As the roar of the Landship's massive engines gradually died down, the vessel, which had traveled for a long time, slowly pulled into a dock in Chernobog. Those who could afford to travel or do business via Landship were generally respectable people.
Their attire was also incredibly dignified and lavish. Compared to them, the group's clothing seemed far too plain.
They faced the peculiar gazes of the people around them.
The Yeti Squadron members naturally paid them no mind. Their attention was completely captivated by the thoroughly industrialized city surrounding the Landship. All they could see were towering skyscrapers, and the crowds of people coming and going were impeccably dressed. The calls of shopkeepers and street vendors signaled the city's prosperity.
As it was a newly developed city.
Chernobog was considerably more open than other Ursus city-states.
At the very least, it was more receptive to the influence of foreign cultures and welcomed tourists from all over the world.
Chernobog's overall structure was similar to Lungmen's.
The core urban area (city center), the civilian district, and the slums.
This Landship was docked at a port in the core urban area. The splendor before them was nothing special in Lucas Reeve's opinion, but for the Yeti Squadron, Alina, and FrostNova, who hadn't seen many big cities, the prosperity here was somewhat beyond their comprehension.
Compared to the countryside villages they had grown up in.
This city, in terms of prosperity alone, was no different from paradise.
Since the entire carriage was full of tourists.
The Ursus soldiers didn't conduct excessive checks, simply inspecting passports and tickets before letting them pass. Lucas Reeve and his group were the last to disembark. After casually handing over a booklet, he once again used his Mirror Flower, Water Moon ability, visually suggesting to the ticket-checking soldier that the booklet was a ticket and passport, and successfully blended in with the others.
It was Alina's first time in a place like this, giving her the distinct impression of a country girl visiting the city for the first time. She looked around cautiously, a hint of curiosity mixed with her wariness.
This...
We successfully got in?
As the group followed the crowd out of the station, the sun outside was just rising above the horizon. They even felt a bit dazed and incredulous.
That easy?
So, sneaking in was...
Actually.
When they thought back on it, a wave of fear washed over them...
The journey had seemed calm on the surface, but it was fraught with constant risk.
Leaving aside the numerous sentinel patrols they encountered along the way, if not for relying on Lucas Reeve's ability to narrowly escape each time, the members of the Reunion Movement would never have had the chance to get close to Chernobog. The city's perimeter was the most heavily guarded area, and singing in would have been incredibly difficult, let alone the entire Reunion Movement infiltrating together. Honestly, the difficulty of that...
...was greater than the difficulty of conquering all of Chernobog by force.
"This is... Chernobog?"
The Yeti Squadron members looked around in disbelief, everything in their eyes a novelty. The cars rushing down the streets were a novelty, the looping advertisements on shopfronts were a novelty, and the pedestrians in their varied attire—some holding phones, some chatting and laughing, some holding various milk teas—were equally novel to the Yeti Squadron members who had grown up in remote villages.
The Yetis were generally not very old.
Among the six accompanying them on this trip, the oldest was only twenty-three, and the youngest was just sixteen. Strictly speaking, they were still just a group of kids.
"Where are we going next, Mr. Reeve?"
After arriving in Chernobog, Lucas Reeve had clearly become the group's backbone. Even FrostNova habitually asked for his opinion.
"To a place I've already prepared."
Being in the city, Lucas Reeve naturally couldn't appear in his soul form and instead occupied Alina's body.
Ever since the battle where Lucas Reeve and Patriot joined forces against the Emperor's Blade.
Alina seemed to yearn for a day when she too could fight alongside Lucas Reeve. Thus, Alina, who had previously only needed to teach the Infected to read and write, began asking Patriot how to train to become stronger. Although Patriot was incredibly surprised at first, with his two hundred years of experience, he quickly understood the reason.
The only pity was.
Alina seemed to have little natural talent for combat.
It was difficult for her to be like FrostNova and Talulah, who were born for battle.
"Already prepared?"
FrostNova was a little surprised.
She hadn't expected Lucas Reeve to have laid out all the plans before they even arrived.
Following Lucas Reeve's steps, the group walked deep into the city center and stopped at the entrance of a luxurious shopping mall.
Seeing Lucas Reeve enter.
