On my second playthrough, they were full of malice towards me.

However, the cost of doing so is...

In front of each landing capsule was an indicator light. Inside the capsule, which was originally filled with green fluorescent light, ten capsules suddenly began to flash red light, and the flashing became more and more rapid.

"Understood, Steward."

Inside the command center, the researchers were in complete disarray, whispering amongst themselves and occasionally letting out exclamations and gasps of surprise.

"Stop issuing the natural disaster alert. Have the four squads within 50 kilometers immediately drop everything and rush to Squad 39-A's area to conduct an investigation. At the same time, transfer five more squads from 'Dragon's Nest' and have them land in 'Witch's Territory' to stand by and provide support at any time."

"Chief William, we have detected that the biosignals of all ten members of Explorer Squad 39-A, including the captain, disappeared almost simultaneously. Staff have already gone to their landing pods to check, and they have all been confirmed dead."

No researcher dared to question William's decision. After all, the unfortunate fellow named FAMAS who had questioned it last time was taken away by law enforcement the very next day on more than a dozen charges, including "leaking company secrets," and the consequences were predictable.

Some of them only flashed for two or three seconds before turning off, some for five or six seconds, and the longest one lasted for nine seconds, but eventually it also turned off and the indicator light went completely dark.

"Steward William, analysis complete. The illusory dream forces and the turbid monsters have been ruled out as the cause. According to the system model, the area where Squad 39-A is located has most likely been hit by a natural disaster of level B or higher."

William's expression immediately changed upon hearing this.

"So, the highest-level intelligent life form, 'Zero,' was actually originally just a discarded maid android?"

"Yes, the data model is being built."

Although the image quality is blurry, indicating that the transmission was rushed, it is still sufficient.

This might explain why so many employees are willing to sign contracts with the company and risk their lives to explore Zero Dream for the company.

William, the executive from Keltech who was initially responsible for liaising with Liao Ji and the group of scholars from Magic City, was standing in front of the large screen, frowning and staring intently.

"Is this Zero's memory of the past?"

"No, this may just be a metaphor, but there is no doubt that Zero's starting point is very low. The reason why it was able to grow into an advanced entity is entirely due to the young scientist in the story."

However, before the researchers below could carry out William's orders, a communications officer suddenly stood up and shouted at William.

Red signal?

"Oh my God! The truth about the Emperor's death five hundred years ago—the witch's scheme. If this information were released, the entire academic community of 'Ancient Studies' would be shaken!"

Unlike the previous "insect hive" buildings, this place resembles a monitoring and command center. On the huge screen in the center is a world map of the Zero Dream that Kyle Technology has developed and drawn over the years with the help of explorers. Below, there are many researchers in white coats operating something on virtual computers.

He immediately ordered the dying message from Squad 39-A to be projected onto the big screen. Then, the three stories and murals that had been in the cellar appeared before William and the Kyle Technology researchers.

So now that the red signal has reappeared, how could William not be excited?

"So what is the young scientist implying? Could it be..."

At this moment, Steward William had no time to care about anyone else, because even he himself was so excited that his hands were trembling.

The message that Squad 39-A was trying to pass on before they died was of immense value, enough to propel him up in the company and make him more than just a department head. After so many years of diligent work and tireless dedication to Zero Dream, it was finally time for him to reap the rewards.

"Issue a natural disaster warning and tell them to leave immediately."

Upon hearing the words "Class B Catastrophe," William frowned even more deeply. He quickly asked, "Are there any other squads around 39-A?"

After he issued the command, the world map on the large screen immediately shrank and finally stopped at the location of the Witch's Territory.

"The Emperor! Who else could it be but the Ash Emperor!"

"The maid and the young scientist in the story fall in love. Does this imply that five hundred years ago, only 'Zero' was the rightful wife of the Ash Emperor? And the other four, especially the witch, were only involved out of jealousy?"

Moreover, the rewards William offered were so enviable that even they were tempted. Salary was secondary; the main thing was the promotion in employee rank, which brought various benefits, conveniences, and powers that would allow their families and even future generations to enjoy the good life.

"Include 39-A in the abnormal death observation group and analyze the cause of death immediately."

"Do as I say. Tell those teams that this is a special mission. Their salaries will be tripled during the operation. If they find anything, their employee rank will be adjusted, up to a maximum of three levels."

