Poseidon in Arknights

“That’s true.” Exusiai nodded. “After all, the trajectory of a balloon in the air is much more unpredictable, and there’s also the factor of wind. Plus, it’s dark now, so the balloon might drift away and you might not be able to find it at all.”

"So, you see~" Yuzuki smiled and took a skewer of meat from her barbecue box, stuffing it into Exusiai's mouth, "Don't worry about it, let's go, there's still so much to try today."

"Hmm." Exusiai took the skewer from Yuuki and began to eat it bite by bite. When she turned her head, she found that someone seemed to have been gone since the beginning.

"Speaking of which, where's Texas?" Exusiai looked around. "It seems like she disappeared just after the shooting range?"

"They probably went somewhere else to have fun, right?" Yu Yue shrugged. "Isn't that what parties are all about? Although it was a bit rushed, there were still quite a few interesting things."

"You mean like that roller skating competition that ACE and their team did before?" Texas emerged from the crowd behind Yuuzuki. "That was indeed quite interesting and attracted a lot of people."

"Right, it's quite interesting~" Yuzuki turned to look at Texas, "but it's mostly kids who go to participate."

"What's with you, Yuuki? You mean you might want to go see them even if you don't have kids?" Texas handed her a drink. "It's pretty chilly today, have some hot cocoa to warm up?"

“I tried it, and the hot cocoa here tastes pretty good.” Texas took out other hot cocoa from the bag in her hand and handed them to the others.

Exusiai looked on with suspicion as Texas handed her the hot cocoa. If she wasn't mistaken, Texas was holding two cups, both with straws, while the cups they were holding didn't have straws.

So, when Texas said she "tasted" something, which cup in her hand did she taste, and which cup did she hand to Yuuki?

"Is this how you do it, Texas?" Exusiai inserted a straw into her hot cocoa. "Is this how it's done in all the novels Texas reads, or is this Texas's own idea?"

Sora's expression was also a little strange. Of course, she had also noticed Texas's little action just now. Then Sora looked at Yuuki.

At this moment, Yuuki was completely unaware of Texas's little tricks. She was just holding the hot cocoa that had just been handed to her and wandering around in front of the various stalls.

"Hmm, isn't this the Doctor?" Xi Yue walked up to a stall and looked at the Doctor who had set up a small table in front of him. "What's this?"

"Make some pocket money~" The professor pointed to the chessboard on the table. "Ten yuan per game. If you win, you take 50 yuan. If you lose, the ten yuan is mine."

"There are also difficulty levels to choose from~" The professor pointed to a small sign next to him.

The above is essentially just an additional condition: the doctor must persist in his attack during the game, and the game is considered won after a certain number of rounds.

"Isn't this just the kind of old man's stall you see most often at Lungmen Square?" Xiyue looked at the Doctor. "And you, Doctor, is it really necessary to do something like this just to earn a little pocket money?"

"And isn't this the chessboard I set up when we played chess last time?" Yuuki squinted at the familiar chessboard on the table. "Doctor, aren't you bullying me?"

"So, you see," the professor waved the wad of ten-dollar LMD bills in his hand, "I haven't lost yet, and I haven't even needed to use my brain!"

Yu Yue looked at the Doctor with some helplessness: "You're bullying me."

To be honest, this kind of game is actually quite common; it's just solving endgame puzzles. There are a lot of old men in Longmen Square who like to set up this kind of game. It's just that the game set up by the professor here isn't Chinese chess, but international chess.

Of course, they don't want anything in return. Some elderly people just want money for a drink or cigarettes, while others simply hope to have someone to keep them company.

The PhD student in front of her might really just be trying to earn some pocket money.

However, the game of Go that Yuuki and the Doctor played was not a fixed game. Even the Doctor had a hard time playing it, let alone the others.

"Hehe~" The professor knew, of course, that using the chessboard from back then was definitely bullying, but he couldn't stop this stubborn kid.

"But?" Yuuki looked at the wad of banknotes dangling in the professor's hand, including several 50 LMD bills. "There really are people who challenged the highest difficulty and played this game with you, and it looks like there are quite a few?"

To be fair, anyone with eyes to see can see that the black side they are trying to control is at a significant disadvantage, and winning is a very difficult task.

"Oh, you mean this?" The doctor stuffed the banknotes back into his pocket, looked around, and pointed in a direction beside him. "That Felin tribesman in the conference room gave me this, he gave it to me several times."

