Chapter 64: Failed Seduction

If Laura Lang thought she could seduce me, she was sadly deluded.

She showed up again, trying to stalk me. Normally, guys would find a beautiful girl stalking them romantic or some nonsense like that, but I only felt crept out. I didn't know what she was trying to pull. Oh, wait. I did know.

Laura Lang was trying to assassinate me. Of course.

Obviously, I wasn't going to make it easy for her. Fortunately, Laura wasn't allowed into my current workplace. As beautiful as she was, she couldn't get past the security in the naval shipyard where my company was currently building Bulwark shield boats and battleships. The next step of my plan was to build fully shielded battleships that could both generate their own shields while putting out an incredible amount of firepower.

However, we needed to conceive a working plasma reactor that could produce the necessary amounts of power, which ran into teravolts. Okay, that was an exaggeration, we probably didn't need that much power, not unless I was planning to destroy the world or something. But yeah, I was also designing plasma railguns and triple barrel gauss cannon turrets that could easily overload the shields. I wasn't naïve enough to think that the enemy wouldn't come up with their own shield generator technology soon, and I was preparing for that eventuality.

Energy shields might be incredibly durable, but they weren't invincible. Launch enough firepower and they would collapse. I was sure of it. The gauss cannon turrets also served as long-range artillery, allowing the battleship to bombard enemy installations and inland targets from the shore. Even heavily shielded bases would eventually go down from a relentless bombardment from the new battleships I was designing.

I also included anti-air turrets because carriers were currently the king of naval fleets, and a well-timed bombing run from high-speed aircraft would easily sink even the largest and most durable battleships. The energy shields would mitigate that, but as I said, they weren't invincible. Drop enough bombs and the shields would be overloaded, collapsing almost immediately.

Of course, if the battleship was capable of throwing enough flak into the air, they could take out the bombers before they dropped their payloads. On the other hand, the aircrafts were usually too nimble and fast for the battleships' anti-air turrets to hit. Well, it would all depend on the gunners' skills, which would be complemented by targeting artificial intelligence.

Whatever the case, I had big plans for the navy. If everything went according to plan, I would be able to ensure that Country A or whatever superpower wouldn't be able to threaten us navally again. We would have unprecedented naval superiority.

Then I could move on…

Well, the issue now was that Laura Lang tried to loiter outside the naval shipyard, only to be chased away by the security guards. She tried to seduce them, but command was wise to her actions and dispatched female guards to kick her out of the premises. In fact, they wanted to arrest her – I had provided the information to the military and they wanted to apprehend her on charges of assassination or attempted murder, but she seemed to have realized it and fled before they could arrest them.

"You didn't catch her?" I asked Lieutenant-commander Connor Chen, who was responsible for the security in the naval shipyard.

"No, unfortunately. She beat up the security and fled before the reinforcements could arrive. Thankfully, she failed to kill anyone. Their armor stopped the bullets she planted into their chests." Connor grimaced. "We did suspect that she was carrying a gun, but…thankfully it was a ballistic projectile based gun and not a laser weapon, or it would have sliced though their body armor."

"Phew." I didn't want anyone to die, except for my enemies. "At least no one lost their lives. Are they badly hurt?"

"A few bruises and broken ribs from the impact of the bullets, but they will live. Doc says they'll be out in a few weeks."

That was a relief.

"I'll keep an eye out for her. We won't let her get away!" I clenched my fists and vowed. Connor simply shook his head.

"Don't do anything dangerous," he told me. "Leave her to the military. We'll catch her and interrogate her. Or kill her if we have to. We won't let her put you in any danger. We'll eliminate whatever threats to you by whatever means necessary."

"Uh…thanks?"

I wasn't sure I liked the sound of that, but whatever.

After work, I left the naval shipyard to visit the bureau of exorcists, or the Daoist Alliance. I wasn't sure why they gave me two different names, but they were obviously the same organization. Lam Ching Ying had requested that I sell the proton packs to them so that they could perform exorcisms more efficiently. Since I wasn't very interested in ghostbusting, I decided to leave the proton packs in the hands of people who specialized in it. I had more important projects to occupy my time with.

