Let's Go Make a Deal...

"Yes, I've thought it over," Miss Surtr nodded in reply. "I'm fine as I am now, there's no need to change. Having a few more quirks and preferences isn't such a bad thing. It's just that I might cause you some trouble in the future, so I'll have to trouble you to forgive me, Persephone."

She saw the Maiden Doctor from Rhodes Island nod slightly.

"Skadi? How is she now?"

"That Abyssal Hunter from Aegir signed an employment agreement with Rhodes Island an hour and a half ago. She's currently undergoing a pre-employment medical examination in the temporary Medical Department. If all goes well, in a few hours, she'll be a member of Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals." Persephone raised her hand, took a completed document from the drawer, and handed it to Surtr.

"Warfarin is currently in charge of the physical examinations. With her experience, she should be able to complete all the required procedures in the shortest possible time—and I know that Skadi cannot bleed on this land. I have informed Warfarin of this and received her confirmation."

Miss Surtr's words caught in her throat. Well, Warfarin wasn't some reckless fool; having received special instructions, she would certainly fulfill her duties without fail. After all, personality aside, her professional competence on Terra was undeniably top-notch.

So she put the documents she had just taken aside again.

"I bet she didn't join Rhodes Island unconditionally, did she?"

"Yes." The Maiden Doctor nodded in agreement without hesitation. "I helped her develop the knowledge that land creatures should have. Then I negotiated a deal with her: she can work for Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals. I can even introduce her to some other Abyssal Hunter. But in return, she requests to stay by your side."

"You're just going to sell me out like this?" Surtr leaned back slightly.

"I can go and kill her now, it won't be too late," Persephone replied quickly and succinctly. "She is, after all, just a slightly stronger mortal. It will take me a maximum of seven seconds to kill her."

"... Just kidding." So the person raised their hands in surrender.

"Yes, I was just kidding." The Maiden Doctor from Rhodes Island smiled at someone. "Surtr, you must be Elite Operator at Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals. Otherwise, all the other Elite Operator would have to be demoted. And since you are Elite Operator, you definitely need to have a team to cooperate with you in combat."

"So Skadi is my first operator?"

"No, the first one confirmed is Frostnova," Persephone shook his head. "The second is Talulah, Skadi is the third person I put on the list. There are also two applications pending review, one from W and the other from Provence."

Why is there Provence?

"Probably because she feels you saved her life. Of course, there was also Yan Ke originally. But I don't think you would consider him, so I rejected his application—does it need to be revised?" Persephone handed over another document.

"No need, this is fine." Miss Surtr shook her head. Although she had made many friends, she still didn't really want a male figure she needed to see frequently to appear in her life—she thought for a moment and crossed Provence's name off the list as well. She didn't actually know much about this big bad wolf, so it was best not to make a decision too soon.

"That's fine." She handed the file back. "So, what's the main purpose of my squad?"

"You can decide how to use it. In Rhodes Island's administrative ranking, you, me, Kal'tsit, and Amiya are all at the same level. Of course, Amiya is the one in charge externally. Your current identity is a former member of Sarkaz Babel Tower, Surtr, who became the legendary mercenary 'Fire Giant King' after Sarkaz Babel Tower's disbandment. Of course, this is also your operator name—or would you prefer to use your original name as your codename?"

"You can handle that as you see fit," Miss Surtr waved her hand. "What do you plan to do with Chernobog? After all, it's still a city in Ursus; Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals can't just take it over directly."

"Of course I have a way." Persephone nodded, not bothering to hide it from Surtr, and simply took a set of hunting clothes more suitable for combat from the drone that flew over and changed into them—she had some trouble fastening the buttons, so Miss Surtr went over to help her change.

This was normal, as Persephone's bust size had increased by three sizes. Her height had also increased by twenty centimeters, roughly matching Surtr's. Miss Surtr was used to this, as changing one's appearance and physique was a simple and easy matter for both her and Persephone.

Therefore, Persephone never fussed over her eel-like figure. Because to her, excess fat was just excess fat.

"Ursus is not giving up. They can't get anything out of me at the negotiating table. So they will definitely take direct action and use force to maintain their rule over Chernobog. Because three days have passed, they are now able to confirm that your other identity, 'The Ember Demon,' has not paid any extra attention to this city. Therefore, they will have several military operations."

"I intend to annihilate them. Kill every single one of their attempts until they push the person I need to the forefront—of course, this will require your help."

"Which one of me do you need?" Miss Surtr tilted her head slightly. "If you ask, I can annihilate all of Ursus's active-duty army groups."

"We need you as a Rhodes Island operator, Surtr." However, Persephone simply shook her head slightly. "I don't quite understand why you, in the past, split your identity and concealed your true strength after leaving Sarkaz Babel Tower. You must have your own reasons, and you don't need to tell me. But now, I hope you can continue to keep a low profile."

"Why...because of Skadi?" Surtr immediately connected the dots with the recent changes.

"Not her, but her enemy," Persephone explained. "She has powerful enemies in the sea, and she has powerful enemies on land."

"It was a cult. A cult that... worshipped things that dwell in the sea and the sky."

"Skadi calls them— The Starfall Hermitage."

Chapter 106 Let's go and draw up a contract...

