The Creators: From Night City

Page 297

Each world must also issue a corresponding amount of currency based on local productivity standards, and ensure that the company's reserves of exchangeable goods can support the issuance of the large amount of credit points attached.

In addition to these duties, she was also responsible for the company's year-end banquet, employee benefits, year-end bonuses for outstanding employees, screening participants for internal banquets, finalizing the list of attendees, setting up the venue, planning the process, and sending out notices.

The saying "One sentence from above, and those below run themselves ragged" is now perfectly exemplified.

Fortunately, after this period of development, Gloria, the head of the department, now has a strong and capable team under her command. She only needs to grasp the general direction, while she can leave the specific details to her subordinates. This has significantly reduced the risk of her, a superhuman who has already undergone two 'promotions and modifications', suddenly dying.

"Give the medical department's expense reports another quick review. For those below Category II, make your own assessments and follow the proper procedures; don't submit them to me. Also, polish that seventh version of the military budget for the 'Black King's Apostles.' I need it for my final report to the BOSS tonight." Gloria's prosthetic eye flashed as she gestured and shouted, using the internal office system to finally get all the miscellaneous tasks assigned to her.

Don't underestimate this matter. Who gets those jobs is itself an important factor in determining power, just as important as the power to divide the pie.

“Ms. Song, you look great today.” Gloria spotted the lark standing outside the prison walls in the distance and, taking advantage of a lull in her hands, came over to greet it.

"The only thing that's not too bad is my mental state," Song Zhaomei said self-deprecatingly, tilting her head in a Hawking-esque pose.

“This vegetable patch is quite interesting, isn’t it? I specifically asked the construction team to leave it here,” Gloria explained, noticing that the other person was focusing their attention on the land where the former prisoners had worked all day.

"This scene is not something you can see in our world."

The lark was more surprised to see the vast expanse of cabbages than to see euros spread all over the ground.

"I find it hard to imagine that I will live to see these things."

“But you’ve already seen it, Ms. Song Zhaomei.” Gloria stepped forward and patted her on the shoulder.

“An employee has submitted a visitation request in the [Anti-Entropy] internal system. Given that the person is your only friend and considering your current condition, the medical department should allow the visit.”

Gloria's prosthetic eye lit up, and she easily found the approval status of the pending application.

"If you'd like, how about we set the time for two hours later?"

The lark pondered the other's words for a moment, then uttered a name: "Matilda?"

After her treatment began, her entire body of prosthetics went into a state of shutdown. Not to mention communication functions, even the most basic brain-computer interface was now completely locked down. Her entire body of prosthetics was only maintaining the most basic life-sustaining state, so naturally she did not know Matilda's whereabouts.

"Of course, no problem." However, she still welcomed the visit, since she hadn't met many new faces since coming to this world, apart from the constant stream of medical personnel.

She was a key person that Jiang Bing personally instructed him to pay close attention to. Whether it was the advanced prosthetic body on her body, the 'black wall' sample in her head, or her as a person, she was a rare resource.

Having finished another task, Gloria turned her attention to little Jack, who was looking around with his head up.

She had already thoroughly investigated the other party's information; in fact, all the past intelligence on the Van der Linde gang was on her desk.

Chapter 592 Matilda's Dream

For this intelligence team that has gone from infiltrating Saint Denis to infiltrating the United States, the placement of their families in [Anti-Entropy] is less about ensuring their safety and more about a combination of their pledge of allegiance and a proton.

The former gangsters have transformed into agents and intelligence spies for [Anti-Entropy], a stark contrast to their former roles. However, their leader, Dutch van der Linde, seems to have been born for this job. He is practically a born anti-socialist, and his restless nature is perfectly suited for this kind of work that walks on the edge of a knife and disregards the law.

He could be described as James Bond in 1899.

So although he still talked to his subordinates about his grand plans every day, saying that he would quit after finishing this job, he was actually very happy doing it.

"John Marston Jr., thank you for playing with Hailey. I've had a lot of trouble finding her some playmates her age."

“I really enjoy being with Hayley, Mrs. Martinez.” As a child raised in the Van der Linde gang, Jack was equally precocious, and his emotional intelligence in dealing with people was far more mature than that of the average child.

“Your father is currently on a business trip in Montgomery, but the mission is over, and you should be able to see him at home by tomorrow night at the latest.” As the head of the company, Gloria naturally had the right to know these company secrets.

