Chapter 209

It's clearly impossible for Little Typhon's Collapse and Pollution to yield any significant results in the short term, and now that I've completed the adaptation surgery for the new equipment, the burden on her should be light enough... Taking her along would actually reduce the burden on Rhodes Island.

Takina's condition was clearly not suitable for duty... The battle with the Sacred Remains resulted in physical injuries, and without proper rest, it could easily leave lasting health problems. After thinking it over, Medic decided not to include Takina in the personnel.

And the rest... his own highly capable operatives... Mika?

Although Mika's mental condition has transcended the standard of a conventional 'chronic illness' and is now considered a completely permanent injury... Mika physical injuries have indeed fully healed, and she is ready to join the fight at any time.

Despite reason telling me that including a mentally unstable member in the team might only cause trouble for my future self, no one knows whether her mental health issues will become an obstacle in future operations.

But instinct told Medic she could trust Mika... Medic couldn't tell if this was based on past documents that had given her a passive liking for her, or... if it was truly a revelation from her instincts...

"... After all, we can't find anyone else, Mika, you should come too..."

Looking at the list in front of him... Jessica, Liskarm, Franka, Blaze, Typhon, Mika... plus himself, seven people... if you add the five-person healing team, then it's a standard Rhodes Island dispatch team.

The question is, can we even assemble such a perfect team... or is victory simply about getting our team moving and reaching the destination in the shortest time?

The uncertainty of the future and the lack of preparation made Nana nervously tap the mouse... Just then, Kal'tsit suddenly sent a message, asking Medic to come to the office again.

"... Have the medical assistants capable of protecting themselves arrived?"

Looking at Kal'tsit's brief explanation, Medic told himself not to be overly optimistic, but he quickly ran to the Medical Department with light steps... And in front of Kal'tsit, Medic saw a... well... white-haired Vouivre required him to look up slightly to meet his gaze.

The Vouivre race was not unfamiliar to Nana; Vanilla and Liskarm were both members of this race.

They are strong, powerful, and their magical abilities are above average, but that's about it... The impression of this race is often one of 'backwardness' because many Vouivre still live in tribes.

In daily life, Vouivre... especially female Vouivre, are a race that prefers to use violence to gain status in the family... their domestic violence rate is said to be higher than their literacy rate.

While this might be somewhat Feline, Medic's first impression of Vouivre was that of a brave and combative warrior and a dominant figure in everyday life.

Seeing that Kal'tsit's assistant was a Vouivre, Nana wondered if she had shown any disappointment... She probably hadn't; the assassin's composure was impeccable.

However, this point of dissatisfaction, which could be considered racial discrimination, vanished instantly after Kal'tsit's introduction:

"Medic, let me introduce you. This is Ms. Saria, the former head of the Rhine Lab Defense Division. After discussions that have continued until now, I have agreed to her joining Rhodes Island. She will provide medical support to friendly forces while maintaining the front lines. She will be classified as a Heavy Armor Operator and will perform the duties of a Guardian."

"And going forward, she will be working with you as a member of Rhodes Island 'Human Resources Special Operations Team."

"... Rhine Lab... you're a researcher? Have you had experience in battlefield first aid and harsh environments... no, even routine surgery?"

Looking into Medic's sharp gaze, sharpened by pre-battle preparations, the white-haired Vouivre also sized up the 'Light of Ticarondo' who was quite famous in Columbia's research circles:

"... I used to be a life science researcher, now I'm just a regular Rhodes Island field collaborator. Whether it's hazardous site early warning, assisting in tactical planning, or participating in emergency medical care, I have no problem..."

"Equipment requirements?"

"I am carrying a custom-made rechargeable defensive suit by Rhine Lab — 'Fortress,' as well as an enamel shield casting unit containing a set of first aid tools, a pneumatic injection gun, and a quantity of standard medications. The list of licensed medications I can use has been uploaded to PRTS... If there is a need for additional specialized medications, I will complete the training as soon as possible."

His upright posture, calm response, unwavering spirit, subtle yet incredibly resolute... seemed to be on guard at any moment, ready to unleash Originium Arts.

Although she didn't know how Kal'tsit had found such a talented person, Medic immediately put aside her slight prejudice that her assistant was a Vouivre, nodded to Kal'tsit, and then looked at Saria:

"Urgent work, start now... it might take until the end of the year at the latest... is that alright?"

"It seems to be something urgent. Let's begin now... Lady Kal'tsit, that child... and that person, I'm entrusting them to you from now on."

He nodded earnestly.

Kal'tsit's promise clearly carried weight; even someone like Saria, who had a tendency to doubt everything, immediately believed it and threw herself into her new work. This obviously greatly increased Medic's chances of success for this mission... Medic even started to think for a moment that if he had five Saria like that... no, three, this mission would probably be a sure thing.

