LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 88: HSN Gas
「Are you looking for them?」 Raven's voice echoed from the screen.
As the perspective shifted, Rita's eyes fell on the figures of her squad members lying motionless on the ground. There was no doubt—it was them.
"You!" Realizing she had been completely deceived, Rita's expression darkened. Without hesitation, she fought back.
However, the sheer number of zombies made escape difficult. Their combat abilities were far from weak, and the odds were stacked against her.
「Since Ms. Rita enjoys investigating so much, then make sure to remember this scene well. The price for your curiosity will be the lives of you and your squad members.」
Tsssss—
A cold frost spread across the battlefield, freezing the surrounding zombies solid. In a single, sweeping motion, Rita's scythe cleaved through them. The frozen creatures shattered into halves before collapsing lifelessly to the ground.
"If you think that's all a Schicksal Valkyrie is capable of, then you're gravely mistaken," Rita said, her voice steady but edged with defiance. "I look forward to seeing if you can still talk like this when you're in my hands."
「Whether or not I can isn't up to you,」 Raven sneered. 「Now, my colleague will handle negotiations. It seems she's prepared a little gift for you. I hope you're still alive by the time I've hunted down your squad members.」
The screen flickered, revealing a figure wearing the familiar dog mask. At the same time, a light green gas began to spread throughout the laboratory.
Rita's eyes narrowed. Poison gas. She immediately grabbed her gas mask, ready to put it on.
「That won't help you,」 Jackal's voice rang out, filled with twisted pride. 「With my modifications, this gas will invade your body the moment it touches your skin.」
Typical Jackal. Barely a moment on screen, and she was already boasting about her inventions.
「Raven was right—you Schicksal rats really do enjoy burrowing.」
Rita ignored her taunts and secured her gas mask. She wouldn't trust the enemy's claims so easily. Still, instinctively, she avoided the spreading gas, unleashing her full power against the swarming zombies.
But the gas kept thickening, filling every corner of the laboratory.
Gradually, Rita felt the strength draining from her body.
The scythe in her hands no longer felt sharp. Her armor felt heavy, and the Valkyrie powers she relied on were slipping away.
After seeing that the agents had taken effect, Jackal couldn't help but laugh loudly.
「Can you feel it? This is the pride of your Schicksal, the HSN-B46 serum.」 Jackal's voice was dripping with smugness. 「I've modified it into a gas. The moment it touches your body, it invades, disrupting the circulation of Honkai energy in your system. In just half a minute, you'll become nothing more than an ordinary person—completely powerless.」
She paused, then added mockingly, 「So, are you satisfied with this gift?」
Rita ignored the taunts. She focused on taking down the surrounding zombies, though her movements were clearly slower.
With her Honkai energy fading rapidly, the God-Killer Armour wasn't helping. Instead of enhancing her strength, it had become a heavy burden.
「Oh my, your movements are sluggish. This doesn't look like the power of an S-rank Valkyrie at all,」 Jackal said with a malicious grin.
Having endured failure after failure over the past two days, Jackal relished this turn of events. Her relentless taunts continued. 「Using Schicksal's own weapons against its Valkyries... This is just too satisfying!」
"Haa~ haa~" Rita panted heavily. Her Honkai energy was completely drained now, leaving her reliant on sheer physical strength to survive.
"World Serpent, there will come a day when I make you pay the price," she said through gritted teeth.
Jackal chuckled mockingly. 「The price? You—」
Suddenly, the signal cut off.
Rita, still deep underground, felt a faint tremor. It was as if a massive explosion had just occurred above ground.
…
Half an hour ago, at the ARC City Municipal Hospital, Ren sat by the window, gazing outside.
Kiana, seated beside his bed, handed him an apple she had clumsily peeled.
Ren's body had mostly recovered. Though his legs remained immobile, everything else was functioning normally.
Outside, the neon lights of ARC City glittered like a sea of stars, casting a faint glow into the room.
"I'll investigate the truth. Cheer up, Ren," Kiana said softly.
She followed his gaze and immediately understood—he was reliving the painful events from before. Despite her encouragement helping him abandon thoughts of giving up, the emotional scars still lingered.
Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical.
The name resurfaced in Kiana's mind like a dark shadow. After two days of relative peace, the company's sinister presence was back in her life.
She had pored over their research data, and the truth became painfully clear. Heliopolis wasn't offering free medical treatments out of kindness. They were conducting cruel and inhumane human experiments.
If not for Ren's unstable condition, Kiana would have already taken her Void Lance and sought out Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical.
Now that his condition had improved, it was time for her to act.
Suddenly, a flash of light in the distant sky caught her attention.
From the outline of the lights, Kiana quickly recognized the unmistakable silhouette of a flying battleship.
With the frequent Honkai outbreaks in ARC City, there was no doubt—it had to be Schicksal.
Taking down Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical on her own was unrealistic, but with Schicksal, things might be different.
Although Kiana harbored her own resentment toward Schicksal, she couldn't deny their resolve in fighting the Honkai. More importantly, Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical's Stigmata Project was bound to clash with Schicksal's interests.
Using Schicksal to dismantle Heliopolis might just work.
Of course, Kiana understood the risks. The news about the Herrscher of the Void had already spread, and Schicksal's true target was likely herself.
Even so, Kiana made her decision.
She would take the initiative, confront them, and use force if necessary to expose the dark conspiracy behind Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical.
"I… I'm going out for a little bit," Kiana said, taking Ren's hand and helping him settle back onto the bed. She then closed and locked the window to make sure he couldn't suddenly decide to jump.
"… I wonder if making him unable to walk was too much. I'm practically treating Ren like a puppet."
She sighed, glancing at Ren who was now lying back, seemingly content.
"Also, do you need to go to the bathroom?"
Ren's eyes narrowed. "No, I'm not that weak."
Kiana hesitated. "Then do you—"
Before she could finish, Ren shoved the apple she had given him into her mouth.
"You deal with your own things. I can take care of myself."
Ren pushed Kiana away, clearly aware of her plans. His puppet was already monitoring Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical, and any further delay would mean missing their chance.
"Mmm mmm mmm…"
Kiana bit down on the apple, making muffled noises as she nodded. She quickly left the ward, put on her hood, and headed toward Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical.
After arriving, Kiana immediately spotted the Immortal Blades squad battling against a horde of zombies.
But the usually well-trained Valkyries were barely stronger than ordinary people now. Surrounded by countless zombies, they were slowly being pushed back.
At other locations, many Valkyries had already been knocked down.
Kiana observed the squad members still standing, but didn't jump into the fight right away. Instead, she made her way toward the injured, offering help where she could.
Time was of the essence—her investigation into Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical couldn't be delayed. But Kiana wasn't about to let the same thing that happened to Griseo occur again.
By helping the squad members now, she could gather vital information. She needed to understand why they were so weak, and avoid falling into the same trap they had.