Chapter 163 195: Me, Shinji Ikari, the Tanking Freak.

Too early was no good; too late was no good either. As Ritsuko Akagi had put it, it was indeed dauntingly difficult to the point of despair.

Humanity had no way of observing the Negative Universe, let alone monitoring the evolution of a god. He might remain in gestation for another ten thousand years, or He might let out His first cry in the very next moment.

But Shinji never bragged, and an Astartes was indeed an expert in saving worlds. If he dared to propose a conjecture, he naturally had the confidence to back it up.

Rei Ayanami, Lilith's body, the Adam embryo, and even Kaworu Nagisa—these "demigods" with closer ties to the Negative Universe—could certainly provide early warnings. Even if they all failed, Shinji himself was a warning radar.

A psyker's projection resided in the Negative Universe. It had triggered the upheaval of destiny and spurred the evolution of the god; conversely, it also allowed Shinji to sense that indescribable Dirac Sea.

Beyond all language and data, it was a form of intuition, forming a double insurance policy alongside existences like Rei Ayanami.

"It won't be too long, but it's certainly not now. You don't need to dwell on it; just follow my orders. I'll tell you when we approach the critical point. Until then, don't carry any psychological burden."

Shinji had a unique way of offering comfort—one so stoic it was hard for most to accept.

'One moment you're telling me ghost stories about the end of the world, and the next you're telling us not to think too much. To talk to Shinji-kun, one's own mental fortitude really has to be made of steel.'

Ritsuko finally understood why certain things were kept from Asuka and the others. Some secrets were too heavy; it was better not to know. Only a man of iron like this could shoulder such crushing pressure.

"Your ability to withstand pressure is truly eye-opening."

"I'm used to it. To be honest, I've never experienced such a long streak of continuous victories before."

Shinji's reaction remained flat. The burden of five continents and seven oceans resting on his shoulders felt light as a feather.

Going from one victory to another was already a blessing from the Emperor. Thinking back to the messy wars of his past, which victory hadn't been won over a sea of corpses? Not to mention that the Blood Ravens weren't exactly renowned for a spotless record among the

Astartes; they often tasted the bitterness of defeat. In their worst instance, they were nearly wiped out to a fraction of their strength.

Yes, just as they returned from being decimated, their Chapter Master turned traitor, followed by internal strife. How could his pressure resistance not be strong?

'You can get used to this? I don't even fully understand it. Whatever—if the protagonist looks completely unbothered, why should a supporting character like me be anxious?'

Misato wanted to complain, yet she felt a sense of happiness. Without this "tanking freak" by her side, even the Human Instrumentality Project would have been enough to drive her mad. This Emperor Conjecture that followed had already transcended the scope of humanity and Earth.

"Fine, fine. Anyway, as long as I listen to you and live my life in peace, that's that."

"Ho? Giving up on thinking so soon?" Ritsuko Akagi knit her brows, her heart still racing.

"You're smart, you think too much. If you don't stay honest and obedient like me, why make things hard for yourself?"

Ritsuko froze, unable to refute. For the first time, she felt that being a "fool" might be a good thing. If she gave up on thinking, she wouldn't feel the pressure.

She fell silent, feeling her worldview shattering. It was proof that human wisdom had its limits; when a secret reached a certain magnitude, it only brought powerlessness and self-torment.

"Alright then. What's the work schedule for the near future?" Ritsuko decided to let herself become a bit "dumber."

"Work with Misato to expand the early warning network. I expect we'll need to proactively intercept future Angels. Also, speed up the repairs for Unit-02 and Unit-03. Because of the Fourteenth Angel, Unit-02 has actually gained a blessing in disguise; it will be a vital combat asset moving forward. Additionally, prepare Rei Ayanami to pilot Unit-03. Unit-00 is already obsolete."

Shinji's logic was clear: if the Angels got stronger, then humanity just had to get stronger too. If it was a contest of scaling power, he wasn't afraid of anyone.

The two nodded. As a mature production model, Unit-03 was indeed much stronger than Unit-00. Furthermore, Dr. Itou's team had developed various new equipment that could enhance EVA combat capabilities.

As for Unit-02, it went without saying—an EVA capable of going berserk was a special case.

"What about Unit-00?"

"Let Kensuke pilot it. Didn't we specialize it for long-range sniping? As for pilot combat capability, I can give him some extra tutoring."

Shinji was not just a warrior, but an instructor. It could be said that Asuka and Rei's combat effectiveness already far surpassed the original timeline.

"By the way, you can enter Kensuke's data into the Marduk Institute. Don't worry, SEELE will pass it."

The old men weren't fools. They knew Japan was in for a rough time. On the issues of preventing the expansion of war and exterminating the Angels, their interests aligned with Shinji's.

If cities other than Tokyo-3 were attacked by Angels and suffered massive casualties, it would trigger a worldwide tremor. The resulting chaos would be unbearable for SEELE; not only would their assets shrink and political regimes spiral out of control, but the safety of the old men themselves could be physically threatened.

As ultimate survivalists, they could only thrive in stability.

Therefore, although Shinji's previous arrogant and overbearing behavior had sparked dissatisfaction, there was no subsequent punishment.

