SWNOVELXO Chapter 203
Episode 203. Monkey Spanner (4)
I anxiously scanned the surroundings of the forest.
There was no telling when the enemy would appear.
According to Special Forces ‘Kunai,’ their members were supposed to emerge from the forest with the fallen members of Special Forces ‘Walpurgis.’
But even this could be a trap. Given that these were the same people who dropped a tactical nuke on the facility, it was hard to feel at ease. For now, I wasn’t trusting them.
We were waiting, weapons aimed at the entrance to the facility.
How could we know what they were thinking or what their plan was? I wasn’t going to relax until they were completely subdued.
We’d already given up a lot because of Kunai Team Leader’s promise. Starting with not confirming the kills of the fallen Walpurgis members.
We also didn’t push the remaining Special Forces when we had the upper hand. Now it was their turn to repay the favor. I wasn’t sure if they’d keep their word.
Are they coming? I looked around again.
The enemy was approaching from over there.
I raised my weapon and watched the enemy procession. Kunai’s members were carrying the casualties of Special Forces ‘Walpurgis’ one by one.
How many of them were still alive?
The Special Forces members seemed to have put down their weapons as promised. Even if they were superhuman, carrying someone while staying armed would be exhausting.
With the Minerva series, we didn’t bother trying to save them because we were fed up, and there were no medical facilities nearby. But this time was different.
The Walpurgis Special Forces might be revived by the doctors here at the research institute and the Popo Serum injections. I didn’t know how badly injured they were, but some might make it.
Oh dear. The one bitten by the raptor might be hard to save. Even if the Popo Serum can cure death…
“This is Dr. Kim. I’ve spotted an enemy procession moving with casualties, likely attempting to surrender. Request additional support at the southern perimeter of the facility.”
[This is Command. Enemy procession observed from the south. Are you certain they’re surrendering?]
“They’ve put down their weapons.”
[This is Command. Snipers deployed. Will attempt contact once snipers are in position.]
“Understood.”
All members of Special Forces ‘Walpurgis’ were incapacitated, but Kunai, on the other hand, were all unharmed. I wondered if there was a specific reason.
Maybe their first phase of the plan failed, and they gave up early. Or maybe they planned to betray Walpurgis from the start.
It could also be that they didn’t have the firepower to fight me head-on, so they waited for support, only for Walpurgis to be wiped out. I’d find out once they reached the facility.
“This is Dr. Kim. Please have medical staff on standby. There are eight fallen Special Forces members. Administer the Popo Serum injections as quickly as possible.”
[Understood.]
The more I saw, the more questions piled up. All members of Special Forces ‘Kunai’ were women. Just like Walpurgis, who were all witches.
Were they from Japan? Eastern sorcerers?
In any case, their dark camouflage uniforms made it hard to see them clearly.
[Sniper team ready.]
“Copy.”
[Initiating contact.]
“I’ll initiate contact as well.”
This was the decisive moment. Medical staff and armed security personnel approached the Special Forces. I also began moving to stand in front of the Special Forces.
And then, the encounter.
The surrendering enemy Special Forces and the Garden Research Institute staff, who had arrived to handle the situation, met. I aimed my weapon forward.
The facility security team aimed their guns at the surrendering Special Forces members. Shortly after, the medical team, preparing for the encounter, came out and set down stretchers.
“This is Administrator Dr. Kim. Drop your weapons.”
Eight stretchers were prepared. The medical team from the facility lifted the bodies and injured brought by the enemy onto the stretchers.
First aid had already been administered. They must have done it before bringing them here. I observed the situation.
Only after the Popo Serum injections were administered to all the injured could I feel somewhat relieved. The stretchers were carried into the facility.
With the injured taken care of, the surrendering Kunai members could be taken to the Humanoid Containment Room. What to do with them afterward would need further consideration.
“Treat the injured and the dead. The Special Forces will go to the Humanoid Containment Room for now.”
The Kunai members entered the facility with their hands on their heads. The surrendering Special Forces Team Leader stuck her tongue out at me as she went in.
Should I kill her?
With this, the containment of Special Forces ‘Kunai’ was complete.
Lee Se-ah was giggling beside me for some reason. I don’t know why she’s so annoying today—she hasn’t done anything particularly wrong.
“How did you manage to capture them all?”
“Yeah, how?”
