Chapter 31: First Mission
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
"I don’t feel any changes." Hao Ren doubted as he pinched his upper arm.It did not become brawnier or resistant to pain. He could not summon the magic thunder ball too; he felt he was still a mortal. What about the ability of enhanced regeneration? As much as he wanted that, he could never build up the courage to slash himself...
"What more do you want?" Raven 12345 flipped through the operating manual for instructions to recalibrate the Bioenhancement and Reconfiguration Chamber. At the same time, she asked, "How about the magical ability to conjure up three fire balls?"
"I thought you meant combat strength?" Hao Ren felt he was being shortchanged. "You assigned a bunch of monsters to me. Don’t you think it’s absolutely necessary to give me some equivalent ability to match? What have you done to me exactly?"
"I administered some hormonal treatment to remove the scars on your elbow while I treated your white hair," said Raven 12345 with a straight face. "At least, for now."
Hao Ren was speechless.
"You look hilarious!" Raven 12345 could not hold her laughter anymore seeing Hao Ren mugging. "Don’t think too much, dude! I know what you’re thinking. I have had more recruits than I can remember. They unequivocally had the same thing on their mind—instant, superhuman gratification. Guess what would happen if you were given the ability to perform 20-meter vertical jumps overnight?"
Hoa Ren was unsure. "No more freaking out when the elevator breaks down? Become Spiderman’s double?"
Raven 12345 stared at him, unblinking. "You remind me of someone. By the way, your answers are a little far-fetched. If you suddenly acquired such an ability, you would instantly crash into walls or shoot through the roof as a result. Bioenhancement is a step-by-step process." she patted him on his shoulder as she continued, "You’ve got what it takes. The ability is only being capped by a ‘mind lock’. The ‘mind lock’ is there to ensure that you never go too fast. For the time being, get your feet wet first and over time you’ll adapt to your new found ability."
Hao Ren then realized that he was not exactly shortchanged. The deal just worked in installments. Raven 12345 was right; the safety lock is an absolute necessity considering his mortal body was only configured for the earth’s gravitational environment. He could get himself killed if he was unable to control his new found ability.
He was pretty self-aware though; he was calm and cool for the majority. However, curiosity would overcome him sometimes. It was too tempting not to try out his superhuman ability just to see what it was like.
"What kind of bioenhancement am I getting?" Hao Ren asked expectantly. "I suppose asking a question isn’t against the rules. At least I get to know what I’m getting into."
Raven 12345 sounded serious, "Swift muscle reflex, super strength, regeneration, reactive evolution and resistance to radiation, toxins, extreme temperatures, caustic substances as well as any other nasty stuff you can think of. But, all these are basically still in the process of being built upon your mortal body. Other aspects of bioenhancement will follow suit once you pass the test, which is extremely stringent. You’re not allowed to abuse your abilities and you need to show that you’re in control of yourself."
Hao Ren nodded as if he understood. He was pretty confident that he would pass the test but as Raven 12345 had mentioned, it all depended on the outcome of the examination. Nevertheless, he was now officially an employee of the Space Administration albeit one of the lowest rung on the ladder.
"Protective gear—checked. Bioenhancement—checked. Help yourself to the rest of the employee’s codes of conduct. The most important thing of all is, never ever tell anyone about the Space Administration except your tenants." Raven stared straight into Hao Ren’s eyes. "You may tell them why you’re doing this—which is to protect them but just that, no more. They’re chosen but they’re not part of the Space Administration yet. I think you understand the difference, right?"
Hao Ren looked a little surprised. "Talk about confidentiality, huh? Space Administration, God’s organization. I do wonder though, doesn’t God like to spell it out loud when it comes to His great plans—global worship, evangelical outreach?"
"Publicity is only necessary when the need arises." Raven 12345 shook her head. "In the case of the Space Administration, there’s no need for that. Just remember, the administration has its own local civilization where its history follows its natural course. It’s totally independent. God wouldn’t mess with history. It would spell disaster for the human race if they learn that there are higher beings out there who are controlling their fate and their world. Of course telling them about the Space Administration isn’t going to cause an end-of-the-world scenario. Most people won’t even believe it. However, that doesn’t mean you’re allowed to do so. It’s a matter of principle."
Hao Ren nodded in response and seemed like he had understood it. "Okay. So essentially, the Space Administration is in a way, a secret society—we keep people in the dark while we’re in it?"
