Chapter 1: Who Exactly is the Mysterious Girl?

A young man stood in the center of a spotless white space.

With neat black short hair and finely chiseled features, his amber eyes seemed to freeze time itself, exuding a mesmerizing allure.

Despite being abruptly pulled into this strange space, his expression remained as unchanging as eternal ice.

"Strange, I should be asleep in my room at Herta Space Station..."

He muttered to himself, expressionless, while pinching his chin.

At this moment, a beam of light appeared before Gu Tang, causing him to squint his eyes.

A girl's figure emerged from the light.

She had short light pink hair adorned with a four-leaf clover hairpin, wearing a blue and white outfit, and holding a mechanical longbow in her right hand.

Naturally, the beautiful girl's face was obscured by holy light, making it impossible for anyone to guess her true identity.

What a pity.

"As expected of me, I finally succeeded! Hey! Good morning, Gu Tang."

The girl waved her hand, her voice energetic (CV: Noah).

Gu Tang calmly asked, "So, you brought me here, right? What's the matter?"

"Although I'd like to praise you for your calmness, I'm pretty sure you're just a bit dense..." The girl cleared her throat, "Ahem, anyway, I came from a future timeline to give you some kind advice."

"Sounds good, let's hear it," Gu Tang nodded.

"First, collect relics related to the Star Gods. Second, gain the favor and promises of various factions so they can support you at critical moments."

"I see... anything else?"

"Let me think... right, today you'll meet a girl with short pink hair, very gentle, cute, and kind, perfect girlfriend material. Of course, it has nothing to do with me, I don't care at all, just letting you know."

"Got it, leave it to me," Gu Tang gave the girl a thumbs-up.

The girl nodded in satisfaction, "I knew I could count on you! Well, it's time to send you back."

Then, after a moment of silence, she asked, "One last question... if you had to choose between saving one person and sacrificing ten thousand, or sacrificing one person to save ten thousand, what would you choose?"

Her voice carried a touch of gentleness and ethereality.

Gu Tang's expression turned serious, and he firmly said, "I'd find a way to save 1,001 people."

"It's 10,001 people! Where did the other 9,000 go?! Seriously! As expected, worrying about someone like you makes me a fool." The girl couldn't help but shout.

"Wait, I also have one last question," Gu Tang raised his hand.

The girl paused, "Huh? What is it?"

Gu Tang looked around and then turned back to the girl, "Where exactly is this place?"

"You're asking that now?! Enough, enough, just go back already!" The girl couldn't help but lift her leg and kicked Gu Tang.

A wave of weightlessness swept over Gu Tang, and white light filled his entire vision.

...

...

Gu Tang opened his eyes.

In front of him was the familiar metal ceiling.

Room 0023 at Herta Space Station, spacious and comfortable, where he had lived for three years.

"It seems like I just had a strange dream..."

He scratched his head, yawned, got out of bed, and walked to the bathroom.

Maybe influenced by the strange dream, he recalled his past while brushing his teeth and looking at himself in the mirror.

Originally, he was just an ordinary 17-year-old youth on Earth.

He accidentally consumed 2 kilograms of botulinum toxin while having breakfast, fell into a coma, and woke up at Herta Space Station.

A standard isekai scenario, even with a system included.

After spending a year at the space station, he ventured out for two years, then returned to the space station for another two years.

Now, he was a senior researcher at Herta Space Station and an experimental assistant to Ms. Herta.

To be honest, Gu Tang was quite satisfied with his current life because becoming a scientist was his childhood dream.

"System, open the attribute panel," Gu Tang said after washing his face.

A translucent screen appeared before him.

[Gutang]

[Race: Human, probably]

[Age: 25]

[Strength: 1,554,423] (Can easily lift a thousand Hertas)

[Constitution: 1,876,358] (Can withstand a beating from a thousand Hertas without a scratch)

[Agility: 1,279,660] (Can escape from a thousand Hertas chasing him)

[Energy: 1,605,549] (Can charge a thousand Herta puppets simultaneously)

[Intelligence: 3] (Comparable to a cactus, but carnivorous plants are a bit out of reach)

[Charm: 20] (1 point higher than Herta, although she would never admit it)

The extremely low intelligence attribute was quite glaring.

This system was of a traditional type, completing tasks for rewards.

But the rewards were all skills and items, with no attribute increases.

However, Gu Tang didn't mind at all. After all, he was a senior researcher; how could his intelligence be low?

"It seems my intelligence is so high that it exceeded the system's limit, resulting in this bug," Gu Tang marveled at his own extraordinary wisdom and walked towards the wardrobe.

He put on a blue research uniform and donned a white lab coat.

Gu Tang liked wearing a lab coat because it made him feel like a scientist.

Leaving his room, a new day began.

Although he had a strange dream, today would probably be another uneventful day.

...

...

As a space station drifting in the cosmos, there was no concept of day or night here.

But people still needed a regular routine, and now was breakfast time for most.

The 3rd cafeteria was already bustling with people. Researchers chatted while enjoying their delicious breakfasts.

Gu Tang ate his sandwich alone, looking somewhat lonely compared to the surrounding clamor.

"Am I... not good at making friends?" He chewed his food, lost in thought.

Gu Tang was somewhat socially anxious.

He always wore an expressionless face when talking to others and spoke very briefly, giving off a very cold impression.

Additionally, as Herta's experimental assistant, he was often dragged around the universe by her, leaving him little time to interact with other researchers.

As a result, even after two years here, Gu Tang's friends could be counted on one hand.

"It seems even someone as perfect as me has room for improvement. Hmph... maybe I should ask Herta for some social tips," Gu Tang thought.

Meanwhile, two female researchers were excitedly watching him from behind.

"Oh my god, even eating breakfast, Gu Tang-sama is so handsome! Did you see how elegantly he drank his coffee?"

"He's so handsome, intelligent, and has that aloof demeanor, the perfect cool guy."

"If I could go on a date with him for just one day... oh, I don't even dare to imagine."

"Coward, I dare to imagine."

"If I could spend a night with him..."

"Wow, that I really can't imagine."

Yes, Gu Tang was quite popular among the female researchers, though he himself didn't know it.

With a charm of 20 points, social anxiety turned into cool aloofness.

But even with a charm of 20 points, some things were beyond his control.

For example, at a nearby table, two male researchers were disdainfully watching the lovestruck girls.

"These girls... they have no taste at all," Researcher A shook his head.

Researcher B agreed, "Exactly, I don't get it. Why do all the girls want to date Gu Tang? It makes no sense."

Researcher A continued, "Honestly, I advise those two to give up because... Gu Tang and Herta-sama being together is the real deal."

This statement was like a thunderbolt, leaving Researcher B wide-eyed and incredulous.

Researcher A frowned, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Are you sane? You think Herta-sama would fall in love?" Researcher B stared at him.

"Herta-sama is human too, why not?" Researcher A retorted.

Researcher B shook his head repeatedly, "Oh my god, you're insane. I could have you arrested for spreading rumors... Gu Tang will definitely end up with Director Asta! Isn't that common knowledge on the space station?"

"Huh? Say that again?!"