Chapter 969: Probing Skirmish

Chapter 969: Probing Skirmish

Edge-Skimmer led a group of players out of the camp, grabbed their gear, and climbed into the truck parked at the camp's entrance, heading north toward the outskirts of Avant City.

Though the big-eyed one who handed out chocolates had left, the beautiful legend of the simp and that infinitely towering figure lingered in the hearts of the young girls.

Later, word reached some troublemakers, who, as if discovering a new continent, eagerly threw themselves into charity work. So much so that at several respawn points, the chocolates meant to supply frontline soldiers with sugar and calories were completely bought out.

And the story of the simp gradually twisted and morphed under the jeers of the jokers...

Just then, Old Na and Elf King Fugui returned from their patrol outside.

No sooner had they stepped out of the vehicle than a crowd of adorable children surrounded them.

Elf King Fugui, grinning cheekily, was about to greet them when, to his utter shock, their first words left him thunderstruck.

"Trash fish! Candy!"

"Trash fish, trash fish, hand over the candy!"

"Trash fish, trash fish!"

Hearing that mangled Mandarin, Elf King Fugui nearly choked on his own spit.

"Cough, which bastard... no, who taught you that?"

A few girls, aged eleven or twelve, exchanged glances. The youngest whispered softly.

"Uncle Mosquito told us not to say his name!"

The moment she spoke, the girl beside her with a ponytail quickly clamped a hand over her mouth.

"Shh! You let it slip!"

"Mosquito, huh... I'm not surprised at all," Yelena said with an amused expression, handing a chocolate bar to a quiet-looking girl with glasses perched on her nose. She added with a smile, "What else did Uncle Mosquito say? Tell us secretly—we won't tell him."

The demure girl's cheeks flushed red. She clutched the chocolate in her hand, hesitated for a moment, and ultimately betrayed Mosquito.

"He also said it's a Halloween tradition. On this day, kids from the Alliance just have to chant that spell at any shelter resident, and they'll get candy..."

Elf King Fugui: "Pfft, why does this guy never do anything decent?"

"Haha! But don't you think it's fun? It's not like it costs much." Yelena laughed so hard her stomach ached. Amid the children's bewildered gazes, she handed out the rest of her chocolates to them. "Remember, this spell only works on good people like me. It's useless on bad people."

"Good people?" The quiet girl tilted her head.

Yelena smiled and patted her little head.

"Hmm... Simply put, it's for those who can take a joke. If someone doesn't have candy, or gets scared, or yells at you, just say 'sorry' and go find the next shelter resident."

The wasteland was already miserable enough—a little more joy couldn't hurt.

Avant City never had Halloween before.

But now it did.

...

North of Avant City, in the alley beside the logistics building, a corpse clad in an exoskeleton lay surrounded by several soldiers of the Death Corps.

The finely crafted gear was clearly not the product of the Southern Legion's rough industrial style.

Thanks to Big-Eyed's chocolates, Edge-Skimmer and his crew, with the help of the local children, found the body lying beside a trash can without any trouble.

Perhaps because they were seasoned by war, the kids showed no fear of the corpse. One boy, about twelve, gestured with his index finger to Edge-Skimmer.

"A really big plane landed on top of the logistics building. Someone shot at them, and then this guy fell and died."

Debt-Eyed asked in confusion.

"Didn't the people on the plane come down to save him?"

Another boy, two years older, shook his head.

"They had good gear, but they didn't seem like good fighters. A sniper far away fired several shots at them. They didn't even know where the bullets came from, and they didn't shoot back."

"Yeah, yeah," a child chimed in, eyes fixed on the remaining candy in Debt-Eyed's hand, "they just flew away."

Construction-Site Teen-and-Brick asked.

"Did you hear which direction the gunfire came from?"

"This way!"

Several kids shouted in unison, but each pointed in a completely different direction.

Not only were Construction-Site Teen and Edge-Skimmer dumbfounded, but the kids themselves paused, then started arguing over who was right.

Just then, a child standing in the corner sighed and muttered under his breath.

"Obviously it was a Gauss rifle... What you heard wasn't the sound of the gun firing at all."

He recalled his father saying there were many types of Gauss rifles—some made noise when the bullet left the barrel, some produced a sonic boom mid-flight, and others used special bullets that only made a sound upon impact.

Construction-Site Teen and Edge-Skimmer exchanged a glance.

"The attacker has high-tech gear... At least that's a clue."

"Could it be an internal conflict in the Academy?"

"How many internal conflicts do you think there are? You think we're still in the Brahmin Province?"

"Just a guess, but I agree it's unlikely..."

So it must be someone from the Enlightened.

Looking up at the roof of the logistics building, Edge-Skimmer frowned.

"...The bullet should have come from the other side of the building. A few of you, come with me to check it out."

"I'll go with you." Construction-Site Teen raised his hand and followed the captain.

Debt-Eyed handed out the remaining candy to the kids still arguing over "which direction the gunfire came from."

"Alright, stop fighting. Forget about the gunfire for now... Which way did the plane fly off?"

