Chapter 304

"There's a problem here, but let's ignore it for now... let me check the rest first..."

As they inspected and labeled, similar abnormal life forms were observed to be present in multiples within the pipes, just as Nana had predicted. Seaborn would undoubtedly spread along the pipes of yesterday's building.

What Nana needs to do now is to completely eliminate them before they build nests again.

"The areas where these pipelines originate... do you know what's in those places?"

As Nana marked the locations on the map according to the engineering drawings, the plumbers and gang members, who had been busy all day, gathered around:

"Holy crap, isn't this that Little Steel Ball parlor that moved here from the Higashi?!"

"... That's a street full of vegetable markets, you idiot! How come you only remember the Little Steel Ball?"

"Not only Little Steel Ball, but also arcade games and pool tables are available!"

Seeing that the topic had quickly veered off to a point where she couldn't get a word in edgewise, Nana looked at the thoughtful-looking Crow:

"Is that area your property? Has anything unusual happened recently?"

"That's not our territory, don't expect to be able to call people around like we do here... But Kowloon is such a small place, everyone knows every hair on their butt... And if there's anything unusual, there's nothing really... It's just theft, fighting, who's arguing with whom... things like that?"

As he spoke, he tossed away the cigarette butt in his hand and stomped it out, the Crow instantly reverting to its usual smug expression:

"Although I don't quite understand it... it seems like there's nothing wrong with the area where I live?"

Seeing Nana nod, the Crow clapped exaggeratedly:

"That's good, that's good. I won't get involved in your trip to the Kowloon main sluice gate. Call me if the boss needs anything... But you can take my underlings with you. They may not be good at anything particularly specialized, but they can carry bags and chase away a few clueless idiots... Afterwards, could you please check if they have any illnesses? After all, in this crappy place, it's really hard to find a place to see a doctor... Thank you for your trouble, I'll be going now."

They spoke politely, but their actions showed no courtesy whatsoever... They forcibly assigned tasks without considering the other party's intentions, which is very similar to the attitude of those gang leaders who are used to bossing others around.

However, Nana never stops doing things just because someone is missing... As long as no one gets in her way, Nana is kind to everyone.

"... So, girl, what exactly are you doing here? Are you from the Lungmen Governor's Office?"

"We are from Rhodes Island."

After explaining his purpose again, following up on the threat of 'parasitic infection,' the old man's previous confused and listless expression completely disappeared.

"Oh dear, you're here to help with medical treatment... Why didn't you say so earlier?"

Clearly, the other party mistook Rhodes Island, which had come with Crow, for some kind of accomplice. The old man, who had several cigarettes stolen from him in just a few minutes, seemed somewhat angry but dared not speak out against Crow.

Among the remaining underlings, one young man's eyes lit up immediately upon hearing what the plumber said:

"Hey! Old Qi, what do you mean? You think there's no good in being with Crow?"

"No, no, no, that's not what I meant... and I wasn't talking about Crow..."

"Pah! Don't I know who I'll get along with!"

Although it sounds a bit silly at first glance, upon closer inspection it constantly conveys the gangsters' control over this place. Because Nana deliberately stepped forward and blocked the two of them, this joke that was hard to laugh at finally came to an end.

Driving to the main plumbing maintenance workshop a few kilometers away in Kowloon, Nana checked the water supply and drainage system of the entire area using the same method as before.

After marking all the suspected Seaborn reactions on the map, he frowned as he looked at the chaotic, disorganized scene, where the lines resembled mycelium crawling haphazardly in a petri dish.

Although neither the gangsters nor the plumber could quite understand Nana's annotations... red indicated an anomaly, and the Kowloon land map on Nana's Terminal was covered with red crosses everywhere.

"... Does this mean Lungmen is finished?"

"That's an exaggeration. It only detected the area where the suspected source of infection is located. In reality, the only animals that might react to my spell are rats or something similar... Although its manifestation is very similar to parasitic infections, the success rate of spreading through the air as an aerosol is still very low... As long as the Pollution is dealt with, everything will be fine."

Is that so...?

While spouting things she herself didn't quite believe, Nana kept updating the map data with the Doctor while dealing with the concerns of the locals around her.

The claim that the success rate of aerosol diffusion is very low is completely unfounded. After all, Rhodes Island currently knows nothing about the fluid conversion rate of the Seaborn, including but not limited to the fact that the selection of protective equipment is almost entirely copied from the information provided by the Abyssal Hunters.

As for the Abyssal Hunters... that is, Aegir, his attitude towards Seaborn was one of utmost importance...

