Promotion
Nearly a hundred people got out of their vehicles in unison, as if they were a single organism. Splitting to either side to clear a path for the trailing cars, they drew identical firearms and stood on standby.
A moment later, four vehicles glided smoothly down the path lined by the guards.
There was no sound. Not even the breathing of the guards could be heard, let alone any noise from the moving vehicles.
The only sounds present were the howling of the harsh wind and the roar of the electromagnetic storm raging beyond the barrier.
At the western edge of Westtown, a place where no living thing seemed to exist, a sharp *click* signaled the return of life.
"My word... I've been here before, but it sends a shiver down my spine every single time."
Cedric, stepping out of his car, spoke with easy familiarity as he looked up at the sky beyond the barrier.
"To think of pioneering beyond that... Director Moretti truly is remarkable."
"Ugh, it certainly is terrifying..."
Harbor, stepping out while jiggling his repulsive belly, wrapped an anti-shock suit around himself, fidgeting like a dog that desperately needed to relieve itself.
He had literally just wrapped it around him. The anti-shock suit couldn't possibly cover his massive rolls of fat properly.
And even that was a useless gesture.
The electromagnetic storm did not kill people through simple electrocution.
Even so, Cedric nodded understandingly. He knew it was a purely instinctive reaction, like flailing one's arms when drowning in the ocean.
"Don't worry too much, Chief Harbor. As long as that barrier is standing, nothing will go wrong."
"I appreciate the words, but I've heard rumors of stray lightning strikes slipping through. I just can't put my mind at ease."
"Well, that part can't be helped. You're free to do as you wish. If you're that anxious, staying inside the car might be a good option."
"Still, we came all this way for an inspection. I should watch it properly, shouldn't I?"
Harbor offered a genial smile, but beneath it lay a clear message to shut up.
Since Harbor was due for a promotion to director soon anyway, conveying such an attitude to Cedric wasn't difficult.
Yet, he couldn't stop his mouth from running dry.
Harbor could not back down here.
He must not.
Whether Serena succeeded or failed, he had to find a way to claim a piece of the pie for his own track record.
The electromagnetic storm raging in the distance was terrifying, but falling behind after finally reaching the rank of director was far worse.
Being an executive at Lui Chen came with immense privileges, but the pressure was equally heavy.
"You said you've been here a few times, Director Cedric?"
Reading Harbor's intentions clearly, Cedric curled his lips into a smirk and nodded.
"Indeed. There were several proposals to pioneer the Dead Sectors in the past. Of course, they all ended in failure."
"I heard you planned a similar project back then, Director Cedric. How did it go? Why don't you share some wisdom with your junior?"
Despite the obvious jab, Cedric remained unfazed. He had dealt with this countless times. His pride had been discarded long ago. For the sake of power, Cedric would gladly lick the toes of the person who murdered his parents.
"Unfortunately, I have nothing to tell you. Even if it was a project I designed, I cannot break the embargo."
Placing a cigarette between his lips, Cedric slowly turned his gaze toward the outside of the barrier.
"But won't we find out how things go today?"
His tone carried the absolute certainty that Serena would fail.
Harbor swallowed a sneer and nodded. He, too, believed Serena would fail.
Over the years, brilliant researchers had poured astronomical amounts of time into pioneering the Dead Sectors. There were plenty whose brains had been extracted after death and were still being forced to work.
Yet, Eden's Dead Sectors remained just that—Dead Sectors.
This time would be no different.
"The shard."
Suzanna, stepping out of her vehicle, swept her eyes over the ground before speaking.
At her command, Cedric slotted a data shard into the tablet held before her.
Suzanna never plugged a shard handed to her by someone she didn't trust directly into her own body.
If anyone dared to hand her a shard directly, there was no telling what fate would await them.
Quite literally. Those who had handed her shards directly were never seen in Eden again.
"It is well organized."
"Thank you."
Approaching Suzanna's side, Serena swallowed hard.
The project presentation?
That was fine. She only had to read the contents copied to her nanocomputer, so she wouldn't even stutter. The problem was what came after.
The exploration drone.
The exploration drone, built using the information and blueprints Swoo had provided, was something she couldn't manage on her own.
She lacked the technology to manufacture it, nor did she even understand how it operated.
Of course, as long as the drone was launched in time for the presentation, there wouldn't be any issues.
If Swoo, who had to be listening to this conversation from somewhere nearby, handled that part, she couldn't ask for more. There would be no problems at all.
Clinging to that thought, Serena had suppressed her anxiety.
"This exploration drone."
"Yes?"
"Can I see it in person?"
Suzanna's dry, emotionless gaze shifted to Serena.
In the past, she would have trembled, but now Serena managed to hold her ground.
It was likely thanks to becoming accustomed to Swoo's gaze.
That look Swoo had given her when they first met.
That unsettling gaze, which treated her like an inanimate object rather than a human being, had made Serena a bit more resilient.
But that was the limit.
She could endure the stare, but she couldn't help but flinch at those words.
Because the exploration drone wasn't here right now.
"Director Serena Moretti."
"...Yes."
"I understand you're nervous, but I'd appreciate it if you didn't let your mind wander while speaking with me."
"Let me ask again."
Saying so, Suzanna turned fully to face Serena.
"This exploration drone, can I see it now?"
"...It's in the car—"
A flash of light erupted beyond the barrier.