"Thank you very much!"

A bunch of yellowed-robed Daoist were bowing their heads gratefully after I passed the proton packs to their apprentices.

"I have the patent, but I'll commission a few factories to produce them," I assured them. "So you don't have to come directly to me. You can approach them and get the proton packs from them. I'm sure we'll be able to arrange something."

"Thank you! We will handle it. We really appreciate you selling these to us."

"Not at all." I tried not to yawn. I couldn't help it. I was exhausted. I had been up and working since the wee hours of the morning. "If possible, I'll do a few more improvements. But I don't know if I have the time for that. I still have to build a few battleships."

Then, after helping the navy, I planned to do something even bigger. I didn't know how, but I wanted to expand my industry beyond the military and toward the next frontier.

Toward space, if possible.

But that was something I would worry about later. For now, I needed to help my country get over the current crisis.

Bidding the Daoist alliance or association farewell, I then returned home. Of course, I was under the guard of two Special Forces dudes that the military assigned as my bodyguards. Colonel Carl Chan and General Gary Goh had enough of the assassination attempts on my life – especially at home – and they assigned me bodyguards. I made sure to reserve a few rooms for them and treated them as permanent roommates.

At least I wouldn't feel so lonely. It was kind of sad whenever the house was empty, with only me living in it. With the bodyguards around, if I felt bored or lonely, I could at least talk to them. Not that they made good conversationalists, but they made me feel that I wasn't on my own.

"You guys can rest," I told them after I reached home. One of them was Brad Biao, and the other was Alan Shou. They shook their heads, directly disobeying an order from me.

"Sorry, sir, but it's our job to ensure your security."

"And how will you be able to do your job properly if you don't have enough sleep or rest? Even a machine burns itself out if you leave it running on for too long."

Both guards exchanged a glance.

"Well, first, let us check out the house to make sure there aren't intruders."

"We will conduct a patrol and then check the surveillance cameras. If there's nothing amiss, we will then stay in the room. If anything happens, please do not hesitate to call for us."

"Understood." I sighed and waved them away. They were so uptight. I understood that they were doing their job, but gosh, they should learn to relax. They weren't going to last long at this rate. I was worried about them burning themselves out.

Watching the two bodyguards leave to conduct a search of the premises, I then returned to my room. The door automatically opened and I strode in. without even reaching for the switch, the lights automatically came on.

I raised my eyebrow when I caught sight of the lithe figure waiting for me on my bed.

"I've been waiting for you," Laura Lang said, stretched atop my mattress. She wasn't exactly naked, but she wasn't wearing much either. A skimpy gown with almost transparent fabric that clung to her curves and revealed much of her body.

Yeah, she was here to seduce me.

"Uh…"

"Come here," she said, raising her hand to beckon me over. "And get rid of your clothes while at it."

She was already undressing, shrugging out of her gown to reveal her bare shoulders. She clearly wasn't wearing a bra, and I could see a hint of her cleavage as she allowed the fabric to slip down her breasts.

Of course, I couldn't be bothered to wait.

Pretending to take off my jacket, I gripped my plasma pistol and fired immediately. Laura's eyes widened for a moment and she sprang out of my bed…only to be obliterated by the superheated blast of matter.

Even with her lightning reflexes, she wasn't able to move. Not from that sort of posture. She sought to seduce me, but that proved to be her undoing.

Lowering my plasma pistol, I studied the smoking mess that was all that remained of her, as well as my ruined bed.

"Sir! Are you all right?!"

"What happened?!"

Brad Biao and Alan Shou rushed into my room, having heard the discharge of my plasma pistol. They both froze when they saw the remains of my victim.

"The assassin was here," I replied with a shrug. I tried not to give the impression that they were late to the party. They were still useful – any follow-up assassination attempts would be thwarted by them. Plus I could leave the cleanup to them. "But I eliminated her."

The both of them glanced at each other before they called for the cleanup crew and everything. As for me, I groped for my smartphone and began ordering a new bed.