Distracted, Medic quickly explained the current mission objectives and the situation to Saria.

And so she returned to Medic's office area, and without any hesitation sat down next to Medic, Saria lowered her gaze slightly, clearly deep in thought:

"I see, that Doctor... seems to be an important figure at Rhodes Island..."

"... She... is my benefactor... and also the commander of the Rhodes Island operations team... Because of her absence, a lot of work at Rhodes Island has come to a standstill... For example, personnel appointments, which were supposedly previously handled by the Doctor."

"Yes, the mobilization order has been issued so far, but only combat personnel have been deployed... Rhodes Island has dispatched a professional medical officer, and you are in full charge of the security for these VIPs... Are you also responsible for handling the procedures for entering Ursus and arranging the final exit route?"

"No, the reason for entry and exit will be arranged by Rhodes Island... If possible, it would be best to wait until the Doctor finishes treatment, and then board the ship directly from the port... The current destination of the Rhodes Island Landship is Chernobog."

Listening to Medic's explanation, Saria glanced indifferently at the flight path map that was now openly displayed before her:

"So the evacuation direction is probably Lungmen... Even Ursus wouldn't so easily provoke the authority of the Great Yan... But, since the Doctor is receiving treatment in Chernobog, why summon an additional medical team... Or rather, what kind of injury can't Rhodes Island treat, and why go to that feudal country in the north...?"

After a moment's thought, Saria suddenly realized she had gone a bit too far, and after shaking her head slightly, the white-haired Vouivre immediately apologized:

"I'm sorry, this question seems a bit excessive... but for the sake of the operation's success, I'd like to know the details..."

"... With my limited authority, I can only tell you that the Doctor is currently undergoing treatment using a device unique to Chernobog. Our mission is to provide emergency care to Ursus before his condition deteriorates to the point of endangering Doctor life, and then safely transport him back to Rhodes Island for further treatment..."

Seeing Medic's open and direct gaze, Saria had been keeping her head down, nodded.

"Although I don't know if the 'special equipment' you mentioned is the one I know, I think I understand... And what is the current team roster?"

"Here... if possible, I'd like to assemble a full squad. With Saria as our medical assistant, we'll need at least one anesthesiologist to help establish extracorporeal circulation..."

"We also need a professional scrub nurse... Doesn't Rhodes Island have a suitable candidate?"

In response to his new colleague's question, Medic pursed his lips: Seven

"Rhodes Island's Medical Department primarily focuses on Oripathy data... and many medical operators are trained with the goal of treating or intervening in Oripathy... In terms of emergency response methods, Rhodes Island isn't much better than those public hospitals..."

Seeing Medic's troubled expression, Saria quickly pulled up a file bearing the Rhine Lab logo. The white Liberi on the file had somewhat inorganic eyes, and just meeting their gaze made Medic's tail bristle slightly.

"... So, if you can trust a newly arrived... but not even officially contracted medical operator, then I have a recommendation. Although her previous position at Rhine Lab was data administrator, and she also suffers from drowsiness due to being the Infected."

However, she has extensive experience in using hormone medications, and in addition to holding numerous professional titles such as senior anesthesiologist, she also has extensive surgical assistance experience in the Rhine Lab Eighth Research Group...

"Aside from her lack of field experience and expertise in handling emergencies, I think the professional medical personnel you're looking for are right here in the Rhodes Island lounge."

PS: Waaaaa cat flag

PSS: Although we've sped up, it doesn't seem like we'll be able to fly to Ursus immediately... Oh well, let's just stick to this pace.

6th Patriot's Gun: 228 White Cuckoo & Saria Don't Understand People's Hearts

Joyce Moore, the former data administrator of Rhine Lab, arrived at Rhodes Island with Saria and others. Being recommended by such elite warriors, she must be no ordinary person.

However, since Miss Moore hasn't officially joined Rhodes Island yet, and hasn't even prepared a codename, she naturally hasn't been assigned any work... Moreover, it's suspected to be an operation to go to a high-risk area for a high-difficulty mission... Unlike Saria, who was directly recommended to join the team by Kal'tsit, Nana might need to extend a private invitation to Joyce Moore.

On their way to a common lounge, Nana asked Saria with a slightly worried and quick voice:

"... I can handle the recruitment process for the agent through a special channel, but what is Ms. Moore's personality like? Will she agree to our request? If she has doubts or hesitations, what kind of reward should I offer to attract her interest?"

Watching Nana's relentless footsteps and her barrage of questions like a machine gun, even the usually serious Saria stiffened slightly.

"Based on my understanding, Joyce isn't someone difficult to approach. Of course... she has some quirks... but those are just her unique ways of communicating... However, I originally thought you'd be more concerned about Joyce's combat skills than the difficulty of inviting her..."

Nana glanced at Saria at her strange question, then quickened her pace, still clutching the Rhodes Island employment contract she had casually brought with her.

