Clyde: "..."
Clyde raised one hand to his forehead, sighed long and helplessly.
"Alright, alright, your sense of observation... I should have seen the signs from how you breed Jaeger. In short, it's right not to have too much confidence in you."
Upon hearing this, Freya glared fiercely at Clyde, "Can you speak properly?"
"Stop talking in riddles!"
Clyde turned around and retracted Flame Dragon Flame Emperor back into the mental sea, "Flame Emperor is also tired, needs to return and properly comprehend."
"Not talking to you anymore, I'll head out first," Saying this, Clyde waved his hand toward Freya without turning back, his attitude quite perfunctory.
What? Explanation?
That thing simply doesn't exist.
Freya: '...Damn it!'
'One day, sooner or later!'
———
"Aiya," Learning that Asher Research Institute had been lively lately, Charlotte, sitting in her office, couldn't help letting out a somewhat regretful sigh.
"What a pity, I haven't really had a chance to interact closely with Miss Freya," Charlotte clasped her fingers together, propped up her chin, and said with a sigh.
"I really missed out this time."
"Otherwise, maybe we could have used this chance to build a very stable friendship!"
Seeing Charlotte's long sighs and theatrical expressions, Jasmine stayed silent.
Say something? Totally unnecessary.
This girl could act out a whole play on her own.
"Work's been light lately," Jasmine used a statement tone for what should have been a question, clearly already certain of the answer.
Asking was just a formality.
Charlotte stayed completely motionless: "Mhm~"
Jasmine: "..."
For some reason, this girl in front of her looked really punchable.
Luckily, Jasmine restrained her itching fists.
'Beating her or something, forget it, really unfriendly.'
But...
"You be careful," Jasmine reminded seriously.
The mechanical little octopus didn't stir up much of a wave at Alliance HQ at first.
Mechanical-attribute beast? Interesting.
But for people like them who had seen great storms, it was just a novelty.
Really speaking, beasts have so many attributes. Originally powerful and aggressive beasts were already numerous, adding a mechanical-type beast was at most icing on the cake, just a casual discussion topic after meals.
If not for Asher's involvement, they probably wouldn't even care much about the matter.
However...
When the mechanical little octopus showed its unparalleled work capability, the folks at Alliance HQ all revealed shocked expressions.
What the heck!
The legendary robot that could replace humans at work really appeared?
And didn't even need rest time?
Oh, not really.
It eats energy, and eats a lot, but they're still willing.
This saved them so much work.
In no time at all.
The mechanical little octopus, with its powerful learning and working ability, became the most popular new employee at Alliance HQ.
Even though, Charlotte wasn't the beast tamer of the little octopus, overall her work became much easier.
The little octopus helped various departments lighten some of their burdens, so naturally the overall pressure decreased.
Plus, with a recent holiday just over, the workload wasn't as heavy as year-end, so Charlotte now had a bit more relaxed time in the office and could get off work punctually every day.
Temptation, such incredible temptation.
If not for time constraints, the Alliance staff would want to sprint thousands of miles to Asher and order a custom little octopus for each of them.
Don't ask. Ask and the answer is: the little octopus is their god.
Charlotte leaned back into the soft chair, spreading her hands, "What's there to worry about, Professor Asher's work is reliable."
"And Professor Asher also said, it's a blind box, blind box, this is a blind box."
"What kind of mechanical-type pet the Heart of Machinery can produce, what's that got to do with Professor Asher? You're saying it like he can control it."
Jasmine sighed upon hearing this, "That's what you say, but..."
Jasmine still felt a bit worried.
The mechanical little octopus's power was unimaginably strong.
Mainly in terms of intelligence, it far surpassed normal beasts and pets. Clearly just a very low-level beast, but its intelligence was nearly on par with humans.
That level of intelligence usually belongs to Tier 9 beasts.
And even then, it's often affected by race, attributes, and other factors.
But the mechanical little octopus...
"I know what I'm doing, Professor Asher isn't as fragile as you think," Charlotte smiled and winked at Jasmin, "Rather than worrying about Professor Asher, why not think about how to help him promote the blind box service, that's actually what he intended from the start."
Jasmine thought for a moment.
'Alright, if we're being honest, that... does kind of make sense?'
"Okay," Jasmine nodded.
———
Back at the inspection team, Jasmine specifically wrote a report regarding mechanical-type beasts.
Kevin, who first received the application report: "?"
Kevin picked up his water cup, looked at the report, and instinctively wanted to take a sip of cola, only to realize the taste was off the moment it hit his mouth.
'Why does it taste sour and bitter, even a faint herb smell?'
He looked down.
'Oh, Goji berry water.'
Kevin: "..."
Kevin glanced at Jasmine, who was standing in front of him, staring straight at him. He quietly, calmly put the cup down.
He knew nothing.
"Ahem," Kevin shook the report in his hand twice, speaking solemnly, "Jasmine, this report of yours..."
"Actually, our department's clerical posts don't really... need mechanical-type pets, right?"
"Your reasoning isn't very solid."
Inspection team has money. But that doesn't mean the inspection team's money can be spent casually.
On the contrary, because they're the inspection team, they must be more cautious when it comes to public expenses reimbursement.
Jasmine knew this very well.
She nodded lightly, "I know, which is why I wrote the report."
