Page 56
Esta shrank like a popped balloon and leaned her little head against the side of Sora's shoulder again.
She quite likes the feeling of complaining to her boyfriend. It is novel, warm and most importantly, exciting.
"Ever since I quarreled with my father and said I wanted to study astronomy and refused to inherit the family business, even the relatives who wanted to curry favor with me turned their attention to my mother... After all, I was a little girl with no ambition and value at home. If it weren't for Ms. Black Tower saving me, I would have been given a large sum of family property and then eaten up by other relatives."
"Is Black Tower so righteous?" Sora couldn't imagine.
"It's just a coincidence. To her, I'm probably just a personal butler who can manage toys and bored followers... Even so, I'm still very grateful to her..."
"Ah, don't say anything else. I think I heard some noise outside."
Kong, whose senses were fully stretched, had just been listening to Estelle's complaints with some interest, but he immediately turned his head and gestured for silence.
"Ding dong."
Sure enough, before Esta could continue complaining, the doorbell of her office door rang.
There was only one person in the entire station who dared to disturb her so rudely.
Honestly, Kong was somewhat surprised that Heita would ring Ester's doorbell, even though Ester had hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign - in his impression, that woman should have set up a program so that all the doors of the space station would automatically open in front of her... including the men's restroom.
Kong couldn't help but think that it was a good thing that he didn't have a real fight with Ester, otherwise the uninvited Black Tower would definitely complain about him, an old monster who was older than her, and how he shamelessly played with the feelings of her housekeeper.
"Esther, am I coming in?"
Then, this woman without empathy, just as Sora had predicted, let the door open automatically without giving Ester any time to react.
Kong wanted to push away and straighten his body, but the rich girl's eyes suddenly gleamed with a sharp light and she held Kong's arm tightly. For some unknown reason, it seemed that she was determined to let Heita see her and Kong being intimate.
83. Why don’t you be her mother?
Because Esta didn't deliberately lower her height, this time it looked as if Kong was being held by her forcefully, and a subtle atmosphere of control and showing off came towards the Black Tower.
As soon as he entered the room, he saw Esta's posture, which seemed to make him want to hold Kong in her arms. Even Heita was stunned for a moment - although her doll's expression did not change, Kong could feel that she was somewhat emotionally fluctuating.
Doubt and interest were the only two possible answers. The changes that Estelle hoped to see were not shown at all.
"Esther, Dr. Kong, since you are both here, I have something to talk to you about."
He still acted as if he hadn't noticed that Esta was trying to do something inappropriate for children with Sora, and he even walked around to the other side of the sofa without sitting down, just "looking down" at the two of them.
Maybe she was used to getting along with other staff members in this way, and her affairs always had the highest priority in the station. She had no intention of giving in, or making some space for the intimacy between Sora and Estelle.
"Esther, there is a rift in the space station. Dr. Kong, ScrewGum will be here in about three days, rushing to help us conduct a repair test during the celebration. We must organize people to clean up the rift."
"Clearing the Rift? Huh?"
She continued to hold Sora in her arms, even using so much force that Sora could feel himself slipping into the ditch. Esta pretended to look innocent, but it seemed like she had no intention of helping Heita.
"Then leave it to the Defense Department. They will definitely be able to handle it."
"The interference of the Rift has a serious impact on the simulated universe. We must act as soon as possible."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah."
For the first time, Heita felt an attitude called "perfunctory" from Estelle.
This made her head pop up with question marks, and she had to repeat it a little more seriously: "You have to personally instruct Alan to speed up this matter. I will also ask Ji Zi for help. Otherwise, if Screw Gumu comes, he will make a fool of himself. Dr. Kong can't afford to waste his time."
"Hey, but I think Dr. Kong doesn't seem to be in a hurry. With me by his side, he won't urge you to repair the simulated universe, right, Dr. Kong?"
As Esta said this, she went even further and pressed her cheek against Sora's ear, forcing Sora to lean to the right.
"...Don't be affected by hormones, Esta. Researching Dr. Air is more important than boring physical pastimes—"
The question mark above the black tower was almost solidified.
