Screwllum was slightly surprised that Fu Zhu could state his name upon their first meeting, but on second thought, its reputation throughout the cosmos was indeed quite widespread.
For a Nameless, recognizing it on sight was nothing extraordinary.
Having rationalized this, Screwllum extended his own hand without hesitation to shake Fu Zhu's. Making the other party wait for so long was a significant breach of etiquette.
"Greetings, Sir. May I have the honor of learning your name?"
Screwllum's question caught Fu Zhu a little off guard. He released Screwllum's hand and glanced at Asta, who was standing nearby.
"Asta, you didn't tell Mr. Screwllum about me?"
Asta froze, scratching the side of her face with her index finger in embarrassment as a bead of cold sweat trickled down her forehead.
"Ahaha... it slipped my mind. I forgot to tell Mr. Screwllum."
Screwllum, however, smiled and spoke in Asta's defense. "This is no fault of Ms. Asta's. Only when we personally state our own names can we be considered truly acquainted. Don't you agree?"
Screwllum's gentlemanly manner of speaking greatly improved Fu Zhu's impression of him, and he wholeheartedly agreed with the sentiment.
Even if one heard your name from someone else, it was a far cry from the sincerity of a direct exchange.
Thus, Fu Zhu straightforwardly gave his name.
"Nameless, Fu Zhu."
"So you are Fu Zhu. I have often heard Madam Herta speak of you. In that case, allow me to introduce myself as well. Screwllum of Planet Screwllum."
After hearing Screwllum's introduction, Fu Zhu couldn't help but jest, "I was expecting a long string of prefixes, but I didn't think you'd just state your home planet."
Screwllum chuckled lightly. He answered Fu Zhu's question without much thought, offering his reasoning directly.
"I mentioned this to Ms. Asta earlier. 'Herta Space Station is a nexus of knowledge. Here, we celebrate the equality of thought.' Within Herta Space Station, I have no other identity. I am merely a scholar from Planet Screwllum, and nothing more."
"Truly worthy of being Mr. Screwllum."
Fu Zhu offered a sincere compliment. This was the first time he had met a mechanical lifeform like Screwllum. One could only say, he was truly befitting a Lord of a planet.
This made him all the more curious about the other members of the Genius Society. He just couldn't figure out why that big iron lump, Nous, hadn't sent him an invitation to come play.
Could it be that the Redstone technology he'd demonstrated wasn't enough?
If that was the case, he'd just have to build some infinitely replicating Redstone machinery.
---o---
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Asta recalled Madam Herta's instructions and extended an invitation to Fu Zhu and Screwllum.
"Gentlemen, this is hardly the place to chat. Why don't we head to the reception room to rest for a bit?"
Fu Zhu and Screwllum naturally had no objections and nodded in agreement.
The other station staff returned to their posts to continue their day's work, leaving Asta alone to guide Fu Zhu and Screwllum into the reception room.
After Fu Zhu and Screwllum were seated, Asta excused herself. A short while later, she returned carrying a tray and served two distinctly different beverages to Fu Zhu and Screwllum.
Fu Zhu glanced at the liquid in his cup; it appeared to be some kind of tea. The liquid in Screwllum's cup, however, looked much more viscous than his own. Who knew if it was some kind of lubricating oil, or perhaps even gasoline?
Fu Zhu sipped his tea while waiting for Herta. He had told Herta he was coming before he teleported to the space station.
At the time, Herta had only said she needed to prepare a few things and had Asta entertain him first.
As for what she was preparing, Herta didn't say, but Fu Zhu guessed it was likely related to their previous agreement.
They had agreed that the next time they met, Herta would let him see her true body.
Rejuvenation... Fu Zhu was greatly looking forward to this technology, which had only existed in fantasy in his past life.
However, Fu Zhu and Screwllum waited for a long time. The tea in their cups was refilled again and again, yet there was no sign of Herta herself. Even the Herta puppet, which stood in the corner of the reception room, had been completely motionless from the very beginning.
"What is Herta doing? Why is it taking so long?"
Fu Zhu took out his phone and tried sending Herta a message. But after several minutes, it was still marked as unread. It was obvious Herta had no time to check her messages right now.
With messaging being a dead end, Fu Zhu tried calling her, but the result was the same. In fact, after his third call, he was directly blocked.
This left Fu Zhu utterly speechless.
Screwllum noticed that Fu Zhu seemed to be getting impatient. It, too, glanced at the time with some confusion. From what it knew of Herta, she was not the type to be late.
"Mr. Fu Zhu, why not wait a little longer? Perhaps Madam Herta is in the middle of preparing something."
"Mm, maybe the Simulated Universe is acting up."
Fu Zhu stood up and walked over to the Herta puppet standing in the corner of the room, poking its little face with his finger.
Screwllum's gaze followed Fu Zhu. Upon hearing the words "Simulated Universe," it asked with some surprise, "Mr. Fu Zhu, could it be that you've come to Herta Space Station this time for the Simulated Universe as well?"
Fu Zhu, while pinching the Herta puppet's cheeks, turned his head to answer Screwllum's question.
"Yeah, she's been pestering me about simulating my hometown, so she kept asking me to come help with the research. You must be here to research the Simulated Universe too, right, Screwllum?"
Screwllum nodded. "Indeed. Madam Herta proposed the Simulated Universe project a long time ago, and I am not the only member of the Genius Society to have received her invitation."
"Oh? Looks like she's dead set on figuring out the technology of my hometown."
Fu Zhu was actually looking forward to the day Herta understood the principles of MC. Who knew, maybe she could even help him create some mods.
As Fu Zhu thought this, he placed his hands under the Herta puppet's armpits, lifted it up as if it were a small child, and gave it a good shake.
"Oi, Herta, are you really not in there?"
The Herta puppet gave no response, merely staring straight ahead.
Fu Zhu sighed in disappointment. Just as he was about to put the puppet down, a system notification popped up.
[Herta Puppet]
[Currently Convertible To: Totem of Undying, Iron Golem Spawn Egg]
Fu Zhu's head snapped up, his eyes locking onto the Herta puppet's little face.
What did the system just say she could be converted into?!