The Yeti Squadron members were momentarily hesitant to go inside.
The mall's decor was overly extravagant, qualifying it as a high-end shopping center even in Chernobog. The lights on the vaulted ceiling cast a golden glow over the entire mall, a kind of lighting and decoration that easily satisfied the vanity of its patrons. After all, gold was a color of nobility everywhere.
Outside, the Yetis had been looking around with great interest, but upon entering the mall, they quieted down considerably, like ordinary people accompanying others to a high-end party—feeling out of place and even a little self-conscious. Plus, they had snuck in, which already made them feel guilty.
Lucas Reeve strode forward.
He took the elevator and stopped on the seventh floor.
As soon as the elevator doors opened, a giant Raythean Industries logo came into view. Then, an enthusiastic, glamorous, and attractive service specialist approached them. However, when the specialist saw the plainly dressed group, her expression froze for a moment. But it was just for a second before she resumed her mechanical enthusiasm.
"Hello..."
"Lucas Reeve, here to pick something up."
Lucas Reeve said immediately.
It was like a secret code. The service specialist paused, then immediately greeted Lucas Reeve and went to call the store manager. Only about a minute passed.
A middle-aged male manager came running over in a hurry, then, in full view of everyone, bowed respectfully to Lucas Reeve. He then took out a bank card and a set of keys, saying.
"Honorable Mr. Reeve, we have made all the arrangements as instructed by headquarters!"
Yeti Squadron & FrostNova & Alina: "???"
The eight of them were completely stunned.
They had considered countless possibilities, but they had never expected these store employees to be so respectful to Lucas Reeve.
As expected!!
Mr. Reeve is omnipotent!!
The Yeti Squadron members and the soul-form Alina were filled with immense admiration for Lucas Reeve. FrostNova felt a similar admiration; after all, this man could do many things that even her father, Buldrokkas'tee, could not. Such a nearly perfect man—handsome, profound, gentle, and refined—who wouldn't admire him...
If one had to point out a flaw...
No body, no lower half.
But this flaw...
Strictly speaking, Lucas Reeve didn't have this problem.
After all, his soul form could be partially materialized, and the issue of a lower half was just because Lucas Reeve was accustomed to appearing in this form. As long as he was willing, he could perfectly conjure a lower half. So, if Lucas Reeve wanted to, he could create a lower half and materialize it.
"Thank you..."
After Lucas Reeve expressed his thanks, he immediately led the group away.
However, before leaving the mall, seeing the craving looks on the Yeti Squadron members' faces, he used the bank card in his hand to buy each of them a super-sized cup of milk tea...
Lucas Reeve's plan was actually very simple.
He had thought it through days before they set out.
Upon learning that Chernobog had a small Raythean Industries store, he immediately discussed with Jessica about having the Chernobog branch lend him some funds. After all, Lucas Reeve, as a soul, didn't need money, but the others had daily expenses.
They couldn't possibly arrive in Chernobog and immediately start washing dishes to earn money...
They needed a base of operations....
But... since they were already here.
How could they use a remote, dilapidated house as their base like most 'underground' organizations? That was too low-class. Since conditions allowed, Lucas Reeve decisively chose a villa in the center of Chernobog worth tens of millions as the group's base.
This way, it was very safe in one regard.
Under normal circumstances.
Those Infected Pickets wouldn't investigate the wealthy...
These rich people were powerful and influential. If they thought you investigating them was an insult, implying they were Infected, they would immediately cause trouble, which wouldn't be good. Therefore, an Infected person living in a villa was actually much safer than living in a broken-down house on the edge of the slums.
And Lucas Reeve happened to have the young heiress Jessica on his side, so he took a shortcut. Even without Jessica, Lucas Reeve would have used his abilities to earn a large sum of money and then buy a villa. And Jessica was overjoyed to know she could help Lucas Reeve again, feeling that she was finally starting to be of use to him.
And Lucas Reeve wouldn't just take it for free.
He infused some more of his Spiritual Power into Jessica's body. If the outside world knew about this method of improving physical fitness without any side effects, a horde of wealthy people would surely pay a high price to ask for his help. So, Jessica was not at a loss.
"Big Sis, what flavor is your milk tea?"
