A strange man.

That was the only way Isolde could describe the Soviet scientist who had suddenly approached her and spoken fluent German.

It wasn't as if he was the only one capable of it. She had been assigned a German-to-Russian translator, just like the other German researchers present. Still, even those who spoke well had noticeable accents.

"...."

But his did not.

'Could it be…'

She had heard about Julius from Gabriel. He had left on an important mission that hadn't been formally assigned, and it had taken him to the USSR.

Truthfully, Isolde had been quite upset when he had left so suddenly without telling her. If she had known beforehand, she would've been able to adjust her schedule appropriately.

Still, according to recent updates from Gabriel, Julius had been extremely busy. He had even mentioned that an expo like this would likely not catch his interest.

"...."

And yet, Isolde couldn't take her eyes off the man who had just stolen all the attention meant for her work.

She leaned toward the translator beside her and whispered, "Could you tell them how rude they're being right now?"

The translator nodded and turned to the crowd.

"Please allow the doctor to continue her presentation."

* * *

A cup of coffee rested in Isolde's hands. It was quite bitter, but suited her taste perfectly. Surprisingly, coffee in the USSR was far better than what she was used to back home in Germany.

"SIBYL. It's a fantastic work, Doctor Heinrich."

Isolde turned at the sound of that voice. It was the same Soviet scientist from earlier, the one who called himself Dimitri.

Normally, interactions like this would make her tense. Language barriers had been her constant enemy since arriving in the USSR. On her very first day, she had ordered what she thought was mineral water and received something that tasted suspiciously like fermented cabbage.

Later, she had confidently thanked a technician, only to realize she had just said something dangerously close to an insult. Even simple greetings had turned into awkward exchanges that ended with nervous smiles and confused nods.

But this man was clearly speaking to her in fluent German.

"…Thank you," Isolde replied after a moment of pause. "I didn't expect someone here to recognize it so easily."

"It's hard not to, when you've worked with it before."

"...."

Her grip tightened around the cup.

Worked with it before?

Isolde regarded him more closely now. The strange feeling from earlier returned.

"Mister Dimitri, right?" she asked. "Have we met before? You seem… familiar, somehow."

"I don't know. Have we?"

That answer did nothing to settle her doubts.

"Your German is… very fluent."

"Thank you," he said. "I spend a lot of time listening. Languages tend to stick if you treat them seriously."

"But you said you've worked with SIBYL before. What do you mean by that?"

Dimitri turned to the side with a cup of coffee in hand and looked toward the afternoon sun spilling through the glass walls of the venue.

"Do you have free time today, Doctor?" he asked. "Why don't I give you a tour of the USSR?"

"...."

* * *

SIBYL had drawn considerable attention in the USSR to the extent that many tech companies openly sought to acquire it.

However, that interest vanished the moment they learned it was technology under the Schneider name. At that point, they immediately changed their focus toward investing in SIBYL's stocks instead.

After all, how could they possibly compete with the Schneiders' wealth?

Even if they pooled their assets together, it would never be enough. And even if it were, there was still the question of price. How much would the Schneiders ever be willing to sell such groundbreaking technology for?

They wouldn't be desperate for negotiation. That much was certain.

Nevertheless, many of them still wished to meet Isolde in person at least once. To them, it was an opportunity they could not afford to miss, and as a result, she received countless dinner invitations.

However, she postponed all of them.

Because tonight, she had other plans.

The moment Isolde stepped into her hotel room, she froze.

"Sure took you a while, Doctor."

"W-Wha—"

A sense of violation washed over her as she took in the scene before her. Dimitri was sitting casually on her bed, uninvited, as if he were waiting for her. The same man she had only met this afternoon.

"P-Police! H-Help, someone's—"

"Woah, woah. Calm down." Dimitri raised both hands slowly. "That's not how you call the police around here. You're supposed to say 'Полиция! Помогите! В моей комнате посторонний!'"

"Kyaaaa—"

Before her scream could fully echo beyond the room, Julius tapped his cheek.

In an instant, the Dimitri filter dissolved. Gold blond hair fell loose, replacing the dark strands, and his eyes shifted into a deep crimson hue.

"M-Mister Schneider?!"

"Shhh…"

He stepped closer and gently pressed a finger to his lips.

"Lower your voice," he said. "If anyone hears, explaining things will become very inconvenient."

