Surgery & Surface World

Tracy, who was walking alone in a narrow dark path lit only by neon lights at the corners to indicate the direction to walk in.

It is the entryway towards the Wandenreich's most secretive branch, the Intelligence Bureau. Tracy was notified yesterday by one of their members that his presence is required for the last phase of the experiment.

"I know I personally designed this hallway, but how long do I have to walk down it again? It's taking me forever."

This lengthy and dark hallway was created for security measures that even him the Emperor had to take whenever he decided to visit. Because the intelligence bureau and the Research Institute are situated here, this level of security is required to ensure complete secrecy and prevent theft or espionage.

Tracy eventually reached the end of the hallway after a few more minutes of walking. In front of him was a massive pitch-black monolith with the Wandenreich insignia etched on it. Tracy stood in front of it, reaching out his hand to touch the stone.

Pouring forth his reiatsu The monolith vibrated momentarily, and the insignia shone briefly before ceasing. Then, from the stone, a mechanical voice was heard.

[Access granted. It's great to see you again, Your Majesty.]

"Likewise, Opera, it's great to see you again. Now, please take me to the main lab."

Tracy spoke softly as he stroked the stone. If this stone had a face, It'd be blushing at what he's doing.

[Granted.]

Tracy, who was standing still, was engulfed by the shadow that came from the floor before vanishing.

Opera is the name of the most powerful lighthouse ever built by the research institute as of today. Unfortunately, she is still incomplete, and no matter how hard we try, we are unable to determine what is she lacking. Maybe when we get to the surface world, we'll find the answer.

Even if she is still incomplete, she is one of the most important part of the intelligence bureau. It may not be too far-fetched to refer her as God's eye. She has the entire Wandenreich in her "palms" right now. She can see and analyze every single action of each and every individual within the empire without much difficulties.

Though, for the time being, the only thing she could do is observe as well as having a fixed intellect. Nothing more, nothing less.

[You've arrived at your destination, Central Laboratory. Please have a pleasant stay here, your Majesty.]

"Thanks."

Tracy wasted no time in heading straight towards the glass door, which is the last thing he needs to pass through before finally arriving at the laboratory.

*Swoosh*

When I got close to the door, it automatically opened. Beyond this door is a simple, neat, and well-organized room. Normally, when "most" people think of laboratory facilities, they think of a room full of strewn paper with indiscernible formulas scribbled on it, untidy haired researchers, and a messy room.

Despite the fact that bodies are being dissected here, strangely, somehow it provides a sense of "freshness" to those who arrive.

"You're late."

The voice brought Tracy out of his thoughts. A woman in a lab coat exited one of the laboratory's rooms.

"At least I didn't oversleep this time."

Earlier in the morning, Tracy went again to the war room to personally bid the delegates godspeed, who would be leaving the Wandenreich for the first time in 300 years.

They'll be staying for around a week in the surface world. However, the assignment entrusted to them was simple and would take them no more than two days to complete. The one-week period was allotted to provide them means to explore and study more about the surroundings.

Like a Field trip.

"Whatever... In any case, you should come with me right now to the lab—

—On Test Subject No. 1, we need your aid, please. Formulating all conceivable outcomes in this project is already too much for Opera. And right now, we're in the midst of optimizing the Test subject. If she makes one wrong computation, the Test Subject could end up as a flop, or worse, the entire project could be scrapped."

The only solution to their current predicament is for Firenda to ask their Emperor, Tracy.

Tracy's ability, or rather his eyes, have the ability to see a multitude of possible futures. Of course, only a few select people are aware of this. With his assistance, we can help Opera alleviate its dilemma of calculating possible outcomes.

He's like a walking Supercomputer. 'The one who computes.'

His ability, however, does not come without risks. He spent his entire childhood trying to keep his brain from becoming fried anytime he opened his eyes. Imagine being inundated with an almost limitless number of future possibilities, all of which would kill ordinary folks if they were in his place.

Another thing is that his ability to influence the course of events, is limited to what he can see in his field of vision. If he can't see anything, he won't be able to change or cherry-pick the future he desires. No one except him knows if this is a defect or if he is unable to fully utilize his eyes at this moment.

*Beep* *Beep* *Beep*

Tracy and Firenda took a detour from their planned route to fetch Subject No.1 in her private chamber before heading to the laboratory. Right now, Firenda is tapping the door's passcode.

The door swung open. Inside, there was a tidy room with a few dolls and plush toys strewn around. It was a child's room.

"Where are you, Nana?"

In a lighthearted tone, Firenda called her name. We didn't see her when we walked in, so she could be hiding anywhere in the room.

One of the pristine white closets gently opened when her name was called, and a tanned skin young lady with hair bangs hanging on the left side of her face and a mole beneath her left eye appeared.

The child peered through the opening in the closet to see who had come to see her. As she stepped from the closet after recognizing who it was, a radiant smile erupted on her face.

"Mommy!"

The child dashed over to Firenda, who was crouching with her arms outstretched, beckoning the young lady to hug her.

"Baby~"

While they were embracing and doing their "reunion," the girl whose head was resting on Firenda's shoulder stared at me with her purple eyes. When Tracy looked at her, he could see the innocence in her eyes.

"Who are you, Mister?"

She asked. Despite having a close relationship with Firenda, she appeared to be unfamiliar with Tracy.

That was to be expected, given that Tracy had concealed his existence from her. It wasn't because he wanted to keep things hidden or anything; it was because he was horrible at dealing with children. During that time, when the law enforcement division took her from her abusive father. Tracy chose not to meet her since doing so would exacerbate her already deplorable situation.

"I'm Tracy, pleasure to meet you, Nana."

Tracy extended his hands, but not for a handshake since he thought it was too formal for a child; instead, he held a rabbit and turtle hair band as a present. It was created on the spot using highly concentrated reishi.

"What's that?" She asked, tilting her head sideways to further accentuate her curiosity.

But before Tracy could respond, he noticed Firenda with an amused expression, looking at him in the corner of her eyes. Like she's watching a nice show. 'What's wrong with her?'

Tracy ignored her and turned his focus to the curious young lady in front of him.

"A present."

"Why would you give me a present?"

Why?

Why you ask? Because—

Tracy was perplexed at this moment.

'Why would he bother with a present for her? First and foremost, we are not close and hardly know each other. I rarely give gifts, even to Satcha. Then why would I—'

Is it because of guilt?

Guilt?

As the one who agreed to let this project commence. Experimenting on fellow Quincy citizens, especially children because they are the most easily molded, he feels guilty because of that at some point. Even though Tracy was born in a world where killing is the norm, he still feels a twinge of conscience about it. Especially considering she is a Quincy and a child at that.

"Well, just think of it as a apology present."

"Mister, I'm not sure what you mean, but... okay."

She took the band from my hands and handed it to Firenda to help her in tying her hair.

Looking at her and the room she is currently residing in, she may be healthier and happier here because she is living in a better environment than she was with her parents, but it does not justify the experiments we conducted on her.

I may be an egoist, but I still feel emotions.

...

Tracy and Firenda proceeded to fetch Nana from her private chamber, and brought her to the laboratory where the final phase of the experimentation would take place.

Tracy, now dressed in a lab coat, was standing in front of a high-tech surgical bed where a child was sleeping in a patient gown.

"Are you all set now, Tracy?"

Looking around, there are many lighthouses floating about the room with numbers that fluctuate all the time. They represent the patient's current situation. Her heart rate, pulses, and other vital signs.

"You shouldn't be asking me, but instead them."

Tracy motioned for her to look behind her. When Firenda turned her head back, other personnel of the Research Institute were standing in their assigned positions. Nothing appears abnormal till a more detailed "inspection" is performed.

They're nervous.

It is natural to be nervous in this situation, especially since this will be a turning point for this project. It's either all or nothing. But they were nervous not because of that; they were nervous because their emperor is personally leading the project.

Tracy's heightened hearing allowed him to hear a number of whispers since entering the room. Some of the comments about him made him chuckle in his mind.

"Do you think His Majesty will kill us if we mess up?