"Really? Thank you so much, Mrs. Martinez!" Little Jack was overjoyed to hear that he would soon see his long-lost father.

That's probably why children can always live a pure and happy life.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the sea, Matilda, though no longer a child, still felt as happy as a little kid.

She went to see the sea, swam, scuba dived, and even went deep into the ocean to play with the fish, thus fulfilling her dream.

Lake Pitti, located west of Lodz and bordering the northern Gulf of Mexico, is a coastal lake, practically indistinguishable from the ocean.

At least that's what Matilda thought.

The warship 'Mr. Civilization', a warship recently gifted to [Anti-Entropy] by the United States, is speeding along the coastline of the Gulf of Mexico and western Elizabeth, slowly heading towards Lake Pitti directly ahead, following its predetermined route.

Compared to the mature but somewhat cramped port of Saint Denis, Lake Lotti, which is ten times larger than the city of Saint Denis, is a more suitable location for the construction of a modern port.

In fact, [Reverse Entropy] was planned in the same way, and simple pier prototypes have been built along the eastern coast of Lodz.

Matilda stood at the bow of the warship, feeling the salty sea breeze on her face, gazing at the clear blue sea and the lush, green coastline. She was as happy as the nearly one-meter-long 'red fish' behind her, jumping and leaping about.

When the warship set sail, it happened to encounter a "cattle tide" of 'red fish'. Hundreds of thousands of adult red fish gathered in groups and tried to rush into the shallows to spawn. The 'Mr. Civilization' ship, which came head-on, caught them and, after casting a few tentative nets, indeed had a very good harvest.

But the fish behind Matilda was caught by her own hands, and it was a carefully chosen gift for the lark.

The ship entered the port and anchored alongside other warships that were resupplying. As a specially approved crew member who joined the ship midway, Matilda did not disembark at this makeshift port with most of the crew. Instead, she used the recently installed [Anti-Entropy] internal office software to find the nearest means of transportation to the port of Saint Denis and transferred to another ship.

This is a transport ship that was once wrecked, but was later repaired by the skillful hands of Jiang Bing, a 'craftsman', and a large number of modern machines were added to it.

This massive ocean-going transport ship has completed routine maintenance at Lake Latti, which is almost being converted into a naval port. It is preparing to sail west along the Lanáchzi River, conduct a final resupply near San Denis, and then head to the Gulf of Mexico to join this group of transport ships. Under the escort of the '[Anti-Entropy]' warship, it will cross the ocean to reach Qing China and recruit people.

The port of Saint Denis is even more bustling than before.

Thanks to the existence of the 'Dust World', [Anti-Entropy] is practically untouchable in the Caribbean Sea. In addition, with the successive launch of communication satellites and the establishment of a global communication network, coupled with large troop transport vehicles, [Anti-Entropy] can basically deploy troops to North and South America on the same day, and Africa and Eurasia on the next day.

Any naval fleet that dares to challenge Anti-Entropy will be mercilessly bombarded by beyond-visual-range cannons, while those forces on land will experience what it means to have landing pods fall from the sky, and what it means to have the iron fist of the towering, powerful 'Black King Apostle' who can take on a thousand men single-handedly.

In particular, Jiang Bingzheng is planning to build a large space station in near-Earth orbit that belongs to the "anti-entropy" system. At that time, it will probably not take half a day for any reactionary forces that dare to show their faces to enjoy a five-minute near-Earth orbit descent and beating them up.

With air superiority (including space), you gain sea power; with sea power, you gain the right to speak and the initiative; and with these rights, businesses that were difficult to do in the past become easier to do, and air routes that were difficult to navigate become safer.

Originally, Saint Denis was just an ordinary port city in the United States, but with the presence of [Anti-Entropy], it suddenly began to subtly transform into a logistics hub radiating throughout the world.

Prosperity is a natural consequence.

When Matilda arrived at the port, she happened to encounter a transport ship full of Qing Dynasty laborers arriving at the port.

A large number of bewildered Qing Dynasty laborers, with their families in tow, dressed in tattered clothes and with long, disheveled braids on their heads, trembled as they set foot on foreign soil for the first time.

Fortunately, the staff of the Human Resources Department of [Anti-Entropy] stationed at the port already had ample experience in handling such situations.

First, fully armed soldiers with steel guns lined up to maintain order. To appease these people, all the soldiers were Qing Chinese who had arrived earlier. They could all speak Chinese with different accents, which effectively reduced the panic of these refugees who had traveled across the ocean to beg for a living.

