Spy-x-War Showdown
Chapter 663 - 669 Turncoat

Chapter 663: Chapter 669 Turncoat

Defection, for a spy, is there anything more thrilling than turning an enemy’s spy?

Although Brian is part of the action team, not a spy, and although Anton is not strictly speaking a Black Devil, he merely completed the training to join them.

But, but, but Anton indeed is the man closest to the Black Devils, and if one must say he is a Black Devil, then it wouldn’t be entirely wrong.

The thing Brian, who harbored deep resentment against the Black Devils, most hoped for wasn’t the complete annihilation of the Black Devils—of course, that was impossible—but if he could turn a Black Devil, then that could be said to be the greatest achievement of Brian’s life.

Don’t forget, it was the Black Devils who had turned Brian. This was the biggest stain of his life, as well as his greatest pain.

Therefore, Brian’s thoughts were very easy to understand; he just wanted to save some face. He wanted to turn Anton, or rather, to take Anton into his own fold.

The Soviet Union that Anton had served was gone, and the KGB had changed beyond recognition, so Anton was really a free agent. Even if he loyally served the Organization of Water, it couldn’t be considered a real defection.

But if Brian wished to think that way, let him regard taking in Anton as defection. Life is not easy after all, so why be so pedantic?

Yang Yi understood Brian, so he was very supportive of Brian’s ideas.

"Turn him, good, but how shall we go about it?"

Brian clenched his fist and said in a heavy voice, "Turning someone is just coercion and temptation, as long as it affects the target, any method works. Threaten him, intimidate, play the emotional card, entice with benefits, everything depends on what he wants. Anton is a bit special, whatever you can offer him, he doesn’t need. Threats and intimidation are completely meaningless, a woman’s allure..."

Brian looked at Yang Yi with a somewhat resentful expression, then he spread his hands and said, "Well, there’s no need to mention that, definitely ineffective."

Yang Yi could only offer a wry smile, because it was exactly a woman’s allure that had led to Brian’s downfall. It was his Achilles’ heel, his sore spot.

Speaking of a woman’s allure, Brian fell silent for at least five minutes, and then he spoke again, his voice quiet, "The Black Devils were trained to be not humans, but machines, no, weapons. They discarded the emotions that normal people would have, so a woman’s allure is completely ineffective on them."

Yang Yi cleared his throat, which unfortunately made his stomach ache again, and then he quickly said, "Then let’s try another method."

Brian sighed lightly and said, "If the KGB is the crown of the Soviet Union, then the Black Devils are the jewels on that crown. They endure the strictest training but also enjoy the best treatment. Basically, they lack nothing you can think of."

Yang Yi spread his hands and said, "After all, it’s been over twenty years."

"What does Anton lack? If he wanted money, would he be poor? What can’t be bought with money in this world? And those things that can’t be bought, aren’t they precisely what the Black Devils have already forsaken?"

Yang Yi was close to despair and said helplessly, "Then what do we do? The way you put it, Anton has no weakness."

"No, no, no, the Black Devils might not have emotional or personality weaknesses, but Anton does, because Anton ultimately never truly joined the Black Devils. You have to understand, a rookie who has completed all the training and a person who has been a Black Devil for a long time are not the same after all. It’s like an NCAA MVP who still has to go through an adaptation and learning process when he enters the NBA."

When Brian mentioned that Anton was not a true Black Devil, his mood soured once again, for it revealed the true nature of his idea to convert a genuine Black Devil – Anton was, after all, not a finished product.

One should not be too rigid. A work-in-progress is always better than having no opportunity at all.

Brian quickly adjusted his approach, then looked at Yang Yi and asked, "Why does Mike want to teach you? Why is he willing to teach you everything?"

Yang Yi was taken aback for a moment, as Brian suddenly brought up this question, making him somewhat unable to keep up with the pace. After thinking for a while, he carefully said, "Is it because Mike respects my father?"

Brian shook his head and said, "No, Mike never told you, but he’s told me that he thinks you’re the best spy prospect he’s ever seen. You are a genius, a fact we must all admit. Mike is willing to teach you because he thinks you can become the best spy."

He firmly patted Yang Yi’s shoulder and smiled, "You’re well-rounded, you learn quickly whatever you take on, and unlike other professions, spy work doesn’t require starting from a young age. As a spy, everything you’re good at is useful. Though you don’t have formal training, who says a self-made spy can’t become the best? Many of the greatest spies in history weren’t formally trained, yet that didn’t hinder their greatness."

"Self-made... that’s a fitting term."

Brian grew even more enthusiastic. He stared into Yang Yi’s eyes and said, "Black Devils are all-rounders, and you can be too. Speaking of which, let me tell you how to convert Anton."

Brian took a deep breath, then said firmly, "Converting someone doesn’t always mean appealing to their preferences. We can do the opposite: strike at Anton, undermine his confidence, attack his pride, and let him know there are those more formidable than he. Right now, he wants to beat you, not kill you, and this mentality is important."

"The antithesis approach, is that effective?"

"I don’t know, but we definitely need to give it a try. The Black Devil has shaped Anton; let’s strip him of everything the Black Devil gave him. If he’s proud, we’ll target his pride, so the first step is to beat him, and we must do so convincingly."

"If I beat him, will Anton loyally follow me? I don’t think that’s very likely."

Brian shook his head and said, "No, no, of course not. To convert Anton and make him wholeheartedly join the Organization of Water, you, at least, have to make him respect the Organization. We need to make it impossible for him to remain proud before us if we’re to have any chance of moving to the next step."

"So what exactly is the next step?"

Brian smiled and said, "Don’t ask me everything, think for yourself."

Yang Yi exhaled and said, "Anton is different from other agents; the way to convert him must be different too. As a Black Devil, Anton never experiences the feeling of defeat. If the first step is to strike at him, to give him the psychology of a normal person, then next should be... to appeal to his preferences? No, that’s wrong, it’s not about appealing to his preferences, but about offering what he needs."

Brian nodded, then with a smile, he asked, "So, what do you think Anton needs most?"

Yang Yi said in a low voice, "I’m not sure if I’m right, but this is what I think: The Black Devils are not a place of freedom or individual will. So, what Anton lacks is not freedom. If the Soviet Union hadn’t collapsed, he would have been a Black Devil bound by rules and not the carefree free-agent he is now. So, what Anton really needs is... strict discipline?"

Brian slapped his hand and then looked at Yang Yi with satisfaction and said, "Indeed, you do understand!"