The next morning, Rene and Jacob arrived at their workstations early.
Though they'd had a premonition, seeing the deserted hall still struck a nerve.
The two exchanged a helpless glance. Rene began practicing with the leftover materials on the workbench, while Jacob assisted him.
Time always seemed to fly by during research. Before long, drowsy figures began to emerge in the main hall, shuffling back to their desks to continue their naps, leaving Rene and Jacob speechless.
They knew these colleagues had only worked overtime until 9 PM the previous night, and their actual work time hadn't exceeded the first half-hour. After that, everyone had been doing their own thing. Claiming they were sleep-deprived from exhaustion simply didn't hold water.
As the hall gradually buzzed with activity, Rene and Jacob still hadn't spotted Alva.
Just as they were wondering if he had called in sick, Alva finally appeared with only a minute to spare before work officially started.
Seeing Alva's arrival, Rene breathed a small sigh of relief. He had a crucial question to ask him today, so he immediately approached Alva.
"Monsieur Alva, I have something I'd like to ask you about."
Today, Rene's demeanor toward Alva was markedly more respectful than usual. After a full night spent puzzling over Alva's explanation from the previous day, Rene had come to the conclusion that if Alva truly completed all his work in that final, brief moment, his talent far surpassed anything Rene could have imagined.
The only flaw was the other party's habit of slacking off. If they could correct that, Rene believed they would undoubtedly become a genius on par with himself and Alain.
Of course, this applied solely to Clockwork Technology. In the Domain of Life, Rene remained confident in his own superior abilities.
Just as Rene was about to continue speaking, Alva abruptly raised a hand, cutting him off mid-sentence.
"Monsieur Alva?" Rene asked, puzzled.
Alva explained, "Just a moment."
He glanced at the clock in the hall, waiting until the second hand completed its final sweep before speaking again.
"Alright, you may proceed now."
Rene and Jacob exchanged baffled glances.
"Why are you looking at me so strangely? Isn't it perfectly reasonable to discuss work matters during work hours?"
You actually know it's work hours right now?!
Rene and Jacob internally erupted into silent rants.
After regaining his composure, Rene continued, "Monsieur Alva, as I was saying, I spent the entire night carefully considering your words from yesterday..."
"What?! You actually worked overtime all night?!"
Alva's voice immediately drew attention, and the crowd turned to regard Rene with renewed respect.
"Then you must have earned quite a bit of overtime pay, Monsieur Rene! Rest assured, I'll be sure to mention this to my teacher!"
Rene felt his head spinning. He had no interest in money whatsoever, yet he forced himself to continue.
"Monsieur Alva, please let me finish. We can discuss compensation later."
"Hmm."
Alva nodded, signaling Rene to continue.
"Monsieur Alva, after reviewing the fundamental principles of the mobile phone's functions last night, I noticed that the core program's computational logic bears a striking resemblance to the problem you set for me yesterday..."
"You're absolutely right. They're identical," Alva said with a smile.
"I must say, I'm genuinely surprised. I never expected Monsieur Rene to notice this so quickly, after just one night."
"In fact, I used the answer you wrote yesterday, Monsieur Rene. Calculating it myself would have been too tedious."
"Of course, I didn't use it verbatim. As you've likely noticed, I've streamlined many parts."
"After all, the simpler the instructions given to a program, the less likely it is to contain errors."
"That's why I told you to save where you can."
"Monsieur Rene, I hope you're not upset. I've already listed both our names on the project report, and I've clearly marked the core programming sections as being completed by you."
"Monsieur Alva, I wouldn't get angry over something like that."
Hearing Alva's words, Rene immediately grew anxious and pressed further, "I just want to know—did you finalize your vision for the mobile phone after seeing my solution?"
Jacob couldn't help but lean in to listen, equally curious about Alva's response.
"No," Alva replied, shaking his head.
Rene felt a slight sense of relief. I must have overthought things, he thought. He probably had the concept ready all along, just needing that final push, which I happened to provide, explaining his rapid progress...
"To be precise, I came up with the ideas while I was building it. Remember I was constantly catching up on sleep? When would I have had time to think about any of this?"
Rene and Jacob: "???"
"Wait, Monsieur Alva, are you saying that in just those ten minutes of work, you went from zero to completing the entire concept for a mobile phone?"
"Mm, roughly."
