The two walked out of the room, heading back the way they came, passing through the overlapping doors. Chiron's movements as he opened the doors were as practiced as ever, as if he had done it thousands of times. Jiang Lijin followed behind him, her mind still dwelling on that number from just now.
While she was calculating the math in her head, the two had already passed through the final door and returned to the underground garage. Chiron's hovercar was parked there quietly.
Jiang Lijin suddenly remembered something and spoke up, "Oh right, do you still need to go to the hospital? I'll just go to the hospital with you, and once we get there, I can take a taxi home by myself."
She figured that him going out of his way to bring her to the Academy of Sciences was generous enough, and she shouldn't delay his work any further. After all, Chiron was the director of the Central Hospital on the capital planet, and he surely had a lot of things to handle.
Chiron shook his head, however. "There isn't much going on at the hospital today. I'll just take you straight home."
She nodded and didn't say anything more, opening the car door and getting in. Nothing going on? Fine then, it would save her the money for a taxi anyway, so she might as well accept. Since he said so, it must be true that there was nothing going on.
Chiron also got into the car. The hovercar started smoothly, following the green light strip out of the garage, and quickly merged into the traffic on the main road.
It was very quiet inside the car. Jiang Lijin leaned back in her seat, watching the scenery speed by outside the window. She stared blankly at the flying hovercars, her mind filled with random, chaotic thoughts. For some reason, she suddenly felt the atmosphere was a bit awkward.
Chiron was very focused on driving and didn't say a word. She didn't know what to say either, so she simply continued to space out.
Just as she was staring absently at a building outside that looked like a giant crystal ball, a familiar voice suddenly rang out in her mind.
"Host! I'm back!"
Jiang Lijin was momentarily startled, and then she felt an indescribable sense of relief welling up from the bottom of her heart, as if a suspended heart had finally settled back into place. She also realized where that awkwardness from earlier had come from.
In the past, Xiao Yi was always chattering away in her mind, so in Jiang Lijin's perception, it was like three people being together. But just now, she had truly been alone with Chiron.
"Xiao Yi."
"I'm here, Host!" Xiao Yi's tone carried a hint of excitement. "How was it, how was it? Did the test go smoothly? Did it hurt?"
"I didn't feel anything, I just stood there and spaced out for five minutes."
"Hehe, how about it? Was the result 3S grade?"
Jiang Lijin gave an "Mhm" in her mind.
"Wow!" Xiao Yi cried out exaggeratedly. "A 3S grade female, the only one in the entire universe! Host, you are truly amazing! From now on, I can go out and brag that my host is a 3S grade!"
The corners of Jiang Lijin's mouth couldn't help but curve up. The reaction she hadn't gotten in the testing room was finally delivered by Xiao Yi. Yet Xiao Yi was the one who had always known she was 3S grade all along, but still managed to act like a bystander hearing the news for the very first time.
Jiang Lijin recounted the testing situation in her mind again, including the calm reactions of the two researchers.
After listening, Xiao Yi analyzed, "It's normal for them to be calm. After all, your mental power exceeds the S grade by far too much, so the Main Brain must have been prepared. Those researchers probably received the news in advance as well."
Jiang Lijin raised an eyebrow. "You mean they already knew I was 3S?"
"Pretty much," Xiao Yi said. "Even if they didn't know the exact grade, they knew you were at least above S grade. So testing as a 3S grade today was within their expectations. There was nothing to make a fuss about."
Jiang Lijin nodded, finding that reasonable.
"So what's next?" she asked, a trace of anticipation in her tone.
Xiao Yi's tone became a bit more serious. "Next, your test results should be sent to your optical computer as an email this afternoon. It will include explanations on subsidy standards, housing policies, and things like that. And then comes the matching."
Hearing the word "matching," Jiang Lijin frowned.
Xiao Yi continued, "Your information will be entered into the matching system, and eligible males will automatically enter the candidate pool. The matching will probably be put on the agenda very soon. After all, as the only 3S grade female, those 3S grade males have been waiting for far too long."