"Not really. The Macro World isn’t constant in itself." Raven 12345 continued again as she shook her head, "It’s a massive system built by the emperor; an ever expanding virtual web of the empire while the Space Administration is sort of its central nervous system. Naturally, we would encounter all kinds of situations.Sometimes, a civilization or a community expands to become large enough, or a major disaster strikes. In such cases, the Space Administration can no longer keep itself a secret. It would then be forced to intervene. When it does, the affected community would then be accepted into the empire, with prior approval of course. But you don’t have to worry about all this, just mind your own business. Anyway, the examining officers are rather lenient nowadays. During the early days of the Space Administration when the empire was in turbulence, the rule of confidentiality was enforced heavy-handedly. Anyone in the civil departments who defied the rule would be executed under the martial law. Capital punishment still exists today but as long as you stay in line you’ll be fine."
Hao Ren was in cold sweat as he had only begun to comprehend how serious the monstrous organization was.
Yet at the same time, there seemed to be a silver lining: despite only having a vague understanding of the web and Space Administration, he was part of the system now. However, he wondered—was the earth, the solar system, or the entire of space just a speck in the Macro World?
The more he pondered, the more motivated he was.
By then, the room was cleaned and tidied up. Raven 12345 led him outside. "Stop thinking too much. We’re done with the orientation. Now, I have a mission for you."
Hao Ren was excited that the organization needed his service.
"In two days, you’ll be going to Europe," Raven 12345 remarked. "Your mission is to bring a tenant back. I’ve spent considerable effort to bring him in but that dumbass disembarked to a place with an entire eight hour time difference instead. It’s time to show your worth."
Chapter 32: Vampire Magic: The Proper Usage
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
"Mission? Europe?" Hao Ren stared at Raven 12345, blinking. "I didn’t know that there’s a foreigner in my list of tenants."
Raven 12345 looked at him up and down in derision. "You don’t learn, do you? We’re talking about the-other-kind here. What do you think the nationality of that vampire girl is, huh?"
As the penny dropped, Hao Ren felt embarrassed at his own ignorance; his thinking had become so rigid as he had been living his entire life in the human world. "Target? Rendezvous? Time? And most important of all—on whose dime?"
"Oh c’mon, get over it!" Raven squinted at him. "Of course it’ll be on the administration’s dime. We do have a teleportation machine laying around but you’ll gain more field experience by doing things the traditional way. So, you’re gonna take the plane. As for your tenant, frankly, I don’t know how it’ll look like since, it must have disguised itself as somebody else. But rest assured, it will find you once you’re there as it’ll be able to pick up your MDT’s signal. And I’ve got you a passport, made to order. Do remember to pick it up while you’re on your way out."
Hao Ren nodded in acknowledgment. "What about the two ladies at my house? They fight like cats and dogs every other day. I don’t think it’s a good idea to just leave the two of them at my place."
It was hard to tell what would transpire as Vivian and Lily had been locking horns with each other all the while. He broke out in cold sweat just by imagining the collateral damage they would cause. So, he wanted it resolved at the soonest possible time lest his house be wrecked in no time.
"Bring them along, they may be of help. I’ll get them documentations." Raven 12345 waved as she continued, "After all, the vampire is well-traveled. She’ll make a good guide and a bodyguard. No worries. They’re going to join the party, I bet my last penny on it. At the end of they day, they’ve been redundant for quite some time. So, take the trip as an opportunity to smooth out the rough edges."
The words ‘of help’ and ‘smooth out the rough edges’ unnerved Hao Ren. He smelled trouble ahead but could not tell what it was exactly. He also did not bother to ask. He had known from experience that Raven 12345 would not want to talk about anything beyond the present.
"Now, move your ass!" Raven 12345 patted him on his back. "Check your bank card, the money is in. I’ll send the details of the rendezvous point to your MDT. It’s just a simple mission every rookie does. So, have fun!"
Before Hao Ren could say anything, the world started spinning around him. He soon woke up on the road in Bastard Barrio with time on his shoulders and a bag in his hand. He knew it wasn’t a dream but after every trip to the mansion, he would have this unexplainable, surreal feeling. He figured that it may have been caused by the crazy teleportation experience.
Hao Ren had no clue how Raven 12345 knew his bank card number. He was also flabbergasted at how ‘unsophisticated’ the way things worked in the Space Administration. It was nothing like the description in the novels he had read.
