Chapter 7: 40 Percent

The atmosphere inside Room 80 was filled with silence even though there were quite a few people in the lab. The only sound that can be heard is the sound of papers fluttering around, the beeping machine and some people clicking around their keyboard. Can be seen that everyone was so busy working, trying to ignore what's happening outside the lab. Well, it is not really hard for them because they are all so used to this kind of stuff. But the calmness did not last long when the doors were opened once again.

This time, 81 was the one who looked at the newcomer. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened when he saw the unexpected guest. Who would have thought that person would come to a place like this?

He quickly gets the Chief who's busy at her desk. "Chief, we got a visitor."

"Who?" She asked, never letting off her eyes from her own work.

"Umm... it's Madam Two."

After hearing that name, the Chief finally stopped whatever she was doing and looked at her assistant straight into his eyes. "Are you sure? Not her PAD but Madam Two herself?"

"Yes, Chief."

A low sigh came out from her mouth. "Tell everyone to stop whatever they are doing. We are still not sure for what purpose Madam Two suddenly visited us here but I guess it has something to do with the failed machine."

"Are you sure, Chief? Madam Two, she kind of scares me. Even her presence alone makes my hair stand up. But if she ever tried to hurt you or any of us, I won't hesitate to call for Informant."

The Chief gave him a reassuring smile and patted him on his back. "I know what you mean, thank you. You don't need to worry about me. I already know the risks when working in such a dangerous situation."

Before the young man could reply, she stood up from her seat and walked outside of her small office.

From where she is standing, the Chief could see that all of the PAD were already standing in line. She walked towards the group and gave everyone an approving look. After a brief moment, she turned to the woman with her legs crossed, sitting on the table while checking the paper in her hand.

"Madam Two, I did not expect for you to come all the way to this place. What could possibly bring you here?"

"What's the number of this experiment?" Two asked, showing the paper in front of the Chief's face.

"Umm... it's the 22nd Experiment. May I know why you ask?"

"Isn't this one of Eight's machines that had succeeded during its experiment? Then, how come the other new experiments fail? Was there someone who purposely sabotaged the machine?"

Chief automatically gulped after receiving the piercing glare from Two. Among eleven Infinities, only two of them are considered as the most dangerous. One of them was, of course, Two. Everyone else, including the Chief, is terrified of her, which is understandable by looking at her aura.

Two is someone who does not let emotions affect her, and she always remains serious and composed. But sometimes, she could easily kill the person without even blinking an eye. It is true that she is good at fighting, because she is extremely proficient especially when using her favorite weapon, twin daggers. But if it is from a normal perspective, people would not realize how dangerous she actually is. After all, her charisma and beauty made her seem to be perfect, almost inhuman.

"Madam Two, as far as I know, there were no one who did the sabotage. And even if there was, you should know that Informant can easily find those responsible and eliminate them."

Two tilted her head slightly and crossed her arms across her chest, staring at the Chief intently.

"Does that mean you know the reason behind the failures in Experiment 23rd and 24th? Do tell, Chief. Don't keep secrets from me."

She whispered the last part. Her tone of voice sounded very threatening, which made everyone inside the laboratory shudder. No one knows what will happen next, but everyone has a feeling that things are not going to end well if the Chief gives a wrong answer.

Right now, they could not help but feel vulnerable in front of Two. Even if anything happened in here, even if they do get killed, it is not like everyone could blame Two. Instead, all the faults will belong to them entirely. It is their fault for angered her when they should have done their job better. That is why, working in this place has a very high risk despite how quintessential it looks. This is another harsh reality that the PAD had to face.

"How could I dare to keep a secret from the second member of Infinities, especially when she is standing right in front of all of us. To compare, we are nothing but mere servants who follow the orders of the higher up. Please forgive me for making it sound disrespectful."

She then gave a polite bow. "As I was saying, there is absolutely no PAD attempting to commit treason. All of us are very aware that if we ever tried to commit such an act, it will be fatal since we are not able to escape death itself. However..."

