Chapter 214

Amidst the cheers coming from the other party's communicator, Medic's smile seemed to have gained some genuine meaning... However, just when Medic and the officer thought everything was going well, a communication from the Ursus battleship suddenly made the officer tense:

[This is the flagship of the Grand Duke Baikal. The Grand Duke Baikal himself is here. Checkpoint. Report back.]

"Ah? Yes--!! This is the checkpoint..."

[Alright, enough nonsense, you're inspecting Rhodes Island, right?]

"Yes... yes! I will definitely complete the inspection procedures strictly and will not allow anyone to..."

[Alright, alright, of all the inspectors, you're the one who talks the most nonsense... Rhodes Island? Ha... Let them go back to where they came from, Chernobog... no, Ursus doesn't welcome them!]

Listening to the voice on the other end of the communicator, Medic's expression turned serious; clearly, this was the worst-case scenario.

Was it because of last year's cooperation with the Emperor that the Old Nobility became suspicious of Rhodes Island? Did they suspect that they themselves were spies for the Emperor?

What should I do here?

If we launch a full-scale attack with Tactical Unit... no, that's a last resort. There should still be a chance.

"Excuse me, may I interrupt?"

His mind raced, quickly determining that the other party was watching them, and Medic gave a standard salute towards the Ursus warship:

"Your Excellency, I have something to say. Wouldn't it be alright to hear both sides before criticizing?"

[... You're testing my patience, Feline.]

Through the spell, watching the flash of light from the telescope on the Landship, Medic licked his lips:

"After all, I'm a subordinate of the company, and I still have the company's performance targets to meet."

Aren't you afraid I'll just blast you to smithereens? A mere the Infected...

"This... I'm afraid that's not a good idea... In this land, ignoring the condition of the Infected is ultimately due to Ursus's own unique circumstances... But Rhodes Island is more than just a pharmaceutical company... Moreover, I believe that His Highness needs our help right now."

[Oh? Okay, I'll give you three minutes... If you can't give me a straight answer in three minutes, I'll treat you to a cannonball!]

As the sergeant pityingly handed him the communicator, Medic accepted it with a gentle smile... but beneath his bangs, unseen by anyone else, a glint of predator's gaze flashed across his face.

"Well then, excuse me..."

PS: Waaaaaaah!

PSS: I deleted the last edit, and then I realized I'd hit the deadline while editing, sob sob sob.

6th Patriot's Gun: 234 Wouldn't that just mean you all have no choice but to die?

After the Rhodes Island Exploration Vehicle was driven ten kilometers away from Chernobog by the Ursus Nobility army's fleet with its cannons pointed at it until it disappeared from sight, the atmosphere among Nana and her group became somewhat tense... Among them, Amiya, who was in Folinic's arms, was particularly heartbreaking with her sobs.

Although the Little Bunny only stepped forward when Medic tried to persuade him with words, and acted according to plan with a childlike smile... no matter how much Medic analyzed the pros and cons, and even offered Rhodes Island's invincible free special blocking drug as a bargaining chip, the Grand Duke Baikal remained unmoved, as if to say, "You're right, but I won't listen."

Perhaps for those who have already reached the position of Grand Duke, who are at the pinnacle of power in the old era, the ideals of Rhodes Island, the stability of society, the honor of being a nobleman, the prosperity of the country... are probably insignificant compared to personal gains and losses.

Of course, the more likely reason is that Rhodes Island is already considered an external faction of the Ursus royal family... The fact that the Nana side patiently paused for three minutes and ultimately did not order the shelling of Rhodes Island's Exploration Vehicle was simply out of concern for their international reputation.

Medic had little to say about the failure of his conservative plan; such a setback wasn't unacceptable to experienced operators. However, for Amiya, a young woman who was barely managing to step into the role of CEO, facing an Ursus Nobility who made no attempt to conceal his malice towards the Infected... it was simply too much to ask.

Even so, Amiya still fulfilled her duties as CEO of Rhodes Island... In Medic's opinion, the Little Bunny's ability to stand at the front of the team without flinching in the face of the Landship threat was already quite an achievement.

