Arknights, but the Family Has Fallen into Decline Yet Again, Again, Again

In an instant, W's slender hand pinched the girl's own neck.

"Your neck hurts a little. What's wrong? Slept funny?"

Oute asked.

The Reliable Big Sister of the Reunion Movement

"...More or less."

Didn't I shake my head!?

W changed the subject. "Talulah summoned me over. What do you think it's about?"

First, to put you in your place and establish "rank," "ruling authority."

Second, the most "urgent" matter... If Misha had already escaped Chernobog, then it was Misha. And if she had already fallen into Talulah's hands, then it was Boris.

But fundamentally, all of this was merely a feint to deceive Patriot.

"There isn't enough information to draw any worthwhile conclusions. We can only guess."

"What? Is something like this actually enough to stump you?" she prodded.

For well-known reasons, W had a strong competitive streak whenever she faced this amnesiac, but not entirely amnesiac, otter swordsman.

"Probably tactical deployment."

Oute casually brushed her off as well.

"Isn't that the same as saying nothing!?" W kicked away a piece of rubble, then thought, Come to think of it, what race are you, exactly?

Surprisingly, the Sarkaz girl could listen to Hedley's judgment.

But only a little.

"Human."

"You bastard!"

On Terra, when asked, "What race are you?" and answering, "Human"...

It wasn't quite on the level of "Which province are you from?" "Born from my mother," but it had much the same feel as "Where are you from?" "I'm from Earth."

Just like Oute's previous answer: he had answered, but not answered at all.

"W." Suddenly, someone stopped the Sarkaz girl who kept kicking stones in front of the command center. "If you want to act like a child, go somewhere else. In a situation like this, it would be best to behave more steadily."

It was FrostNova.

"Don't needle her. Ask why she's here."

W's eyes rolled as she said, "Sorry, sorry, I really didn't..."

She forcibly swallowed the mockery that had almost slipped out and changed her words. "Didn't notice anyone nearby."

FrostNova was somewhat surprised. She had thought this crazed Sarkaz leader would react more intensely.

"Talulah called you here for military matters."

What else could it be?

W grumbled inwardly. I'm the head of the mercenaries. What else could it be if the head of the Reunion Movement specifically summoned me?

She was still bothered by Oute's perfunctory answer.

"Then Miss FrostNova, why don't you tell me why you specifically stopped me?" W still couldn't help taking a jab at the white rabbit.

Patriot's guerrilla force could actually be considered another founder of the Reunion Movement.

And because of the Black Snake, the Reunion Movement had long since strayed from its original ideals and completely degenerated into a gang of armed thugs.

From that perspective, the guerrillas, who held more original shares of "violence," were the true primary founders of this current group of thugs.

But the guerrillas would likely rather the Reunion Movement had remained true to its original purpose.

W's "Miss" jabbed at Elena precisely from that angle.

FrostNova's expression shifted slightly, but in the end, she endured it.

As if she had heard nothing at all, she said, "Your mercenaries, Sasha, and Mephisto's unit are to carry out a mission."

FrostNova did not call Mephisto by his real name, instead using his codename. Yet for Faust, she used his real name.

That caught Oute's attention.

"Mephisto doesn't sound much like a real name. She didn't say his real name, most likely because she hates that twisted little brat," Oute transmitted. "She may ask you to look after another person named Sasha."

"Mephisto?" W asked in surprise. "Has he regained consciousness?"

FrostNova shook her head.

"No. He's still delirious. He'll even only accept food and water delivered by Sasha."

W dug at her ear with her pinky, somewhat unable to believe it. "And you're still letting him take part!? His squad is basically maintained by his Originium Arts! If he's still bedridden, he's nothing but dead weight!"

"..." FrostNova's expression changed slightly. "Those are Talulah's orders."

"You don't want to listen either, do you?" W narrowed her eyes.

With her arms crossed and a smile at the corners of her eyes, she said, "That disgusting little brat... There's no way you stopped me for his sake!"

