This was Amiya's first formal meeting. She was still inexperienced at the start, but Felix said nothing and instead showed the utmost patience and kindness. Amiya was deeply grateful. She tried to make her words clearer and more concise, though such growth would take time.
The meeting began in the evening and lasted late into the night. Everyone was exhausted, so they decided to postpone the remaining topics until the following afternoon. Scout and Logos excused themselves first and went to rest. ACE still had operator rosters to organize. Amiya, sleepy, began to yawn in small intervals.
Once Kal'tsit soothed Amiya, she stood and guided the group to the guest quarters.
After settling Loughshinny, Degenbrecher, and Shining into their rooms, Kal'tsit brought Felix to the VIP suite he had once stayed in.
The door closed. Kal'tsit did not leave.
"Doctor Kal'tsit, is something the matter?"
Felix glanced at her favorability score in the corner of his view (20/100). It didn't seem like she was about to block his exit for anything dramatic.
"I want to discuss another decision."
Her gaze was calm as she looked at him. She pressed her lips together slightly. "As one of Rhodes Island Pharmaceutical's shareholders, you have the right to participate in all major projects and decisions."
"What decision?"
Felix asked, noticing the uncharacteristic tension on Kal'tsit's face. It didn't take long for him to understand. In his previous life, at the start of version 3.0, Rhodes Island had chosen to head to Chernobog to rescue the Doctor. That action triggered a chain of events: Scout and ACE died in Chernobog, Reunion launched a massive assault on Lungmen, and countless problems followed.
One could say the initial spark was Rhodes Island's decision to retrieve the Doctor.
But the truth was, rescuing the Doctor wasn't the cause of everything. It was only the trigger. Reunion seized the opportunity that followed. The rescue itself was merely the fuse.
"You plan to go to Chernobog and pull the Doctor out?"
As soon as Felix voiced this conclusion, Kal'tsit jerked her head up. Calm as her eyes appeared, a faint tremor ran through them. Her lips moved slightly before she gave a small, mechanical nod.
"Do they know?"
By "they," Felix meant the current Rhodes Island elites, the same group that had once served Babel.
"They do not. This is something I planned alone."
Kal'tsit's voice turned cool. "If anyone knows before the operation begins, the entire plan will fail."
Felix sat down on the soft sofa. He remembered sitting here with Her Highness Theresa, speaking by candlelight. He remembered holding Amiya and telling her fairy tales. He remembered chatting with Mudrock, Ines, and the others about the future of Babel and Tomorrow's Development. But now Theresa was gone. Babel had disappeared with her. Only Amiya and the former Babel elites still carried her hopes forward.
"You know this will be opposed."
"That is inevitable."
"You don't trust Rhodes Island's current elite operators?"
Kal'tsit fell silent. She stared at Felix for a moment before finally shaking her head. "I trust them."
"I have your answer."
Felix stood and walked to the refrigerator, taking out a chilled non-alcoholic drink and handing it to her. "For something like this, you really didn't need my permission."
"You are one of the shareholders. You have the right to be informed."
Felix paused. "You hold special feelings for the Doctor. I understand that."
"But she also disabled the entire ship's defensive system. I know that too."
The words struck like the final straw. Kal'tsit's voice abruptly stopped. Her fingers tightened around the bottle he had given her, her gaze falling downward.
"Maybe she had reasons she couldn't reveal. Maybe she had her own burdens. But what I saw, and what the former Babel elites saw, is a very different story."
"So then… will you approve the plan to rescue the Doctor?"
Saying those words seemed to drain all of Kal'tsit's strength. For a brief moment, she showed the rare, vulnerable side of an ordinary Terran. But it vanished quickly. She composed herself, and her gaze returned to its usual stillness, as calm as deep water.
"In the end, this is Rhodes Island Pharmaceutical's internal matter, and also an old affair of the former Babel. By reason and emotion, I shouldn't interfere. But if this is your wish, Dr. Kal'tsit…"
Felix did not finish the sentence. He simply nodded with a calm expression. "Then I think we should proceed according to your judgment."
For a fleeting second, Kal'tsit relaxed. She knew how deep the bond was between Felix and Her Highness Theresa. Theresa had died in his arms. Now that he had become one of Rhodes Island Pharmaceutical's shareholders, his intent to stop Kal'tsit was something she could understand.
But he agreed.
Felix wasn't particularly concerned about whether the Doctor lived or died. To him, Rhodes Island Pharmaceutical as an organization was more important at the moment than the comfort of one person.
"Dr. Kal'tsit, about the medical exchange and study program…"
"I'll handle it."
Kal'tsit stood up. To receive something meant she had to give something in return. Felix had respected her decision, so helping him posed no issue. After rising, she looked directly at him. "Thank you."
Seeing her favorability break past the threshold of 20 and jump straight to 25, Felix was startled. Could it be… could it be that even this iron tree was about to blossom?
Kal'tsit glanced at him, puzzled. She felt something odd in Felix's expression a moment earlier, something faintly aggressive. Without saying more, she turned to leave, gently pulling the door shut behind her.
Felix sprawled back onto the sofa. The medical department's exchange program had already been settled. And since agreeing to rescue the Doctor was part of the exchange terms, it was better to commit fully. When the time came, Tomorrow's Development could support the rescue operation as well. After all, Rhodes Island's forces had been completely routed by Talulah's Reunion during the Chernobog incident.
He could also use this opportunity to probe Talulah. Players had reported that she'd been acting strangely recently, but from his perspective, Reunion's movements had returned to the track he remembered.
In the familiar VIP lounge aboard Rhodes Island, Felix couldn't shake the illusion that Theresa was still sitting across from him, their fingers intertwined as they hugged their knees and talked for hours.
