"Humph. They concealed the casualties and failed to report them, evaded the issue when discussing how it was handled, and even mobilized troops in secret! If not for me—if not for the emperor of the empire personally questioning them—were they planning to mobilize troops to surround the Winter Palace as well?!"
"Your Majesty, please calm down. Your subjects' loyalty to you is beyond question..."
"That's enough, Witte. Give me an honest answer. I've heard enough lies. Right now, I only want to hear the truth."
Tapping his fingers on the throne made from rare wood obtainable only in the Karlan region, a symbol of authority, Fyodor casually tossed the dossier into the trash can.
"Although you have repeatedly weakened the military authority under each duke, you can't rush things. The armies now possess their own mines and untold fortunes of their own. Soldiers know their generals but not the emperor—such a situation..."
Witte hunched over and secretly glanced at the emperor's expression before finally saying the last sentence.
"It isn't all that difficult to understand."
"You've got some nerve. Are you treating me as though I don't exist?"
"Although their greedy faces are laid bare for all to see, we don't have enough evidence to judge them right now. They're foolish and ignorant, arrogant and discourteous, old antiques who seem to be living in the era before the previous emperor. But even the stupidest Tuo Beast will eat something besides grass when pushed too far. So, Your Majesty, we mustn't rush things."
These old nobles had always controlled the military. Any attempt by the central government to strengthen its authority would inevitably affect their vested interests. If they could mobilize troops today, they could crown themselves emperor tomorrow.
But this was inevitable. The age when military power reigned supreme had passed, and Ursus was no longer the prosperous empire it had once been.
Corruption, poverty, backwardness, ignorance, and stupidity shrouded the people of Ursus. Yet these old nobles still dreamed of returning to that era one day—of sidelining the parliament, seizing power, and restoring the system of the previous emperor's time.
Utterly foolish.
However, nothing could be accomplished overnight. Fyodor naturally understood that principle, but the prerequisite was that the empire had to survive until the day the reforms ended.
"Sigh. You may leave. I want to be alone for a while."
After dismissing his close aide, Fyodor stood alone before the window, looking at the square beyond the Winter Palace, blanketed in snow, and the scattered civilians in it.
It looked tranquil and peaceful, but beneath the surface, undercurrents were surging.
Human or otherwise, everything had emerged at this moment.
The empire was tottering in the storm. Perhaps a blizzard was about to arrive.
But Fyodor did not know whether the Ursus Empire had truly made every possible preparation before the blizzard capable of destroying everything arrived...
PS: Celebrate! My American-time-zone schedule these past few days has finally paid off! I'm about to get a recommendation!!!! I estimate I'll be able to arrange one next week. When that happens, I'll have to unleash some great material. It's exhausting. With two books, updating this one and the book about Exusiai is already hard enough. On top of that, I'm trying to pursue quality with the other book, which makes writing it even more difficult. Clearly, the plot of that book is better in my opinion, but alas, people these days don't seem to like grand narratives anymore. Sigh.
Why does a day only have twenty-four hours? Why do humans need at least eight hours of sleep? And we still have to eat and use the bathroom. Humans are such an inefficient form of life. Collapse.
When do you think I'll be able to have Sariel write her own autobiography? Damn capitalist face. Fine, it'll probably get taken down, right? Sariel's immediate superior seems not to have a good ending.
I don't want to be human anymore. Can someone find me a Stone Mask?
By the way, yj has been updating rather frequently lately. She's finally not acting like a toothpaste factory anymore. But I haven't read this latest update yet. I'll have to look up the plot text separately another day, just like I did with Maria Nearl.
A person who writes Arknights but can't play Arknights' tower defense—am I just too terrible? Collapse. I can only copy other people's solutions and watch the plot online.
Section 28: Chapter Twenty-Eight—Physical Therapy!!
"So... Doctor, what's the deal with this wrench?"
"I'm the supervisor of the psychiatric interns. As you know, these patients can be extremely violent. If certain measures aren't taken, it's bad for both the patients and the doctors. So we often prepare some additional anesthetic methods to prevent medical accidents."
