*Chapter 24: Silver Wolf: What Do You Mean 'Escaping Jizo Mitama'? Is This It?*

Some say the universe is a vast, transparent dome, like an indifferent, giant eye opened wide. Through it, one sees stars, sparse, distant, and cold. The sense of endless emptiness threatens to engulf you.

But Silver Wolf only felt the universe was an open-world game.

Herta Space Station.

Its platform transformed into the Supply Zone during emergencies. Researchers would move here via the Master Control Zone's emergency passages, and external rescue ships had to dock here. But when there was no danger, it was just a place for unmanned ships to transport supplies.

Hiss ! A nearby airlock door expelled a thick cloud of white vapor, breaking the brief silence.

Another batch of containers, plastered with various labels, was pushed out and immediately caught by a conveyor belt, dragging the cargo towards the depths of the warehouse. One gray container abruptly stopped midway, stuck, rocking slightly back and forth.

No one paid attention as two small, disc-sized robots wobbled over.

[FAULT DETECTED. CALCULATING POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS. ]

Before it could finish, a pixelated rift tore open in the gray container, swallowing the two small robots in one gulp.

Inside the container, the silver-haired, ponytailed girl crouched beside the small robots, her fingertips tapping rhythmically on the metal casing. In front of her lay a dismantled robot, its disc-shaped shell pried open, revealing the internal data port.

Silver Wolf.

She was quite petite, looking slender and light, as if a gust of wind could carry her away. Her bangs were slightly parted, her hair tied into a somewhat casual high ponytail, with a few stray strands falling untidily along her cheeks. Her hips were covered by black shorts; though petite, her figure was well-defined, the fabric outlining her curves.

Her left lower leg was clad in a short, black fishnet stocking. The fine mesh traced the elegant curve of her calf, fitting snugly against her skin, each diamond pattern clearly defined. The edge of the stocking rolled slightly before disappearing into the top of her boot, further emphasizing the fairness of her skin.

Her boots reached the perfect height, hugging her ankles and lower calves. After hours of wear, their interior had grown warm and faintly damp, carrying the rich aroma of aged leather blended with something softer—a sweet, musky trace of feminine warmth that lingered in the humid confines. [TN: Holy f *ck that’s so descriptive. ]

"Herta's toy house is harder to get into than I thought," she muttered.

The small robot's firewall was like a block game in her eyes, its nodes clearly visible. Her fingertips tapped lightly on a virtual keyboard, sending out several commands silently. The security system's alarm was preemptively silenced.

"It's so quiet... a bit too quiet."
"But quiet is good. You're the one," she decided, biting her bubblegum. She pulled two micro data chips from her pocket and skillfully inserted them into the robot's main control board.

The robot's optical lens flickered twice, then lit up with a faint blue light. But soon, that blue light was overlaid by a layer of dark purple data streams.

A companion's voice came through her headset. "Successful?"

"Mm. Don't underestimate me, Kafka. This little robot's firewall is weaker than expected. I've pretty much analyzed the structure of the data stream too. Herta's really something else... the firewall is as fragile as the stock market, but no matter how I try, I can't change the appearance of her self-portraits in the space station. Did Herta spend her entire budget on those portraits?"

"There are many 'god-like' people in this world. A hacker once asked me... the other day, when I first talked to a friend in reality, I learned that dialogue options don't pop up like in RPGs... she fainted right there. I fainted too. Then I realized I seem to be quite similar to her."

Silver Wolf nonchalantly tapped her earpiece. "Herta's surveillance system is a bit annoying. Need to loop around a few more times."

Kafka's voice came through the headset, tinged with teasing. "Are you sure this will work? Herta isn't that easy to fool."

"No matter how capable she is, she won't check what the fried rice delivery robots are doing."

With a flick of Silver Wolf's finger, the two small robots were sent out of the container, wobbling towards the reception hall.

"Don't be careless. The defense protocols of Herta Space Station aren't easy to deal with."

"Relax. I don't plan on a direct confrontation. Breaching the Herta Space Station firewall from the outside takes time, but if I open a hole from the inside... hmph, getting into the Simulated Universe will be a piece of cake."

Silver Wolf blew a bubble. The pink gum popped. "Besides, I'm just here to scout. I'll leave right after."

"Then why come in person? There's a saying on the Xianzhou: A wise man does not stand under a crumbling wall."
Meaning: Don't court death.

Silver Wolf easily understood Kafka's meaning and scoffed. "Isn't there another Xianzhou saying: 'You can't catch a wolf cub without entering the den'? How can I open a hole from the inside if I don't come? Besides, I can leave whenever I want. Who can stop me? I'll physically delete my account on the spot if they try."

