The Operators at the Office

In fact, most people have very simple and honest ideas.

Ordinary people in places where they don't often encounter Infected will naturally fear Infected, given the long-term, subtle, and official communication about how dangerous Infected are.

But Rim Billiton is different, especially its miners.

Having dealt with Originium themselves, they undoubtedly have a deeper understanding of Originium.

While this also leads to many miners becoming Infected, it also means that ordinary people at the grassroots level will see even more Infected.

Especially since many of the Infected are acquaintances, they naturally don't have as much fear and prejudice against Infected as outsiders do.

Although the authorities remain strict with those Infected, the lower classes are generally doing the same thing, and since they see each other every day, they naturally won't suppress those Infected too much.

During the chat, Suika also learned that the official management only extends to outside the mines. The Infected inside the mines are basically not managed much. At most, the official will provide some necessary supervision when a mine is emptied and people are transferred.

Furthermore, while Infected are not oppressed in the mines, they also have no right to choose which mine to go to.

Unlike Matt and his friends, who are considered normal, they can't just leave anytime and move on to a new environment.

Suika believes this is probably a reflection of Rim Billiton's national situation.

After all, everyone knows the dangers of mining Originium veins, and mining veins can easily lead to infection.

So if we treat each batch as it gets infected, even if Rim Billiton is a rabbit den and can reproduce a lot, it will probably all die out.

It also instills in ordinary people the fear that entering a mine is tantamount to death.

In that case, it would be better to simply assign the more dangerous tasks to the Infected, while ordinary people can do the relatively safer ones.

Anyway, a lot of manpower will be needed after going down into the mine. The Infected need these jobs to earn money to buy medicine, while the country and the mine need these Infected to do the most dangerous things.

For Rim Billiton, this can be considered a win-win policy.

In this way, even though Rim Billiton has a considerable number of Infected at the grassroots level, the presence of ordinary citizens as a buffer between the two sides actually mitigates the conflicts and contradictions between the Infected and the authorities compared to other places.

Soon, Suika arrived at her destination— Steel Carrot City.

Rhodes Island has an office in this city, and the person Suika is looking for—Operator "Outcast" Charlotte— is located here.

After saying goodbye to Matt and his family (whose destination was further south), Suika was allowed into the city only after going through several security checks to confirm Infected.

Suika didn't seem to have any objections to this.

In most large cities, the number of security checks for normal entry into the city is significantly higher than this.

Suika is not Infected, and she is not carrying any wanted notices this time, so she naturally does not need to use any irregular channels to enter the city.

Steel Carrot City truly lives up to its reputation as one of Rim Billiton's large Mobile City; its land area is comparable in size to Lungmen.

However, Suika still encountered some minor troubles when she went to the Rhodes Island office.

She had learned the address from Amiya before she came, and as soon as she mentioned the main street, most people shook their heads and left.

Just as she was wondering, a boy patted her on the shoulder.

"You won't get the answer by asking these people. That's an Infected neighborhood, and these city folks don't want to have anything to do with the Infected."

And what about you?

Suika looked at the boy beside her. He looked somewhat thin, but his eyes were very bright, and he looked very clean and neat. However, his droopy ears detracted from his overall appearance.

Of course, as a member of the lop-eared rabbit family, it's not his fault that his ears don't stand up.

"I, like you, am seen as a country bumpkin."

The boy made a self-deprecating remark.

Suika looked the boy over again and noticed more details.

For example, his pants weren't pure white; they had been washed too many times, causing some fading. Also, although he looked well-dressed, his clothes weren't actually thick.

At least for the current weather, it's still a bit thin.

So even if they're not poor, they can't be considered well-off either.

After surveying her surroundings, Suika pointed to a restaurant not far away.

"I just came here from out of town, so I'm really not familiar with this place."

"Hey buddy, you're the only one willing to talk to me. How about we find somewhere to discuss this in detail?"

Hearing Suika's words, the boy squeezed his pocket and hesitated.

"It's my treat."

Upon seeing this Suika immediately extended an invitation.

The boy wanted to decline, but the timely rumble of his stomach made him blush, and he followed.

After entering the restaurant, Suika asked the staff to bring out two signature main dishes and a hot soup, then looked at the Laika in front of her.

"I need a guide to take me to my destination."

"Of course it's not for free. See if this money is enough."

Suika pulled a handful of coins from her pocket and pushed them onto the table.

The boy pursed his lips. Although his pride told him to refuse the money, he knew he actually needed it for an emergency.

"What's there to hesitate about? I'll pay, you do the work for me, isn't that just the way it should be?"

Seeing the flicker in the other person's eyes, Suika smiled and pushed the money in front of them.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. I'm just doing my job for the money. Just don't lead me astray later."

After speaking, Suika looked towards the kitchen, waiting for the food to arrive.

