reincarnation npc, but tomorrow's ark

The Deepsea Hunters and Big Daddy remained in the safe house built by W. Grandia was primarily responsible for installing the large-scale data processing equipment that White Night needed—a replica of the data center beneath the core city's command tower.

Unlike Skadi and Laurentina, Goredia can directly help White Night in these ways, a capability she possesses as a Science Administrator that sets her apart from other Deepsea Hunters.

Logos and Ascalon both went out to have fun. They were used to acting alone and had their own plans. They weren't actually under Bai Ye's direct jurisdiction, so Bai Ye didn't force them to stay in the safe house.

Even Bai Ye needed them to go out and attract the attention of the royal courts and the military council, to distract them. When the rhinoceros entered the porcelain shop, all eyes would be drawn to it, and out of fear, they might overlook many things.

……

In six months, the Sarkaz controlled almost all of Londinium's lands. They spent less than a week defeating the council's guards and taking control of 70% of Londinium's city defense forces. They then spent a month and a half hanging several leading nobles who opposed the city and repeatedly repelled the rabble they had hired, until they had them completely under their control.

However, even the Sarkaz encountered resistance in the Sadion district.

The Saadien district is a semi-abandoned civilian industrial site, running from south to north along the hills surrounding the center of Londinium, connecting to a neglected old logistics district. The Sarkaz need this industrial land; they need the materials manufactured in the factories here to repair the Shards.

The factory needed workers, but Lontinim was now almost paralyzed due to the Sarkaz occupation, so where would they find so many workers? Moreover, they were manufacturing weapons to arm the Sarkaz army and raw materials to repair the Shattered Tower, not producing industrial goods that could circulate in the market.

This is a deal with no profit or gain, only costs and expenses, but no actual benefits. Sarkaz also doesn't have enough funds to cover these costs.

Fortunately, the Sarkaz didn't need to spend any money to hire workers. They only needed to use the pretext that an ordinary citizen had an affair with a rebel to arrest them, fabricate all sorts of baseless charges, and then imprison them in factories to work for the Sarkaz.

No cost is required; just some cheap food and whips are enough to keep these citizens obedient. Furthermore, they don't need to worry about worker attrition; if they need more men, they can simply arrest more. Therefore, this place is practically no different from a concentration camp.

Before transmigrating, Bai Ye already knew about these things, but as a player, he, like most others, never truly grasped their significance. Moreover, by the time the player army entered Londinium, the city had already been liberated, and their knowledge came solely from the accounts of the unfortunate surviving civilians.

You can't truly feel it without seeing it with your own eyes.

Here, White Night truly witnessed the rise of the Sarkaz.

They occupied other people's cities, utilizing the most powerful city defense system currently in use on the land, and operating Victoria's proud industrial facilities. Weapons were continuously produced from the assembly lines to equip this army; various industrial materials were processed and sent to the Shard, becoming pieces of the Regent's grand plan.

However, the price is the blood of ordinary people.

Bai Ye had done similar things before; the rise of the Reunion Movement to occupy the core city was also built on the sacrifice of many displaced people. But he would never go to such extremes.

If this is the rise of the Sarkaz, then it is built on blood, tears, and bloodshed.

It's no wonder there's constant resistance here. According to W, there's a resistance organization called the "Lundinium Self-Salvation Army," which is also a major force resisting the Sarkaz in the Sadien district.

Of course, the Self-Salvation Army is active throughout Londinium, not just in the Sadion district. However, the Sadion district is the only area that has not yet completely fallen into the Sarkaz, so their main struggles take place there.

It seems that Bai Ye's worries were unnecessary. The Sarkaz did not have complete control over this place, and the resistance was not a plaything they kept, but a real resistance force that left these guys in a state of utter chaos.

"This kind of thing has never been new. It's the same everywhere..."

A thorough study of Earth's history reveals that such occurrences are not uncommon.

……

White Night wandered through the Sadion district like a ghost, following W's clues to find the possible location of Kal'tsit's messenger.

The area was heavily guarded, yet not a single Sarkaz garrison discovered any trace of White Night.

Well, or rather, this kind of awful weather can lull many people into a false sense of security.

"Ok?"

Suddenly, Bai Ye stopped in his tracks.

It wasn't because he had already found the location of his target, but because he suddenly discovered a familiar face from the past.

-------------------------------------

Mandela frowned, looking at the continuous downpour outside, feeling very impatient.

