NABC Page 435
Page 435
......
After a long silence, Aphrodite finally spoke: "If all else fails, we can escort Yingque back to his country for a while. Pascal has already planned to send the martyr over. Once this storm has passed and we've figured out the situation, we can talk about it again."
“But we don’t have a good reason to tell her, and the information we got from the agent is that she has no relatives or friends in Donghuang.”
......
Juno's concerns are also the most direct problems that everyone has to face: how to get Yingque to leave temporarily, how to tell her, and how long to wait before they can get clues about Luo Fan.
It was already past midnight, and Yingque was still sitting there silently. Since that was the case, Juno would not choose to leave, but would stay with her until she was willing to rest.
......
"Wait, cloud map reaction detected nearby... in the back alley."
"Captain, there are two signal sources from Paradis, one named... Eleanor, who belongs to the Commander's subordinate, Beneto, and the other is already destroyed... Adeline?"
"Wait, that's the commander! Wasn't he out of contact? How did he suddenly come back here?"
"...Tell the shrike that something is wrong and to get them to react as soon as possible."
.....
Ying Que seemed to be lost in thought, slumped over the table, propping her forehead up with her hand to keep from collapsing. She looked extremely tired. Juno wanted to persuade her to go back to her room to rest, but remembering Ying Que's previous reaction, she figured she would probably refuse again...
"Juno, I have important news..."
Upon receiving an urgent message from Nyx, the captain of the Martyrs' Third Squad, Juno didn't hesitate and immediately replied, "What's wrong?"
"The commander is back; he's in the back alley."
"what?!"
"There are many people, probably all the commander's direct subordinates, but I don't know how many there are."
This news was more than just important; Juno instinctively stood up and almost knocked her chair over.
Looking at Yingque's condition, who was still drowsy, I initially planned to tell her directly, but after thinking about it, I decided it would be better for her to see the other person in person after she woke up.
The back door opened quietly, and Juno silently stood aside, ready to greet them politely. But the scene before her was completely unexpected... This didn't seem to be the romantic reunion she had imagined...
The footsteps that followed the entrance didn't last long, followed by the sound of metal falling to the ground. Junoton was puzzled and peeked out. There were two tactical dolls kneeling on the ground, and one of them... was missing a leg...?
That seems to be the AK12 of the Rebellion Squad?
Yingque paused for a moment because of the noise, and looked to the side. It was in that one glance that she finally saw the face she had been longing for.
But that face was covered in wounds and blood, its eyes were terrifyingly cloudy, as if it had just barely survived some kind of withdrawal reaction, and it was cradling a mangled body in its arms, no longer recognizable as human...
"Eh...?"
What exactly happened...?
701 Military Directive
Let's turn our attention back eight days...
......
The joint operation with the military has been going on for several weeks. During this time, Lovan has also taken the opportunity to establish a deeper relationship with Chris and others. In exchange for the military knowing about their existence, they have carried out several joint military operations and launched several targeted strikes against Umbrella's operations. These operations have been very effective, and the military has also been able to prepare incriminating materials against Umbrella in preparation for making charges.
"It seems that taking down Umbrella is just around the corner. We've finally made it through."
Anjie raised the bottle and took a big gulp. The successful operation had everyone in high spirits, so of course they had to take advantage of the free time to have a good drink.
Sirius and Dido were still bringing out their best beers, while the girls who enjoyed drinking sat around the table, chatting about their plans. Even those who weren't interested in drinking were happy to gather together as listeners and enjoy this rare moment of leisure.
Multiple collaborations are enough to further deepen the relationship between the army and navy, at least preventing Akagi and Taihou from suddenly clashing with others.
Of course, Shoukaku is an exception...
“It’s still a long way off,” Helian said, in her current state, she could only drink coffee instead of alcohol. “Without the military’s next major move, we can’t make any waves on our own.”
"At least there's something to look forward to, right? Before this, we didn't even know where to start. Now someone is doing this work for us, and they're quite efficient."
The executioner was more cheerful than ever before. The long-term black operations had been frustrating, and now being able to openly confront Umbrella was incredibly satisfying.
Yes, it's good to be able to act without fear of being seen. In the past, it would have been inefficient and timid, but that was when there was no other choice. Things are different now, and the connection with the protagonists of Resident Evil has finally paid off.
And this finally made it possible to bring down Umbrella...
Luo Fan glanced at the girls in front of him and finally managed a smile after a long time: "It seems that it won't be long before we can go home."
"..."
They exchanged a glance and smiled knowingly. Indeed, it wouldn't be long before they were able to escape this hellish place and return to the bar, their only and shared home in this world, far from strife and conflict, living a peaceful and tranquil life.
Even though he is still young, Luo Fan believes he should start thinking about retirement soon.
