The sun rises above the horizon, and it's a new day.
The base's main gate was badly damaged by the monsters yesterday, and the base issued a mission for emergency repairs. Those who went out were discussing and speculating about the reason for the monster attack on the city.
Meanwhile, they are also actively searching for the Scarlet Witch and the person who stole her.
For an entire day, the authorities searched for Saman's image but failed to locate him, nor did they find the Scarlet Witch, causing widespread panic within the base. Their violent methods during the search further exacerbated the conflict between ordinary citizens and those in power.
Finally, the authorities issued a citywide arrest warrant.
Saman's arrest warrant.
At noon, Saman's face appeared on various billboards. He was wanted for the heinous crime of 'traitor,' with officials claiming he stole the Scarlet Witch, damaged the monster-blocking device, and intended to overthrow the base's peace.
The people at the base were mostly skeptical, as they had a history of framing innocent people.
However, the leader of the march, upon seeing him, immediately launched into conspiracy theories: claiming he was involved in stealing from the Scarlet Witch, sabotaging devices, and committing adultery, implying that he knew about the march and was being used as a scapegoat.
Therefore, on this day, the marchers clashed violently with the authorities once again, and the two sides began to use force.
As evening fell, Saman, having slept well and felt refreshed, came out. He noticed the wanted posters plastered all over the streets, but simply pulled his hat down a little.
"It's him!" After taking only a few steps, a beam of light shone on Saman's face, illuminating him clearly. "He's over there!"
The underground city is only so big, and there are surveillance cameras everywhere. As long as we have a detailed portrait and enough manpower and resources, it is not difficult to find a person.
Samantha calmly watched them gather and surround him.
This also shows the authorities' helplessness in the face of the Scarlet Witch's escape; they were desperate.
The authorities must be getting anxious.
Monsters lurk in the outer city, anti-base fighters shake the regime inside, and the Scarlet Witch has yet to be arrested; the base leader must be getting anxious.
"If we can't find the Scarlet Witch by tonight, the monsters may besiege the city again."
"Chief, is there no other way?" the base leader's assistant asked worriedly. He had just arrived this year and was one of the orphans the leader was sponsoring.
The base leader looked at him and suddenly thought of something: "There is a way, but someone needs to be sacrificed."
"sacrifice?"
"That's right, sacrifice." A strange smile appeared on the base leader's face.
As the handsome player said, for the base leader, nothing is not worth sacrificing, except for his own interests.
The sun set once again, and night fell. The gatekeepers were filled with worry, fearing another monster siege that day. However, until it was completely dark, there was no movement outside.
"Has the equipment at our base been restored?" the hunting party cheered.
Only the hunting team leader looked uneasy; he turned and hurried away in a certain direction.
"You really are here!" The hunting party captain burst in.
Beneath the laboratory lies a secret platform, upon which rests an oval-shaped wooden coffin, heavier than stone. This coffin, usually empty, now contains a dead man—the base leader's assistant.
The young assistant still had an incredulous expression on his face, but he was already dead. After entering the coffin, he was instantly drained and turned into gray foam.
Even though they hadn't captured the Scarlet Witch, no more monsters came to attack. The hunting team leader sensed something was wrong. When he arrived, he saw what he didn't want to see.
"He trusts you so much!"
"This was his own decision, a sacrifice for the base." The base leader said coldly, "We lost over thirty people last night. Today, we'll lose just as many, perhaps even more! Trading one person for dozens or hundreds is the right thing to do."
"That's a person, a member of the base. Do you remember why we established this base?"
The hunting party leader was agitated: "It's all to preserve the flame of human civilization, to prevent human lives from being used to fill the monster's hole! And now you're actually planning to use humans as sacrifices?!"
"Haven't we done it before?" the base leader retorted. Hadn't the practice of using people as sacrifices already begun?
The hunting team leader was speechless for a moment.
"Besides, do you think I wanted this?" The base leader looked at the young man who had long since turned to ashes in the coffin. "I raised him for so many years, I have some feelings for him. But apart from those eight successful candidates, only those who failed can have this effect."
The young assistant, along with several other orphans they sponsored, were all test subjects from back then.
Most of the failed attempts died. A few underwent partial modifications, but none were completely successful, like the assistant.
The base leader sighed, "We can't find the Scarlet Witch now, and there's trouble going on down there. I'm doing this for the sake of the bigger picture."
"What you're doing is like drinking poison to quench your thirst."
"I have no other choice," the base leader said sadly, his eyes reddening. "Over the years, I have lost everything for this base."
Upon hearing this, the previously agitated hunting team leader fell silent. He gritted his teeth and turned his face away: "Who isn't?"
"Ah Jin, Lili doesn't understand why I don't support me, but don't you understand me either?" The base leader was heartbroken. "Two years ago, because of Subject Three's manipulation, she went mad and insisted on letting the Scarlet Witch go. I…"
He paused for a moment: "I had no choice but to order her to be killed."
The base leader slowly raised his face, his sorrowful expression and calm eyes creating an eerie look: "Back then, we chose to execute Dean Zhang's only son, and this time it's my turn. Not killing him won't quell everyone's anger. And now, it's time to make a choice again."
The hunting team leader opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a word.
Eighteen years ago, the base wasn't their base, nor was it like it is now. It was here that the six of them found nine fragments of scrolls, which contained stories of monsters.
