“The No. 5 large freighter in the Harbor District is docked at the port. The D District Warehouse, storage room 6308, is regularly resupplied with munitions. If you need supplies, you can go there to get them. The Ruby Bar on Peace Avenue in the Harbor District is a public safehouse for organization members, equipped with medical devices and weapon maintenance equipment, and is regularly restocked with small firearms and ammunition. The entry code is ‘One Deep Blue, please.’ The owner of the Hunter Shooting Club in the North District can provide mission funds. The third-floor mechanical prosthetics lab at Rick Technology Company headquarters can offer technological assistance to operatives…”

Blake White felt more and more creeped out the more she read.

This Mechanical Dawn organization was terrifyingly powerful.

She sorted out the information—First, Mechanical Dawn had the ability to use the Black Sea City’s port warehouses as armories. Second, Mechanical Dawn had so many members in Black Sea City that they needed a public safehouse as a gathering place. Third, Mechanical Dawn seemed to be very wealthy, with dedicated personnel in charge of allocating mission funds. Fourth, Rick Technology Company was very likely directly subordinate to Mechanical Dawn, or perhaps Rick Technology was just a front company set up by Mechanical Dawn.

Silverface stared at Blake White. “Finished reading? Anything you want to say?”

“I’m calculating how many lives I’ll need to complete this mission. Would a hundred be enough?” Blake White managed a bit of dark humor under the immense pressure.

“Just go carry out the mission.” Silverface said coolly. “Even if we have to pile up bodies, as long as we can stop what’s on the Kraken from entering Black Sea City, our sacrifice will be worth it. It doesn’t matter if we die—our comrades will continue the mission before August 11 arrives.”

Blake White deeply suspected that Mechanical Dawn was actually a brainwashing organization, and the guy in front of her, codenamed “Silverface,” was thoroughly brainwashed—he didn’t even care about his own life.

She lowered her head to check the time on her wristband.

The date in the Second World was July 28, 2086. The current time was 00:23, right at midnight.

“We and the other teams have less than half a month to complete the mission,” Silverface said. “It’s pretty urgent.”

“Got it. I’ll draft an action plan as soon as possible,” Blake White replied. “But as a probationary security officer, I also have things I must do. The people from the Investigation Department aren’t easy to fool.”

“The Investigation Department, lapdogs of the Consortium.” Silverface snorted. “You’re in charge of stealing intel, I’ll handle the action. We can discuss the plan together.”

Blake White nodded slowly.

She and Silverface stood in the living room for a while. Seeing that he had no intention of speaking, she said, “I’m going to take care of my own business. Make yourself at home.”

Blake White wasn’t sure what the usual interaction was like between teammates in a Mechanical Dawn operations squad, nor did she know if there were any unspoken rules for how members of this organization acted during missions. But saying “make yourself at home” was enough to signal the end of the conversation.

Besides, Blake White really did have her own things to do.

With Silverface watching, she walked through every room in the house, checking them carefully. The room facing the morning sun was a bedroom, with a small wardrobe. Another room was a secondary bedroom, used as a storage room. On the balcony, there were two nearly dead potted plants.

Blake White moved to the kitchen. The kitchen had all the necessary pots and dishes. She opened the old refrigerator with peeling paint; inside were some food ingredients.

This house had a very lived-in feel, but unfortunately, the owner was dead, and Blake White had taken it over.

She closed the fridge and went straight to the bedroom to rummage through the wardrobe.

There were some unopened undergarments in the wardrobe. Blake White took a bath towel and found a clean set of loungewear, then walked into the bathroom and shut the door with a bang.

Silverface stared expressionlessly at the bathroom. It wasn’t until the bathroom light came on and the sound of running water reached his ears that he slowly realized—this woman was taking a shower.

He immediately averted his gaze and retreated to sit by the sofa, placing his hands neatly on his knees like an obedient schoolboy.

Blake White felt a bit like she was just letting things fall apart.

Things were already this bad—she couldn’t keep wronging herself. The worst outcome was death, and before dying, she still wanted to struggle a bit more. Who knows, maybe if she kept struggling, she’d make it to the end?

She was a qualified undercover agent, an excellent actress. She was playing the role of a rookie intern at the Investigation Department, fully immersing herself in the character, treating herself as “Blake White,” a young woman who had just graduated from college with top grades and landed a job.

A young woman taking a hot shower after getting caught in the rain after work—this was perfectly reasonable. Everything she did was logical.

Warm water poured down. Blake White hypnotized herself, over and over, to keep her thoughts calm.

She spent twenty minutes showering and adjusting her mindset. Twenty minutes later, she put on clean clothes and came out of the bathroom, only to find Silverface still sitting in the living room.

When Blake White came out, Silverface shot her a cold glance, then looked away.

Blake White couldn’t figure out what this guy was up to.

She towel-dried her hair, her mind turning over a few thoughts, and said to him, “So, what’s your next move…”

“On standby,” Silverface replied.

On standby? On standby where? On standby right here with her? Why wasn’t this guy leaving!

To hide her expression, Blake White turned and went to the kitchen. She took a few ingredients from the fridge, planning to make herself something simple to eat.