"Then what about the saw?"
"Ah, that's emergency equipment for situations where a patient might be injured because their restraints are too tight. It's used to cut through those restraints and rescue the patient."
"Ah, this..."
Is it too late to regret this?!!!
Several hours earlier.
Ulyov Murphy was carried into this Psychiatric Hospital in Chernobog by several guards.
In Ursus, to ensure the fairness of the law, they determined whether criminals possessed self-awareness when they committed violent acts.
In other words, they determined whether the person had harmed others while suffering a mental episode.
In Ursus, as long as it wasn't Originium infection, other illnesses were still open to discussion.
To many ordinary people, psychiatric hospitals were always shrouded in mystery. But to many villains, psychiatric hospitals were practically havens of freedom!
If they could pass a psychiatric evaluation, they might avoid punishment by receiving treatment in the hospital—or, in serious cases, escape the death penalty altogether. As for how they would get out of the psychiatric hospital, that was a matter for later. Staying here was much better than being in prison.
Ulyov was already a regular when it came to evaluations. After the first time, the second was familiar. The evaluation methods of this era were still relatively primitive, and there really was a chance of fooling the examiners.
That gave villains like Ulyov a chance to escape justice.
What should he do after getting out?
Yes, Ulyov had already begun planning what he would do after being carried into the hospital.
I'll go back and kill that damned bitch.
That bitch was such a nuisance. If her whole family hadn't reported him, he wouldn't have been caught so quickly. He really ought to go back and kill that bitch to vent his anger.
No, killing her outright would be letting her off too easily. He should rape her first, then kill her!
That was what the villain thought.
Speaking of which, why hadn't the doctor come yet?
Handcuffed to the chair, Ulyov was growing impatient. He wanted to get this formality over with so he could figure out a way to regain his freedom.
Just then, the door suddenly opened.
The doctor had arrived.
This time, unlike before, it wasn't an old man in a white coat, but a fairly young woman.
Oh ho, he didn't expect to get another feast for his eyes.
She was an incredibly beautiful woman. Her mature clothing and bearing made even her slight childishness seem like nothing more than the freshness of a newly appointed doctor to most people.
Her silver hair cascaded to her waist like a waterfall, and her blue eyes gleamed like gemstones. Her white coat, which looked more like a white trench coat on her, made her seem suspended between maturity and youth, radiating an irresistible charm. The casually open coat accentuated her tall figure, while the fitted dress beneath exuded mature allure. Combined with the faint childishness in her cheeks, she possessed a forbidden beauty, yet the slight coldness on her face made her true age impossible to guess.
What a beautiful person.
No one could fail to notice such a dazzling presence.
Even the eyes of the two Ursus prison guards beside the prisoner had gone slightly blank.
"You two may leave for now," the woman said coolly.
It fit the first impression of a doctor, but the two prison guards froze for a moment before realizing that, to protect the prisoner's privacy, no outsiders were allowed in the room. The doctor's authority was enough to guarantee the fairness of the evaluation.
A world for two. If his hands hadn't been cuffed behind him, Ulyov would already have pounced on her.
What a pity. Still, even getting to feast his eyes was a kind of luck.
The two prison guards had barely left when the sound of the door locking had yet to fade.
A strange feeling spread through the not-so-large examination room!
Because... why was she holding... a pair of pliers???!!!
Ulyov understood the usual routine. Normally, there would be psychological questioning and testing, perhaps with some electrodes. But what was this wrench doing here?!!
Besides, his attention had initially been completely captured by the young woman's bearing. Only after coming to his senses did Ulyov realize that something was wrong. The metal cart that usually held surgical instruments no longer contained the familiar equipment. Instead, there was a wrench, a hammer, and a saw!!
No, what was going on here?!!!
"So... Doctor, what's the deal with this wrench?"
"You mean this? Don't worry. I'm the supervisor of the psychiatric interns. As you know, mental illnesses often make patients extremely violent. If certain measures aren't taken, it's bad for both the patients and the doctors. So we often prepare some additional anesthetic methods to prevent medical accidents."