"Haha. Then be careful."

Silver Wolf ignored Kafka and swiped open another screen, watching the two robots wobble forward. Suddenly, from the small robot's perspective, she caught sight of a familiar figure.

"Wait... what is she doing here?"

That figure was Stelle. She was walking alongside the two small robots, wobbling just like them, muttering to herself.

"What's wrong?" Kafka asked.

"Can't you manage your kid? Why come to the platform now of all times? Can't she just rest, play some games or something?"

Silver Wolf's complaining voice sounded out. Fortunately, she saw Stelle was just passing through and didn't suddenly get the idea to grab a bat and start smashing things. They parted ways after reaching the reception hall.

She wasn't afraid of much, but feared chaotic characters like that showing up right when a plan started.

The small robots stopped at the interface ports, extending data cables to connect.

Soon, a hole was quietly breached in the Herta Space Station's firewall. Although it was only for an instant, Silver Wolf's backdoor was successfully inserted. Information within the electronic devices connected to the station's network, along with hidden data, was gathered, including Herta's collection inventory.

"Herta really has quite a collection..." she muttered to herself, her gaze sweeping over the continuously scrolling list of station collectibles on the holographic projection, finally stopping on a certain encrypted entry.

"Punklorde Mentality... This is what I came for."

Punklorde Mentality. This was data recorded within an Aether Cartridge, equivalent to a hacker's second pair of eyes, brain, and heart.

This was the goal of this operation.

If forced to choose between this and their entire family dying, a Punklorde hacker would definitely choose to sacrifice their family.
Anyway, parents reproduce easily. You could have several more in a day. Some never had parents to begin with. You could just say, 'Don't worry about that stuff'.

She narrowed her eyes. She swiped the holographic image out. An Aether Cartridge representing the Punklorde Mentality was created almost instantly. She flicked it lightly between her fingers, then caught it steadily.

"This is a container for the data. I just need to spend time transferring the Punklorde Mentality data into it later."

Her gaze swept over a highlighted area on the map – the core database access point for the Simulated Universe.

"Is that really all you came for?" Kafka asked.

"And to find some fun," Silver Wolf added.

Silver Wolf had wanted to challenge someone from the Genius Society again for a long time.
She had previously clashed with Screwllum from the Genius Society. The result was a loss.
True, he couldn't capture her, but she also couldn't breach his Difference Engine sphere.
Although it should count as a draw, for a gamer, a draw is a loss. Later, her rematch request disguised as a friend request went unanswered, left hanging for an hour straight.
My god.
Is his security awareness really that strong, Screwllum?
Wouldn't any scammer trying to trick you fail miserably then?

The small robot's data successfully hacked into the main control room, quickly altering the platform's surveillance feed, temporarily looping a segment of footage. Then, Silver Wolf rapidly checked other camera angles and found a Herta puppet standing at the entrance/exit of the reception hall, chatting with Stelle.

This could only be described as perfect timing.
Chat away, chat away. Preferably hold dozens of meetings simultaneously, you 'genius who doesn't need to bother with idiots' with even lower EQ than Blade, so you won't have time to notice how I get into the Simulated Universe.

Silver Wolf's fingertips flew across the holographic keyboard. Projected data streams formed a pale purple aura around her. She continued chewing her bubblegum, occasionally blowing a translucent pink bubble.

Suddenly, the code stream before her froze for an instant.
"Hm?"
Pop.
The bubblegum burst simultaneously. Silver Wolf stared intently, her typing speed increasing.
"Got it !"

"Got what?" Kafka asked instinctively.

"A way to humiliate Herta... no, a way to get the Genius Society to fight me !"

"It's okay if you finished the first sentence, you know. Everyone in the Stellaron Hunters is already well aware of your online behavior," Kafka said, her voice hinting at a smile. "Every time you finish a game with someone and start furiously typing on your virtual keyboard, I have to wonder if the opponent's mother can still cook for them."
Even knowing Silver Wolf couldn't see her, Kafka wore a tactful smile.

Ignoring Kafka's words, Silver Wolf quickly pulled up Asta's chat logs. When hacking the space station, this kind of thing was usually overlooked, but unexpectedly, it proved useful now.
She inadvertently saw the name "Screwllum."
It was like a game finally popping the "match found" notification after a long, frustrating queue. Silver Wolf instantly prepared for battle, just short of a Pokémon trainer throwing a Poké Ball to release her.