The next day, Felix continued business discussions with Rhodes Island Pharmaceutical. Compared to yesterday's awkwardness, little Amiya was clearly much more prepared today. With Kal'tsit's tacit approval, the cooperative meeting went exceptionally well. Though Rhodes Island was the weaker side, Tomorrow's Development still had much they could learn from them.
Amiya's tone was light, though she kept reminding herself this was still a formal meeting. A few times her voice became a bit too affectionate, drawing "auntie smiles" from the elite operators present.
Felix provided Rhodes Island with certain forms of support, mainly administrative exchange experience. Loughshinny alone could serve as Rhodes Island's teacher in that area. As for combat cooperation, it was more of a mutual exchange. Rhodes Island did not lack skilled fighters, but they lacked top-tier talent.
Just look at their elite operators—there were only so many of them. If Rhodes Island faced a fatal crisis, how many could truly hold the frontline?
In contrast, Tomorrow's Development had far more high-end strength. Not only did they have groups of adventurers, but three major legions, their commanders, and upper-level powerhouses. Their strength had already been proven. They had directly defeated the remnants of Kazdel's Military Commission, unified Kazdel, and now the surrounding countries were wary of provoking them.
A unified Kazdel was frightening, but when people discovered this unified Kazdel was no longer shouting endlessly about revenge, they quietly breathed a sigh of relief. Reports that once consumed manpower and resources were pushed aside.
The medical division managed by Shining was a central project. The doctors under Felix included former Babel medical staff, but the rest were wandering physicians or doctors with only basic education from various countries. Each had different training and different levels of knowledge. Felix desperately needed someone who could unify them and guide them forward together.
By coincidence, Kal'tsit had once taught him part of her knowledge. So he brought this proposal to the table.
Since Kal'tsit had already agreed the night before, once Amiya saw her nod, she signed the contract without hesitation.
With that, all three major items of the meeting were clearly established and officially signed. The tension that had filled the meeting room gradually faded. Shining and Kal'tsit rose at the same time. With the contract secured, the next step—implementation—was now up to them.
Degenbrecher left with Scout, Logos, and ACE. The three would introduce Rhodes Island's current training directives to Degenbrecher. As the instructor of Tomorrow's Development, she naturally had much advice to offer.
Loughshinny stayed behind. As an expert in internal affairs, she still had much to teach Amiya. While Felix sat to the side scrolling through the forum feed, Loughshinny and Amiya whispered back and forth about how to govern an organization.
It was almost embarrassing, but when it came to this area, Loughshinny clearly had more authority than Felix.
Their conversation grew lively. Amiya was about to invite Loughshinny to her office for a longer discussion. Before leaving, she gave "Brother Felix" a hug. She stood on tiptoe, trying her hardest to reach his shoulder, but in the end Felix knelt down on one knee so they could look at each other eye to eye. Amiya stepped forward with a smile and planted a soft kiss on his cheek.
"Thank you, Brother Felix."
Amiya's voice was gentle, her eyes wide and bright. "Without you, Rhodes Island would still be standing in place."
"You're exaggerating."
Felix gently stroked her soft brown hair. Amiya closed her eyes with a relaxed expression. For a moment, she felt as if Miss Theresa were standing right in front of her. Theresa used to comb her hair with this same gentle touch.
When Amiya opened her eyes, the smiling figure before her seemed to overlap with Theresa's silhouette.
"Brother Felix…"
Amiya leaned lightly against his chest. She murmured softly as her eyes slowly closed.
Felix held her petite form, gently stroking her head.
After resting in his arms for a short while, Amiya wiped her eyes and smiled, saying she was fine now. She waved at him once more before leaving the meeting room ahead of the others.
"For a moment, it felt like she'd grown up."
Felix turned to Loughshinny with a smile.
Loughshinny returned a gentle one. "A fledgling will eventually spread its wings and fly. Amiya is remarkable. At her age, she already carries such a heavy burden. I respect her deeply."
"Rhodes Island may become one of our key allies in the future."
Loughshinny nodded. "I understand."
She looked back at Felix. "Brother Felix, even if my sister contacts me one day and asks me to return to Victoria, I won't go back."
She placed a hand over her heart and showed him a tender smile. "My heart is already with Tomorrow's Development, already with you… so please forgive my selfishness."
Felix stepped forward and gathered her into his arms. Her body was soft and warm like fragrant silk, and she let out a light laugh. Her eyes shone with affection.
"Thank you for your answer."
Loughshinny offered him a fragrant kiss, then stepped back slightly out of breath, her cheeks blooming like roses. "But there's still work to do."
Felix watched her leave. He had become the most idle one now, with nothing pressing on his schedule. He could take his time returning to Kazdel. The world championship was approaching, and players wanted to reserve the Kazdel Arena for matches.
Though the tournament hadn't started, he had already received countless applications from players. Most came from professional teams, and the rest from strategy groups and the world championship organizers. All had written jointly to request the venue.
Felix approved them all at once. The decoration of the arena would be up to the players themselves, so it was about time to head back to Kazdel.
The Venus was still following its standard route, which was the safest. Felix had no intention of straying into another nation's borders and causing diplomatic trouble.
The future of Rhodes Island was rising steadily. All that remained was war…
———
At the training grounds, Blaze stared at Degenbrecher with sparkling excitement. Her feline tail swayed nonstop. She was strong, and she really, really wanted to fight. She could barely hold herself back.
ACE watched his energetic subordinate and sighed, once again convinced that this trade with Tomorrow's Development had been the right choice… though Blaze might be in for some suffering, because losing is losing.