"She was recommended by you, and you were strongly recommended by Kal'tsit, a high-ranking operator with initial privileges of level six... I will trust your judgment unless it is something I am particularly good at... If this makes you think I am frivolous, then please understand my actions as my trust in Kal'tsit."

"... I understand. Well then, please allow me to reciprocate your trust. Regarding the invitation, you only need to truthfully explain your difficulties to Joyce, and leave the actual persuasion to me..."

"... Also, please tell me Ms. Moore's job title and salary at Rhine Lab. I will compensate Ms. Moore with 30% more than the average expedited contract from a headhunting firm like Columbia... Please make sure she truly understands that Rhodes Island... we need her."

Nodding seriously, Saria's expression remained calm, but Nana could sense that trust and first impressions between them were gradually building.

Upon arriving at the lounge, Medic initially rejected the question about using advanced privileges to force open the door, intending to show Joyce Moore the most basic courtesy. However, when the doorbell rang, the entire answering machine remained silent... or perhaps it couldn't be said to be silent, since Nana could hear faint breathing sounds from the other end of the answering machine.

Very even... Is it sleeping or resting?

Puzzled, Nana glanced at the SHD agent-grade watch on her wrist. It was 8:42 PM, not yet bedtime for most modern city dwellers... Was the journey to Rhodes Island very arduous?

As Nana hesitated about whether to continue, Saria stepped forward and said:

"Joyce is probably asleep again... I mentioned before, her Oripathy probably caused her to be so drowsy..."

"I see," said the neighboring doctor.

At this moment, the conflict between polite contact and the fact that the Doctor's life was hanging by a thread kept clashing in Nana's mind. In the end... although it would be a bit unfair to Miss Moore, Medic still made up her mind to use her senior administrative privileges to open doors.

"I hope Miss Moore won't mind my offense..."

But recalling the other person's file, Nana worried that such a shock might have adverse effects on Miss Moore's condition... Just as Nana stopped what she was doing, Saria nodded in affirmation, seemingly confirming something.

"How about this, since my dorm is here too, it won't be a disturbance if I open the door... I'll wake Joyce up first and explain things to her, then Medic, you can go meet her, okay?"

Saria's hesitant proposal, which took almost ten seconds to come up with, made Nana feel a little embarrassed... She was so focused on solving the problem quickly that she forgot that what might be a dilemma for her might be a trivial matter for others...

After this expressionless self-examination, Medic stiffly withdrew his hand, adjusted the control panel to normal, and then gestured for Saria to proceed.

The atmosphere between the two became incredibly awkward when Saria confirmed the fingerprint unlock.

Of course, perhaps Saria is the kind of person who, as long as she herself isn't embarrassed, only others will be. Seeing her always holding her head high and not acting like she was deliberately trying to embarrass herself, Nana didn't breathe a sigh of relief until the door closed.

Although... she hadn't even spent an hour with Saria in total, Nana had already begun to suspect... that Saria... seemed to lack any emotional intelligence whatsoever.

How could I stand by and watch my superior struggle with something, while I watched and laughed for at least three minutes before finally saying that I lived there?!

You're the kind of person who turns the table around when your boss tries to serve you food, aren't you?!

Although Nana herself doesn't particularly care about this kind of superior-subordinate relationship in the workplace, if someone from SWEEP were to ask her those classic interrogation questions...

What are you trying to represent, imply, expose, or overturn? What are your motives, purposes, and thoughts? Who is behind you? Whom do you represent? Do you understand the hidden purpose behind your actions...?

Nana explained that she didn't see SWEEP's reprimand template on purpose; it was just that Hong always carried that thing around and recited it during class, which made Rosemary grumble about it, so it was hard for Nana not to know.

As her thoughts drifted, Nana questioned the meaning of life for a moment... Then, about 180 seconds passed in the blink of an eye, and the door to the lounge, which had temporarily become a visitor's dormitory, opened again. Nana saw Joyce Moore, who had been strongly recommended by Saria.

As a race almost on par with Liberi Feline, Miss Joyce didn't seem particularly special at first glance.

She wore a white dress with a yellow-based, black-trimmed white coat covered in Originium protective material. The orange-yellow Originium protective material extended from the inside of the coat to the sleeves. Her white hair and golden eyes matched the characteristics in the file. The Originium Arts magic waveforms surrounding her were of the diffusion healing type and were quite strong.

Aside from wearing the Rhine Lab armband while on Rhodes Island, Joyce Moore, aside from her mental state, looked no different from an ordinary Liberi.

Why emphasize 'mental state'? Because the first thing the other person said to Nana left the cat completely bewildered.

"Rhine Lab data maintainer Joyce Moore has completed startup. Please enter the command line to proceed. 101010111101000."

Is that some kind of code?

