Chapter 170: A Flawless Security System |
"I mean it, you should at least consider it. I can arrange a probationary period for you. Don't you want to carry out more acts of justice?"
The Ethics Commissioner urged earnestly, unable to hide his appreciation for talent.
"Besides, don't you think your current life is too dull?"
"Yes, I have so much money at home that I cannot spend it all, and it brings me endless pain. Just let me continue suffering this torment."
Oh.
Shi Rang ignored all etiquette, standing up to push the man out of the office.
Opening another infiltration route sounded good, and the Ascension Society might be interested. If he had not already been tied up with both the Ascension Society and the Alliance, he might have agreed.
But if he dared to agree now, the Alliance would raid his home the very next moment.
More importantly, what exactly was going on over at Site 009?
The Ethics Commissioner resisted with all his might, still trying to win him over.
The man was quite strong, but Shi Rang had been working out and had some muscle of his own. The two of them reached a stalemate in the middle of the spacious office, looking almost as if they were wrestling. Shi Rang began to consider whether he should use the Mini Combat Squad to give the man a quick jab—they were right in his jacket pocket—but that was a bit too risky, so he continued shoving.
"But—"
"I am very touched, but I am truly exhausted and do not have the energy to—"
Rumble...
A low rumble rolled in from the horizon. As if on cue, they both looked out the window, turning toward the source of the sound as if trying to pierce through the heavy curtain of rain.
Even though the main building was in an excellent location with no other structures blocking the view, they could not see a thing.
However, mere seconds later, several helicopters flashing their identification lights braved the wind and rain, sweeping over the Charity Foundation Campus and heading straight for the source of the noise.
The roar of the propellers caused the windowpanes to vibrate, and Shi Rang's limbs instantly felt as if they had turned to ice.
He let go of the Ethics Commissioner's crumpled jacket and stepped slowly toward the window, gazing at the spot where the formation of helicopters had vanished.
That was the direction of Site 009.
"What is going on?" the Ethics Commissioner muttered uneasily. He reached for his communication device and discovered an emergency communication request on the screen.
Although he still regretted that Shi Rang had not agreed and wanted to keep trying to persuade him, the situation had changed, and recruitment had to be put on hold.
The Ethics Commissioner pulled a spray canister from his waist, hurried over to where Shi Rang was observing the situation, and sprayed it right in his face. After confirming that Shi Rang had inhaled the agent and fallen into a stupor, he hurriedly left, holding his communication device.
"A site alarm? Everything is offline? I am nearby, I will head over immediately to take a look!"
Only after the Ethics Commissioner's footsteps and voice faded away did Shi Rang, still standing by the window, snap back to his senses.
A sudden wave of nausea hit him. He bent over to recover for a moment, blankly surveying the pitch-black sky outside the window. Confused, he paced around the room in a circle, constantly looking around and repeatedly checking the time.
His last memory was of eavesdropping on Site 009 through Wu Nian.
Now, his mounting on Wu Nian's communication device had been disconnected.
'Could it be...'
It was not until he realized he was in a strong state of sedation and feeling slightly dizzy that it dawned on him: he had undergone a memory wipe. These were the side effects of a Class-A Amnestic.
So, he connected to the Terminal Station, opened a memo in his personal space, and found the notes he had left for himself.
...
It was a message left less than five minutes ago.
[There was an annoying Ethics Commissioner just now, ignore him.] [A Piao went to Site 009, an experimental site just like Facility 031, see the other note for details.] [The communication device is in the flowerpot, go ask A Piao what they did right now!!!]
'Is the operation already over?'
Shi Rang supported himself against the wall and made his way to the flowerpot. He dug the communication device out of the dirt and tore open the plastic bag wrapped around it.
As soon as he pressed the screen to turn it on, a message popped up.
It was from A Piao.
[I am sorry, Shi Rang.]
Shi Rang felt as if he had been punched in the gut. He froze for a moment but did not press for details, instead going to the Terminal Station to search for the incident report regarding Site 009.
Sure enough, someone had immediately written up a brief summary of the situation.
[Storage Site 009 and the surrounding mountainside have suffered a massive collapse. The elevators and vertical evacuation routes are destroyed. No signals from the experimental facility systems can be detected, and the extent of the damage is unknown. Currently, four communication device signals can still be detected. Requesting the deployment of Theta-10 "Windmill" to the scene to support search and rescue operations, in order to recover personnel and Management Authority assets as quickly as possible.]