Hacking Asta's phone through the Herta Space Station's channels...
Asta's pinned chat was with Herta. The latest message was "Oh." Scrolling down revealed report logs from researchers, each text block as neat as a compressed biscuit, inevitably followed by an attached file. Further down, the style suddenly changed. There were several gossip groups, including ones for the IPC and the space station.
"Whoa, there's even an anonymous account... 'Known Not By Name'. Really thinks deleting the account data erases all information? People who don't understand hacking are so naive."
Continuing down... hmm, various bills and messages.
Oh.
Empty bookmarks and browsing history.
"Haha ! Watch how I..."
Wait, that's not what I came here for. Although I really want to look... maybe next time.
Silver Wolf reluctantly retracted her gaze, finally finding the message about Screwllum.
"He's actually coming to the station? And estimated to arrive soon?"
Good.
Great news !
Now I definitely can't just slip away.

Knowing Screwllum was coming, Silver Wolf refocused her attention on the surveillance feed.
In the feed, Stelle was chatting with an apologetic-looking Asta. Herta left from there, arms crossed, and Stelle followed soon after.
Hm.
Why didn't she just switch consciousness to another puppet? Is it because she needs to lead the way?
Surprisingly tsundere. But this works out perfectly. Keep yourself busy with a few more things, don't focus on the Simulated Universe.

Silver Wolf changed the name in Asta's phone to Screwllum's name and avatar, then furiously spammed Herta with 'poke' notifications.
Directly hacking into Herta's puppet network would be troublesome, but this was different.
Although Herta's signature said she didn't read messages, Silver Wolf felt this outwardly cold, inwardly soft, actually quite闷骚 (mènsāo - outwardly cold/reserved but passionate/flirtatious inside), slightly tsundere towards her own people, 'acting young' auntie would definitely look.

"Aether Editing, activate !"

With just that, the scene before her instantly switched, and Silver Wolf arrived inside the Simulated Universe.

"Here I come ! Okay, use this time to investigate the Simulated Universe, grab the Punklorde Mentality before Screwllum arrives, and finally slip away right under Herta's nose. Yep, simple as that."
Having set her incredibly simple plan, Silver Wolf nodded.
"Right, what kind of mark should I leave here to mock Herta?"
"Graffiti should do it."

Silver Wolf casually materialized a spray can, pressed it arbitrarily twice, thought for a second or two, and then directly sprayed her likeness onto the wall – an arrogant chibi self-portrait, complete with a mocking high score and an ellipsis speech bubble. She even sprayed the slogan "Silver Wolf Was Here" nearby. If Herta saw this, she'd probably get angry enough to short-circuit a puppet.
Imagining Herta furious could put her in a good mood to start tracking the traces of the Punklorde Mentality.

However, not long after, upon reaching the second area of the Simulated Universe, garbled code appeared before her eyes.
Immediately after, the scenery of the entire Simulated Universe began to distort. Pixel blocks peeled off the sky, the ground stretched and deformed like a poorly rendered texture map, and distant buildings collapsed into chaotic geometric lines.

Silver Wolf frowned, but her brow quickly smoothed out again as she scoffed.
"Heh. Herta's crappy program crashed again."
She casually brought up a virtual panel, trying to locate the source of the anomaly, but the log only spat out a continuous stream of meaningless gibberish. The surrounding scene continued to collapse. Data fragments drifted down from the sky like snowflakes, some even passing through her body, dissolving into tiny error codes upon contact.
"Quite artistic," she commented nonchalantly, popping the bubble by her lips and snapping a few pictures.
"Can borrow this style for my next graffiti."

Kafka's slightly puzzled voice came through the headset. "What's going on over there? Need backup?"

"Nah," Silver Wolf waved dismissively, even though Kafka couldn't see her.
"Probably Herta updating some crappy patch in the background, making the Simulated Universe freak out. Anyway, if it crashes, just reboot. I'll be back soon."

This time, Kafka didn't answer. There was only silence on the communication channel.
No sound at all. Just dead silence.
Why no reply? Did something suddenly come up? Makes sense, we've been talking for a while. It's normal for things to happen.

Silver Wolf stood up, walking across the gradually disintegrating ground. Garbled code appeared wherever she stepped, but she remained calm, even slightly bored.
She didn't know it wasn't a normal system error and continued doodling on the walls.
"Done !"
She admired her work with satisfaction, then suddenly sensed an indescribable gaze.
Turning her head, she saw Stelle, who had been with Herta earlier, staring at her, holding a baseball bat.
Oh, got spotted. Well, whatever.
Silver Wolf turned back and continued furtively spraying graffiti.
Wait... spotted by whom?
She turned her head again and found that the baseball bat in Stelle's hand had vanished at some point, replaced by a pitch-black tachi emanating an ominous aura.

From Stelle's eyes, Silver Wolf could clearly read a message:
"You didn't run? Is this it?"
"Now, if you can still run away... then that's it."