I'm Not in a Hurry

Fang Qi was helpless and didn't push the matter any further.

Holding onto her small hand, he plopped back down into his seat.

Liguang continued to stand with her back to him, motionless.

Leaning against the backrest, Fang Qi gently swung Liguang's small hand.

Liguang shook her hand off again, looking like an unhappy little girl.

Opposite them, Uncle was looking at the mature woman in the black dress next to him, who had her legs crossed, arms folded, and face turned away, her whole body radiating a "strangers keep away" vibe.

He then exchanged a glance with Uncle...

The two men smiled wryly at each other across the row of seats.

Then Fang Qi suddenly felt... the small hand he was holding gently twitch again.

Five slender fingers... slipped into the gaps between his fingers like a thief, and then gently interlocked with his hand.

Fang Qi looked at the small hand that had secretly grabbed his, and then looked up at the slender back with slightly frizzy silver hair in front of him...

Crazy girl...

Even when she's angry, she's cute!

At this moment, Uncle suddenly spoke up.

"Actually, Xiaoyue has always been very obedient."

His voice carried a hint of emotion.

He said this with his eyes falling on the mature woman in the black dress who still had her legs crossed and face turned away.

"She... hasn't been this suddenly impulsive in a long time."

"After seeing Liguang today, she suddenly became impulsive, to the point... that I couldn't even react in time."

Uncle's tone even carried a faint sense of nostalgia.

Fang Qi's heart skipped a beat.

...A long time?

This phrase was quite interesting.

He immediately pressed, "How long is a long time?"

Uncle reminisced for a moment and then smiled.

"At least... over ten years, right?"

Over ten years?

That long?!

Fang Qi's pupils contracted instantly!

She hasn't been impulsive in over ten years?!

That meant...

Xiaoyue's emotions had been completely stable for the past decade or so?!

What was it that An Lian had said?

The emotions of awakened AI are "born from instability and will eventually be consumed by madness"!

In a previous loop, Liguang had indeed almost gone mad and killed him!

In that loop, to avoid hurting him, Liguang had pulled out her own core, which triggered the time reset!

Liguang was also always terrified of going mad!

But this Xiaoyue in front of him... she had survived from the Second Omnic Crisis to the present, which was about seventeen or eighteen years, right?

Not only was she not mad, but she was so stable that even being "impulsive"... was something from over ten years ago?

...As expected!

"Dusk" really did have a way to stabilize the minds of awakened AI!

This was great!

His heart burned with excitement, and just as he was about to ask for details—

"Do you know why?"

Uncle suddenly spoke, interrupting his thoughts.

He glanced at Xiaoyue, then at the silver-haired girl sulking with her back turned next to Fang Qi, and asked with a smile:

"Do you know why Xiaoyue couldn't control her emotions after seeing Liguang?"

Fang Qi blinked.

Because Liguang had a sharp tongue?

Because they were both yanderes and naturally clashed?

He looked at Xiaoyue.

The mature woman in the black dress was still looking away, her red lips slightly pursed. She looked quite calm, but the hand resting on the armrest...

Her fingertips had dug into the leather of the seat's armrest!

Pressing out a few shallow dents!

And the silver-haired girl with her back to him... her little head wearing the beret moved slightly, and her small ears twitched along with it.

The crazy girl was also curious.

So he followed Uncle's words and asked, "Why?"

Uncle looked at him, his smile deepening.

"Because this is the first time Xiaoyue has..."

He paused, his gaze falling on Liguang's seemingly fragile back:

"...encountered an awakened AI that is clearly stronger than her."

...Oh?

Fang Qi raised an eyebrow slightly.

His crazy girl was stronger...

This was within his expectations; after all, she was Dawn's latest model, and a global limited edition at that...

"Heh."

A soft chuckle rang out.

It was Xiaoyue.

She slowly turned her head, her charming eyes slightly narrowed, and a lazy smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

But there was no mirth in her eyes at all!

"Master."

Her voice was husky, carrying the unique charm of a mature woman, as she spoke slowly and deliberately:

"Saying things like that, I'm going to be heartbroken."

But there was no hint of heartbreak on her face; instead, her smile grew even more charming.

"This silver-haired girl is indeed not weak."

She flicked the black hair over her shoulder, her movements casual yet elegant:

"But clearly stronger than me... Master, are you deliberately trying to make me angry?"

Uncle smiled but said nothing.

Seeing his expression, Xiaoyue's smile froze for a moment.

Her dark eyes narrowed slightly as she suddenly reached out and gently rested her hand on Uncle's leg.

She leaned forward, getting a little closer to Uncle, and lowered her voice:

"Master? What's wrong with you today? Why are you always speaking up for outsiders?"

"When we get home tonight, we'll have to... have a good talk."

Her tone was very soft and charming, but these words...

Were definitely not a good sign!

Fang Qi's eyelids twitched uncontrollably!

Hmm... was this how mature women got angry?