The kids exchanged glances. This time, there was no dispute. They all pointed upward.

"It flew straight up into the sky!"

"Yeah! Like an airship, it went up into the sky before it started spewing flames, and then it disappeared."

Flew vertically, huh.

Debt-Eyed rubbed his forehead in frustration. Roller-Wash-Head patted him on the shoulder with a grin.

"Don't lose heart. Maybe it flew out of the atmosphere? That's a clue too."

Meanwhile, Edge-Skimmer and Construction-Site Teen circled to the other side of the building and gazed toward the northeastern outskirts of Avant City.

There lay a row of unfinished apartment buildings, shaped somewhat like the Alliance's low-rent housing. But judging by the dismantled scaffolding, construction had been halted for a long time.

Resources in the wasteland were limited—not just mineral resources, but also industrial capacity, construction power, and labor.

Even the Southern Legion, with its 2.7 million square kilometers of colonies, struggled to balance war and development. Choosing one path meant abandoning the other.

After all, they didn't have immortal players.

Sometimes Edge-Skimmer couldn't help but wonder what the Alliance would be like without players—or if the Alliance would have ever come into existence at all.

He did not entertain such thoughts to emphasize his own importance, as if the Alliance's citizens ought to be grateful, but purely out of concern that if they one day left this place, those who remained would have to face whatever challenges the future might bring.

At some point, he had found it increasingly difficult to treat this world as a game.

Or to put it another way.

He had grown attached to this game.

"...Found anything?" The construction site youth known as Brick shot him a glance, interrupting his train of thought.

Edge Sculler shook his head and lowered the binoculars in his hand.

"The buildings here are too dense—bullets could come from anywhere... I don't know why those researchers chose this building; it's practically a sitting duck."

"I figure it's because this building has a view of the 'World Tower,'" Brick said, glancing toward the city center. "I bet those researchers never thought they'd get shot in the back when the war was almost over."

He paused for a moment, then, as if struck by another thought, continued.

"I'm wondering if there's a chance that, back then, they were investigating the 'suspected hive creature' at the World Tower, and the Enlightened or some other organization had their eyes on them."

Edge Sculler shook his head again.

"No matter which possibility it is, finding them is next to impossible... Anyway, let's go recover that poor bastard's body first."

As he spoke, he began to turn, but suddenly a sense of alarm crept over him.

Time slowed down in an instant—

Or to be more precise, his brain's information processing speed multiplied severalfold in that single moment!

It was the perception-based talent he had unlocked at level 30!

When danger was detected, adrenaline surged, passively triggering an effect akin to "bullet time"!

Edge Sculler whipped his head around, raising the binoculars to peer at an unfinished window in the cluster of buildings.

Almost at the same moment, a man wielding a Gauss rifle, startled, hastily stowed his weapon and slipped away from his sniper position.

He clearly saw the look of bewilderment on that man's face—the other party had evidently not expected to be spotted.

Without a moment's hesitation, Edge Sculler opened his communication module and contacted the rear command post.

"...This is Death Corps. We've spotted a suspicious target. Requesting a drone."

After a brief pause, a response came quickly from the other end of the channel.

"Command received. Drone is coming online."

"Copy!"

Ending the call, Edge Sculler tossed the binoculars to the bewildered Brick, then selected the map icon on his VM screen and marked out a large area on the pop-up map.

"Attention all Death Corps units. Seal off all exits in the marked zone. The target may be equipped with optical camouflage gear. Make sure to bring infrared identification devices."

A reply came swiftly over the communication channel.

"Copy!"

Meanwhile, the man who had just withdrawn from the sniper point wore an expression of lingering shock.

His name was Flynn, a disciple of the Enlightened, and also a mole they had planted in Avant City.

Long ago, the high command of the Southern Legion had been colluding with the Enlightened, and it was for this reason that Martin and his "Death Dose" had gained Tyl's favor.

However, the liaison between the Southern Legion and the Enlightened was known only to a few high-ranking members of the Legion; even Chief of Staff Augustus was not fully aware, and most officers were certainly in the dark.

Although the earlier commotion in Eternal Night Harbor had brought the Enlightened's name into public view, the lack of evidence and leads had reduced it to a farce of "drugged-out madness," causing no major waves.

In fact, inside the "World Tower" building, which housed Tyl's "doomsday weapon," more than half of the researchers were either directly provided by the Enlightened or trained with their help.

Beyond the researchers, the Enlightened's high command had also sponsored the Southern Legion with many ready-to-use results.

For instance, the "Gaia Seed" that the Enlightened had obtained from the "Celestials."

Flynn was not a professional researcher and had no idea what the "Gaia Seed" was used for; he only knew that the organization's high command was very interested in its combat data.

On the other hand, the Celestials wanted them to acquire a research vessel from the Academy to facilitate direct material exchange with the Lagrange point space station.

According to their assessment, the Academy—which held partial data on "Gaia-like lifeforms" and did not want it leaked—would surely hide somewhere unknown to the Alliance, secretly observing and collecting data.

