This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 188: The Officer and the Biologist

Chapter 188: Chapter 188: The Officer and the Biologist

The preparation room of Shelter No. 117.

Holding a cup of hot water to warm herself up, the woman finally calmed down after having understood the situation. Then she turned to look at the two guards sitting behind the long table.

"Could I see your Manager, please?"

The two guards exchanged glances.

The slightly older one looked at her cautiously and said,

"We will report this matter to the Manager... Please state your identity. Are you a resident here?"

"Heya, Doctor of Biogenetic Engineering, from the Wasteland Era year 190... You must not be from the refuge."

The guard nodded.

"I’m indeed not. The two Blue Jackets who brought you here are, but the Manager treats us all equally."

Heya’s expression suddenly became tense.

"Are you Torch?"

The two guards looked perplexed.

"Torch?"

"What is that..."

Seeing their reaction, Heya breathed a sigh of relief. Her tense shoulders slowly relaxed, and she leaned back in her chair.

She muttered under her breath,

"Nothing... it’s fine if you’re not."

That’s right.

It had been twenty years.

The older guard frowned and asked her,

"What are you talking about?"

Heya paused for a moment and replied,

"I’ll explain the situation at that time to your Manager later; it’s my duty... By the way, what’s your number?"

"404."

404?

Heya looked bewildered.

Was there such a number in Qingquan City?

She had thought...near 117 there should be 116 or 115...

...

On the other hand, Long Endurance Farm.

Discussing my issue?

Hearing this, Vanus’s expression immediately became tense,

But Chu Guang’s next words somewhat eased his mind.

"The Expeditionary Army has failed, your General Kras has died in battle, and the War is now over. You can write to your family. You just need to pay a ransom of 2 million dinars to compensate us for our losses in the War, and then you can go back to where you came from."

Hearing this number, Vanus nearly choked on his own saliva and coughed as he said,

"Sir, even if I sold all my family’s possessions, I couldn’t raise that much money."

2,000 dinars could buy a strong and healthy Slave, 2 million dinars equaled 1000 Slaves.

And the Slaves mentioned here aren’t those disposable Clones but those survivors—men and women capable of Work and with full lifespans.

Slaves...

At least a Ten Thousand Leader with a "mining estate" could possess such substantial wealth.

At most, he could muster 200,000, and that would be if he drained his entire family fortune.

Without any surprise at Vanus’s response,

"Alternative proposal. I need to train some recruits here. You help me out, and I can give you a discount on your ransom."

Vanus was stunned for a second.

Train recruits?

...Me?

Seeing he didn’t respond, Chu Guang continued.

"Any questions?"

"No, sir... I’m very grateful for your trust," Vanus paused, then said, "May I know the reason?"

Chu Guang replied without hesitation.

"You must have heard too. A massive Looter Tribe is on the rise. If we’re optimistic, maybe by early next year. If not, maybe we’ll encounter them before the end of winter. If you don’t want a Barbarian for a master, you better show some real skill."

"I will give you ten people, and if the training goes well, I will give you a ten percent discount on your ransom, and then give you another ten people, and so on. If you perform excellently, perhaps I will waive your ransom altogether. Whether you can return home sooner depends on your performance."

Vanus’s Adam’s apple moved, and his eyes showed a complex mix of emotions.

Among them were surprise, disbelief, and some other indescribable feelings.

He nodded slightly, respectfully saying,

"I will follow your arrangements, sir."

He was beginning to understand.

Why that man could earn such genuine loyalty from so many people.

Watching the obedient Vanus, Chu Guangmang nodded in satisfaction,

"Dismissed."

"Yes."

After Vanus left,

Jiu Li, standing nearby, looked nervously toward Chu Guangmang,

"Sir, are you certain about assigning a member of the Army to be an instructor?"

In the central and northern parts of the River Valley Province, people with a prominent nasal bridge were synonymous with devils, the root of plagues and disasters.

He couldn’t trust a member of the Army, let alone a mid-level Army officer.

As for Wrench and Luka, they felt indifferent; in the southern part of He Gu Province, they rarely saw members of the Army. They despised the local Looters and Mutants more.

Although having a prisoner as an instructor was somewhat strange, they themselves were also born captives and serfs of Looters.

Moreover, this was the Manager’s judgement, and they had no doubt that his decision was correct.

Looking at Jiu Li whose eyes were filled with distrust, Chu Guangmang spoke straightforwardly,

"Why not? On the battlefield, they are our enemies, but off the battlefield, they can also be potential allies. The Army’s influence does not extend to the River Valley Province, and for a long time, we will not have direct conflicts. Our disagreements don’t amount to a bitter feud. Besides, he has been reformed satisfactorily during this period, and since he has gained the workers’ recognition, I think we should give him an opportunity."

The Army’s tactics had aspects worth learning from, and Chu Guangmang needed an instructor on his side to train a group of junior officers proficient in logistics, light infantry tactics, trench warfare, and maneuver warfare.

Vanus, who had received military education from a young age and was himself a mid-level officer in the Army, was undoubtedly a suitable candidate.