She was sent by Leader Abrahana to Lentinium as an envoy to negotiate with Regent Theresis on behalf of Deeppool, thus establishing a cooperative relationship between Deeppool and the Sarkaz royal court.

However, she was driven away before she could even see Therese herself.

Although she was later able to meet with Royal Army General Manfred and was assigned to assist the Royal Army and mercenaries in guarding the temporary prison in the Sadion district, her own secret plans made no progress.

Yes, although she was happy to make the trip to Lontinim on behalf of the leader, she also had her own little selfish motives.

However, ever since Little Hill County, with the loss of Raphsini, the death of six high-ranking officers, and the loss of the Little Hill County command tower, Mandra has never had a smooth journey. Today's awful weather has further thwarted her plans, making her even more frustrated.

"*Victoria swears! Nothing ever goes right..."

This inexplicable, monstrous weather reminded Mandela of the enemy he had recently fought.

No, we can't call him an enemy now, because that annoying guy has actually formed a cooperative relationship with the leader.

He had humiliated me severely before...

Yes, Mandela also blamed White Night for her own experience under Shining Sister's control.

Chapter Eighteen: Meeting Again

Mandela frowned as he looked out the window at the heavy rain, listening to the hailstones pattering against the glass, his heart filled with anxiety.

Everything went wrong after we entered Lontinim. Today, the Sarkaz army's defenses were a bit lax, which gave us a chance.

However, the same weather that brought her success also brought her downfall. While the terrible weather did make the royal army soldiers stationed with her more lax, it also made it difficult for her Originium Arts to take shape. The damp weather and hail made her stone golem's structure loose, and in this kind of weather, it would probably be difficult for it to play the same role as usual.

Simply put, it applied a persistent "Fossilized Mud" buff to her stone golem.

In this situation, Mandela could only remain inactive and wait for a better opportunity to arise later.

Just then, a voice that he had only heard a few times but was already extremely familiar to Mandela suddenly rang in his ears.

"Hello there~"

A very familiar verbal tic; there are very few people in all of Terra who talk like that.

"..."

Mandela's eyes widened, and her once somewhat pretty face instantly contorted. She then immediately raised the cane in her hand.

This is her medium for casting spells. Mandra is not an infected person, so she must use the staff to unleash her full potential, including that incredibly magical power.

Unfortunately, although she was ready to act the moment she heard the sound, she was a step too slow. Just before she was about to activate her Originium Arts, a hand pressed down on her neck and pinned her against the wall.

"Well--"

With her most vulnerable spot being held, Mandra's breath caught in her throat. She let out a muffled groan, and the Originium Arts she had almost fully prepared vanished at that moment.

The accumulated soil and rocks on the ground collapsed with a deafening roar.

"Well, even though we're acquaintances, there's no need to be so enthusiastic when we just met, is there?"

-------------------------------------

Bai Ye shook his hand, then took out a handkerchief from his inventory and wiped the area between his thumb and forefinger.

Then, he looked speechlessly at Mandela, who was kneeling against the wall, glaring at him resentfully.

This cat is incredibly stubborn; I wonder what kind of experiences she went through to develop such a terrible temper.

Bai Ye raised his right hand. He had just pinned the girl against the wall, but he hadn't expected her to bite his hand. Although Bai Ye was almost unharmed, and Mandela had only left faint teeth marks on his hand, it was now almost completely healed.

However, Bai Ye was still shocked by this guy's temper. Since he transmigrated, he had never encountered such a terrible person.

At this moment, Mandra stared at him with wide eyes, her teeth almost breaking. Tears welled up in her eyes from the pain, making her look rather pitiful. However, Bai Ye knew that this guy was definitely plotting how to rebel against him.

To wipe his hands, Bai Ye had to let go of Mandra first, but at the same time, he managed to seize the cat's cane.

Without the support of the casting unit, this guy would find it difficult to use the Originium Arts he used to do so easily.

Without his weapon, Mandra was like a film with clipped nails; aside from baring his teeth and threatening others, he had no other skills, at least not to others.

"Sir, are you alright?!"

Outside the room, the soldiers on guard duty heard the commotion inside and called out from outside the door.

However, he was sensible enough not to barge in rashly.

Bai Ye glanced sideways at Mandela, seemingly waiting for her to speak. His left hand gripped Mandela's cane as if it were a sword, and he twirled it gracefully, the tip of the cane pointing towards the doorway, as if he would kill the Deep Pool soldier if he tried to enter.

Mandra, whose anger was already at its peak, paused slightly upon hearing the sounds outside. She turned to look at Bai Ye's actions, hesitated for a moment, then gritted her teeth, took several deep breaths to calm herself, and slowly spoke:

"It's nothing! I was just testing Originium Arts."

Bai Ye nodded, satisfied with Mandela's cooperation.

but……

"I didn't expect you to cherish your soldiers so much?" Bai Ye said, somewhat surprised.

After all, this guy acted so ruthlessly that it was easy to assume he was the kind of commander who would sacrifice others without hesitation and use his subordinates as pawns. However, she was able to remain calm when only her subordinates were threatened.

“I only care about the lives of the Tara brothers…” Mandela said coldly.

"Hmm, you've finally calmed down, haven't you... Speaking of which, is it really necessary to get so excited when old friends meet?" Bai Ye asked with a smile.

“Ha, I don’t remember us becoming friends?” Mandela sneered.

However, just as Bai Ye said, Mandra had calmed down. She stood up from the ground and kept a relatively safe distance from Bai Ye with some caution.

"I've already established a cooperative relationship with your leader, and I even let you go last time... After all we've been through, can't we still be considered friends?"

Yes, "friend".

Even Bai Ye himself didn't believe that.

“You…” Mandela felt a surge of anger when he heard the other person bring up his humiliating defeat last time.

They lost six high-ranking officers, lost that despicable imposter, Lavshini, their plan to occupy Little Hill County failed, and they themselves were captured by the enemy...

That experience made her lose face in front of the leader and was ridiculed by that despicable companion. If it weren't for the leader's continued trust in her, she probably wouldn't have had the chance to come to Lentinium.

That's just bringing up the very thing you don't want to talk about.

However, what the other party said did make some sense. At least, she couldn't easily fall out with this guy, since, on the surface, he had already reached a cooperative relationship with his leader.

At the very least, she can't just take action casually.

"This guy……"

Mandra gritted her teeth in anger, her mind brimming with all sorts of Tara curses, but she could only suppress her rage for the time being.

"Since we're friends, could you please give me back my cane?"

Mandela emphasized the word "friend" before looking at White Night.

"of course can."

Bai Ye did not refuse; he casually tossed the cane to Mandela, seemingly unconcerned that the guy might go back on his word.

Mandela took the cane with some surprise, then examined it and found that Bai Ye had not tampered with it at all; everything was normal.

Chapter Nineteen Proposal

"Isn't that enough to show my sincerity?"

Bai Ye disdains using petty tricks in such matters; there's no need for it.

Mandela, holding his cane, looked at Bai Ye and quickly understood that this guy was remarkably composed. After all, his strength was undeniable; even if he went all out, Bai Ye would probably still maintain this calm expression.

Having witnessed Bai Ye's strength, Mandela knew very well that she was no match for this despicable guy. She couldn't win a fight, and she couldn't just attack him; it was truly frustrating.

But this guy still had that smug, arrogant expression, which was really annoying.

But Mandela quickly realized something.

"Hmph, you wouldn't dare to make a move so easily... Although infiltrating here is indeed easy for you, if you cause a big commotion and attract the attention of those demons, even you would have a headache, right?"

Mandela squinted at Bai Ye.

"But I don't need to worry about that. I'm allied with those demons now. If things get out of hand, I can just say that there are intruders."

Upon hearing this, Bai Ye suddenly realized what was happening:

"No wonder you can freely enter and leave this prison; it turns out you've already cooperated with the Sarkaz..."

“Ha, ‘freedom’…” Mandela sneered upon hearing this. “Do you think those damned demons would be so kind? Guess how many royal army soldiers here are aiming their crossbows at us right now? If we make any move, they can unilaterally break the agreement and shoot us dead.”

Although on the surface Mandra's Deeppool is guarding this temporary prison alongside the Sarkaz, in reality, the Sarkaz are also constantly on guard against the Deeppool.

Both sides were merely compromising temporarily, each with their own ulterior motives. Moreover, in this process, Mandra and her Deep Pool were clearly the weaker party in front of Bai Ye.

"..." Bai Ye hadn't expected that, on the surface, Deeppool and the Sarkaz had already formed a temporary alliance. It was probably because Abrahana and Wellington behind her had other plans.

Mandra was a pawn placed by Abrahana to test and assess Therese's strength.

After a moment's thought, Bai Ye suddenly spoke again: