“Sigurd, my boy, although Dr. Einstein has already explained it clearly to me before, I still have to ask for confirmation. Those… uh… Bee and Bird things, you didn’t do them, right?” Siegfried stared at Sigurd intently.

His choice of words was very professional, so professional that nobody would understand them in any other way. Sigurd’s face immediately turned dark.

“You’re full of these messy things in your head, that’s why you’re so unreliable. What I was doing was just sleeping together and helping them wash their hair. How could I possibly do anything to them? You filthy imbecile!” Sigurd reprimanded him mercilessly, causing Siegfried to scratch his head and involuntarily reveal a look of appeasement.

For some reason, after Einstein and Welt had persuaded him and erased those associations, Siegfried, who had calmed down and extinguished his anger, felt inexplicably guilty and uneasy in the face of Sigurd once again, as if he had encountered his nemesis.

He quickly explained, “Um, it’s not that I have any doubts about you! It’s just that both of you are still too young, and some things aren’t appropriate. When you and Kiana are older… I think it would be quite suitable.”

With his intelligence and reliability, he could take care of and control Kiana. And based on his current appearance, it was certain that he would remain handsome in the future—a perfect son-in-law candidate. However, Sigurd’s face grew even darker.

“How could I possibly be attracted to a brat like her?” Sigurd’s tone was filled with undisguised disdain. As a father, Siegfried awkwardly laughed, but didn’t dare to argue…

How should he put it? He still felt guilty about leaving Kiana. Sigurd had been taking care of her during this time, and Siegfried was grateful but also felt indebted to him.

Even if he put those feelings aside, facing Sigurd’s cold and severe expression… If someone else disparaged Kiana, Siegfried would definitely retort, but Sigurd’s words were something he couldn’t afford to provoke.

“Fiuuu~” Siegfried involuntarily averted his gaze, whistling nervously. Sigurd had a vein throbbing on his forehead. So, when Kiana feels guilty, she whistles like this because she learned it from you, huh? Unfortunately, she didn’t learn it properly.

Siegfried could at least produce a sound, while Kiana only blew air without any sound. Sigurd sighed and continued,

“Siegfried, I have a question, weren’t you nearby us when the incident in Piltover happened? Why don’t you lend a hand to help?”

“I wasn’t. I saw that you were taking good care of Kiana, so I left to do my own thing. When I heard the news and rushed back, you had already left… I’m truly sorry.”

“I was just asking casually, it’s not your fault.”

“…Anyway, is there anything you need recently? Although I don’t have much money, I won’t back down from a fight against anyone.”

Sigurd looked at Siegfried and could see genuine remorse and apology on his face. If Siegfried had stayed a few more months, there might not have been as many casualties in the Piltover area.

His Judgement of Shamash would have been enough to wipe out the monsters before they attacked the city. But blaming him was pointless, as Sigurd had said. It wasn’t Siegfried’s fault.

Sigurd lowered his gaze, not only for Robbins and Vira, but also for the countless corpses he had seen when he later patrolled the entire city, as well as the fearful and sorrowful cries… No matter what the true nature of the  Honkai was, the term “enemy of civilization” was accurate.

Seeing Sigurd remain silent and unsure how to respond, Siegfried turned to Welt for help. At this moment, Welt looked at Sigurd, his profound eyes filled with tenderness.

‘He is saddened by the sacrifices in Piltover, isn’t he?’ Sigurd’s expression didn’t change noticeably, but Welt, who was skilled at perceiving people’s hearts, still sensed his sadness and compassion.

This made Welt feel relieved and appreciate Sigurd even more. “The weather is a bit cold. Why don’t we sit down, have some tea, and chat slowly?” Welt suggested, waving his hand, and a small round table with seating for five appeared in the middle, accompanied by a small shelter to block the wind and snow.

Beside them, Einstein had already set up a tea tray with a pot of hot water in her hands. Tesla, on the other hand, held a bag of cookies.

