Huai Feifu sent a message to the Wild Wolf Mercenary Corps.
His goal, of course, was to have them tie up the members of the Heaven-Sundering Mercenary Corps.
Otherwise, even a single mercenary from their side would be enough to ruin his plan. After all, under normal circumstances, only the Optimized were qualified to become Mercenaries.
Soon, Huai Feifu received a reply. The higher-ups of the Wild Wolf Mercenary Corps explicitly stated they would help stall the Heaven-Sundering Mercenary Corps, telling them to act boldly and without hesitation.
"Alright, letâs go over the plan again. Weâll probably only get one shot at this, so we absolutely cannot fail," Huai Feifu said gravely.
He had never imagined that Liu Miaomiao and the other women would actually become official employees of the Government Hall.
Therefore, the original plan to lure them out had to be changed to a forced kidnapping. The risks were much higher, and the difficulty had skyrocketed as well.
The vast majority of the members present nodded in agreement at Huai Feifuâs words.
However, Steel Bear, the leader of the Four Great Vajra, hesitated for a moment before asking, "Boss, is it really okay for us to directly kidnap employees from the Government Hall?"
He wasnât an idiot. The situation now was completely different from how it had been that morning.
That morning, the plan had involved at most a single mercenary. As for Liu Miaomiao and the others, they were just ordinary residents back then.
And here in the Lower Level District, residents died from exhaustion or starvation every day, so the disappearance of a few people was no big deal at all.
But now, they had undergone a complete transformation and become official employees of the Government Hall. That made things completely different.
With that kind of status, messing with them was even more trouble than going after a mercenary.
It was no surprise, then, that Steel Bear had such reservations.
But when Huai Feifu heard this, his expression immediately darkened. He narrowed his eyes and stared at Steel Bear. "What could possibly go wrong? Iâve already arranged an escape route for you all. No matter how much they investigate, it wonât trace back to you. Besides, even if something really does happen, donât we have the Wild Wolf Mercenary Corps as our backers?"
As Huai Feifu stared him down, Steel Bear felt a chill run down his spine. He quickly lowered his head, not daring to utter another word.
If he truly angered the man before him, his own fate would be miserable, regardless of whether the mission succeeded or failed.
Seeing that no one else raised any objections, Huai Feifu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
âHe knew full well that if the operation was exposed, the Wild Wolf Mercenary Corps would be anything but his backers. It was more likely theyâd be the ones coming to claim his life. After all, what he was doing was an act of betrayal, and it couldnât possibly stand up to an investigation.â
âWhether the mission succeeded or failed, he would end up angering the Wild Wolf Mercenary Corps regardless.â
âBut he didnât care about any of that. The big shot he was in contact with was the head of the Morgan Conglomerateâs operations in Star Shield Shelter! The influence of a massive multinational conglomerate like that within Star Shield Shelter was on par with any of the top brass. As long as I can keep him happy, my future will be a smooth path to the top.â
...
Meanwhile, the personnel sent by the Mercenary Union had finished taking inventory of the Heaven-Sundering Mercenary Corpsâs haul and were now moving on to the settlement phase.
The security officers were also registering the firearms held by each member.
Within the Shelter, no one besides military personnel was permitted to carry firearms. Not even Mercenaries were an exception.
Therefore, their firearms, along with the Electromagnetic Railgun and Mecha, would all be placed in the warehouse assigned exclusively to the Heaven-Sundering Mercenary Corps. All maintenance, whether for the firearms or the Mecha, had to be performed inside the warehouse.
Lin Xinghaiâs Tearing Rifle was also registered and turned in.
Without his firearm, his combat effectiveness was more than halved, and his sense of security plummeted.
Coupled with his worries about the Axe Gang stirring up trouble, he finally couldnât resist turning to Roger beside him and saying, "Brother Jie..."
"Stop! Donât call me Brother Jie. You should just call me Old Luo!" Roger immediately interrupted.
Whenever Lin Xinghai called him Brother Jie, it was never for anything good.
"Ahem! Um, didnât you say before that the Axe Gangâs backer is the Wild Wolf Corps? Iâm worried they might send people after me, too! Why donât you go and... have a little chat with them?" Lin Xinghai said with a polite smile.
"Theyâre a proper Second Level Mercenary Corps, and you want me, a Squad Leader from a First Level Mercenary Corps, to go intimidate them? I think youâre just trying to get me beaten up!"
"Besides, with your strength, they couldnât beat you even if they did send Mercenaries! And even if they could win, with your Superpower, could they actually stop you from escaping?" Roger said, shooting Lin Xinghai a sidelong glance.
Roger knew perfectly well that while Lin Xinghaiâs combat effectiveness was greatly diminished without his Tearing Rifle, other Mercenaries without firearms also lost their means of long-range attack.
Under such circumstances, a Speed-type Superpower User like Lin Xinghai could fight when he wanted and leave when he wanted.
As for Lin Xinghaiâs Attack Power being low, it was true that it was a bit weak, but he had a weapon!
Believe it or not, even a three-year-old could stab a mercenary to death with a Vibrating Dagger.
To be frank, even Roger himself wasnât certain he could win against Lin Xinghai, unless Lin Xinghai didnât use his Superpower.
"Ahem! Um, youâre talking about ordinary Mercenaries, but what if they send a squad leader or someone even stronger? What then?" Lin Xinghai asked, clearing his throat.
"Do you really think weâre blind? With us watching them, theyâll be lucky if they can even send a few nameless grunts down," Roger said.
That was exactly what Lin Xinghai had been waiting to hear from Roger. "Alright then, that puts my mind half at ease. As for the other half, Iâm worried they might pull some dirty tricks. You can never be too careful with stuff like that, after all."
"Alright, alright, just spit it out, kid. What is it you really want me to do? Stop beating around the bush," Roger said, exasperated.
"Then Iâll be direct. You guys live in the Middle Level District, while Iâm in the Lower Level District. If I run into any trouble, I wonât be able to contact you right away to figure things out. So, Iâd like a communication device. For instance..." As he spoke, Lin Xinghai pointed to Rogerâs wrist-mounted computer.
Rogerâs face instantly fell. "Youâve really got this all figured out, havenât you! Youâre even after my wrist-mounted computer."
Lin Xinghai didnât respond, simply watching him with a smile.
"Fine, fine! But letâs be clear, Iâm only lending it to you." Finally, with a sigh of resignation, Roger undid the personal lock on his wrist-mounted computer and handed it to Lin Xinghai.
Lin Xinghai happily took it and fastened it to his wrist. "So... do you have the instruction manual for this thing? Mind giving me a copy?"
Roger: "Huh?"
"I think I have some temporary memory loss from the hibernation, so Iâm not really sure how to use it," Lin Xinghai said, trotting out his old excuse.
Roger: "..."
After a brief explanation from Roger, Lin Xinghai had a grasp of most of the wrist-mounted computerâs functions.
It was basically a phone or computer with a holographic projection feature.
Of course, Lin Xinghai didnât understand the various apps yet, but as long as he could handle the basic operations, that was enough. He could figure out the rest over time.
A quarter of an hour later, Lin Xinghai parted ways with the others. The members of the Heaven-Sundering Mercenary Corps returned to the Middle Level District to rest.
Lin Xinghai, of course, went to the Government Hall to wait for Liu Miaomiao and the others to get off work so they could all head back together.
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Authorâs Note: I shouldnât have stayed up all night writing yesterday. Iâm not feeling great today, so this will be the only Chapter. Let me get some rest, and Iâll try to get back to a normal update schedule tomorrow.