Hearing Xiao Yi's words, Jiang Lijin fell silent. No matter how she listened to it, she felt like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered. Although she knew this was the rule of this world, the thought of being "matched" still made her feel an indescribable sense of discomfort.
"Moreover, once your grade is officially issued, the Empire will release a public announcement. At that time, the entire interstellar world will know that a 3S grade female has been born, and the forums will probably explode. Those posts praising Felwin will soon be drowned out by posts about you!"
Jiang Lijin smiled. That was good news, at least.
But after smiling, a wave of inexplicable nervousness washed over her. It wasn't nervousness born out of fear, but an indescribable emotion. She had been an obscure tool character for so many years, growing up in an orphanage, being bullied at school, acting as a sycophant in the book, and no one had ever paid attention to her. Now suddenly being told that she was going to become the focus of the whole world, the kind that everyone would discuss, she suddenly felt a bit unaccustomed to it.
"Host, what's wrong?" Xiao Yi's voice rang out, carrying a trace of concern.
Jiang Lijin pulled back her thoughts and said in her mind, "It's nothing."
Xiao Yi fell silent for a second, then spoke, its voice gentler than usual. "Host, it's okay. No matter what happens, Xiao Yi will always accompany you."
Jiang Lijin paused for a moment, then smiled, scolding playfully in her mind, "You only know how to brush me off with this one sentence. You've said it who knows how many times."
"But I really will accompany you forever," Xiao Yi's tone became serious. "This isn't brushing you off, it's a fact."
Jiang Lijin didn't speak, but the smile remained on her lips.
Right at that moment, Chiron suddenly spoke up.
"Your test results should be notified to you in the form of an email this afternoon," he said, his tone flat.
Jiang Lijin turned to look at him, unable to stop herself from grumbling inwardly: You're only telling me this now? Xiao Yi has already explained it all to me.
But she still gave a polite "Mhm."
Chiron kept his eyes on the road ahead, hands resting on the steering wheel, and continued, "Including subsidy standards, housing policies, and such, all will be explained in the email. Your grade is unprecedented among females, so you shouldn't need to go line up and apply at the Female Protection Center. There will be dedicated personnel coming to the house to handle everything for you."
"Coming to the house?" Jiang Lijin asked in confusion.
Chiron continued staring at the road ahead. "Yes. I have already reported the fact that you are living at my house."
Reported? Reported to whom? The Main Brain?
Jiang Lijin wanted to ask, but after thinking about it, she couldn't be bothered. Having someone come to the house to handle it for her was better anyway, right? It saved her the trouble of running to some protection center to line up and fill out forms, which would be incredibly annoying.
She nodded and didn't ask any further.
But Chiron continued, "You might be required to visit the Academy of Sciences a few more times later on. After all, a situation like yours—jumping directly from C-rank to 3S-rank—has never happened before. The Academy wants to conduct some research and needs your cooperation."
Jiang Lijin frowned slightly. "Research?"
"Don't worry," Chiron said, as if seeing right through her thoughts. "You will definitely be compensated. Moreover, your safety will be the top priority; they won't do anything risky."
Jiang Lijin raised an eyebrow. She had already figured she didn't have a choice in the matter anyway. If the Academy of Sciences wanted to study her, could she really refuse? But getting paid for it was an unexpected bonus.
"Got it," she nodded.
Chiron fell silent for a second before speaking again, as if carefully weighing his words.
"There is one more thing."
Jiang Lijin looked at him. Chiron kept his eyes fixed on the road ahead, his hands still resting on the steering wheel.
"According to the Main Brain's matching mechanism, it is highly likely that I will become one of your partners."
Jiang Lijin froze at his words. Even though she and Xiao Yi had discussed this countless times, she hadn't expected Chiron to bring it up himself.
"I want to know," Chiron continued, his tone remaining calm, "what are your thoughts on this?"