Of course, William quickly calmed down and didn't forget to issue other instructions.

Over the years, the red signal has only appeared once. After that, the branding technology was born in Kyle Technology, which was a leap forward for the entire company and the exploration of Zero Dream.

"Yes."

"No! It's not just ancient learning; the entire world order could change drastically! After all, Zero was the Emperor's lover, which means that our Mechanical Alliance is the true successor to the Ash Empire!"

"Steward William, we haven't yet determined the power and duration of the natural disaster. What if..."

Kyle Technology stipulates that when the Explorer Team discovers information valuable to the company, it uses four colors—white, green, blue, and red—to indicate the importance of the information, so that the command and control center can process it quickly according to its importance.

"Sir! Squad 39-A still has a message left for us, confirmed to have been sent one second before the squad's biosignal disappeared! And they used the highest level red-red signal!"

“Three are still operating within a 50-kilometer radius,” the researcher replied quickly, typing on a virtual keyboard.

This also explains why, in the face of the natural disaster, the last member of Squad 39-A's biosignal lasted a full nine seconds before going out. If he had used that time to "log out," he would have had a chance to escape, but he chose to sacrifice himself and use that time to transmit intelligence.

This is clearly not about how loyal the captain is to the company, but rather that the captain knows that if he logs out without any intelligence or data as proof, he might have a chance to survive, but his team will certainly have died in vain.

If the company receives this crucial intelligence, even if the perpetrators die, their surviving spouses, parents, and children will receive not only the company's compensation but also a reward for the valuable intelligence. Given the significance of this intelligence, it should at least ensure their livelihood for the rest of their lives.

This might be the last effort he, as the captain, could make for their 39-A squad, or perhaps it was some kind of atonement for his repentance.

Chapter 209 Omission

Chapter 209 Omission

The command center suddenly became tense and busy.

However, just then, to William's surprise, the door to the command center was suddenly pushed open, and an uninvited guest appeared in the dispatch room with three or four security personnel in black suits.

Everything about Zero Dream is top secret at Kyle Technology. To enter this place requires multiple layers of review. The fact that someone could bring someone here so casually means that they have extremely high privileges within Kyle Technology.

This is true.

“Director Ellen?” When Steward William saw the short, pot-bellied man with short brown hair opposite him, his outward expression remained unchanged, but his heart sank.

"It's nothing, I just came to check on things. Thank you for your hard work, Steward William. Is there any new progress on Dream Zero?"

Director Ellen waved her hand dismissively, and asked as if she were conducting an inspection.

Normally, William would have just smiled and gotten by, but today, he couldn't help but show some signs of unease, and his expression became somewhat unnatural.

Director Ellen simply smiled at this, then ignored the silent Steward William and strode to the command room, where the red-level classified intelligence from Team 39-A was being displayed on the large screen.

"What are you all doing? The intelligence that Manager William and I worked so hard to gather for the company, what are you all standing there for? Hurry up and write it down!"

"Because of the changes in the Dragon Kingdom, the company is now in a very critical situation. At this time, we, as the company's senior management, must know how to share the company's burdens and save expenses."

"Omitted?"

Just after Director Ellen and her men left, the same researcher who had first discovered the information left behind by Squad 39-A walked unsteadily to Steward William's side.

"Thank you, Director Ellen, I will consider it."

“There’s no other way. The company wants to explore the Zero Dream, so sacrifices are inevitable,” William replied expressionlessly.

And what could he do? Nothing. He was just a department head, while Director Ellen was far superior. William had no choice at all.

"By the way, William, I just saw a large funding request you made in the company's financial system. What are you planning to do with it?"

The board of directors of Kyle Technologies symbolizes the highest power in the company. Being brought to such a meeting, even just to show one's face, is an honor. But what William is angry about is that he could have gotten more, and might even have become a member of the board of directors, but now he has lost it all. It is conceivable that Ellen will take the lion's share of the credit.

"Yes, Squad 39-A also sent a second message. It was very short and explained the source of the information about the mural. It is highly likely that there is someone from another organization within Dream Zero who has a deeper understanding of Dream Zero than our Kyle Technology."

