Safe City Ch.177.2

Chapter 177.2: “The real [Ota] wasn’t like this at all”

Across the Broken River Wasteland, the outsiders from the various Safe Cities were pulling out all the stops, each coming up with their own ways to infiltrate [Ota].

The locals, meanwhile, were worried that the influx of outsiders would take away their jobs. At the same time, the sudden appearance of competition for “positions” made them even more fiercely protective of [Ota].

As for the residents of Blue Sea, some were fighting, some were making plans, and some were busy scamming people out of nuclear crystals.

No one was sitting idle. Everyone had a bright future ahead of them.

And above them all, the great Blue Sea Creator God was spreading her mental power among the researchers that Qi Yi and the others had dug up, using the perspective of believers to observe them.

There were thirty-nine of them in total.

Twenty-one were white researchers, second only to the highest-ranking black researchers.

Among the rest were gold researchers, one rank below that, followed by dark blue and light blue researchers, and even the lowest-ranking silver-gray researchers.

They’d scooped up everything from PhD supervisors and postdocs to full-time researchers, graduate students, and interns.

Cheng Qisheng was very pleased.

Before the apocalypse, scientific researchers on Moon Silk Star had been practically everywhere.

But at this point in time, researchers out in the world had almost no chance of surviving. Those who had survived had all been swept up by the three major companies.

Blue Sea had searched for so long that, little by little, the Academy of Science had only managed to recruit a dozen or so local researchers.

And all of them were light blue or below.

To suddenly find several dozen living, breathing researchers with functioning brains was practically a gift from heaven.

Cheng Qisheng had already blessed Qi Yi and the others several times. Right now, the bunch of them were happily basking in the joy of receiving rewards from Our God.

On top of that, bringing back so many researchers would earn them a huge number of contribution points.

The Changming Guild was about to become the richest guild of them all. Hahahaha!

The dean and vice dean of the Academy of Science were delighted as well.

Just one white researcher, Colleen, had already given Blue Sea a supply of new-energy vehicles that could be used for an entire year, along with a large number of energy modules that could be incorporated into various facilities.

Then there was Jin Yin, a researcher who had been demoted to light blue. She had more than doubled the lifespan of every Blue Sea resident.

So what could all these researchers bring to Blue Sea?

Everyone was filled with joy and anticipation, and the air was positively brimming with cheer.

The only ones who couldn’t share in the happiness were probably the thirty-nine researchers themselves.

From their perspective, it had gone like this:

The moment they opened their eyes, they saw a desolate wasteland and mutated beasts eyeing them hungrily.

Before they could even process what was happening, they were rescued by a group of people capable of tearing those terrifying monsters apart with their bare hands.

Those people had taken one look at their clothes and merely told them that they belonged to [Ota] Company. They said nothing else afterward, presumably for fear of exposing themselves.

They immediately surrounded the entire group and took them aboard some bizarre-looking vehicles, racing onward without stopping.

Then came the terrifying rhinoceros that looked like something straight out of a nightmare.

They were put on its back and jolted along at such a bone-rattling pace that they nearly had their stomachs shaken out.

It wasn’t until they were finally sitting in this room that they learned that 150 years had already passed, and that the fierce people who had brought them here were employees of [Ota] Company.

“We are employees of [Shulier Company]. You have no authority to forcibly terminate our employment. Our brain contracts are all registered with [Shulier].”

The head of the laboratory was a 103-year-old man. Even among the old humans, this man named Tupa would unquestionably be considered elderly.

He did his best to remain calm. Although he knew that a hundred and fifty years had passed and that countless people and things must have changed, when Tupa thought of something that could stand against the [Company], the only thing he could think of was another [Company].

“Mr. Tupa.”

The Blue Sea employee sitting across from him spoke calmly.

“The Shulier Company you worked for was destroyed by [Norn Company] five years ago.”

“We hope that you and your team can be loyal to [Ota] just as you were loyal to [Shulier].”

Tupa’s lips trembled.