"Master, once the war here is over, will we be able to go home?"
During the conversation, Dido suddenly asked a question, seemingly expressing doubt about the "home" that Luo Fan mentioned.
Even businesses can't help but wonder: "Do you already have a home in this world? Is it somewhere far away from here?"
Luo Fan looked out the window. To the east of that block, east of White Eagle, beyond the rain and smoke, beyond the dead and the living man-eating monsters, he could seemingly see that peaceful little bar. Thinking about it carefully…
"It doesn't seem that close..." The slight curve of his lips looked somewhat out of place on his young face. "But it doesn't seem that far either. In any case, we'll go back there and wait for all of this to end..."
Eleanor snuggled closer to Luo Fan in his arms, seemingly wanting to get even closer. Luo Fan could only shake his head helplessly and move his legs down a little further. After a while, his body could support the weight of the girls.
This unknown war changed them a lot, but the vitality of their feelings remained constant and would never change.
As we can see, the arduous journey we've undertaken is nearing its end...
......
"Adeline, aren't you going to join them? This is a rare moment of relaxation, wouldn't it be better to go and have a chat with the Commander?"
At a higher point of the building, Adeline sat on the edge of the outer wall, looking down at the dilapidated ruins before her, letting the cold wind and raindrops hit her face. Her expressionless face looked so lonely at that moment.
“No need. My sisters will definitely try to get close to the Commander. Even my sister Eleanor is there…” Adeline slowly raised her head, gazing at the lightning that tore through the sky, her expression as calm as ever: “I’m no match for my sisters, so I won’t spoil the fun.”
“How can you say that? The commander may be too busy to get away, but as long as you get close, he will definitely be happy to say a few words to you,” Metis immediately dismissed her poor sister’s self-pity: “You just need the courage and the opportunity. Opportunities are always there, but courage doesn’t just appear out of thin air.”
"Maybe so. Courage and all that, we'll talk about later..."
Even under the lightning, the ring on her hand still shone brightly. She brought it to her lips, as if it were a spell secretly cast by a young girl.
It doesn't matter if the commander doesn't notice...
I will always stand in corners, buildings, and high in the sky where the commander cannot see me, protecting him from all angles...
This is the vow made to repay the weight of this ring.
......
The cell phone used for covert communication suddenly rang. Luo Fan remembered the number; it belonged to the White Eagle Defense Minister. Since the last operation against the safe zone, the Defense Minister had been in contact with them, and he had personally issued many of the mission orders.
"It hasn't been long since the last operation, and there are already new arrangements?"
Anjie raised an eyebrow, her dissatisfaction with the military's intrusion beginning to take hold after the alcohol took effect.
Luo Fan gestured for the girls to be quiet before answering the phone...
"Hey, Minister, new arrangements so quickly? Your intelligence department is that efficient?"
"Ah, of course, the efficiency of the White Eagle military is never in question... It seems I inadvertently disturbed your rest?"
It was that polite and familiar middle-aged male voice again. Although it sounded unpleasant, there was nothing more to say.
Luo Fan slowly shook his head: "No, but if there are any arrangements, please let us know as soon as possible, and maintain polite social distancing."
The other end laughed and said, "Haha, of course, respecting everyone's style, I'll get straight to the point. Just now, we discovered a large underground secret Umbrella laboratory in Great Bend, in the central region of Kansas. It's an underground area of a hospital. We've already surveyed it, and the information is reliable. We hope to continue cooperating with you to take down this laboratory."
Not much different from the previous operations, Luo Fan naturally had no questions: "Understood, when do we begin?"
"It's 2 a.m., four hours from now. Please arrive at 22 Big Bend Suburbs two hours in advance to meet Chris. He will tell you the details."
PS: With the Double Eleven sale approaching, this book has now reached 700 chapters, which feels pretty fast.
There's still a lot to say about the "Prosperity and Decline" chapter, but I'm worried that if I continue writing, everyone will think it's just filler. So let's move directly to Luo Fan's main story. This book is about to reach its biggest turning point, which is the world I want to show everyone in the next few hundred chapters.
But the story of Yingque and the Shrike isn't over yet; they will continue to be active in the main storyline, mostly in ways that surprise everyone.
On the eve of Operation 702
......
"It sounds similar to the arrangements of the previous missions?"
After the communication ended, everyone discussed the information provided by the Minister of Defense again, but there was not much that was actually usable.
RO did not show any concern, which is the usual attitude of everyone towards this kind of cooperation. The military's attitude was better than expected, and the operation was well coordinated without any flaws, so it would not become a burden.
"That's about right. If we include this one, it's already the seventh Umbrella stronghold we've taken down." AK12 shifted back and chuckled, "But this efficiency is just too exaggerated. Where did they get so much intelligence about Umbrella strongholds?"