“What are you going to do?”
“Keep them locked up for a few days. I’ll think about it.”
Lee Se-ah nodded.
“What about Walpurgis?”
“Fix them up and use them.”
The administrators who opposed me.
The captured Special Forces members might provide information about them. If not, I’d have to find another way. The next task was to interrogate the Walpurgis Team Leader.
Where’s the surgery being done, by the way?
The Garden Research Institute’s medical wing was bustling for the first time in a while.
The Kunai Special Forces members were sedated and placed in the Humanoid Containment Room. Most of the Walpurgis Special Forces members were in surgery.
“Research Department Head. Report.”
“Ah, yes.”
“The prisoners with intact limbs have been given sedatives and will sleep soundly for a few hours. The dead or severely injured enemies are in surgery.”
“Safety measures.”
“A Reality Anchoring Device has been placed in the center of the operating room, armed personnel are on standby, and anesthetic gas is ready to be released if necessary. Sedative injections will be administered as soon as the prisoners wake up.”
The preparations were thorough.
Following the Foundation’s principles, three layers of safety measures were in place. Though, given that these were beings beyond common sense, calling it perfect preparation might be a stretch.
“Good. Have the Special Forces Team Leader transported to the containment room as soon as she wakes up. We need to interrogate her.”
“Understood.”
Lee Se-ah nodded.
The Special Forces Team Leader was handcuffed.
A silver bracelet connected her wrist to the bed rail. An IV stand by the bed held several medications.
The name on the bed was Luna. I poked her side with a pen.
“Wake up. Ms. Luna?”
“Where am I?”
“The Garden Research Institute.”
“That’s a relief… I thought I’d died and gone to hell when I saw the Foundation staff.”
Luna muttered a curse under her breath.
I looked down at the Special Forces Team Leader lying on the bed. She was just a pretty girl.
It was hard to believe she was a Special Forces member, but thinking of her as a witch made it somewhat understandable. A very youthful face, short black hair, and eyes that shimmered with a subtle color.
“How dreadful. Even in hell, there’s work to do.”
“You’re Dr. Kim, right?”
“Yes.”
“So it’s you.”
I sat down beside the Special Forces Team Leader’s bed. I fiddled with a pistol in my left hand.
Luna wasn’t moving, but she was still an extremely dangerous being. I stared at her. Her eyes were open.
“First, Ms. Luna, is there anything you’d like me to do for you? Any requests?”
“Where are my team members?”
“They’re in surgery. They should be fine.”
“Let me see them.”
“I’ll let you see them later. If it’s a video call, I can arrange it for you today.”
“Thank you.”
It might sound like a lie, but this wasn’t a lie. All the Walpurgis members were alive. Some had been revived with the Popo Serum.
“Next question. Whose orders were you following when you came to the Garden? Who ordered you to kill me?”
The Special Forces Team Leader pondered for a while.
“We were at the Pyongyang Branch. There was intel that Dr. Kim was planning to attack Pyongyang.”
“I didn’t go to Pyongyang.”
Still, it was good that Luna was answering. She had no reason to hide information anymore.
The two administrators who had given her orders were dead, and her subordinates were now my prisoners. Luna seemed to understand this, which made her cooperative.
“Yes, I know.”
“So what happened?”
“After Beijing was captured by you, the Pyongyang Branch collapsed and ceased functioning. My Special Forces withdrew from Pyongyang.”
I figured as much.
After Acacia’s death and the capture of Beijing, the power dynamics were like this: Vladivostok, Seoul, and Beijing had completely surrounded the Pyongyang Branch. With Acacia dead, there was no reason or way for Pyongyang to hold out.
“What was your purpose in coming to the Garden?”
“To kill Cernunnos.”
“Why kill it?”
“The administrators who ordered your assassination believed that Cernunnos was one of the deities supporting you.”
“I don’t get it.”
A sealed deer god didn’t seem that helpful. It certainly didn’t seem worth dropping a tactical nuke to kill.
I swallowed my irritation and moved on to the next question. Luna was already a surrendered prisoner, after all.
“Do you know anything about the administrators?”
“A bit.”
“Start with Administrator Molotov and Raven.”
Luna shook her head.
“Not exactly. Administrator Raven is somewhere in Europe, and Molotov is connected to Russia, I think.”
I’d have to ask Patreus again.