As soon as Jonathan heard that they could enter, he quickly adjusted his attire and then gave a stern look at the young man behind him, Summer Cold, signaling that he should adhere to the rules and not overstep.
Then, Jonathan pushed open the door and led Summer Cold into the General Manager's office.
The moment they stepped in, they were greeted by a refreshing scent of air purifier, enveloping both of them.
Cleanliness and tidiness were the only words Summer Cold could use to describe this office.
The spacious office, nearly a thousand square feet, contained almost no decorations except for a central mahogany desk, a boss's chair, and a genuine leather sofa in front of the desk. The entire large office felt vast and empty, yet refreshing and uplifting.
Of course, there was also the General Manager, Patrick, who had always made Jonathan feel uneasy.
Patrick appeared to be an ordinary person with an unremarkable but slightly refined appearance. He had a neatly trimmed short haircut, exceptionally fair skin, a pair of black-framed glasses perched on a high bridge of his nose, and wore a spotless white shirt.
Overall, he gave off the impression of a well-groomed, energetic white-collar worker from the old era, and looked quite young, probably in his late twenties.
When Patrick looked up and saw the two people at the door, his attention was immediately drawn to Summer Cold behind the butler. The young man's skin was even whiter and more flawless than his own, almost perfect!
This first impression made Patrick feel favorably towards Summer Cold, this clean young man.
In fact, even Summer Cold, who rarely looked in the mirror, was unaware that since merging with the Blacklight Virus, his originally sun-darkened skin had been "purified" by the virus, resulting in skin smoother and fairer than women from the old era, without a single spot.
However, when Summer Cold looked at Patrick, his subconscious first considered how the taste of absorbing this man would be.
Patrick was an intellectually enhanced sage whose physical condition was no different from other ordinary people, so he did not have the overpowering and violent aura typical of strength-type Baptized.
Yet Summer Cold could still sense a subtle special aura about him, though it was relatively mild and hard to discern in detail.
"Mr. Patrick, this is the second-tier apocalypse hunter named Summer Cold. He claims to have discovered clues about a new type of mutated creature," Jonathan introduced the young man succinctly, without any unnecessary flattery.
Jonathan knew that Patrick disliked wasting time on meaningless pleasantries.
"Hmm, I see. You can wait outside for now, I'd like to talk to him alone, but don't go too far," Patrick responded coolly, signaling Jonathan to wait at the door. The implication of "don't go too far" was clear—if the information turned out to be false, Jonathan might end up in trouble too.
"Yes…" Jonathan involuntarily shuddered at these words, knowing that this was a high-risk job.
Once Jonathan left the office, only the two of them remained in the spacious room.
"Are you really the wilderness merchant you claim to be? Your skin doesn't seem to fit that description," Patrick casually inquired, gesturing for Summer Cold to sit on the sofa. If the young man had not appeared so clean, Patrick would not have invited him to sit on his sofa.
Summer Cold did not hesitate, sitting down on the sofa and calmly replied, "Because I am just a merchant. Aside from needing this ticket to enter your fortress, I rarely go hunting in the wild. Less exposure to sunlight has led to this."
Patrick took in the casual response and, given his own nature, did not pursue the matter further. Instead, he got straight to the point, "So, what new type of mutated creature have you discovered? Is it a rabbit with ears on its back, or a snake with legs?"
Previously, many dreamers had come to him with so-called new discoveries of mutated creatures, but all of them turned out to be animals that had merely undergone deformities from the black rain, like having an extra leg or an extra eye, with no significant differences from registered mutated creatures.
Such deceptions had made Patrick increasingly frustrated, leading him to establish a strict punishment—if the discovery was false, the deceiver would be thrown into the furnace with their "new creature" for power generation.
Consequently, those who tried to deceive him became rare, as their own lives were more important.
"I know that there is a Lich King in a certain area of the commercial street. All the living dead in that street follow its commands. I believe you might be interested," Summer Cold said, unaffected by the apparent threat behind Patrick's casual tone, and spoke calmly.
However, this revelation unsettled Patrick.
He was well acquainted with the ferocious monsters born from human mutations, and his company had captured and studied many of them. However, they had not found anything of value in them.
"A Lich King? You mean a leader among those walking corpses?? Haha, have these brute creatures developed a societal hierarchy? Do you have any evidence? And can you really penetrate to the center of the Deadman's Street alone?"
Patrick laughed, considering the idea of zombies developing societal structures absurd. His previous research showed that zombies lacked self-awareness and only engaged in brutal attacks to satisfy their hunger.
"No evidence, but I can personally take you to verify it. If it turns out to be false, I won't mind facing any punishment from your subordinates," Summer Cold replied with an expressionless face.
"Oh? So confident? Do you think being a young second-tier Baptized will make me reluctant to kill you?"
Patrick supported his chin with his hand and fixed his sharp gaze on Summer Cold's eyes, trying to detect any anomalies or signs of fear.
Yet, there was none. Summer Cold's eyes were as calm as a tranquil lake, with no visible fluctuations, making it impossible for Patrick, whose mental acuity was far superior to ordinary people, to find any flaw.
"Why does this guy's eyes give me an inhuman feeling…"
As a sage, Patrick's eyes were like a highly precise lie detector, capable of detecting any subtle changes or emotions in the other's gaze. If someone was lying in front of him, he would definitely notice.
But this man's eyes were so calm they seemed inhuman. Although Baptized individuals had begun to diverge from humanity…
"Alright, if those living dead have indeed evolved social behavior, it could provide great research value for our company, especially if there really is a Lich King."
Patrick pondered for a moment. A Lich King…
If it truly existed and could be captured, it might reveal secrets about commanding other zombies. After all, nearly 90% of the global human population had turned into such monsters.
If his company could control this vast number of zombies, the entire wasteland world's layout could undergo a dramatic transformation!