Southern Meadowlands.
This area lay south of the Hub District base and west of Workers' Home.
Not only was it geographically close, but for the sake of moving cargo conveniently, the Union members had even built a staircase here that led directly back to Workers' Home.
Which meant: step out of Workers' Home, turn left, go down the stairs—and you were already inside the Southern Meadowlands.
Hao Fan's mood was… complicated.
Because he hadn't expected the transport route to be this close to the Hub District base.
And yet, despite being a critical line specifically meant for hauling supplies, why the hell was there a nest of dangerous acid-spitting Originium slugs here?
It was way too close. Those brainless things were literally blocking the staircase entrance.
Hao Fan couldn't understand it.
Why hadn't anyone come to clear them out?
Was it because they feared the acid slugs' danger and didn't want unnecessary casualties…?
"The Security Division guards really are kind of useless, huh."
Leaning on the stair railing, Hao Fan couldn't help taking a jab.
As an aside—
The place where he'd chatted with Perica last night was right here on these stairs, bordering the Southern Meadowlands.
It had been dark then, and he hadn't noticed that a whole cluster of acid-spitting Originium bugs was lurking right below the steps. Thinking about it now made him break into a cold sweat.
Still, more than that—
What he cared about most was that the mysterious red-haired girl should be somewhere up on the higher slope of the Southern Meadowlands.
According to the info Eric had given him, that spot was home to a warren of long-eared beasts, and a special plant called Crystallized Many-Toothed Leaf also grew there.
Its extract supposedly could be used to make emergency medicine or something like that…
Eric wasn't really sure either.
Because acid Originium bugs lived here, Union members generally didn't come to this area.
As for cargo transport, it seemed they'd assigned it to logistics robots—machines that wouldn't scare the Originium bugs.
This time, though, some kind of accident had happened, and a batch of supplies had been delayed.
"…Sigh. If I'm ready, then I might as well go look for that shipment."
Hao Fan casually took out Tide and Howling Guard.
These two high-quality weapons had already been thoroughly maintained with the weapon inspection unit Uncle Fengti had gifted him earlier. They were in excellent condition.
But after thinking it over—
He decided there was no need, and stored them back inside his protocol Originium.
Because he considered this a perfect opportunity to test Originium Arts—
the power of "I reckon."
Based on Hao Fan's judgment, while he was digesting Originium, not only would his physical performance be temporarily enhanced, he also seemed to be able—within limits—to subjectively influence various Originium-related things.
For example: firing a hand cannon normally required extremely precise Originium Arts.
Yet Hao Fan, without possessing any relevant technique at all, had been able to fire etched bullets as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
That was one application of the "I reckon" power.
It felt somewhat similar to how an Administrator controlled Originium, but in truth there were still plenty of differences.
After all, Hao Fan couldn't create Originium out of thin air—he could only exert some inexplicable influence over it.
Like right now.
I reckon you guys should roll the hell away—
"Pff?!"
The acid Originium slugs that had been blocking the staircase suddenly felt something trembling on their backs.
So, cowardly as rats, they immediately withdrew into their shells, preparing to begin their signature move: firing the Originium crystals on their backs in every direction to scare off an unknown enemy.
But before they could—
The crystal clusters they carried, as if they'd suddenly grown wills of their own, actually drove the slugs—curled up into balls—into rolling away into the distance.
The force wasn't huge, but under inertia, they still rolled quite far.
Far enough to clear out a safe path.
"Easy. Nicely done, me."
Hao Fan nodded in satisfaction.
He was, at least on paper, a man who had mastered Originium Arts now!
Though the effect was… kind of subtle. Not exactly a brutal, direct damage type.
"Alright then. Next step—find the supplies."
With light steps, Hao Fan walked down the staircase, ready to follow the transport line markers on the protocol synchronizer's map and finish this job.
But he hadn't gone far when he spotted something that looked like buckwheat flowers growing by the roadside…
"Wait—this looks a bit different. This should be Emberglow Buckwheat."
Hao Fan halted, surprised.
He'd heard Miguel mention it before: mid-April was buckwheat season, and the most intensely colored blooms would be crowned with the name "Emberglow"—that is, Emberglow Buckwheat.
Powder made from these especially vivid flowers had better healing effects than the standard buckwheat healing capsules recorded in the simplified handbook.
Quality far beyond ordinary buckwheat.
"Lucky. There should be a few more nearby."
Hao Fan happily harvested the Emberglow Buckwheat, planning to process it later into buckwheat healing powder and carry it as emergency supplies.
Then, as he walked and gathered, he noticed the rock wall beside the road looked… strange.
"Hm? There's a cave here, but it's been blocked by collapsed rocks?"
Standing before the stone wall, Hao Fan tilted his head up in confusion.
When he'd been eavesdropping at Workers' Home, he seemed to recall someone mentioning that the southern end of the Southern Meadowlands rose up into mountain terrain, and that there was a concentrated Originium ore deposit up there.
But because so many Originium bugs lived there, the Hub District base hadn't chosen to mine it. They'd only built a communications relay station.
"…Whatever. Not my problem."
He didn't dwell on the collapsed cave. He continued along the route.
Before long, he found several scattered supply crates under a bridge.
"There's a bread smell… this must be the delayed shipment Wilbur mentioned, right?"
Hao Fan noticed the Endfield insignia on the boxes—proof he hadn't come to the wrong place.
"So it really was a transport accident—supplies scattered everywhere… but where's the logistics robot?"
He frowned, scanning the area carefully.
Then he activated the protocol synchronizer's scanning function, hoping to find something more useful.
"Yep. Found some suspicious footprints… If I follow this path, I might find a clue."
Hao Fan began tracking the lingering footprints of whoever had been here, cutting across the Southern Meadowlands—and without realizing it, drifting farther and farther from the Hub District base.
And as Originium crystal clusters grew denser along the roadside, he realized he'd reached the entrance of a canyon.
This seemed to be a more dangerous area: huge Originium crystals grew out of the rock walls, and many wild infected creatures lived here.
"Acid Originium slugs again… and not just that—there are also primitive pincer beasts."
Looking at the enlarged map, with red dots scattered all over it, Hao Fan's brow knitted tightly.
To be honest, he didn't want to enter a dangerous canyon packed with Originium bugs.
But the footprints led straight into it.
As an aside—
Primitive pincer beasts looked like crabs. Not only did they carry large amounts of Originium crystal clusters, they were huge, and could tear prey apart with scythe-like forelimbs.
They were also pack creatures, typically appearing in groups, highly aggressive, and would actively attack humans who entered their territory.
"Tch. What a pain… I'll have to lure these Originium bugs away first."
Hao Fan stopped at the canyon entrance, looking thoroughly annoyed.
With his squishy human body, there was no way he could frontally fight a whole swarm of dangerous Originium bugs.
So the best method was still what he'd done earlier: use the "I reckon" Originium Arts to influence the Originium crystal clusters on their bodies and make them leave the area temporarily.
The problem was—
Could he handle the cost of influencing an area this wide in one go?
"…I need to eat more rocks."
....
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