Dane was lost in thought when James got up from the couch, grabbing his jacket. "I''ve got to head out, Professor."


    Dane snapped back to reality, ncing at the clock. "Leaving already? Can''t you stay a bit longer? I was hoping to show you the new batch of equipment parts in the storeroom."


    James nodded, saying, "I''ve got something to handle, maybe another day."


    Dane didn''t push further. The contract was signed, so he wasn''t worried about James backing out. "Alright, we''ll catch upter."


    "Sure thing," James replied, and quickly left the office.


    Once James was out of sight, Dane turned back to the contract in his hand. After a moment, he looked over at his assistant. "Let Dr. Yang know we''re scrapping the Level II n. We''re going straight to Level I."


    The assistant, a bit taken aback, looked at Dane. "Isn''t the Level I n supposed to be really tough, ording to the system''s evaluation?"


    Dane just smiled and shook his head. "That''s because nobody could handle the core construction of the submarine until now."


    Thinking about James''s capabilities, the assistant seemed reassured and nodded. "I''ll talk to Dr. Yang right away."


    "Off you go."


    Dane waved him off.


    Meanwhile, Mirabe was waiting in the lobby downstairs after getting a message. The staff, aware that she was a student from Prestige College working on a project, simply told her not to wander around before letting her be.


    She stood there, eyes on her shoes, hands casually tucked in her coat pockets, looking rxed and nonchnt.


    James came out of the elevator and spotted Mirabe right away. He narrowed his eyes a bit as he walked over. "Have you been waiting long?"


    Mirabe looked up at his voice, her eyes bright. "Oh, no, just a few minutes."


    James nodded, slipping his hand into Mirabe''s coat pocket to hold her warm hand. "Let''s go."


    Mirabe: "..."


    James led her toward the parking lot. They didn''t run into anyone on their way out, which surprised Mirabe a bit. "Do you work at the Institute of Technology?"


    "Not exactly," James said after a moment. "My professor works here."


    I see.


    Mirabe nodded, not probing further.


    "Is the coboration between your school and the Institute your responsibility?" James nced at her.


    Mirabe shrugged. "No, I''m just here to handle some technical stuff."


    "Still pretty impressive," James raised an eyebrow.


    Mirabe lifted her chin modestly. "It''s just alright."


    James just smiled.


    They soon reached the parking lot. Once in the car, James started the engine and asked, "Heading back to school, or...?"


    "Hang on, let me check." Mirabe pulled out her phone and texted Zane to exin the situation.


    Zane must have been tied up; it took him about ten minutes to reply, telling her to do whatever she wanted.


    Seeing that it was still early, Mirabe texted Sophia to set up a meeting ce, then told James, "Can you drop me at this address? I''m meeting a friend."


    She showed James the location Sophia had sent her.


    James nced at it and casually asked, "Is this the same friend fromst time? Adler?"


    Mirabe turned her phone, giving James a sidelong nce. "Hmm? Are you talking about Adler?"