Herta simply turned her head and stared at Bai Ming, smiling faintly, as if plotting something.
The look made Bai Ming squirm.
"H-Hey… what? Say something!"
Watching the scene, Ruan Mei suddenly understood why Herta enjoyed teasing Bai Ming.
And why Herta had smiled just now.
After all… the matter had already passed, yet Bai Ming had brought it up herself.
Which meant it truly had shaken her—she cared about it far more than she let on.
Still, if she cared, this wasn't the time to say so, otherwise, she was simply handing Herta exactly what she wanted.
"Bai Ming," Ruan Mei spoke up suddenly.
"Hm?"
"Do you have anything else to do later? If not, come over to my side."
"Oh. No, nothing else. I'll head over now?"
As she spoke, Bai Ming glanced at Herta.
She only meant to check whether Herta had anything more to say, but to the other two, that glance carried a different weight.
Herta waved her off with exaggerated nonchalance.
"What're you looking at me for? Go take a look. It's not like I'm going to detain you."
"Oh…"
Something about that reply felt odd. And her own response felt odd too.
She just couldn't quite put her finger on it.
Ruan Mei merely smiled, waved at her, and ended the call.
Bai Ming rested at Herta's place for half a day before heading to Ruan Mei's location.
This time, it was yet another barren planet in some forgotten corner of the cosmos.
Only the area around Ruan Mei's spacecraft bore any sign of life—a patch of environment that looked utterly out of place on the desolate world.
Most likely something Ruan Mei had expanded purely because she preferred it that way.
Bai Ming boarded the ship and found Ruan Mei making pastries. Grinning, she hurried over to join her.
"I thought you might stay the night with Herta."
Without even looking up, Ruan Mei began the conversation.
"Why?"
"I just thought, judging from the way the two of you were acting, your relationship might… progress further tonight."
Bai Ming opened her mouth.
Why did this woman jump straight to topics like that?
"Progress further" was just a roundabout way of asking if she and Herta would end up sleeping together.
"Why would you think that…? Herta was just saying that stuff for fun."
She genuinely believed Ruan Mei had misunderstood, and even if their relationship did progress, it wouldn't leap straight to staying over.
Ruan Mei glanced at her.
"You really think so?"
"Isn't that obvious? I asked her afterward—you were there. That reaction of hers pretty much said it all. And you know Herta. Even if she's a little interested, once the novelty wears off, she'll drop it immediately."
Ruan Mei chuckled softly.
That did sound like Herta's personality. But when it came to emotions… was Herta really that simple?
Perhaps not.
She didn't know what Herta had done to make Bai Ming think that way.
From Ruan Mei's perspective, Herta's feelings were likely not what Bai Ming assumed.
Still, since Herta hadn't clarified, Ruan Mei wouldn't interfere.
"By the way, I'm curious what you think," she continued. "Herta said it might be because your state is unusual. But unusual or not, those were still your own feelings, weren't they?"
Since they were busy making pastries, Ruan Mei didn't immediately dive into the main topic.
Instead, she shifted to something else.
"I… don't know. Ruan Mei, do geniuses like you even want a special relationship with someone?"
Bai Ming had never really considered it—especially not with someone like a genius.
In her mind, with their ambitions and personalities, unless it was a childhood-sweetheart scenario, it seemed unlikely.
"And I always feel like Herta's feelings toward me are more curiosity than anything."
"I can't answer for everyone," Ruan Mei said calmly. "For me… it would probably be difficult. But the desire to understand you does exist. It's rare to find someone capable who can stay by my side for a long time."
She found it interesting. Though acting like Herta? That didn't seem like her style.
But given enough time… who knew?
After all, Ruan Mei wasn't some emotionless machine.
"If enough time passes, anything can happen, don't you think?"
"…Maybe."
For some reason, when Herta said something similar, it felt entirely different from when Ruan Mei did.
"Here. Try this for me. Has your sense of taste changed too?"
Mid-sentence, Ruan Mei picked up a freshly shaped pastry and brought it to Bai Ming's lips.
"Mmph…"
Bai Ming opened her mouth and took the pastry in. Ruan Mei's fingertip brushed her lips, leaving sweetness lingering at the corner of her mouth.
The pastry was delicious, as always.
As for her sense of taste… there was a change, yes—but subtler than the others.
"A little. If I had to say, the flavors feel richer."
"I see…"
Ruan Mei's fingertip trailed lightly down from Bai Ming's chin, personally assessing her condition.
It was more or less what they'd predicted.
"When you were facing Herta earlier, what exactly were you feeling?"
Now she began asking for specifics.
Herta's account had surely trimmed unnecessary details. And since Ruan Mei hadn't witnessed it firsthand, she could only ask now.
"If I had to describe it… all my senses just felt more direct. Not necessarily more 'real,' just more immediate."
"Be specific. Mm… start from the physical examination. I've done similar checks on you before, so it'll be easier for me to compare."
As she spoke, Ruan Mei stepped closer, a faint, elegant fragrance drifting with her.
"Do I really have to go into detail?"
Bai Ming felt awkward. Talking about this was almost like publicly confessing something embarrassing.
Seeing her reaction, Ruan Mei smiled.
"I don't know what the two of you will become. But I can tell you want to win, don't you? If you're this shy, you won't stand a chance. Herta's far too narcissistic."
"I get what you mean. It just… feels weird to say it out loud. But you're right. With how shameless Herta is, I can't stay like this."
Scratching her head, Bai Ming finally decided to treat this as desensitization training.
Compared to Herta, Ruan Mei's voice was gentler—and she would never go around telling others.
A far better person to talk to.
So, cheeks faintly flushed, Bai Ming began recounting the details.
And driven by curiosity, Ruan Mei occasionally pressed for more specifics about her thoughts and emotions.
It seemed she intended to analyze everything through these subtle clues.
Fortunately, neither of these two geniuses had the slightest embarrassment about such matters.
With Ruan Mei's encouragement, Bai Ming gradually shed much of her shame.
The atmosphere between them grew increasingly proper and composed.
Though the content of their conversation sounded ambiguous, the mood itself was unexpectedly calm.
Mostly because Ruan Mei didn't tease Bai Ming the way Herta did. She even guided her gently to relax.
As more details emerged, Ruan Mei became increasingly convinced that Bai Ming's understanding of Herta's feelings was off.
Herta was, to some degree, genuinely fond of Bai Ming. Otherwise, she wouldn't have behaved so ambiguously.
Of course, just how deep that fondness ran was another matter.
Herta was narcissistic and capricious—capable of displaying ten parts of affection from a single part of feeling.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL