Diversionary Operation
"This is heaven! Ehehe!" Lura danced with joy the moment she arrived at the Equator. She rubbed the Dark Elves' skin and gently stroked every joint of the seahorses' fingers. I delivered shocking news to the ecstatic woman.
"They are not materials."
"Huk… Th-that can't be…"
Chimera modification was not unconditionally evolution. Recklessly altering the Dark Elves, who needed to perform precise work in the factories, could cause problems. The same applied to the seahorses. They had already evolved over many years into a form suited for Ghost Shaman techniques. It would not be right for a Chimera creator ignorant of Ghost Shaman arts to interfere with their evolution on a whim.
"Until Chimera research has advanced sufficiently, any procedures on already established races are prohibited."
"That's… understood…"
Lura was no fool, so she quickly accepted it. However, restricting the Dark Elves and seahorses in this way created one problem: there were no Chimera materials. Currently, my Chimeras were being made by combining zombies with other zombies. This method had worked because Boots operated it through a customization system. But once I brought in multiple creators and began mass production, I could no longer stick to that approach.
Of course, it was not a difficult issue. While kidnapping the Chimera creators, I could simply loot their material warehouses and biological containment facilities as well. The workload would increase slightly, but since I was already raiding them, I might as well scrape everything clean from the bottom up.
"While kidnapping the Chimera creators, I'll also secure materials. You can use those."
"Oh…! Then will I become the greatest Chimera authority?"
I had no idea why she was entertaining such delusions, but instead of answering, I summoned Boots. Lura's mouth fell open when she saw him. Boots already possessed a perfect Stage 4 body.
"This guy is the president of the Chimera industry. There are assistants too, so the ones from West Teron will become assistants to the assistants."
Lura was no longer listening to me. She was already busy groping Boots' body. She would not learn much, though. Boots had not reached Stage 4 through normal "procedures"—he had grown by consuming the Fruit of Good and Evil.
"Boots is the president. Back off, new assistant."
"Hehe. Mr. President! Just let me look a little longer."
I grabbed Lura by the scruff of her neck and pulled her away. This woman lost her mind the moment anything related to Chimeras came up. I tied her to a chair.
"If you don't do your job properly, you're getting scrapped. Think carefully before you act from now on."
"Ugh…"
Lura understood. She was a Chimera genius. But just like any society, stagnation leads to rot. Lura had shown great talent from a young age, yet her insufficient background earned her nothing but envy and jealousy. Her personality was peculiar, and West Teron, stuck at Stage 2 Chimeras, had no need to accept an annoying genius into their solid cartel. Then the ostracized woman achieved success. Lura, desperate for support, sought out patrons. But the thick network of existing Chimera creators suppressed her. They tried to steal her results without giving her any glory. Dongbali used that gap to approach her. As a result, Lura lost her twin Chimeras to Dongbali and her secondary mutation research data to West Teron.
Those who had envied Lura sneered that it served her right. It was in that wretched situation that I found her. I told her I was protecting the twins and showed her enormous resources and materials she had never seen before. She witnessed a Chimera of the same grade as her life's greatest achievement, and even encountered something beyond that. It would have been strange if she were not excited. I understood her feelings.
"We are a meritocracy. If you're competent, you could become Boots' exclusive assistant."
At those words, Lura nodded furiously. If she demonstrated sufficient ability, she would be able to trample everyone who had looked down on her.
Two weeks had passed since crossing into West Teron. Finally, all preparations were complete. I reviewed the final list. Forty-eight Chimera creators. One hundred thirty-seven researchers. Ninety biological managers. They were West Teron's top personnel, selected based on information from the secret police and Lura. If they disappeared, West Teron would lose twenty percent of its national power overnight.
'With no replacements available, it's practically the collapse of the nation.'
I needed to kidnap nearly three hundred targets, but I was not working alone. Thirty Dark Elf commando teams. Eleven seahorse Ghost Shaman teams. Three zombie teams. This was the best stealth-capable force the Equator could currently field. In truth, there were six more teams. Over the past two weeks of activity, I had discovered additional secret police members and incorporated them into the operation. As a third-rank operative, I could override existing missions and change operational authority. Including my original team members, I now commanded a total of thirty-two secret police agents.
I divided them into six teams and ordered them to recruit Chimera creators from regions outside the capital. They would first try to lure them with Lura's letters and financial support, and if that failed, they would kidnap them. Since these were people pushed out of factions and living in satellite cities, the secret police alone would suffice.
I checked the current time. 2 a.m. Each unit should have already arrived at their designated locations and be waiting.
"Alright then, shall we begin?"
I crossed the barrier and entered the wealthy district. The rich of West Teron enjoyed the greatest benefits from Chimera research, yet they lived on the opposite side of the research complex. Thanks to this characteristic, causing chaos in the wealthy district would draw eyes away from the research complex.