Immediately after, a deafening CRACK-BOOM! shook the ground beneath their feet.
It was a lightning strike so violent that Harbor let out an unsightly shriek, and even Cedric flinched and took a step back.
Suzanna remained perfectly calm, showing not a hint of surprise. Swallowing hard at her almost inhuman composure, Serena nodded.
"It's in the car. I'll go get it."
Serena stepped back and turned around.
Her steps felt incredibly heavy. She briefly wondered if she should just get in the car and shoot herself in the head.
No, if she was going to do that, she might as well take Suzanna out...
No way.
Seeing how Suzanna walked around alone without a single guard, she definitely had something up her sleeve. Otherwise, she would be hiding behind bodyguards like Harbor.
Killing her was impossible. The only option left was suicide.
But would Swoo just stand by and let her end up like that?
Swoo had called them partners. She had promised not to betray her. So please, let her have created a situation where Serena wouldn't have to blow her own brains out.
Serena squeezed her eyes shut and pulled the car door open.
"Haaah..."
Her legs nearly gave out.
The exploration drone resting neatly on the passenger seat instantly dissolved the tension that had been crushing her.
When on earth had she left it there?
All the terror she had felt toward Suzanna just moments ago was washed away by Swoo. In fact, Swoo was starting to seem even scarier.
Where had she been listening to the conversation from?
Lui Chen should have controlled a two-kilometer radius around this area. Had she listened from outside that perimeter? Or did she simply know things would turn out this way?
And when did she even put this here...?
Now was not the time to ponder such things.
Serena pulled herself together, took the exploration drone, and turned back. Meeting the gaze of Suzanna, who was staring at her from a distance, she spoke.
"Would you like to hold it and examine it yourself?"
Suzanna stared at Serena without a word. Her reaction was entirely at odds with her request to see the drone.
"Yes, please."
As Serena's heels clicked against the ground, all eyes gathered on her.
Harbor, Cedric, and even the guards were watching.
This was the Suzanna Yuliano personally receiving someone else's item. It was bound to spark immense curiosity and suspicion.
Having taken the exploration drone, Suzanna didn't even look at it. Just like before, she kept her eyes locked onto Serena's.
"It's heavier than I expected."
"Since our immediate target was only a hundred meters, we didn't focus on the weight."
"The surface is rough, too."
"Surface polishing will begin with the Alpha type."
"May I operate it?"
"The controls are complex. It has a dedicated firewall, making it highly secure against hacking."
"Do you think I won't be able to do it?"
"I am merely stating the facts."
Suzanna's eyes curved slightly.
"You really are a talent too good to lose."
Between her curved eyelids, her pupils glowed red. Soon, a faint hum of activation vibrated from deep within the exploration drone.
Serena's eyes widened for a fraction of a second, but she quickly masked her shock and stared at the drone.
The engine had started. The propellers began to spin slowly.
There was no lie in what Serena had said.
It was indeed immune to hacking, and without a controller, it shouldn't have been possible to operate, let alone boot up.
Yet Suzanna had activated the drone without paying any mind to such restrictions.
"Why did I only discover someone like you now?"
The exploration drone rose into the sky. It then began to fly toward the towering barrier.
"Because you weren't this kind of person originally."
She answered her own question.
It was a statement clearly laced with suspicion toward Serena.
Her voice was loud enough for the surrounding people to hear.
"Amusing."
She didn't lower her voice.
But it didn't matter. Everyone else's attention was already fixed on the exploration drone.
"Dead Sector pioneering. A rather plain name, but..."
Ten meters. Twenty meters. Thirty meters. Forty meters...
The drone Suzanna sent out flew steadily into the Dead Sector. All the while, Suzanna's gaze remained fixed solely on Serena.
"Still, it was a wonderful and splendid project."
Seventy meters. Eighty meters. Ninety meters... and then, one hundred meters.
The moment it crossed the devilish hundred-meter mark that no other technology had ever breached.
Suzanna took two steps forward and three steps to the side. Then, she kicked up a long iron rebar rolling on the ground, caught it, and swung it.
Struck by the rebar, Harbor shrieked and rolled on the ground. Unbothered, Suzanna drove the swung rebar straight into the earth.
"Congratulations on the success of the project."
At that exact moment, light engulfed the world. A bolt of lightning ripped through the sky and struck the rebar. The current surged down the metal and into the ground, affecting everyone present.
It merely affected them.
A few guards collapsed, their hearts seemingly charred, but the executives of Lui Chen remained unharmed.
This was because they had all undergone procedures to implant current-resistant subdermal linings.
"So, don't get too greedy and end it here."
Even so, Serena trembled as if she were facing death itself.
Hadn't Suzanna's actions anticipated the lightning strike?
She had knocked Harbor away and driven the rebar—which was a meter taller than a person—precisely where the lightning would strike.
And those words.
Who on earth was she directing those words to?
It certainly wasn't Serena herself. She was sure of it. Which meant it was meant for someone not present...
"...Ahaha."
Before Serena could even conjure the name, Suzanna let out a dry, irritated laugh.
"How very greedy."
Light flared across the world once more.
A second bolt of lightning struck.
Only this time, the target was Cedric, not Harbor.
It was a strike so cunningly timed that it made one wonder if Harbor had merely been a decoy, and Cedric had been the true target all along.