No shouting or making a fuss, no glaring or gnashing teeth, just a look and a sentence, light and airy—

Yet incredibly lethal!

The smile on Uncle's face finally stiffened as well.

He coughed lightly, patted Xiaoyue's hand, and spoke with a hint of coaxing in his tone:

"Alright, alright, I misspoke. You're not weaker than her, okay?"

Xiaoyue's eyes narrowed. "'Okay'? What do you mean by 'okay'?"

Uncle immediately put on a serious face. "I mean, you are not weaker than her."

Only then did Xiaoyue give a soft snort, purse her lips again, and glance at Liguang, who was still pretending to sulk:

"If she wants to defeat me, unless... she removes all her limiters."

Her tone remained lazy and calm, as if she were talking about something she didn't care about at all:

"But if she removes her limiters, there's a high probability she'll go mad, or perhaps... she can only remove her limiters after going mad."

"How can this kind of one-time ability that destroys the emotional core be considered true strength?"

As she spoke, her eyes drifted toward Liguang again, the corners of her lips curling up slightly:

"In terms of stability, controllability, and the experience accumulated over so many years..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but the meaning was already obvious.

—I am no worse than her.

Fang Qi's breath, however, hitched slightly.

What did she say?

Remove all limiters...?

She... actually knew about this!

Removing limiters... he was all too familiar with that!

In the previous loop, after his death, Liguang had indeed... removed all her limiters!

Those notification sounds—

[Limiters removed—]

[All performance restrictions removed—]

[Core temperature exceeding safe threshold—]

He remembered them crystal clear!

The scene that followed was also firmly rooted in his mind!

Her silver hair burning away, synthetic skin peeling off to reveal the metal skeleton beneath...

And then Liguang slaughtered her way through everything!

Massacring armed personnel, kicking off the walls of buildings... leaping into the air to tear apart a helicopter!

That ability was truly absurdly powerful!

But she had also truly gone mad.

Because he died, she completely lost her mind, leaving only a pure desire for destruction!

Liguang indeed had some kind of limiter, and after releasing it she would become stronger, but...

According to what Xiaoyue said... after releasing it, Liguang would also go mad?

He looked at Liguang.

The silver-haired girl's body was a bit stiff, and her small head was slightly lowered.

Fang Qi understood that she was thinking of that dream.

In that dream from the previous loop, she had turned into a monster and saw her own reflection in the mirror.

That image... was still etched deep in her memory.

Although he had already comforted her and explicitly told her that he wouldn't despise her monster form...

How could she just forget that kind of fear so easily?

"You, you're just stubborn."

Uncle's voice rang out, carrying a hint of a helpless smile.

He gently patted Xiaoyue's leg.

"It's not like I'm going to like her just because she's strong. What are you in such a rush to prove?"

Xiaoyue's movements paused for a moment, and she turned her head to look at Uncle.

"I'm not getting worked up."

Her tone remained flat.

But her eyes narrowed slightly, and her lips curled into a half-smile...

As if saying—Master, why don't you try saying one more word?

Uncle clearly understood that look.

He chuckled and shook his head, holding her hand in return, his tone gentle:

"Alright, alright, you're not worked up, I am."

Only then did Xiaoyue withdraw her gaze in satisfaction.

But those eyes couldn't help drifting toward Liguang's direction again.

That look...

It was like the reluctance of being outdone, like the scrutiny of a senior looking at a junior.

It even carried a hint of—"Just you wait, we'll see about this."

And this junior had already made her move.

The silver-haired girl slowly turned around and shuffled over to Fang Qi's side, step by little step.

Her two small hands hung in front of her, her little head lowered slightly, looking like the picture of obedience.

The corners of her mouth were slightly curled up, and her heterochromatic eyes secretly peeked at Fang Qi's expression, carrying a trace of secret delight!

Master, did you hear that?

I'm stronger than that senior!

I'm super amazing!

Fang Qi pursed his lips.

Alright, alright, I know you're amazing!

Besides... it seemed Liguang was no longer upset about the monster issue!

Good!

Without another word, he looked straight at Liguang and smiled, opening his arms.

The silver-haired girl's eyes instantly lit up!

Then she immediately bent her legs and swiftly sat right into his embrace!

Her soft thighs pressed against him, and she shrank into his arms, wrapping both hands around his neck and burying her small head into the crook of his shoulder—

Her movements were incredibly practiced, smooth and flowing, done in one seamless breath!

Then she nestled in his arms, secretly rejoicing!

Yeah, this is nice!

Fang Qi's lips curled into a smile as he looked at Uncle.

Xiaoyue was sitting beside Uncle.

Her gaze swept over Liguang, who was brazenly snuggled in her master's arms, her eyes narrowing slightly before she looked away.

Uncle, meanwhile, was still smiling.

The smile on Fang Qi's face suddenly faded a bit.

His tone also became serious:

"Uncle, now..."

"It's time we have a serious talk."