With a sigh, Medic broke the silence first:

"Let's take stock of the situation now. Have you checked everything on the vehicle? Is any of our equipment damaged?"

Ptilopsis: "Response: The Exploration Vehicle's medical system is functioning normally across all modules."

Seeing Medic's gaze turn to her, Weedy remained calm, clenched her fist, and nodded.

"Well, the Exploration Vehicle itself doesn't look like it's been tampered with... although I was a bit scared when those soldiers rushed onto it so aggressively."

"Neither I nor the Ptilopsis were discovered."

Such a brief report made Saria frown as she recalled what she had witnessed on PRTS:

"However, the situation in Ursus is worse than we imagined... Medic, I have reason to suspect that Chernobog is now under martial law."

"No, Chernobog could be in any state, but it absolutely cannot be under martial law..."

Thinking it over, Medic continued, stroking the top of the Little Bunny's droopy ears:

"Everyone has reviewed the data over the past six months. We've also analyzed the root causes of Ursus's belligerence. Considering Chernobog's unique characteristics, as I've said before, this is an isolated city that nobody cares about."

Medic glanced at Folinic, and after the person in question nodded, he continued:

"Folinic's mother... Kal'tsit's research team was interrupted by the Fourth Army when they were studying the Sarcophagus... That was the legion stationed on the Ice Plains, which had repeatedly moved between the Emperor and the nobles, but this time it ultimately went to war directly with the Fifth Army. They were also the direct factor that ignited the Ursus Civil War, and most importantly, their sphere of influence belonged to Grand Duke Koschei."

"... The immortal Black Snake." (The dam)

Recalling what Medic has gradually revealed to everyone over the past six months about their experiences during last year's Iceborne mission, and what kind of being the 'Black Snake' truly is, everyone has a basic understanding now... Although that kind of thinking—'things will be alright as long as the war with Ursus starts'—is really not something ordinary people can comprehend, but that's okay, and there's no need for everyone to try to understand Him that way.

Saria then followed up on Medic's words, saying: Lin

"We already know from the files why Koschei's army would ignite a civil war. However, the Fourth Army is still in the Snowfield, which has nothing to do with our current mission..."

"Is it alright? But this is the root cause of our current situation, so mentioning Him is unavoidable..."

"Let's continue with Chernobog. The Fourth Army's attempt to use military Sarcophagus was the reason Kal'tsit abandoned the experiment, and it's also the direct logic behind the tragedy of Folinic, but there are other underlying causes."

"According to Kal'tsit's intelligence, after the Fourth Army massacred the laboratory, two researchers survived. One was Kal'tsit herself, who was cautious in her actions, and the other was Sergei, who betrayed the other researchers for the sake of his family... Kal'tsit sent away several laboratory staff members' children during that incident, Folinic was one of them... Of course, the focus I want to mention here is Sergei."

"His children also met a bad end, we'll talk about that later. The important thing is, without Kal'tsit's team, Sergei alone couldn't continue the Sarcophagus research as required by the army, and could only keep it sealed away as a public utility for powering the city itself... All of this is in the archives."

"What we see now, but not in the archives, is that Chernobog is growing and thriving thanks to non- Originium energy sources, a prerequisite for Chernobog's rapid industrialization... Leveraging this, it established an academy, moved to the warm south, and became a prosperous city with convenient transportation."

"But we must see beyond the surface. The reason I say Chernobog is an isolated city is precisely because it is essentially detached from the Ursus Originium system, even a system that greatly impacts Originium, a widely accepted traditional energy source... Ironically, Chernobog is based in southern Ursus, a region rapidly strengthening thanks to the Originium Industrial Revolution... And the person we are speaking with today is none other than Grand Duke Baikal, the energy tycoon of southern Ursus, the staff officer of the Third Army, and the primary beneficiary of the Highview Refinery."

Seeing everyone suddenly understand through her analysis, Amiya wiped her eyes and then frowned, just like Saria:

"So, the Third Army surrounding Chernobog... is deliberately trying to kill Chernobog? But what does that have to do with us? It's not like our arrival will save Chernobog..."

"This brings us to the actual controller of Chernobog; it's mentioned in the intelligence, isn't it...?"