"What do you mean, "us" ?! It's just you. Don't drag us into your gloomy thoughts."

"Will we be skinned alive and served as his Majesty's dinner?"

"Hey stop it! Seriously. His Majesty isn't that terrible."

"Being "eaten" by his majesty? It's not that bad~"

"You have a husband! What are you talking about?!"

"Hey, does his Majesty already has someone?"

"What if he does not have? What are you gonna do? Volunteer? You'd best stay where you're standing, lady. You mad ugly."

"What?!"

When Tracy heard those remarks, he remembered one of the quotes he had read in the library; "They say a thin line separates genius and madness."

'Fair enough.'

Anyway, back to the present, Firenda can't do much about their nervousness. Others, on the other hand, are nervously shaking for a "variety of reasons".

So she just ignored them and turned to face Tracy, reassuring him.

"You don't have to be concerned about them. Their battlefield is the laboratory. They're still joking around since the fight hasn't begun yet. But you'll later discover what kind of monsters they are in their own right."

Firenda winked as she walked to the opposite side of the surgical bed.

*Clap* *Clap*

After reaching opposite side of the bed. She clapped her hands to grab everyone's attention before making her announcement.

"Ok everyone, T-minus 5 minutes! I repeat, the surgery starts in 5 minutes!"

They began to scurry around, preparing every material they would require. Though they still had a playful smile on their faces, their eyes were gradually transforming into serious ones.

'They're quite enthusiastic.'

After 5 minutes, it was finally time. The atmosphere in the room turned 180 degrees real quick. Their gossiping came to a halt, their smile and nervous demeanor vanished. The ambiance in the room instantly became serious. Just by looking at them, one can tell how much experience they have in this sector.

Except for Firenda, this is an all-or-nothing situation for them because they have no idea how my ability works. They continue believing that this project has a 50/50 chance of success, but they are mistaken.

'The fact that I'm here, the success of this project is already guaranteed.'

Letting his thoughts to come to a halt. Tracy made the decision to "comfort" them. Tracy turned to face towards the researchers and smiled somewhat angelically before speaking.

"Have more confidence. After all, you are the finest researcher the Wandenreich has."

He finished it with an ok sign gesture with his palm, which made everyone smile a little, softening the tone in the room.

Firenda grabbed everyone's attention again after noticing that the mood had improved and everyone was ready.

"So, it appears that you guys are ready. Why don't we start now?" She turned to Tracy at the end of her sentence asking for confirmation.

He didn't answer right away, instead turning to face the young girl who was motionless on the bed. He mumbled as he grabbed for her hair and tucked it behind her ear.

"I'm sorry for doing this again, but please bear with it for a little longer. You will no longer be in suffering after this."

Tracy didn't bother glancing at Firenda, whose eyes sparkled as if she had seen something amusing, which somehow annoyed him.

"Let's start."

"Sure thing~"

...

Meanwhile, in the surface world, somewhere in the empire's southern extremities.

Four individuals can be seen standing on the cliff, seemingly observing something far below.

"Effective on everyone except Incursio, Lord Stylish" One of them spoke out; he was a bulky man with blonde hair.

They were looking in the northwest direction, where a group of people, who may have been sleeping soundly earlier because they were still dressed in pajamas, were surrounded by troops wearing masks.

They were falling to their knees one by one, gradually losing control of their bodies. Only one of them remained standing, and that was the man they were calling Incursio, a man dressed in full body armor.

"Secret weapon #1: My stylishly prepared paralyzing poison."

Suddenly, the tall and slim young man with black hair wearing a white lab coat remarked. He seems to be the leader of these men who appear to be instructing the masked troops to encircle the individuals who were wearing pajamas.

"Doesn't that mean that our allies are in trouble, too?"

"They've been given antidote."

"Seriously?! Amazing! Dr. Stylish!"

The remaining two people on the cliff to joined the conversation were a large-eared girl and a toned male wearing the same mask as the one below.

"I didn't want to use a new drugs on such go test subjects~"

Dr. stylish, the man in the lab coat, spun around and began swaying, flaunting his hair, and wriggling while muttering nonsense.

