In Herta's office.
Screwllum spoke calmly and gently:
"That particular curio is a love letter written to this universe by a Galaxy Ranger. Mr. Zeig, how much do you actually know about Punklorde?"
Zeig spread his hands and said firmly:
"Absolutely nothing."
Screwllum: "…"
After a moment of silence, Screwllum continued:
"It is a planet constructed from data and code. On Punklorde, the boundary between reality and illusion is as blurred as its day and night."
"And Ether Cassettes are the chips that Punklorde's hackers use to edit reality—they record the way they perceive the world and rewrite it."
"Ether Cassettes are records of a hacker's life, proof of their existence. And the one contained here in the space station belongs to one of the legends among them."
Zeig scratched his head—though it was on the camouflage helmet—and couldn't help asking:
"So that curio is basically something like a videotape?"
Leonard added:
"Brother Zeig, Ether Cassettes are way more powerful than any videotape."
Screwllum nodded:
"Correct. But there's no need to worry, my friend—this cassette has never left the space station."
"For the Simulated Universe, it serves as an important reference, so its data was extracted and incorporated into the Simulated Universe's calculations."
At this point, Zeig finally understood the whole situation.
The curio hadn't actually been lost—it had been taken by Herta and the others.
Leonard also breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.
Screwllum's tone remained mild and soothing:
"Presumably because no one else was notified at the time, it ended up on the list of items with unknown whereabouts."
Just as Leonard felt they had finally uncovered the truth and was about to take Zeig and leave, Zeig narrowed his eyes and suddenly said:
"I believe this matter is absolutely not that simple."
Leonard: "?"
Screwllum paused for a moment, then smiled and asked:
"Feel free to share Mr. Zeig's perspective."
Zeig hefted his AK, his hawk-like sharp eyes scanning the surroundings as he frowned:
"Since that hacker deliberately let Leonard discover the 'loss' of the Ether Cassette, it means she's definitely still scheming to get her hands on this curio!"
Leonard hurriedly explained:
"Brother Zeig, how can you call it deliberate? I clearly put in tremendous effort and cracked it step by step following the clues!"
"…Come on, with her level, could she really have been easily cracked by you? You couldn't even fully see the marks from my Cosmic Juggernaut."
"Brother Zeig, can't people have a little more trust in each other? My skills aren't actually that bad…"
"…Damn it, all the clues you dug up eventually pointed to this cassette, and now it's inside the Simulated Universe. That's obviously a conspiracy!"
Screwllum: "…"
Listening to the two of them, Screwllum finally interrupted:
"Friends, arguing is pointless."
Zeig glanced at Screwllum:
"Weren't you and Herta arguing just earlier?"
"This…" Screwllum was immediately rendered speechless.
"…"
Soon, he collected himself:
"Mr. Zeig, I understand your concerns. If the other party once attempted to hack into Herta's office, then the Simulated Universe would naturally become her next target."
"In that case, if the two of you don't mind, allow me to offer what little assistance I can to your investigation."
Seeing Screwllum personally stepping in, Leonard felt somewhat overwhelmed and quickly declined:
"Ah? This… this is too much! Mr. Screwllum, this is clearly within my scope of duties—how could we let a guest like you handle it!"
Zeig glared at Leonard:
"? What the hell are you doing? Free labor and you're turning it down? This is someone from the Genius Society—miss this chance and where are you gonna find muscle like this again?"
Screwllum: "…"
Leonard still looked very conflicted:
"But if I accept Mr. Screwllum's help, doesn't that indirectly prove I'm incompetent at my job? Brother Zeig, I'm a workplace person—there are a lot of things I have to consider."
Zeig's eyes widened:
"That's a Stellaron Hunter, bro! Knowing your limits is the most basic rule of survival!"
Leonard still hesitated:
"But…"
At this moment, Screwllum saw through Leonard's embarrassment and Zeig's intentions.
So he comforted Leonard:
"Friend, rest assured. If the opponent is indeed Silver Wolf from the Stellaron Hunters, and you therefore borrow my strength, I believe Herta will not blame you."
Leonard looked like he was about to cry:
"Mr. Screwllum, even you think I'm slightly inferior to that hacker?"
"…"
Screwllum fell silent.
It seemed he was mentally weighing the connection between the words "Leonard," "Silver Wolf," and "slightly inferior."
"As you know, the Simulated Universe will be temporarily shut down. Until Herta and I reach a definite conclusion, it will remain sealed and inaccessible."
Hearing this, Leonard belatedly remembered what Screwllum and Herta had been arguing about earlier.
He immediately panicked:
"Then… doesn't that mean we won't be able to investigate the cassette's data anymore after this?"
Screwllum nodded:
"Yes. Right now is the last chance to investigate the cassette's data."
"I will use my unique position within the Simulated Universe to provide you with whatever assistance is within my power. This is also to express my apology for unilaterally deciding to shut down the Simulated Universe."
"Apology?" Zeig raised an eyebrow:
"Then can you give me some money? Oh right, he also wants a promotion and raise…"
"Brother Zeig, watch your mouth!"
Screwllum smiled again:
"The space station belongs to Herta—this friend's promotion is something I truly cannot assist with. But if there are other needs within my capability, I will certainly do my best to help."
"Then… can you give me some money?"
"Now, are the two of you ready?"
"So can you give me some money?"
"Are the two of you ready?"
"…"
"Wait, I'm not ready yet!" Zeig raised his hand.
Screwllum and Leonard: "…"
Zeig said: "We want to step out and discuss this properly. Screwllum, you won't mind, right?"
Screwllum's tone remained calm and gentle:
"Of course not, my friends. I will wait here quietly."
…
Outside Herta's office.
Leonard took off his full special forces gear and asked in confusion:
"Brother Zeig, why did we come out? Didn't you say we should seize the opportunity now that we have Mr. Screwllum's help?"
Seeing Zeig not respond, he continued gloomily:
"Sigh, I never thought the Simulated Universe would actually get shut down. That's Lady Herta's key project—if it's gone, I don't even dare imagine how she'll explode!"
"…"
Seeing Zeig still silent and just staring at him, Leonard suddenly realized something and became even more terrified:
"Wait! Brother Zeig, don't tell me this is my fault? If I had been able to stop the enemy invasion back then, would Mr. Screwllum not have become so pessimistic?"
"…"
Zeig silently removed his helmet and solemnly placed it on the ground.
His gaze was distant:
"Bro… it's good to have ideals, but you also have to face reality."
He handed over his own AK to Leonard as well:
"Leave the Simulated Universe stuff alone. Put the gear back on, go find Arlan, and the two of you check if there are still any graffiti in the space station that can teleport in Antimatter Legion. Just mow down all the monsters. Arlan's already part of the space station anyway—he won't charge you."
Leonard stood there dazed, holding two AKs, and asked: "Brother Zeig, then… what about you?"
"Uncle here… is about to make a sprint."
"?"
…