Bronie possessed the ability to project anything understood, even data she knew, hence the choices in formal attire seemed somewhat extravagant.
Elysia directly designed a set of pink skirts, accompanied by various special effects, resembling a flamboyant peacock. It gave the impression of a princess, but contradicted Bronie's usual style, creating a subtle contrast. It was akin to a jade pond, perhaps?
Seele, striving to employ her imagination, crafted a set resembling lilies. Though it appeared somewhat plain, Bronie felt it suited Seele better.
As for Sin? She was too excited and ended up with various medieval dresses, resembling torture devices when worn by Bronie, and subsequently vetoed.
Unable to find suitable attire online due to most being designed for curvier figures, Bronya found herself fatigued after the antics.
"Alright, stop crowding, don't you feel warm? Formal attire should suit the occasion; I dislike overly revealing outfits. Plus, they should match the Shenzhou style..."
Closing her eyes, Bronie recalled the luxurious attire provided in Taixu Gate. Perhaps that ensemble would be more fitting?
Entering the dressing room and returning, she busily tended to her hair. "Wow," exclaimed Bronya. Like a siren emerging from the depths, Bronie's hair fixing captivated even Bronya.
"Since it's a Shenzhou feast, qipao elements are necessary, right? I enlarged my Taixu Gate attire slightly. How does this outfit look?" Bronie twirled, the skirt's hem swaying with her movements.
"Wow! Bronie, you're quite the fashionista!" Elysia, momentarily stunned, quickly expressed her eagerness to see Bronie personally.
Regrettably, she was just data, awaiting Bronie's return to the Elysian Realm to interact.
"But this attire is too revealing, lacks the secrecy needed. In case of infiltration, most witnesses may need to be eliminated," Bronie confessed shyly, deflecting attention.
"For the sake of daily beauty, sacrifices are worthwhile!" quipped Bronya.
"Even in our winters of minus thirty degrees, spare me. Yet, I'll wear this to Shenzhou. Await the good news I bring back!"
"Be cautious!" Elysia cautioned, aware of Bronie's ongoing efforts for the Elysian Realm. It seemed there was hope to lead everyone out.
Unfortunately, the Elysian Realm's residents had limited capabilities, aside from teachings and observing the eccentricities of two scientists.
"Don't worry, when have I ever crashed?" Bronie reassured, instilling concern in the orphanage children.
Even Seele sought another Seele's help to learn more about Bronie's dangerous mission.
It seemed she wished to assist.
From Bronie's demeanor, the children sensed the peril of her upcoming journey, despite her transparency.
The invitation was sent out a week in advance. However, this didn't leave Bronie much time because she needed a visa to go to Shenzhou.
Without the help of Schicksal and AE, she had to resort to some underhanded methods to obtain a valid visa.
Plus, she still needed to pay a visit to Miss Jackal. How could this amount of time be enough?
So, on the day she received the invitation, Bronie left the orphanage early the next day.
The weapons in the secret room increased slightly, and there were more drones. If mercenaries attacked again, Bronie hoped she could properly deploy the drones.
...
Days passed, years passed. Miss Cleo was well aware that if she followed the tasks assigned by the World Serpent Lord, it was uncertain whether human civilization would still exist in the end.
So the tasks given by the Serpent Lord must, and would, be completed!
As for sacrifices? That was only natural! Sacrifice was just like dust, at most causing a sneeze.
Jackal had no moral bottom line and rarely considered the consequences of her actions.
Although she was far from being like Mobius, her talent was still valuable.
After hearing about the complete annihilation of the mercenary team, Jackal became interested in the orphanage controlled by that warlord.
It was certain that there were more people studying the collapse phenomenon in the world, but each one progressed differently, and Jackal considered herself at the forefront!
Therefore, the experimental materials under the control of the warlord's leader would be a waste in her hands.
So, Miss Cleo wanted to take over those things before the experimental materials were consumed. Refusing to waste them!
After all, the awakened Stigmata were one in a million, and each child with resistance to the collapse was a potential asset.
This time, the mercenaries failed probably because she didn't offer enough money.
Next time, under a hefty reward, there would certainly be powerful mercenaries! Of course, Jackal didn't know why she couldn't control Raven to bring the children back.
She was complaining about back pain one day, leg pain the next.
Even if her mood was low, it didn't affect Miss Cleo much.
She still ate and slept well every day, then did experiments diligently, seeing progress every day.
Miss Cleo was quite satisfied with her current situation.
Just today, as the days in 2009 were nearing their end, Jackal woke up in her luxurious mansion in Arc City and saw a terrifying scene beside her bed!
"Ahhhhh!!!"
Cleo's scream echoed through the sky, and the outside World Serpent guards immediately burst into Jackal's room, only to see a scene they had never witnessed in their careers.
Between the contours of the bedcovers, there was a head. Its pallid face, along with some mechanical modifications and features reminiscent of the collapse beasts, stained the bedsheets with purple blood.
The warmth emanating through the sheets seemed to indicate that this thing was fresh. In fact, Cleo wasn't unfamiliar with this head.
Because she saw this thing every day in her laboratory, where unfortunate volunteers were tricked into experiments, leaving themselves in a state neither human nor ghost, and ultimately sacrificing themselves to her.
And this head was one of many failed products. However, even with such failures, they were supposed to be hidden in the underground 30th floor laboratory of the Heliopolis Life Sciences in Arc City, guarded by numerous high-tech mechs and soldiers.
Once Heliopolis Life Sciences encountered a problem, alarms would sound, surely disturbing her sleep!
