Chapter 33: Raiden Mei: Who Am I, Where Am I?

"Did I overexert myself this morning? My heart is racing now, and I feel so tired..." Raiden Mei set down the wooden sword, one hand covering her chest as she felt her heartbeat racing, sighing deeply.

Well, let's call it a night for today's practice.

She placed the wooden sword back on the rack, took a shower to wash away the sweat from her swordsmanship practice, changed into comfortable clothes, and returned to her bedroom.

The feeling of exhaustion grew more severe, almost preventing Raiden Mei from opening her eyes.

"I'm going to sleep... I won't be so hyper next time in the early morning..."

The girl untied her ponytail and collapsed onto the bed, closing her eyes.

...

"Doctor? Doctor?"

"...?"

"Doctor, could you please wake up? There's a procedure that requires your approval..."

It felt like she had slept for a long time, yet it also felt like she hadn't slept at all. Raiden Mei groggily opened her eyes to find herself lying on a wide table, with a green-haired girl cautiously calling out to her.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Klein, Dr. Mobius's assistant. This is the experimental budget we just submitted. Could you please take a look and approve it?"

Raiden Mei took the papers with a puzzled expression, realizing they were filled with equipment and data she couldn't understand—not surprising, since she was just a high school student and had never been exposed to this kind of knowledge.

What's going on? Am I dreaming?

Raiden Mei's brain spun rapidly, her eyes subconsciously scanning the room and taking in its layout—

It was a very simple office. The desk she was sitting at faced a large chair, and behind that was the door leading out. Lockers around the room were filled with folders and papers.

Sunlight streamed through the blinds, casting light on the carpet of the office, illuminating the green-haired girl and Raiden Mei.

Raiden Mei took a deep breath and pinched her thigh hard, the pain jolting her awake and making her aware of her heartbeat.

This doesn't feel like a dream.

"I'm sorry... Can I ask who I am?"

Raiden Mei looked at the green-haired girl in front of her, her tone gentle.

"You're Dr. Mei, a great scientist, an outstanding leader..."

Klein's expression turned horrified. Dr. Mei was usually serious and meticulous; it was impossible for her to speak in such a gentle tone.

Seeing the change in the girl's expression, Raiden Mei felt confused and placed the papers on the table with a soft thud.

This made Klein think that Dr. Mei was angry, and she could barely stand, grasping the nearby chair weakly and saying, "Um, we really need this budget, and we haven't..."

"No, I'm not the Dr. Mei you're talking about."

The two stared at each other.

Klein collapsed to the ground, then struggled to get up, rushed to Raiden Mei's side, and almost touched Raiden Mei's hand with the attitude of handling fragile porcelain. "Doctor, what's wrong with you, Doctor? Don't scare me!"

"But..."

Raiden Mei was also a little at a loss due to Klein's attitude. She could only reach out and hold the other's hand, speaking in a soothing tone, "Let's not panic. Let's figure out what's going on first..."

"Doctor..."

"I'm not a doctor, I'm Raiden Mei, a high school student..."

Klein was almost fainting, pressing the button on her communicator and shouting loudly, "Dr. Mei is having a problem here! She seems to have forgotten who she is!"

A few minutes later, a crowd of people in white coats crowded around the door of the office, discussing in whispers.

Several figures appeared in the office. One of them, a woman with green hair like Klein, carefully examined Raiden Mei. Her narrow pupils, like those of a snake, emitted a cold and sharp gaze, making the girl shudder.

But Raiden Mei was not an ordinary person. She quickly straightened her back and showed her inherent arrogance to everyone around her.

"It does seem like there's a problem..."

After a while, Mobius looked away and asked, "Klein, when did you notice that Dr. Mei was acting strange?"

"This afternoon, when I brought over the budget report, Dr. Mei was sleeping on the table." Klein sat on the chair, leaning against the arm of her twin sister with black hair, looking despondent. "When I woke her up, things started to go wrong..."

Mobius looked back at Raiden Mei, the girl frowned and replied, "Do I need to repeat myself? I'm not the Dr. Mei you're talking about, I'm Raiden Mei, and I just woke up here."

"Well... that's true... but you do look exactly like Dr. Mei."

The woman with snake-like eyes licked her lips, squinting, "Just saying that doesn't seem convincing. Why don't we do a check?"

"I'm sorry, a check is fine, but... I don't trust you."

Raiden Mei instinctively felt that something was wrong with that statement and immediately refused.

"Oh dear, what should we do? But I'm the best in biotechnology in the entire institute..." Mobius pressed her lips, looking somewhat troubled, "Well, some people do think your techniques are better, but our research directions are different..."

"Cough, may I suggest something?"

Raiden Mei and Mobius simultaneously turned their gaze to the person who appeared in the room at some point.

It was a girl with pink hair, smiling brightly. She was gorgeously dressed with a unique charm, completely different from the scientists in white coats around her, but also subtly harmonious. It seemed that wherever she appeared, it wouldn't seem out of place.

What surprised Raiden Mei even more was that she had a pair of elf-like, pointed ears.

The pink-haired girl gestured with her hand and said, "Why don't we take the doctor around the research institute first? Maybe she'll remember something?"

"That makes sense... Elysia, you take her around. My experiment is still ongoing, and I rushed over here in a hurry. It's probably already failed... I have to go back and deal with the aftermath..."

Mobius sighed and glanced at the bewildered Raiden Mei, then left with the twins and Klein, leaving the room.

Watching Mobius leave the office, dispersing the crowd of onlookers, Raiden Mei breathed a sigh of relief, only then realizing that the clothes behind her were soaked with cold sweat, and she didn't even have the strength to stand up.

"Oh dear, what should I do?"

Elysia approached, reaching out to help Raiden Mei up from the chair.

"...Thank you."

"Hmm, it's really different, Doctor... I mean, Mei." Elysia sighed, "Shall we go out together?"

"Sure."

So Elysia took Raiden Mei out of the office and walked along the steel corridor.

Raiden Mei found that the place was much larger than she had imagined. She took several elevators and walked through many corridors, with rooms filled with machines that were obviously very expensive. Everyone seemed busy, which made her feel somewhat embarrassed.

Until she spotted a familiar white figure moving several boxes in the hallway. The researchers around cast respectful glances at the white-haired girl.

Kiana placed the boxes in their designated spots and rubbed her waist.

"Ugh, I'm so tired. Why am I dreaming about moving boxes?"

"Kiana?"

"Huh? Mei?"

As the two called each other's names, despite their unlikely acquaintance, the pink-haired girl looked pensive, blinking her eyes.