Regardless of what Shi Rang had done in his erased memories, A Piao had executed the plan to openly rob the facility.
Shi Rang could still feel a slight, throbbing pain in his head from the high mental pressure, as if he had been connected to the Terminal Station for a very long time.
He gripped the communication device firmly and returned to his office desk to sit down.
The destruction of the site was a terrifying outcome, but... with a Head personally taking action, there should not be any survivors left inside.
A Piao was not the type of anomaly to value human life, either.
Shi Rang: [Are they all still alive?]
A Piao: [I can only guarantee that they are still breathing. I had to tear that facility apart, so I was a bit heavy-handed. The organization's cracking devices couldn't breach the site's security even from the inside. It's a flawless security system. The fact that you managed to hack into it is quite impressive, so I had to destroy the evidence in case they suspect a mole.]
'So I managed to connect to Site 009's internal systems?'
'A flawless system? Really?'
'Didn't Director Bjorn break into it before?'
Shi Rang set his doubts aside for now. [Thank you.]
He planned to read his other operational notes later. To prepare for memory wipes, he had kept many personal records like this.
He could spend time piecing together what he had done afterward.
Shi Rang immediately became somewhat worried about A Piao's situation.
One of the core areas of the Management Authority had been invaded. Three Mobile Task Forces were already on the scene, and the "Boat Keepers" had also dispatched a rapid response team. They would very likely lock down the area and launch a manhunt.
[Are you okay?] he asked.
[Dying.]
This sudden bad news stunned Shi Rang; it was entirely out of his expectations.
A moment later, A Piao added another message:
[This body is dying. To make the act convincing, I intentionally took a few bullets. I am about to leave the communication range, and I will have to discard this body shortly.]
'So that is how it is...'
Any body possessed by A Piao would cease all physiological functions, making it impossible for injuries to heal.
'So, someone is still going to die.'
Considering that an anomaly like the "Soul Snatcher" had to consume a living person at least once every seven days, Shi Rang had already minimized the collateral damage as much as possible.
'Could I have done better...?'
Shi Rang pushed the thought aside for now. He was unsure of what he had done in his erased memories, but A Piao's tone sounded much closer to him now. They no longer felt like awkwardly related superiors and subordinates of the same kind; instead, they seemed more like friends who could joke with each other.
[How was the haul?] he asked.
[I emptied out the entire warehouse. If there is a chance, I will send you a few little toys to play with. I did find the Directional Reconstructor, but... The Prism is going to be absolutely furious now.]
Shi Rang: [?]
[It was destroyed. It is just a pile of scrap metal now and can never be put back together. I found it in the garbage dump at the bottom of the site.]
'Destroyed? Did the Management Authority do it themselves?'
'Wasn't this thing highly beneficial to the Council Members, an item directly supplied to the council much like the Fountain of Youth?'
Just as he was pondering this mystery, A Piao sent a new message.
[I will share more once I get to the bottom of it. Hurry up and dispose of that communication device. This incident caused a huge commotion. The Management Authority is going to dig out every single ant in the surrounding area for interrogation.]
After sending that message, A Piao went offline.
Shi Rang dismantled the outer casing of the communication device, removed the chip, and snapped it into pieces. He then handed the rest over to the Mini Combat Squad in his pocket to be completely pulverized.
He stood up from his seat. Now he had to leave the office and establish an alibi.
Some questions had now been answered. The reason the Directional Reconstructor could not be found was that it had already been destroyed, so naturally, it no longer warranted a high level of security.
Site 009 was not actually of high importance; A Piao's actions were more like a direct provocation aimed at the Management Authority.
'But what on earth did they do at the scene...?'
Driven by curiosity, Shi Rang extended his Sensing range and quickly latched onto the communication device of a Mobile Task Force member who was rushing to the incident scene.
Not long after, the soldier stepped out of the vehicle and immediately cursed.
"Shit."
The soldier's colleagues also fell silent for a moment.
"Wasn't there a mountain here originally?"
"Where is the mountain?"
"Captain, the Hume Index at the scene is rebounding rapidly—it's a Reality Bender."