Herta understood the other version of herself.
Solving the Irontomb puzzle and leveraging the Emperor's Scepter's overclocking to interface with Nous, briefly connecting with the Aeon of Erudition.
Such tantalizing possibilities.
Truly impossible to resist.
Even if the odds of defeating Irontomb were slim, she would undoubtedly be unable to resist giving it a try.
That was just her nature.
Though Herta herself wasn't exactly keen on asking the other 'her'.
What did it feel like, linking with that Droidhead?
She had her pride, even when facing another version of herself.
Herta could never stoop to asking about such a thing.
If that other her could do it, then she could too!
She'd just have to connect and experience it for herself to know the feeling.
Why bother asking anyone else!
And the other Herta clearly understood her own mind perfectly, so she didn't even wait for Herta to press the question.
Instead, she got straight to the point, talking about what she had experienced.
Including the Space Station, Asta, the Astral Express, and the whole affair with Amphoreus.
In her memories, the Astral Express went to Lushaka.
While Herta, after meeting Nous and apprehending the Memokeeper, became aware of Amphoreus.
What followed was, naturally, self-explanatory.
Herta found a way to unravel Amphoreus's secrets.
And in the final act, driven by 'curiosity', stubborn and proud, she walked alone towards that endpoint.
The experience of linking with Nous was indeed quite... physical.
And through it, she managed to diminish the threat level of Irontomb, transforming what was originally a cataclysm of Destruction threatening the cosmos into a more controllable disaster of the Emperor.
"...So, you didn't choose to go up there yourself instead of Screwllum out of sacrifice, but out of curiosity?"
"Obviously. Do you think you're that noble a person?"
Madam Herta, thus bluntly retorted by her other self, naturally glared at 'Hertatomb'.
"This seems quite different from what you said earlier, Her-ta-tomb!"
'Hertatomb' looked at the two Hertas speechlessly.
When it came to stubborn pride, Herta took the crown.
Every single version of her.
It wasn't impossible that Herta was driven by curiosity to make that choice.
But could these two honestly swear, hand on heart, that they didn't have even a sliver of thought about saving the cosmos?
And here they were, performing this call-and-response routine.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say. Compared to that, other matters deserve more attention, don't they?"
Madam Herta raised a fist and brandished it a couple of times.
"You'd better pray you run fast enough when that body's time is up!"
The other Herta watched their interaction with curiosity.
She was very curious about this individual called Bai Ming, and just what they had done.
Not a genius, yet still able to earn her own recognition.
And now that she had a general understanding of the Amphoreus situation, Madam Herta didn't mind exchanging more with this future version of herself.
But as they talked, Herta began to feel something was off.
After comparing notes, the two Hertas discovered:
The divergence point in their memories was precisely the day the Herta Space Station launched.
The other Herta clearly hadn't encountered Bai Ming's interference; the Herta Space Station had never 'stood up'.
The station's director had changed hands a few times, the most recent being a young woman from the Interastral Peace Corporation named Asta.
And the most crucial point.
A future without Bai Ming.
The Path of 'Hope' did not exist, nor did the Aeon Noa.
Herta and Ruan Mei had not participated in any project to create an Aeon.
The intersection between the three Geniuses would only occur much later, after Herta conceived the plan to simulate a Zeroth Aeon, leading to collaboration with Screwllum and Stephen.
Herta's expression turned subtle as she looked at 'Hertatomb'.
This idea of simulating an Aeon... this guy wouldn't have known about the future and suggested it to her early, would she?
No wonder she acted so reluctant to get involved, dumping everything on her.
Turns out it was originally her own idea all along.
But Herta didn't doubt 'Hertatomb's' capabilities.
After all, the future her hadn't achieved the great feat of 'creating an Aeon'.
And for the other Herta, this world's Herta was also terrifying.
The 'her' from another worldline actually achieved creating an Aeon? Was that even still her??
Even if she wasn't the lead, it was still astounding.
And what in the world was this 'Path of Hope'?