Zeruel had opened a new "track," expanding the defensive perimeter by hundreds of times. They needed Unit-01 more than ever. No matter how reluctant they were, they had to strengthen NERV's power—which only made Gendo Ikari more depressed as he thought it through.

'The one making me take the fall is you, and the one getting me out of the interrogation is also you.'

Back in the room, Misato and Ritsuko also understood this, and they couldn't help but feel a bit of joy. It felt great to make a group of scheming old men unhappy while forcing them to increase the budget.

"Good. Then when I draft the budget proposal, I'll increase it several times over. It's a perfect chance to fit Unit-03 with new armor and pull some aviation units directly from the UN. With the defense zone expanded so much, NERV's organizational structure needs to be revised anyway."

Misato wrote rapidly; she was a pro at drafting budgets.

"Try to obtain wartime command rights over the Strategic Self-Defense Force. The Japanese government will agree. Those relics are no good for fighting Angels, but they could be used against us."

Shinji added a reminder. This was a major upheaval that would change many things.

"Got it. I'll write the reason as: 'Otherwise NERV cannot expand its defense zone.' Some people are going to be having quite a headache."

The two of them continued to chip away at SEELE's foundation, one sentence at a time. Of course, in Shinji's words, this was merely a "rational reallocation of resources."

After chatting for a while, Misato suddenly remembered something.

"By the way, you should go talk to Asuka. It's not healthy for her to keep going like this."

Indeed, the battle had ended two days ago. Asuka hadn't gone home or to school; she stayed at HQ all day, soaking in Unit-02's LCL fluid whenever she had the chance.

At the mention of her, Shinji frowned. Logically, after his intervention, Asuka's trauma should have been resolved and her personality supplemented. Why had a new problem emerged?

"Perhaps it's because she hasn't seen her mother in so many years and misses her too much. Leave her be; she'll be fine after a while."

Misato looked at Ritsuko and smiled bitterly.

"You can't use logic to judge a young girl. There might be more complicated issues involved."

'More complicated issues?'

Shinji thought about it carefully before nodding.

"It's likely because I dissected her soul and she feels embarrassed. Everyone has their secrets; it's normal to not know how to face me for a while."

He paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and stood up.

"Fine. The plan stands as discussed. I have to go do some psychological counseling for her again. Really... the 'glass' attribute should have been removed by now."

"When a glass cannon loses its glass, you're left with just the cannon—and that's even harder to handle," Ritsuko said suddenly as she packed her documents. She saw Shinji turn around, the corner of his eye twitching slightly.

She had a point.

.

.

.

While Shinji was wondering, on a mountain range on the other side of the Pacific, a handsome youth stood with his hands in his pockets. He gazed at the distant ocean through the mist. If one looked down from the sky, one could see armies stationed for dozens of miles around.

"Shinji-kun won again."

Kaworu Nagisa smiled gently, paying no mind to the fighter jets screaming overhead. He had no intention of breaking the peace; this was merely SEELE tightening surveillance.

After all, there was a tiny probability that He had triggered the upheaval.

Who would dare lower their guard against this humanoid monster?

When Kaworu said he wanted to go for a walk, all of North America reacted as if facing a great enemy.

'A pity. Destiny changed because of Shinji-kun; I am merely a listener.'

Kaworu was excited. The fact that the framework of the Dead Sea Scrolls had been breached proved that Shinji was special, and his word was truth.

True freedom lay in resisting this inevitable fate. As the soul-carrier of Adam, he felt not a shred of duty toward this destiny. An angel of freedom should not be shackled or become a prop in someone else's script.

If he truly felt any emotion, it was only resentment—because a cruel fate had split him and Shinji into two completely different species, making it impossible for them to be friends. He truly wanted to live with Shinji, go to school together, laugh together, and sleep together.

Recently, he had a long, repetitive dream. In the dream, he became friends with Shinji-kun many times, even fighting side by side, but every time, he sacrificed himself for Shinji.

"And now, do you even want to strip away the freedom to think?"

He looked up, his red eyes reflecting the azure sky. As the First Angel, Kaworu could clearly sense the will of the Negative Universe.

Previously, this will was formless and invisible, like the urge to eat when hungry or drink when thirsty—an instinct carved deep into the genetic code, an inevitable rule of the universe's operation.

"The good news is, I know my previous freedom was a sham, since even I couldn't sense the threads of fate. The bad news is, this will is growing stronger. One day, it will take over the controls of everything in this world. After all, both the Angels and the Lilin are your children."

Kaworu felt no anger or despair. He watched everything quietly, thinking from Shinji's perspective. After just a second of such thought, he felt a crushing pressure—as if the sky were collapsing, forcing one to their knees.

'To dare to oppose the laws of all things... as expected of Shinji-kun.'

The youth wiped the sweat from his brow. He had already read this will originating from another dimension.

'Martyrdom?'

Kaworu bowed his head in thought, his red eyes bright. After a moment, he nodded slightly, as if understanding the purpose of this will, confirming what Shinji had said back then.

'Who told you that death represents freedom? Within an inevitable framework, whatever choice you make is just a script already written by someone else.'

"You were actually right."

The youth sighed, looked up again, and raised his hand high, peeking at the blue sky through his fingers.

"Destiny has veered off track. The inevitable framework has loosened because of him. If one must be a martyr—

I will only be one for Shinji-kun."

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