Lucian stared at the page with the same look as an old man riding the metro, squinting at his phone. "A pharmaceutical company? That sounds way too sketchy."
Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals—an organization claiming to fight for Infected rights and treat Oripathy. The moment you hear that, alarms start going off.
Everyone knows Oripathy is irreversible. Even if you can alleviate it, there's no cure. Once you're infected, you're basically doomed; sooner or later you die from it, and you can spread it to others before that.
Because of these facts, Infected are discriminated against and persecuted all over the world.
So when a so-called pharmaceutical company shows up claiming it can cure Oripathy and protect Infected rights… it really does sound like an extremist organization at first glance.
And recently, in the Ursus Empire's Chernobog, an incident caused by an Infected group had just made headlines.
Lucian sifted through his memory of the news and recalled the group's name.
"Exusiai, are you sure this Rhodes Island is a normal company? It's not another outfit like the Reunion Movement that caused trouble in Chernobog?"
Exusiai answered calmly. "I feel like it should be different. I mean, I've never seen the Reunion Movement, though."
Since Infected are oppressed everywhere, rebellions and extremist organizations are bound to form. The Reunion Movement exposed in the news was just one of many.
Apparently, they'd been around for years, causing incidents inside the Ursus Empire.
They didn't have much notoriety before, but the disturbance in Chernobog got big enough that foreign media finally picked it up.
So Lucian wasn't exactly wrong for lumping the two together.
After all, in this world, plenty of bad people commit atrocities in the name of the Infected.
In all the years since Lucian and Exusiai left Laterano, they'd seen more than enough of that.
But this time, Exusiai actually sounded confident.
She grinned. "I think Rhodes Island is trustworthy! They let me board their Landship, and the food in the cafeteria is pretty good! The bunny girl leading them is super cute, and their members include both Infected and non-Infected. The vibe is really different. Well… except for a woman named Kal'tsit. She's super cold. Kinda like someone from the Notarial Hall. Terrifying."
"Ah, that type. I get it," Lucian said with a shiver of shared trauma.
That stiff, robotic, soul-freezing attitude was never pleasant.
But Exusiai's overall impression of Rhodes Island was surprisingly positive—something Lucian didn't expect.
Exusiai might look like a carefree airhead, but she's actually very perceptive. Earning her approval isn't easy.
Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals, huh… Lucian mulled it over.
Seeing his serious expression, Exusiai closed her eyes with a smile. "You can think about it. If they're really good people, maybe they can help you fulfill your wish. Then our great Holy Son will be able to show mercy to the world… Night."
Lucian let out a helpless laugh. "I told you to stop calling me Holy Son… Night."
Yesterday he'd fallen asleep on Texas's lap, and today Exusiai was sleeping on his. Was this karma?
Penguin Logistics temporarily accepted Rhodes Island's request.
The commission wasn't difficult—just acting as guides inside Lungmen. For Penguin Logistics, that was basically home turf.
Rhodes Island didn't mention how a Landship was supposed to dock or how Lungmen's officials would handle it, so Penguin Logistics didn't need to worry.
Besides, they weren't coming to Lungmen immediately.
According to Exusiai, Rhodes Island planned to head to Chernobog first.
They weren't just a pharmaceutical company—they also handled disturbances involving Infected. At their core, they were another Odd Jobs Office that took on whatever work came their way, just like Penguin Logistics.
They were probably going to Chernobog to deal with the trouble caused by the extremist Reunion Movement.
Even though Ursus Empire's official news claimed the riot had already been suppressed, both Lungmen media and foreign outlets suspected it wasn't that simple—everyone was waiting to see how Ursus would clean up the mess.
But none of that had much to do with Lucian, an upstanding civilian.
His daily life continued as usual—making desserts, selling soy milk, teasing Officer Ch'en a little, and delivering food to kids in the slums.
"Today's apple pie," Lucian announced. "Plenty for everyone, but it's really sweet. Remember to brush your teeth after."
"Waah! Big brother is the best!" Xiaoling cheered excitedly.
The sweet-tongued girl planted an equally sweet kiss on him, leaving Mr. Lucian quite pleased with himself.
Chernobog might've been in chaos, but Lungmen carried on like always.
However, something seemed different in the slums.
When Lucian and Xiaoling entered the Great Courtyard, he immediately noticed the change.
"There are fewer kids today. Did something happen?" he asked.
"Mm… I think their parents told them not to come." Xiaoling's voice was small, her long rabbit ears drooping low.
Not all the kids in the slums were orphans.
Xiaoling lived alone, but Lungmen had many refugees who'd smuggled themselves in—most were fleeing places where Infected faced even harsher oppression.
Xiaoling tugged on Lucian's sleeve. "Yesterday, Misha's mom showed up. She said they could go home now, that they don't have to be scared anymore. She told the other kids to come with her… Some of them left. They didn't come back today."
Lucian frowned slightly. "Misha? She's Ursus?"
The Ursus Empire's main race was the Ursus, famous for their toughness—and their round bear ears were basically a national emblem.
It was also the country with the worst oppression of Infected.
Lungmen merely banned Infected from entering the city proper and left them to fend for themselves in the slums. Ursus, however, segregated them by law and forced them into brutal Forced Labor.
So huge numbers of Infected fled for survival. Chernobog, close to Lungmen, was one of the places they escaped from. Naturally, the slums had many Ursus Infected.
Xiaoling didn't understand grown-up politics.
But she could feel something was wrong. "Big brother… Will Misha and the others never come back? Will they be okay with their moms?"
Lucian didn't lie to her. "Maybe they'll be fine, maybe they won't. It depends on luck."
This world wasn't kind enough to let children stay innocent.
As an Infected, Xiaoling already understood she wasn't the same as the people living safely inside the city.
But even so—even if Infected and non-Infected weren't the same—she didn't deserve to be treated as lesser.
Lucian crouched down, gently brushing Xiaoling's cheek, giving her a playful wink. "I'll go check. If something's wrong, I'll convince Misha and her mom to come back. Don't worry."