"I don't know. They've run into Umbrella several times before, and Chris personally led the team to handle it. Maybe they have some information that we don't even know about."
Luo Fan also began to look through the operation log previously made by Sister 45, searching for related places. The most conspicuous and interesting point was that the intelligence was entirely provided by the military.
The military's intelligence gathering capabilities over Umbrella were far stronger than they had imagined, even raising suspicions that there might be a mole within the military at Umbrella...
It seems quite normal. Just like the Umbrella branch in New York, there was also a mole from Paradis. Morido and her team were also trying to probe Umbrella, but the information they received was that the Umbrella branch in New York was a compliant company with no special characteristics, and the people working there were all ordinary people with no background. To put it bluntly, it was one of Umbrella's front-line business personnel.
“...Let’s just treat this as a normal combat mission,” Ange frowned slightly. “But a laboratory is different from the previous ones. There might be some valuable intelligence inside, and we might have to go and see for ourselves.”
"Indeed, if you're lucky, you might find some leftover information."
That's exactly what I was thinking. If it's discovered, that would be another piece of compelling evidence...
After confirming everything was correct, Luo Fan put away the tablet and prepared to return to his room: "Alright, everyone, get some rest and prepare for the next move."
The girls had no objections. For the sake of overall efficiency, there were rarely any more disputes over beds. After all, Luo Fan had already kept the most dangerous ones by his side, and once all this was over, they would have plenty of time to enjoy life.
but......
"Commander, now that you've adapted to this hectic life, will you feel a sense of disconnect when you return to your original society?"
While Akagi and Taihou were taking a nap on the balcony, 45 and 416 came to Luo Fan's side for the first time and talked about some topics that they would never normally pay attention to.
Opening his eyes again, Luo Fan looked at the smiling 45 beside him and asked in confusion, "Why do you ask that?"
“We haven’t been home for almost half a year, and 416 has started talking about wanting to drink your cocktails.”
The sudden joke affected 416, but the person involved remained unusually calm, though their gaze was unnatural: "It's been a long time, I'm just nostalgic, there's nothing to deny."
"I don't recall you being a sentimental person."
"..."
Perhaps this question was just a joke, but it was enough to evoke Luo Fan's thoughts about the past and the future.
All told, it seems they've been away from the bar for more than half a year. They haven't even seen a single photo of it now. Although the bar has security cameras, Luo Fan hasn't turned them on to review them. He's temporarily cut off his thoughts of home and focused on his mission, all to stay single-minded.
But as time went on, it became inevitable that I became more sentimental...
“Maybe,” the phone screen reflected the scars on his face and his lifeless eyes. “I remember I used to be a pretty romantic person. Now I might not even know how to make a mojito.”
45 continued, following Luo Fan's lead: "That's right. Back then, a few drinks were enough to bewitch the people around you. Now they've all become taciturn. It's really not easy. I didn't expect that we still couldn't completely escape our past."
"..."
The topic suddenly turned heavy, and silence replaced the consolation that was about to be offered. No one could deny that they had drifted further and further away from their original ideals, and they had even failed to keep their initial promise not to go back to the life they had lived in the past.
"...Yes, sooner or later, we will be able to break free from our current lives. After that, biological crises and wars will be irrelevant to us."
Having had enough of this life, the once ambitious young man finally realized that he was just an ordinary person after all, and that the ideal of changing the world with his family was too far away. In just under two years, he had transformed himself from a young man who could still talk about love with girls into a taciturn little warlord.
Even though she understood that Luo Fan's words were meant to comfort her and were also his true thoughts, 45 could only smile bitterly and admit that they might never be able to return to the carefree state they had when they first came to this world. But fortunately, they weren't as far apart as they were in their original world, and they could still stay by each other's side. Perhaps that was enough.
Inappropriate remarks only made the atmosphere grow colder, and everyone fell silent, returning to their beds and falling into a deep sleep, enduring another day like this.
Habit is a terrifying thing; it can subtly transform a person into the very thing they initially wanted to avoid and abhor. But in the end, they have no choice but to accept it, because habit usually means there's no escaping it, and at that point, a living being will choose to adapt rather than escape...
Ugh......
......
At 11:30 p.m., everyone woke up on time, quickly packed their gear and set off. The outskirts of Big Bend were several kilometers away, and they would have to walk for a while.
If we continue deeper into the region, we'll reach Colorado, the location of Raccoon City...
It's unbelievable that they could get close to their original city in this way, but it's probably a real hell now.
"Let's stick to the old team division. I'll go meet with Chris, and the other two teams will stand by nearby."
The division into three parallel teams has been in place ever since. After the order was given, everyone once again embarked on the road to fight against Umbrella.