The Chief lifted her gaze to look straight into Two's eyes. "...The success of the 22nd Experiment was not caused by any of our members. It was all by Informant herself and the failure in both the 23rd and 24th Experiments were caused by our own negligence."

The silence after the Chief spoke felt suffocating. Everyone was too scared to move even a single finger or word. It is obvious that they were all waiting for Two's reaction. They could see that she was not pleased with what she was being told.

One of her hands went up to her mouth and started massaging her chin while looking at the floor, deep in thought. Finally, she sighed heavily and closed her eyes before facing the Chief again.

"The reason I'm asking you this is because I was wondering how you would answer my questions. If you told me that the reason behind the failures was caused by the subjects, then it means that my theory was correct."

The Chief frowned at the words. "If I may ask again, you mean you think that it is possible that one of the subjects may have been causing these events?"

Her question makes the other PAD on the back look surprised. They did not believe that kind of thing was possible to happen. For all these years they have been working together, building up twentieth machines, failing and creating more inventions over and over again. However, doing this was never easy. They would always have to carry the guilt because their works were the causes for many deaths. But now the idea that the subject itself destroys what they have been working on is truly shocking and unbelievable.

"That's exactly what I meant."

The Chief blinked. "B-But how can that be possible? We have never encountered such a thing before."

Two was about to answer when her eyes caught the capsule on the second floor. She raised her eyebrow at the sight of the object. "Was someone in a coma?"

Everyone's attention was no longer focused on her and all eyes immediately fell upon the Ice Capsule.

The Chief turned back her gaze on Two. "There was a new subject brought into our lab last night by the Professor's PAD. I heard he was the subject that experimented with the 25th machine."

"Who instructs them to put him in here?" Two asked curiously, her eyebrows furrowed.

"It was the Leader himself."

"One?" Both of her brows shot up at the same time as she stared at the Chief in shock. For a moment, Two was thinking about something.

No. One is not the type of person to interrupt Eight's work without any reasons. He was also the one who agreed with Eight's final decision to stop with the experiments. The only thing she can think about was that instruction is not from One. Instead, it might be coming from Master Zero.

After a while, Two began to walk slowly towards the elevator that leads to the second floor. Everyone's eyes followed her every step until she disappeared between the elevator doors and out of their view. Finally they could take their breath once again. The atmosphere around them became less tense than before.

The Chief cleared her throat. "I'm going to assist Madam Two for a while. All of you can go back to your work now."

The others nodded in response and started taking their positions, continuing their respective tasks. Only her two assistants stayed behind.

"It would be dangerous if you are alone with her so I think it would be better if we stay close. Just in case she does anything," 81 explained with a concerned glance.

Whereas 82 on his side, nodding in agreement. 'We will be with you wherever you go, Chief. Always.'

The Chief smiled gently.

"Thank you for the concern. Let's go now."

<<7>>

When they finally reached the second floor, there was still silence between them, as Two had her gaze fixed on the capsule. She stopped walking in front of it and bent down, touching the surface of the capsules.

"This is a pretty unusual technology and it's my first time seeing one up close. I wonder how much of its functions it really has."

After a few seconds, Two suddenly stood upright again, turning to the Chief with a glint in her blue eyes. "I believe it's very rare for you to use this machine since there were only a few subjects that survived from those experiments. I assume his number will be not that far, am I right?"

The Chief nodded. "You are most likely correct, Madam. He was the twelfth subject that has been brought here."

"Are there any changes happening to him?" Two asked, her eyebrows raised as she stepped back from the capsule.

The Chief sighs softly before shaking her head. "No. At least nothing that should have happened. Miracles can happen only if he were still alive. That's why, seeing him being brought here is what shocked me the most. For what actual reason does the Leader do that?"

A soft hum escapes Two as she crosses her arms over her chest, tilting her head slightly to the side. "Perhaps because he wants to create that miracle?"

Chief's head snapped towards her, a surprise clear on her face. "Does a miracle really exist?"

Two shrugs, an amused look spreading across her features. "I don't believe in it but I wonder."

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