At the end of the New Era, following the failure of the military government’s biochemical weapons research, the PH15 virus escaped from the laboratory, spreading rampantly and plunging the people into despair. The military government’s corruption sparked widespread public outrage, yet she—once a top-tier military operative—defected, rebelled, and fought to protect everything she held dear, striving relentlessly and growing stronger in this dark age.
Chapter 13: Continue?
Chapter 10: Continue? Or Give Up? After a good night’s sleep, Loran felt refreshed. She quickly freshened up and set off without delay to find that devilishly handsome man, Billy, in Sector D. After briefly explaining why she had come to see him, Billy gladly agreed to help. He led her through a series of twists and turns to a shop in Sector B that looked like a warehouse but was actually a store. The person Billy had found for Loran was named Haz, a cyborg. His entire right half was made of sheet metal, even his head. The electronic eye hidden within the alloy scanned Loran with a laser beam. In a voice laced with electronic static, he silently told Loran to wait a moment, then closed the shop for the day. Taking the micro memory chip Loran handed him, he sat behind the counter, connected it to the smart computer, and began the task of restoring the chip with the utmost concentration. After just an hour’s wait, the result was not what Loran had hoped to hear. Haz told her that the chip was completely beyond recovery; even his attempts to use technical means to copy the contents onto a new chip were utterly impossible, because the memory core had been severely damaged by the impact. Loran was devastated. It was now impossible to retrieve the data inside. Without the files as evidence, she and Melissa would face endless pursuit and danger. Her obvious disappointment drew a round of consolation from Billy. After thanking the handsome man, Loran returned to her quarters and began to strategize her next move. Without the classified files, all leads had been severed. Perhaps if she took the risk of seeking out Colin and his nephew, she might uncover some crucial intelligence. Yes, she decided to start with Colin and his nephew! As a woman of action, once Loran made a decision, she acted immediately. Having stayed in Blackstone City for only one night, she left the city—which she was still unfamiliar with—at noon the following day. After making inquiries from various sources, Loran—in disguise—met Colin and Hank at the prison in the capital city of Kechit. Hank was on the verge of death, his body covered in marks from torture, and Colin wasn’t much better off; his right hand was gone. Looking at the wound, Loran knew that hand… must have been torn off while he was still alive. That kind of pain was enough to break even the strongest-willed man and turn him into a subservient slave. Yet Colin merely smiled at the loss of his right hand, saying, “It’s gone, so be it.” This composure filled Loran with immense admiration for him. “Why did you come looking for us after deserting? This is extremely dangerous—it’s practically suicide. Do you realize that, Miss Wu?!” Colin glared at Loran angrily. Realizing his voice was too loud, he leaned forward and peered through the bars. Finding no guards in sight, he felt his way over to his nephew, who lay in a deep coma on a pile of hay. He pulled a bloodstained parchment from beneath him and slipped it through the gap in the window bars to Loran. Then, lowering his voice, he added: ““Miss Wu, this manuscript is the only information Hank and I managed to uncover regarding the virus leak. The only advice I can give you now is this: until your power is great enough to stand up to the Council of Elders, I urge you to stop investigating the virus leak. You should find your friends and the professor first, then go into hiding. If you insist on continuing the investigation, I suggest you focus on building up your own strength.” Loran looked at this once-vigorous officer. His once-resolute face was now withered and scarred, his hair matted with blood. Having lost his right arm and endured various tortures, his once-towering frame had become somewhat stooped. As for the young man lying on the haystack, he was little more than a half-corpse, barely clinging to life. To find the uncle and nephew, Loran had asked around and learned they were being held in the capital’s prison—information he’d picked up by chance while overhearing people talk in a tavern. According to the rumors, the two had launched a nighttime raid on the capital’s electronic archives. Unfortunately, their luck ran out when they were caught by a certain duke who happened to be there that night looking for documents. Given their combat abilities, the uncle and nephew stood no chance against that duke, so they were bound and dragged away to be imprisoned. They were now paying with their lives for the wrongs done to their loved ones. “Though I cannot save you, please tell me—who captured you?” Loran asked Colin as she put away the parchment scroll. This was the only thing she could do for the uncle and nephew: help them exact their revenge. Colin smiled at her words. He shook his head and advised, “Miss Wu, what you really need to do right now is carefully consider the suggestions and advice I just gave you, rather than foolishly and hopelessly trying to avenge us. Miss Wu, let me offer you one more piece of advice.” “Please speak.” “Go find the Phantom Clan!” Colin said, his deep eyes filled with earnestness as he looked at Loran. ““If you’re determined to investigate the virus incident, you’ll need the Illusion Clan’s help in the future. Though the Illusion Clan is elusive and hard to find, if you’re ever fortunate enough to encounter them… Miss Wu, set aside your arrogance and sincerely invite them to be your allies! Trust me, with the Illusion Clan by your side, you’ll be unstoppable!” “I understand.” Loran nodded, casting another glance at the gasping Hank and at Colin before her—ragged and struggling to catch his breath even while speaking. