Chapter 246 - 163: Send-off

When Paige Summers arrived at the designated meeting point, Claire Chapman and the Bloodfall members were already there.

They were all uniformly dressed in dark brown combat gear, with personnel and luggage distributed among four spacious, sturdy, modified off-road vehicles. It was a medium-sized party for a trip outside the city. The Bloodfall members were in high spirits. Regardless of their individual temperaments, they all looked calm and composed. They greeted Paige Summers with brisk and businesslike attitudes.

Paige Summers nodded in satisfaction.

This was the full expedition party, but most of the people coming to see them off hadn’t arrived yet.

’That makes sense. It wasn’t time yet.’

While they waited, Claire Chapman came over and asked, "Are Andy and Nadia really not coming?"

Paige Summers gave him a surprised look. "Didn’t I tell you a couple of days ago? Their plan is to stay in Central City and prepare to join The Research Institute."

Claire Chapman scoffed and fell silent for a long moment.

Admittedly, it was a good thing.

Marcus Monroe had met Academician Warren of The Research Institute through Black S. The academician was an exceptionally rare research talent and a man of integrity. Since the apocalypse, he had been dedicated to finding a way to eliminate the mutated virus and purify the soil.

This was also Nadia’s dream.

So, the moment Marcus Monroe offered to introduce them, Nadia and Levi Young jumped at the chance.

The two of them weren’t strong fighters, so there was little point in them accompanying Paige Summers. It was far better for them to remain in Central City. Although The Research Institute was divided into factions, Academician Warren himself had considerable influence and his own independent research team. Under his protection, they likely wouldn’t run into any major trouble.

If they could truly form a powerful union and achieve a breakthrough against the mutated virus, it would be a blessing for the whole world!

Marcus Monroe felt the same way; otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone out of his way to connect them.

He never forgot that humanity’s enemy wasn’t their own kind, but the brutal environment they struggled to survive in!

For this reason, he placed great importance on Levi Young and Nadia’s safety. He kept the news under tight wraps to prevent Sheldon Reid from making a move. Once the two of them officially joined The Research Institute and their names were made public, it wouldn’t be so easy for Sheldon to cause trouble anymore. After all, The Research Institute’s security was much stronger than before, as humanity had come to recognize its growing importance.

Of course, that didn’t mean he would let his guard down.

Since Marcus Monroe had arranged everything perfectly and the two of them were more than willing, Paige Summers had no reason to stand in their way.

Feeling guilty that they couldn’t join her on the trip out of the city, Levi Young and Nadia worked overtime to prepare a large batch of extra medicine for her. The supply included a full range of remedies for both healing and disabling enemies. In return, Paige Summers gave them a bottle of Rainbow Water, thinking the mysterious substance might prove useful for their research.

Claire Chapman knew about all this, but he was disappointed. Having those two along would have been like bringing two powerful medics on the journey, which would have greatly increased the team’s safety. So, upon confirming they weren’t coming, he sighed to himself, thinking it was a great pity.

As he was pondering this, Paige Summers said softly, "They’re here."

He gazed into the distance and could only just make out a small black dot at the far end of the street. He couldn’t help but admire her sharp hearing and eyesight.

Thinking of Paige Summers’s arrangements, he let out a sly chuckle.

"The people you’ve gathered to see us off are some real heavyweights. If that Reid fellow wants to try something, he’ll have a lot more to consider. Plus, he’s also leaving today... I guess he’ll just have to swallow this loss in silence."

Paige Summers glanced at him. "That may be true, but we can’t let our guard down. Besides him, there’s that woman, Nora Lowell. They don’t fight fair. Who knows what kind of dirty tricks they’ll pull!"

"Alright, alright," Claire Chapman drawled in agreement, though inwardly he was unconvinced.

’She has no idea how influential she’s become. This time, to thwart Sheldon Reid’s attempts to obstruct them, she had invited people from several of Central City’s most powerful families.

’That in itself might not be a big deal, but the fact that every single person she invited agreed to come spoke volumes.

’Take the Mercer Family, for example. We’ve been partners for a long time. While the Mercers provided a lot of materials, Paige Summers had generously shared many of her Artifact Making techniques with them. "To do a good job, one must first sharpen one’s tools." This was especially true for the disciples of the Mercer Family, who specialized in Ancient Martial Arts. With their updated weapons, their strength had undoubtedly risen to a new level.

’I once ran into some Mercer disciples outside the city with my team. We’d never met, but as soon as they learned we were the Bloodfall Hunters, they were extremely courteous and even offered to help. I knew full well why. It definitely wasn’t because of the Bloodfall’s own modest influence. It was simply because of our connection to Paige Summers.’