The doctor explained the reason quite reasonably.
"Then what about the saw?"
"Ah, that's emergency equipment for situations where a patient might be injured because their restraints are too tight. It's used to cut through those restraints and rescue the patient."
"Ah, this..."
Yet in an unseen corner of her heart, Chlorine Sodium merely examined her first patient coldly.
It was her third day working here. Her false identity had already come in handy, allowing her to obtain a stable position here without any obstacles or suspicion.
She had originally come to evaluate a prisoner. Using the Herrscher of the Void's abilities for a patient evaluation was simply overkill.
Of course, this wasn't about medical knowledge, but about vision.
At this moment, the man before her radiated an aura that disgusted her.
It was the resentment of the dead.
As she spoke, Chlorine Sodium casually manifested a tiny amount of Honkai Energy in her hand—an amount minuscule, yet extremely lethal to ordinary people.
You're asking about judgment?
That was a word only boring righteous characters emphasized. For villains, private punishment was enough.
After all, I'm the bad guy. Fairness and justice don't exist here. Everything depends on my mood.
Thinking this, Chlorine Sodium looked at the villain radiating an irredeemable aura from head to toe and revealed a subtle smile.
..............................
So this is... Chernobog?
Watching the heavy snow flying through the streets, the young girl murmured the unfamiliar word she had heard from her sister.
Chernobog. Supposedly, it was a very large city.
But little Yelena had no concept of what "large" meant. What was a big city? Explaining it to a girl raised in a mine was like playing music to a cow. After all, she might never have the chance to enter a city in her lifetime. She might spend her entire life in the wilderness and countryside, or even hiding in the deep mountains and old forests to evade the Ursus Military Police.
Yelena was fortunate, however, because she had the chance to come here. She even had a room to live in. It seemed that she should have been very happy.
Yet an animal raised in the wilderness could not adapt to a jungle of steel, and neither could Yelena. After coming here, she found it extremely difficult to adjust. This steel jungle always made it hard to breathe.
Especially with frightening Military Police everywhere in the surrounding streets. As an infected, seeing the Military Police was like a sheep seeing its natural predator. She had no idea what to do.
Fortunately, she had a dependable older sister.
Behind the girl was a modest apartment. It was her new home—or rather, the place her sister had brought her to. Somehow, her sister had gotten past the Military Police inspections and brought her into the "big" city she had never imagined, and could never have imagined.
Everything made her feel frightened and unfamiliar, yet curious.
After all, children had plenty of curiosity.
She still carried a key. Out of curiosity, she had gone downstairs. The street was outside, while this area was still within the residential district.
She didn't dare continue exploring outside, because she would see the Military Police there.
Today seemed to be another ordinary morning spent alone. Her sister would return at noon, bringing back some food bought outside.
The days before seemed like a dream. Or perhaps the days now were also like a dream, making it impossible to tell which part was real and which part was false.
Suddenly, the neighborhood outside seemed to fall into chaos.
?
Looking out from here, the surrounding buildings obstructed her view, allowing her to see only a corner of the neighborhood.
What had happened?
Suddenly, the girl's pupils shrank to pinpoints!
Because completely blocking that corner of her view was a burly Ursus Military Policeman!!!!
PS: The old desktop at home broke too. I spent all morning fiddling with it, unplugging and reconnecting every component one by one, only to finally discover that the RAM had come loose. I cleaned out the dust and applied some thermal paste while I was at it. I was exhausted. Then I took a nap, and the internet went down in the afternoon. I almost missed today's update. Collapse.
The heating at home broke too. I feel so unlucky. Collapse and sob.
Section 29: Chapter Twenty-Nine—The Best Spellcasting Material
"Is this an infected?"
A seasoned veteran looked at his subordinate—a new recruit leading an "infected."
This was an order from above. The Military Police throughout most of the city had mobilized, all because they were searching for infected.
There was also a quota that had to be filled.
Before you continue