"Boom!"
It was late at night, but the defense system of Schicksal Headquarters was operational around the clock, so the sudden violent explosion alarmed a large number of armed forces.
In no time, a large contingent of fully armed Valkyries and giant Mechas gathered, with countless guns and cannons, some visible and some hidden, aimed at Durandal's residence from a distance.
"Ahem!"
Durandal who was wearing pajamas and covered in dust pushed away the debris with one hand and held the petite Rita with the other. She exhaled a foul breath and said in confusion, "What happened? Electrical explosion?"
"It looks more like someone used the Judgement of Shamash to launch a powerful attack here. It reminds me of the Battle of Tower Bridge in London two days ago. Durandal, Rita, where is that little doll?"
Otto emerged from the Valkyries surrounding the area, holding his chin with one hand, looking calm as ever.
Durandal's golden hair was covered with dust. She kicked aside some cement blocks.
After a while, she stood amidst the dust, looking at her shattered house and the huge hole behind it caused by high-temperature burning and melting, blinking in confusion.
"It's gone?"
"Hehe, it seems to be a cunning little guy. He pretended to be exhausted and even fooled me. In fact, he still had enough energy to escape!"
"You mean it escaped?"
"Search again. Although I think it is unlikely, we must prevent it from sneaking into the headquarters and causing more trouble. Durandal, you handle the aftermath. Rita, come with me."
Otto left the scene to the confused Durandal, and led Rita to the perimeter.
The starry night was romantic. Under the bright lights, Otto stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the bright moon in the sky, leisurely and enigmatic.
Rita patted the dust off her face and pajamas with small movements. Her usually clean and pretty face was now covered with dust, looking a bit embarrassed.
Otto didn't care about Rita's embarrassment and smiled slightly.
"Pay more attention to the kitten in the next two days."
"Stan? What do you mean, Bishop?"
Rita didn't expect Otto to suspect Stan, but after thinking carefully, it was hard to say that Stan was not suspicious since they both belonged to the same World Serpent.
"Hehe, maybe I'm just overthinking it. Beasts are all in awe of power. They have been defeated by Durandal, so they can't have any small thoughts. But we still have to be cautious. If there is a problem, try to handle it discreetly to avoid upsetting Durandal."
"Yes, Rita understands!"
Rita took the order seriously.
After two days of getting along with Stan, most women find it hard to dislike cats, especially human-like ones. Rita was no exception. However, her identity and position were more important. If necessary, it was her duty to deal with it without telling Durandal.
After that, Rita lowered her head and continued to wait for Otto's instructions.
...But after waiting quietly for a long time, she only saw Otto admiring the moon, neither leaving nor speaking again.
Rita was a little confused, but she just thought Otto was deep in thought, so she waited quietly without saying a word.
Until Amber's cold voice came from behind.
"Lord Otto, have you finished here? You still have a lot of work to do. If..."
"Don't bother me. I'm thinking about the possible conspiracy of the World Serpent. Go back and wait. I'll return to the office after I figure it out."
"How long do you want to think? How about I ask Lady Durandal to come and discuss it together?"
"Ahem! I just thought about it. It's still time to discuss it later. Official business is more important. Let's go, let's go back!"
Knowing that Amber had been on duty for over a month and was very resentful, Otto didn't dare to offend her further. He had to follow her back to the office with a forced smile.
Rita, who stayed behind, breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed her posture.
In the Schicksal headquarters, you could offend Durandal. Anyway, she had a straightforward personality. As long as it was reasonable, she would properly admit her fault if you pointed it out, and she would never care about it afterward.
You could even offend Otto, as long as you were a diligent worker. The Archbishop could joke around as long as it didn't involve serious matters.
But no one dares to offend Amber. Everyone knew she was the general manager in charge of personnel promotion, salary, food, accommodation, and transportation.
With a flick of her finger, you could starve in a minute!
With some emotion, Rita returned to her ruined home.
She saw Durandal who was still in her dusty pajamas, communicating with the patrolling Valkyries with a serious expression. And Stan, also covered in dust, leisurely rubbed against Durandal's legs.
Rita met Stan's eyes, and a gleam of light flashed in her eyes without any expression. Stan looked as if he hadn't noticed anything. He looked up at Rita and made a soft, gentle sound as if he had seen his master:
"Meow~~"
...
[Gray Serpent, coordinates XXX, XXX, there is a small island. I have run out of energy and can't go anywhere else. If you are still here and can receive this message, come and pick me up.]
In Shenzhou, at the Heliopolis Life Sciences Arc City Branch, Gray Serpent rushed into the laboratory in a hurry.
"Jackal, I received a message from Lord Shamash!" Then, there was a strange silence.
Jackal took Otto's soulium arm, which she had accidentally removed because of the loud noise of the door, and gently placed it on the experimental table. She then took out a high-tech RPG from under the table with an expressionless face.
Jackal aimed it at Gray Serpent's head and put her finger on the trigger.
"Calm down. This is your laboratory. If it explodes, the loss will be huge. I apologize. Is that not enough? Or should I give you some more funds?"
"How much?"
"Two thousand...two hundred million...six hundred million, six hundred million research funds!"
"Double it."
Jackal said expressionlessly.
Gray Serpent's artificial eyes flickered, and his voice rose several degrees:
"You think our money is blown by the wind...uh, 1.2 billion is 1.2 billion!"
When Jackal was about to pull the trigger, Gray Serpent obediently changed his words.
What's money? For our cause, research expenditure is necessary and has nothing to do with threats.
Then Jackal put down the RPG and said with a bright smile:
"Hey, isn't this Gray Serpent? Why did you come to see me before dawn? Is there something wrong?"
"You are really good at changing your face...Okay, okay, I won't say anything, just put down the rocket launcher."
"For the sake of the budget, I won't bother with you for now. Knock on the door first next time. Tell me, what's the situation? Didn't Lord Shamash run out of energy and disappear?"
"I don't know what the situation is. Anyway, he sent me coordinates. We have to pick him up," Gray Serpent said seriously.