If Nana hadn't been considering the possibility of unrest among the public to prevent breaches of the quarantine lines, Nana advice would definitely have been home quarantine... but that would have been too reliant on fate.

The only assurance the assassin could give was that she would deal with the source of infection as soon as possible, and she was indeed prepared to do so.

[So, Medic, your next task is to deal with those individual Seaborn... and search for potential nests, right?]

In the dimly lit pipe maintenance room, a light suddenly appeared in Nana's pupils, carrying a text message from the Rhodes Island frontline commander.

[The last encounter was sudden, and given the extensive network of support channels, even though we expended considerable resources to completely eradicate them... as long as any Seaborn remains roaming, the Pollution cannot be stopped.]

[Although the situation may be hard to accept, thankfully Kal'tsit and the white-haired girl have already renegotiated the threat of the Seaborn with Lungmen, using Columbia's example from the battle in Siesta... What we are facing is not just simple Pollution, but a biohazardous Catastrophes comparable to a highly virulent plague.]

[I'm currently trying to contact the Celestial Master's Celestial Masters' Office of Yan through the connections of that Old Celestial Master. According to the information Dr. Kal'tsit gave me, if I can persuade them to classify the Great Yan Seaborn as Catastrophes, Lungmen will have to enter Catastrophes response mode and completely sever ties with the infected city modules.]

[Although Lungmen was clearly reluctant to accept this proposal, Rhodes Island's preparations for action could begin. Before the official clearance for the annihilation operation was issued, the Trauma Team could temporarily refrain from forcibly suppressing the spread of the Seaborn...]

[To put it bluntly, a certain number of casualties might actually make Lungmen more determined... But in any case, given the current lack of available resources, containing Seaborn's activities within the shantytown is the Trauma Team's top priority.]

[The command will now work with the Guard Bureau to ensure the Lungmen shipping team implements physical isolation measures for the Mobile City of the shantytown. Meanwhile, the artillery brought by Nagisa, after consulting with Governor Wei, has been temporarily deployed to the Guard Bureau's training grounds... Medic, if you wish, can also be transferred to the site by helicopter.]

[Currently, Nagisa has been stationed at the Guard Bureau building as a liaison between Rhodes Island and the Guard Bureau. A total of twelve L118 Towed Artillery have been equipped with sufficient automated drones and are on standby. Through Nagisa and Medic's 'Halo' data link and the special reloaded ammunition processed by the Guard Bureau engineers, the artillery group can bypass various urban terrains with high-arc curves similar to mortars to accurately destroy your targets.]

[Finally, I granted the Medic Trauma Team the authority to call the Rosemary Squad, using my 'Doctor' powers.]

[Ms. Kal'tsit assigned it to my command ten minutes ago. Now, I'm leaving the decision of when to deploy it to the front lines... If the situation has reached an emergency, whether our frontline operators are in mortal danger or the threat from Seaborn is nearing its limit, and given that Nana's equipment is currently being held in custody, Little Cat is our strongest registered asset.]

[This means Rhodes Island has deployed its elite forces; hopefully everyone involved will return safely.]

Nana waved to shut down the projection, then Rope to Ansuo, who had also seen the notification on his phone. After saying goodbye to the plumber who had been a great help, the two prepared to move to the 'Pollution' that the gang's underlings were reluctant to go to.

"Wait, didn't they say there were parasitic reactions over there, and that it could easily kill people?"

"Yes, and I did say there's currently no cure... So, are you still going to come along?"

Using slightly intimidating words to make the gang members hesitant and stop following, Nana, as the on-site Executor, felt there was still much she could do before the annihilation order was issued.

Having confirmed that those people had no intention of continuing to follow, Nana slightly unzipped her zipper to check the pistol... Rope also took out his grappling hook and other items from under his seat.

"Let's go, today's work is..."

Go hunt down those who might be hunting down the Lungmen.

PS: Waaaaaaah!

PSS: It seems Rhodes Island is indeed steadily increasing Lungmen's alert level against the Seaborn. I just wonder if, when the battle actually begins, Rhodes Island's action team members will find a "Seaborn in action detected" message in front of them, and then all sorts of Frightfish will crawl out of the underground pipes... In that case, we won't need Landship; we'll probably need to send a super destroyer for orbital bombardment.

And why did I suddenly have this feeling...? Because Axi, I played HD2, and in my last game before writing this, I got kicked by the host of the group I was playing with before I left... I'm feeling really down.

9th Lungmen Seafood: 349 You will die on the streets of Lungmen!

The twin Twin Moons of early summer hang high in the sky, the shadows of the neon lights are empty.

