novelraw Chapter 92: Mission Settlement
Chapter 92: Mission Settlement
"Come on, let's go eat."
After a long silence, Fila spoke, her voice hoarse. Li Wei and Penny exchanged a glance and headed back inside. After a flavorless dinner, the monthly summary arrived on cue.
But for some reason, the words within this notification seemed to come alive. Before anyone could read them clearly, they dissolved into wisps of gray mist and slithered into the fireplace, transforming into an even larger cloud that instantly enveloped the entire room.
Then, from within the mist, a tall young woman with stunning features and an icy expression stepped out as though she owned the place.
She wore finely crafted leather armor and a cloak — its surface rippling with intricate, mysterious runes. The effect was deeply enigmatic.
All four of them were dumbstruck.
What was happening?
The woman walked straight to the dining table, sat down, and got right to the point. "Let me introduce myself. I am your future commanding officer — a four-star internal affairs officer serving under a great six-star Lord. My codename is Night Owl. I say 'future' because you haven't passed your evaluation yet."
"Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't appear in person to deliver your monthly summary. However, your rookie mission group had an additional title task inserted into it, which undeniably increased your difficulty. In the spirit of basic humanistic care, I'm here to explain things personally."
She pointed at Li Wei. "You — a minor office worker, late-stage cancer. In the real world, you had less than three months to live."Then at Fila. "You — an elementary school teacher, hit by a truck and rendered vegetative. You've been bedridden for three years. Your husband has disappeared. Your daughter and son-in-law were about to pull the plug."
Then at Penny. "You — a corporate executive, thirty million in debt from a failed investment. You were about to jump from the hundredth floor."
Finally, at Leon. "You — betrayed by your girlfriend, went on a drinking binge alone to drown your sorrows, then got into a hit-and-run. The police would have caught you within twenty-four hours."
"Is any one of you what you'd call normal?"
"Or does anyone here want to end the mission right now and return to the real world? In the spirit of humanistic care, you may take half your awakened attributes with you."
The four of them stared at each other. So they were all hard-luck cases — enough to form an Unlucky Losers' League.
But precisely because they were all hard-luck cases, who'd be stupid enough to go back?
Night Owl waited a moment, then smiled with faint satisfaction.
"No takers? Then listen carefully to what I'm about to say. We all serve that great six-star Lord. We work for him. And we must all demonstrate our value."
"That value lies in your ability to pioneer unknown worlds and conduct — let's call it — friendly, reasonable, technical extraction."
"Take note: we don't approve of crude extraction. That was the way of those old Godly Domains and Infinite Systems. That kind of brutal, scorched-earth pillaging only provokes desperate resistance and attracts unnecessary trouble — big trouble, the kind that sticks."
"Therefore, orderly, peaceful, healthy, technical extraction — sustainable, not draining the pond to catch every fish — that is our creed. This is also why we cultivate newcomers like you. Over the past year, you should have noticed: the monthly family main tasks, the logic constraints of the narrative, the fact that there are clearly more efficient ways to cut wood, farm, fish, and mine — yet you were required to do everything the primitive way, developing from scratch."
"Now that I've explained the general reasoning, let me address your future development. Actually, your group of newcomers has performed quite well among this cycle's ten rookie squads. That's precisely why the higher-ups assigned a title task to your group. Title tasks aren't easy to get, as you've seen firsthand. In the future, if you develop well enough, you too can apply for title tasks — just like Thomas the City Builder."
"In short, since I've now appeared in person and laid everything out, the remaining year or so of your mission is essentially an open-book exam."
"Therefore: first, mission difficulty will increase. You'll need to complete one settlement and then restart with a new mission. Second, the higher-ups will certainly assign more title tasks — more veterans coming in to muddy the waters. You'll have to match wits with seasoned players, and what makes it worse is they've got item cards. So my recommendation is: you might want to apply for early mission completion. Several departments are already drooling over you."
"In any case, the decision is yours. Of course, if you have questions, you may ask. Each person gets one question. Who's first?"