Sigurd touched the smooth metal tabletop and looked at Welt thoughtfully. The power to create from nothingness, this is the authority of the Herrscher of Reason? But why didn’t they create tea and food… Oh, right, after all, it’s still something that the  Honkai can construct. It’s fine to use it, but if you were to eat it, even if Welt had precise control over the  Honkai, a normal person would die on the spot.

Sigurd took a seat. Cocolia, feeling somewhat hesitant, also sat down when she saw the others doing so. Einstein, noticing everyone was seated, proceeded to pour tea for everyone.

When Cocolia received her cup of tea, despite claiming not to care about vanity, she still felt pleasantly surprised. In comparison to Einstein, she felt like a small manager working under a powerful executive director. How could she be completely indifferent?

Sigurd took a sip of tea and found it slightly better than Cocolia’s, but not by much. It seemed that the Anti-Entropy was truly impoverished, and it wasn’t just Cocolia’s problem.

Indeed, their Titan robots and the vast organization were major projects that required legitimate means of operation and construction.

Unlike Sigurd, whose drones were mostly produced by looting steel mills and armories without spending any money. Of course, if Welt and the others were willing, they could enjoy a high-quality material life at any time.

The only reason they didn’t do so was that they had their own principles and beliefs. And that was good. At least Sigurd didn’t have to worry about the threat from the Herrschers of Reason. He had no means to resist now, so if Welt wanted to make a move, Sigurd could only shrug and wait to die on the spot.

“So, are you interested in handing over your core, Mr. Welt?” Based on their interactions and conversations, Sigurd had a clear understanding of Welt’s gentle nature and didn’t hide his desire for the Herrscher’s core.

Welt opened his mouth, seemingly surprised by Sigurd’s directness. Then a wry smile appeared on his gentle face as he shook his head. “Young man, at least for now, I don’t have such intentions. It’s not just about power, but also about responsibility. Do you understand?”

“To be the balancer against Otto and counter the  Honkai’s attack?”

“I see, you already understand it, don’t you?”

“…Then use your power to protect me. Otto has set his sights on me.” Sigurd settled for a second option and made a request expressionlessly.

This statement left the other four people momentarily stunned. Cocolia was confused. Wait, weren’t you going to act tough? Did you really just say that?

Siegfried was indignant and horrified at the same time. He was well aware of how dangerous Otto, who has control over Schicskal, could be.

The three Giants of Anti-Entropy, on the other hand, understood the situation.

They could discern Sigurd’s talents, just as Otto could. In their speculation, the worst-case scenario was that Sigurd was an exceptional genius who had already been subdued by Otto. Welt asked, “Have you had contact with Otto before?”

“Indeed, at that time, I needed to save a girl who was being corrupted by the  Honkai, I contacted him voluntarily and made a deal with. The condition was to verify a theory for him and take care of Kiana. He has been patient with me so far, but I’m not sure how long that patience will last.”

“So, by contacting us through Cocolia, your intention was to seek asylum?”

“And also the Anti-Entropy’s database. I’ve been trying to find a hacking interface, but I haven’t had any luck. Otto sent me a data package a couple of days ago, claiming it contained some of Anti-Entropy’s latest technologies. You can verify it.” Sigurd handed over a tablet. Einstein took it, swiped the screen, quickly scanned through it, and said,

“Indeed, it contains the copied portion of the data.”

“Damn it! That despicable Otto!” Tesla angrily pounded the table. Einstein glanced at Cocolia, then at Tesla, who was furious without any doubt.

Suddenly, she realized something and looked meaningfully at Sigurd. Sigurd responded with a faint smile, and in their exchange, everything was understood without words.

Einstein: I’ve figured out the trick.

Sigurd: I know you’ve figured out the trick.

Einstein: I won’t say it out loud.

Sigurd: Thank you.

Then Sigurd picked up the teapot and poured another cup of tea for Einstein.

Tesla and Siegfried, who were relatively naive, didn’t notice this scene, but Welt stared blankly at Einstein and blinked.

‘Wait, you two exchanged something in that gaze. What did I miss?’