Look, those carrying foreign guns are all our own compatriots.

Subsequently, the automated population information registration machine, which has evolved to the 'Foolproof Type III', allows users to simply stand on it, place their hands on the designated positions, and complete basic information such as gene sampling, fingerprint registration, and facial recognition in a very short time. Then, it prints the corresponding identity ID card on the spot, completing the first step in the process of these immigrants integrating into the [Anti-Entropy] family.

Chapter 593 Further Than the Distance

The upgraded Type III login machine is now network-enabled, eliminating the need for staff to manually import data into the database later. The increasingly mature industrial system also enabled these immigrants from 1899 to receive personal IC cards with functions such as money payment, security verification, identity information storage, bank cards, social security cards, and medical cards as soon as they landed.

In this day and age, this thing is undoubtedly a cutting-edge technology for all organizations that are not "anti-entropy".

Don't even think about imitating it for the next 50 years.

Subsequently, they would be transported in batches by train to the 'immigrant camp' located in Furious Rock, in family units. After undergoing basic education, sanitation and disinfection, vaccination, and further registration, they would be further assigned to work and destinations based on their own wishes and skills, combined with the current labor shortage in [Reverse Entropy].

Matilda watched this lively and rare scene with great interest. To be honest, ever since she, an astronaut, landed in space, everything she saw was novel and she was curious about everything. In addition, everything in the world in 1899 was a unique sight for her, an astronaut from 2076. She could never get enough of it.

However, the approaching visitation time with the nightingale urged her to hurry up and set off.

Saint Denis has changed drastically since [Anti-Entropy] took over; the changes are so significant that they can be described as earth-shattering.

First, the horse manure that used to cover the streets has all disappeared, and the slow-moving trams have been removed. Now, the vehicles running on the streets are either three-wheeled motorcycles, motorcycles and trucks, or open-top buses that are not slow at all.

There are also four-wheeled cars, but they are almost all dedicated vehicles for the staff of [Anti-Entropy]. From time to time, a few floating vehicles fly overhead, which are more important 'business vehicles'.

The general public prefers the bicycles recently launched by [Reverse Entropy]. Thanks to [Reverse Entropy]'s recent large-scale infrastructure construction, there are now wide and smooth roads connecting Saint Denis to nearby states, solving the problem of bumpy rides. Bicycles, which are cheaper than horses, do not require feeding, are a one-time investment with lifelong benefits, and only cost a few steamed buns for 100 kilometers, are a new type of transportation that is very popular.

However, Matilda was driving a three-wheeled vehicle.

Having already chosen to join [Anti-Entropy], her rank wasn't low, and her assigned job was quite suitable: a trainee instructor in space survival and combat for the 'Black King Apostle,' as she was the only one in [Anti-Entropy] who could be considered a professional in aerospace.

The man and the fish got into the vehicle at the same time. This simple, sturdy, and durable three-wheeled vehicle did not travel far before reaching the bridge checkpoint.

Because she had a reservation, Matilda passed through security smoothly and drove her three-wheeled vehicle all the way to the entrance of the sanatorium.

When she went in, the lark had just finished its routine check-up and was basking in the sun, bored.

Congratulations, you've finally achieved your dream.

Upon seeing the large fish that Matilda brought, Song Zhaomei immediately understood that the other party had already been to the ocean she had been longing for.

"How are you?" Matilda asked with concern, looking at the lark whose mouth and eyes were almost crooked.

"As you can see," Song Zhaomei tried to demonstrate making a fist, but her five fingers clearly had their own ideas.

"I'm almost unable to take care of myself anymore, but it's better than before."

"Judging from your appearance, you seem to be doing quite well," the lark said, looking at the radiant Matilda.

Matilda was not just doing well, she was doing incredibly well.

The realization of her dream filled her with joy from the inside out, and her appropriate attire indicated that she was not in dire financial straits recently.

“I’ve joined [Anti-Entropy], Song Zhaomei.” Matilda became interested at this and squatted down in front of Song Zhaomei to say it.

"The human resources department assessed my experience living in space, assigned me to a level four rank, and is also preparing to have me teach the [Anti-Entropy] armed personnel about survival in space."

“Song Zhaomei, I think you should join [Anti-Entropy] too.” Matilda stood up and gestured for the other to look around. “Look at this, this new world. This is a fantastic opportunity, Song Zhaomei. Compared to our hopeless world, this is paradise. The Crystal Palace doesn’t even deserve to carry its shoes.”

