You Smelled Wrong Chapter Chapter 105: Bard

Chapter 105: Bard

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

The new particle decay detector and derivative model machine had arrived just hours ago. Lin Xu peeled off the plastic protective film that came with the machines and powered them on to adjust the settings.

The machines began their initial charging and warm-up. The specially dimmed lights in the lab cast a faint glow, and the red charging light illuminated Lin Xu’s sharp, gaunt cheeks.

He selected several samples nearby. First, he scraped a tiny fragment of paint from the corner of the newly arrived oil painting Water Lilies. Then he took out Phaedo and Tears of Eros—both kept in a stabilization box—and finally found a quiet shard of broken porcelain resting in the museum’s damaged relic storage.

With a soft beep, the initial charging completed and the warm-up succeeded. Lin Xu disconnected the lab’s network and switched the data output device to stealth mode. One by one, he placed the four samples into the machine. He put on a protective face shield. The red light of the detector extinguished, replaced by a cycling glow shifting between orange-red and blue-violet.

Data streams flashed rapidly across the output screen like a torrential digital waterfall as the derivative model began to form. When the calculation results appeared in the center of the screen, Lin Xu’s expression suddenly turned strange. Before starting, he had made assumptions and predictions about the outcomes. But unexpectedly, a black swan flew out of nowhere.

The Water Lilies oil painting dated back three thousand two hundred years; Tears of Eros was three thousand years old; the porcelain shard, also three thousand years.

If Lin Xu used the Tears of Eros original edition he personally brought back from ancient Earth as a reference, then the timeline on Earth had indeed passed three thousand years—as the red leather-bound record noted. The Ark fleet had been trapped in the Zerg hole for two thousand four hundred years of external time, and after escaping, humanity had a further six hundred years of history.

The porcelain shard was a product of ancient Earth’s modern industry, and Water Lilies had been created even earlier. Like all the other ancient Earth relics in the museum, their test results showed three thousand years—matching the timeline of ancient Earth and Imperial history.

But these two items had come with the fleeing humans from the universe, so they should have lost two thousand years of history. Yet, somehow, this missing time had been filled in.

Other ancient Earth relics in the Imperial collection showed the same phenomenon. What truly surprised Lin Xu was the test result for Phaedo: six hundred years.

He had only grabbed the book because it was nearby and placed it with Tears of Eros to compare and adjust for experimental error. But the result hit him like a blow. Lin Xu didn’t believe it and re-tested Phaedo, only to get the same result. Six hundred years.

This book was a private donation from Godric to the Ancient Earth Natural Science Museum, personally delivered by the head of White Bird Shipping Company. Curator Zhao had immediately assigned Lin Xu to restore, read, and translate it. No one else had handled the book.

Another book had arrived simultaneously. Since it was in better condition, Lin Xu had placed it in the relic storage room temporarily. After thinking it over, Lin Xu packed up the samples in the lab and went to the relic storage room located in the basement to request the other book.

At the counter about ten meters away, two new clerks struggled to fill out the retrieval application forms. Though Lin Xu had direct retrieval privileges, the staff still asked why he needed the book.

“For translation work.”

“All right,” the staff replied. “Dr. Lin, please wait five minutes. The robot is retrieving and transporting it.”

Lin Xu rested one hand on the chest-high counter, remaining silent. The two clerks, exhausted from paperwork, stole glances at Lin Xu during brief breaths.

“So this is Dr. Lin…”

“Did you see the Ring Star Daily? That guy…”

“I was just going to say, their path keeps getting weirder.”

“So you read it? I can’t say it’s wrong; that matter is serious.”

Lin Xu noticed their timid, intermittent stares and looked up faintly.

“Is there a problem?”

“No, no…” the two stammered nervously. Dr. Lin’s cold expression intimidated people, making them afraid to approach or talk. Just then, the robot delivered Lin Xu’s requested item. The maglev tray drifted before him and followed his steps as he left.

The clerks finally finished their forms and handed them over. While the robot retrieved relics, one couldn’t help but gossip more:

“Marshal Chu actually likes that kind of thing?”

“Dr. Lin is quite good-looking.”

“But he looks fierce… I thought most alphas liked gentle omegas, at least I do.”

“Enough already. Ring Star Daily is so unreliable; they take forum rants as news, truth be told or not.”

“It’s probably true. Look at Dr. Lin’s suit today—I think it’s a custom exclusive fabric by Gorin. Even this year’s Planet Awards Best Actor had to borrow one. It’s not Gorin’s ready-to-wear pattern anyway. The research institute’s salary couldn’t afford this.”

“Must be Marshal Chu’s gift… that’s a good catch. Even if they break up someday, Dr. Lin could get a good breakup settlement—maybe even alimony.”