Thus, today's operation came to be.

Everything went as smoothly as planned.

His partner, "Luo Yi," had successfully infiltrated the research vessel under his cover, and after eliminating all the researchers, hacked into the ship's server, seizing control.

Having accomplished everything, he had intended to pack up and withdraw, but his damned curiosity made him take one more look at those two figures in gas masks—and then one of them spotted him.

He had never seen anything so uncanny. Even for a special talent of an Awakened, detecting an enemy from such a distance was far too absurd.

Perhaps there were "singularities" in this world that they did not yet understand.

Watching the fixed-wing drone circling low, Flynn carefully concealed himself in the shadows, warily eyeing the nearby street.

The entire district was like a pot of boiling water—trucks and off-road vehicles sped past on the roads, kicking up clouds of dust that suggested no small commotion.

Whether for the research vessel or for their fallen ally, these people were serious.

Taking a deep breath of the cold air, Flynn pressed a hand to the side of his helmet.

"I've run into some trouble here... Can't make it to the extraction point for now. You two go wait outside the settlement; I'll find my own way out."

He paused, then added another sentence.

"Those Alliance soldiers are strange. I don't know if it's instinct or what, but one of them spotted my position at a glance... Anyway, be careful."

"Don't aim at them casually unless you're sure of a one-shot kill."

...

The Academy had lost a research vessel.

Upon hearing this news, Chu Guang's first reaction was that the old thing in the Swamp of Hesitation had dropped another gold coin.

And it had come at just the right time.

The gravity well had already been deployed, and the "seal" imposed on this planet would soon be lifted. The Alliance was in dire need of a vehicle capable of operating in outer space.

Although the scientific expedition team had recovered a great deal of technical data from pre-war ruins, those were no match for a ready-made product.

However, after listening to the description from Li Ke, a B-level researcher of the Academy's External Affairs Department's Special Projects Group, Chu Guang quickly realized that the waters behind this incident might run deeper than he had imagined.

A report that had once appeared on his desk long, long ago was retrieved from the corner of the archives.

It was from the time of the Torch War.

Based on the investigation of Vault 20 by the Praetorian Guard and intelligence leaked by the Academy, the Alliance had first learned that at the Lagrange point, in the starport of the Prosperity Era, there existed descendants of the People's Union Expeditionary Force.

For some reason, these people had inherited the legacy of the Torch Church and were suspected of sponsoring some of the Enlightened's activities.

The Academy called them "Celestials."

Since there had never been direct contact, Chu Guang had once put the matter out of his mind, but the Academy's loss of this research vessel suddenly brought it back to his memory.

Who could be so desperate to travel between the sky and the ground?

Surely not the Eastern Empire.

"I've already notified the frontline combat personnel about the relevant matters. They say they are investigating."

Watching Chu Guang return to the reception room, Li Ke, who was sitting on the sofa, immediately straightened up and asked him urgently.

"Any leads?"

Chu Guang sat down opposite him, signaling with his eyes for him to calm down, then said.

"By the time our people arrived, the battle was already over. According to the locals, they saw the research vessel shoot straight into the sky and fly away. The materials your research vessel used were too special; not a single signal was left on our radar."

Seeing the disappointment in Li Ke's eyes, Chu Guang thought for a moment, then continued.

"But fortunately, those people left a small tail on the ground. Our people have already cordoned off the urban area where he might be hiding. If we can catch that guy, we might be able to get some information out of him."

The main population of Avant City is the Valiant people. If that guy is an alien, it shouldn't be too hard to screen him out.

Of course, such things are hard to say.

Everyone is a descendant of the Human Union; who doesn't have a couple of cards up their sleeve that others don't know about?

Including himself.

After hearing Chu Guang's words, Li Ke sighed and said.

"Sorry for the trouble."

"You've indeed caused us quite a bit of trouble," Chu Guang said, looking at the embarrassed Li Ke without any politeness, getting straight to the point, "We're already looking for the person. Now I want to know, what exactly were your people doing there at that time?"

Hearing this request, Li Ke's face showed a troubled expression, and he averted his gaze hesitantly.

"We..."

Chu Guang raised his hand, signaling him not to make that expression.

"I know you have your difficulties, but I also hope you understand one thing... It is precisely because you did not inform us in advance about your operations in Avant City that led to what happened now."

"Moreover, assuming the other side has already cracked the data stored in the research vessel after obtaining it, your secrecy serves no purpose other than to add obstacles and difficulties to the investigation of your ally—us. Do you understand what I mean?"

Li Ke wiped the sweat from his forehead, smiled bitterly, and nodded.

"I... understand, but the project involved has a very high level of confidentiality. I cannot decide on my own to disclose it to you. I must consult my superior..."

Chu Guang nodded and said.

"It's good that you understand. I believe you can correctly convey my meaning to your superior."

With that, he, who had just sat down not long ago, stood up from the sofa again.

"Don't waste time here either. Go and communicate with your superior now."

"Or, have him come directly to me!"