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she asked, “Is… there anything else I can do for you? Even if it’s just to repay you for the advice and guidance you’ve given me and Melissa.” Collin seemed to have been waiting for Loran to say exactly that. He smiled as he gazed up at the starless, moonless night sky, pressing his face almost against the cold bars of the window. Taking a deep breath of the air outside, he said, “Please let us die without suffering—at least with a shred of dignity remaining.” Loran bit down hard on her trembling lower lip. Her gaze lingered on Colin and Hank for a moment before she picked up a small, dry twig from the ground and swung it with all her might at the two men behind the iron bars and stone walls. In the stillness of the night, the former officer and soldier died silently, without a trace of suffering. Loran leapt back into the darkness, scaled the high prison walls, and, taking advantage of a blind spot, escaped from this death prison where the most dangerous criminals were held. As she ran, her mind was a storm of turmoil; the mere thought of Colin’s grateful gaze before he died filled her heart with an indescribable sorrow. It seemed all too easy to be branded a traitor, but had those in power ever stopped to consider why these loyal soldiers and officers would choose to betray their cause? Those in power always had plenty of excuses to pin false charges on others, while the so-called traitors were forever left with no defense. Loran evaded layer upon layer of rigorous scrutiny and left the capital. She intended to find Melissa, but her plans were constantly disrupted by pursuers who kept appearing along the way. Having to evade assassins while searching for someone in a vast crowd was a nearly impossible task. With no other choice, she returned to Blackrock City to devise a new plan. Upon returning to her lodgings, Loran did not rush to rest or freshen up, but instead immediately began reading the contents of the parchment scroll Colin had entrusted to her. On [Date], Linda, a member of the Heavy Mechanical Weapons Research Group, stole the experimental virus PH15, which was still under development. Originally intended for use in a new biochemical weapon, the virus remained in the research phase because a vaccine had yet to be developed. On [Date], after stealing the virus, Linda fled the military base that very night. After handing it over to her contact, she was found dead in a hotel the following day. In her hand was a badge; its design and style belonged to an organization known as the Brotherhood. The reconnaissance team suspected Linda had ties to the Brotherhood, but for unknown reasons, the case was classified as top secret. On [Date], the Red Book of Military Plans noted that @@@@@ was ambushed while investigating the virus incident; none of the soldiers in his company survived except for him. Subsequently, with his consent, he became a volunteer for the Red Book’s Genetic-Mechanical Hybrid Android Project. On [Date], the Council of Elders decided to cease dispatching additional troops to assist virus-infected areas. They ordered the use of military force to suppress unrest in infected cities and decreed that troops sent to quell the riots, along with the individuals involved, would never be recalled. The virus leak incident was also reclassified as a confidential document by Council members, leaving no further traceable clues or information regarding the incident. After reading this handwritten note, Loran leaned back on the sofa, looking utterly exhausted. Should she sigh or rage? Even she didn’t know anymore. Such a Senate and military government were worse than beasts! No, perhaps calling those people beasts was an insult to the beasts themselves. These people in power weren’t unaware of the causes of the riots, yet they chose to suppress them with the most extreme military measures. How could those innocent people possibly resist the army? Hmph, and what’s this about never issuing a recall order to the military personnel sent to suppress the riots?! Isn’t that effectively abandoning those soldiers? Once the rear stops supplying them with weapons and food, even if they fought three enemies at once, they’d never stand a chance against the overwhelming mob. Not to mention the risk of being infected by the virus—how is that any different from a suicide mission? Colin suggested she either stop meddling in this damn virus leak and find Melissa and the professor to hide away for the rest of her life,Or she should strengthen her own capabilities and get to the bottom of this matter. Loran stared at the ceiling, pondering which path she should choose. Go find Melissa? And then, as Colin said, spend the rest of her life in hiding? With a bit of luck, she might just live out her days that way; with bad luck, she’d inevitably die while being hunted down. But what if she continued investigating? Just looking at how the authorities had repeatedly used every means to cover up the virus leak, even a fool could tell that high-ranking officials and their aides were undoubtedly involved. To go up against those people, given her current abilities, she was indeed far too weak. But when she thought of the living conditions of the survivors in those abandoned cities she’d seen during her escape—and of that dead child, Jacob—not to mention the ways some survivors in Blackstone City were scraping by, Loran felt that giving up the investigation would be an even more foolish choice than persisting. So, she chose the latter. She would press on with the investigation and keep growing stronger! Fiddling with the necklace she’d taken from around her neck, Loran gently opened it to reveal a photo of herself and Melissa. I wonder how Melissa is doing now… Loran thought, at least she’s still alive. After all, Melissa was quite the fighter; she’d have no trouble taking care of herself. It was just a matter of not knowing when they’d see each other again. But Loran had never imagined that when they did meet again… she would be nothing more than a guardian entrusted with great expectations.
