Enforcer Manual
Chapter 196: Cold Wave Warning_1

Chapter 196: Chapter 196: Cold Wave Warning_1

The exchange between Lieyang’s father and the Minister of Internal Affairs was far more peaceful than Song Lan had imagined.

He had to admire the resilience of politicians, who, despite being held captive by the Barrosa Group for a week and even almost losing their lives, did not lash out. Instead, when Lieyang’s father saw the Minister, there was no kick, no outburst; instead, he picked up a glass of wine and seemingly cordially toasted with the Minister.

"Thank you for your years of service to the Twelfth Nation, you’ve worked hard."

He began, "It’s time for you to rest."

Out of respect for years of service, he decided to give the Minister a dignified exit, and the banquet that evening was to bid him farewell.

Recently, much had happened in the Twelfth Nation; it was at a crucial point in its transformation.

No longer a vassal of the United Government, it was becoming an independent nation.

"Your decisions were wrong."

The Minister cast a sidelong glance at Esinvig, who was heavily indisposed due to drink and drawing a lot of side glances, "Working with the Rebel Army, it’s like repeating our past mistakes."

Indeed, this alliance was less desirable than the past allegiance to the United Government.

He was the only one who clearly saw that what the Twelfth Nation really needed was not a patron, but a chance to strengthen themselves with their own power.

Obviously, the genetic study of the Barrosa Group was the only real way to help them move towards the future.

"The future you speak of, do you mean CTEA-32?"

Lieyang’s father asked, "Turning soldiers who loyally serve their country into monsters, then deploying them as suicide weapons on the battlefield."

"Research inevitably faces failure and sacrifice. What decision-makers need to do is find a path to lead the people to the future, and as long as investment is increased, a more perfect drug can eventually be researched."

"If you really believe this, why then did you hide the existence of CTEA-32 and the fact that you were cooperating with the Barrosa Group?"

Although the tone of the two remained calm, the tension was palpable in their exchange.

The Minister’s face darkened, his tone growing sharper, "It’s because the people who govern this nation are short-sighted. To overcome obstacles, someone has to be the villain!"

He understood better than anyone that once the public got wind of CTEA-32 and its widespread use in the Twelfth Nation’s military, it would undoubtedly create unprecedented public pressure.

Yet, he had to proceed thus.

"Your past actions have been a total failure. When the Rebel Army was knocking on our doors, the United Government abandoned us, they nearly took away your precious daughter. This is the reason the Rebel Army was able to enter our capital almost uncontested!"

If CTEA-32 had been used in the army at that time, even if it could not repel the Rebel Army, it would have exacted a heavy toll on them during the attack.

"But the Barrosa Group is not the correct answer, you must know what kind of people they are."

...

Song Lan, with his extraordinary hearing saw the debate between the two escalated, he, an observer, saw the dilemma of the Twelfth Nation.

The fundamental reason for this was that they had wealth but weak military power — the combination of these two made them a Big Fat Sheep in people’s eyes.

The Twelfth Nation had originally hoped that the United Government would shelter them, but the attack by the Rebel Army made them lose hope completely.

Not only had they not sent any troops, but they had even recalled their General before the war.

From Song Lan’s objective perspective, the United Government’s actions could be categorized as treason, and it was understandable that the Twelfth Nation, after getting rid of the parasitic United Government, would rather turn to ally with the Rebel Army and exit the alliance.

In exiting the alliance, there was consensus between the leaders and the Minister of Internal Affairs. The only disagreement was how to proceed after leaving.

The Minister was bent on gene drug research and certain that CTEA-32 was the only way to significantly enhance the military power of the Twelfth Nation in a short time.

However, this method of empowerment was a bit subtle, it would transition them from being a Neutral Country to a country practicing terrorism.

If CTEA-32 were really injected into the army, then anyone who waged war with the Twelfth Nation in the future would face indiscriminate killing by the monsters injected with gene medicine, on the battlefield and even in their cities. A potentially disastrous strategy.

It was also blatantly clear that opening the cities of the Twelfth Nation to the Rebel Army was unfavorable.

This would signify a definite diplomatic ruin with the United Government, while no one knew whether the Rebel Army would abandon them as the United Government had, when war breaks out in the future.

After recently encountering a genetic monster, a prosthesis modification madman, and a Psychic, Song Lan realised that equipment like exoskeleton armor hardly had any effect in higher-level battlefields.

In fact, this was also a problem facing the law enforcers of the Seventeenth District.

The Special Operations Group could normally only deal with local criminal groups, once a real war was involved, even in exoskeleton armor, they could only play a cannon fodder role.

Song Lan listened very carefully, hoping to find a clear way out from the ideological confrontation between the two.

Regrettably, the two disputing individuals seemed no longer preoccupied with the answer. With neither being able to convince the other, the debate gradually escalated to resorting to force for a resolution.

Following the signal from the Minister, who banged his wine glass, the Knife and Axe Hands who had accompanied him took out the prepared CTEA-32 injections.

Seeing this, Song Lan could only sigh.

As they stormed into the banquet hall, the Minister’s trusted men injected the liquid into their veins. Princess Lieyang and her guard were prepared for battle.

At the climax of the banquet, however, the trusted men fell short.

After injecting CTEA-32, their bodies did not exhibit any changes. All the men awkwardly maintained their previous poses, standing on the spot under everyone’s watchful eyes.

Because they knew of the drug’s side effects in advance, they did not even carry any weapons.

The gene medicine had failed.

Extra bodies, displayed in strange poses, appeared in the hall. This led the banquet atmosphere to fall into an awkward silence.

A moment later, the trusted men finally discovered what was wrong — an icy layer had somehow covered the syringe, chilling them to the bone, with the cold seeping in through their hands and spreading to their entire bodies.

It felt as though even their blood was about to freeze from the sudden dip in temperature.

They tried to throw the syringe away but found they couldn’t; their limbs were unresponsive. They could only maintain their current postures as they watched the royal guards approach.

The royal guards also had to halt their steps. Because before they could arrest them, the Minister’s confidants were imprisoned in blocks of transparent ice, turned into oddly shaped ice sculptures.

The banquet hall’s temperature drastically dropped, and when Song Lan opened his mouth, visible breath steamed out.

The woman sitting next to Esinvig stood and walked towards the immobile Minister.

The Minister watched her coldly as she reached out her right hand towards his chest.

The next moment,

a new ice statue was born.