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Using the navigation program sent by Explorer senpai, I managed to locate one of the laboratories under the Alchemical Faction.

Factions that are highly protective of secrecy and exclusive knowledge often do this, so within the Academy’s countless rooms, only a few people know the exact purpose or affiliation of most of them.

The corridor was cluttered with all sorts of strange instruments that looked very much like junk. But I had no intention of coming to my senses only to find myself teleported to the Centauri system or discovering my tail had ended up on the Lunar, so I carefully avoided touching any of the scattered items.

What I hadn’t expected was that the room itself would be in an even worse state of disarray than the hallway.

“Richter, welcome!” Explorer senpai opened his arms wide, pulling me into an overly enthusiastic embrace.

To preserve my dignity and make my stance clear, I completely ignored him, as if he didn’t exist at all. This way, he couldn’t have hugged me, and I wouldn’t have felt uncomfortable.

After gesturing to the other members, the green-scaled dragon left the room, leaving me face-to-face with three other members of the faction, all strangers.

Oh no, that female fox did seem a little familiar.

“You look… quite uneasy,” she commented, approaching me for a chat while the others set up equipment whose purpose I couldn’t discern. She seemed to be trying to make things more amicable between me and the faction. “Would you like me to get you some water?”

“No, thank you.” I don’t dare drink anything you’d offer, to be honest. “I’m just…” I carefully chose my words, not wanting to make the atmosphere any tenser. “…nervous.”

“Ah,” she chuckled, her green eyes narrowing with the expression. “Sorry, Infinity is always like that, a bit too enthusiastic.” She stuck out her tongue apologetically. “But I can assure you he means no harm.”

I had to take that assurance with a grain of salt.

“Maybe it’s not exactly about ‘enthusiasm,’ you know?” I tried to state my perspective without sounding overly critical.

“Oh,” she scratched her ear, seeming to realize why I might have appeared “uneasy.” “Sorry, our last meeting was terribly awkward. I got a bit overexcited—you know, being able to meet a psychic who can manipulate objects on a micron scale!” The fox's tone indeed held a note of excitement, and she patted me on the shoulder. But she quickly calmed down, lowering her ears and looking my way. “It really wasn’t our intention to make you uncomfortable; it’s just that the potential for breakthrough was so exciting!” Her voice trailed off as she looked away toward the floor. “And, well, I tend to get… overly enthusiastic when I’m excited.”

“I had assumed it was the Explorer’s idea.” I tilted my head, raising the ear on the higher side.

“Oh, not quite.” The fox met my gaze with a wry smile, almost as if she’d heard an outdated joke, which left me feeling a bit complex. “I found out that certain approaches work well for, well, certain nerd types.” She shrugged and glanced up at the ceiling. “Not to imply you’re one of those nerds, of course.” She quickly added, and I waved it off, indicating I didn’t mind the small dig.

“But don’t you feel that’s… quite disrespectful?” I asked, trying not to come off as too self-righteous. “As if you were some sort of commodity?”

“If we’d known about your orientation earlier, we’d have had someone else step in.” She turned her head slightly, glancing at the ferret and otter who were setting up some sort of metal apparatus. I wasn’t sure who she was looking at, or if I even wanted to know. “Infinity once ‘selling favors’ personally, too,” she laughed at her choice of words, “since the other party was quite curious about dragon anatomy.”

“I’m deeply grateful for this fascinating tidbit.” I replied with a touch of sarcasm, sincerely impressed by her diplomatic phrasing for such a specific topic. It was a skill I should probably learn.

“You’re welcome. If you’re worried about people finding out about your preferences, I can guarantee, you have nothing to worry about.” She winked at me, a sly smile appearing at the corners of her mouth. “No one would spread information this valuable.” I thought she was joking at first, but then I wasn’t so sure.

“Anyway,” I cleared my throat, pretending not to understand that they might actually sell my orientation as valuable intel. “Doesn’t this kind of… transaction feel strange to you?”

“Well…” She lowered her head, considering for a moment before continuing our conversation. “Do you know what transmutation is?”