"That drugs are precious. They took me forever to ma—"

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Huh?

When he closed his eyes for a bit to "feel" the sorrow of using the poison on his test subjects. He heard repeated thuds across him, slowly opening his eyes out of curiosity only to find his three subordinates on the ground writhing.

'Who?'

Blood was gushing profusely from their lacerated necks.

He was perplexed as he looked at his "targets" below and saw that they were still there paralyzed, implying that they couldn't be the one who did this. Dr. Stylish staggered for a moment before recovering his composure.

"Who's there?!"

He shouted, calling out to whoever was in the woods. His hands gently crept inside of his lab coat, pulling his gloves from the pockets. It has the capacity to improve his hand speed and dexterity. He intended to cure them swiftly if given the opportunity, so that they would have a greater chance of fighting this unidentified intruder.

Rustle.

He was about to put on the gloves when he heard a rustle on his left side, which startled him and caused him to come to a halt.

"You! Who are yo—" His words are constantly being interrupted.

Then a figure of a man appeared beside him in the blink of an eye. It extended out his hand and strangled his throat into the air. The intruder's body is thin, yet he has remarkable strength to raise him with one hand.

The figure, whose face was obscured by the darkness caused by the environment, opened his mouth.

"Let's see... Gum no—,Condo— no no, Receipt no—. Oh here it is, Revolutionary army's notable members list!"

The figure rummaged in his pocket, discarding the superfluous stuff that his hands were constantly accumulating.

After he found what he's looking for, he peered into the paper with the lists of identities and the man he's strangling at the same time, comparing the faces in the paper.

"Hoo~ You're not one of them. But, what are you doing here?"

He let go of Dr. Stylish's throat, allowing him to slump to the ground like a ragdoll. After all, asking a question to someone who can't breathe would be ridiculous.

"Y—You! Who the fuck are you?!"

He shouted at him, visibly terrified and wheezing profusely. As a scientist, he naturally knows a lot about the human body. He is aware that this individual lacks imperial arms (Teigu), yet his unnatural strength and agility astonished him.

'How did this man manage to remain hidden from the empire all these time? They are fucking useless!'

"Hey, don't answer my question with a question. We won't be able to move forward at this rate."

The man stated nonchalantly while picking up the stuff he flung a while earlier.

"As if I'm going to tell you! Don't believe that just because you've been hidden till now that your family will be spared once they find out!"

Dr. Stylish was in a difficult situation, and the only thing he could do was escape and get reinforcement. He intended to "scare" this man by threatening his family, giving him enough time to escape.

"You're gonna kill them?"

After asking such question to the fallen Dr. Stylish. The moonlight shone down on the man, revealing his smiling face. Remaining cheerful despite the fact that he is standing in the presence of three dead bodies.

'Wha—'

Dr. Stylish felt a shiver run down his spine as he watched this. Even he or the other member of the special forces who has seen countless dead bodies can make such face. In the view of the general public, they may be insane. But in the presence of this smiling guy who is beyond saving, they were nothing more than ants.

Despite the fact that he is in a difficult situation, he cannot stop himself from asking.

How many?

How many lives did this man slaughter in order to become this way?

"It could be a good idea to bring them a present... Okay! I've decided to bring you back to Wandenreich~"

He couldn't even react when the man reappeared behind him at breakneck speed. The man raised his hands and struck him in the neck from behind, knocking him out.

"No! Wai—"

'Im fucked.' Those were Dr. Stylish last thought before passing out.

The man made no attempt to catch his falling body on the ground. He muttered as he looked at his watch.

"Osaragi should also be finished with her task."

He crouched down and grabbed the hair of the unconscious scientist on the ground before hauling him away.

Swoosh.

The wind was so strong at the cliff that the coat he was wearing, which had a huge Wandenreich insignia imbedded in it, flapped in the moonlight.

Nagumo glanced up into the sky and saw a flying manta ray with human-like figures on it. He sensed they were staring at him, which made him chuckle.

"Finally... Found you; The Revolutionary Army's most influential general, Najenda."