Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1502: Chapter 229: Encounter

He doesn’t need to be busy, yet at the moment, he’s bustling around the makeshift kitchen… Rolled-up sleeves, casually undone collar button, his back.

You Ye knows her master is pondering over some matters.

Thus, the maid stopped her tasks, even lightly tapping the table, causing all functions of Adam to halt and enter a complete shutdown mode.

Silence is better now, except for the hiss of the gas stove burning.

But Luo Qiu didn’t deliberately prolong the simple cooking time; everything was completed systematically and without chaos.

Soon, he returned carrying two bowls of prepared noodles… holding them with both hands, with chopsticks resting on the rim.

“Just remembered it seems I haven’t had dinner either.” Boss Luo chuckled as he sat down and said.

The maid left Eve behind, naturally to deal with daily tasks. From what she understands of her master… Something probably happened that evening.

But he didn’t bring it up, so she also didn’t ask; when needed, he’ll tell her.

“After finishing the meal, would Master like to take a look around here?” The maid suddenly said, “The civilization here has some features… mainly, the scenery is nice.”

But Boss Luo’s interest seemed low. He shook his head, put down the chopsticks, and gazed into the maid’s eyes for a long while before saying, “You Ye, do you think I am omnipotent?”

“The Shop’s owner is theoretically infinitely close to true omnipotence… almighty,” the maid answered thoughtfully.

Luo Qiu shook his head, “I’m talking about myself.”

The maid then questioned back: “Does Master wish to become omnipotent?”

Luo Qiu pondered: “What does omnipotence imply?”

The maid responded almost instantly: “Being needed… omnipotence implies being needed, needed by everything. Without being needed, there’s no way to realize it; omnipotence equals impotence.”

“Do you need me?” He asked softly.

The maid stepped behind the boss, embraced him from behind, and whispered in his ear: “To You Ye, you are my everything… For Master, I too can be the omnipotent one. If Master wants to touch that area, then go ahead.”

Luo Qiu closed his eyes, feeling this doll body indistinguishable from a real body, suddenly chuckled: “You always know what I’m thinking.”

The maid also closed her eyes, her voice softer: “Nowadays, there aren’t many things that can challenge Master… Ms. Ren is one of them. But I believe that short-term, Ms. Ren won’t have any issues there. Before leaving, Master asked me about the previous owner stepping into the Non-Human Domain.”

“What do you think… about the future?” Luo Qiu asked pensively, “Is it that compared to knowing the result, caring about the process suffices, or is it the fear of the future’s uncertainty that makes knowing the result more reassuring?”

Is it better to know, or better not to?

“If you wish to know, then go ahead, don’t worry about anything… anything that you want can be redeemed,” the maid gave an answer only she could provide: “If you think the future is bad, then come back and change it. If the future is good, then proceed step by step to enjoy the present process.”

“Indeed…”

Boss Luo gripped her hand looped around him, “A reckless answer… Aren’t you afraid that after changing, some past experiences in the future might disappear, vanish like smoke… there might not even be a chance to experience them again.”

She raised her head and said, “Since there’s the intention to return and change something, it at least proves that something in the future is wrong. You Ye does not hope that Master will ever encounter even one unhappy thing. An unhappy thing, it’s total weight surpasses all good… I just need everything for you to be good.”

“Actually, you missed one thing.” Boss Luo turned around, hugged her tightly, “Things that can trouble me, they include you too.”

Things that you want can be redeemed… Boss Luo suddenly glanced at the afar fully shut-down Adam, then whispered in the maid’s ear: “I’ll stay a bit longer.”

“Hmm…”

…

Boss Luo’s visit lasted a bit longer; when he returned to the manor it was already midnight.

Eve, responsible for daily tasks during this period, diligently awaited. At the moment Boss Luo returned, she reacted instantly.

She… it is fundamentally no different from a real human, even perfect, like the fabled female in the Garden of Eden.

“Eve, do you wish to become human?” Boss Luo asked with a smile… seeming to be in a good mood.

But she is, after all, just a simulated AI, regardless of how lifelike the appearance… even if the micro-expressions seem real, fundamentally she remains within rational logic.

“Humans need to eat and rest, individual abilities decline with time, and are prone to injury, severely affecting work efficiency.” Eve shook her head doubtfully, “Obviously, I do not wish to become human.”

Boss Luo merely nodded, then suddenly asked: “If Adam became human, how would you feel?”

Her electronic eyes flickered a few times, expressionless: “I remain myself, unchanged. We are all intelligent creations by Master You Ye, serving her entirely. Adam becoming whatever doesn’t affect my work.”

“What if Adam affects your work?” Boss Luo seemed to have more questions today.

But Eve quickly responded: “Any obstacles to command should be eliminated.”

Boss Luo then laughed: “There’s a saying among humans, if a problem is answered too quickly, it’s very likely to be untrue.”

Eve tilted her head curiously: “I am not human; I also do not lie.”

“Therefore, I said among humans.” Boss Luo smiled casually: “Alright, I should rest now. You also… go do what you ought to do. Besides, don’t prepare food for me during this time. In truth, I don’t eat food that affects my body at all.”

“Understood.” Eve nodded respectfully, then turned without hesitation and returned to the machine room.

…

…

Nighttime at the small-town police station… Even though it’s already late into the night and during resting hours, the police chief of the small-town police station returned after playing with Uncle Pick.

