[139, 0, 255: Good morning, Earth. Tim, it is already evening here. Inside the base, the temperature and humidity are constant, so I can't feel any climate changes, but the storms will affect the communication devices, so robot maintenance must be scheduled every day.
Dad and Tony were just forced into hibernation by me. They are nearly a hundred years old combined, if they keep staying up like this, accidents might arrive sooner than tomorrow. I managed to finish this week's homework in my spare time. It's not convenient for me to email the teacher directly, so I've packed it up for you; please send it for me. I'll go to sleep once I've finished the work I have on hand.
Forget my dark history, Duck Detective. My memories are returning; although I don't know why I was so immature and chuunibyou before, if you call me President again, I will generate a childhood photo of you with your hair standing on end from being scared by Mudface. There is no complaint channel for the Dream Sovereign, the Dream Station doesn't offer after-sales service, but I agree to split the treasure chests with you, I will keep saving them to open together once we return to Earth.
As for why you can't dream, Mr. Reader, I suspect it's because your fragmented sleep doesn't leave enough time for dreaming.]
[185, 205, 246: Good morning, Mars. Good morning, Reader. That isn't a dark history; the way you held your chin up and said you wanted to be the President was very cute. If you're talking about the second day of the summer vacation when I was seven, I just happened to trip and fall, my head got covered in mud. Once it dried, my hair looked like an upside-down broom, I looked just as disheveled as you. We weren't scared of Mudface so much that our hair stood on end; that night, Dick used a mud-covered car cover to scare us.
I suggest you open the treasure chest directly; perhaps the gift is exactly what you need. I didn't dream of you today, Mr. Reader, the Duck Detective is very sad. 】
【 139, 0, 255: Goodnight, Earth, Duck Detective. There are rumors in Gotham that Mudface's mud is carcinogenic; I scrubbed myself three times after going home and almost made my skin more sensitive than Princess Pea. I've had a psychological shadow regarding mud ever since, now you're telling me it was just a prank? Please give your big brother a mud bath for me and take a photo as proof, thank you!
There might be no dream because the sleep schedule is inconsistent. Next time, Mr. Reader will wait for the notification before closing his eyes to find you.]
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Author's Note: Please add 《[Crossover US/UK] The Cat Has Someone Now! Meow~》 to your collection!
Chapter 45
[185, 205, 246: Goodnight, Mars. It's good to see you, Reader. I'm sure Duck Detective had a wonderful time in his dreams, I hope you did too. I don't have any photos of Dick showering, but I do have one of Nightwing falling into a mud pit.]
A new Biology Teacher has arrived; he is a teacher who doesn't like to assign homework, but he arranges monthly exams. There is also a World History Teacher who requires an essay of no less than two thousand words, where you must choose one of the four ancient civilizations to discuss its historical gains and losses as the grade for the midterm exam. The Foreign Language Association is hosting a literature competition, the Chinese class is participating as well; you need to write a letter to Li Hua before the end of the month..
We need to calculate a scientific common rest time based on the time difference. 】
【139, 0, 255: The Reader is equally pleased. There is no distinction between day and night within the base; I can sleep at noon, but as for you, try to enter your dreams before two in the morning. See you in the dream, Duck Detective. 】
【185, 205, 246: See you in your dreams, Mr. Reader. 】
..
【139, 0, 255: You evil Duck Detective! You know I didn't have a Ghost field active in my dream, you even tricked me into meeting Batman! Do you know how terrifying Batman's disapproving look was? Most importantly, you even forgot to say goodbye to me in the dream! 】
185, 205, 246: Dear Reader, that was a dream. Even in a lucid dream, it's difficult to control every single detail. As compensation, I'll take you out for a feast tonight. The New Energy Association meeting might be boring, but the refreshments are excellent.
