Seeing Talulah gradually regain her composure, Jeanne breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed Talulah had returned to her normal state.
"I know you're furious, Talulah. The moment he attacked Alina, I felt the same rage. But this man shouldn't die before our eyes."
Jeanne had sensed Talulah's instability immediately. Her intuition warned her that if Talulah were allowed to kill him, it would have dire consequences for Talulah herself.
"Yes, yes, I realize my mistake. I was possessed by a moment of madness to do such a foolish thing. Please, I beg you, give me another chance... retch..."
Jeanne kicked the desperately pleading man in the stomach again. The excruciating pain caused him to dry heave uncontrollably.
"But think about it," Jeanne said. "How furious must those people be who were sold to the mining camp because of him? Their hearts are overflowing with hatred. They've lost their homes, their land, and their families. How could they not be consumed by rage?"
Listening to Jeanne's words, Talulah stared at the man in silence, then sheathed her weapon.
"I understand. I'll leave his fate to the villagers to decide after we rescue them. Thank you for reminding me in time, Jeanne."
Talulah's expression remained grave as she turned back to continue interrogating for information. Every scrap of intelligence could potentially save another villager's life.
As for Jeanne? She bound the Infected man tightly, gagged him securely, and tossed him aside.
The Inspection Team members didn't even need to be questioned. They spilled every detail they knew like beans pouring from a sack, even revealing the location where they had hidden their gold coins.
After confirming the specific coordinates on their map, they indeed found an Originium Mine. Its location was extremely secluded and difficult to access, making it an ideal place for clandestine deals, far from prying eyes.
After a brief discussion, the trio agreed that now was the perfect time to head there. They had a large truck at their disposal, capable of plowing straight through the blizzard without issue.
Moreover, the severe weather meant the guards would be at their most lax, making their operation even easier. The biggest problem now was... who would drive?
Neither Talulah nor Alina had any experience with Originium Vehicles. Jeanne, while having driven private cars in her previous life, had never touched such a massive vehicle and felt uncertain about her abilities.
"Maybe we should just let Jeanne try? Otherwise, we'll have to wait for the snow season to end and walk the whole way."
Hearing Jeanne's lack of confidence, Alina decided they had no choice but to try. After all, none of them had ever touched one of these things before. How would they know if it worked without trying?
Jeanne told them to stand back and nervously climbed into the driver's seat. The cab was cluttered with stacks of food and alcohol, giving it a chaotic feel.
"Let's see... steering wheel, accelerator, clutch—what's this? Ah, headlights..."
Fortunately, this continent's technology was developed through archaeological discoveries, so even this primitive truck seemed vaguely familiar to the vehicles in her memory.
"Next... ignition... Whoa!"
Alright, there were still some differences, but no matter what, she could still get it running. And this snowfield happened to be a place where traffic rules didn't matter much.
The three of them threw their captives into the back of the truck, securely locking them into the cage. The prisoners, who had transported countless people themselves, never expected to be transported by others this time.
Still worried about the prisoners freezing to death before reaching their destination, Jeanne and the others found several animal hides and wrapped them up like rice balls, leaving only their heads and the chains exposed.
The truck lurched forward, wobbling down the road. The six giant rice balls tumbled violently in the cage, vomiting up everything they had just eaten.
Meanwhile, the three of them sat comfortably in the spacious cab, warmed by the heater and barely feeling the bumps. Only Jeanne, who was driving, remained tense and nervous.
It was no wonder she was nervous. Back in her previous life, someone driving without a license like her would have been detained. Fortunately, there were no pedestrians here, or a brand-new road menace would have been born.
After about an hour of driving, Jeanne was starting to get the hang of the Originium Vehicle. Fortunately, it was a primitive model, nearly identical to the vehicles they'd excavated from the mines. If it had been one of the newer models, she would have needed some time to learn its controls.
"Jeanne, I'm sorry about earlier. I was too impulsive."
Talulah apologized, feeling somewhat embarrassed. At the time, she had felt like she had lost control, barely aware of her actions.
"It's alright. If he hadn't already harmed so many villagers, I wouldn't have let him off so easily. I kept him alive only so that after we rescue the villagers, they'll know that not all Infected are scum like him—that there are some among us who genuinely want to help them."
The three of them pondered this in silence. They yearned to change this land, yet felt utterly powerless. They couldn't predict how the villagers they were about to rescue would react to them—it certainly wouldn't be a warm welcome.
Across the snowfield, all they could see was an endless expanse of white. Yet Talulah felt profoundly uneasy. For a moment, she had believed she was turning into Kashchey, his sinister teachings slithering into her soul like a serpent.
At that time, a voice ceaselessly whispered in her ear, forcing her to relive Alina's death uncontrollably. Her body had completely lost control in that moment.
She was terrified of this version of herself. Am I still a normal person? Can someone in my state truly lead the Infected to a future?
But now wasn't the time to dwell on these questions. The immediate priority was rescuing the captured villagers. They could worry about what came after once they were settled.
The vehicles sped through the blizzard. As dusk approached, the group finally reached the mining camp marked on the map.
Even from outside, they could imagine the hellish scene within. The scattered corpses around the perimeter served as a grim testament to the place's brutal nature.
It was hard to fathom how anyone witnessing this scene could feel no remorse. Or perhaps their consciences had long been devoured, leaving only beasts to act.
Seeing this hellish landscape, Jeanne understood why even the villagers from four entire villages hadn't been enough to satiate the small mining camp. They were clearly treating people like toys.
Alina and Talulah turned deathly pale at the sight, clutching their mouths to suppress the urge to vomit. The scene struck them to their very core, leaving them deeply unsettled.
Suddenly, about ten corpses were tossed down from above. Judging by their appearance, they were likely weak individuals who had frozen to death. The captors hadn't even bothered to burn the bodies, simply dumping them here, perhaps as a snack for some carnivorous creature.