Lucas Reeve's reason for choosing Mudrock's squad was simple.
They were all Infected, so they would integrate more easily into the Reunion Movement in the future, avoiding conflicts between the Infected and non-Infected. Secondly, they were all Sarkaz mercenaries, and the strength of Sarkaz mercenaries is generally much greater than that of ordinary soldiers.
Though it seemed like just over a hundred people, in reality, with Mudrock included, they could go head-to-head with a 300-strong ordinary military unit as long as they weren't completely outmatched in equipment.
Right now, the Reunion Movement was in dire need of people. If they truly wanted to step out of the shadows, they had to strengthen themselves.
The third and most important point was that among these hundred-plus people, there were no truly evil individuals.
Lucas Reeve's spiritual sight was practically a human lie detector. He could easily distinguish whether a person was good or evil. Expressions could deceive, looks could deceive, but the soul could not.
Faced with Alina's persuasion.
Mudrock sat on the stool without speaking.
Her back was ramrod straight, her chest proud, her curves exquisite. Her snow-white hair cascaded over her shoulders like a waterfall, and her crimson, flame-like eyes were filled with indecision.
She didn't like being attached to any power.
If this were the Mudrock who had just left Kazdel, she would have refused Talulah's suggestion without a second thought. After all, over a year ago, she was young and spirited, believing she could lead everyone to a place where they could live peacefully and happily on her own.
But...
After more than a year of suppression from the world.
The original three hundred-plus people had dwindled to just over a hundred.
For over a year, Mudrock had witnessed the sacrifice of too many comrades. Some died in Catastrophes, some died at the hands of monsters in the wilderness, some died at the hands of fellow humans, and many died from Oripathy and hunger.
Gradually.
Mudrock had grown numb.
She had also begun to doubt herself, to doubt whether she could be a qualified captain.
Even.
Today, upon arriving at the Reunion camp, sitting by the warm stove, drinking a bowl of steaming fresh vegetable congee instead of chewing on hard, nutritionless bread or compressed biscuits—at that moment, her heart had actually wavered slightly. Why was it that as a fellow wandering squad of the Infected, they could live so comfortably, even having their own settlement, while she had been leading her comrades to flee everywhere, never even getting enough to eat?
Although she had directly refused Talulah's words.
In reality, Mudrock had no confidence at all.
Lucas Reeve said nothing, just watched from the side. Surtr sat in a corner with Lucas Reeve, also watching. She leaned forward, slightly bored, her fair legs crossed, her elbow resting on her thigh and her palm cupping her cheek, her purple eyes blinking.
For some reason, she suddenly liked to use her own eyes to see everything before her, to record everything.
After Lucas Reeve used his power yesterday to envelop her previous memory fragments so that her current memories would no longer be lost, Surtr began to enjoy being an observer, using her own eyes to record all the beautiful, sad, or serious moments she had once missed.
Talulah continued her persuasion.
"Miss Mudrock, I'm sure you're aware of how difficult it is for the Infected to live in this land. Only by banding together can we have a better chance at life. We are not short on food right now, and as for Oripathy, thanks to Mr. Reeve, we receive monthly shipments of Oripathy suppression medication from Columbia. This medication is not yet on the market; we have an internal supply channel."
Though Talulah was a bit simple-minded, she was by no means a poor speaker.
Her analysis was sound and logical, like a top-tier salesperson.
"Oripathy suppression medication?"
Mudrock was a bit too embarrassed to speak. She held it in for a few seconds before finally forcing out a sentence, looking a bit cute.
"Excuse me... if you don't mind, could you show me the medication? I've never seen such a thing... I'm a bit skeptical...."
"No problem."
Talulah agreed decisively, as if she had been prepared. She took out the pre-prepared Oripathy suppression medication from her pocket. It was a small syringe filled with a swaying, emerald-green liquid. Talulah pushed the syringe in front of Mudrock and said.
"Miss Mudrock, this one is for you. If someone in your team has an Oripathy outbreak in the future, you can try its effects. Although it can't guarantee 100% suppression, it can increase the survival rate during an outbreak."
"Thank you..."
Seeing Talulah so certain, Mudrock thanked her half-believingly and put the syringe away.
