After all the commotion, the Homu led Mr. Dinosaur away, and the underground town returned to its previous quiet and peaceful state.
Shu and Joyce stood on the street, looking at each other. Both could see a distinct emotion in the other's eyes.
"This isn't a good place to talk," Joyce said. "Come with me, let's find somewhere to chat properly."
Shu glanced at Joyce and, surprisingly, saw a hint of embarrassment on her face.
Following Joyce, exchanging greetings along the way, they arrived at a shop constructed from various colored metal plates. They found a spot in a corner and sat down.
"You guys actually have a bar here?" Shu glanced at the long bar counter, then at the shelves behind the tin-can bartender. "What, are you going to treat me to some motor oil?"
Although he didn't know much about alcohol, he knew that dark, viscous motor oil definitely shouldn't be displayed there.
"Ahem..." Joyce, in her mechanical body, coughed lightly. "Mr. Shu, while my body doesn't require sustenance to replenish the elements necessary for action, please believe that my tastes are no different from a normal human's."
"Really?" Shu raised an eyebrow. Just then, the tin-can-headed bartender emerged from behind the bar carrying a wine glass filled with black motor oil and respectfully placed it before them.
Joyce: "..."
"Oh! Respected Mr. Joyce!" The tin can, wearing a bartender's vest, struck an exaggerated pose and spoke to them with great passion. "Please allow me to once again recommend this rich and full-bodied motor oil!"
"Thank you, I don't need any." Joyce pushed the motor oil away, her face stiff. The tin-can bartender left, looking disappointed. "Two glasses of plain water will do."
As the bartender left, Shu heard him mutter under his breath, "Clearly, every customer who comes here loves this motor oil..."
Seeing the twitch at the corner of Joyce's eye, Shu suddenly understood why she had brought him here.
Their relationship was a cooperation, not a contract.
They had witnessed him being brutally crushed, and now Joyce's display of embarrassment was her show of sincerity.
Once the tin-can bartender brought over two glasses of plain water, Joyce finally spoke. "Mr. Shu, I presume you've already noticed the abnormality of this town."
Shu nodded silently, simultaneously scanning the glass of water.
Joyce watched Shu's unabashed scanning motion and sighed helplessly.
If you said he trusted her, then why the scan? If you said he didn't trust her, then why was he so open about it, without any attempt to hide it?
"The... residents here, were they all abandoned?" After confirming there was no issue, Shu took a sip of water and asked slowly.
On the street earlier, he had indeed noticed the differences in these residents.
Patches, rivets, even blatantly exposed damage, and spots of rust.
The dents on the tin men brothers' bodies, the malfunction of their vocal systems, the unsmooth turning of the tin frogs' wind-up keys, the teddy bear stitched with patches of a different color fur, Mr. Dinosaur's chipped teeth, and those Matryoshka dolls...
Clearly missing two of the middle sizes.
Even the tin can bartender was missing its lid and had rust spots on its surface.
So far, every toy Shu had encountered had some degree of damage... except for the Homu that had punched him senseless.
"Yes, the residents here were all abandoned," Joyce said, putting down her water glass. She looked up, meeting Shu's gaze with her clear blue eyes.
"Abandoned by the masters of this dream."
Shu's expression froze. Was Joyce already revealing intelligence to him?
"The masters of this dream... who are they?" Shu thought for a moment, then decided to fully grasp this piece of information before exchanging his own. "Or rather... what was this place before? And what happened?"
Joyce nodded. "Mr. Shu, I wonder if you've heard of an organization... [Hanging Gardens]?"
"...Babylon?" Shu pondered for a moment, then looked up and asked.
"Since you've heard of it, that makes things easier," Joyce said, taking out a small mechanical device from her pocket and placing it on the table.
The device flashed, and then countless holographic screens shot out from it, layering upon each other and instantly enveloping the two of them.
The medieval, fantastical underground mine aesthetic instantly transformed into something next-generation. Shu's movements stiffened for a second, then he naturally reached out to touch one of the screens.
It's just a holographic screen, right? He'd seen them before... in sci-fi movies...
His hand passed through the screen without resistance, as expected. Shu raised an eyebrow. "My apologies, I thought it could be interacted with directly."
Joyce paused in the act of taking out an interaction ring, then smiled faintly. "Conditions here are rather basic. We didn't bring much technological equipment when we came out."
Unbeknownst to each other, they both silently made a wish for a holographic screen that could be interacted with by hand. At that moment, far away, two different people in different locations sneezed.
Expressionlessly, Shu put on the ring Joyce handed him and pulled up the information about Babylon that Joyce had displayed.
"[Hanging Gardens], also known as [Babylon], was once a branch research institute of Future City. It gathered many outstanding scientists specializing in biology and genetics."
"Two years ago, they conspired to steal a batch of biological gene data, attempting to delve into forbidden life gene experiments. After our central system detected and prevented this, they were all expelled from Future City."
"Subsequently, they came to Siberia, somehow obtained a large amount of biological gene data, and built a tower here, taking in thousands of young children from all over the world. This tower was named..."
"The Tower of Babylon... right?" Shu looked up, taking over the narrative.
"Human experimentation is highly taboo, both in international society and ethically. Since these scientists once came from Future City and had roots there, Future City had an obligation to regulate them," Joyce said, then pulled up another file.
[Regarding the Eradication of the Hanging Gardens]
"About four months ago, we obtained precise information about the Tower of Babylon and came here. However, on the eve of our operation, the Honkai outbreak happened..." Joyce said, sighing.
"I don't know what the situation is like outside, but after these past few months of research, we are certain that the place we are currently in is not the real world."
"This is a dream," Joyce stated.
"The dream of thousands upon thousands of children."