Bravely snatching concepts from almost all other Paths, and actually getting away with it without those Aeons turning on them.
Since when were Aeons so reasonable?
The other Herta generously expressed her amazement to Bai Ming:
"No wonder I hold you in such high regard. Although you borrowed a genius's intellect, achieving the feat of creating an Aeon truly deserves my respect. It's a loss for the Droidhead that it didn't issue you a certificate."
After all, they were all geniuses, but besides Zandar... well, no one else had managed that.
Then the other Herta turned to Madam Herta:
"That girl Asta is quite good. The key point is that she's very wealthy, so I often preferred to conduct my experiments at the Space Station. If you ever have time, you should go bring that girl back."
"...Tch. Even if it's myself, don't try to schedule my plans."
Madam Herta clicked her tongue.
The experience of conversing with another herself was truly bizarre.
It wasn't like with Bai Ming.
While Bai Ming only mimicked her face and abilities; her behavioral style was still far from her own.
This was different.
Though the face and body were completely dissimilar, the thought processes were highly aligned with her own.
It was a different kind of experience altogether.
While the two Hertas were exchanging information, Bai Ming was pondering the matter of Demiurge.
According to the other Herta, Demiurge was closely connected to Cyrene and had assisted her greatly in opposing Irontomb.
Although Demiurge ultimately faded with Irontomb's victory, without its help, the other Herta couldn't have accomplished what followed.
In short, as the first-born consciousness, securing Demiurge's existence was indeed a crucial matter.
And she had revealed much information about Demiurge.
However, in the other Herta's story, 'Mem' was a non-existent individual.
That was strange. Based on her own experience from the game, Mem should have had a close relationship with both Demiurge and Cyrene.
Or was it only when a Trailblazer charged in that the 'Mem' form appeared?
That wasn't impossible, of course.
Screwllum, who had been listening for a while, stepped forward at this moment:
"Ladies, perhaps we should pause the casual conversation for now. Since we have obtained sufficient intelligence, we should focus on devising a solution to the Irontomb threat as swiftly as possible."
A complete Irontomb truly possessed the power to overturn the cosmos.
And even the degraded Irontomb, wrought by Madam Herta, was a catastrophe comparable to the Emperor's War.
Zandar, as the earliest predecessor, achieved such a feat with merely a ninth of a fragment.
Was this the weight carried by the First Genius?
And now, they, the successors, had to find a third, more perfect solution beyond those two answers.
To minimize Irontomb's threat to the greatest extent, or even eliminate it entirely.
This was no easy task.
"Very well. Screwllum, you and I shall continue developing the Anti-Irontomb Equation."
Ruan Mei, meanwhile, looked at 'Hertatomb' with a smile:
"Bai Ming, you shall work with me on researching these 'Digimon' you mentioned, and the special Seeds of Light."
The other Herta thought for a moment.
Then she turned and walked towards Bai Ming.
"I'll join this side. Last time I was caught unprepared and paid the price. Now that I've been given this chance, I'm going to return every bit of hardship I suffered with interest."
As a Herta who always repaid what was owed, the other Herta had literally staked her life in the fight against Irontomb.
Having suffered such a great loss, given the opportunity, she was absolutely determined to take fierce revenge.
"As for these 'Digimon' you speak of, perfect. Let me become that primal Digimon, the seed of the source code. This time, I'm definitely going to give that smart-ass machine a good kick in the rear!"
Madam Herta's eyebrow raised slightly.
But since it was herself, there wasn't much to say.
"...While I appreciate it, are you planning to take another trip to this world's Amphoreus?"
"Why not? Where I fell, I'll kick the stumbling block away. That's my style. And besides..."
The other Herta revealed a smile brimming with ambition:
"Right now, I'm essentially just an AI program identical to Herta, correct? In that case, I'll use the Irontomb here to perform a 'coronation ceremony' for myself!"
The ambition to survive in the real world and become a true Genius.
Was laid bare in that moment.
--+--