Seeing Medic look at her again, Amiya nodded and said:

"His name is... Boris..."

"Yes, it's him... This person isn't a traditional Ursus noble; he bought his title after the Great Rebellion, what we often call a 'New Nobility.' And interestingly, Boris neither panders to the traditional Ursus Nobility factions nor is he particularly inclined to be Royalist Faction aligned with the Emperor."

"... I see, that's why this place was chosen as the army's assembly point... No, is this really an army assembly point? Or is it simply Grand Duke Baikal's personal initiative?"

Liskarm glanced Franka Typhon and Mika, who were nonchalantly stuffing potato chips into their mouths, especially at the two children's chests, which seemed a size larger than hers... Out of sight, out of mind, she turned her head and shrugged at Medic.

"This kind of thing doesn't really matter... Medic, are you saying that Chernobog is essentially a place where, no matter how we handle it, aside from international public opinion, it's basically unloved and neglected in Ursus, so even if we're a bit rough, it's okay?"

Franka nodded; although she seemed carefree, she understood Medic's thoughts quite well.

But Medic couldn't exactly say, 'Grand Duke Baikal is already courting death, let's go kill him,' so they presented evidence and reasoned with everyone to prepare them mentally, which was Medic's way of building rapport.

"Although it's described as 'brutal,' it hasn't reached the point of directly confronting them head-on... Grand Duke Baikal is concerned about Rhodes Island's international reputation, and we are also hampered by those high-speed warships... Directly engaging in war with an army supported by a complete fleet is not only reckless, but also borders on insanity. Therefore, no matter how much we resist, we must avoid conflict with the military before rescuing the Doctor."

"But then, how are we supposed to get to the Doctor's side?"

Seeing the somewhat anxious Little Bunny, Medic gently patted the girl's head again and sighed, saying:

"I thought you listened to my analysis Amiya..."

"Oops... I'm sorry..."

"No, Amiya just lacks experience. The others should know what I want to do, right?"

Jessica, who shared a somewhat tacit understanding with Medic, timidly raised her hand in response to his questioning gaze:

"If we can't get through to Grand Duke Baikal, then... we'll go find Marquis Boris?"

"Yes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend... Even if we become enemies later, we can still talk about projects that are not related to our core interests."

Seeing that Medic immediately came up with a new plan, Saria's tightly furrowed brow relaxed a little, but she still had to pour cold water on everyone's hopes:

"However, as Rhodes Island operators, we cannot legally enter the city... Although the Third Army has not officially occupied the city, I imagine there are still plainclothes sentries and such... If we are discovered..."

Just as Saria said, even if the Third Army did not directly take over, it still had control over the city... but as long as 'Rhodes Island' did not appear in the city, this control was essentially the same as nothing to everyone.

Saria, who had fallen silent, had probably already considered this.

Even if an individual is incredibly strong, they're bound to lose against an army... But, with your cumbersome and inefficient fleet, what good methods do you have for handling Rhodes Island's most prized small-scale special operations?

"So that's how it is. So this is the result of keeping us out of the public eye back then...?"

Seeing Saria turn to look at her, Ptilopsis tilted her head, seemingly still confused, but Medic interrupted what Saria was about to say:

"Of course, the infiltration mission would be too risky for Agent Ptilopsis... I certainly wouldn't suggest having her cross the border with you."

"Then, I'll do it all by myself..."

"... I'll go with you."

Interrupting Ms. Saria's speech, which revealed her lack of self-awareness regarding her communication skills, Medic once again showcased his signature talent in front of everyone.

First, he focused his magic on his eyes, and Medic's signature heterochromatic eyes slowly transformed into the golden irises unique to Liberi. Then, he ruffled the top of his head, and his cat ears quickly became ear feathers exactly like those of Ptilopsis, as if they had been sculpted.

As Nana combed her short black hair to silver-white, under the influence of Witchcraft, Nana hairstyle, which looked like that of a well-behaved girl, quickly took on the literary, girlish style unique to Joyce Moore.

Although Medic's magical performance seemed to frighten the person he was playing, the Ptilopsis appeared so shocked that he turned into 'a leash'.

