“Captain Arlan, it’s no use! The space dock’s system has been locked down. We can’t open the starship launch track at all.”
Although Arlan had quickly mobilized the Security Department to pursue Little Herta, who had stolen a starship to escape, she had locked down the space dock’s system on her way out of the space station.
With the space dock’s system hacked, they couldn’t even lift the dock’s lockdown, let alone launch a starship to pursue her.
“Can the technicians fix it?”
Arlan asked.
“We’ve already contacted them. They said they can’t crack it anytime soon. Their conservative estimate is at least three hours.”
“…”
After hearing his subordinate’s report, Arlan fell briefly silent before nodding.
“Understood. Head back and press the technicians to hurry.”
“If you can’t pursue her, then don’t.”
Just as Arlan finished speaking, a Herta Puppet walked straight up to him and spoke.
“Madam Herta?”
“Madam Herta asked me to tell you that she’s already here. Carry on with whatever you should be doing.”
This wasn’t Herta herself, merely a Puppet ordered by Herta to deliver a message.
But the moment the Herta Puppet finished speaking, blue quantum light flashed, and Little Herta appeared among them.
‘That Herta Puppet from before?
Why did she come back?’
Arlan recognized Little Herta.
“Why are the coordinates off? Did she interfere with them?”
Little Herta ignored the startled Arlan.
She glanced around the space dock platform, muttered to herself, then pulled out a packet of Trick Snack snacks and tore it open.
She had originally intended to warp inside a starship, but after checking her warp logs, she discovered that her warp had been disrupted.
She suspected Herta was responsible.
“Nom!”
“Configuration upgrade! Configuration upgrade!”
After hastily wolfing down the snacks, Little Herta completed two consecutive configuration upgrades.
Her eyes darted toward the space behind her.
“The spatial reading is right here!”
She grabbed the empty wrapper and hurled it backward.
“Smack!”
Herta herself appeared out of thin air and, already prepared, raised a hand to catch the wrapper flying toward her face.
“Tch—”
Seeing Herta catch the wrapper, Little Herta clicked her tongue and decisively vanished with another quantum warp.
This time, Herta didn’t immediately pursue her.
Instead, she glanced at the wrapper in her hand, then turned toward Arlan.
“Madam Herta…?”
Arlan took half a step back. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
Herta’s expression was terrifyingly cold, and she looked furious.
“Tell me. What did that brat do here just now?”
Because she had miscalculated Little Herta’s strength earlier, Herta had been constantly monitoring the current strength of Little Herta’s body.
She discovered that compared to her previous warp, Little Herta’s physical parameters had increased by another one hundred percent.
“She suddenly appeared, immediately swallowed an entire packet of snacks, then shouted ‘Configuration upgrade!’ twice.”
Arlan hurriedly reported.
She ate a packet of snacks and shouted “Configuration upgrade!” twice?
Herta looked down at the wrapper in her hand.
She recalled that while reviewing Herta City’s surveillance footage of Little Herta at the space dock before her departure, Little Herta had indeed shouted “Configuration upgrade!” five times in front of the space dock’s control console.
Judging from that, each shout increased her physical parameters by fifty percent, while a single packet of these snacks allowed her to upgrade her configuration twice?
It sounded absurd, but the universe was vast enough to contain every wonder.
Herta had seen plenty of strange Curios and bizarre abilities herself.
With her genius intellect, she immediately understood that Little Herta hadn’t dragged Asta on a shopping spree because she liked eating these things, but because she wanted to make herself stronger.
“Heh. Now this is a challenge!”
Let’s see whether you can upgrade faster or I can catch you faster!
Herta threw away the wrapper, tapped the ground with her key-shaped Staff, and vanished from where she stood.
Unlike Little Herta’s quantum warp, Herta employed Imaginary Space warp technology.
This technology was more mature, more stable, and—much faster!
Curio Storage Room.
Little Herta appeared out of thin air.
She hurriedly pulled out several packets of Trick Snack snacks, tore them open, and gulped them down while shouting,
“Configuration upgrade! Configuration upgrade! Config—”
Before she could finish, the Quantum Tide Tactical Goggles on her head detected a change in the tidal readings caused by Imaginary fluctuations.
She hurriedly ducked.
“Whoosh—”
A key-shaped Staff flickering with blue Imaginary light swept over her head.
“Are you trying to kill me?!”
Clutching the Trick Snack snacks, Little Herta rolled aside and shouted at Herta, who had suddenly appeared behind her.
“If I break you, I can fix you!”
Herta responded.
With a raise of her hand, several bands of energy surrounded Little Herta and instantly constricted around her.
“You demon!”
Little Herta shouted before warping away again.
“Sigh… I wonder where that Herta Puppet is now.”
Asta, whom Little Herta had abandoned earlier, was currently walking toward the Master Control Zone. Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
As she went, she couldn’t help thinking about Little Herta.
Although they hadn’t known each other for long, hearing “Big Sister Asta” in Madam Herta’s childhood voice and appearance had struck Asta right in the heart.
‘I really want to hear her say it again…’
“Big Sister Asta! Save me!”
Just then, as though the heavens had heard Asta’s prayer, Little Herta appeared out of thin air before her and lunged toward her.
“Huh?”
‘It’s that Herta Puppet!’
Asta was surprised at first, then delighted.
She instinctively spread her arms to embrace Little Herta, only to see Little Herta grab her around the waist, pivot, and hold Asta in front of herself like a shield.
‘Huh?’
“Move!”
Before Asta could figure out what was happening, she saw Madam Herta’s face.
The world spun around her, and when she regained her balance, she found herself seated in a nearby chair meant for resting.
Before her, Madam Herta was pursuing Little Herta while swinging her key-shaped Staff, while the special Herta Puppet fled like a frightened rat with the Trick Snack snacks clutched in her arms.
“Configuration upgrade!”
Little Herta dodged Herta’s attack and shouted.
Blue light flashed, and she vanished from the spot, followed immediately by Herta.
Less than three seconds later, blue light flashed again as Little Herta appeared beneath a nearby coffee table.
She tore open a packet of Trick Snack snacks and poured them into her mouth, only for Herta to appear out of thin air.
“Bang—!”
Herta overturned the coffee table, and an energy barrier materialized in midair, pressing down on Little Herta.
“You old witch! You’re destroying public property!”
Little Herta shouted before vanishing once more.
Herta immediately followed her.
Less than a second later, blue light flared and Little Herta appeared again, fleeing forward with the Trick Snack snacks clutched in her arms.
“The entire space station belongs to me! And call me that one more time—I dare you!”
Herta swung her Staff, floating beam cannons aimed at Little Herta behind her.
“Fine, I will! Old wit—Waaah! That’s cheating! Configuration upgrade!”
Little Herta scrambled away from the beam cannons.
Blue light flashed again, and she vanished, with Herta and the floating beam cannons disappearing right after her.
“What… in the world is going on?”
After waiting several seconds without the special Herta Puppet or Madam Herta reappearing, Asta finally rose from the chair with a complicated expression.
‘How should I put it?
It feels like a mother disciplining her naughty daughter while the daughter desperately runs away.’
★ ★ ★
T/N: If you spot mistranslation, do tell me!