"How could that be! It is necessary to relax a little and get close to girls - Dr. Kong is a human being, not a puppet!"
The innocent look that Esta had been maintaining also gradually collapsed. Her eyes narrowed, becoming somewhat aggressive, and her tone rising, making her sound just like the little girl in Sora's memory who had quarreled with her elders about her lifelong affairs.
"…Esther?"
Heita's voice also rose half a octave, but before she could lose her temper and say something shocking, escalating the quarrel, Kong stood up from the sofa and twisted Esta's arm, forcing her to let go.
Although he looked frail, his physical fitness of being able to withstand a maximum pressure of 10,000 and a minimum pressure of 8,000 was not something that Estelle could stop.
"Esther, wait for us for a moment, Heita, come out with me."
Kong walked up to Heita with a somewhat impatient look on his face. It was the first time Heita saw Kong on the verge of exploding. He was about to scold him, but his mouth choked up as he was pushed and dragged out of the office by Kong.
Esta's face flushed, but she was no longer shy. She watched Kong drive Heita out of her office, then sat back down, pinching her collar and taking a few deep breaths. Her swollen breasts were about to burst through her clothes.
It was just that little bit, she was almost upset just now - because of the Black Tower's "sophisticated operation" that lacked empathy.
Luckily, Sora was able to stop both her and Kurita, thus preventing a conflict or even a breakup.
As her anger subsided, Esta suddenly felt a sense of fear. What would have happened if she had really yelled at Heita and asked her not to disturb her date with Kong? Why had she become so naive and lacked calmness?
This was not the first or second time Heita had ordered her around in the past, and she had always endured it and thought it was justified. Why couldn't she hold back today?
She tried hard to recall and summarize the impact of all the recent events on her.
When the high went away, she finally understood - it wasn't just because her secret meeting partner was Sora, it was also because Sora, the new member of the genius club, had too strong empathy and emotional intelligence.
As the saying goes, comparing people will make you die, and comparing goods will make you throw them away. Under the strong contrast, she subconsciously came up with the idea that she should oppose the Black Tower's arrogant instructions and its approach that did not take anyone's feelings into consideration.
"…Should I… go and apologize to Ms. Black Tower afterwards…"
Esta murmured, feeling somewhat bewildered—this bewilderment even exceeded her worry that her father might be missing.
……
"What on earth are you doing? Black Tower?"
After Kong took the puppet from the black tower out, he pressed it directly against the wall - if anyone passed by, it would definitely give rise to new rumors of romance in the space station.
But the two people involved did not have any romantic intentions. Kong held Heita's shoulder with a somewhat accusatory look. This strange feeling of dissatisfaction was not because his good thing was disturbed by Heita, nor was it just to protect Ester.
He was unhappy that Heita used such a blunt and inhuman way to communicate with her subordinate who was already half her "child".
"You knocked before entering the room. I thought you would be a little special to Ester - but you really disappoint me. Do you always use a commanding tone to the people closest to you?"
"…If it's because I suddenly barged in and disturbed you…I apologize to you, Dr. Sora."
The question mark that had condensed into a solid form above the black tower was covered with a layer of dark clouds.
She couldn't understand why Sora and Ester reacted so strongly. Snailgum's visit and the matter of the Rift were obviously very important, but they started to act emotionally.
"It's not that simple at all, Black Tower."
Kong loosened his grip on the shoulders of the Heita doll and continued to communicate with Heita as calmly as possible: "What do you think of Esta? I mean, what do you think of her as to you on a daily basis?"
"...A reliable junior?"
Kurota's answer was not so inhumane as to make Sora breathe a sigh of relief, and then he told the truth:
"That's good... Esta regards you as her closest elder, Black Tower. In this cold universe far away from home, you are like her second mother. She really hopes to experience a little family love from you... even if it's just a little."
84. I don’t agree with this marriage!
"Mother... me?" The puppet in the black tower showed a look of surprise.
The moment this "old" woman, who had lived through several Amber Ages but had never been married, was exposed by Kong, her face twisted into a ball - it was as if she had lost control of the puppet.