"What's wrong? Is that difficult?"
Is that difficult?
Difficult?
Difficult?
?
Alva's final words echoed in Rene and Jacob's minds. Jacob, at least, could take it in stride. But for Rene, this was the first time he had been so thoroughly humbled by someone's sheer intelligence.
"Monsieur Alva, forgive my boldness, but how long ago did this project begin?"
"Just yesterday, of course!"
"Ah, I wish I could have worked on it for a few more days, but the task was just too simple. I couldn't find a way to stretch it out even another day."
"Now I have to waste time today thinking up a new project. What a nuisance."
Rene and Jacob were utterly stunned by his words. If he was telling the truth, they now understood why Neuvillette had offered them ten times their overtime pay.
Moreover, there was no reason for him to lie about something so easily disproven.
Rene was now completely convinced of Alva's extraordinary talent. To conduct scientific research alongside such a genius was his good fortune and honor.
Unfortunately, Alva wasn't in charge of upgrading the Primordial Sea Suppression Ray. The most critical task now was saving as many people as possible on the day the apocalypse arrives.
With these thoughts weighing on his mind, Rene couldn't help but sigh softly.
"Monsieur Alva, you're so brilliant. I imagine you must be one of the leading figures at the Academy."
"Heh, Monsieur Rene, you're too kind. I'm nowhere near as accomplished as you make me out to be."
"I don't even rank among the top here. There are far more brilliant minds than mine."
Rene had initially intended to say that Alva was the Academy's most outstanding genius, but after a moment's reflection, he decided to soften the statement. However, Alva's next words left him utterly dumbfounded.
If even you don't rank among the top, Rene thought, then what am I?!
Jacob flatly refused to believe Alva's words. In any given era, having even one or two individuals with such extraordinary talent would be considered remarkable. The notion that there were many more like him was simply absurd.
Jacob concluded that Alva was merely being excessively modest.
"Monsieur Rene, is there anything else?"
"If not, it's work hours now. We should get back to our duties."
Hearing this, Rene finally snapped out of his daze and shook his head.
"No, there's nothing else for the moment."
Rene still had many questions, but since Alva had already reminded him it was work hours, he felt it would be inappropriate to press further.
Just as Rene was about to return to his console, he suddenly noticed Alva back in his usual spot from the previous day, leaning back in his chair and dozing off in the same posture. Rene couldn't help but lose his composure.
"Monsieur Alva, didn't you just say it's work hours?"
Alva opened his eyes and glanced at him.
"Exactly! Work hours. That means we need to seize every opportunity to slack off!"
Rene and Jacob exchanged bewildered glances, realizing Alva clearly had a very different understanding of what "work hours" meant.
Seeing their confusion, Alva realized they hadn't grasped the true essence of his words. He added, "Look around you."
Following his suggestion, Rene and Jacob scanned the room. Not a single workstation was being used for actual work. More than half the staff were snoring soundly, completely oblivious to the surrounding clamor, sound asleep and snoring loudly.
"See? Everyone's working hard at slacking off. If you start working now, wouldn't that disturb them?"
Rene and Jacob stared blankly at Alva, utterly dumbfounded.
"You still have so much to learn!" Alva said earnestly, gazing at their petrified faces. "Remember what I told you before: the more you slack off, the better you'll work!"
"We're only slacking off to be in a better state of mind for our next project!"
Rene and Jacob felt like they were being brainwashed, but thankfully, they managed to retain a shred of their sanity.
Seeing Alva about to drift off to sleep again, Rene quickly interjected, "Monsieur Alva, shouldn't we decide on our group's next project first?"
Rene had finally decided to ignore everyone else and focus on doing his best.
He hoped to get a head start by finding out what they would be working on next from Alva. If he could complete the preliminary preparations in advance, he believed he could prove his capabilities to his supervisor.
As a student of the Head of the Research Institute, Alva was responsible for evaluating Rene's performance. If Rene could achieve a sufficiently high evaluation, he believed he would soon gain access to Fontaine's core technologies.
Like that behemoth from yesterday!
The mere thought of it set Rene's heart ablaze with excitement.
Of course, he wasn't a warmonger. It's just that powerful weapons were the kind of thing you could choose not to use, but you couldn't afford to be without.
Having conceived the Transcendence Project—a plan to save all of Fontaine—Rene's love for his nation surpassed ordinary comprehension. Contributing personally to Fontaine's strength would bring him unparalleled satisfaction.