It was unrealistic to let a prisoner lead troops, but to teach and train the "NPCs" was not a problem; the only obstacle to overcome was a psychological one.

In large-scale battles, it was necessary for NPCs and players to work together seamlessly to maximize the players’ combat power.

Sooner or later, they would encounter opponents even stronger than the Looters.

Of course, this did not mean that Chu Guangmang fully trusted the guy.

Chu Guangmang planned to arrange for two sufficiently loyal guards to enter the classrooms to learn while also serving as supervisors. If they noticed any devious scheming or unnecessary actions from him, those who saw themselves as saviors would report to Chu Guangmang immediately.

At that point, Chu Guangmang would naturally deal with it.

"...Here, identity is not important at all, that applies to everyone."

"Remember that."

This was not just for Vanus; it was also meant for the representative of the refugees.

Jiu Li’s shoulders gave a slight twitch.

Although he still couldn’t bring himself to trust that Army man, he lowered his head,

"Yes, sir."

...

After the rest had left, Chu Guangmang had Luka stay behind to get an update on the recent situation at Changjiu Farm.

Overall, the integration of the refugees was going fairly smoothly, with nearly twenty refugees who had found work now allowed into the farm.

This included two butchers, three tanners, as well as craftsmen like carpenters, tailors, and masons.

Nearly fifty additional laborers were in the process of completing their paperwork.

The Refugee Camp was merely a buffer; Chu Guangmang had no intention of leaving those refugees lingering at the east entrance, having them there was only to avoid chaos.

As long as they proved their worth through work, anyone could enter Changjiu Farm and become a legal resident.

After listening to Luka’s report, Chu Guangmang pondered for a moment and said,

"The refugee population seems to have increased recently."

Luka replied respectfully,

"Yes, sir, just this week alone, we’ve already received over twenty people in three batches. That’s not counting Frost Spear and his fifty-odd tribespeople whom you just met."

It seemed that recent unrest had indeed brought considerable trouble to the survivors of the River Valley Province.

Especially that Chewing Bone Tribe...

Chu Guangmang’s fist clenched slightly.

Just then, the signal light on his VM wristband suddenly flashed.

A slight movement in his heart, Chu Guangmang immediately opened the VM screen.

The message was from Xiao Qi,

"Master, Shelter No. 117 seems to have discovered a living person?"

Seeing this message, Chu Guang was stunned for a moment.

"Alive?!"

Xiao Qi: "Yes... Her name is Heya, and she claims to be a resident of Shelter No. 117, saying she has an important matter to discuss with you in person."

As Chu Guang read the text from Xiao Qi, he hadn’t yet recovered from his surprise when suddenly, three lines of pale blue pop-up text appeared in his field of vision.

[Mission Complete.]

[Access to Floor B3 of Shelter No. 404 has been unlocked!]

[Please check promptly, Manager!]

...

Chu Guang had not expected his players to be so effective.

He initially thought it would take them at least two or three days to find the remaining 10% of the hidden map, but to his astonishment, they hadn’t even taken 24 hours?

That was incredibly strong!

How on earth did they manage it?

Without hurrying to open Floor B3, which wasn’t going anywhere anyway,

Chu Guang returned to Outpost Base and followed the guard to the reception room, where he met the woman said to be from 20 years ago.

"My Lord, this is her."

"I know."

After gesturing for the guard to leave, Chu Guang sat down opposite her.

His gaze fell on her striking white hair, and after contemplating for a moment, he asked an inconsequential question.

"Is... your silver hair natural?"

"DNA defect, I heard it was a minor illness before the war, but unfortunately, I was born in a shelter... However, that’s not the main point," the lady took a deep breath and extended her right hand to Chu Guang, "Please allow me to introduce myself, my name is Heya, a resident of Shelter No. 117... possibly the only surviving registered resident."

Chu Guang noted that she had emphasized her status as a registered resident.

Could it be there are unregistered people?

But for him, these matters weren’t the focus.

The focus was her hair, which clearly was an SSSR Card!

If this was to be included in the Alpha 0.9 version update, wouldn’t it be appropriate to rave about how amazing the planners were?

Yin Fang’s classmate finally wouldn’t have to worry about being harassed, and soon, he was going to experience the feeling of being out of favor.

There was no creature more fickle than players.

Noticing a pair of curious eyes watching her

Chu Guang cleared his throat and adopted a serious expression as he spoke to her.

"Chu Guang, manager of Shelter No. 404, I’ve already confirmed your identity through my assistant, and I would like to know exactly what happened to you all."

Burying her nose in her palms, Heya took a deep breath, raised her head to Chu Guang, and began.

"A disaster. If we are to clarify the entire situation, it might take some time."

"No issue, the one thing we have plenty of in the Wasteland is time."

"You are right."

A look of resigned amusement crossed her face as she gathered her emotions and slowly began,

"For you, this happened over twenty years ago, but for me, it feels as though it all happened yesterday..."

As promoted, Shelter No. 117 was a community-type refuge though, in principle, it didn’t have Cryogenic Dormancy Technology.

