Christian tried to shove the thoughts about what he was currently doing aside, telling himself these were things only he could do… things that simply needed to be done, and there was no way around it.
Then, he suddenly remembered Iris's long list of requirements, everything she had demanded for the body that was currently being made for her. And as he thought about how far along he had come… he knew it would still take a while.
Not that he was working on her body alone.
He was actually building two more.
Originally, there were only supposed to be two: Alpha, the name he had given the first one, and Iris.
In the end, when he realized that even his standards for Alpha were too high, and he wanted something that could be completed faster, he started building a third one. And now, that third body was already more than halfway done.
He estimated that it would be completed in no more than six months…
… Had he taken too long to make his move?
Seeing the way Iris was glaring at him, he caughed and hurriedly said, "Pawn on g captures knight on f4."
Christian looked down at his wristwatch, checked the current time, then looked at the chessboard, then back at the time again. He moved his gaze between his watch and the board for a moment, before finally making a decision… right as Iris spoke.
Raising an eyebrow, and with a teasing tone now coloring his voice, Christian said,
Did she understand that it was already over too?
Looking at the expression Iris was making, as she too knew there was no longer a way to save herself, Christian couldn't help but laugh and said,
"So, do we continue?"
Watching the many lifelike expressions she had been making throughout the match, Christian couldn't help but wonder if she had been using her immense computational power more on simulating emotions than on playing the actual chess game.
In the end, he just shook his head, not minding either way.
For him, this chess match was always just a way to observe her development, anyway… and for fun too, naturally.
"So, what are our current results?"
[54 to 65, you are in the lead.]
"You're steadily shrinking the difference, so don't be too sad."
[… And who said I am?]
Looking at her cheeky gesture as she brushed her hair aside, Christian couldn't help but laugh again.
They bantered for a while, until eventually he said, "Anyway, call Sophia here."
The moment Iris shifted into work mode, her holographic image, along with the floating chessboard, vanished from the room, making the space feel noticeably emptier. The once lively atmosphere, filled with her movements and voice, now returned to the quiet one.
But, Christian didn't have to think about that for long before Sophia was finally in front of him.
He stared at her for a moment, recalling her behavior over the past six months, before finally asking, "Did Eva tell you about what I did yesterday?"
Sophia respectfully replied that she hadn't heard anything. So Christian explained it to her himself, that he had tested her talent.
Her lack of reaction to the news intrigued him. She didn't understand the significance of his method, or how vastly different it was compared to the one used by Ashvale. But in the end, he decided there was no point in explaining that to her. Instead, he simply said, "Well, anyway, tell me about the technique you're currently training with."
Despite how long they had been together in this house, Christian had never actually looked into what technique she trained in. He simply asked for her general capabilities back then and didn't bother beyond that. And now, as she talked for nearly thirty minutes, explaining in detail about an essence technique that couldn't even reach the first mastery stage… he found himself reaffirming his earlier thoughts.
She was indeed training in a trash dagger technique, fire-based, full of moves… flashy ones at that, but lacking any real practicality.
He couldn't help but compare it to Breath of the Shadow Blade, the technique he used before upgrading it.
He used to think Breath of the Shadow Blade was too low-level… but now, he had to change his mind.
At least his technique had practicality when mastered. It didn't have many moves, but the ones it had were at least useable… and most importantly, even though it was of a higher grade, it was actually easier to understand and train in compared to the mess Sophia was stuck with.
'So, is this the difference between local techniques and those from the other worlds? Or is it just that Sophia wasn't valued, so they gave her something ?' Christian wondered.
In the end, he stopped bothering with that line of thought. Clicking his tongue, he said, "You're actually quite lucky."
He didn't explain himself to Sophia, who looked slightly puzzled, and simply said, "Iris, send that fire technique to her phone."
Even though techniques that enabled reaching the second mastery stage were still rare and he didn't find many, Christian actually had one that reached the third stage… only one.
And it just so happened to be fire-based.
He couldn't help but shake his head at her luck, even if only for a moment, before shifting back into his nonchalant tone, "Switch to the technique I sent you. Starting now."
"Train hard. And don't ever entertain the thought of switching sides."
He naturally already knew she was loyal to Eva, but that didn't stop him from pointing out that things have changed.
"That option doesn't exist anymore."
"Understood," Sophia replied in her usual respectful tone, then quietly took her leave.
… She was still completely unaware at this moment.
Of just how much of an opportunity she had received with the technique Christian had given her… and just how much it would end up changing her life.