Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 421 - 379: Strengthening Armaments

Chapter 421: Chapter 379: Strengthening Armaments

Exclusive weapons! Modules! Treasures! The thought of these alone filled the witches’ hearts with joy.

Pan Ruiyi wanted to modify her Great War Spear to be thrown and then recalled; she aimed to hurl it for several kilometers while maintaining its lethality, and then, with an outstretched hand, have the spear return to her.

desired an artifact that could survey the terrain of a target location, so she wouldn’t have to worry about teleporting to unfamiliar places and triggering risks, allowing her to teleport effortlessly to any corner of the world.

Du Qianqian longed for an absolutely silent, invisible pistol that could kill indiscernibly. This way, she could transform into a stranger and kill with utterly covert methods—how thrilling that would be for her.

Shallow Dream needed an item that could rapidly recover magic power within a short time, allowing her to use Time Stop twice consecutively. Currently, she could stop time for 1.7 seconds; if she could do it twice, the effect would double, greatly increasing her flexibility.

Miyazato Kazama simply wanted the recovery amulet previously melted down using the Angel’s Halo, which stored a part of Farosa’s Law of Recovery, modified to automatically recharge after a set period. Then, she too could wield the power of recovery to restore materials she had botched in experiments, saving the company hundreds of millions in research funds.

Mizuiro Yoshioka’s wish was the simplest: she required an auxiliary item to accelerate her magic power growth, aiding her in breaking through to become a High-Ranking Witch as soon as possible.

Currently, only Pan Ruiyi was a Dominator, while 101 and 102 were High-Ranking Witches; the others were still Lower-rank Witches.

Understanding the witches’ needs, Farosa nodded lightly.

"I am aware of your ambitions," she smiled, then glanced at the celadon storage jars in the secret chamber, carrying magical materials of high quality from Haiyun. Combined with Farosa’s ancient knowledge, they could be used to craft magical items.

Just enough to prepare a treasure for each of the Seven Witches.

Dilnai could easily send a subordinate to stir up trouble, which tempted Farosa; she desired to make each of the Seven Witches an independent force, sparing her the need to fuss over trivial matters. That would allow her to devote more time to practice and study, rather than managing various troubles.

What puzzled Farosa the most now was 102.

She remained silent, even a bit indifferent as she looked at Farosa, an expression that didn’t match her personality.

Theoretically, with Farosa’s combined approach of kindness and intimidation, 102 should be showing an unparalleled submission by now, but instead, 102 seemed devoid of emotional fluctuations, as if she felt nothing for Farosa.

This left Farosa feeling half threatened and half suspicious.

The power of 102 lay in Limb Strengthening. Once strengthened to the brain, she became a smart kid, not a hapless one, truly enhancing her abilities in every aspect—a witch of consolidated power.

Had she done something wrong, or had the child really become stronger? Farosa muttered to herself inwardly, but kept a smile on her face.

Compared to the insignificant 102, the pursuit of the true path of power was far more important.

"Go," she dismissed the witches.

Farosa continued to pore over ancient books, creating magical items.

Kirino Reisei and Chainsaw Angel were both semi-voluntarily working at Shijin Mansion, serving as Farosa’s attendants and greatly speeding up her work and study progress.

As soon as Pan Ruiyi left, she glanced back at the busy Farosa and quickly slipped away to find Xu Yang.

"Company person!" She saw Xu Yang in his office reading and going through newspapers, and caught hold of him.

"What?" Xu Yang looked at Pan Ruiyi puzzled.

"Quack." Little Fool sat on the desk, pushing his hand to keep Pan Ruiyi at bay.

"It’s still the holidays, isn’t it! Let’s hire a boat and go sea fishing, play for the day," Pan Ruiyi moved Little Fool to the bottom of the table, then took Xu Yang away from Shijin Mansion.

"Quack grumble." Little Fool was grumpy.

Elsewhere, Lila glanced at her schedule, planning to finish the last item on her agenda; she was going to check on her disciples. Seeking Shadow and Hosoda Yoshiyuki might prove somewhat useful.

"Aledy," she messaged her deputy, "accompany me to Aizu City."

"Received." Aledy set out from the Nestor Legion’s barracks.

She got dressed in a special duty coat, put on an obscuring helmet, and a bold red scarf, and went to pick up Lila in a riot control Shuttle Machine, then headed straight for Aizu City.

In her heart, Aledy regarded Lila as a parent reborn because she was treated so well. The conditions of the outlying troops’ stationing and the solitary city apartment were top-notch; she only spent 500 on food and lodging, received a yearly fund of 640,000, plus stock incentives. The amount she saved here in two months exceeded 10 years’ salary at Thousand Lakes Electronics.

She once owed banks so much money that she considered going into the adult film industry in the Northern Archipelago, but Nestor Corporation gave this soldier a chance to start anew. Not only did she clear her debts, but she could also send money to her family back home.

Aledy was endlessly grateful for everything and was determined to offer Lord Lila her most complete loyalty.

Stripped of tradition, faith, and all societal consensus, Aledy knew that now only money could maintain the links between people, and Nestor Corporation was generous in this respect.

"How are the Legion and the Defense Army faring?" Lila sat in the back seat.

"The media says the Legion’s compensation is too high and will breed laziness. Oh, and not just the Legion, everyone in the Nestor System is living too comfortably," Aledy reported.

"Who are the real lazybones?" Lila mocked, "Our company’s soldiers, farmers, and engineers, or those rentiers living off dividends, rent, and land appreciation? You and I came from Thousand Lakes Electronics; we know what a giant corporation looks like. In the face of a true crisis, there are those who are the backbone of civilization and those who are its cancer."

