Chapter 27

While Orlan arranged the follow-up matters, the MADS ship also had people planning something new.

"Shulololo, did you two fall into some native hunters' traps? Why do you look so pathetic?"

Having been chased by Blitz for most of the day, Judge and Queen finally made it back, only to be greeted by a mocking voice.

A man with an oily black mushroom haircut, a flat nose, and horns sprouting from his head was taunting them.

Caesar Clown, another member of MADS and currently the moral bottom line of the group—or more precisely, he had no bottom line.

Of course, when it comes to narcissism, he was no less than the others. Like Queen and Judge, Caesar believed he was superior to Vegapunk and looked down on everyone else.

Seeing Queen and Judge in such a sorry state only made him happier. But this time, Queen and Judge didn't attack him; instead, they both snorted coldly.

"You idiot, you've been inside all day and don't know what happened, do you?"

"Vegapunk personally invited another person to join. Our funds are about to be cut."

Queen and Judge took turns sharing their information, successfully making Caesar another frustrated member. However, upon hearing about Vegapunk's bet, Caesar became excited instead.

"So it's a contest of results? Shulololo, teaming up might actually be a good idea."

No researcher ever felt they had too much funding, and Caesar was the most extravagant in his lifestyle.

A large portion of his funding never went towards proper research. In the original timeline, he even scammed BIG MOM's funds and spent them lavishly.

Though he hadn't reached that point yet, the signs were there.

However, their collaboration didn't go as smoothly as one might think.

"Muhahaha, great, let me lead you to victory then!"

"Wait a minute, Queen, why should you lead? That thing is a robot; your research is useless. Clearly, I should lead."

"Shulololo, Judge, didn't both you and Queen lose? That means you're both useless. So I should lead."

They might be teaming up, but none of them was willing to yield. After a moment of exchanged glares, they began infighting.

Vegapunk watched their quarrel from a distance without intervening. He was used to such events.

Occasional infighting didn't help his research much. At this point, Vegapunk was hoping to find someone more capable to aid his research.

The MADS members each had their own research focus. Currently, Caesar's research was centered on Devil Fruits, Queen's on chemical viruses, and Judge's on weapon development.

Their common ground was their desire to apply their inventions as weapons, which slightly conflicted with Vegapunk's philosophy.

From Blitz's behavior, Vegapunk saw more possibilities, which gave him high expectations for Orlan.

The next day, after an entire night of fighting to a draw, Queen, Judge, and Caesar ended up in a state of mutual exhaustion, lying flat in defeat.

At the appointed time, Orlan arrived with Kate and Blitz. Ginny and Bear wanted to join but were assigned other tasks by Orlan.

Shortly after boarding, they met the prepared medical team.

"Mr. Cidriel, we're ready and can assist you with the surgery anytime."

Orlan would be the only one performing the surgery. The others were there to pass tools and wipe sweat. To be safe, Orlan even took on the role of anesthesiologist, needing only the venue and equipment.

Nodding to the nurses and doctors, Orlan turned to the worried Kate.

"Relax, just sleep. In a few hours, you'll have a healthy body. I promise."

"I trust you."

Orlan and Kate donned surgical gowns, while Blitz stood guard outside the door. The surgery room's light turned on, and Vegapunk set aside his research to observe Blitz's structure.

"Cidriel created you, right?"

"Yes, Master gave me everything."

"Are you here to guard this place on his orders?"

"Yes, and no. Blitz came of his own will. Kate is a friend. Blitz is very concerned about her."

The cold mechanical voice carried no emotion, but it struck Vegapunk deeply.

"A genius concept."

It wasn't a preset response but a behavior derived from its own logic. Of all the robots he had seen, Vegapunk had never encountered one so human-like as Blitz.

And from Orlan's words, it seemed Blitz had room for improvement, yet to reach its highest potential.

Vegapunk said no more and waited. Soon, the surgery room light went off, and a nurse emerged first.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

"Director Vegapunk? No problem. Everything went smoothly, perhaps too smoothly."

Du Feld's connections mainly lay in the underworld. One might question the morality of the doctors and nurses he hired but not their skills. In the underworld, quacks would get themselves killed.

These nurses had seen big cases but never such a swift transplant surgery. From the moment Orlan began, he seemed to transform into a precision machine, cutting without hesitation or deviation, completing the transplant in less than a fifth of the usual time. He even took a few extra minutes to make the stitches look better.

But what happened next was even more remarkable. After all assistants had left the surgery, Orlan stayed behind for several more minutes.

Then, Vegapunk saw someone who had just undergone open-heart surgery walk out of the room unaided.

"What's going on? Where's the stretcher? Get back in bed! Who allowed you to move?"

"Calm down, Director Vegapunk. Kate is my responsibility. I'm more concerned about her than you are. If she can walk out, it's because she's perfectly fine."

The Hextech heart naturally enhanced the body's recovery ability.

Combined with the Mink Tribe's natural healing and some special healing properties, it achieved this result, challenging Vegapunk's preconceived notions.

(End of Chapter)