The two finished their simple carrot and pork stew and cabbage soup and left the small shop.

"The place you're going to is on the other side of the city, quite far from here. It would probably take five or six hours to walk there."

However, there is a city bus route here, and one of the stops is only half an hour away from that street.

We'll take the bus there in a bit. If we don't encounter any traffic, it should take about an hour to get there.

The boy who accepted the money demonstrated his professionalism, leading Suika onto a bus bound for their destination.

About half an hour later, the two arrived at a guard post.

That's the neighborhood with the Infected.

Laika pointed to the other side of the checkpoint and said.

Although they are all in the same city, the Infected here are no different from the urban Infected that Suika has seen in places like Victoria.

These are all separately designated areas, and are separated from ordinary streets by safety nets and checkpoints.

"That's enough for now, Laika."

Even if you're an ordinary person, getting out after you go in is quite troublesome.

"Thank you for showing me the way."

Standing in front of the checkpoint, Suika stopped Laika from going in with her.

"But you're giving me so much money, if I don't take you to your destination, there will be some..."

Laika hesitated.

"Look, coming from the Infected neighborhood involves a lot of trouble, including blood tests and a long queue. If you come in with me, you'll probably be waiting until evening to get back."

After hearing Suika's words, Laika glanced at the team opposite her before finally deciding to give up.

Chapter 487 The Agents in the Office

Suika walked into the passageway only after watching Laika leave.

As elsewhere, there is almost no obstruction or questioning when traveling from ordinary neighborhoods to neighborhoods with Infected.

Anyone with a valid reason can enter (this is also to prevent ordinary people from accidentally entering this area), but if you want to come from the Infected neighborhood to where ordinary people live, you will have to go through a series of checks.

Upon entering the Infected neighborhood Suika immediately felt countless probing gazes from all around her.

She didn't interfere much; let others look if they want. It's their eyes to look, and she wasn't ashamed of it.

As long as they don't do anything stupid to provoke her, she doesn't care what their motives are.

She noticed that several people who had initially approached with a hint of malice changed their expressions and retreated after seeing the two badges on her cuffs, their eyes becoming much more respectful.

Suika's expression shifted slightly; it seemed these people recognized her armband.

She swaggered up to a middle-aged man, then pointed to her Rhodes Island armband and said...

"Take me to the office here."

The man paused for a moment, then flashed a fawning smile.

"No problem, ma'am, please follow me."

Led by a local, Suika quickly arrived at Rhodes Island's office not far from Steel Carrot City.

The other party pointed to the office and said...

"Ma'am, that's where the office is located. I won't disturb your work any longer."

After saying that, he backed away and returned to the street corner.

"Tsk tsk, it seems Rhodes Island has quite a reputation among the Infected here!"

Suika looked towards the location of the Rhodes Island office with a smile.

Like other offices I knew, this one was unremarkable.

If it weren't for the Rhodes Island logo next to the entrance, no one would guess that this is the location of Rhodes Island.

As she walked to the door, she heard people talking inside.

Pushing open the door, I saw three agents chatting around the fireplace.

They all forgot to come over when they heard the door open.

Upon seeing Suika, whom they didn't recognize, they initially showed wariness, but relaxed after noticing her prominent Rhodes Island armband.

"Are you an operator of this ship?" the leading woman asked, standing up with a friendly expression.

Suika recognized her at first glance; she was the target of her visit, the operator "Outcast".

"You're Ms. Charlotte, right?" Suika said, opening her handbag and taking out Amiya's letter.

Amiya has a letter for me to give to you on my way.

Upon hearing Suika's words, a glimmer of hope flashed in the woman's eyes.

"Amiya... did her plan succeed?"

"If your plan was to rescue the Doctor from Chernobog, then it has indeed succeeded." Suika nodded.

Charlotte was, in a way, an old acquaintance of Amiya's.

Her joining Rhodes Island was also due to Amiya and the Doctor.

Knowing that Amiya had gone to rescue Doctor, she was naturally very concerned.

Unfortunately, Rim Billiton was facing some trouble, and as a local, she couldn't leave, so she regretfully couldn't go, but she kept an eye on the news.

She couldn't sleep for a while after learning that Great Yan and Ursus were locked in a standoff on the border.

Now that Suika has brought good news, how could she not be happy?

After receiving the letter from Suika, she eagerly opened it and began to read.

After reading it, she looked at the other person in the room and announced with a solemn and excited expression...

"Iron Drill Rag Doll, I'm going back to the main ship!"

Upon hearing her words, the other two operators laughed and indicated that they had expected this.

Charlotte, we knew all along that your heart wasn't here.

If it weren't for things keeping you busy here, you would have gone back long ago.

In retrospect, we've dragged you down.

But now that things are back on track, leave the rest to us.

Don't worry, we'll handle everything here."