Chapter Ninety-Seven: Timeless Schemes That Warm the Heart (Part One)

To be fair, Darrell would rather be beaten to death by the Legion Commander than face that enigmatic "Doctor" face to face. The moment he saw Delin, Darrell knew something was terribly wrong. On Earth, familiars were outsiders—no different in human eyes than Martians. Moreover, familiars were utterly free-spirited, devoid of any human concepts of collective values or moral codes. How a familiar might react was something only a genius could predict.

What’s more, as a seasoned operative who had traveled far and wide, Darrell understood that the more humanoid a familiar appeared, the stronger its power. And familiars like Delin, who bore only partial animal traits, were terrifying entities best left unprovoked.

Looking back, Darrell secretly regretted not knocking the young master unconscious immediately instead of allowing him to go provoke trouble. He had believed that even if his master acted recklessly, he might still have a chance to rescue him. But he never expected that young man, accompanied by the familiar, to be so formidable—and so ruthless. Darrell’s ice barrier was shattered without even providing the slightest defense, which clearly showed that the opponent’s abilities surpassed his own. Facing such a foe… Darrell was unwilling to engage in battle again.

Unfortunately, the Legion Commander’s orders were not to be defied.

If there was one small consolation, it was that Darrell was not fighting alone. Yet… even his subordinates inspired the same dread within him.

“Where is the target? A human?”

Darrell looked up, frowning as he stepped back several paces, staring at the enormous figure before him. A towering mutant, at least two or three meters tall, stood there. It resembled a hairless gorilla, its skin a sickly green. Its teeth protruded grotesquely from its lips, giving it the fearsome appearance of a wild beast.

Seeing the monster grin menacingly, Darrell couldn’t help but twitch his mouth and instinctively retreat a couple of steps. These damned mutants were enemies of all creatures in the wasteland. They were indiscriminate eaters, brutal and savage. Most were once ordinary humans expelled from settlements for various reasons, but in the wilds where the network’s energy was weaker, they mutated into their current forms. Because of their past, they harbored deep hatred for humans, roaming in packs and viciously attacking human caravans and settlements.

Given their immense strength, rapid regeneration, and speed, small settlements stood no chance against them.

In fact, many small communities in the wasteland had fallen to these mutants’ savage assaults, reduced to burning ruins. The mutants killed the men, abducted the women, forced those women to bear children, and then murdered the mothers to feed the next generation of mutants. No decent human could ever accept such horrors. Thus, mutants were universally abhorred across the wasteland. Even Darrell, now fighting alongside them, felt no warmth toward their presence.

The Caesar Legion had managed to recruit these mutants because they were slave traders engaged in the vilest business. Their commander was ruthless, maintaining the mutants’ loyalty by regularly supplying slaves as gifts. These terrifying mutants formed the Legion Commander’s most formidable “beast legion.” Usually, they remained hidden, but their appearance here spoke volumes.

“Enough chatter. Let’s get down to business.”

Taking another cautious step back, Darrell forced himself to fix his gaze on the mutant leader and spoke deliberately.

“The target’s codename is ‘Doctor,’ a yellow-skinned Oriental. He commands a high-level familiar as his servant. Since we haven’t clashed directly, I can’t confirm their true strength, but high-level familiars are inherently dangerous. Be careful. Also, this ‘Doctor’ likely uses some form of close-combat ability, so stay alert… That’s all I have to say. Now, you may depart and bring back his head.”

“Heh.”

The mutant leader sneered at Darrell’s forced composure, then grabbed a nearby metal chain. The mutated dog crouched not far behind let out a howl and obediently stood.

“Don’t worry. Tell the Legion Commander we’ll turn that fool and his dumb familiar into our next feast! Let’s go, brothers!”

With a booming laugh, the mutant leader turned and waved to the dozen or so mutants behind him. They surged forward like a hurricane, vanishing into the darkness in the blink of an eye. Only when they had fully disappeared did Darrell finally exhale, his legs giving way as he collapsed to the ground. Reaching into his pocket for a cigarette, he suddenly remembered—his right hand was gone, lost along with the rest. He sighed helplessly and closed his eyes.

Did he hope those bastards would complete the mission? Or fail?

At that moment, Darrell didn’t know which outcome he wished for.

Ferren did not stay in a hotel. As a distinguished guest in Vegas, he had his own private villa. This so-called villa was really one of the pre-disaster homes left behind by high-ranking officials and wealthy individuals. After the Prosperity Society took over the city, they refurbished these relatively intact villas for their esteemed guests. For Ferren, who enjoyed comfort and luxury, it was naturally preferable to spend his time here, engaging in all sorts of activities with women… such as—

“So beautiful…”

Gazing upon the naked form before him, Ferren murmured in admiration. He bit his lip, his eyes blazing with a fire of desire. The soft, delicate skin, the closed eyes, the bare body, the slippery texture unique to skin and muscle…

“Why do you insist on conducting autopsies during your rare days off, Master?”

Standing quietly nearby, Delin sighed helplessly as she watched Ferren gently slice open the woman’s corpse. Then she spoke softly.

“You don’t understand, Delin. I’m studying human ecological changes—why a woman suddenly died… hmm, in Vegas, which hasn’t changed much since the pre-disaster world. Understanding the cause of death could be a valuable research subject.”

“So, Master, what is your conclusion?”

“Sudden cardiac arrest. Such a boring cause of death. Maybe I should suggest the Prosperity Society conduct regular checkups on these lab rats to make data collection easier… Sigh, finding the answer so quickly is dreadfully dull. The long nights are sleepless and boring… Might as well conduct a full-body examination to see if there are any signs of internal mutation remission… Next is the uterus…”

Just as Ferren raised the scalpel to cut into the woman’s abdomen, a sudden “snap” echoed. The once bright and dazzling lights abruptly went out, plunging everything into darkness.

“...Bad luck…”

“No, Master.”

Hearing Ferren’s lament, Delin shook her head gently. Her cat ears twitched slightly.

“This isn’t a power outage… Someone is breaking in.”

“Oh? Finally? Seems the old tricks still work best…”

Setting the scalpel aside, Ferren shrugged off his lab coat and smiled faintly.

“Well then, let’s begin our preparations.”

(To be continued.)