"The Starfall Hermitage? What's that?"— Surtr didn't recall ever encountering such a thing during her travels in the Arknights in her previous life. She felt this wasn't part of the original Terra setting, because she had looked through Skadi's character profile. While most of the information related to the 'sea' was somewhat vague, it didn't seem... to indicate any overly active terrestrial order.

"I don't know either," Persephone replied—it was hard to imagine such a statement coming from her mouth.

"All I know is that 'star' means celestial phenomena and 'transformation' means change. The Starfall Hermitage was an academic organization that observed and studied changes in celestial phenomena—at least two hundred years ago, that was the case."

The Maiden Doctor, having shifted her posture, stretched and yawned. Perhaps because she wasn't wearing an undergarment, her figure bounced slightly with energy—she noticed that Miss Surtr wasn't particularly attracted to her. She silently noted this down and then led Miss Surtr towards the outside of the temporary office.

This is a building, a skyscraper, and the two people are walking from the middle floor to the top.

"Three hundred years ago, an astrologer in Victoria founded this society—at that time it was called the Star-Shift Research Society. It was composed of a group of like-minded scholars and had a loose structure. The founder died ten years later, and then one of his apprentices succeeded him in his leadership position."

"Two hundred and seventy years ago, some minor issues arose between Victoria and Laterano. Some infected individuals were accused of having some kind of opaque relationship with Kazdel. Ultimately, they were executed for practicing witchcraft. This triggered a witch hunt in Victoria — the Star-Shift Research Society was suppressed, but not severely. To preserve the Society, the new president chose to embrace the doctrines of Laterano. The Society was renamed the Hermitage."

As you ascend the stairs, the wind grows increasingly noisy. Numerous drones hover outside the building, vaguely forming intricate and interwoven rune patterns.

The two continued walking uphill.

"Two hundred and forty-four years ago, the aftermath of the witch hunt ended. Some old things began to be re-examined. But the Grand Master of the Secret Order at that time did not seize the opportunity—they failed to regain their former glory. Instead, they were expelled from Victoria and had to find new homes—they were scattered, or rather, branched out. The core members went to Columbia and Iberia. The other branches went to various countries such as Lateran, Sargon, and Yan."

"The Order of the Stars was practically defunct by then. Because at that time, the Starfall Hermitage still merely an academic organization studying celestial phenomena. They had no wealth, no warriors, and not even strict rules—they were simply exiles finding a reason to huddle together for warmth. And if nothing unexpected happened..."

"This secret order will soon disappear into the dustbin of history, and won't even appear in any written records," Surtr added, continuing her thought. "So their presence in this era is due to an accident, an unexpected variable."

"Yes, it was an accident." Persephone nodded.

"Two hundred and seven years ago, a member of the Iberia monastery emerged... a leader with some talent. In just a few years, she united the exiles and established a stable trading power. She developed some roots in the noble families of Iberia and in the local church. Perhaps in a little longer, she might even become a noble lord in that closed land of Iberia as an outsider."

Miss Surtr thought the "some talent" in this context was probably only a slight improvement compared to Persephone herself—she pursed her lips, hearing the approaching aircraft. Clearly, Persephone had prepared transportation, and the drone swarm was now preparing resupply and arranging cleaning.

"But she failed... or rather, gave up. Something that couldn't be found in records, but the Abyssal Hunter believed to be some kind of forbidden literature, attracted her. She halted her commercial expansion and used all the connections and wealth she had built up over the years to rebuild the Order. And then—"

Persephone pushed open the door to the top floor.

"Two hundred years ago, a terrible thing happened in Iberia. It was a horrific disaster, comparable to the legendary 'Great Silence' in the records of the Aegir. All related documents, records, and events have been completely erased. But I have examined the agricultural output and trade volume of Iberia during that period. The final conclusion is that during that time, seven-tenths of Iberia's total population died."

"And from then on, Aegir's hunters relentlessly hunted down all those associated with the Starfall Hermitage, throughout Terra. Whether innocent or guilty, if their ancestors were connected to members of the Order, the hunters would kill their entire family, leaving not even a pet. This hunt lasted for a full hundred years."

The door opened, and the transport plane, already prepared, was ready for takeoff. Persephone opened the door, but Miss Surtr boarded the cockpit first and adjusted all the flight parameters to ensure the aircraft was functioning properly.

"I bet there's a reason you're preparing an aircraft and changing your appearance, isn't there?" Persephone.

"Hmm." The Maiden Doctor, who walked in the form of a warrior, nodded slightly, naturally walked to the passenger seat, and got in.

"There are Ursus agents inside Chernobog. There are twelve of them. Nine of them are already my subordinates. I plan to deal with one of the remaining three this afternoon. The other two are loopholes I deliberately left behind—I need Ursus to know about the existence of the 'Fire Giant King.' I need them to know that Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals was involved in this operation, but that they also have a clandestine force like mine with an unknown identity. This will have a guiding effect on them, and at the same time, it will be a provocation and a warning."

"Aren't you afraid that Ursus will be enraged and start a war on the spot?" Miss Surtr gathered her senses slightly and easily detected two direct gazes and a detection spell constructed from Originium Arts.

She activated the aircraft, controlling the rotorcraft to detach from the top floor of the building. She casually took the PRTS terminal handed to her by Persephone. After opening it, she first closed the flood of welcome emails, and after switching to tactical mode, she saw a map appear on her retina.

"As far as I know, Ursus desperately needs a war right now."