These facilities were primarily for residents who didn’t wish to be cryogenically dormant and wanted to stay with their families and those unsuitable for cryogenic sleep or allergic to cryoprotectants and thawing agents.

After all, although Cryogenic Dormancy Technology had been developed, the longest dormancy period was only fifty years, and no one could guarantee there wouldn’t be side effects over periods lasting a century.

Instead of living a life of anxiety about an unforeseeable future, some people preferred to spend precious moments with their families in the refuge before leaving the future to those yet to come.

After the war erupted, a total of 100 residents entered the shelter, including teachers, doctors, professors, corporate executives, and lawyers, all of whom were highly educated elites. Once inside, they assumed their duties as planned, continuing the utopia for a considerable time.

Yet nothing lasts forever against the relentless march of time.

With the birth of the first newborn and the passing of the oldest, the survivors from the old world inevitably faced aging and death.

Mathematical models could predict macro samples but not love. Even though the educated survivors consciously controlled their population growth, the rate of increase was still faster than expected, leading to a crisis in space and resources, which in turn led to divergence.

A faction of the newer generation residents believed that staying would only result in certain death, with no hope in sight; they had to venture out.

Calling themselves the Torch, they aimed to drive the shelter toward change, readying the pre-war tools bestowed upon them to fulfill the duties of the future prematurely.

Yet, another faction, older residents, believed that the world outside was worse than inside, that venturing out would only lead to a dead end. They thought they should patiently await the preset time, pass on their knowledge to the next generation, and then open the doors as planned to welcome a new era.

The divergence rapidly worsened in the Wasteland Era Year 180, and the final straw came when a member of the Torch opened the door and saved a child from the Wasteland.

His name was Wang Yi.

The clever and eager-to-learn child quickly became a core figure in the Torch organization under their care.

In the Wasteland Era Year 190, rebellion broke out, and many died. Most critically, the reactor fuel rods were damaged, and Sven Vilard, the manager at the time, reluctantly compromised. He opened the shelter and promised the Torch that as long as they found replacement fuel rods, he would give them a share of the pre-war reserves to pursue their mission.

Shelter No.117 was to be closed again according to the plan, continuing to await the scheduled time.

However, regrettably, Torch did not keep their promise. They sealed the doors of the shelter, forcing Sven Vilard to hand over the remaining Black Boxes.

Due to the lack of fuel, the Full Cycle Systems could no longer be maintained, and the remaining people had to enter the emergency shelter.

There, twenty Sleep Cabins were stored.

To give others a chance, Manager Sven Vilard chose to stay behind alone.

After hearing all the stories, Chu Guang couldn’t help but ask.

"That Sven Vilard... how old exactly did he live to be?"

Heya looked perplexed and shook her head.

"I don’t know, I just remember he seemed to have lived for a very long time."

Alright.

Chu Guang let the question go.

"But the others still died."

Heya nodded her head.

"Yes, our ancestors, most of them were unsuitable for Cryogenic Dormancy Technology. Strictly speaking, I am too, but I’m a little different from them."

As she spoke, Heya showed Chu Guang her arm.

In her pulse, one could see a silver trace.

Chu Guang frowned.

"Bionic augmentation?"

Heya nodded.

"Due to DNA defects, my level of bionic augmentation reached 79%, virtually any organ you can name has been replaced with bionics. I think... that might be the reason I survived."

Gripping the armrests with both hands, Chu Guang immediately asked.

"How did you manage to create bionic organs?"

Heya explained.

"The Black Box, a product of the Arc Project, is a miraculous thing that only requires a few basic raw materials to produce the desired product. Our Black Box was primarily for producing bionics, but almost all of them were stolen by Torch during that rebellion."

Hearing they were stolen, Chu Guang felt a pang of distress.

It was bad enough that they were stolen, but it was twenty years ago.

Even if he found them, whether they could still be used was questionable!

"So, what do you plan to do next?"

Heya looked confused and shook her head.

"I don’t know, but the Manager instructed us that if anyone survived, we should go find other shelters and tell them our story. Right, in the Manager’s office there’s a set of power armor; he also said that it could help us—"

"I’ve already retrieved it, including his VM."

Looking at the bewildered child, Chu Guang continued.

"If you have nowhere to go, why not join us? We could use an expert in biology."

Heya blinked, slightly startled, then nodded gently.

"I have no objections, although my research might not be able to help you..."

As she said this, she suddenly remembered something and her expression became a bit embarrassed.

"Right, there’s one thing, I wonder if I could trouble you with it."

The always-helpful Chu Guang smiled.

"Tell me, what is it?"

Heya smiled shyly and said politely.

"Well... could I borrow some of your DNA? I’d like to study it."

Chu Guang: "???"

Just then, hurried footsteps came from outside the door, followed by a knock.

"Come in."

The door opened.

The deputy commander of the guard, Liuding, strode into the reception room, speaking urgently.

"Manager Sir, a plane has come from the south."

A plane?

Chu Guang was slightly stunned, his expression instantly serious as he stood up swiftly.

"Take some men and go there, I’ll follow immediately!"

-

(Snap! I got disconnected just now; I transmitted this using a hotspot.)

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