“As far as I know, it’s an alchemical concept, like turning lead into gold.” I recalled relevant entries in my mind. “It became feasible as nuclear transmutation technology matured, but it lacks commercial viability. It’s mostly used to process radioactive materials with long half-lives.”

“Are you really a Snow?” Her question was rather intrusive, raising one eyebrow, but I refrained from responding further. She seemed to pick up on my cue and continued. “You see, the difference between materials, however great or small, can be changed as simply as altering their essence.” I didn’t agree that nuclear reactors counted as “simple,” but I understood the analogy. “All things are composed of particles, none more noble or base than others. People assign value to different elements based on their own desires. But hey,” she spread her hands, “methods are just methods—useful is what matters.”

I was silent for a moment, for some reason recalling a conversation with Tadao about promiscuity.

“Sorry, I must have sounded quite self-righteous,” I muttered, shifting my gaze to the other two who were making adjustments to the setup.

“No, we should have anticipated that you might be sensitive to such things.” The fox scratched the back of her head awkwardly. “After all, you’re… different from the typical Senate Wolf.” Her voice trailed off, but I heard it clearly.

“But I’m curious,” I tried to steer the conversation toward something else, to clear up a few of my own questions. “What’s the importance of this experiment that you’re willing to part with your precious adamantine?”

“To us, adamantine isn’t all that important; it’s just a widely accepted medium for transactions.” She waved her hand dismissively. “I can’t go into detail at this stage, but simply put,” she tilted her head, a mysterious smile crossing her face, “we may have found a way to solve the end of the world.”

I tilted my head, hoping she would elaborate, but the fox only deepened her smile without further explanation.

“Done.” The otter spoke up, drawing my attention. He handed me a panel terminal and adjusted his glasses. “There are a bunch of carbon nanotubes on the platform, on the micron scale. Can you touch them?”

“Yes.” I extended my consciousness, shifting my gaze to the platform they’d just set up, preferring not to keep staring at the tuft of a goatee on the otter’s chin.

“Arrange the nanotubes according to this pattern,” he directed me, indicating the instructions on the panel. “Then, stack a second layer…”

Following his instructions, I began manipulating the tiny, invisible structures on the platform. After completing a few stages, while they checked data, I stole a glance at the array of high-energy laser emitters set up around the platform, curious about the real nature of this project. A world-saving technology? What exactly did “solve the end of the world” mean?

“Such… enviable talent,” the otter murmured, shaking his head and scribbling something on his terminal screen with his finger.

“Oh, um… thank you.” I continued arranging the nanotubes as they directed, filling the hollow sections with nitrogen molecules. “I’m just following orders; the real talent lies in design and planning.”

“That’s not how things work,” the otter chuckled, giving me a sidelong glance. “Value is often determined by scarcity.”

“Oh?” I glanced at the fox, who was busy powering up the lasers. “Your colleague might not agree.”

“That’s a subjective assessment of value, unrelated to essence,” he replied, checking something on his terminal.

“If that’s the case, doesn’t it imply that ‘essence’ is inherently flawed?” I took the earplugs and goggles that the ferret handed over, checked the fit, and prepared to put them on.

“An existentialist? Didn’t expect that.” The otter turned to me, one eyebrow raised in mild surprise. “Other factions would be pretty miffed.”

“Uh… what?” I sometimes found myself frustrated at how little I understood the Academy’s intricate politics—but really, it was just too complicated!

The otter didn’t answer, only gesturing toward the platform, asking me to focus.

“Now, let’s witness history.” Even with the earplugs on, I could faintly hear the otter’s voice.

All the lasers activated, aiming at a single point on the platform.

Amid the low humming, I could sense through my Domination that something was changing. Bit by bit, the rotating nanotubes were driving ionization… Oh no!

“Get down!” I shouted, hoping my voice would carry through the earplugs, and quickly set up a containment circle around the entire platform, while attempting to push both the otter and the fox beside me away.

The otter opened his mouth, his expression suggesting he was about to question what I was doing. But before he could utter a single word, the platform exploded. In that instant, a blinding flash, like the birth of a star, engulfed the world in a resounding roar.