What phrases like "Truth lies within the range of cannon fire" and "All fear stems from insufficient firepower" sounded undeniably badass.
"You make a valid point," Alva mused, nodding after a moment's reflection. "We do need to devise a research project first."
"I've decided. The next project will be 'Stimulating Cellular Regeneration to Achieve Limb Regrowth in a Short Time.'"
Rene and Jacob's eyes widened at Alva's words.
"Wait a minute, Monsieur Alva," Rene said. "You're not joking, are you? Isn't this biological research?"
"I'm busy slacking off," Alva replied. "What time do I have for jokes?"
"Alright, let's just focus on this for now. I'll tell my Teacher about it at lunchtime."
"If there's nothing else, you two should hurry up and go slack off too."
Rene and Jacob: "..."
Under their bewildered gaze, Alva didn't even wait for a response. He immediately put on his eye mask and earplugs, drifting off into a sweet dream. He left Rene and Jacob staring at each other, their eyes wide with disbelief...
Meanwhile, after finally finishing all the new work Furina had assigned, Neuvillette returned to the New Fortress of Meropide.
He was there both to deliver the items on the list provided by Dottore No. 6 and to ask Dottore No. N some questions.
Soon, Neuvillette arrived at the place where the Dottore Segments were imprisoned. He gently pushed open the door and overheard a snippet of conversation.
"With your pathetic strength, you dared to ambush us? You're practically half-buried already—why not hurry up and settle in your underground home?"
"Hmph, you just got lucky that day. Don't expect such good fortune next time."
-
Neuvillette observed Dottore No. 1 and Dottore No. N facing off in the distance, shaking his head as if the question he'd intended to ask had become unnecessary.
It seemed he had misjudged the situation. If Dottore No. N had indeed plotted treachery, harsh punishment was only logical.
"Monsieur Neuvillette," Dottore No. 1 greeted him with a smile as he approached. "The fellow has regained consciousness. You may deal with him as you see fit."
"Hmph! You traitors will face the Prime's reckoning soon enough!" Dottore No. N showed no fear of his impending fate. "Don't get impatient—you'll all be joining me soon enough."
"Monsieur Neuvillette, as you can see, he shows no remorse whatsoever. There's no need to give him another chance. We recommend eliminating him immediately to prevent future trouble."
"If Monsieur Neuvillette is unwilling to do the deed himself, we'd be more than happy to assist."
"Hmph! So, betraying the Prime just to become Neuvillette's lapdogs, is it?" Dottore No. N sneered. "What benefits could Neuvillette possibly offer you? You can't possibly be naive enough to think he can truly protect you, can you?"
Seeing Dottore No. N's defiant attitude, Neuvillette understood that cooperation was impossible. He shook his head in resignation.
While Dottore No. N wouldn't be directly eliminated, he wouldn't be allowed to move freely until the Judgment arrived.
Just then, a figure hurried over. Neuvillette narrowed his eyes, recognizing Dottore No. 6 by subtle differences in his appearance.
"Monsieur Neuvillette, I have something interesting to show you."
"After you left last time, I installed surveillance equipment on the second-floor railings to prevent further attacks among us. They just happened to capture some rather... amusing footage."
Dottore No. 6 chuckled as he handed a device to Neuvillette.
The other Dottores nearly lost their composure upon hearing this.
That son of a bitch! He deserves to die!
Dottore No. 6 suddenly turned his head, flashing them an eerie grin. The other Dottores' hands twitched, itching to strike.
Just as they were contemplating whether to recklessly eliminate Dottore No. 6—that repulsive creature—they suddenly felt Neuvillette's warning gaze.
The Dottore segments immediately abandoned the idea. As if they could succeed in acting against him under Neuvillette's watchful gaze! If they could, they wouldn't have been so easily captured and brought here in the first place.
In the end, the Dottore segments could only curse inwardly, resolving to let Dottore No. 6 revel in his triumph for a while longer. Sooner or later, they would get their chance to kick him while he was down.
Soon after Neuvillette finished reviewing the surveillance footage of the Dottore segments' actions and their surgery on Dottore No. N, he raised his head and glared at them, his face as cold as ice.
"Do you have any further explanations to offer?"
At that moment, the Dottore segments fell into complete silence.