Chapter 418: Just a Beginning
Chapter 418: Chapter 418: Just a Beginning
’The clues in my head seemed to be connecting, but things were only getting more and more complicated.’
"White Village?"
Nina Jacobs murmured thoughtfully.
"You know something, don’t you?"
Harlan asked.
"It’s just a guess, but have you considered that it might not be an illness?"
Nina Jacobs said.
"If it’s not an illness, what is it?"
Harlan was a materialist. In his view, every abnormal symptom had a medical cause.
He had even read through countless foreign academic reports and conducted numerous experiments.
But he had never managed to improve Evander Langdon’s condition in the slightest.
Nina Jacobs shook her head helplessly. "It might be a form of ancient Magic. I’m not certain, and you don’t have to believe me."
’If Sherry Renner were here, I might be able to get some answers from her.’
Harlan fell silent.
It wasn’t that he didn’t believe her. He just knew Nina Jacobs wasn’t the type to make baseless jokes.
’She must have found something.’
"In any case, let’s stay in touch,"
Harlan said.
’Since they were cooperating, he should trust her more.’
「Meanwhile, in Correctional Unit 5.」
Tobin heard someone call his name.
"Calling me?"
Tobin was instantly on guard.
He guessed someone had signed him up for another fighting match.
The others around him watched with unconcealed glee.
That is, until they saw Wyatt Holden approach Tobin and pat him on the shoulder with a friendly expression.
"Congratulations. You’re free to go,"
Wyatt Holden said to Tobin.
Tobin froze on the spot.
A moment later, he realized what was happening.
"What about Nina Jacobs and him?"
Seeing everyone around him staring with a mixture of shock, envy, and jealousy, Tobin hurried to catch up and ask.
"You don’t need to worry about them."
Wyatt Holden simply turned and walked away, leaving Tobin with only the sight of his back.
Meanwhile, Nina Jacobs led Wayne Warner into a detached house.
It seemed someone was inside.
Nina Jacobs pushed the door open, and the sight that greeted her was quite a surprise.
Cordelia and the others were all there.
Zoraida included.
Mrow~
Lexy was the first to run over, weaving around her ankles.
"Nina Jacobs, you’re really out!"
Cordelia lunged forward for a hug.
Though it had only been a few days, they had been constantly worried about Nina and Wayne.
That is, until someone found them moments ago and told them they would meet Nina Jacobs here.
’So that’s what she meant.’
Nina Jacobs recalled Ms. Carter’s comment about her being satisfied with this house.
"What’s going on?"
Silas Crowley asked.
Nina Jacobs first swept the house, inside and out. Only after confirming there were no surveillance devices did she speak.
"I agreed to work for General Hughes."
’The reason Cordelia and the others are here isn’t because the base wants to give me a surprise.’
’They’ve all become "hostages" to keep me in line.’
"Are you serious? That’s insane."
Silas Crowley was stunned.
This was like a real-life Mission: Impossible, wasn’t it?
After all, they were from Tomorrow Base.
And now, Nina Jacobs was going to be working for Lornwood Base.
"What’s the status on that other matter?"
Nina Jacobs asked Silas Crowley.
Silas Crowley smiled and said, "Now the entire base knows that Tomorrow Base exists."
Before she was taken away, Nina Jacobs had given the three of them some instructions.
This included having Edmund Lawson and his group leave the base.
"Three days after they spread the news, I had them all leave the base,"
Silas Crowley replied.
Edmund Lawson and his group already had a terrible reputation on the base.
They were constantly stealing and robbing, and many people loathed them.
So, Nina Jacobs had these very people spread the message: "Whatever you do, don’t go to Tomorrow Base."
This reverse psychology made everyone else suspect that Edmund Lawson and his group were up to something.
This was especially true when Edmund Lawson and his group vanished from the base shortly after.
Many people heard they had secretly snuck off to Tomorrow Base.
Of course, this was a false rumor that Silas Crowley had spread on Nina Jacobs’s orders.
As a result, many of the more daring and adventurous residents had already taken the opportunity to leave Lornwood Base over the past couple of days.
"I’ve already made a trip back and had Felix Finch get his people ready for their arrival,"
Reginald Sutton added.
As soon as those people were outside Lornwood Base’s jurisdiction, they would "accidentally" find flyers for Tomorrow Base.
Felix Finch’s team had already cleared the route and even had people in place to guide the survivors.
"When I got back yesterday, over three hundred people had already reached Tomorrow Base,"
Reginald Sutton said.
These three hundred-plus people were all from Lornwood Base, not including the unaffiliated survivors in the Keldorn area.
The survivor count at Tomorrow Base now exceeded 1,200.
And those three hundred-plus people were just the beginning.
The number of people leaving Lornwood Base was still growing.
"Yes, it’s about time some news made its way back here."
On her way back, Nina Jacobs had overheard people discussing "Tomorrow Base."
"However, for what comes next, it’s best if the three of you stay out of sight."
The fact that Cordelia and the others were here was most likely General Hughes’s doing.
If she ever showed any signs of disloyalty, the base could threaten her with their lives.
After all, she had established a persona as someone who would storm the correctional unit out of loyalty to save her friends.
"Should we transfer more people over?"
Reginald Sutton asked.
They would need a messenger, after all.
"No need. Go find this person for me. Just tell her I sent you."
Nina Jacobs took out a pen and paper and wrote down a name.
"Genevieve?
I know her!"
Cordelia was surprised to see the name.
’How does Nina Jacobs know Genevieve?’
"We ran into each other on the road."
Nina Jacobs went on to explain how she had saved a group of ordinary people who didn’t have Superpowers.
Genevieve might be an ordinary person, but she was incredibly skilled with a crossbow.
"I’ve also discovered these past few days that The Rescuer’s Alliance is more than they seem,"
"I never thought they’d be so vicious toward ordinary people,"
Cordelia said.
"She’s the perfect person to be our messenger."
Nina Jacobs considered Genevieve to be exceptionally capable.
Besides, so much time had passed, and the base hadn’t seemed to notice that someone had purchased large quantities of supplies from the outside.
That proved that the people around her were also trustworthy.
"I understand. Don’t worry, leave it to me. I’ll take care of it,"
Cordelia promised confidently.
"Oh, right. Here are our earnings from the last few days."
Cordelia proudly displayed the fruits of her labor over the past few days.
It was five large boxes, each filled to the brim with Crystal Cores.
These were her earnings from secretly selling water on the base over the past few days.
Of course, she couldn’t have done it without the help of Cassian Lynch and Killian Hayes.
"This many?"
Nina Jacobs was surprised. She had told Cordelia to sell some water on the side, but only if she could ensure her own safety.
She had never expected Cordelia to collect so many Crystal Cores in such a short time.
"Crystal Cores used to be useful, so everyone desperately saved them."
"Later, they became less and less valuable. On top of that, so many people died that Crystal Cores became as common as rocks in everyone’s eyes..."
Cordelia sighed.
Because she could only conduct transactions in secret, she had only sold water to the survivors on the floors immediately above and below her in the dormitory.
Lornwood Base’s management already considered that area a "death zone." People died or disappeared from there every day, so no one paid them much attention.
Everyone only knew that water could be purchased from Cordelia’s spatial pocket; no one knew that the water was "produced" on a limited daily basis by a cat.
Looking at the Crystal Cores, Nina Jacobs decided to have "Claire Warner" come forward to collect them.
After all, as long as the Crystal Cores earned from these trades were deposited into her system’s storage, they would be converted into experience.
"A friend of mine might be stopping by in the next few days,"
Nina Jacobs said.