– –

Lin Xu returned to the laboratory carrying the book. It was a German translation of Meditations on First Philosophy, relatively well preserved. He ran it through the testing process again, and the result matched that of Phaedo — only six hundred years of history. What was going on?

Lin Xu opened the acquisition records for both books. The screen showed only that they were private donations from White Bird Shipping, unlike other relics excavated and collected officially, which included detailed information about their origins.

Scrolling further, he found an email address mixed in with the information. The recipient was Godric Chapman. Lin Xu recalled when he met Godric at the Silver Fortress; the man had shown a deep understanding of these private collections. Did Godric know the special nature of these two books?

Lin Xu’s fingers hovered over the string of email addresses on the screen for a few seconds before he pressed to compose a message to Godric. If Godric was willing to donate these books directly to the museum, then there likely was no secret content he wanted to hide. Godric replied almost immediately after Lin Xu hit send. 

“Dr. Lin,

I am very glad to hear from you. I have wanted to contact you but feared disturbing your work.

Are you currently working at the Ancient Earth Natural Science Museum? I am also on Endymion now. Regarding those two books, I would like to meet you in person to discuss them and deliver some other items.

Wishing you well,

Godric Chapman”

Lin Xu replied with his office location and work hours, inviting Godric to visit directly. After tidying the lab and thoroughly cleaning the main testing machine to erase any traces, Lin Xu was about to return to his office on the ground floor when Godric was already standing at the door waiting.

Curator Zhao accompanied the generous donor. Seeing Lin Xu enter, he hesitated several times before stammering, “This is Mr. Chapman. He said you know each other and has specially come to visit. You two can talk — call me if you need anything.”

Watching Godric smile as Lin Xu invited him inside, Curator Zhao sighed silently. He had seen the gossip about Lin Xu and Heinrich in the Ring Star Daily and connected it with Lin Xu’s sudden generosity in paying the repair bills. Maybe what the Ring Star Daily wrote was true after all.

And now, a shipping magnate worth billions appeared by Lin Xu’s side. Curator Zhao worried if Lin Xu was facing some hardship but also felt that with Lin Xu’s bad temper, he wouldn’t be making money by flattering others. It was probably just tabloid nonsense.

Besides, it had only been six months since Marshal Chu and Lin Xu first met — not enough time to have a child. He must be overthinking. Curator Zhao vacillated between the two thoughts.

– –

After Godric entered the office, Lin Xu noticed he became somewhat awkward, unsure where to place his hands or where to look.

“Please, Mr. Chapman, have a seat.” Lin Xu said, pouring a glass of water for him. Godric looked honored, though he lacked the usual aura of someone of his status. Lin Xu found it odd but said nothing. He turned and placed the two books on the desk.

“Mr. Chapman, do you remember where these two books were discovered?”

“They…”

“Is it inconvenient to say?” Lin Xu’s gaze was steady. “Just a general idea?”

“It’s hard to explain, Dr. Lin. How about you first look at the gift I brought you?”

A gift? Lin Xu frowned slightly. He and Godric weren’t close enough for gifts. Even during their ancient Earth expedition, Godric’s donations of old-world poetry collections had always been presented as historical artifacts for the museum and only temporarily kept by Lin Xu. Godric carried no bags or boxes. He glanced at the map on his terminal.

“Please, wait a few minutes, it’s arriving soon.”

Leaning against his desk, Lin Xu fell into a stiff silence with Godric. Until a surge of roaring air vibrated the glass windows, and both men looked up toward the floor-to-ceiling window.

As a public building, the museum was often subject to flying vehicle traffic. To maintain a quiet environment, its architect used sound-absorbing materials and insulated glass. Normal flying engines couldn’t disturb the museum, except for spacecraft capable of escaping planetary gravity.

Without tall buildings nearby, a black speck appeared in the pale blue-gray sky. As it drew nearer, its outline became clear, heading straight toward Lin Xu, unmistakably. Godric smiled in relief, thankful the shuttle’s speed had prevented Lin Xu from waiting long. Lin Xu pressed his tongue against the roof of his mouth, furrowing his brows tighter.

“Mr. Chapman, may I ask — is it legal to pilot a mecha in Endymion city?”

The black mecha, humanoid in shape, rapidly approached. Its scale-like armor reflected a cold metallic gleam, its appearance stirring a familiar feeling in Lin Xu. It was Bard, the honor mecha rumored to be strictly guarded by the Paris family and never for sale.

Now, Bard blazed trailing exhaust, sprinting to the office’s floor-to-ceiling window. Its towering height surpassed the museum building itself. As it gently touched down, the air trembled with a low roar. Trees bent under the wind it stirred, dust swirling upward to nearly obscure the museum’s first floor.

From Lin Xu’s vantage point, only Bard’s lower legs were visible.