"It may be a bit exaggerated, but in my opinion, you are at least a godmother to her."
Sora swore, "Esther has expressed her wish for you to pay more attention to her more than once, and has mentioned many times in front of outsiders that she is grateful to you for saving her from home. She also keeps telling us how talented you are, as if she wants to give herself some self-suggestion through this method."
The more he spoke, the more strange and conflicted Heita's expression became.
This guy doesn't look like he's completely inhuman - as long as he still has some humanity left, it'll be easy to deal with.
Maybe because her expectations for the Black Tower had already been lowered, her conflicted look actually made Kong sigh in his heart, "It's not easy."
"Dr. Kong..."
Heita raised his head and said, "You...are you meddling in our affairs..."
Although he said something that would make people's blood pressure rise suddenly, Heita's expression did not show indifference, but rather a bit of aggrieved.
Being able to see Heita's aggrieved expression was an epic experience that neither Screw Gumu nor Ruan Mei had, but Kong didn't enjoy the pleasure of standing on the moral high ground and pointing fingers:
"I don't mean to make sarcastic remarks or teach you a lesson. This is an ultimatum - you have to reflect on yourself, Heita. I know that a genius mind can allow you to ignore many social and relationship issues that normal people must deal with, but a human who doesn't even have relatives or people he can trust will have a hard time in this lonely universe - I won't trust a guy who has no worries and no weaknesses, because that kind of guy is too lonely and too dangerous."
Sora straightened up, put his hands on his hips, and put on a kind look, as if he were an elder teaching a little girl. Compared to him, Heita was indeed a little girl:
"We are social animals after all. Look at how well Gumball handled it. He is more human than humans. Learning from the best is also a quality that geniuses must possess. Since you praised his gentlemanly qualities, why don't you learn from him? Use your genius mind to make Ester obedient and loyal to you. It will also be more convenient for you to use the power of the company in the future. These are all benefits that can be analyzed rationally."
"……I……"
The black tower was hit hard by Kong's attack and began to waver.
It’s not like someone had said something similar to this before, something that was overly self-conscious, but it was easier for her to listen to the criticism coming from another “peer” of the same weight.
Her original body sneered - a helpless sneer because she could not escape human nature after all, and also a laugh at herself for blaming herself for not taking good care of her number one butler for so many years.
From a rational point of view, Ester's contribution is indeed worth spending more time with her... Capitalists know how to let their subordinates afford soda and hamburgers, and what Ester needs is not something that is impossible to find.
From an emotional point of view, Heita began to struggle. How could she, a person with almost no sense of family ties, give Estelle the family affection she expected?
——Actually, Esta has a very good relationship with her biological mother, but she hasn’t seen her for a long time... Is it possible that she doesn’t need herself to be the substitute?
Seeing Heita's hesitation and confusion, Kong walked behind Heita and "escorted" her to Esta's office again, gently pushing her:
"Well, dear Ms. Heita, let's not delay any longer. While the little girl is no longer angry with you, go and show your maternal love - a hug, it's very simple. If you can't even do this, our cooperation will end here."
Kong was sarcastic and pushed the black tower into the door in a provocative manner.
"Eh?? How could you do this?? Dr. Kong, you have such a bad heart!"
The doll in the black tower cannot blush, but she was forcibly sent back by Kong. When facing Ester, who had just calmed down and was a little dazed, she was actually a little flustered.
Sora didn't stay long, just said this encouragement, not to say watching the show, and left - if Heita could do it, he would go to Heita's office and wait to tease her, if she couldn't...
Na Kong really didn't want to cooperate with Heita anymore. He would rather go to Luosi Gumu or Ruan Mei to ask for authorization, or start a new business.
An awkward atmosphere began to spread silently between Heita and Estelle.
Esta didn't know what Kong said to Heita, but she was very familiar with the poker face of Heita's doll - this was because Heita turned off the expression synchronization module.
"…Esther."
Heita had to use some tricks to prevent himself from losing face in front of Ester.