Chapter 10: Caught Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Chapter 10: Caught in a Dilemma

Provence placed five resumes before Zhou Jinru with a sinister smile. “Doctor, draw your fate—this is the destiny of Africans.”

“Doctor... Doctor...” The ethereal voice of Amiya whispered in his ears. Zhou Jinru awoke drenched in sweat, startled from his dream. Seeing Amiya’s concerned expression beside him, his heart calmed. Indeed, wherever Amiya was, it was paradise. Amiya was truly remarkable.

Of course, this did not imply they were sleeping together. Even if Amiya wished it, Zhou Jinru would never agree—omnipotent Kelsey would likely kill him at once.

While dressing, Zhou Jinru asked, “What’s wrong, Amiya? What happened?”

“Doctor, there’s an emergency. We’ve lost contact with the A1 reserve team for over four hours. The central control room has activated an emergency protocol. I hope you can come as well.”

The A1 reserve team was the combat squad led by Finn, mainly composed of Finn, Klous, Migru, Yanrong, and Furong, along with several other operatives, totaling over fifty.

Zhou Jinru had seen a note left by Furong and knew they were out on a mission, but he had no details on their exact location from Amiya.

“Where was the last contact?”

Putting on his shoes, Zhou Jinru opened the door. Some operatives had already gathered in the central control room; most were strangers to him, but they recognized the outfit he wore.

Amiya pointed to several red circles flashing on the electronic screen. “About fourteen kilometers from the base, in the mountainous region. Around one day ago, during the EoD period, there was a sudden outbreak in the Originium vein there. Four nearby infected communities suffered minor damage. A collection point near the vein was struck, with casualties, but the specific situation remains unclear.”

“Why not send drones to scout first?”

Zhou Jinru turned to find no one answering. Amiya softly explained, “During EoD periods, Originium dust in the atmosphere becomes abnormally active. Exposed electronic devices are interfered with, so drones cannot operate. That’s why the A1 reserve team was dispatched for investigation.”

Another EoD period.

This condition outside the game’s setting truly affected Terra’s normal operation, as annoying as a recurring monthly visitor.

Zhou Jinru decided not to delve into this technical issue; as a latecomer doctor, he wouldn’t pretend to be an expert.

His mind turned to another matter: the A1 reserve team’s five three-star operatives in his Rhode Island had high training levels. Klous and Migru had even reached elite 1, level 55.

The game developers were undeniably kind to new players—the three-star operatives given at the start were like low-star war gods, and with a little training, they could easily breeze through the beginner phase, sweeping up any challenges.

“What’s the first contingency plan?”

“The first contingency plan cannot be activated normally. The A4 reserve team has not returned yet, so currently, we can only deploy four D-rank operatives from the A4 action team. Also, I am available to participate.”

Amiya’s eyes sparkled, awaiting Zhou Jinru’s decision. Yet, to him, these were not good tidings. By now, he clearly understood that Rhode Island had weakened to the point that only three-star operatives could be deployed normally. The higher-star operatives were all in medical units. Relying on them for combat was impossible. Although Javier’s berserker techniques were excellent, she was ultimately a medic.

“A4 action team, with the addition of the caster operative 12F, will join the squad under Captain Yatou’s command. Any issues?”

Zhou Jinru looked at the five operatives. In the game, they were two-star operatives, but Kelsey’s evaluation was high. These outstanding operatives were the cornerstone of Rhode Island. Zhou Jinru agreed deeply—Captain Yatou was a veteran soldier with eight years of combat experience. She possessed no exceptional talents; otherwise, she wouldn’t have survived that long.

“No issues. Prepare for combat immediately.”

“Deploy other operatives as usual. This is just a routine support operation—no need to treat it as a dire emergency.”

As Zhou Jinru spoke these words, he felt a bit incredulous, as if someone else was speaking through him.

“What about the troublemakers in the A6 team?”

He directed the question at Amiya.

“They’re working on infrastructure. All operatives who can free their hands to join the fight have already done so,” Amiya said apologetically.

Zhou Jinru fell silent, analyzing Amiya’s emotions. The little rabbit was happy—perhaps because this combat-ready doctor was the person she knew. There was also surprise, though he didn’t understand what amazed her. There was no sadness or anger. Was she truly unconcerned about the safety of her A1 comrades?

Switching off his talent and letting emotional guidance absorb some of Amiya’s joy, his own mood brightened, sweeping away the gloom.

...

Elsewhere, the collection point near the Originium vein shone brightly. A weary red-haired girl carried her shield, her feet sinking into the damp mud. Mud splashed onto her pant legs as she watched the Originium worms retreat like a tide, sighing in relief. This intense battle was finally over.

“Migru! Migru! Over here!”

Under a makeshift shelter on the clearing, a purple-haired girl raised her staff, calling out to her companions like a playful animal inviting friends.

“Furong, we’re still fighting; we haven’t left danger yet.”

Migru ran her fingers through her hair, trying to cool off. She entered the shelter, where a green light flashed briefly on her forehead. Most of her minor injuries healed, but her energy remained depleted—she still felt exhausted.

“Don’t mind her; she’s been clingy since childhood.”

Another girl identical to Furong descended from the high platform at the collection point. She tucked a dagger into a book as she walked. Migru’s eye twitched. She knew well the dagger fit into the thick book because that girl had listened to that scoundrel doctor’s suggestion that the path to salvation lay within the book. She had carved a dagger-sized hole inside and slipped the dagger in for surprise attacks.

Did casters not need to channel Originium arts to attack, just pulling out a dagger? Casters couldn’t really be that unexpected...

Migru placed her shield by her feet and caught her breath, looking around. Something felt missing.

“Yanrong, where’s Klous? Where did she go?”

Yanrong said expressionlessly, “She said the battle was tiring and fell asleep on the platform. Don’t forget to get her during retreat.”

“Retreat? We can’t leave now. Until Finn’s convoy returns, we have to hold this position.”

Migru shook her head, removing her glasses to clean them carefully. “EoD periods make the Originium vein abnormally active. Without someone suppressing it now, everything here will be doomed.”

(End of chapter)