Terrorist Attack: Su Yi's Plan

After Iris stepped down, countless cameras turned toward her, snapping photos from every angle.

As the music began, the rows of thugs around her waved their flags with all their might.

At their leaders' direction, the company employees on both sides loudly sang the Black Sun Corporation's charity anthem, Winter's Fire.

Eternal winter ravaged the land~~

Razor-sharp winds froze the soul~

We clung to one another, waiting for death~

Despair whispered, darkness murmured~

Then—a single flame appeared!!

We welcomed new life~~~~

They had clearly sung it plenty of times.

Their voices rose and fell together, loud and grand.

Su Yi's group wasn't idle either.

As the music played, several of them pressed buttons, sending the twenty colorful flags beside them steadily into the air.

Iris, escorted by her guards, made her way forward through the checkpoint.

Waiting to greet her inside was a tall, slightly overweight man in his late thirties. He wore a crisp, high-ranking Patrol Police uniform, and his small eyes sat above a broad smile.

[Name: Webber Nigel]

[Affiliation: Rootvine District Inspection Bureau]

[Rank: Director]

[Void Abyss Projection: Not activated]

[Level: 14]

[Health: 2800]

(Confident in today's plan, he was already awaiting praise from Iris)

Su Yi narrowed his eyes. "He passed level ten without activating a Void Abyss Projection. Looks like he underwent some special modification."

"Today's plan... What plan... Wait!!"

Su Yi's pupils suddenly contracted.

He remembered Winter mentioning a terrorist attack during a charity publicity stunt while marveling at how realistic the game was.

Two groups of terrorists had blended into the crowd and carried out suicide bombings.

"Could it be this one?" Su Yi wondered sharply.

He turned toward the platform opposite and immediately spotted the conspicuous 108 in a corner!

108 was chatting with three young men dressed as noble servants.

"Those three must be the famous beta-test trio: Iron Root, Iron Pillar, and Iron Pot."

"Their missions follow the Rhode Nobility route."

At that thought, Su Yi grew tense.

In the original timeline, he had already died by today. He had no part in this event.

Now he was worried he might get caught up in it.

"Where do the bombs go off? How powerful are they? How many people die? Winter never said!"

Fortunately, Su Yi had plenty of worldly experience and quickly calmed himself.

"Should I report it?"

Almost immediately, he rejected the idea.

"Webber's information shows he's involved in today's attack, and he expects Iris to reward him. Does that mean Iris planned the terrorist attack?"

"And if I just blurt it out, I won't get a reward. They'll suspect I'm an accomplice instead."

"In that case, I might as well seize the chance to make a good impression!"

Su Yi looked up. Iris and Weber had walked onto the stage side by side.

More than a dozen enormous holographic projections filled the surrounding sky with her flawless face.

[Name: Iris Barrett]

[Affiliation: Black Sun Group]

[Rank: L24 (Rhode Star Charity Ambassador)]

[Void Abyss Projection: Mirror of Delusion LV2]

[Level: 16]

[Health: 1400]

[Skills: ???]

(With all hope lost, she embraced the power of @##￥. Now it was time to make them pay)

Su Yi's heart skipped a beat at the information. "If I can't see the name, their standing must be at least that of a true god."

"She rarely makes a move, but many people later guessed that she follows the Deceiver of Yore, who holds authority over memory and weaving."

That being was deeply mysterious. Since the Deceiver of Yore could weave memories and rewrite history, players still knew very little about them even by version 9.8, when Su Yi had died suddenly.

As Iris took the stage, the gates on both sides opened.

An untold number of people poured in through them.

They were dressed in rags, their faces sallow and their bodies gaunt. Many of the children had become little more than skin and bone.

These were outsiders who had come from elsewhere—wasteland refugees.

Because of wars throughout its history and leaks from the Void Abyss, sixty percent of Rhode Star's land had become completely desertified. Another twelve percent had been contaminated by the Void Abyss and turned into a land of certain death.

Beyond Rootvine City lay a savage, merciless wasteland.

To them, this place was paradise!

That was why the people in the border shantytowns stayed despite the exploitation they suffered.

The refugees yearned to survive, and the city needed them as fuel to burn so it could keep shining brightly.

Everyone who rushed in stared blankly at Iris's projection in the sky.

They had never seen anyone so beautiful. She looked like a goddess from legend.

Or rather, a goddess ought to be as beautiful as she was.

Iris, standing on the stage, gave a rare, gentle smile and spoke loudly.

"Fellow citizens! Guided by the great goddess's compassion, we at the Black Sun Group bring hope and care to people struggling to survive and to children born into hardship."

"I, Iris Barrett, spread the goddess's grace here on behalf of the company."

"This time, we have prepared forty tons of Nutrient Beans, twenty thousand sets of clothing, one hundred and eighty thousand doses of broad-spectrum anti-inflammatory medicine, and a great many books and daily necessities for distribution."

"In addition, we will select one thousand children to attend the Charity School run by the Black Sun Group, free of charge."

"The company will raise them to adulthood and give them an education, so they can change their destinies."

As Iris delivered her compassionate speech, she captivated every refugee.

They erupted in wave after wave of thunderous cheers.

Across from them, however, the Rhodes Alliance found itself on the back foot.

They seemed to have been forced into action by Iris and were clearly underprepared.

One mishap followed another. Su Yi even saw black smoke rising from a shorted cable.

More importantly, their speaker was no beauty. He was a middle-aged man with slicked-back hair and a powdered face, dressed in lavish clothes.

Seeing that Iris had drawn all the refugees' attention, the man looked furious, but there was nothing he could do.

Then twelve passageway gates opened, and Patrol Police officers entered to maintain order.

To Su Yi's surprise, he spotted a large number of Wolf Fang Gang members wearing Patrol Police uniforms and mingling with the Patrol Police officers.

He also saw their current deputy leader, Cairo Mars.

Cairo noticed Su Yi looking at him. Seeing that Su Yi could only crouch there and raise flags, he gave a disdainful smile.

Su Yi sneered and said to Alton and the other two, "Get ready. There might be a terrorist attack soon."

"This is our chance to make an impression on the big shots."

The three were startled and stared at Su Yi in disbelief.

Su Yi said, "Once the attack happens, there'll be chaos and a lot of people will get trampled."

"We need to seize the opportunity!"

Alton looked bewildered. "Boss, there are tens of thousands of people here. How could we possibly control them?"

Su Yi said, "We're not going to save everyone. We're going to make ourselves look good."

"This is a charity publicity stunt. When it comes to charity, what matters most? What draws the media's attention and stirs people's sympathy and compassion?"

The three shook their heads blankly.

Su Yi smiled. "Children."

"Remember: once it happens, keep yourselves safe and focus on saving children. Don't worry about anyone else!"