Aledy secretly admired her words.

She had heard the tales of Lila Nestor’s legend, how, like the other war-damaged witches, she endured the harshest experiments and modifications. At a time when technology was still immature, her limbs, her entire body, every single organ was removed in sequence and replaced with artificial products. In the continuous exchange, she completely transformed into something non-human... After all the experimental data was gathered, she was then entered into the scrap process, to recoup funds, torn apart for sale, completely treated as junk assets, with every last bit of profit wrung out by Thousand Lakes Electronics.

But now she had come back, tougher and more decisive than before! Ten times more beautiful and still the invincible witch, Aledy couldn’t find a better boss.

Even if Thousand Lakes Electronics hadn’t perished in the rise of the Frost Giant Elride Clan, they would have certainly faced the mad revenge of the Nestor Corporation in the future.

"President, I was present when the Ice Giants erupted," Aledy said, "They broke through all our defenses, and the biggest giant withstood three nuclear attacks without falling. Meanwhile, our frontline troops suffered unnecessary damage, leading to insubordination among the security department members. And I heard that the ice Elride... is of the same race as Yan Duo."

"Interesting news." Lila still remembered the great battle between Yan Duo and Dilnai, and how the Nestor Corporation had to develop even more advanced weapons to hunt the Ancient Mystics.

When they reached Suzuki Springs in Katagi District, Aledy parked the shuttle machine in the yard.

"This hot spring is the best around here." Aledy planned to come soak when she had the time.

"Wait here," Lila directed Aledy to wait for her return, then hurried into the house and found Seeking Shadow and Nidelaide in a partitioned room.

"I need some fighters to go to Silla," Lila said.

"I’m ready for battle," Seeking Shadow nodded, "To exterminate evil."

"Silla is filled with gangsters, thugs, and warlords after losing order," Lila nodded in agreement, "You’ll certainly find your wealth and fame there, and there are enough villains there for you to deal with."

"I’ll pass, I just want to make some cheap implants," Nidelaide spread his hands.

"Industrial production beats your handmade clay figurines," Lila said.

"Those aren’t clay figurines." Nidelaide argued calmly, "They are improvement devices that can bring hope to people, just as effective as the big companies’ products, but priced at rock bottom."

"All the implant giants will band together to suppress you," Lila said, "Your products have no chance of production in the Northern Archipelago, nor access to the market."

"Can’t the Nestor Corporation give me a production line?" Nidelaide sounded dejected.

"In Silla, you can," Lila said, "Silla has the basics of infrastructure and factories. If we support a force to unify Silla and establish a new order, you could get a special permit there to build your dream industry of cheap implants."

"Is it just for the sake of righteousness that we involve ourselves in Silla’s war?" Seeking Shadow asked, "Or is it purely an exchange of interests?"

"People only want a stable life," Lila said, "Obsessing over righteousness will only cause you pain; it’s a bottomless pit."

"All that time spent in thought, all those computations," Seeking Shadow said, "Was it all in vain?"

All in vain.

Lila intended to erase these hollow propositions, but she still needed to maintain the connections between individuals and couldn’t just cut straight to the banal rigidities that would replace naïve enthusiasm.

"Not in vain," Lila said, "Absolute righteousness, relative righteousness, they all have meaning. For thousands of years, people have yearned for a society that could deliver true justice. What you need to do is take another step forward from that. You can easily download insightful discussions from many philosophers and jurisprudents on this matter. A shadow hero must also be cultured, or else they would be overwhelmed by the eternally replicating and spreading evil, like trying to sweep the water off a sandy beach with a broom."

"Yes," Seeking Shadow took the instruction seriously.

"Throw that unstable element, Hosoda Yoshiyuki, onto the battlefield of Silla with a bomb," Lila stood up. "I’m going to dispatch two groups at once; one group in Silla to handle security contracts and accomplish some objective for Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing, and another group to work behind the scenes to push for Silla’s unification and takeover, turning it into the next territory on the map of Nestor Corporation."

After that, Lila turned and left.

"Such a powerful woman," Nidelaide marveled, "Her story is particularly legendary, who even remembers when she used to live in a dirty brain."

"Do your job," Seeking Shadow also stood up, "Get out of Dr. Choi’s clinic. Day after day of toil will just bury your courage. We still need to find a Ratman to join our team as a scout and a thief."

"Like a real expedition team," Nidelaide nodded, "Oh, I wonder what Silla has become after five years of war."

Righteousness does not rest. Seeking Shadow looked at the Ion Sword "Shadow Kill" in her hand. Anjiu City was now a thousand times more peaceful than before—with Lila’s infinite surveillance, even wrongful cases were rare. She indeed had to leave and go elsewhere to eradicate evil.

Meanwhile, Xu Yang had already been taken away by Pan Ruiyi, to the uninhabited beach they had bought before. Back then, Ruoye Realty Company even gifted Xu Yang a yacht, and now it was time to launch it.

"Have you ever fished before?" Pan Ruiyi asked.

"When would I have the time?"

"Well, now’s your chance!" Pan Ruiyi said with ease, "Just don’t think about anything... go fishing on the boundless sea!"

"Guess I’ll need something to hoist it into the water," Xu Yang looked at the sleek white yacht.

"You just get on," Pan Ruiyi said.

"How so?" Xu Yang boarded the yacht, only to see Pan Ruiyi’s boots tossed up as well, followed by a vigorous shake of the boat as it was pushed toward the sea from behind by Pan Ruiyi.

A long trail of footprints was left on the beach as Pan Ruiyi let out a joyful shout.

"To the sea!"