"In the end, it was his sister who pulled him away."

Following the direction the professor pointed, Yuuki looked over and indeed saw Cliffheart dragging a helpless-looking SilverAsh around to various stalls.

'Suddenly it doesn't seem to mean anything anymore. But so Silverlight hasn't left after all. I thought he left right after signing the purchase agreement with Rhodes Island last time.'

Suddenly, everyone's phones rang. After exchanging smiles, everyone took out their phones and looked at the pre-set time.

After a while, everyone started counting down in unison.

"10!"

"9!"

"8!"

………………

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

As the countdown ended, the group that had already reached the top of the bridge waved their staffs and tossed their prepared spells into the air.

The spell was thrown into the air and then suddenly burst forth, its vibrant colors briefly illuminating the sky.

Yuuki smiled as she looked at the three Texas people who were approaching. "Welcome to the new year~"

Chapter 102: Dragon Gate

—————Wilderness·Outskirts of Longmen City—————

"Finally, I can be back~" Exusiai sat obediently in the passenger seat, watching the city of Lungmen move forward in the distance. "Ah, it's better to be home~"

"You didn't seem this homesick at the party last night, Exusiai~" Sitting in the back seat, Yuuki looked at Exusiai with a hint of amusement. "You had a lot of fun last night~"

"Hehe~" Exusiai turned to look at Yuuki, "When you're having fun, you should relax and have fun, so I didn't miss home back then, but I can miss home now!"

"Are those refugees?" The professor, sitting next to Yuuki, pointed through the window to a dark line in the distance. "Did they flee from Chernobog?"

Yuuki turned her head to look at the black line of people in the distance and nodded: "I think so, although the Reunion Movement, under the leadership of Talulah who has now regained her will, is trying to regain the trust of the residents of Chernobog."

"At least for now, that's what she's doing. However, as a former terrorist organization, she obviously can't win people over, not to mention that many people fled during the previous riots."

"So they all came to Lungmen?" Amiya asked, also looking at the refugees outside. "But even if they came, they can't possibly get in here, can they?"

“That’s right.” Kal’tsit sat at the back without even looking out the window at the group of refugees in the distance. “Lungmen’s resources are limited. It’s impossible to accept refugees indefinitely, especially since they’re from Ursus.”

“Then we…” Amiya looked at the group of refugees, hesitating to speak. Lungmen’s resources were limited, and Rhodes Island’s resources were also limited.

She had the will, but ultimately lacked the ability. I know that the current resources are actually being used on a small, cyclical basis. If it weren't for Mr. SilverAsh buying a large batch of medical supplies from them...

Their finances may really be on the verge of collapse soon, and their trip was on Dr. Kal'tsit's advice. If they could reach an agreement on the infected, they might be able to gain some benefits from Lungmen.

This was also Kal'tsit's original plan. The last time she had Penguin Logistics send her to Lungmen, she was preparing to talk to Wei Yanwu about this matter. If things went smoothly, Rhodes Island might be able to get a lot of funding from Lungmen.

However, the biggest bargaining chip, the Reunion Movement, has almost been dealt with by Yuuki, so whether this chip can actually play a role is still unknown.

However, it's a good thing that the Reunion Movement was resolved ahead of schedule. Such a violent uprising would only make the situation of the infected even more passive.

“Amiya, we can’t save everyone,” Kal’tsit said calmly, looking at Amiya. “But if things go well this time, we might be able to reach a cooperation agreement with Lungmen regarding the infected.”

Croissant, who was squeezed in the back with Kal'tsit, suddenly spoke up after hearing Kal'tsit's words: "Speaking of infected, that's the slums, isn't it? Our Yuuki helped the Lungmen Guard Bureau set up three guard posts and a branch office in the slums~"

Hearing Croissant's words, Yuzuki turned around as well: "Oh, I remember when we left it was just a guard post, right? You moved so quickly?"

"Of course!" Croissant nodded quickly. This was something I happened to bump into Officer Swire when I was setting up my stall. "Back then, it was Officer Swire. Oh, I was so happy!"

"Hey, let me tell you something, Dr. Kal'tsit..." Once Croissant started talking, she couldn't stop.

She recounted everything she knew about Yuuki's free clinic in the slums, and how the Guard Bureau later established a post there.

"Oh?" Kal'tsit listened to Croissant's words and became interested as well. According to her intelligence, Wei Yanwu's attitude towards the slums was extremely cautious.