【 139, 0, 255: I can't believe the meeting Wayne is attending is actually this boring, I can't even play on my phone or doze off! You shouldn't have stopped me from using coffee to clean that sarcastic fat man's reflective bald head, you definitely shouldn't have stopped me from knocking out his teeth with a cup! He was mocking you, yet you actually defended him even in your dreams! Mr. Detective, this kind of saint-like behavior is highly inappropriate! Fine, the tea break really was delicious; the most common thing here is nutrient solution, in strawberry or orange flavors, with no other options. If you want something fresh, you'll have to go to the neighboring Huaxia base to trade for it. 】
[185, 205, 246: Don't let unimportant people ruin your mood. He'll be facing an international tribunal soon, he might even go bankrupt; you're better off focusing on food security than on him.]
[139, 0, 255: You are right, Wishing Spirit. This time, the supplies include extra strawberries and oranges. In that case, can I wish to have blueberries and cherries next time? I believe all three people here need more vision and iron.]
..
【 185, 205, 246: This morning, drones dropped two Vibranium staffs onto my terrace. How did you do that? 】
【139, 0, 255: It's simple. I've already adapted to my current workload. While Dad was resting, I took his helmet to connect the Quantum Superbrain to the remote-controlled robots and drones. As for the staffs, I discovered last month while configuring new alloys that this specific strength and weight were perfect for making long staffs, so I made two. One was made according to your staff's data; it can absorb kinetic energy and then reflect it. The other has a similar weight, but its tip can discharge electric currents and deploy a protective shield that blocks sound waves and energy. Do you want to refuse them? 】
[185, 205, 246: No, I will use them well. Perhaps the person who gets kicked in the butt by Red Robin tonight will be in for a surprise.]
..
[139, 0, 255: Look at the mecha I designed! Iron Man's armor is great, but Gundam is even cooler, it can even be piloted by two people!]
[185, 205, 246: Looks great, maybe we can build it in the Dream Station.]
..
[139, 0, 255: Good news! While I was helping Dad and the others build parts for the interstellar warp ship, I managed to scrap together our mecha as well! You can look forward to me appearing before you in the mecha!]
Since Timothy was able to squeeze a Batmobile out of the Batarang budget back then, it was only natural that Colt could assemble a mecha from the starship manufacturing factory.
Joseph and Tony found it very strange. When Colt first arrived on Mars, he couldn't keep up with their pace and frequently experienced lag due to exhausted computing power. In just over half a month, he was already handling everything with ease, even playing music over the factory's intercom every day.
He is very happy." Tony was puzzled. "Why is he so happy? Is his workload not heavy enough?
Joseph knew why, couldn't help but grit his teeth. "There's a poem that goes, 'Liberty is precious, but knowledge is dearer; if for love, both can be cast aside.' The only difference between him and the poem is that he hasn't cast aside knowledge yet."
Who? Who's flirting with Xiao Ke'er?" Tony paced back and forth in a rage. "What kind of father are you? He's still a child!
“Eighteen isn't young, either.” Joseph calmly drank his nutrient solution, as if he hadn't been infuriated by the relationship between Colt and Timothy.
“That's different. Xiao Ke'er has been around for less than ten years; in his eyes, there are no bad people, he will definitely be tricked by the bad girls out there!” Tony acted more like a father than Joseph.
Joseph rolled his eyes: Where did Stark get that bias from? It wasn't that there were no bad people in his son's eyes, but rather that there were too many bad people, so he simply chose to close his eyes and ignore them.
"She's not a bad girl," Joseph explained calmly.
“Is it a good girl you know? Most of his communications point to Gotham. Which good girl in Gotham is it? One of the Bat Family?" Tony began checking Colt's communications; the messages were encrypted, he was considering whether or not to offend the kid's privacy.
Not a girl, it's a guy." Joseph coughed lightly. "Keep it secret, keep it secret. You're not allowed to ask him any questions regarding his romantic life.
A guy? Is it Wayne?" Seeing Joseph nod, Tony's expression looked murderous. "I knew that damn Wayne had no principles! He can't get enough of his brother's eyes, can he? He's the one who scared Xiao Ke'er out of Gotham back then, now he's still coveting him..
