"Good evening, Luo Shu and Meer..."
A gentle voice announced the third person joining their communication.
Luo Shu blinked and saw the pink-haired girl sitting beside Meer.
His direct superior, Lacus Clyne.
The girl wore her usual gentle expression, except...
Luo Shu glanced at Lacus's pink, non-transparent but extremely thin silk nightgown, a small question mark appearing in his mind.
'So both of you - the original and the doppelganger - prefer wearing such flimsy clothes to sleep, is that it?'
'And what time is it even?'
As Luo Shu silently complained, Meer immediately asked Lacus:
"Has the production plan been arranged?"
"Thanks to Mira-san and the Doctor's support, we've successfully completed the ring production line fixed onto machinery with the help of some Abyss Artefacts."
"Although the daily output is only 20 rings and requires regular maintenance by Mukuro, it's sufficient for our initial internal needs."
"You should be able to see the detailed report in the virtual space later, so I won't elaborate now."
Lacus explained with a smile, then noticed Luo Shu's distraction. Tilting her head, she caught his subtle expression as he looked at her. Glancing down at herself, she teased:
"Do you like this style too, Luo Shu?"
"That's not the issue... Well, I suppose I do like it..."
Luo Shu didn't bother pretending to be a gentleman in front of Lacus - they were both old foxes who knew each other too well.
But actually discussing this made him nervous, so he quickly changed the subject: "Resting so early today?"
In response, Lacus simply smiled without explanation, while Meer quipped from the side:
"She hasn't slept all week and is making up for it now."
Luo Shu gave the perpetually smiling Lacus a deadpan look, suddenly realising this woman's personality was actually quite rebellious - taking advantage of her enhanced physique to push limits.
"Proper rest is still necessary."
Although physical enhancement and obtaining a Class reduced required sleep time, someone in Lacus's condition still needed 3-4 hours daily. Judging by Meer's tone, this woman had probably sacrificed even that minimal sleep to handle affairs.
What was this? The one who seemed most gentle and self-sufficient actually needed the most attention?
Are you going for gap moe here?
Luo Shu mentally complained, but outwardly sighed:
"Fine. I know reminding you won't help, so I'll just supervise you directly from now on."
"I may not be able to handle official business for you, but forcing you to rest? That I can definitely do."
Meer nodded repeatedly in agreement. "Exactly, that's the way to go. Best to take her straight to Luo Shu's room and have her sleep in his arms every night~ That way she'll rest properly."
'That would only make resting worse...' Luo Shu's expression twitched. He knew himself too well—if it really came to that, forget about resting, they'd probably be 'training' late into the night every evening.
"Are you sure this is about making Lacus rest properly?"
Lacus's face seemed to flush slightly at these words. She shot Luo Shu a glare, then glanced sideways at Meer before sighing:
"America... no issues with the parliament, I hope?"
"Relax, those fools only care about personal gain. Fooling them was child's play~"
Meer tucked a strand of pink hair behind her ear, then narrowed her eyes with a mischievous smile:
"But compared to those old men in parliament, I think we should prioritise Luo Shu's situation first."
"Though it's quite unexpected, it seems La Folia might get dragged into Luo Shu's promotion preparations."
"La Folia?" Lacus looked surprised. "Did her people in the SDS break through the information blockade and get accurate intel on Luo Shu?"
"Not quite." Meer shook her head, then gestured towards Luo Shu with her chin. "It's because Luo Shu needs a technique from La Folia's family~"
Hearing this, Lacus gave Luo Shu a puzzled look. "What technique?"
Luo Shu smiled wryly. "The Soul Summoning Art."
At this name, Lacus immediately frowned:
"This complicates things."
"The Rihvainen family's entire national technology is built upon Spirit Mediums and the Soul Summoning Art—that's how they maintain their royal position."
"Thus, the Soul Summoning Art has always been the Aldegia Royal Family's top secret."
"Not only is the technique taught exclusively by princesses who are Spirit Mediums through spiritual transmission—never written down—"
"But they've also employed various methods to prevent detection through divination or mind reading."
"Obtaining the Soul Summoning Art..."
As Lacus trailed off, Meer chimed in with a suggestion:
"Perhaps we could offer them the core technology of the Skill Demon God in exchange. In some ways, it's a universal alternative to their Special Mecha..."
But Lacus immediately shook her head:
"That won't work."
"Compared to the Skill Demon God, Aldegia Kingdom's Special Mecha can only be used by those with Spirit Medium bloodlines, which does limit its applicability."
"But don't forget—La Folia is a royal princess. For the royal family, universality isn't a necessity."
Luo Shu's eyes flickered at this, murmuring quietly: "Military technology that doesn't rely on the royal family and has greater accessibility would threaten their rule? What a pragmatic conclusion."
Lacus didn't refute this, merely sighing softly:
"Given how well La Folia knows us, just offering the Skill Demon God won't be enough for the Soul Summoning Art. We'd inevitably have to pay a much higher price."
Hearing this, Meer immediately understood, pulling a face as she complained:
"For example, having La Folia represent Aldegia in fully intervening with Copernicus's development, is that it?"
"Sigh, if I were that scheming little enchantress, I certainly wouldn't pass up this rare opportunity either."
Precisely because she could predict La Folia's audacious demands to meddle with the SDS's core operations, Meer had dragged Luo Shu along to call Lacus over for discussions.
Though Meer had originally intended to offer the more versatile Skill Demon God to minimise impact on the space station, it now seemed inevitable that the station would be affected as long as they still required the Soul Summoning Art.
At this realisation, Meer threw up her hands in surrender:
"Lacus, this decision can only be made by you."
Whether it was the Skill Demon God or the Copernicus space station, the distribution of interests clearly had to be determined personally by Lacus as Supreme Chairwoman.
And now, Lacus evidently had her own thoughts:
"If La Folia can resolve the confidentiality issues, then it might be acceptable."
"In exchange, the Soul Summoning Art naturally can't be the original version. The fundamentals of the art, along with its derivative Quantum Sprite Power Reactor, must be included in the trade."
"Of course, this is just the baseline for negotiation. The specifics will need to be discussed when I meet La Folia in person."
"Wait..." Luo Shu suddenly interjected into their conversation. "Haven't you considered having me pay the price instead?"
Hearing this, Lacus and Meer exchanged glances.
Then Meer leaned forward slightly, probing Luo Shu with a tentative question:
"Shu-kun, you're not actually considering becoming a live-in son-in-law, are you?"