"Mechanical-type beast blind boxes becoming a trend is inevitable. We may not need them that much, but Alliance HQ will definitely make large purchases if given the chance," Jasmine said calmly.
This wasn't baseless speculation.
This was reasoned analysis after seeing the mechanical little octopus.
Just ask those office workers, who could resist a pet that, if properly raised, could assist them at work?
No one.
If not for her job nature, Jasmine didn't think she could resist the temptation either.
Kevin: "..."
'Makes sense. Damn, it makes way too much sense!'
"Inspection team doesn't have to buy in bulk, but we can't remain ignorant," Jasmine's one sentence KO-ed Kevin.
"Alright, alright," Kevin picked up the signature pen on his desk, and scribbled his name across the application form.
"You make a good point, I've got nothing more to say. Approved," As he finished the last stroke of his signature.
His calligraphy danced across the page as if ready to fly.
"But later you'll write a supplementary report, just organize what you just told me into a report."
Jasmine stared silently at Kevin.
'Isn't this revenge?'
'This really isn't revenge?'
Revenge for swapping his cola with healthy goji berry water?
Kevin smiled in response.
'Hehehe! How can you call it revenge?'
'Procedure!'
'This is all part of the proper procedure!'
Jasmine: 'Then I'll pretend to believe that!'
———
[Asher Research Institute]
"Interview by new media?"
Asher's first reaction upon hearing that a new media company wanted to interview him and make a video article both online and offline was to reject it.
Not for any other reason.
Asher thought it was too troublesome.
As someone who had seen his share of storms, Asher wasn't completely unfamiliar with dealing with the media.
How to put it...
Chasing hot topics, breaking news, and attention-grabbing stories was their professional skill.
You can't blame them for doing it.
They can't survive otherwise.
However... for people like Asher who were often the target of interviews, it was quite the headache.
And as a semi-public figure, he couldn't do anything too outrageous in public... which made Asher have a poor impression of them.
If he could, Asher would refuse from the bottom of his heart.
Absolutely had to refuse.
"Professor Asher, this Asuka New Media seems quite reliable this time," After thinking for a moment, Sarah still softly added.
Not that Sarah wanted to influence Asher's decision.
Just that...
"The outside world is very curious about Professor Asher. Online platforms, public accounts, marketing accounts, and some media outlets all have various speculations about you."
"Instead of letting them guess unreliably, better to give them accurate direction."
"Take control of the narrative and initiative."
Sarah stopped at the right point, not continuing further.
Asher wasn't a fool.
He didn't blame Sarah.
Sarah was one of the earliest staff members to join his institute, and whether in ability or in being a selfless tool person, Asher was quite satisfied.
Asher smiled and nodded at Sarah, "Don't worry, I get your point."
"Do you have information on this Asuka New Media?", Asher asked confidently.
Sarah: "Yes."
As expected.
Sarah pulled out a file on the approaching Asuka New Media. Though only a few pages, it detailed everything from their founding to their reputation in NY City and public evaluations.
It even included copies of articles and pieces they'd written.
Aside from video materials that couldn't be printed, everything imaginable was included, Sarah had prepared everything thoroughly.
Just flipping through a bit, Asher could see how thoughtful Sarah was.
"Thanks for the effort, Sister Sarah," Asher held the file and smiled at Sarah, showing a mix of helplessness and gratitude.
He treated her like a tool, but she poured her heart out, Asher felt a bit guilty.
"It's nothing," Seeing Asher slightly awkward, Sarah gave a sincere smile.
She didn't know what Asher was thinking.
But Sarah knew, if not for Asher, she wouldn't be who she was today, nor her husband Sarah.
Their life wouldn't be this smooth.
Taking extra care for Asher, contributing more, for Sarah, it was all worth it.
Let alone Asher was a generous and easygoing boss.
"Alright," Asher carefully reread the info on Asuka New Media, finally nodding.
It was clear.
Asuka New Media had a good reputation in NY City, rarely fabricated stories, and was an old, reputable local media.
Asher could also tell, Asuka New Media wasn't doing too well because they didn't stir up drama.
Thinking this through, Asher immediately understood why they wanted to interview him.
They wanted to generate highlights and attention through proper means. Even if it didn't explode nationally, it would at least bring traffic in NY City and Radiant City.
"Ahem!"
Thinking of this, Asher lightly coughed into his fist.
Not that he was narcissistic. It was just the truth.
Even though, Asher liked to keep a low profile.
But he was well aware of his popularity in NY and Radiant.
The pride of the locals wasn't just empty talk.
"Pick a suitable time... hmm, the day after tomorrow," Asher calculated, today was too late, and the message needed time to get back to them.
So the day after tomorrow.
Just right.
Both sides could prepare well.
Asuka New Media upon receiving Asher's response: "!!!"
'Jumped on the spot.'
Meat pies really fell from the sky.
"Fu*k!"
"Fu*k! Fu*k!"
"There's a reply from Professor Asher's research institute?"
"Did they agree? Definitely not, right! Professor Asher is so busy, how could he possibly agree to us!"
"Ah, this is something that can't be helped, but don't be too disappointed. This is only the first time, we can communicate more with the research institute."
"It can also let them know our sincerity, Wilson had to visit the thatched cottage three times back then!"
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