This town was filled with visible hostility, yet much like the snow falling outside the window, everything was hidden beneath, making it hard to discern the truth.
Which Herrscher was hiding here? Who was connected to her? And what's the deal with the secret laboratory?
Ryan had no conclusions, only that this operation was a hundred times more complicated than usual.
Perhaps after the great flood, dealing with the Herrschers had become more troublesome—constantly exhausting his mental energy.
He had only increased his vigilance, treating it like a scientific investigation: bold hypotheses, cautious verifications.
After sitting in his room through the night, with no sign of the prostitute and no indication of being watched, the snowstorm raged outside. Ryan vaguely sensed something had changed.
The change was subtle, and he didn't want to use his authority to probe, afraid it might scare off whoever was watching him.
"The Herrscher of Wind is a thinker. Now this is better, hiding and showing only parts of themselves, like a snake in the grass."
As the night slowly retreated and dawn began to break, Ryan got up from his recliner and stretched his neck before heading to the bathroom to wash his face. He then put on another tactical vest, equipped himself with all his weapons.
Click.
He pulled back the rifle's charging handle, glanced at the yellow-orange bullet, chambered it, and clicked the safety shut with a cold smile.
Playing dirty? I was ready before I even got here.
His biggest advantage was that his authority had not been exposed. He could sense them, but they couldn't sense his identity.
The Fused Warriors were strong, but not strong enough. With Mei's cover for another two days, Ryan firmly held the timing in his hands.
The communication would eventually be restored. If he reported everything to the Fire Moth's headquarters, the people behind it would panic. And besides—
"If it really is a Herrscher, it's beyond your control!"
Ryan left the inn and stepped into the thick snow. Perhaps due to the extreme cold, there were hardly any people on the street. The few gang members who saw him quickly darted out of the way, as if they'd seen the plague.
Utterly disgusted but helpless.
The Fire Moth's actions were revolting, yet they were powerful. One call, and everything would be over.
They had no qualms about dropping N1 bombs in population-dense areas to eradicate the Honkai, and they weren't above doing that.
Their philosophy had always been to sacrifice a small part for the greater good, like cutting up a cake to feed the dogs. In the end, no one knew what was left.
Snow Prison Town had fallen silent. Many had left, probably frightened by his identity. Unfortunately, they had nowhere else to go and were forced to return.
That was fine by him. He didn't want to involve innocent lives.
Ryan looked around and then spotted a familiar figure. She saw him too, her face pale with fear, but she quickly walked over.
"Good afternoon, sir." Christina greeted him with a bow, and her courage to approach surprised him. There was no sign of trying to please him, just a look of unease.
"You're not afraid of me?" Ryan glanced at the girl in her shabby brown trench coat.
"You... you're a good person. Why would I be afraid? What you did at the church saved me. Who knew the priest was a monster?" The girl answered timidly, not daring to meet Ryan eyes.
A good person, huh?
Ryan gave a slight bitter smile. After a moment of thought, he realized this girl wasn't a true believer. She had simply suffered a lot and lacked the courage to die. He pulled several cans from his pocket and handed them to her.
"Eat these and figure out how to leave Snow Prison Town. Head to the refugee camp near Gothenburg, and I'll help you get residency."
Christina instinctively took the cans, swallowing her saliva, looking somewhat lost. "Why are you helping me?"
She seemed confused, feeling like she hadn't done enough to earn his help. She regretted not offering herself up this morning.
"People who save themselves deserve to be saved. You've passed the test."
Ryan didn't elaborate further. He nodded and turned to leave. For him, this was simple, it was just a matter of whether it was necessary or not.
Christina, holding the cans, stood still, but when she came to her senses, he had already disappeared into the snow.
This man really is a good person.
Her eyes reddened, and she felt that her perseverance over the past few days hadn't been in vain. The stubborn part of her heart had brought her some good fortune.
"Just like mom said, no matter the environment, Always try to be a human being, not an animal in human form. Then, luck will find you."
After a moment of silence, she quickly stuffed the cans into her shabby coat and dashed into an alley. Her steps were lighter, and she felt a sense of security fill the uncertainty in her heart. But as she walked, she suddenly looked down.
There was something black at her feet, creeping up her ankle like a snake. Christina froze, her hair standing on end. She quickly shook her foot, but the thing seemed to be stuck.
Is this... my shadow?
M-Continent, Fire Moth's Abandoned Recycling Plant.
With the rapid construction of the underground headquarters, some departments had already started moving in, and old equipment was being sent to this factory.