Even if Xi Yue is a god, would Wei Yanwu really be so quick to let go of the issues involving the slums, and even want to use Xi Yue's name to bring the slums back under Lungmen's control?

Wait a minute, what if it wasn't Wei Yanwu who approached Xiyue, but rather the Emperor who recommended her? That seems more plausible. Besides, Miss Xiyue already possesses the reputation of a trusted healer, a name that has spread throughout the wilderness.

Therefore, it's not entirely incomprehensible that Wei Yanwu would choose to use Xiyue's banner to bring the slums under Longmen's control. With Xinyi's reputation as a guarantor, the common people in the slums might feel at ease.

Even though the snake's people are still lurking in the shadows of Longmen, they can't just disrupt a free clinic organized by a deity and offend the person in charge.

Now that the snake has been completely subdued by Dr. Yuzuki, it seems there's really nothing to worry about in the Lungmen slums anymore.

However, this raises the question of whether Lungmen will still cooperate with Rhodes Island on the issue of infected individuals...

“If you’re worried about this, there are ways to deal with it.” Yuuki suddenly turned to look at Kal’tsit. “Actually, some members of the Reunion Movement have already arrived in Lungmen.”

"Pre-integration or on-the-spot integration?"

“Pre-integration, as for the people who come…” Yuuki took out her phone from her pocket, found her previous chat with Talulah, and handed it behind her back.

“This morning, after we were heading back to Lungmen, I contacted Talulah.” Yuuki said calmly, looking at Kal'tsit who was staring at her phone screen with a thoughtful expression. “I originally just wanted to ask if she was free to meet someone tonight, but she sent me this instead.”

"Are you just going to give it to us like this?"

“Some things just need someone else to solve them. I’m really just a doctor.” Xi Yue took the phone back and put it back in her pocket. “Besides, what trouble could these two possibly cause?”

“Wei Yanwu is keeping a close eye on the slums now, isn’t he?” Xi Yue smiled. “Whatever the reason, at least they won’t want to find any more bombs in or anywhere else in the slums.”

Exusiai turned to look at Yuuki thoughtfully: "Hmm, you mean because of those unlucky guys last time?"

She was so worried back then because she didn't understand Xiyue's identity, but now that she thinks back to that day, wow, the things those guys did didn't make Xiyue just blast the Lungmen slums into rubble, it's really because Xiyue is kind-hearted.

"I see. So, someone who doesn't know their own limitations has already sounded another alarm for Lungmen?" Kal'tsit nodded. Combining this with Exusiai's words, Kal'tsit also understood what Yuuki meant.

It turns out that there was another group of arrogant people who had tried to threaten Yuuki with bombs or something else to stop the free clinic. However, it was clear that this matter had directly crossed Yuuki's bottom line.

As for that group of people, they are no longer important. Kal'tsit thought that no one in the world could survive the wrath of the ocean; their fate was sealed when they did what they did.

More importantly, after this incident, the reaction from Longmen, especially Wei Yanwu, will be that he will absolutely not allow anyone to dare to do such a thing again.

Otherwise, next time, Longmen might really have another city that gets flooded.

“In that case, I understand.” Kal’tsit nodded to Yuuki. “I will try to use this as leverage, depending on the situation.”

—————Longmen Slum—————

With the sound of a can being kicked against the wall, a low, angry curse rang out.

"This damned Lungmen is completely different from what the leader said!" Shattered Bones kicked another jar against the wall. "We've been here for days, but we haven't found a single clue!"

He was originally tasked by the leader to come here to find his sister, Misha, because his sister holds the second key that can control Lungmen, and that key is very important to the Reunion Movement.

Of course, for Broken Bones, the key was secondary; his sister was primary. He originally thought this matter would be easy.

Let them do what they did in Chernobog: incite the infected people in the slums to join the Reunion Movement, and then get them to help find their sisters.

Everything should have gone smoothly and quickly, but when the Broken Bones arrived at Lungmen, they discovered that the situation seemed to be quite problematic.

Not only were the infected people here unmoved by their encouragement, but they even reported them to the police or gangs over there.

Even after making inquiries, the police discovered that it was actually the most prestigious gang in the lower district? And they heard that they had all voluntarily been recruited?

"And what's going on with all these people here?" Broken Bones leaned against the wall. "They've all been voluntarily recruited by the gang to become police officers. What a joke!"

"That boss..."