The shops on both sides of the street had their shutters tightly shut, and the layered buildings were faintly visible in the moonlight and mist. Although it was already summer, the night wind was chillingly cold, carrying flyers or paper bags through the maze-like alleys, then letting out a mournful howl like a wounded wild animal.

The market, which was bustling when night fell, turned eerie by midnight. If it weren't for the scattered lights illuminating the young people on night watch playing cards and shouting, Nana would have really felt like she had entered a haunted house or something similar.

Obviously, the appearance of a new car on a street with hardly any living creatures is already quite eye-catching, and if that car is also driving around the shantytown at low speed, it would be foolish not to attract the attention of the local thugs.

However, compared to the special case of Crow being summoned, perhaps it's because Nana's appearance doesn't suggest she's there to do bad things. At present, although this group of social activists is pointing and whispering about Nana and Rope from a distance, they are still maintaining a basic sense of distance.

Since that's the case, Nana stopped paying attention to them and focused on her own task.

According to the Doctor's latest orders, Nana's main tasks now are to confirm two things: first, to confirm the location of the Seaborn's nest in preparation for future annihilation operations; and second, to stop their expansion and suppress their ever-spreading momentum... The former is simple, after all, nests don't run away.

As for the latter, before the authorization to conduct annihilation operations that could potentially damage Mobile City is issued, Nana can only say that she will do her best and leave the rest to fate... After all, compared to fixed targets, this type that can reproduce on its own is really beyond the capabilities of a single person.

"... This should be it, the place where the Seaborn reaction was discovered earlier..."

After confirming the relative coordinates, Nana and Rope looked out the car window. Although the entire street was a vegetable market, with shops selling all kinds of daily necessities everywhere... plus the entertainment venues catering to the gangsters, if you asked where the most likely place to hide filth, Nana could only say that it could be anywhere.

After getting off the vehicle, Nana conducted a magical scan of the area, searching for the most unusual part among a bunch of anomalies, and then led Rope to a storefront.

Although the roller shutter door was tightly closed, the lightbox sign for "Zhu's Butcher Shop" was still lit up... Because of the search and law enforcement powers granted by the Guard Bureau, Nana's action of taking out lock-picking tools to open the roller shutter door made no attempt to hide it.

But this place is different from the suspicious building from yesterday, and Nana isn't with the Guard Bureau, Penguin Logistics, or Lin Yuhsia —no 'locals' around. With a shout from afar, the young people who had been observing from a distance frowned and called out to Nana:

"Hey! Hey--! I'm talking to you, you with the bob Feline, yeah, the one with the Cautus's hair accessory, I'm talking to you... What are you doing running Old Zhu's shop?!"

Although it's known that in areas with insufficient government control, gangs have even replaced grassroots organizations like neighborhood committees, the fact that gang members would actually stop suspicious activity, compared to the fact that even legitimate government employees might turn a blind eye, is because this store paid money to the gang?

Sighing, Nana turned around, took the Little Bunny with its ears taut and hands on its waist hook, and began to display her, albeit not-so-good-at-her-tact, eloquence once again, without changing her expression:

"I am a staff member of the Lungmen Health Department. This is my identification. I am inspecting an area that may have biological hazards..."

"What kind of inspection requires this kind of dark and gloomy time?"

As he spoke, he suspiciously took Nana's ID card holder. Of course, it was Rhodes Island Medical Department's medical license. Looking at the main business of Rhodes Island on the back of the card, the gang members were even more puzzled. If there were suitable Originium Arts, they would definitely have a big question mark above their heads.

"... An expert in handling Oripathy... your major isn't even relevant to this!"

But I...

"Stop! I'm only asking you this: wasn't it wrong of you to open someone's shop in the dark...?"

Despite all her calculations, Nana never expected the gang members to actually try to reason with her. Nana had nothing to say about stealing someone else's shop; it was indeed her fault.

"However, Rhodes Island has the Governor's Office's permission, and we are allowed to enter any area that needs to be investigated... This is a permit issued by the Lungmen Fire Department, Medical, and Guard Bureau themselves."

Although the so-called proof was just a search authorization notice posted on the Lungmen Government's intranet, the Guard Bureau probably never imagined that Rhodes Island, fully armed and even equipped with heavy weapons, would be stopped by ordinary citizens. Ch'en didn't bring Nana any paper search warrant or anything like that... Nana decided that she must go and get one tomorrow.

But perhaps even more troubling than the issue of legality is the extremely weak control that Lungmen law has over the shantytown itself... The gangsters in front of them didn't even glance at the government notice that Nana showed them on her phone, simply waving it away:

"The Guard Bureau has no jurisdiction here. When have they ever cared about 'The Infected' territory? All I know is that you're illegally trespassing. Either you get out of here now, or I'll teach you a lesson... Choose before my patience runs out!"

