Arknights: How Did I Actually Become the Doctor? — Chapter 78

Chapter 78: The Pinus Sylvestris Gamble

In the neon-drenched nights of the Great Knight Territory, deception and surging undercurrents were simply standard operating procedure. But when the sun rose, everyone subconsciously tucked their claws away, behaving like upstanding citizens who inherently understood that their true natures didn’t belong in the light.

Unfortunately, I still didn’t get to watch Maria’s match. Why? Because I hadn’t brought a single Operator with dedicated intelligence-gathering talents on this trip. When it came to disseminating the highly classified dirt we had dug up on Sector Zero, I was the only one who could handle the network!

After spending the entire morning glued to a terminal, secretly orchestrating collaborations with hundreds of underground intelligence brokers, my salvation finally arrived. Patriot descended into the room like a towering, heavily-armored angel.

“Doctor. Lunch. Representatives from the Commerce Union have arrived.”

I waved a hand dismissively, not even looking up from the glowing screen. “Tell them to get lost! They were acting so high and mighty when they challenged me before. Now that their asses are on fire, they finally remember I exist?” I blindly reached out and grabbed a snack from the desk. “Old man, try one of these sea salt chili cookies Uncle sent back! How’s the taste?”

Patriot took one and chewed slowly. “Delicious.”

“The truth?”

“You should be glad that my sense of taste has severely degenerated.”

“Forget it. Next time I ask, you’d better lie to me.”

Meanwhile, out in the city, a massive earthquake was rocking Kazimierz’s public opinion. The “Rust-Iron” Knight, the “Poison Bee” Knight, the “Blue Flag” Knight, the “Bay Ocean” Knight… a long string of names once beloved by the citizens suddenly appeared on a single, leaked document.

The contents were blindingly harsh. Words like neutralization, cost, and recycling were printed right next to the glamorous title of “Knight Competition.” The final, glittering fig leaf covering Kazimierz’s rot was ripped away and thrown into the mud to be trampled.

If even glorious knights could be sent to a literal recycling station when they lost their commercial value, what about the ordinary citizens? The masses, previously numbed by endless competitive entertainment, were violently forced to look at their own bleak futures.

A crack in public trust is always the first step in the collapse of an order. Rhodes Island’s carefully laid groundwork was finally detonating.

Driven by sheer survival instinct, the smaller merchants of Kazimierz began extending olive branches to Rhodes Island, desperate to jump ship. The fatal flaw of a monopoly was laid bare: having crushed all opposition for so long, the K.G.C.C. was as disoriented as a rookie recruit facing this sudden, multi-front public opinion war. Everywhere they looked, formerly ‘loyal’ merchants were suddenly flexing their muscles against them!

As the waters muddied, the silent victims—the bankrupt, the exploited, the desperate rebels—hid within the roaring clamor of the mob to finally make their voices heard. Kazimierz was a powder keg that had sat quietly for years, and the exposed sins of Sector Zero were the spark that blew it sky-high.

Of course, while some screamed for justice like oil poured on a raging fire, others were forced to remain silent in the shadows. The K.G.C.C. was bleeding, but this indiscriminate storm tore into the noble and the despised alike.

“Are they the ones who colluded with the Adeptus Spokrates?”

“Definitely! Think about it—how else could a bunch of Infected knights live so comfortably? I heard plenty of people saw it. That red-haired Zalak has been rubbing shoulders with the Commerce Union’s lapdogs for a long time!”

Sona listened powerlessly to the venomous whispers of the pedestrians. Her fingers dug fiercely into the edges of the Infected qualification certificates—the very papers they had risked their lives to secure, the papers that supposedly granted them the right to walk freely.

Their reluctant cooperation with the Adeptus Spokrates had indeed won them documents legally recognizing the Infected under their protection. But what did it cost? Once the Adeptus finished using them as disposable tools, they were immediately tossed out as scapegoats. The entire infamy of the recent segregation policies was shoved squarely onto the shoulders of the Pinus Sylvestris Knightclub.

They had bled for these certificates just so their Infected could live in the sunlight. Now, even holding these papers, they were destined to walk under the disgusted glares of the public.

What was the point of this thin piece of paper?

“Hurry up, walk faster! Keep your head down before she sells us out to the Commerce Union too!” a mother hissed, dragging her curious daughter away by the wrist. Sona recognized them. Just half a month ago, that same woman had secretly donated supplies to the Infected children at their base…

‘What should I do?’ For the first time in a long while, Sona felt entirely lost.

If the Adeptus Spokrates and the K.G.C.C. were just two heads of the same venomous snake, where else could she take her people? Sona’s greatest pride had always been her agility, her unmatched speed. But this time, it felt like she had run out of ground. There was nowhere left to dodge.

No. Perhaps… there was still one completely insane path left.

‘Actually, I don’t like them either…”What, do you want to be captured and taken back with me as a prisoner too?’

Sona gritted her teeth, spun on her heel, and sprinted back toward the Pinus Sylvestris base.

“Partners. Do you have the confidence to take one last gamble with me?”

To gamble everything on that strange young man. The one who had pointed at a lavish chocolate fountain, loudly declaring that wasting food was shameful because his family was so poor they could barely afford a single meal. He was definitely not a normal businessman.

Sona had rehearsed a dozen arguments on her way back, preparing to beg her team to trust her. She hadn’t expected the first response to come from the quietest, most passive member of their group.

“I no longer believe in the Knight Competition,” Justina said, her voice soft but steady. “But for the sake of the Radiant Knight, I am willing to try trusting Rhodes Island just once.”

The former Fartooth Knight raised her hand. She had left her hometown precisely because she admired the blazing light of the Radiant Knight.

The second hand shot up immediately. “In yesterday’s operation, you said it was the Black Knight of Rhodes Island who bailed you out,” Wild Mane grinned fiercely. “At worst, I’ll just go with you to pay back this life!”

The third was Ashlock. She didn’t speak, simply raising her heavy shield slightly in agreement.

Then the fourth, the fifth…

None of them knew what awaited them in the dark. But when you are trapped in a suffocating abyss, simply moving your feet forward takes every ounce of your strength. All they could do was run wildly and leave the destination to fate.

Back at the temporary Rhodes Island office, Nearl stood by the window. She stared in rare, stunned silence at the front gates.

The big-tailed Zalak she had deliberately let go during the operation had not only returned, but she had brought an entire squad of big-tailed competitors right to her Boss’s doorstep. They were currently huddled together, fluffy and shivering in the cold, asking to be taken in.

Nearl sighed, rubbing her temples.

‘SilverAsh… he’s probably going to have a breakdown over this, isn’t he?’