"You're right." FrostNova clenched her fists, then loosened them.

"Talulah has ordered you to go to Lungmen and assist Alex in retaking Misha."

W also sensed that something was wrong. The reflexes Oute had drilled into her sharply seized upon the issue. "Then why didn't you mention Skullshatterer just now!?"

Damn it! I know this routine way too well!

"Your task is to assist Skullshatterer."

The crazed mask once again covered W's face as she smiled falsely. "Hm? You want us to act as bait?"

"My commission doesn't include this kind of work."

"It is included in the contract with Garson."

"I said, the commission I received." W enunciated every word. "Garson died in a mutiny, and not a single cent of the money he embezzled ever reached us!"

"That's an internal matter among you Sarkaz mercenaries."

"And the Reunion Movement is still counting on the mercenaries to serve as meat shields. If you don't feed them well, Talulah will never get the outcome she wants."

Although these Sarkaz mercenaries were all Infected, most of them scoffed at the Reunion Movement's ideals and remained only loosely affiliated with it. Or rather, those Sarkaz who admired the Reunion Movement's ideals, represented by Mudrock... had long since parted ways with the current clown movement in deep disappointment.

Now, only mercenaries truly remained here.

Talulah, Talulah...

FrostNova sighed. "There's still quite a bit of gold in Chernobog's banks. Once the job is done, it's all yours."

W pressed her advantage. "Then give me thirty percent upfront!"

"You!"

It was about time.

"Let me handle it," Oute transmitted.

The Sarkaz girl cursed under her breath.

FrostNova suddenly felt that the mercenary leader before her was unfamiliar—clearly the same face, yet she had become clever in an instant.

It wasn't that W had not been clever before. It was simply that her crazed expressions had concealed it well. But now, the Sarkaz girl's pretty face turned cold, revealing a strange sort of "intellect."

"Elena, your father was also a Sarkaz," Oute said through W.

"Just do your job, mercenary. You don't need to cozy up to me." FrostNova felt somewhat uneasy.

Oute did not respond, merely continuing through W's mouth, "You should realize how many of the things outsiders regard as superstition and witchcraft are real, and how many are beyond doubt."

"What exactly are you trying to say!?"

"Among Ursus's many legends, there is one such story... There was an immortal named Koschei. He lived an extraordinarily long life, sinister and cunning, and often played the role of the 'hostile father.'"

"People believed Koschei was a shapeshifter because he often appeared in different forms: tall, short, fat, thin, male, female, old, young..."

FrostNova had heard the name Koschei. That was Talulah's adoptive father!

What was this Sarkaz girl trying to say?

"But those with knowledge understood that the immortal Black Snake had never been a shapeshifter—a shapeshifter is a type of Sarkaz."

"It was never the Black Snake that changed its appearance. It was always the owners of those appearances... who became Koschei."

FrostNova's pupils trembled.

"Imitating someone's appearance is not exclusive to the Sarkaz. And stealing someone's body isn't either."

The Sar... the demon before her revealed a horrifying possibility to her in an icy tone.

"What exactly are you trying to say!?"

The Black Snake Hissed and Flicked Its Tongue

Under the lamplight, a honey-colored sheen reflected off W's lips as the familiar mask of crazed expressions returned to the Sarkaz girl's face.

And a curse spilled from the girl's honeyed lips. "Your current leader, the woman who pays my commission... I can smell old-person stink on her!"

Naturally, such vicious words came from W.

Because before certain people, the Black Snake could only be considered a little girl. Oute would not use such insults himself.

Otherwise, wouldn't he be doomed if old accounts were dredged up?

"..."

How FrostNova wished the demon girl before her had been telling the truth!

If what she said was not false, then Elena could project all the anger and resentment of these past days onto an absolute "evil." Then, that fighter who had arrived carrying the roster and notebook would still have hot blood flowing through her veins!