As the conversation progressed and the group's expressions turned hostile, they pulled out steel pipes and picked up folding stools. Surprisingly, Nana didn't notice that they weren't carrying any lethal weapons like short knives or daggers.

After concluding that "this group might not be the kind of gang that primarily engages in extortion in the traditional sense," Nana realized that she didn't actually have many options.

With a slight sigh, the girl wearing Feline soft hat looked earnestly at the young people in front of her:

"Perhaps you've made a mistake somewhere... I'm the investigator representing the government, and you're the challenger who should be making the choice."

Tilting her head slightly, based on the basic etiquette that the other person wasn't carrying a short sword or similar weapon, Nana simply moved her wrist and tugged at the 'black gloves' part of the seemingly layered but actually bodysuit.

"I have law enforcement authority. The Rhodes Island Trauma Team is authorized to remove all obstacles. If you insist on stopping me, then you may come now."

"... You fucking?!"

Enraged by Nana's nonchalant attitude, the young man who had started the conversation didn't even turn around to take the folding chair his companion offered; instead, he swung his fist and charged at Nana.

He caught the hastily thrown fist, deflected it to throw the man off balance, then kicked him in the ankle, sending him sprawling to the ground. He then swung his arm in a circular motion, striking the second man who was charging at him with a steel pipe—right on the ear—and was done for.

Seeing that two of the young Feline had been taken down right away, the remaining five men immediately slowed their charge. One of them picked up his phone and started dialing for backup, while the other four exchanged glances and then scattered to try to encircle the enemy.

The martial arts of the Great Yan are based on the culture of chivalry, and its various fundamental theories are all integrated into this cultural heritage. Even the Infected haven't had much schooling understand the meaning of "three fists can't beat four feet" and "even a fierce tiger fears a pack of wolves" after being exposed to so many martial arts stories. But for Nana, the gap between her and these Light Gang members is not as simple as the difference between a 'tiger' and a 'wolf'.

It's just that I don't really want to get hit by steel pipes... mainly because I'm afraid of hitting myself with precision equipment like spell units. After all, if an SHD set is damaged, not to mention the price itself, the main problem is that resupply depends on Columbia's attitude.

So Nana mainly focused on dodging and deflecting the attacks with sticks when dealing with the four men. But even so, out of resentment at the disruption to their work, all four men received a hard slap from Nana.

Cats are very fair; they give each person one slap, no more, no less.

Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap!

No matter how the four of them surrounded and charged at them, they were just spinning around and being pulled back.

Being slapped on the face by a small hand that looked like a glove but was actually a knight's armor was not something they could simply endure. By the time they realized what was happening, the swelling and pain on one side of their face, which was larger than the other, more or less dampened their enthusiasm for charging forward.

Just when Nana thought the matter was over, a figure clearly carrying a weapon and wearing a beret, along with another figure clearly a woman named Feline, walked over from a distance.

The underling, who had escaped the slapping punishment because he made a phone call, immediately pointed at Nana:

"Brother Red! It's this woman! Not only did she break into Old Zhu's shop, but she also beat several of our brothers up like this!"

"..."

Although the other person looked conflicted after seeing Nana, with half their face covered by a mask, the henchman probably didn't see it and was still trying to trash-talk Nana:

"You're finished! You brat, Brother Red is coming, you're going to die on the streets of Lungmen!"

"Stop, I said stop... That's enough. You're used to making threats with other gangs, aren't you... This is Rhodes Island, an international medical organization, not here to ruin everyone's lives."

Because the other side didn't seem to be planning to fight, Nana tilted her head:

"You know me..."

"I'm from Ursus... I served under Sister Talulah for a while, and then they said they'd release a group of people to areas where they could live normally... I was one of them. Although you might not recognize me, you little soldier, I was very impressed with Rhodes Island when your team was healing us... in every sense of the word."

Just when Nana thought there was still room for negotiation, the other party's underlings scratched their heads, seemingly unable to accept it:

"But... Brother Red, they broke the rules... and Old Zhu paid the money, if we don't do anything, we won't be able to do this security business anymore."

"... That's true... Although, asking me to attack Rhodes Island is absurd... Go call my older sister, and while you're at it, make an appointment with the doctor in advance."

Watching the man named Red draw his longsword and mutter, "I'm fighting Rhodes Island? That Rhodes Island Medic who went toe-to-toe with the captain? Really?"... Nana quietly watched him assume his slashing stance and reluctantly reminded him: