"Nightmare?" Kurumi murmured, "Who came up with that name?"
"I did!" Red Queen blinked her big eyes, looking expectant, almost as if she wanted Kurumi to praise her. Her expression seemed to say, "Hurry up and praise me."
Kurumi reached out and gently stroked Red Queen's little head. Although there was no physical sensation, Red Queen seemed to enjoy it, just like a black cat.
Thinking of the black cat, Kurumi's eyes dimmed. The cat had suffered severe injuries, and there was no way to proceed with the virus issue. It had fallen into a coma.
And in the universe it resided in, if Kurumi's guess was correct, someone had already taken notice of her.
Those powerful beings... if it weren't for the constraints of the universe, they would have captured her by now for thorough study.
"Tsk."
For some reason, she couldn't help but feel annoyed.
"What's wrong, Master?" Red Queen slightly opened her eyes, apparently hearing Kurumi's almost complaining tone.
Casually tapping her fingers, Kurumi replied, "Nothing, arrange a vehicle for me. I'm going to Ambrela."
Red Queen quickly "flew" off Kurumi's shoulder and patted her flat chest. "Don't worry, Master. 'Nightmare' won't disappoint you. As long as I obtain more robust materials, I'll start the second round of improvements immediately."
"How does it compare to Stark's 'Mark' now?" Kyouka asked.
"It's far superior!" Red Queen's voice oozed with extraordinary confidence.
...
"K-chk."
At Ambrela headquarters, a vehicle with a red and white umbrella logo on the rear parked in the underground parking lot.
Kurumi walked out of it without paying attention to the glances of others and headed towards the dedicated elevator on the other side.
"Master, go to the fourth basement level."
Kurumi sat on the sofa in the private elevator and quipped, "Is it normal to keep all secret stuff in the basement?"
Red Queen replied matter-of-factly, "What's abnormal about it? Should we put it in the most conspicuous place for everyone?"
After saying that, she seemed to think of something. "Unless, Master, you'd like to do it that way?"
With an amused tilt of her eyebrow, Kurumi said, "I'd rather not let Stark come after me for patent fees."
"Should I register products like powered exoskeletons? Then you can charge Stark for patents when the time comes."
"Uh... let's not bother. It seems like too much trouble."
"Ka-chk."
The elevator door opened, and following Red Queen's instructions, Kyouka proceeded to the deepest part of the fourth basement level.
"Master, we need to perform iris authentication."
Rolling her eyes, Kurumi looked back and sighed, "Red Queen, how many layers of security have you designed?"
"Hehe, this is the last one. Although there are a few... it's all part of the necessary defence systems!"
Kurumi glanced at the metallic room. "I'm afraid even a nuclear bomb couldn't penetrate this, right?"
"Huh! Master, how did you know? Through computer simulations, it has indeed been verified that this place can withstand continuous nuclear bomb attacks safely."
When Kurumi heard the word "continuous," she couldn't help but twitch the corner of her eye. "So... you used all the money you earned on this?"
"Money can be earned again~ I just spent it. It's not like it's mine."
Kurumi nodded. This time, she didn't express surprise or shock. Perhaps the thought processes of "higher civilisation" AIs were just that different.
"Ka-chk."
The final metal door opened, and Kurumi finally saw the mech with the code name "Nightmare."
It was utterly different from Stark's Iron Man armour, with style reminiscent of an anime. However, there were differences in technological levels.
Perhaps the physical constants in the two universes were different, given the existence of so many anomalies... it was easy to imagine various inconsistencies.
The "Nightmare" was seated on the ground, showing no signs of activation. Kurumi reached out and touched it; the metallic surface was icy cold, and the black and red paintwork resembled her body's decorations.
She pinched her chin, feeling the lingering coldness on the metal surface.
This colour reminded Kurumi of Laffey's "Black Rain."
But apart from the colour similarity, the two were worlds apart in every other aspect.
The black skeletal structure at the back seemed to exude an unusual aggressiveness!
"How is it, Master? Would you like to try it out?" Red Queen asked.
Tilting her head, Kurumi carefully examined it and finally decided, "Alright, do I need to change into some kind of combat suit?"
"It's necessary... the combat suit has a neural interface device that allows you to control 'Nightmare' more easily."
"Is that so?" Kurumi didn't commit to it. "What should I do now? Should I just stare at it, and will the combat suit magically appear on me?"
"How... how is that possible? 'Nightmare' doesn't even have its power source installed yet..." Red Queen said, somewhat embarrassed.
"Master, please press the left floating brick; that's the energy storage device. The one on the right is the combat suit."
"Ka-chk."
The metal wall on the right split open with a soft click, revealing a black skin-tight combat suit. Kurumi contemplated, "I suppose regular combat should be conducted in the second form, right? According to the terminology in the world of IS, what's it called?"
"Sorry, Master. I don't have any record of that. But in terms of combat intensity, indeed, the second form is the most stable."
"Doesn't matter, I'll just call it whatever I like! Anyway, I love calling things by my names!"
After defiantly declaring, Kurumi gradually removed her clothing, revealing a large expanse of snowy white skin. The projected Red Queen covered her eyes with her palms, staring wide-eyed. But even through the gaps in her fingers, she could still see Kurumi's alluring figure.
However, there was no reaction from Red Queen.