693: Still Want To Meet

Still Want To Meet

He did not dare to drive his hover car directly toward the research institute for fear that his identity would be exposed. After all, in order to fool the eye of the public of the fact that there were two Crown Princes in the Imperial Palace, Zeke and the real Crown Prince seldom showed themselves up. However, it did not mean that his hover car did not have some kind of identification that would be activated once he entered a building. He did not wish to alarm everyone, not when the news of the assassination had not even been discovered yet.0

As such, amidst the rampaging blizzard, he once again trudged his way forward, his hands firmly clutching the jacket around him, toward the research institute. 

By the time he met Dr. Feng, the Head Administrator and Dr. Xiao, the former royal doctor who had taken care of him when he was small, Zeke could no longer feel his limbs. He was so cold that his lips turned blue and his teeth could not stop chattering, yet for some reason, the flicker of determination in his heart never faltered.

He not only wanted to find out how the hell could he end up in a stray cat's body, he also wanted to… know more about the blonde assassin.

By the time Zeke changed into new clothes, warmed himself and was welcomed into Dr. Feng's office, he already knew what he was going to do. "I want to volunteer to join the simulator," he said all of a sudden, shocking the other two. His tone was resolute and brooked no room for argument.

Dr. Feng's eyes were so wide that they almost popped out of their sockets. Beside him, Dr. Xiao was also equally shocked. "Why?" Dr. Xiao asked the most important question. Why so sudden? What has brought forth this decision? 

"My apologies, Your Highness, but our simulator no longer needs a beta tester," Dr. Feng said politely with a deep furrow between his brows. It was evident that he was not supportive of Zeke's decision. After all, the one who was sitting in front of him was the Crown Prince. If something went wrong midway, then who should be responsible for it? Dr. Feng really did not want to handle this kind of risk!

Zeke almost blurted out the truth. He knew more than anyone the development of the system over the years. After all, he was one of the earliest beta testers who had signed up, and also the one who had to experience the simulation when it was still in its immature stage. He could already be considered a veteran in this field. However, Dr. Feng was totally oblivious about this matter. Zeke had signed up under a secret identity, and the one who knew it was only the King whose corpse had already become stiff in the Imperial Palace.

Anyway, even if Zeke told him everything, it was not like the past could be changed.

Right now, he had more important matters to settle.

He had no idea how much time was left until the news of the royal assassination would be spread all over the planet. By then, an intense investigation would be held and… the military would be out to hunt the main perpetrator.

So what? A voice inside him asked.

So what if the military chased after the stupid assassin? After all, it was their responsibility to keep the royalty safe, especially the King. And now that everyone had been murdered right under their nose, it was only right for them to hunt the killer down. Zeke understood it very well, however… he just could not erase the blonde young man's image from his mind. 

He could only come up with a logical explanation for what he was feeling right now. This must be because he was feeling bad. That's right, the assassin had clearly come for a reason. If Zeke was not wrong in his deduction, then his Imperial Father must have done something wrong in the past which caused the assassin to harbor a grudge. Blood was repaid with blood, and lives were exchanged with lives. Zeke thought that it was quite fair. But the military would not necessarily be able to accept it. 

If… If he could get close to the assassin and understood the crux of the matter clearly, then he would be able to plead leniency by the time the stupid assassin was caught by the army. Just take it as… a sense of camaraderie of being the victim of the King's paranoid scheme. Zeke just wanted to compensate that man for whatever evil deed the Imperial Father had done to him. This way, it could be counted as repaying the kindness the assassin had shown him.

"I am not trying to apply to be a beta tester," Zeke answered the head administrator's doubt, then he calmly exposed the secret he had been keeping for the past eighteen years — one that not even the King himself knew. "The truth is, I have always been sick." 

Dr. Xiao, who knew that Zeke was created out of the Crown Prince's healthy genes, instantly blurted out in denial, "Impossible!"

