Four years passed in the blink of an eye, and Norman had grown accustomed to military life. Recently, he received an unexpected assignment—to assist a team of scientists by serving as the scanning template for a military robot. This robot's primary mission was to detect hidden explosives and more accurately identify time thieves disguised as ordinary citizens. According to records from Yamamoto Hideki, Chief Scientist of the Timing Police, a recent incident in Oxford, England, saw a group of time thieves massacre civilians, resulting in 50 deaths and 130 injuries.
In the underground laboratory, Assistant Scientist Park Won-min was supervising interns. Park had previously caused an accident that destroyed the Timing Police medical station, injuring multiple personnel. As a result, Commander Gavrikov demoted him to work in the underground lab. Though resentful, Park had no choice but to accept the demotion. This time, there were two interns. Due to intensifying temporal turbulence straining police resources and budget cuts at the underground lab, the Time Police could only recruit two trainees. As Park Won-min was explaining procedures, a robot template was printing. One intern's curiosity flared—she thought the scientist was conducting human experiments. Park Won-min clarified: “Cordelia, we're conducting a robot template print. We need a live subject for proportional scanning.” Pointing to the computer screen, he added, “This is the printed template. We selected the most outstanding rookie from the new recruits for this print. These goggles provide real-time enemy/friendly unit identification and tactical data, helping him focus on the battlefield.”
Ding! The template print completed. The 3D human model displayed on the screen showed some data fluctuations—a normal occurrence during scanning. The team succeeded on the third attempt; the first two failed due to technical issues and poor print quality, necessitating reprints. One scientist pressed a button. Norman asked, “How did it go?” The scientist confirmed everything proceeded smoothly. Park Won-min spotted Norman and hurriedly introduced the intern. He knew that failing to do so would inevitably earn him either Norman's icy glare or trouble in the form of “extra training.” Within the military, Norman was renowned as a ruthless and violent marksman, his shooting skills astonishingly precise, never missing a shot. Despite his reputation for ruthlessness in missions, Park Won-min had once witnessed him tenderly feeding a stray cat at the base.
At that moment, a surprising turn of events unfolded. Cordelia stepped forward and declared: “Norman, so you're the outstanding new recruit they've been talking about...” Norman glanced at Cordelia and produced their couple's token—a heart-shaped lock. The key was in Norman's hand, while the lock itself rested in Cordelia's. Unable to resist, they embraced. This sudden display left the scientists present stunned, halting their work. Fortunately, the military had no explicit ban on romance. Though they feared their relationship might end due to the distance, this internship and the template printing project brought them back together.
One evening, Norman began fretting about marriage. He was on leave that day and had temporarily returned to his second uncle's home. His uncle knew he wanted to marry, as Norman and Cordelia had been together for eight years—it was getting too late to wait. According to the Book of Huyan Hu , members typically married young—as early as 16, no later than 28—with children generally born before the mother turned 35. Since women's fertility declined with age after 35 and they faced higher risks of pregnancy complications, early marriage and childbearing were encouraged to prevent the birth of children with defects.
Norman hesitated to marry, fearing his child might grow up without a father's love. Moreover, with increasing cases of children with learning disabilities today, he worried that having a child might force him into divorce and abandonment. The Book of Huyan Hu recounted an incident during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period: a member gave birth to a child with defects, only to be pressured by elders into divorce and barred from remarriage. That child ultimately died young.
Seeing Norman so troubled, his second uncle approached to console him. “You're still troubled by that prophecy, aren't you? The part about the ‘ultimate weapon’ being twins... it's wrong.” Norman lifted his eyes, his gaze sharp as a blade, yet without a trace of surprise. “I know.” His second uncle felt a pang of astonishment, but he understood Norman was not the child who had once needed protection.
His second uncle's knuckles tapped lightly on the tabletop, his tone tinged with resignation and reverence. “The prophecies in the Book of Huyan were not wrong—we simply misread them. The ‘weapon’ foretold in the prophecies referred to only one person from beginning to end: you, Norman. The so-called pigeon twins were nothing more than a smokescreen—either a deliberate diversion by the chronicler to conceal the truth, or a fundamental misunderstanding.” Our clan has never produced pigeon twins. And you, in the most direct way possible, have proven this fact."
Norman remained silent, staring at the reflection swaying within his teacup. The figure in that reflection was both Cordelia's beloved lover and the cold “weapon” foretold in the clan prophecy. These two identities were now locked in fierce conflict within his heart. Norman asked, “Then... can Cordelia and I still get married?” His second uncle reassured him there was no need for concern. Dr. Hans Zimmermann had conducted thorough premarital examinations on both of them, confirming neither carried any malignant genes. Regarding the marriage procedures, he could consult Norman's two cousins, who already had experience in such matters.
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and then Add to home screen.