Chapter 57 89: It Really Is, No Way.

That night, Ryoji Kaji, his Heart shattered, departed.

In this visit, he had secured a powerful partner and realized that reconciling with Misato Katsuragi was an impossibility. However, Kaji was a man who moved on easily. With a reliable man like Shinji Ikari standing at the forefront to shield them from the storm, there was no need for others to be dragged into this, and he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"Ah, that thick-skinned jerk finally left. Seriously, he didn't contribute a single thing to this operation, yet he had the nerve to come here and freeload."

Inside the spacious suite, Misato sat in a chair, swaying a beer can while enjoying the moonlight.

Her face was flushed. Her yukata hung open, revealing black lace and a long, narrow scar. Asuka, sitting nearby, couldn't bear to look at this pathetic adult; she hurriedly reached out to pull the fabric together, but froze when she saw the scar on her chest.

"Oh, this? A little gift left behind by the Second Impact."

Misato was quite nonchalant, even letting her clothes slip a bit further.

"Why so shy? Shinji is in the living room anyway; we're both women."

"Misato-san, please, have some decency."

"Decency, shmecency. We defeated the Angel, soaked in the hot springs, and ate good food—now is the time for indulgence."

Misato rested her chin on her hand, her bright smile illuminated by the moon.

"Don't put on an act at a time like this. We've finally opened up to each other, how about we talk about some intimate topics?"

Asuka saw that look and knew she was up to no good, shaking her head quickly.

"No thanks, nothing to talk about."

"Shin—ji—, Asuka says we should play Truth or Dar..."

Before she could finish, her mouth was covered. Asuka lunged forward, glancing toward the living room.

"What are you going crazy for? Fine, fine, we'll talk! Who's afraid of whom?"

"Hehe, I only had to call Shinji's name for you to obey."

"I'm just afraid of being nagged! You know him—if he heard us playing such a boring game, he'd definitely start lecturing us."

'Would he? Seems like it.'

Misato blinked, looking at the girl half a meter away. Asuka was leaning against the window, hugging her knees, looking incredibly docile in the silver moonlight.

In the blink of an eye, Asuka had been part of the team for months. Perhaps it was the clarity of a bystander, but Misato could clearly see the changes in her.

That hysterical, hedgehog-like aggression had diminished significantly, replaced by the expression of true feelings. She had the temperament of a child, always trying to find ways to attract someone's attention, bickering with Rei Ayanami every day, yet daring to entrust her life to her on the battlefield.

"Say something already." Asuka, feeling uncomfortable under that gaze, urged her impatiently.

Misato nodded, her eyes clearing up a bit. She spoke directly: "Asuka, don't tell me you like Shinji."

It happened fast. The girl beside her lunged over again, her face bright red.

"Hey! Why do you all like spouting nonsense!"

"All? Who else has said that?"

"T-that—don't worry about it! In any case, it's impossible!"

"Then why do you have such hostility toward Rei? Every time she spends time alone with Shinji, you look at her like a starving wolf."

'Huh? Do I?'

Asuka was stunned. But thinking back, it did seem like she cared a lot—just like right now, she was peeking through the door crack every few minutes to observe in secret.

"I—I'm just doing my duty as the Disciplinary Committee member! That's right, unchaste relationships between men and women are strictly forbidden!"

'Uh-huh. I'd believe that if I'd never been to school.'

Misato took a sharp gulp of beer and laughed.

"Oh, you don't need to be nervous. Rei is just a blockhead. She probably doesn't even understand the difference between liking, attachment, and love yet."

"Really?" Asuka's eyes lit up, only to see Misato's teasing gaze.

She froze for a moment, then spoke with a guilty tone.

"W-well, that's a relief. Besides, I'll say it again: I like Kaji-senpai."

"Don't use that jerk as a shield. I saw it clearly today—you have no interest in him at all. You kept your distance and barely said a few words. If you really liked him, why didn't you go back with him when he left in such a slump?"

'It really is... no way.'

Asuka froze on the spot. Reminded like this, she realized she was different than before—she didn't feel as excited as she appeared, and she didn't care about his feelings at all.

"Hehe."

The drunken, low chuckle made Asuka's eye twitch.

'So what if it's true? I'm not admitting it!'

She gave a light huff. "I know about your past with Kaji-senpai. Hasn't your attitude toward him changed, too? You're being truly cold-hearted, not giving him a single chance."

'Hmm?'

Misato froze as well. Asking herself, she had once had feelings for Ryoji Kaji, but seeing him again after several years, those feelings had completely vanished. No, to be precise, they had been replaced by another figure.

When she saw that man now, she no longer felt complex emotions; instead, there was a sense of vigilance—vigilance for Shinji's sake.

She blinked; Asuka blinked, and then both bowed their heads in unison.

'It really is... no way.'

.

.

.

While Misato and Asuka stared at each other, on the other side of the thin paper door, the living room presented a different scene.

Wearing a yukata, Rei Ayanami sat cross-legged in front of the TV, gripping a controller. Her red eyes reflected the images on the screen—the high-end gaming console provided in the luxury suite.

Encouraged by Shinji, she had given it a try and was instantly drawn to this incredibly interesting form of entertainment. She was currently controlling a minotaur running through a game similar to Temple Run.

'Why a minotaur, though?'

Shinji sat cross-legged behind her. He wasn't particularly interested in the game, but he used this quiet moment to watch Rei's increasingly expressive face while he pondered.

'An unexpected harvest.'

To everyone else, this was just relaxation after a tense battle. No one knew that Shinji had drawn even closer to the truth of the world.

Ryoji Kaji was a triple agent: helping SEELE monitor NERV, working for Gendo Ikari to fish for secrets, and cooperating with the UN to uncover the conspiracy of the old men behind the scenes. He was a talented man who kept three boats afloat and had managed to uncover clues and parts of the truth.

The Dead Sea Scrolls, false gods, Adam, Lilith, Second Impact, the Human Instrumentality Project.

Each item was a complex setup, but for a strategist, it was simple to summarize.

The Dead Sea Scrolls were records left behind by false gods. If credible, they explained the origins of humanity and the Angels, recorded the Second Impact, and what was to come. SEELE used them as a blueprint to formulate the "Human Instrumentality Project."

The so-called EVA was a product of this plan.

'But something is wrong.'

Adam as the origin of the Angels and Lilith as the origin of humanity was understandable. But how were the Second Impact and the Angels' arrival recorded from the start? Was it fixed fate? Or was someone observing and correcting it? Or were they just fakes written by SEELE to advance their conspiracy?

This was impossible to know, but some things could be corroborated from the side. For example, the embryo Kaji was transporting—if it were only to protect humanity, this embryo shouldn't exist. Incidentally, Shinji hadn't mentioned the embryo; it wasn't about trust, but such a key item shouldn't be leaked.

'The plan must exist. Eliminating the Angels is the first phase, which is why SEELE is so patient with Gendo.'

Shinji leaned back slightly. He wasn't troubled by these complex settings; in the dark galaxy, he had experienced far more complex and grand conspiracies.

Take the heretics deluded by Tzeentch—the conspiracies formulated by those cults to subvert the order of a planet were no simpler, and often buried much deeper. Sometimes, the Inquisition would investigate only to find the planetary governor who had been loyally cooperating was actually the mastermind.

Complex conspiracies and brain-burning riddles were never the problem. Finding the problem was important, but solving it was more critical. As it happened, Astartes were specialists in problem-solving. Their approach was incredibly brute-force:

'If the conspiracy can be solved physically, why bother with a battle of wits?'

Shinji closed his eyes. He had no interest in the "Instrumentality Project." He was more concerned with the existence above Adam and Lilith, and focused on the Negative Universe and the evolution of the Angels.

'The plan remains unchanged. We are only at the Eighth Angel; there is plenty of time to verify everything. The problem-solving approach remains unchanged: avoid human infighting and maintain the current order as the top priority. When the opportunity arises, eliminate the mastermind at the source.

Because at this stage, SEELE, Gendo, and I share the same interests. The Angels are the primary enemy.'

His cold logic made the most reasonable judgment. There was no other reason—without the support of the Inquisition or his Chapter, the lone Astartes had to consider every angle.

The enemy was never a fool. The Dummy System, the EVAs built in other branches, and the mobilized Second Division of the Strategic Self-Defense Force all represented the precautions SEELE had taken. Even Gendo—looking at how much time had passed since they last met, he knew Gendo was also guarding against him.

'Going back to forcefully break through the obstacles, control Gendo, obtain all the secrets, and then wage war on SEELE to tear apart their defenses—that would be efficient, but too stupid.'

Don't forget, the nearly two hundred nations that made up this world would never take orders from a fourteen-year-old boy, not even Gendo could do that.

'When the old order collapses, the world will fall into chaos, humanity will kill each other, and most terrifyingly, there will be foreign invasions. It's just that there, they were Chaos Daemons; here, they are aliens called Angels.'

Shinji had seen similar scenes countless times. Angels were actually more troublesome because they only needed to breach one fortress to destroy humanity. Even Khorne daemons would have to massacre Hive Cities one by one.

Therefore, the method of suppression was simple: don't act, but once you do, control the old order as quickly as possible with minimal cost, leaving no room for the enemy.

'Hmm, just like that time on the planet called Karalik, where we raided the governor's mansion. That battle seemed to only take out two thousand rebellious PDF soldiers before we brought the planet back under control.

When the daemons flooded in, we already had our positions set to wait for them.

Feasible. Think of a way to lure SEELE out and meet them offline.'

Shinji opened his eyes, full of confidence, only to see a fair face in front of him. Rei Ayanami had crawled over at some point, staring directly at the boy just inches away.

"Ikari-kun, is something on your mind?"

"Just some trifles. Don't worry about it."

Shinji leaned back slightly; the distance was too close, and the girl's breath tickled his face. Rei pushed forward, pressing against Shinji—though she remained expressionless, she felt much firmer.

"Doesn't seem like trifles."

Shinji wasn't used to this firmness. Only months ago, Rei was a doll without feelings—this evolution was astonishing.

He thought for a moment and explained: "They aren't small, but not too troublesome. I'm just considering when to act and how to minimize losses."

"Do you need my help?"

"Hmm. I'll let you know when the time comes."

Rei's eyes softened, but she didn't pull back. Instead, she lifted her head and looked forward.

'Stare—'

Through the door crack, a cerulean eye was staring at them without blinking. Rei showed no panic; she lowered her head again and spoke just as the gaze became increasingly sharp.

"Ikari-kun, I want you to do me a favor."

"Go ahead."

"When I was playing the game, there was an item called 'Sleeping Black Tea.' Could you ask Dr. Akagi to develop it?"

Rei quietly pouted, looking again at that cerulean eye.

"I'll find a time to feed it to the Second Child!"

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