At that time, the six of them did not know what it was; they simply took it home, one or two of which were kept separately by each of them.
Due to an accident, a child took a tattered scroll and accidentally spilled a few drops of blood. A few days later, the child began to exhibit monstrous characteristics, slowly transforming into the monster depicted in the scroll.
They saw something possible in this child, and the experiment on a new kind of human began.
However, at that time, the monster attacks on humans had not ended, and the base's shielding function had not yet appeared.
They accidentally discovered during their experiment that when a transformed human was placed in an empty coffin, a special shielded area would appear.
A fully transformed monster can be placed inside, and the peace can last for two to three years. A human who has failed to be transformed can be placed inside, and the peace can be maintained for one or two days. Other people or monsters cannot be placed inside.
The hunting party leader stopped looking at the ashes in the coffin and turned his face away: "Are we going to keep going like this? A life every day or two, how many choices do we have?"
"Frozen the body of Subject Seven in ice and hung by the door. I don't believe he won't come," the base leader said coldly.
The Scarlet Witch must be captured, at any cost.
"...I will find the Scarlet Witch as soon as possible." The hunting team leader suddenly lost all strength.
Whether it was him or the base leader, they could only struggle, but in the end, they had no choice.
They decided to start down this path, but it seems they can't decide when to end it. Perhaps this is the kind of preparation one must have when making deals with the unknown.
"Clap clap clap".
An eerie applause rang out in the basement, accompanied by a sarcastic laugh: "Impressive, impressive, truly remarkable."
"who?"
As a figure walked in from outside, both the base leader and the hunting team captain wore expressions of disbelief.
At this time in the underground city, the hunting party was suppressing a parade and a rebellion.
The saman on the street attracted the main firepower. The ordinary people who were defenseless had been cleared out, and those who came were members of the hunting teams, who were carrying real firearms.
However, Saman's fiery whip was not to be underestimated; a single sweep could take down a group of people. Bullets were also blocked by a layer of golden light.
"Is he a monster?" The others discussed among themselves, unable to comprehend the long whip that could transform into flames, and the even more incredible light shield.
In reality, Saman only looks dashing. Most high-level props have usage restrictions, and props like Ren Yifei's Ink Bone Fan, which have no usage or time restrictions, are exceptions.
Therefore, the Saman prop couldn't last long either, as the flames had weakened compared to the beginning.
The others in the base noticed it too: "Quick, that strange thing in his hand is almost out of energy."
"Is this the guy who stole the Scarlet Witch?" Two people came into the alley, a baby-faced man and a middle-aged man. They were players and wanted fugitives.
"Can you tell who it is from the props?" Babyface looked at the Fire Serpent Whip. It was as flexible as a third arm. No NPC could get close to it, and even incoming bullets and other things were blocked.
The middle-aged man examined it for a long time and said, "It's not anyone's famous prop, but it is indeed a rare and high-level prop."
The siege had reached a fever pitch. When the flames in Saman's hand were suppressed to their lowest point, they suddenly burst forth, and a black and red lotus flower appeared in the open space, its petals unfolding layer by layer.
"I'm not playing with you guys anymore."
The crimson lotus bloomed fiercely, and a huge flame exploded in the dungeon, causing countless deaths and injuries to official NPCs.
"Quickly! Inform the leader!"
The base's ambulance was dispatched immediately, and they began trying to contact the leader, but no one answered no matter how many times they tried.
The office bell rang repeatedly in the empty office.
"Where did the leader go?"
Where is the leader? The leader is in the basement with the hunting party captain.
A newcomer arrived in the basement a few minutes ago—the young lady.
She looked somewhat disheveled, with marks on her wrists and neck from ligatures, her clothes torn and stained with blood, and a forced smile on her face, completely different from her usual self. But the base leader didn't think much of it, simply assuming she had suffered some kind of trauma.
"Susu, what are you doing here?" the base leader asked with concern, instinctively shielding the coffin behind him.
But the young lady had already seen it. She chuckled and descended the stairs step by step. Looking at their tense and angry expressions, she calmly said, "If you refuse to save me, then I'll have to save myself."
The base leader was extremely embarrassed, but he tried to save face: "I've already sent people to look for you. I was afraid of angering the kidnappers and making things bad for you."
"You don't need to explain." The young lady looked at his hypocritical face. "Those who believed your explanation are already dead."
The hunting team leader opened his mouth, but before he could even finish speaking, the young lady looked over and asked, "Do you have anything to say to explain for him?"
The base leader said with a dark face, "Susu, let's go outside first. It's not convenient here."
He took two steps forward, trying to pull the young lady away, but she took two steps back and looked at the base leader: "Where is it inconvenient? I think it's very convenient here."
The young lady leaned against the doorway, glanced behind her, then turned back and said, "I saw your diary. I also saw the text messages between you and that person."
The base leader's expression immediately turned ugly.
The hunting team leader was the same; although he didn't know anything about the diary or text messages, he knew it couldn't be anything good.
The base leader forced a smile: "I'll explain this to you when we get back."
The young lady took a large step back, blocking the entrance: "Tell me, did you kill my mother? That child who died tragically back then, you turned her into the Scarlet Witch, didn't you?"
The base leader was taken aback. He looked at the young lady and suddenly laughed: "So you knew all along."
Author's Note: Base Leader (tearing off the mask of a hypocrite): I'm not pretending anymore.