"Excuse me, ma'am — if we choose to end the mission now, what happens to the standard resources required for completion?" Fila asked first. She was clearly eager to finish immediately and end her suffering.
"Your Family Contribution and existing family assets will be settled and distributed evenly. The rate is one standard silver coin per Contribution point. So in practice, not only will you complete the mission successfully, you'll actually come out ahead. Next."
"Excuse me, ma'am — why don't the veterans just start a brand-new mission to complete their title tasks?" Leon asked.
"Because it takes too long, and their power levels are too high — they'd trigger a backlash from the mission world. Remember what I said earlier? The narrative logic has to be reasonable. Only when it's reasonable can you seamlessly integrate into the mission world. Take the City Builder title — having Thomas start from nothing and build a city in the middle of uninhabited mountains? What kind of lunacy would that be?"
"Your family had to struggle and develop to a certain point, creating enough reasonable groundwork before a title task could be inserted."
"And now that you're capable of upgrading to a Level 4 family camp, you can trigger even higher-tier title tasks. This, too, is consistent with narrative logic. Next."
"Hello, Officer. I'd like to ask — if we settle the mission now, what happens to us afterward?" Penny spoke up.
"Simple. It depends on your performance and future potential. Take you, for instance — you can already craft two-star weapons and equipment. You won't even need to choose; the Logistics Department will snatch you up. The compensation will be excellent. On the battlefield, warriors handle the front line while you stay in the rear. Of course, during this process, the Logistics Department will also design several missions tailored to your artisan profession. The rest is up to you."
"What you've experienced so far is only the beginning."
"And you, Fila — you're not bad either. The butcher-plus-chef combination is practically a golden pairing. The Medical Department will be fighting over you."
Good grief — those few sentences hit Li Wei and the others like a thunderbolt.
So one Contribution point equaled one standard silver coin? Then the 60 Contribution he'd spent impeaching Fila was enough to buy a two-star quality composite bow?
Thomas really was rotten to the core!
And another thing — this organization felt more like a giant corporation. What did "orderly, peaceful, technical, sustainable extraction" even mean?
Did putting the word "friendly" in front of "extraction" somehow make it not extraction?
"George, no questions from you?"
Night Owl turned to him.
Li Wei thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No. I'm good."
"Very well. Now make your decision. Do you want to stay and continue the mission, or settle it here? Oh — even if you choose to stay, a settlement is mandatory. So tell me your answers."
"I want to settle. I want to leave. Can I go back to reality?" Fila was the first to speak. Her emotions were visibly unstable — learning that her daughter was about to pull the plug had clearly shattered her composure.
"Of course you can go back. But only as an observer — you can't interfere with causality. You see, your original real-world identities are somewhat... abnormal. Appearing out of thin air would cause some minor complications. Of course, if you insist, it's not impossible — but in that case, you'd be voluntarily agreeing to have all your memories erased and return with half your awakened attributes. Don't worry — the All-Heavens Lord Alliance is the most devoted to humanistic care. We absolutely never say one thing and do another."
"I... I..."
Fila hesitated, suddenly at a loss. In reality, her daughter was about to pull the plug. Here, it was a freer but unknown world. Either choice was agonizing.
"Relax. After returning to headquarters, you'll all receive a full six months of leave. Room and board are free. However, if you want to consume one-star quality food or above, you'll need standard currency. During those six months, you can make your decision at any time."
"Now — tell me. Do you want to settle the mission?"
"Yes. I want to settle." Hearing she'd have six months to decide, Fila let out a breath of relief. She was exhausted. She needed time to think.
The next second, Night Owl snapped her fingers lightly. Gray mist surged forth instantly, condensing into an enormous translucent screen. Across its surface, scenes began flashing rapidly — every moment Fila had experienced since her arrival in this world.
Among them were images of Kakh City, back when Fila had still been dressed as a noblewoman.
For the first time, Li Wei got to see the man called Anson — their nominal father — looking refined and dignified in proper aristocratic attire. And there was Penny too, back when she'd looked every bit the noblewoman. But all of it had vanished with a single desperate flight.
In the end, everything distilled into lines of text — as if condensing Fila's entire life into a summary.