"With this structure, a turtle would be good."
Stage 5 deep-sea creatures came in many varieties. Most of them had become Baengnae's snacks. The ones that survived fell into two categories: those with connections or those that were competent. The turtle belonged to the competent category.
Thud— Do you know Hyeonmu? One of the Four Divine Beasts, a turtle with a snake's tail. This creature was similar to Hyeonmu. Instead of a tail, however, it had six sea serpents attached to its shell. Those sea serpents spewed poisonous fog.
Kuaaa— Kuaaa— Each sea serpent, the size of a subway car, scattered poisonous mist around. Originally it was paralysis poison, but now it was zombie poison. Since it was in gaseous form, it had almost no effect on powerful individuals, but in this situation it was the optimal choice.
Krrk— Krrrk— Soon, the sounds of zombies could be heard from inside the buildings. The infection was spreading steadily.
"Good, that's enough."
I stored the turtle away. If I sprayed the poisonous fog about ten more times while moving locations, this entire area would be filled with zombies. Even weak zombies would continue multiplying if sufficient forces were not deployed to deal with them. The entire city's attention would focus here.
I stomped my foot and moved to the next district. It was convenient in many ways to finish the work and leave before the first discoverer appeared.
Ding ding ding— Ding ding ding— Lagoladon, the capital of West Teron, descended into chaos. An unknown epidemic had broken out in the wealthy district, turning people into man-eating monsters. Their intelligence had regressed, and they indiscriminately attacked surrounding lifeforms. They had experienced plagues before, but never anything like this. A disease that did not kill people but turned them into monsters. Fear of the epidemic consumed them.
"Don't approach! Shoot from a distance!"
"Th-there! It's the Finance Minister! Rescue him!"
"The army! Call the border army!"
As expected, pandemonium erupted. In reality, only a few hundred high-ranking officials in the wealthy district would die, but the commotion would be enormous. Seeing suppression forces being deployed into the wealthy district, I turned away. My business here was finished.
Heading to the research complex, I found Patel. The moment I stepped onto the land filled with ghostly energy, surrounding objects floated up and guided me. Soon Patel appeared.
"Status?"
"One hundred twenty percent. Their initial response was more disorganized than expected. All personnel on the list have been secured, and we're in the process of acquiring additional personnel and materials."
I checked the time. There was still plenty of leeway until the scheduled withdrawal.
"At this rate we'll hit two hundred percent?"
"I already instructed them that if they fill the additional list, they should prioritize materials over personnel."
A good decision. We had secured enough creators, and even if we had not, Boots was here. There seemed to be nothing more I needed to direct.
"Then I'll see you at the rendezvous point as planned."
"Yes. Ah, and…"
"What is it?"
"The Filth Jar has been overused recently and appears to need repairs. I'll probably need about three days of rest."
"Do that."
The Filth Jar's usage range had greatly expanded after concluding the Cloned World. But recently it seemed to be reaching its limits, with the frequency of required repairs increasing. 'I'll need to find a replacement or upgrade it.'
Regardless, the research complex operation seemed problem-free, so I immediately moved on to the next task: wrapping up the secret police issue.
A two-story building on the outskirts of Lagoladon. In the first floor, the spies were waiting for me. They saluted when I entered.
"Status?"
The highest-ranking fifth-rank operative among them answered.
"All twenty-two secured. As instructed, they're all confined on the second floor."
"Excellent. Have you heard about the capital?"
"We haven't secured that information yet."
"An epidemic has broken out in the wealthy district. The cause is likely a side effect of Chimera research. The infected are transforming into grotesque monsters and attacking their own kind to spread the infection."
Tension filled the air at the gravity of the situation.
"First, report to the homeland about the epidemic that broke out in Lagoladon. Confirm that most of the recently secured Chimera creator leadership died in the incident."
I divided the teams and assigned them tasks: verifying infection information, contacting the homeland, confirming secret police casualties, and so on. After sending everyone out, twelve remained. These twelve were the ones who had accepted immigration to the Equator. They were from minority ethnic groups or held grudges against Dongbali. Based on their backgrounds and attitudes, I had carefully vetted them and offered them citizenship, which most accepted. Those who refused? They unfortunately died in the line of duty after their secret police activities were exposed in West Teron.
"Gentlemen. You know what we're going to do from now on, right?"
The previously expressionless secret police agents grinned. I declared the real operation.
"The moment Patel returns, we will march on Dongbali. In this situation, they won't want to miss the opportunity either. While the foolish military ravages West Teron, we will strike at Dongbali's heart."
"Yes!"
The final victor of this war would be neither Dongbali nor West Teron, but the Equator.
Now, let's go collect the remaining rewards of the story.