“I know, Matilda.” Song Zhaomei’s expression remained unwavering.

"You don't need to tell me. I know that joining [Anti-Entropy] is the only way out. After all, do you think we would have any other way out if we knew the secret that [Anti-Entropy] can travel through worlds?"

“However, I am different from you. What’s inside me is too important, Matilda. I guess I can only be a ‘guinea pig’ here until what’s in my head is extracted.”

At this point, the two fell silent.

Matilda simply plopped down next to Song Zhaomei's wheelchair, watching with her as flocks of white ibises and glossy ibises skimmed low over the river, breathing in the much fresher air than the space station, and gazing at the setting sun slowly sinking into the water, momentarily lost in thought.

She looked up at the clear sky and the reddened sunset, and suddenly a thought struck her. She turned to Song Zhaomei, who was tilting her head, and asked, "Do you think this place is farther than the distance?"

………………

In the cyber world of 2076, the Chimera Tank is already considered an outdated armored vehicle. Its main function is not even for frontal assaults, but for flanking fire support. Powered armor, which dominated the battlefield in the 20s-40s, has also lost its dominant position in the cyber world. Although hovercars once changed the entire battlefield landscape, now, bionic robots are the new favorite in the entire war arsenal.

However, for the 'Black King Apostles', these things are just auxiliary tools; their strongest asset is always their physical body.

After visiting her friend Lark, Matilda ended her pre-employment break the next day and went to the Black King Apostles' base to take up the post of space operations instructor.

Military camps are always places of pressure and order, where discipline permeates the air at all times.

She was greeted at the door by an instructor, but what was unusual was that he had two cat-like eyes.

Matilda was quite certain that this was not a prosthetic eye.

“I am Sirodinger, the melee instructor here.” He extended his right hand and shook hands with Matilda.

As they crossed their hands, Matilda immediately felt the thick calluses on the other person's palms.

“He is definitely a skilled knife user,” Matilda thought.

Chapter 594 [The Slaughterer]

“I am…I am Matilda.” The power armor walking around, the androids piled up in the open space, the chimera tanks, the piles of weapon boxes, the missile racks, and the rocket launchers made this little girl, who hadn’t seen much of the big scene, a little nervous. The usually calm and reliable Sirodinger keenly noticed the change in her emotions and turned to lead her deeper into the area.

As he walked, he communicated with the other person to minimize their tension.

“I know you, the new instructor for space operations. Your appointment notice was sent to our entire instructor team a few days ago.” Sildinger did not look down on the other party because of his youth. He was always calm and reliable, unlike an emotionally sensitive cat school witcher, or even a witcher. This was also the reason why he was able to be elected as the head of the instructor team.

"Next, I'll give you a brief tour of this training base. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have."

“Actually, there are already some.” Matilda looked at the black prosthetic arm on the other person’s left arm and asked her question, “You’re also from…?”

“Actually, no, we don’t come from the same world,” Sildinger replied, clenching his left fist.

"You come from plane number HXXD-C2W33, while I come from plane number HXXD-G00334. Once you meet all the instructors, you'll see that we all come from different worlds, but each has a special skill in a particular field."

Matilda followed the other person toward a shooting range where gunfire continued, and asked, "Um, what worlds with these numbers are you talking about?"

“Your security level isn’t high enough,” Sirodinger explained patiently. “You’ll understand what I mean when you have permission to go to the ‘headquarters’ transit plaza.”

"But before that, allow me to introduce you to the [Anti-Entropy] Target Range No. 17." After verifying his identity with the guards at the entrance, the Witcher pushed open the gate to the target range.

Suddenly, a torrent of gunfire erupted from within, nearly knocking Matilda over.

Shooting ranges are generally considered by ordinary people to be places for target practice, training your shooting skills with machine guns, heavy machine guns, shotguns, pistols, and submachine guns. That's not wrong, but it's a bit one-sided.

As soon as Matilda entered, she saw a Black King apostle dressed in full armor, wielding a heavy machine gun, frantically unleashing firepower into the distance.

He was wearing the [Slayer] super-heavy armor, which was over 3 meters tall and as thick as a high wall. The super-heavy machine gun he held was over two meters long, and each of the shell casings that fell like snowflakes was as thick as Matilda's arm.

Three or four of these cartridge cases would jump out of the gun barrel every second.