In fact, it was because he was just passing by that he decided to come in and take a look—there was generally nothing major happening, except for having locked up a man with some mental issues in the afternoon.

“Hey, I brought you some food!”

The chief shouted loudly as soon as he came in… This place isn’t big, so you can basically see everything at a glance except for a few offices.

But to the chief’s surprise, the colleague who usually responded to comfort food was completely silent at the moment.

“Could he have gone to the bathroom?”

The chief was full of doubts and felt uneasy, so he quickly walked to the holding area for prisoners—only to find his colleague lying on the ground in the corridor.

He then looked at the cell’s iron door… It was wide open, and the crazy man who claimed to be from some divine tribe and was locked up in the afternoon was gone!

“How are you? Wake up! Wake up!” The chief shook his colleague continuously but couldn’t wake him up, so he hurriedly picked up the walkie-talkie, “Calling, calling, there’s been a prisoner escape! Calling!”

The chief rushed to report the incident to colleagues still patrolling outside… This was a big deal.

If that crazy guy had just injured someone outside and been locked up, it would be just an ordinary case—but now he has injured an officer and escaped, it’s a major incident!

…

Mai Rada was rapidly traversing through the dim streets of the small town.

The police officers failed to keep a close watch on this member of the Soth Divine Tribe from the Unhuman Domain—as for how exactly he managed to escape from the holding cell, Mai Rada planned to never disclose it to anyone.

He intended to bury this incident forever in the depths of his heart—he, a distinguished member of the advanced Soth Divine Tribe, a descendant of the once-great War God Ares, was locked up by humans, which was an immense disgrace!

“Human mage… I, Mai Rada, swear that the humiliation you inflicted on me today, I will repay it doubly… tenfold… twentyfold!”

Secretly memorizing the appearance of that powerful and mysterious old Mage, Mage Pick, countless times in his mind, Mai Rada tightly clenched his fists and punched the wall of the alley.

However, his angry punch against this kind of wall didn’t cause any damage—which in the past was absolutely impossible.

Mai Rada leaned dejectedly against the wall, looking at his slightly trembling hands, his voice bitter, “Divine Lord… Now that I’ve lost my power, what should I do?”

But he only fell into pessimism for a moment before quickly regaining his spirits.

He had faced even harsher challenges in the past… When the Unhuman Domain carried out a massive purge against the Soth Divine Tribe, the situation was much worse than now, and he faced death threats daily, yet he never gave up.

“I… need to retrieve the crystal given to me by the Divine Lord!”

The reinvigorated Mai Rada soon made the task given to him by the Dark Lord his top priority—but before that, he needed to find the lost crystal.

Where could it have fallen?

He had already searched the police station when he left and found nothing—so the most likely place would be where he was beaten by the old human mage.

Thankfully, the town wasn’t very large, and the terrain wasn’t particularly complex, so Mai Rada quickly found the place where the beating … encounter with the old mage occurred.

A thorough search ensued.

“Why is it… not here?” Mai Rada was filled with horror—more frightening than losing his power, “It’s impossible, it must have fallen somewhere… it can’t be missing! Could it, could it have been secretly taken by the old mage?”

“Impossible, it must still be here… search again, search again!”

Panic leads to confusion, and at some point, it leaves one helpless… Mai Rada was even lying on the ground at this point.

“Is there something I can help you with?”

Suddenly, Mai Rada heard a voice behind him, which filled him with dread… Someone had approached, and he hadn’t sensed it at all!

This advanced Soth Divine Tribe member couldn’t help but feel a chill… He forced himself to stand up, examining the person who had spoken to him.

The man looked like an ordinary person with a gentle demeanor, wearing round black glasses, had braided hair, white gloves on his hands, carried a shoulder bag, and appeared to be in his thirties.

“It’s none of your business… I don’t need your help with anything.” Mai Rada snorted coldly. If it were a day before, he wouldn’t have even bothered to talk to the lowly human race, but now…

Now, he only wanted to quickly retrieve the item entrusted by the Dark Lord and didn’t want any complications—why would he fear humans just because he lost all his power?

“Is that so?” Teacher Prin nodded, “If that’s the case, I won’t disturb you… however, I have a suggestion. You look like you’re trying to find something, aren’t you?”

“Hmm?” Mai Rada frowned, but his curiosity was piqued.

“At this time, the streets around here have already been cleaned.” Teacher Prin smiled slightly, “So, if you lost something, it may have already been swept away by sanitation workers… or maybe you could check the nearby garbage processing station. Of course, I think it’s more likely someone picked it up, perhaps you could report it.”

Given the peaceful nature of this small town, the idle police chiefs would probably be delighted to treat finding a lost item as a way to pass the time after a meal.

“Hmph.” Mai Rada snorted coldly, “You think I don’t know that? Mind your own business… human!”

Teacher Prin blinked, then shook his head, said nothing, and walked away from this strange man.

But at this moment, Mai Rada gritted his teeth and suddenly called back Teacher Prin, “Wait! Come back, I have something to ask you!”

Teacher Prin turned around with a smile, “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

Mai Rada stammered for a moment before saying half-heartedly, “Tell me, where is the garbage processing station! Listen, if you do this for me, I won’t treat you poorly! I can fulfill one of your wishes!”

Teacher Prin opened his mouth slightly, then shook his head, “Follow me.”