The next day, early in the morning.

Vira, who always sleeps and wakes up early, rubbed her sleepy eyes and walked downstairs to the living room, but there was no sign of Kiana.

Of course, this was normal. Kiana liked to sleep in, sometimes waking up one or two hours late, or even oversleeping and being kicked out of the house by Sigurd's order. It was a common occurrence.

"Good morning, Big Brother Sigurd."

"Morning."

Sigurd was engrossed in the notebook computer on the table. The black metallic sheen of the computer's body was wider and more solid than the laptop Vira usually saw. On the left and right sides of the body, there were also a row of transparent protruding ports of various sizes, the purpose of which Vira didn't know.

He wasn't typing on the keyboard but rather assembling the computer.

After the remaining two or three parts on the side were installed, Sigurd closed the laptop and placed his palm gently on the top.

Click!

With the sound of mechanical electronics, the sci-fi protrusions on both sides of the computer retracted into the body, and the entire body shrank by a circle amid the mechanical sound, with many irregular protruding parts disappearing.

Looking again, this slim and thin notebook, except for the improved color and texture, and being sealed without ventilation or USB ports, was basically a common business laptop.

This was the mainframe that Sigurd had conceived for a long time.

Regarding the power of Honkai and the related black technology, Schicksal and Anti-Entropy were the experts. As an inexperienced amateur, even with the advantage of superior knowledge, it would still take him many years to catch up with them starting from scratch.

Not to mention Otto, Tesla, Einstein, and other geniuses who were continuously advancing!

Therefore, exploring their network data was like night grass growing for a horse without a night, and unexpected fortune for someone without a windfall.

With his superior intellect, Sigurd had absolute confidence in real-time code and data battles in network offense and defense. However, the performance of the computer as a weapon would determine whether he could extract data without leaving a trace, without being pursued by Otto or the people from Anti-Entropy.

It was impossible to find a computer on the market that met the criteria. Even renowned manufacturers couldn't produce a computer that could rival Schicksal and Anti-Entropy—unless you sought out a company affiliated with Schicksal or Anti-Entropy, but that would be walking into a trap.

That's why Sigurd designed this computer.

In the short term, Sigurd couldn't manually create a complete high-end production line that met his requirements. Many materials had to be ordered from the market. And with the technological capabilities of conventional manufacturers, this computer was already optimized.

In fact, the materials had arrived two days ago, but Sigurd hadn't had the time to assemble it completely.

Having spent the night without sleep, he had spent a long time under the moonlight, and then he used the remaining half of the night to complete the final modifications and assembly.

"It's already enough. It's impossible to even think about comparing it to the mainframes of Schicksal and Anti-Entropy. But computer performance is just a foundation; the key lies in myself."

Sigurd thought to himself, feeling a vague anticipation for the databases of Schicksal and Anti-Entropy.

Then, he turned to Vira, who was leaning on the table, watching this scene with innocent curiosity.

Sigurd reached out his hand and gently rubbed Vira's head, saying, "Wait a little longer, we can have breakfast soon."

"Then I'll go wake up sister Kiana," Vira obediently said.

Waking up Kiana in advance would prevent her from oversleeping and being kicked out of the house by the mechanical arm once again.

To be honest, Vira also felt that Kiana was really good at provoking Sigurd's anger. In the beginning, Sigurd mostly just talked and threatened about Kiana's various willful and reckless behaviors. But with each instance of remembering the meal but not the beating, and with more and more mischief— to some extent, Vira felt that Kiana deserved the treatment she received. But she would still go and call her, after all, being kicked out must hurt a lot.

When she heard Kiana's name, Sigurd paused, his gaze wandering for a moment, and then he casually said, "No need, she left."

"Oh... huh?! What do you mean she left?"

"You know her father is in a very faraway place, right?"

"I heard sister Kiana say she got lost and couldn't find him. I thought it was like with mom..."

A touch of sadness appeared on Vira's face.

Daddy said mommy went to a faraway place.

But Vira actually knew that it meant she would never come back.

Kiana said her dad got lost and couldn't be found, so Vira thought it meant the same thing. She never asked further because she didn't want to upset Kiana.

Sigurd looked at her, his gaze softening, and patted her little head, saying, "He just went to a distant place in the Far East for business. Kiana was angry that her father left her and went so far away, so she kept saying he got lost. Now that Kiana's father's business has stabilized, he sent someone to pick up Kiana last night. Kiana missed her father a lot and didn't want to say goodbye to you in person, so she went with them directly."

"Oh- so, sister Kiana's dad, isn't he also Sigurd's dad?"

After all, both of you have the last name Alvis!

Vira couldn't help but look puzzled.

Sigurd shook his head and answered without revealing any information, "Kiana's last name isn't Alvis. She adopted my surname because she was angry with her father. We are just friends, nothing more."

"I see. So, sister Kiana has really left?"

"Yes. She asked me to apologize to you and to tell you to grow up healthy and strong. In the future, she will definitely come back to find you."

Yes, this little girl better grow up quickly.

Taking care of children is a really troublesome thing for him, furthermore, it would also delay his research.

Whether it's Kiana, the troublemaker, or Vira, the well-behaved one, they are both distractions.

Sigurd looked at Vira blankly, then furrowed his brow.

How far will Kiana go on this journey? Will she still follow the original story and meet with Raiden Mei in the City of Dreams?

She probably will.

The Third Honkai Impact would greatly accelerate the Awakening progress of the Void Drifter, and Theresa, the Aunt Mei, and St. Freya Academy were crucial in building emotional bonds for Kiana to complete the "sacrificing important people to awaken the true nature of the Valkyrie" plan.

No matter how you think about it, it's hard to imagine the encounters in the original plot without Otto's hidden manipulation.

Thinking of this, Sigurd couldn't help but look at Vira, who appeared crestfallen. According to that plan, Sigurd and Vira were also suitable sacrifices. Sooner or later—no, perhaps they were already on Otto's list of sacrificial candidates.

Especially after Sigurd handed the Honkai Energy Bullets and the two vials of reagent to Kiana.

Regular black technology was one thing, but any technology involving Honkai energy would inevitably attract the attention of Schicksal and Anti-Entropy.

"Seriously, even though I planned to stay away from those troubles as much as possible, why did I hand over something so sensitive?"

"Kiana..."

Sigurd chewed on that name, his hand stroking Vira's head, and for a moment, he felt like he was patting that peculiar white furball.

It felt like the next moment, that guy would lift his head, blink his big watery eyes, and shamelessly ask Sigurd for toys or treats.

And then, Sigurd's mouth curved slightly.

"Schicskal? Anti-Entropy? If they want to find me, let them come."

He didn't regret or fear it anymore.

Before Sigurd could fully understand why his attitude had changed, Vira sighed and looked up.

"Although I miss Big Sis Kiana, Vira will be strong. Big Sis Kiana also said that Vira is the cutest when she smiles! The same goes for you, Big Brother Sigurd, don't be too sad."

Sigurd was momentarily speechless and then replied expressionlessly, "Why should I be sad about getting rid of that troublesome brat? I'm actually very happy. Look, I even managed to assemble this troublesome computer."

"Yes, yes, Big Brother Sigurd is not sad at all. Then let's have breakfast together, shall we? Today is Saturday, and Papa will come to see me later."

"Fine, let's eat. No more mention of that willful brat."

Sigurd said so and looked to the side. Icarus had already set up breakfast.

The breakfast was eaten in an unusually quiet manner, which was quite unusual.