"Wait, it's Little Wayne? Bruce Wayne could be Colt's father by now!" Joseph stopped Tony from putting on his battle suit.
Tony's expression didn't improve in the slightest: "Which little Wayne? The one who's a policeman? The one running a shady business? The one in the League of Assassins? Or the one working at the company?"
Joseph also grimaced: "The last one, Timothy Drake, who looks quite well-behaved."
Tony frowned. "Are you sure you haven't mistaken him for someone else? I've dealt with that kid; he's quite rational and clear-headed, not the type who would fall in love with an AI."
“Don't always treat Colt like an AI; he has plenty of ways to make contact, he can even send gifts within dreams." Joseph selected a large file from the data packet sent by Colt to Gotham and began decrypting it.
Tony leaned in to take a look; even at this moment, the moral standards of New Yorkers weren't any higher than those of the people in Gotham.
Joseph decrypted an assignment pack, ranging from biology exam papers to Chinese essays, from history papers to photos titled "My Family."
Tony and Joseph looked at each other in bewilderment.
"Why is the family in your photography assignment just your sleeping silhouette? I was right next to you, so why wasn't I included in the shot?" Tony complained.
"Because I am his biological father." Joseph was very satisfied.
“It must be because I'm too famous; even if a single strand of my hair showed, I'd be recognized. He wouldn't dare take a photo of me, so he could only take one of you.” Tony comforted himself, "Continue. I don't believe the chat content of a young couple is this wholesome. If sending files is a problem, then change the recipient of the files."
Joseph continued decrypting, this time switching to the file package sent by Timothy to Colt.
Inside were photos of North American Robins watching TV, North American Robins sleeping, North American Robins doing math problems, North American Robins fighting with birds, close-ups of North American Robins.. Finally, there was a single photo of a blooming balcony rose; although it wasn't red, just yellow, it was just a single pot, at least the rose could be linked to romance.
The two parents enlarged the photos, then discovered a North American Robin hiding in the flowerpot.
Still a bird!
“This fat bird is that Robin Bird from your family, isn't it?” Tony said unhappily. “Why foster the bird at the Wayne residence instead of bringing it to Avengers Tower? Am I unable to afford a bird?”
"Continue." Joseph decrypted the data package again, taking out a mecha design package that clearly showed signs of being modified by two different people.
“It was the assignment I left him, he's working on it diligently,” Tony said, suddenly excited. “An excellent concept—capable of fighting on land, in space, underwater, with two primary energy cores, four secondary energy cores, the ability to detach limbs for team combat.. It even features warp capabilities? He designed the mecha as if it were a humanoid starship; all these functions are perfectly integrated.. Hey, Joseph, Xiao Ke'er is smarter than you, just as I expected from someone I taught!”
"It's only natural that my son is smarter than me. What do you mean, 'taught by you'? You only instilled some knowledge packs into him; the reason he has grown to be so excellent is all because of me," Joseph said, dissatisfied.
The two adults started arguing.
Colt was on a date in a dream; only the explosion of Mars could wake him.
On the cold and barren ground, craters left by meteorite impacts were everywhere. Red Robin stood at the rim of the Olympus Shield volcanic crater, almost blending into the surrounding red rock environment.
Colt had been waiting all day, now that he had actually seen someone, his eagerness turned into restraint. He slowly landed in front of Red Robin and asked unhurriedly, "I didn't receive any news about Red Robin changing his uniform, so why did I dream that you had changed yours?"
Red Robin had changed into a red and black uniform, his cape had turned black, the crossed combat straps on his chest had changed from gold to black with a black base, with arm blades added to the outside of his arms.. The biggest change was that he now wore a half-mask similar to Batman's, but without the ears.
It's a bit strange.
Colt took another look, then another. He looked like he really wanted to pat Red Robin's smooth black head.
Red Robin took off his cowl and smiled at Colt: "The reason is obvious, Red Robin wants you to be the first person to see his new uniform."
"Happy Thanksgiving." Colt hugged Red Robin.
