Human Nature

"I see it! Another Catastrophe has struck!"

Inside Number Fourteen Facility, under the searchlights, freshly arrived refugees wailed.

"Saints! Law! Why do you test us so?"

"It hurts so much... Do you have any painkillers?"

Someone else cried out in fear, "Get out of the way! Is anyone there?! He's covered in stones! He's going to explode!"

The crowd immediately panicked.

Seeing that an accident was about to occur, several Ursus men suddenly stepped out from the human wall of soldiers. They coldly and firmly gripped their halberds, using intimidation to part the crowd and open a path leading directly to the infected person.

As the medical staff rushed to the infected person who was "about to explode," the soldiers, under W's command, cut off and evacuated the refugees.

"... Hungry."

"Wow! Wow! Wow!"

Embarrassingly, the medical operator made a judgment in the tactical channel... the patient wasn't even experiencing an acute Originium Infection attack; it was more likely gout.

So annoying!

W cursed under his breath and exhaled a breath of stale air.

Powered halberd base.

"Listen up, Ursus!" The Sarkaz girl stood on the high platform and said solemnly, "You are saved!"

"Temporary!"

What was it again...?

The Sarkaz girl tried hard to recall what she had just memorized, but couldn't remember it right away, so she just blurted out a couple of lines:

"Don't cause trouble for Oute!"

"Otherwise, you will only witness another hell!"

Ah! That's it!

"Murderers shall die! Those who injure or steal shall be punished!"

Oh no, did I punish him too harshly before?

No, no, military law seems to be stricter?

It was impossible to tell what the Sarkaz girl, with her serious expression, was pondering.

She might be willing to show some personal favor to the Sarkaz, but with the Ursus... W did this only because Oute asked her to.

The Deepwinter Soldiers maintained order with cold indifference and violence, showing no sign that they too had once been refugees.

During this process, many soldiers angrily kicked the person who had falsely reported the danger twice.

It is worth mentioning that in the battles in which the soldiers mainly participated, they basically served as humanoid drones. Therefore, apart from a few unruly individuals, there were very few who disregarded military discipline and law.

To the Ursus people, who yearn for a "great feudalist warrior" or even a "great slave-worshipper" but cannot find one, this was simply something straight out of a myth...

W's previous swift and decisive beheading of those who violated military discipline further amplified this miraculous impression.

The refugees, who had settled in early, felt a strange mix of fear and awe towards the Deepwinter Soldiers' forceful, physical methods of maintaining order. They even secretly accepted a horrifying claim, worshipping the "Silver-Haired Liberi" as some ancient symbol...

"The camp is short of supplies and under great pressure to build. Those who work will have three meals a day, including meat!" the Sarkaz girl said succinctly. "Those who don't work will only have two meals a day!"

"The accommodation is ready!"

"Deepwinter Soldiers!"

W's sudden shout triggered a reaction already deeply ingrained in their instincts.

"Exist!!!!"

Whatever the soldiers were doing, they responded in unison.

Oute's tricks are indeed very suitable for soldiers.

"Make the refugees line up! Crowd them into the settlements!"

"Yes!!!!"

Another classic barrage of punches and kicks ensued...

Like watching a monkey show, the elderly refugees, who had been settled early, peeked through the crack in the door to watch the spectacle.

Despite being only three or four days, or even just one or two days earlier, the old refugees developed an extraordinary sense of superiority over these newcomers.

"Look at their cowardly behavior!"

"What? You dared to bare your teeth at the soldiers back then?"

"You!"

Meanwhile, as the refugees entered the resettlement area and returned to the Sarkaz mercenaries, W slurped his noodles half-heartedly, splattering oil all over the table.

Since she was out overseeing work, the Sarkaz's menu for tonight was no longer hers to decide. After a fierce vote by the rough-and-tumble Sarkaz men from all over the world, noodles won by a narrow margin.

Oute sat down next to the Sarkaz girl.

"Thanks for your hard work."

W straightened up instantly, hurriedly wiped her mouth, and glared at the guards several times.

The more she smeared the oil, the more it spread, making her face all dirty.

Without hesitation, Oute used his sleeve to dry the Sarkaz girl's skin.

The oil stains appeared to have been wiped away, but the oily texture still lingered on W's cheeks.

"..."

"..."