A young girl from the Yeti Squadron trotted up to FrostNova's side, asking as she watched FrostNova continuously poke her drink with the straw.
"Mango pudding..."
"Is it good?"
Looking at the little girl's sparkling eyes, FrostNova reluctantly held out her drink. "Want a sip?"
Having grown accustomed to simple food.
This milk tea, costing several dozen LMD per cup, truly amazed them. They never imagined water could be made to taste like this. Originally, Lucas Reeve thought that with FrostNova's somewhat cold personality, she wouldn't like it much, but...
She was drinking it more enthusiastically than anyone.
Since it was on the way.
Lucas Reeve also bought various street snacks for FrostNova, Alina, and the Yeti Squadron members. To Lucas Reeve, each snack was ordinary, but to them, they were incredibly amazing, like delicacies of the highest order. This was especially true for sweets; in the remote countryside, sweet things were always associated with rarity.
No wonder Ceobe loved desserts so much.
She rarely ate them, so she especially liked them. In his past life, Lucas Reeve, having eaten plenty, would consider eating less for health reasons.
Looking at everyone's happy faces.
A little happiness also welled up in Lucas Reeve's heart.
Lucas Reeve, who had witnessed their living conditions, naturally understood that these children... had lived lives that were far too bitter, so much so that an ordinary city resident could hardly imagine it.
"I kind of want everyone else to try this too..."
One of the Yeti members sighed as he ate. He had thought infiltrating Chernobog would be an incredibly dangerous task, like entering hell. He never expected that... he wouldn't have to worry about a thing the entire time, just follow along... and now there was even delicious food to eat. This was all thanks to Mr. Reeve...
"We're here.."
Finally.
In a corner of the city center, Lucas Reeve found the thousand-square-meter villa with a large courtyard that Raythean Industries had prepared for him.
Lucas Reeve placed the access card on the large iron gate.
*Beep.*
The heavy iron gate slowly swung open.
And the group, who had been munching away, now stood completely still. They stared, dumbfounded, at the luxurious villa before them. A premonition rose in their hearts, but it was quickly snuffed out. It was too absurd, so absurd they didn't even dare to think it.
Even FrostNova's eyes widened now.
The cute rabbit ears on her head trembled slightly.
"Come on in."
Lucas Reeve beckoned for everyone to enter.
However, at this moment, no one dared to take the first step. Or rather, they simply hadn't processed it yet. It was too insane!!!
"Mr. Reeve... this big house is...??"
FrostNova asked, also in disbelief.
Lucas Reeve said faintly.
"Our future base, and our future home."
"We can't just infiltrate Chernobog from so far away to live in a dirty basement or a dilapidated house, can we? That's too shabby. Why not live in a villa?"
"But!!!"
A young Yeti swallowed hard, even his words stumbling.
"Um... Mr. Reeve, isn't this too high-profile? For... for someone like me to live in a mansion that only rich people can afford... it's a bit too... too wasteful."
Lucas Reeve smiled slightly and turned around.
"Let me ask you, if you were the Infected Pickets, where would you think an Infected person would hide? 1. A basement in the slums. 2. A multi-million LMD mansion."
"The basement, of course!"
"If even you think so, then... isn't our way the best method of infiltration? A method that even the Infected Pickets would never think of?"
At this.
Everyone's eyes widened. Thinking about it carefully, it made perfect sense. They had been so overwhelmed by shock that their brains couldn't process it properly.
"Let's go, come on in. I remember this villa is quite large. Go pick your own rooms."
Lucas Reeve waved his hand.
Given permission, the Yeti Squadron members excitedly ran towards the mansion. They never imagined that one day they would live in a luxurious mansion that only the rich were qualified to live in. Each one was uncontrollably excited, even suspecting they had fallen under one of Lucas Reeve's illusions.
FrostNova took a deep breath and walked to Lucas Reeve's side.
"Thank you, Mr. Reeve, for doing so much for the children..."
Lucas Reeve smiled slightly, his smile as gentle as the morning sun.
"It was nothing. It's not just for the children, but for you all, and for everyone back on the ice fields."
FrostNova was slightly taken aback, then immediately turned her head away.
Alina: "?"