Their faces were pressed against each other.
The long embrace caused their heartbeats to sync into a single rhythm. In the end, they simply shared a few soft pecks on each other's lips.
It's time for our Knowledge Explorer's maiden voyage.
Although the mecha in reality is still just a pile of parts, dreams follow no logic. The mecha that has occupied their dreams several times has already taken shape, even being equipped with single-soldier star cannons—which are theoretically possible but do not exist in reality—as well as S-class superluminal modules and a miraculous healing pod.
The twenty-meter-tall mecha was primarily metallic silver, accented with blue and black light strips. When the mecha was awakened, the blue light strips would brighten, turning into a calm ice blue, looking both beautiful and haughty.
Although the mecha was designed by Colt, Red Robin provided many ideas; in a sense, the [Knowledge Explorer] could be considered their child.
No man could resist piloting a mecha in person.
Colt gave the pilot's seat in the cockpit to Red Robin.
Red Robin could skillfully operate the Batmobile, which possessed hundreds of different functions, so operating the mecha was naturally no problem for him. He rejected the helmet designed for spiritual power synchronization with the mecha's AI, choosing instead to pilot the mecha using only the most basic gestures and commands.
In Colt's imagination, there was another kind of biological mecha with neurons at its core, which could allow the mecha to become the pilot's second body; the stronger a person's combat skills, the more powerful the mecha would be. Unfortunately, creating that kind of biological mecha required Poison Ivy's mutated plants; not only were the materials difficult to find, but the research difficulty was also extremely high.
Of course, the Knowledge Explorer is already excellent as it is, representing the pinnacle of what can currently be achieved. With the assistance of AI, an ordinary person can make the mecha move through training, though their reaction speed cannot compare to that of Spiritual Power control.
Together, they piloted the mecha, taking a stroll through space and leaving footprints on every star in the solar system, before returning to Gotham on Earth to greet Batman on his night patrol: Happy Thanksgiving!
Batman's startled expression was truly beautiful.
Even if it was only in a dream, it was enough to leave one savoring the memory.
..
As Joseph and Tony's spacecraft successfully completed its test flight, Colt also assembled the Knowledge Explorer in reality.
"Xiao Ke'er, hand over authorization and prepare for departure." Tony patted the little robot's head, giving the robot one last maintenance session for Mars.
Finally going back to Earth!
Colt said goodbye to the base's AI and packed Cole Duck, who was still as clean as new, a larger medical kit than when he arrived, a suitcase filled with Martian specialties provided by the robot, a large crate of replacement parts for the mecha.
Joseph watched the busy Colt and reminded him loudly, "What are you going to do with your Knowledge Explorer? I don't think we have a garage this large at home to park it."
Colt remained silent, hiding in the cockpit to send a message to Timothy. [139, 0, 255: Duck Detective, help! Only the cockpit of the Knowledge Explorer belongs to me; I can't pull the whole thing into my Ghost field!]
The mecha had been built, he could pilot it through spiritual power synchronization, but for some reason, a missing step prevented him from pulling the entire mecha into his own Ghost field.
“Come to New York, dear,” Tony said, taking the opportunity to coax the child. “New York welcomes you; I can build you a warehouse that can hold ten mechs!”
Colt made the small robot, who was undergoing maintenance, lift its head and speak in a childlike voice: "Tony, can I really take the Knowledge Explorer with me? I didn't ask any of you when I was using the materials, nor did I pay for it. Does it really belong to me?"
“Don't worry at all, child, the Knowledge Explorer is yours, it belongs to you of course.” Tony flexed the small robot's fingers. “You can carry it with you, or you can dock it in the mecha storage bay of the Interstellar Warp Ship; no one will stop us from taking it.”
Colt looked at Joseph again. "Dad, is that really okay?"
Joseph naturally knew his son was asking to confirm the ownership of the mecha. He patted the mecha's toe, which was even taller than his waist, said, "You helped a lot with the Interstellar Warp Ship project, so consider it as using your salary to cover the mecha's material costs."