Nana instinctively calculated and quickly analyzed the meaning of the string of numbers in her mind, but because the binary characteristics were too obvious... Nana simply converted the number into hexadecimal to get the password 55e8. Then, according to Unicode encoding, 55e8 can be converted into the most common official Chinese character of Great Yan in Rhodes Island's decoration language - 'Hi'.

"... Hi?"

Nana's quick response suddenly roused the white-haired Liberi, who had been feeling a bit sleepy when the door opened. As his ears perked up, Joyce's eyes were filled with curiosity.

Joyce Moore was quite surprised. This was the first time, apart from researcher Silence, that someone had directly completed the parsing of the inefficient call code... Hello, Rhodes Island's Human Resources Department, Medic Director, Joyce Moore is speaking to you through the chat interface. It's a pleasure to meet you.

"The system is currently processing suggestions regarding Ms. Saria. The question is: do you truly require Joyce Moore's assistance, and are you willing to accept an emergency mobilization package based on the Rhine Lab system, which is 30% higher than the average market price for headhunting firms?"

Although there were some stumbles, as Saria said, Joyce's communication, while unique, was also easy to understand... Although Nana didn't quite understand why the other party would specifically ask again about something she had agreed to from the beginning, Medic, of course, would give a serious answer to such a formal inquiry:

"Yes, due to an emergency, I've decided to hire you across the entire county on an exceptionally favorable contract to participate in the subsequent rescue mission for VIPs... The mission may span at least a year, and the area is Ursus, a region with deteriorating security and a very hostile environment for the Infected... I know my request is somewhat unreasonable, but the position and salary I'm offering should be commensurate with these risks."

As he spoke, he handed over the contract he had prepared. But after only glancing at a portion of it, Joyce, expressionless, had her earlobes flutter like tiny wings...

Nana knew that, just as Feline could move its cat ears like Feline, a few Liberi could control their degenerated bird feathers like they could control their limbs after training... But this was the first time Nana had ever seen Joyce flap its ear feathers with such an expressionless face.

Is it because they have too few facial expressions, so they habitually use ear movements to express their feelings?

So, is she satisfied or dissatisfied with her current state?

Obviously, Nana didn't need to guess this question. Knowing that Joyce was difficult for normal people to understand, she simply looked up again and clearly expressed why she had such an unusual reaction:

"Surprisingly, although I've heard about Rhodes Island's generous treatment of the Infected employees, compared to Rhine Lab's gradual neglect after Joyce Moore's serious illness, Rhodes Island's improvement in this unit's treatment exceeds three hundred percent... And that's without even considering employee treatment benefits... Ms. Saria, Joyce Moore is very grateful for your recommendation... Minister of Medic, may I ask the effective date of this contract after this unit signs it?"

"Immediately."

"Understood. This machine will now obey the reasonable orders of the Minister of Medic within the scope of his authority. User registration will now begin. How should this machine address you?"

"Nana Ivy, codename Medic... And if you're working at Rhodes Island, I also suggest you choose a codename for yourself."

Seeing the other party sign the contract so readily, without even haggling with him, Medic gave Saria a grateful look, though she didn't react at all.

"Understood. A more suitable codename has been selected from 20,593 search results... 'Ptilopsis' now belongs to Rhodes Island Pharmaceutical Company, and this machine is formerly Rhine Lab Sciences, a data maintenance specialist."

"Has achieved considerable success in the field of medical Originium Arts, and possesses extensive experience in areas such as medical data maintenance, application of routine medical procedures, and multi-project medical procedures."

"... Hmm, so you mean you're better suited for the Medical Department... However, due to the upcoming mission, you'll be working as a medical operator with the Human Resources Special Operations Team. I've already sent your file to Kal'tsit, and I'll make a second adjustment to your position after this mission is over..."

At this point, Nana frowned again. Although positions and job responsibilities are a kind of work area division within the company... in the upcoming mission, having a heavily protected person dressed too much like a medical operator... seems to reveal her strategic purpose in some ways.

"Therefore, Ptilopsis, you will temporarily work in the Human Resources Department as a data administrator, and will be publicly identified as a support operator... Of course, your promised benefits will not change in any way; this adjustment is made to achieve tactical deception in the upcoming mission..."

"Understood. This machine will provide Rhodes Island with data processing services, along with auxiliary work on medical-related projects."

Although the other party still spoke in an inorganic, emotionless, and unresponsive tone, for some reason, Medic felt as if Empathy the emotions of a white-haired girl winking at him with a very playful mood.

Seeing that 'Ptilopsis' had completed her onboarding so smoothly, Saria once again rose from the doorframe she was leaning against and looked at Medic:

"Captain, I believe that the addition of Operator Ptilopsis has met your minimum medical standards for the team... Next, please let us meet with the team members for this operation, organize the team's equipment, and confirm the transportation methods to the east."