The truth was, he hadn’t exactly been loyal to [Shulier] either.

He had simply been afraid.

For one thing, he knew very little about [Ota], and even less about the world a hundred and fifty years in the future.

For another, a group of physically fragile researchers had just woken up from cryogenic capsules only to fall into the hands of a [Company]. It sounded an awful lot like they were about to have their brains removed and end up floating in jars.

The Blue Sea people also knew what kind of stereotypes the people of Moon Silk Star had about [Companies].

At present, these researchers were in a state where they were desperately resistant to [Ota], yet didn’t dare resist in any way. They didn’t even dare raise their voices when speaking.

But there was no way Blue Sea was going to let them go.

Leaving aside whether these physically fragile people would be eaten down to their bones by night beasts the very night they were released—when had Blue Sea ever pushed away a little cake that had been delivered right to its doorstep?

The Academy of Science had come up with a brilliant idea.

Let Colleen, a local, persuade them!

She had already managed to convince Jin Yin.

Although having her best friend there certainly gave her an advantage, as a local and a researcher herself, Colleen would surely know exactly how to persuade other local researchers.

And sure enough, after Colleen stepped in, the communication progress bar that had been completely stuck suddenly shot upward.

She hadn’t actually said much. [Ota] had already explained the current situation on Moon Silk Star, so repeating it wouldn’t have made much difference.

She had simply helped the thirty-nine people apply for a laboratory, then informed them that [Ota] required them to begin working immediately.

And the thirty-nine of them really did throw themselves into work at once—and with remarkable dedication. They worked so hard that they seemed determined to sleep for only an hour a day.

The Blue Sea staff, who had been pretending to maintain an aloof persona while desperately trying to win these people over, had practically worn their tongues raw trying to persuade them.

“…”

Colleen was very experienced at this.

“They need some time to adjust. For the next few days, let them work overtime. Once they’ve gotten used to things after three days, you can gradually reduce their working hours.”

Just as the Blue Sea people had previously estimated, these thirty-nine people were a team.

Strictly speaking, half a team.

They had been responsible for researching materials for [Shulier Company], specializing in ceramic matrix composites for aerospace applications. They could be considered a medium-sized research group.

However, everyone stated that if [Ota] wanted, they were also willing to cooperate and switch to a different research direction.

All of these researchers had signed employee agreements with [Shulier Company]. When the situation had become sufficiently dangerous, they had entered the shelter beneath their laboratory.

Originally, they should have awakened five years ago. But for some unknown reason, they didn’t actually wake up until five years later.

For them, however, that was a good thing.

If they had awakened five years ago, they probably would have gone down with [Shulier Company] when [Norn Company] attacked.

“Materials science?”

Another treasure!

All right, she admitted it. As far as Blue Sea Safe City was concerned, any researcher on Moon Silk Star, regardless of what they researched, was a treasure.

But materials science really could be applied to all kinds of things.

Chips, weapons, life sciences, aerospace—even all of these fields need the support of materials science.

Take the most immediate example.

Colleen wanted to develop instruments capable of storing or capturing more energy, and with an entire research group like this backing her up, the chances of success had increased dramatically.

Cheng Qisheng didn’t hesitate for even a moment. She happily accepted the entire research group.

“Give them the standard employee benefits, but they still aren’t allowed to leave the Academy of Science.”

The thirty-nine people soon went through the same emotional journey that Colleen and Jin Yin had once experienced.

For the first time, they were forcibly required to take time off.

For the first time, they left work at six in the evening.

For the first time, they got a full seven hours of sleep every day.

For the first time, they could eat as much natural food as they wanted, and they even had spacious accommodations of their own.

For the first time, no one rushed them while they were working.

And for the first time, they learned that [Ota] was a longevity-oriented company. It wouldn’t take its employees’ brains, but would instead do everything it could to extend their lifespans.

“This is just… too wrong.”

After the entire research group had worked at [Ota] for a full month, one of the white researchers in the group, Hale, first carefully surveyed the surroundings during normal working hours, then quietly switched off the surveillance cameras in the laboratory.

