Chapter 243

Chapter 243. Assassination(???) Plan. (1)

And following Antares’ words, the executives realized that the opinions presented by the staff were not their own… but rather a repackaged version of the opinions they had given to their Clan Leader after returning from the event. This realization made them suspicious.

“Personally, I agree with that opinion,” someone said.

Of course, given the situation, the executives’ opposition began to focus not on the staff but on Antares.

“Clan Leader, do we really need to mess with Icarus, that guy?”

“I think so too. Wouldn’t it be better to use the funds to strengthen our forces and bribe Icarus to pull him over like Indypatible?”

“Hmm…”

“I agree with that too. Isn’t Icarus a solo player anyway?”

“For real.”

But in response to their reactions, Antares closed his eyes and remained silent for a while. Once the counterarguments subsided, he finally opened his eyes and calmly spoke.

“First of all, let me clarify, I don’t think the opinion itself is wrong.”

“Huh?”

“What do you mean…?”

Naturally, Antares’ words left the executives bewildered. Regardless, Antares let out a deep sigh and decided to briefly explain why he was leaning toward eliminating Icarus.

“But the problem is, I found out during this event… it seems he’s actually acting as an external mercenary for Arcadia’s Justice Clan.”

“Huh?”

“Wait, what…?”

“Hmm.”

“Is that true, Clan Leader?”

Of course, Antares’ statement shocked the executives, with some tilting their heads in disbelief. But that didn’t last long.

“It’s true.”

With a very serious expression, Antares nodded. The deputy Clan Leader, representing the executives, cautiously raised a question.

“Clan Leader, do you have any solid evidence for that?”

“Hmm… during this event, Arcadia himself said something along the lines of having secured Icarus first.”

“Clan Leader, isn’t that too weak to be considered evidence?”

“Of course, if it were just him boasting, I would’ve thought it was a tactic to counter a solo player.”

“Then…?”

Seeing the deputy Clan Leader’s skepticism, Antares rubbed his temples as if his head was throbbing. After another deep sigh, he shook his head and spoke.

“Just in case, I also asked Königs and that damn Betelgeuse, who played with Icarus. Turns out, their testimonies cross-verified it.”

“Oh… I see.”

Naturally, Antares’ words caused a stir among the executives.

“Wait, so they’ve secured two out of the four solo rankers as their mercenaries?”

“Isn’t Raksha also a solo ranker?”

“The 2nd place has a clan too, it’s just small.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Even if we ignore Laura, if they’ve secured Icarus too, things could get really dangerous later.”

And after a while, although there were still some opposing opinions, they were more about suggesting we try to recruit him again.

“Think about it, even during the last central zone invasion, Justice Clan supported Icarus like that.”

“Oh, that’s true.”

“Hmm…”

Though it was somewhat accidental, all the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. Most of the opposing members switched to support or neutrality, and the plan to assassinate Icarus officially began.

==========

Of course, it’s called an “assassination plan,” but everyone present knew that a Commander, i.e., a player, couldn’t inflict a certain level of pain or harm on NPCs or other superhumans. So, the actual goal was to terrorize Icarus’ base, halt his progress, and eliminate him from future competition. Alternatively, they could use such threats to break his mercenary contract with Justice Clan and form an alliance with him instead.

However, there was one small discord caused by the above content…

“But if that’s the case, isn’t it a terror plan rather than an assassination plan…?”

“What…?”

“Oops.”

Because of this minor issue pointed out by someone, the start of the plan wasn’t about drafting detailed operational strategies but rather…

“Anyway, targeting the Commander still counts as assassination, right?”

“Bro, you’re not even killing anyone, so how is it assassination? By that logic, traffic accidents would be called traffic assassinations.”

“Really?”

“···Sometimes that’s just how it is.”

“Let’s go!”

···

Given that their core identity was simply being game users, they began to waste precious time just deciding on the name of the plan.

After about 10 minutes, they finally changed the name of the “Assassination Plan” to the more stylish “Special Operation Plan.”

“Now that’s more like it, feels cooler.”

“···.”

Ignoring Antares’ gaze, which seemed to look down on them with pity, they started to carefully lay out the actual plan.

==========

And, given Humanity’s tendency to be shady yet oddly realistic, as always, instead of stepping forward themselves this time, they decided to use external clan members or sub-clans to carry out the operation.

Moreover, unlike before, they didn’t plan to mobilize a large fleet but instead intended to carry out a surprise attack solely through ‘Superhumans.’

They planned to secretly deploy a small elite team, including at least 10 SSS-Class Superhumans, to take over the base.

However, here, a problem they either didn’t anticipate or knowingly ignored raised its head.

—————————————-

<♡Humanity Mercenary Meeting Place♡>

-[So, we need your help.]

-[Do these kids know there are SSS-Class Superhumans there?] (Clan Manager)

-[···So, you want us to send our Superhumans to terrorize a base with at least 7 SSS-Class Superhumans?] (Mercenary1)

-[Yes, that’s correct.] (Clan Manager)

-[Honestly, are you just trying to clean house this time?] (Mercenary2)

-[LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL] (Mercenary3)

—————————————-

The issue was that external members were showing a very negative reaction to the requests made by the Humanity Clan through their managers.

But, looking at it differently, their reaction was entirely justified.

Last time, even with 5 people bringing their best Superhumans and elite fleets, they got wiped out, and to make matters worse, a large pirate fleet was waiting to finish them off.

There were even stories of a user losing their precious SSS-Class Superhuman and having to pay a hefty price to recover the others.

Given that, it was only natural for them to oppose Humanity’s plan, not wanting to suffer the same fate.

And the leaders of the sub-clans felt the same.

—————————————-

<A Beautiful World with Humanity>

<Let's all use proper and kind words>

<Notice: Clans that suffered significant damage in the southern region will receive compensation from the Humanity Clan. Please take note.>

-[Why on earth would you do that?]

-[It’s a relief they’re not deploying the fleet, but the pirate fleets are still stationed there.]

-[I heard the Pirate Empress personally stationed the fleet, saying she won’t let those who backstabbed Icarus, who supported the faction, get away with it.]

-[Doesn’t that make infiltration a nightmare?]

-[Damn, with that gravity radar at level 6 or 7, even hiding in assault pods is tough.]

—————————————-

Humanity’s policy of asking for their precious Superhumans, and then what if those Superhumans get blown up—how would they take responsibility for that?

Even before that, shouldn’t they have a plan to prevent them from getting blown up? The reactions were quite intense.

Antares and the executives had to once again spend time pondering how to resolve this situation.

==========

Meanwhile, at the same time, our Icarus…

“Where did Segway go, Gryanarr?”

“Wouldn’t this be faster? It’s a new bio-vehicle I made.”

“Gigigi, isn’t this a cool beast? Hop on my plump back, gigi.”

“···.”

Gryanarr was feeling a strange sense of gam- as he looked at the bizarrely modified femi-Kanfu—or rather, something indescribable, whether it was a cocoon or a bear-like creature.