Isolde stared at him, frozen in shock. Her heart hammered in her chest as the familiar face finally aligned with the feeling she had been struggling to place all evening.

Smack——

She smacked his chest immediately.

"Ouch."

"Why did you leave me with all that backlog work?"

He rubbed the spot, unfazed. "Didn't you like working? I thought it'd be a pleasant gift. That way, you wouldn't have to do the staff's laundry for them."

"...."

"Did you miss me, Doctor?"

Isolde glared. "…You're unbelievable, Mister Schneider. Truly unbelievable."

She walked past him and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Sit," she said. "If you're going to break into my room, you're at least going to explain everything."

Julius obeyed, taking the chair instead of the bed. "Where should I start?"

"For one," Isolde said, "why did you vanish without a word? Do you have any idea how irresponsible that is?"

"The less that knew, the better. Circumstances dictated I wouldn't have another opportunity if word spread at the time."

"Is that how little you trust me?"

"That's how much I trust you."

"...Don't gaslight me, Mister Schneider. Use your Directorate tricks on anyone, just not on me."

"Fine. It was… a miscalculation. I didn't want them to question you. Turns out they didn't even need to." He let out a humorless laugh. "They figured it out a week after I left."

Isolde glared and puckered her lips.

"What about you?" Julius asked. "The last thing I expected was for you to leave Germany of your own accord."

"Promotion, Mister Schneider," Isolde replied. "I was simply offered the opportunity to promote SIBYL, so I took it."

"Is that so?"

"You seem disappointed. Did you expect a different answer?"

"…No."

"Serves you right, Mister Schneider," she said flatly. "You didn't even leave a single message. You could have left at least one."

"If I had," Julius replied, "I wouldn't have stopped at one."

That made her pause.

"Thank you for waiting, Doctor," Julius said. "But I'm sorry to say you'd have to wait for a little longer. But don't worry, there's a special surprise waiting for you by the time I return."

"Surprise?"

"The Helios Orbital Habitat."

"...."

"You've always wanted to go there, haven't you?" Julius said. "I secured two tickets. VIP. Courtesy of my brother."

"No way!"

Getting to experience the Helios Orbital Habitat, even just once, had always been one of Isolde's dreams.

When she was younger, she had wanted to become an astronaut, to leave the ground behind and see the world from above.

Unfortunately, the Helios Orbital Habitat was not a place meant for ordinary people. It was reserved for the elite of the elite. Not even Julius could secure access on his own, even with the Schneider name backing him.

"So, could you wait for me for a little longer?"

"...That depends."

Julius frowned this time. "Depends on what?"

"On whether you actually plan on coming back," Isolde said. "From where I'm standing, it looks like you're building an entirely new life here, Mister Schneider. Boo-hoo. Are you really going to leave your poor business partner to handle everything on her own?"

"I think that business partner would be delighted to handle everything herself."

"...."

"This place sucks," Julius added. "At least in Germany, I can get anything I want. Is that enough of an answer?"

"Fine."

As time settled, the dinner plans were completely forgotten as they talked about anything. About SIBYL and the directions it might take. About the recent turmoil back in Germany. About Anneliese and how fast she was growing.

So on and so forth.

"You wouldn't believe it," Isolde said. "Mister Dieterich tried to explain a critical briefing using toy figurines again."

Julius rubbed his temple. "I told him that would get him fired one day."

So on and so forth.

"Anne asked about you, you know."

Julius looked up. "What did you tell her?"

"That you were busy saving the world," Isolde replied. "She said that sounded really cool."

"That's an exaggeration," Julius said. "I'm just slaving away for a country that would probably reject my visa the moment I tried to enter as Julius."

When it was time to leave, Julius restored his Dimitri face and walked toward the door. Isolde helped him into his coat. Julius turned, and she scanned his altered features closely.

"You know, Mister Schneider," she said, "you could keep this face. Honestly, Dimitri looks more handsome than Julius Sebastian Schneider."

"...."

"It's true. You can't deny it. I wonder how many women you've seduced here."

Julius frowned, reached for the door, then paused. He turned back for one last glance.

"By the way, you never answered my question."

"About what?"

"Whether you missed me."

"Hmm…"

Isolde tapped her chin. In truth, the only reason she had agreed to come to the USSR at all was the slight possibility of running into him.

"That's a secret."

But she had no intention of telling him that.

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