"Don't be in a hurry to refuse, Miss Mudrock."
Alina said gently from the side, "You and your squad can stay with us for a while. Think it over first, get a feel for the atmosphere of our Reunion Movement. Besides, we don't want you to join us. As Talu said, if you want to join, it will be a cooperative relationship. For example, you work for us, run errands for us, and we will provide you with the supplies you need. We will not interfere in any of your team's affairs."
The terms offered were extremely generous.
Honestly, the condition of being able to eat one's fill was enough to make many other Infected squads pledge their lives to the Reunion Movement, not to mention providing shelter and the most precious Oripathy suppression medication. This medication might be worthless to ordinary people, but to the Infected, it was more precious than anything in the world. It was equivalent to life, a priceless treasure.
In fact.
By the time Mudrock walked out of the meeting hall, she was already very tempted. And when she saw her Sarkaz mercenaries getting along with the other Reunion members outside, Mudrock bit her lip slightly, a faint glimmer flashing in the depths of her crimson eyes. She put the medication away and decided to stay and observe for a few more days.
So things like pride were worthless in the face of a full stomach and Oripathy medication.
"By the way, will Miss Mudrock join?"
FrostNova asked from the side.
"She will."
Alina was very certain.
"My feelings have never been wrong."
Then....
Talulah and Alina turned their heads, shifting their gaze to Surtr, who was sitting in the corner watching the show.
Surtr paused, raised her head, and replied very coolly.
"Not interested."
"....."
Everyone was speechless. Although they knew from Lucas Reeve that Surtr was the slow-to-warm-up, slightly introverted type—cold on the surface but warm on the inside—she was just too good at killing conversations.
Since it had been a while since Lucas Reeve had last visited the Reunion Movement.
Both Alina and FrostNova missed him dearly.
Although the current Lucas Reeve had turned into a sword and a flame monster, it didn't matter. To them, even if Lucas Reeve turned into a slime, they could hold him in their arms all day.
However.
Since Surtr would never give her sword to anyone else.
Therefore.
When Alina and FrostNova were chatting with Lucas Reeve, she was by their side the whole time, not saying a word, being a silent, story-listening tool.
Lucas Reeve told Alina and FrostNova about the situation in Columbia and Siracusa.
Surtr, on the contrary, listened with great interest.
Although she had once traveled to many places alone with her sword, due to her memory issues, her past memories would gradually fade and be forgotten. She couldn't even be sure where she had been half a year ago, what she had done, or who she had met. For her, every place was new.
Lucas Reeve wouldn't stay in the Reunion Movement forever. He was currently inside Laevatainn, and his destination was not up to him; he could only follow Surtr's arrangements. Originally, Lucas Reeve thought Surtr would leave immediately, but unexpectedly, she stayed in the Reunion camp for a full five days.
During these five days, Alina and FrostNova would come to chat with Lucas Reeve every day. And while Lucas Reeve talked, Surtr would listen quietly by the side. She didn't like to talk, but she liked being a listener. And... every day, someone would bring food to her, so she didn't have to go out and forage for herself. This kind of life was indeed very comfortable...
And after five days of consideration.
Mudrock finally made up her mind and chose to ally with the Reunion Movement.
The Reunion Movement would provide all necessary supplies, and Mudrock's squad would have to fight for the Reunion Movement.
Finally, they had a stable place to live.
The Sarkaz mercenaries of Mudrock's squad were overjoyed. The moment the news was announced, many had already slipped off to the nearby woods to chop down trees, preparing to build wooden houses in a pre-selected spot.
After staying in the Reunion Movement for a few days, Surtr had taken in everything and was ready to leave and continue her journey to find her past memories. Lucas Reeve didn't stop her or force her to stay in the Reunion Movement for a few months. Since he couldn't forge anything right now and was idle anyway, he might as well travel this land of Terra with Surtr.
Alina and the others were reluctant to see him go, but they didn't try too hard to keep him.
They knew that Lucas Reeve had already helped the Reunion Movement a great deal. The Reunion Movement now needed to rely on everyone to create its future, not completely on Lucas Reeve.
Before leaving.
Alina thoughtfully prepared a bag for Surtr, filled with all sorts of dry rations that could last a long time.