"Oh dear, I forgot that I had to ask Raven about the vampire’s failed blood magic!"
He remembered Vivian’s attempt to fix his nightmare condition; neither magic nor vampire’s blood worked. He could not make sense of it. The question had been hanging over his head for quite some time but he forgot about it when he was meeting Raven 12345.
He looked up at the bright, blue sky as though he could see that Raven was busy in the mansion. He shook his head and left the scene, leaving the question for another time.
As he got back to Whitestone Road in the Southern Suburbs, he breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that his old house was still standing—no smoke billowed out and no explosion was heard—the two girls may have reached a truce while he was away or it was just because Lily had been out. As Hao Ren took out his key and reached for the door, he exclaimed, "I’m back!"
There was no response from the inside. So, he went in and closed the door. The air-conditioning was off; the house was as quiet as a grave. He sneaked around for while only to find Rollie trailing out of the kitchen, greeting him.
"Oh shucks! Could they be fighting outside?"
Though he was not a pessimist, he could not ignore the probable, inconvenient reality that he would have to get accustomed to the scene of the ‘Tibetan Mastiff vs Siberian Wolf’ conflict and that the worst would happen when he was away.
The heat of the midday sun was so bad that it seared his skin while he walked home from the bus stop. He picked up the remote controller, wanting to switch the air-conditioner on. However, it did not respond to the command. There was no power in the house. An unexplained feeling of unease started to bother him.
"What’s going on? Ever since I received my first assignment, everything seems to have gone haywire." He became superstitious.
But then, he heard two familiar voices; Vivian and Lily were at the door, they were back. It seemed like they were not in a fight.
"Wow, Landlord, you’re back!" Lily was the first to burst in, looking surprised. "It’s midday. Why don’t we have lunch together?"
Her brain seemed to comprise of food and food only!
"Where have you been?" He asked Vivian as he wiped away the sweat on his forehead. He did not even bother to talk to Lily, who had obviously become unresponsive to anything other than food. "I thought you guys had a fight."
"The power went dead so, I thought it was time to pay the bill." Vivian smiled and jeered, "Then I found this big dog out there so, I brought her along."
Lily did not respond to her mockery at all.
"Two people to run a simple errand?" He looked curiously at Vivian but he quickly realized her condition. "Oh, I almost forgot, you can’t touch money."
Vivian’s expression hardened because it touched her sore spot but, she shrugged it off as though she did not mind it. "The transformer at the substation is down. It’s going to take another half a day before the thing can get back to normal again."
"Okay," Hao Ren responded briefly as he waved a magazine back-and-forth rigorously to cool himself. "The weather is freaking hot and the power outage is not helping either. Lily, are you okay?"
He saw Lily squatting on the sofa with her tongue sticking out, panting. "I ran a little too hard on the way back."
Vivian and Hao Ren looked at her, bewildered. It was not at all an exaggeration to say that Lily was a big dog when she was panting like one.
Although Lily had her own quirks and cuteness, they were not things Hao Ren could stomach. "Is it really necessary to stick your tongue out while you squat?"
Lily wiped her sweat away as she looked up. Her mind went blank before she became aware of her immodesty. "Excuse me, old habits die hard." She chuckled.
Hao Ren gave her a wry smile. He did not know what ought to be said. During that awkward moment, a chill suddenly filled the air.
He turned around and was surprised to see that Vivian had transformed. She was emanating a layer of red fog much like a blood mist. She was waving two, foldable hand fans back-and-forth in quick motion, sending the chill to every corner of the house...
"Mr. Landlord, what do you think?"
Hao Ren was astonished. "I swear I’ve never seen anything like this!"
Lily had moved closer to enjoy the cool air but at the same time, she did not want to waste the opportunity to mock Vivian. "Hey,you, wingy thing! Isn’t that chill you release supposed to be smelly as well?"
Vivian raised her eyebrow. "In case you haven’t already known, the scent is only reserved for combat use. I’d like to keep it fresh whenever I need some chill air."
It was an eye-opener. Hao Ren cracked up and joked, "Now, that’s proper usage of vampire magic! From now on, we can save on the monthly bill!"
And then, something came to his mind. "By the way, I’ll be going on a mission trip to Europe in two days. Would you two like to join me?"
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
Ranking 
10 Power
stone 
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