"The interface has stopped working... Joyce Moore is shocked..."

"It's obvious you've started calling yourself by your real name."

After making this comment, Franka turned to look at the other 'Ptilopsis':

"I've seen you do Jessica's makeup before with Medic, but at least Jessica's makeup could be considered a skill... You've practically changed her race!"

Medic simply shrugged expressionlessly. The assassin cleared her throat, and amidst everyone's astonished expressions, Nana's voice gradually became very similar to that of the Ptilopsis... If you had to describe it, it was probably like the Ptilopsis's voice when it had a cold, slightly lower than the original.

"Just some Chimera magic tricks... not worth mentioning."

Amiya looked at Medic with a strange expression.

After all, Nana's behavior made Amiya feel quite clueless... Although Amiya only had a vague understanding of her own physical condition, she was Chimera, right? Why didn't she have such outrageous magic?

Seeing that everyone was starting to go off-topic again, Saria pinched the bridge of her nose and said, seemingly annoyed:

"In short, I have a general understanding of the situation. We're entering the country under the Rhine Lab's name... what's the reason?"

"The Sarcophagus is here, and the only Mobile City on this entire land that doesn't use Originium power is here. What other reason do we need? Completing archaeology before destruction— Rhine Lab could do that too, right?"

"... In fact, we only do this within Columbia..."

It was rare to see Saria with such a troubled expression. The former head of the Rhine Defense Department always felt that Medic had a strange misunderstanding about Columbia's research companies:

"Wouldn't this be too high-profile? Won't we get invited for tea by Grand Duke Baikal again?"

"... Whether it's true or not, we'll only know after we've done it."

Seeing Medic's stance, the others exchanged glances and nodded solemnly in agreement with Medic's idea. After all... they didn't have any better options.

"Then it's decided... Now we'll find a water source to settle the Exploration Vehicle. Also, Weedy, please prepare some Originium Prime and a briefcase... about 200,000 Lungmen Dollar should be enough."

"Are we going to send money to those warlords again?"

Medic wasn't happy about Weedy's disgusted expression either, but to say that Rhine Lab wanted to see the fascinating new energy source before the city collapsed without making any preparations was just disrespectful to them.

Whether this batch of Originium ends up in the Third Army or Chernobog is irrelevant; Medic's current plan is to hope that Rhodes Island can enter the country through normal channels.

All I can say is that I hope the other party won't be so stubborn...

Otherwise, if you won't let me enter the country or let me see the Sarcophagus... wouldn't I just have to kill you all?

"Finally... Tactical Unit, keep it in good working order... hopefully I won't need to use it."

PS: Waaaaaaah!

PSS: It's that time of year again for the family dinner, and before it even started, my stomach started churning with diarrhea... I guess I'll never break this habit of getting a stomachache when I'm nervous... And because of the diarrhea, the upload is ruined, sob sob sob.

6th Patriot's Gun: 235 - A series of twists and turns

Infiltration... is an art that requires patience and timing.

In order to arrange an entry route for herself and Saria that was at least superficially inconspicuous, Nana spent nearly a week searching for and waiting for long-distance buses from Columbia to Ursus... Finally, considering both time and geographical factors, the girl settled on a tourist bus company that operated the Columbia - Lungmen route... The time spent on this was mainly spent waiting.

Their large passenger Originium- powered vehicle was originally scheduled to arrive in Lungmen in June of this year, but due to the escalating impact of the winter Catastrophes codenamed Black Edge on Columbia, constant detours, inexplicable traffic control at the Laisenton platform, and the passing of suitable sailing time... traveling on the muddy ground of Ursus, this 1,800-meter-long luxury passenger Landship did not arrive in Chernobog until July.

Saria and Nana are both very patient people. While Amiya was still working hard to give Oripathy lectures in the surrounding villages to cover for the two of them, on the evening of July 3, 1095 Ursus time, Nana temporarily said goodbye to the other partners on the Exploration Vehicle who were sticking to their posts, and began the plan to enter Chernobog with Saria.

"Before we begin, I double-checked everything. Our next task is to board that luxury passenger ship, alter the passenger list, forge tickets and Customs inspection records, and then enter Chernobog..."