And this time.
Surtr didn't coldly refuse. Instead, just before parting, she seemed to use all her strength to force out a 'thank you' from her mouth. The voice was very, very quiet, even quieter than the buzzing of a mosquito, but Alina still heard it and waved goodbye to Lucas Reeve and Surtr.
The person and the soul left the Reunion Movement, their figures shrinking into the distance in the vast, snowy landscape.
"Where are you planning to go next? Surt..."
After spending a few days together, Surtr's name was really a bit of a mouthful. Fortunately, Lucas Reeve decided to just call her Surt. It was much simpler, and the girl didn't object anyway.
"Don't know..."
Surtr rarely spoke.
"Where do you want to go?"
"Don't know."
"..."
"What do you want to do most right now??"
"Eat ice cream."
Lucas Reeve: "???"
He sighed and said, "Fine, let's go to a city. Have you been to Lungmen?"
Surtr replied in her usual flat, cold tone: "No."
"Alright, let's go to Lungmen. I looked at your memory fragments earlier. One of them seems to be near Lungmen. Let's head over."
"Mm."
"Can you say two words?"
"Mm-hm."
······
Lungmen
Uptown
The sweet and lovely Miss Sora was currently sitting in an internet-famous ice cream shop in uptown Lungmen, listlessly digging into the incredibly lavish-looking ice cream in front of her. However, she ate with a sigh.
"Sigh...."
"It's been over half a year, and Jessica-chan hasn't come to Lungmen to hang out with me even once...."
Ever since parting with Jessica half a year ago, Sora had been thinking about her quite a bit. For some reason, she longed to see Jessica again. However, apart from chatting online, they hadn't met in person much. She also learned from Jessica about her recent changes—starting her own company and becoming a boss, which made Sora very envious.
She envied Jessica's competence and strength. Why was she so soft.... Mmm~
Moreover, ever since Jessica became a boss, she rarely had time to chat with her, as her work seemed to be getting busier.
"By the way, Sora, are you sure you're not cold... eating this in the middle of winter?"
Sitting opposite Sora, Texas had a Pocky stick dangling from her lips as she leaned back in her seat. She was wearing a thick overcoat, which made her look very mature.
"Texas, as an idol, I don't get cold, you know."
After speaking, Sora scooped another large spoonful of ice cream into her mouth, which made Texas feel a little cold just watching.
"Er...."
Texas lowered her head, glanced at Sora's bare legs under her short skirt, and then at the falling snow outside.
"I can see that..."
Meanwhile, the red-haired Sankta angel girl next to them patted Texas's shoulder and said with a grin.
"We're young people, what's wrong with eating a little ice cream in the middle of winter? You're so lame, lil' Tex."
"And that's why you had diarrhea yesterday..."
"..."
"Sigh... I wonder when Jessica will come to Lungmen again.."
Sora sighed again, "She clearly said she'd come play as soon as she had time. That 'soon' has turned into several months."
Exusiai took a big bite, her mouth full with the spoon, and said indistinctly, "We could go to Columbia."
"But..."
Sora looked troubled.
"My manager... probably wouldn't allow it. My schedule is packed with activities recently. I only came out for ice cream today secretly..."
Just then, the gazes of the other people in the shop all turned towards a corner, and there were even gasps of surprise.
The girls from Penguin Logistics also heard the commotion and stood up in confusion. Then, in the next second, the three of them froze on the spot.
At a single table in the corner.
Sat a very beautiful red-haired girl. On the table opposite her was a huge red greatsword, and on that single table were many large bowls of ice cream. Several of the bowls were already empty, and the girl didn't seem to be done yet, continuing to demolish the 'jumbo' ice cream before her at an extremely fast pace.
Many onlookers were already getting headaches or stomachaches from the cold just watching.
Some were even discussing.
A competitive eater?
Is she an internet celebrity?
The girl finished all the ice cream at a rapid pace, finally giving a one-word evaluation.
"Decent..."
However, as she was about to get up and leave, a staff member stopped her.
"Um, miss, you haven't paid your bill yet. The total is 800 Lungmen Dollars..."
The red-haired girl froze for a few seconds, then, with a 'condescending' posture, said 'coldly.'
"I... have no money.."