While the two locked eyes, the Sarkaz mercenaries discreetly slipped away. Before leaving, they carefully held the door hinges and closed the door behind them.

It's fair to say that Oute seems to have an aura of tactfulness around him, and the number of tactful people around him is increasing...

The blush that had spread from her neck to her earlobes subsided, and W forced a fierce expression. "What are you doing!"

How are you feeling?

The Sarkaz girl closed her eyes, her delicate nose twitching slightly as she recalled, "The smell of laundry detergent and a faint scent of sweat."

However, I don't dislike it.

The broth had a slightly overpowering spice flavor, which was a bit distracting... Damn it! Why did we have to eat noodles!?

"..." Oute had to elaborate on his question, "I mean, how have you felt these past two days in charge of refugee affairs?"

Now W's cheeks can boil water again.

She shrank back, trying to hide herself from Oute.

W didn't mention what he had just been doing, and bluntly replied, "These refugees are so stupid!"

"They don't know anything when asked, and they can't even understand human language!"

"I was clearly speaking Ursus, but someone with [Sargon profanity] will definitely come and confirm it in Victoria!"

Oute head.

These refugees are already aware of their infection status, so it's normal for them to find the current "good treatment" unbelievable. And since Victoria is the current common language, it's perfectly normal for those who know the truth to confirm it in Victoria.

"It's making me a little insecure..." the Sarkaz girl muttered. "Hey! Otter! [Ursus] How was what I said?"

"He has a slight accent, but his pronunciation is clear and understandable."

W continued to complain, "That's bad enough, but there are always people who pretend not to understand, secretly stealing other people's food, and even using suppressants!"

"Those people were already almost penniless; those who had a few coins on them could at least 'counterbalance,' but being completely naked meant they could only be sent to do hard labor with the prisoners!"

Chapter 249 Nature

January 5, 1097, 20:58:29, Core City.

Before Eyjafjalla, towering Originium crystal clusters turned to dust, drifting in the air. At the same time, new Originium clusters continued to rise from the ground. The formation and disintegration of Originium was in a constant and rapid cycle. In this seemingly repetitive process, the Originium clusters, which had already polluted the entire Core City, almost completely covered everything.

As expected, the fierce blizzard, this natural disaster, further activated the Originium, completely transforming it into... the Originium Catastrophe.

Since the Core City was moved from the center of Chernobog by the Black Snake, this area near the wilderness can be said to have the highest Originium content.

Thankfully, we didn't rush things... Okay, that's it! Steady and safe!

Eyjafjalla, who was already located on the outskirts of the Core City, chose to set up camp in a plaza near the exit. This place was relatively far from the engine, and there were no excessively large Originium clusters around. There were also no excessively tall buildings, so even if Originium crystal clusters were attached to the outer layer of buildings, it would be difficult for them to harm her during the collapse process.

Amidst the howling blizzard and the crunching sounds of the Originium clusters crawling and curling up, the little lamb diligently extracted nourishment from its memories to pass the tedious time of data collection.

Beside the flashing green light of the instrument was a tent collapsed under the weight of snow, and three snow huts that were gradually being built with more skill. Although the skills were improving, the little lamb was still clueless about how to live inside the snow huts, and had even Ignition a campfire outside...

Considering that she would never stay overnight in the Core City, the value of these tasks was more of a "just in case" measure.

Under such conditions, there might not be any living people left... If there were, they should have come looking for me.

In front of the campfire, the girl began to recall the events in reverse chronological order.

Starting with Kal'tsit, who possessed Oute without wearing the "Dream-Sleep Device," we trace back the story.

Soon, it was time for her to tutor Oute.

"... Under suitable temperature and pressure conditions, Originium will spontaneously grow from its core: the outer layer reacts with air or other minerals to form a crystalline shell; while the inner layer continuously grows high-purity minerals. The resulting multi-layered structure resembles the bulb of an onion..."

"So, the outer crystal shell is like aluminum oxide? It isolates the pure Originium crystal core from the outside world?" Oute pondered.

"There are some similarities."

"Then this kind of raw ore shouldn't be very likely to cause infection, right?"

"Modern popular infection theories suggest that Active Originium..."

The raging Shirayuki blanketed the city's surface in a thick layer, and the reflection of the Twin Moons on the snow gave the ghostly city a faint glow.