Zeke had expected this. If he did not expose his illness, then he would definitely not be allowed to participate in the simulation. 

After he finished laying down his problem, Dr. Feng and Dr. Xiao fell into a momentary silence, quite disbelieving. Dr. Feng then brought Zeke into an examination room and linked his brainwaves to the detector. The result was out in less than half an hour. This time, they would have no choice but to believe because data would not lie.

Zeke secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that they had almost bought his lie – well, half-lie, in this case. "Then, am I allowed to join?"

Dr. Feng pushed up his glasses and sighed lightly. "...Of course, Your Highness." He had no choice but to agree. After all, his project would not be able to exist without the Queen's support. If he refused to cure her son, then wouldn't that make him an ingrate?

Zeke pretended to ask in a casual tone. "By the way, the system is secure, right? How high is the risk? Is there a possibility that something will go wrong midway?"

This system was the result of Dr. Feng's blood, sweat and tears. How could he stand still when someone doubted it? Even if the other person was His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, he still creased his brows in displeasure. "Over the years, we have already accepted more than 200 participants and the percentage of success is 100%. Even during BETA stage, the system has shown immeasurable potential and the number of accidents did not exceed ten. I can guarantee with my life that everything will be fine!"

"Then, what about the bug?"

Dr. Feng showed a confused look. "What bug?"

"For example, is there a possibility that I will not enter the simulation, but instead be trapped in another body in reality?"

The frown on Dr. Feng's brows deepened. "I have never come across such a situation before. The possibility is almost nil. Unless the system breaks apart from within or…"

"Or…?" 

Dr. Feng looked him straight in the eye and elaborated solemnly, "Or the compatibility of your brain waves with the other person is 100% matching, I assure you that such a situation will not happen."

Zeke was stunned. Then wouldn't it mean that his brainwaves and the little cat were a complete match?! What kind of bullshit was that?! They were two completely different species, okay?! Zeke's expression turned gloomy. Now he could confirm for certain that it must be a freaking bug! Now the main question was… would he only encounter it once or would it be a common occurrence once he connected to the system? He could totally ask Dr. Feng about it, but then… he would have to explain how he had been rescued by the assassin. Zeke could not let them know about the other person's existence yet!

As such, he kept the doubt for himself and nodded. "Alright, when can I start?"

Subsequently, Dr. Feng brought him to an empty medical room. Zeke could not be more familiar with it. However, he still listened obediently as Dr. Feng explained, "The system will match you to a random simulation based on the level of your brain activity. Each simulation can range from an hour to two days. In that case, it will be safer if you stay inside the medical cabin, Your Highness."

"No problem." Zeke waved him off casually and climbed into the cabin. "Let's start with one simulation first and see what the result will be like."

That was also in line with Dr. Feng's intention. With this, they would be able to pull back as soon as something happened. "Okay, I wish you luck."

As soon as Dr. Feng started the system, Zeke felt a familiar drowsiness struck his head. His eyelids fluttered shut and the last thing he saw was the dimmed ceiling above him.

Now he knew that he had definitely come across a bug. It would not do good for him to stay in the kitten's body for so long. Not only because its body was so fragile, it was also vulnerable to enemies' attacks. If Zeke got into a severe accident in that body, then his real body would receive the backlash too. He could fall into a coma, experience brain failure, and worse, he could even die.

He was literally playing with his own life here. Though it was a bug… he still wanted to meet the stupid assassin once again – even if it was to bid a farewell. That was the last thought in Zeke's mind as darkness swallowed his consciousness.

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A/N: Thank you so much ArcaneMag, Casey_Rech, WMMSCTA and many others for giving VSS 547 golden tickets in December! You guys are awesome! I really can't thank you enough! The double GT event is still on going until 3rd January, and we're on 306/850. Can we create a miracle and reach this goal? *puppy eyes*

Please keep supporting and voting for VSS, guys! Main story will end in January~

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