It was a massive warehouse, with no workers—robots handled everything to ensure confidentiality. The robots placed the data disks on conveyor belts, then directly threw them into furnaces to physically destroy them.
"I found it, Server 2-31431. It was just sent last month," Vil-V said, standing up from a pile of electronic waste, grinning proudly as she raised a hand. "Looks like luck's on our side. It hasn't been destroyed yet."
The Fire Moth had strict protocols for abandoned data, requiring it to be sent for destruction under supervision, and the entire process was monitored. Conveniently, Mei had been the one updating the firewalls.
"I checked the directory, and during the last program update, I deliberately slowed down the destruction speed," the straight-haired girl explained calmly, glancing at the label on the data disk. The reason was that they were moving to a new office space and needed to replace the equipment.
Now, the Fire Moth controlled all of Earth's resources, but their operations were large, and reimbursements weren't easy. Mei could tell by the condition of the equipment that it wasn't within the scope of reimbursement.
Vil-V, however, didn't think that far ahead and asked curiously, "So, you're a magician... no, an astrologer?"
What nonsense.
"This is just being prepared. Slowing down the destruction speed isn't a problem, but it can come in handy sometimes." Mei rolled her eyes at Vil-V and tossed the data disk back to her. "By the regulations, all data is formatted before it's sent. Can it be recovered?"
"Simple. But, you know, this kind of performance has no challenge. Why don't we..."
Vil-V stopped halfway through her sentence when she noticed Mei was staring at her coldly. She knew if she kept talking, the budget would be slashed even harder.
"It's on me."
She cursed under her breath, calling Mei a 'witch,' and quickly took out the equipment she had prepared, starting to work.
Vil-V was talented, but her ideas were wasteful. She had turned a good piece of the Divine Keys into a piece of junk. She clearly hadn't listened to Ryan request for battle-ready equipment.
Mei glanced at the so-called "magician," but she couldn't do much about her. In engineering, this was the pinnacle of humanity. Even the junk they casually put together could make data recovery specialists die of shame.
The data disks that had been formatted and even intentionally damaged were being recovered. Although not completely, Mei was already seeing a mass of information on the computer screen, and her eyes quickly sorted through the useful parts.
Orange Light Biological Company, responsible for supplying biological experiment equipment, laboratory information terminals, participated in the research of the First and Second Herrschers as an external service agency...
Mei frowned, thinking for a moment. She had no recollection of this company, especially since she had only joined the Fire Moth a year ago, while the research on the First Herrscher had been ongoing for years.
But the fact that they had participated in Herrscher research was intriguing. Since they had resorted to desperate measures, the Honkai couldn't control human relations, and this research wasn't classified as high security.
At that moment, she spotted the company headquarters and the factory address.
Canghai City? What a coincidence. Mei silently laughed. No wonder she had never heard of it—if it hadn't been for the Third Honkai Disaster, all records and documents from that time had been lost.
"Vil-V, check who the recipient is, who from the logistics and security departments was responsible for the shipment, and where it was sent. If you can't find anything, trace all business dealings with this company."
She didn't believe that a company that had been dealing with the Fire Moth for years would just vanish without a trace. Even if it had disappeared, the Fire Moth wouldn't be completely wiped out.
At that point, they'd follow the trail and find out what was shipped and who was behind it.
Just then, she heard a faint hum, and looking up, she saw a bright dot streaking toward them at an incredible speed—it looked like a falling star.
Ballistic missile?!
Mei eyelid twitched. She had expected danger, but she didn't expect the other side to be this powerful. To go as far as using a ballistic missile?
To turn me and the clues to ashes? Too bad, power and schemes must bow before force!
Mei stood motionless, watching the missile as it fell into a dense white fog. By the time it penetrated, it had turned into a massive chunk of ice.
Boom!!
The heavy object hit the ground, shaking the factory. The roof a hundred meters away was punctured, and the violent shockwave hit them.
Instinctively, Mei shielded her face, then lowered her hand. A young man with white hair stood before her like a wall, gripping a handgun made of soul steel.
"You alright, Mei?"
Kevin slightly turned his head, his face filled with frustration.
He had already seen the proximity fuse on the high-explosive warhead. If he hadn't been hiding nearby, Mei would have been turned to ashes along with the factory.
"I'm fine. Thanks for coming back in time."
Kevin had been on a mission when he received Mei's message. Without a second thought, he rushed back. Now, seeing his girlfriend's ability to make calculations, he knew she was always thinking ahead.
"Mei, who's trying to kill you?"
Seeing the angry expression on Kevin face, Mei couldn't help but smile.
"Some very urgent people."