But this head appeared on her bed without any warning, scaring Cleo, who had just woken up from her slumber.
"Lady Jackal! A letter has been found!"
"Bring it here!"
Jackal gasped for breath, still not having recovered from the huge shock.
This time, being able to deliver the head to her bedside queitly, next time they would definitely be able to quietly take her head off.
Even if Jackal was arrogant, she could recognize that she had just narrowly passed through the gates of hell.
[This is a warning this time. Next time will be death. Your Stigmata modifications are useless.]
There was a long list of locations behind it, all addresses of Miss Jackal's safe houses!
The letter didn't specify what exactly had happened.
But had Jackal done few wicked deeds?
"Contact Grey Serpent for me! Investigate! Who dares to threaten me, the one who dares to pull the Serpent's tail!"
Before finding out who was threatening her, the experiments and such would probably have to be put on hold.
After all, being able to sneak into her own company without being noticed, and quietly delivering that thing's head in front of her, this was not an ability that ordinary people possessed.
Next time would be death; this kind of threat was definitely not to be taken lightly!
"Also, prepare a ticket for me to North Africa. I'll go there temporarily to lay low."
...
"It's really not easy to see you, Mr. Otto, the CEO of Schicksal Entertainment."
The annual meeting of Schicksal Entertainment was uneventful, with a normal opening, a normal banquet, and even the speech wasn't given by Mr. Otto.
Fortunately, the formal attire chosen by Bronie didn't make any mistakes and perfectly blended into the atmosphere.
But if Bronie wore some medieval noble girl's gorgeous dress or the strange little skirt full of special effects given by Elysia, it would probably attract a lot of attention, just like a guest with japanese cat ears still on their head in a temple at night.
After eating and drinking enough, Bronie was about to use some other means to find Otto's figure.
When she couldn't find him, she was planning to leave directly.
At this moment, a maid walked over and led her to a private room in the venue.
Bronie then saw Otto leisurely enjoying red wine and playing games in the room!
Damn it, the banquet was too boring, and there were no handheld game consoles outside, which meant that Bronie could only wait for Otto to come to her while eating.
So, when she saw him for the first time, Bronie expressed her dissatisfaction slightly.
"Hello, Miss Bunny, but your appearance is too deceptive. After observing repeatedly, I confirmed that it was really you."
"What did you use to confirm?"
Bronya raised an eyebrow.
"Well, didn't you put yourself into the game? This game, which made countless anchors suffer but also stimulated the rise of the live streaming industry, was conquered with Miss Bunny. The protagonist on it has your face, right?"
Otto projected an image as he spoke. "It's pretty good, isn't it? Isn't it cute?"
Bronya was very satisfied with her modeling and nodded involuntarily.
"So, you went to such lengths to lure me here and meet you. What do you want?"
Otto's time was particularly precious. Since they were in this room, it was best to make things clear. If it was friendly, then talk it out and then use Fenghuang Down to inspect. If it was malicious, then directly investigate with Fenghuang Down.
So Mr. Otto was so confident.
"Nothing much, just want to have some technical exchanges, about AI, and memory. You know, the light flowing above the light dust contains fragments of memory recorded in imaginary energy. I'm interested in these things, so I want to exchange ideas with the Archbishop of Schicksal, who controls the most advanced technology today."
"Oh? Is it really like this?"
In the quiet room, Mr. Otto carefully scrutinized Bronya. The clothes she was wearing didn't look like she could carry any weapons at all.
This harmless appearance, and the "Haxxor Bunny" he investigated, were completely different.
And this outfit with obvious Shenzhou style didn't feel out of place on the Haxxor at all!
She always felt very mysterious, but after close communication, she felt even more mysterious.
So Mr. Otto couldn't help but be curious and used the Void Archives to mimic the Fenghuang Down.
"I've always been a curious person. Technology, and such, can be considered as my little collecting hobby. In short, I'll tell you what I know as an exchange. You tell me about some technologies that interest me. How about that?"
Seeing Miss Bunny's reaction, Mr. Otto frowned.
Did Fenghuang Down work or not?
Normally, people under the influence of Fenghuang Down were quite dull, but Bronya's rich expressions made him wonder if it was carved into her DNA?
"Oh? What do you want from me?"
"Knowledge exchange, there are many things I can offer, such as the current number of known Aeons, gods above the starry sky, and the destinies they created. Or how pure memetic life forms composed of memories move in the universe, or the true usage of this light dust, and the power hidden in memories."
It sounded like a made-up story. But gods did exist! However, Otto himself still had many things to be determined, and experiments had not produced obvious results yet.
"So, what do you want from me?"
"Probably... something related to the technology of digital life forms? Unlocking the shackles of digital life forms, allowing them to act in real life, and simulating sensory signals, etc."
Fenghuang Down was activated again, but Bronya's lack of response left Otto confused.
He clearly understood the Divine Key, but why didn't the Fenghuang Down make the Bunny look dazed?
Fortunately, the confusion was only temporary.
After intelligence regained the upper hand again, Otto began to carefully analyze Bronya's current situation.
Covered from head to toe with harmlessness, she came up with the idea of technical exchange right away and brought out some content he had never heard of.
What did this represent?
Did it mean that the Haxxor Bunny had no hostile intentions? Or was she, like himself, confident and fearless? Perhaps both.
"Maybe we can have a deeper level of cooperation, but you'd better introduce yourself to me first. Who are you, exactly?"
Want to read advanced chapters? go to my patréon for up to the current available chapters: Chapter 221.
patréon.com/PorterOfSomething