"Strike? Protest? Ha, so William, you're still too young. Those employees have already signed contracts with us. If they don't meet the agreed targets, they'll face huge fines and compensation. William, you have to trust the company's legal department. Once those explorers know the consequences of breach of contract, believe me, they won't dare to do anything."

Even a fool could see that Steward William was in a terrible mood, but the matter was of utmost importance, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and report with great fear:

"Chief Steward William, I'm very sorry. I was too excited earlier and realized I had missed a message from Squad 39-A."

Director Ellen handed William a newsletter, which featured the families of many explorers who died for the company in the Zero Dream, lamenting what kind of illegal secret experiments were being conducted within Kyle Technology, otherwise how could there have been so many deaths and injuries.

"I will report this important intelligence at the board meeting later, William. I think you are a very smart, valuable and promising person. You can come with me to the board meeting then."

“Squad 39-A sacrificed their lives in exchange for intelligence. This is their compensation and a reward for their heroic sacrifice,” William replied expressionlessly.

Ellen glanced at William's clenched fist, but still smiled and patted William on the shoulder approvingly.

Director Ellen patted William on the shoulder with a meaningful expression.

"Thank you, Director Ellen, for the promotion."

William looked at the chubby smile on Director Ellen's face. In this era of advanced cybernetic technology, it takes skill to be fat.

"No, no, no, William, do you know that some things are as good as non-existent if you don't keep track of them? Understand? Once you issue the compensation, it's like admitting to the outside world that the deaths of these employees were caused by our Kyle Technology. If we directly fire the deceased employees, it's like we have no leverage. Then the relevant departments of the company can act more freely. You have to trust our public relations capabilities. Those families... hehe, they can't make a sound."

Upon hearing William's words, Director Ellen shook his head. He leaned close to William's ear and whispered:

“William, it seems you’re still not smart enough about some things. The biggest contributor to this intelligence is us, not that so-called dead 39th Squad. They just followed our brilliant command to get the intelligence. In fact, it’s because of their improper operation and mistakes that the intelligence is so vague and unclear now.”

"Let me be frank with you, William. The company's board of directors has long had objections to your spending on the pension and reward mechanisms for explorers. This not only wastes a lot of company funds, but also has a very negative social impact."

At Director Ellen's reprimand, the three or four men in black he brought immediately went to the researchers in the command center and demanded that they grant them access.

The researcher, recalling FAMAS's previous ordeal, was so terrified by the fact that he had overlooked such a crucial matter involving a mysterious rival that he almost knelt before Steward William.

In just a few words, Director Ellen took credit for Team 39-A's work and even shifted the blame for the incomplete intelligence onto the team, making their image even more perfect.

William feigned gratitude, but a shadow of gloom flickered in the depths of his eyes as he looked at Director Ellen.

“William, the company’s public relations department has already lodged a serious protest.”

“As a key figure in our plan, Director Ellen’s words are my words. You lot, get out of the way.” After taking several deep breaths, William decided to give up and let Ellen’s men take over and extract the data.

Clearly, Director Ellen's appearance here at this time was no coincidence, nor was it even a pretense; she was openly telling them that she was here to steal the credit.

"Do as I say from now on. The press conference is in three days. We must control the media at this time and absolutely not let any information about employee deaths or injuries leak out. Once our 'Witch's Mark' is released, hmph, the company's market value will definitely recover, and may even surpass its previous level. William, I still have some extra stock shares that I haven't touched. If you need them, you can contact me, and I'll allocate some to you."

"Work hard with me, William. In Kyle Technology, people without connections can't climb very far. Trust me, I won't treat you unfairly."

The researcher was at a loss. He looked at Steward William and then at Director Ellen, unsure of what to do. After all, once the authority was handed over, others would also obtain this detailed information, and the credit would not belong to them alone.

"Isn't this a bit inappropriate, Director Ellen?" William said, his expression remaining unchanged.

He finally asked expressionlessly, "But if that's the case, many explorers will protest, or even go on strike."

"Yes, I'm so sorry, Lord William, it was my oversight. Please, I beg you..."

“No, no.” Since Director Ellen appeared, Steward William, who had been expressionless, finally showed a slight smile.

"You did very well."

After muttering to himself, William stared at the intelligence report thoughtfully for a few seconds. Then, to the astonishment of the researchers beside him, he deleted the report without hesitation.

Chapter 210 Athetis (Part 1)