He motioned for the others to gather around.

Hale wasn’t particularly popular within the research group. He had a rather distant relative who was a high-ranking executive of a [Company]. To put it bluntly, he’d simply been sent to the research group to pad his résumé, and he usually treated the other members with considerable arrogance.

Although they didn’t particularly like him, there was no need to obey him like they had before now that they were with a new [Company]. Still, seeing how mysterious he was being, the others temporarily put down their work and turned to look at him.

Hale lowered his voice.

“Don’t you find this strange? This isn’t how [Companies] operate at all. And besides, I suspect this place isn’t actually [Ota Company] in the first place.”

Even after switching companies, the elderly Tupa had still been designated as the person in charge. He smiled at Hale.

“Hale, what are you talking about? This is obviously a company.”

“Are you all blind?”

Hale was practically incredulous.

“Even in a world a hundred and fifty years in the future, a [Company] wouldn’t possibly have nothing but these outdated machines for us to use. For God’s sake, it even makes me operate them manually.”

“And another thing. A [Company] would never let its employees leave work on schedule every day. Yet they even arranged houses for us, and make sure we have nutritious natural food every day. What does that prove?”

One researcher said hesitantly, “Uh… that the company values us?”

Another researcher said, “Hale, it’s been a hundred and fifty years. Everything has changed. Maybe some technologies were lost, which is why the facilities look so outdated. You’re overthinking this.”

Hale stared at them.

“No. What are your brains made of? How can you not see this?”

“All right, let me put it more clearly. Do you really believe that this so-called [Ota] is a longevity-oriented company? Damn it, I’m telling you, I know [Ota]. The real [Ota] wasn’t like this at all. The equipment for extracting people’s brains was developed by [Ota] itself.”

“This is a fake. Do you understand? They don’t actually have the power of a real [Company], so they’re pretending to be one. Just look at the things they’re doing. Which one of them actually lines up with how a [Company] operates?”

“They’re just deceiving us. These people aren’t nearly as powerful as they’re making themselves out to be!”

Old Tupa frowned.

“Hale, you really need to get some rest. You’re starting to talk nonsense.”

The others nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, Hale. This is a [Company].”

“I’ve worked for all three companies. Do you really think I can’t tell whether something’s a company or not?”

Hale shook his hand off.

“Damn it! Why are you all acting like you don’t have the ability to think? I’ve made it this clear, and you still don’t understand?”

“[Ota] is a fake! We need to get out of here and find the real Three Major Companies. We need to tell them what’s happened. We’ll be valued by the real [Companies]. We’ll become high-ranking executives…”

He suddenly stopped his impassioned speech.

Hale lowered his head and stared in disbelief at the instrument embedded in his heart.

Another wave of excruciating pain struck his back. Someone slowly pulled another sharp instrument out of him from behind.

Old Tupa still wore the same calm expression.

No—not just him. Every researcher around Hale was completely calm.

The researchers surrounding him slowly withdrew the sharp instruments in their hands from Hale’s body.

He had essentially been stabbed more than a dozen times in an instant.

As Tupa slowly pulled the experimental instrument from Hale’s heart, he looked down at Hale as the latter gradually collapsed to the floor and spoke softly.

“Hale, ever since you came to the laboratory, you’ve never been willing to listen to me. I’m your mentor, yet you’ve never listened to my teachings.”

“Now I’ll teach you one final lesson. Some things don’t need to be said quite so clearly.”

Hale slowly crumpled to the ground.

One of the researchers walked over to the wall and switched the relatively old-fashioned surveillance camera back on—the kind that still required a physical cable connection.

She went to the door and knocked.

“Guard, could you come in for a moment?”

“Something happened to our colleague, Hale.”

She glanced back at Hale’s body, pierced by sharp instruments from both the front and back, then shook her head and sighed.

“This poor man. He missed his deceased family so much that he just committed s**cide.”

“Please help us carry him out. We still have work to do.”

<< _ >>