"What took you so long?" Dayle chuckled as Arthur lifted the chimera, barely allowing him to crawl out from under it. Once he got to his feet, Dayle realized something was off. "Wait, no. How'd you guys get here so fast? How long has it been?"

"It's been forty minutes since we separated," Arthur reported while giving Dayle a worried glance. "Are you alright?"

"Forty minutes?" Dayle let out a whistle of shock. It took about ten to fifteen minutes to get to the experiment chamber. That meant he had been playing hide-and-seek with the Nexus for roughly twenty minutes. "Wow. I've been so tense; I didn't even notice the time pass." He then glanced at Raines. "Did the main force catch up?"

Raines nodded. "They were even faster than we thought. Jack sent an elite force ahead of the rest. They got here ten minutes ago and raised hell. We took advantage of the distraction to slip into the west wing."

"West Wing..." Dayle recalled Queen's information. "That's the armory, right? Did you get anything?"

Arthur and Raines shared a look, and then looked at Dayle with equally wretched grins. The rascals had torn the place bare. They would have taken even more, but unfortunately, their gauntlets had limited space. Considering they still needed to explore another base, the agents elected to leave some space.

Dayle, recognizing their grins, revealed one of his own. "That's the way!" Circumstances like these were why Dayle, early on, decided he would never work in regular law enforcement. The young man was one to seize the ultimate personal benefit during any mission. That trait put him in trouble early on, but luckily, his new workplace was much more flexible. They did not care what Dayle did during the mission if it was completed successfully.

Fortunately, Dayle's teams' 98% completion rate spoke for itself.

"By the way, where's Queen?"

"Ah!" Dayle looked at the shattered helmet on the ground. The FiendBody skill was too overbearing. The helmet's electronics could not withstand the explosive radiation and shortcircuited. Luckily, the armor Dayle wore did not contain any electronics so it did not get damaged. "She should be behind that door." He pointed at the massive door. "But you guys will have to contact her." Wearing a wry smile, he jerked his chin at the helmet. "It's toast."

Raines looked at the helmet, and then at Dayle. "Seems there's more to your skill than we thought." She adjusted the rifle on her back, and then said with a smile, "Can't wait to see it in action."

"Hehe, I'll leave you speechless." Even though Dayle said that his brows were tinged with worry. FiendBody might appear strong on the surface, but it was too risky. Once he burned his stats, he would enter a weakened state while waiting for the stats to replenish. Imagine if right after using the skill, he ran into another powerful foe? Sure, he could replenish the stats with cores, but FiendBody still required a lot of work before it could be considered a viable combat option.

Raines, oblivious, to Dayle's thoughts, chuckled and then said with a teasing smile, "Heh, can't wait."

"Guys, I got her." Arthur said, interrupting his teammates' banter. "Queen said she'll open the door in a few seconds." He then looked at Dayle with concern. "She sounded urgent though. Do you think she's in trouble?"

Dayle shook his head. "I tried my best to lure out the bots in there. I don't know if any remained. But look on the bright side; if she answered, I don't think it can be that bad, right?"

"Yeah. You are right." Arthur visibly relaxed, as he agreed with Dayle's assessment.

Whoosh~

Fortunately, FireRain did not have to wait much longer for answers as the door opened with a hiss. Dayle took a step behind his teammates and then raised his pistol. However, he then put it down when he saw Queen waving from beyond the open door.

"Hey hey." Dayle whistled when he saw the fallen bots. "Looks like you handled your business."

Queen's brows twitched when she looked at the fallen chimera and the crawling bots. "Nothing compared to you. Any reason you're leaving those guys alive?"

Dayle chuckled and then said with a cheeky grin. "Don't want the experience points. We have a level limited quest coming up in a few days."

Queen nodded. She had experienced enough level-limit quests to understand FireRain's peculiar actions. She then looked at Raines and Arthur. To her surprise, their armor did not show any signs of significant damage. "I'm glad you guys are okay. I was worried when we heard the gunshots. Seems there were more Nexus bots than we bargained for."

Raines, however, shook her head. "Nothing we couldn't handle. Thanks for the concern though. We appreciate it."

Queen smiled, but then exclaimed when she remembered the eggs. "Hey! You guys, come see this!"

Dayle and the team followed the excited Queen as she narrated everything she'd read about the 'metal eggs.' She then revealed her plan to steal a few for themselves before handing the rest in for research. However, she was not sure how to smuggle them past security.

Dayle wore a wry smile as he listened to Queen's information. In the end, he sighed and then looked at his teammates. "Ultimately it's up to you guys. If we help Queen, we must abandon the V.O.K base search. We can't afford to die and drop the eggs."

Arthur shook his head. "No, we can still do both."

"Oh?"

Arthur raised his gauntlet. "I can call Dee and ask her to meet Queen outside the gates. She can ask Vega to smuggle them in for us. That way, we can still carry out the base search."

"Oh!" Raines' eyes shone as she slapped the young man's back. "That's my boy! Brilliant idea." She then looked at Dayle. "What do you think? Doable, right?"

Dayle's eyes, however, were red with jealous rage as he glared at Arthur. "Huhuhu... So, Art. You're the type to backstab your best friend."

"Huh?"

"Damn it! When did you get Dee's number, huh!?"

Arthur blinked. "Uh... I do not think that is the most important thing to worry about right now."

Raines, however, took full joy in Dayle's pain. "Huhu, could it be you're the only one who doesn't have Dee's number? Hehehe. I guess she's learned some disaster-prevention methods."

"You—" Dayle swallowed the curses that rose in his throat. He took a second to calm himself and then looked at Queen. "As you heard, we're partnered with a local smuggler in Kudan. We can get them to smuggle in the eggs for a fee. I don't know the exact amount, but our partner, Dee should be able to inform you should you choose to meet." Dayle looked at his teammates. "We would have done this ourselves, but we need to carry out a mission of our own and can't afford to risk losing the eggs if we die."

Queen looked at Dayle. Normally, she would not trust someone else with something so valuable. However, first and foremost, she had very limited options available to her, and secondly, something about Dayle just made her believe he would hold up the sky for her if she asked. Despite this being their first meeting, she could not bring up an iota of mistrust towards him.

Frankly, it was scary.

"I can't carry them." Queen shook her head. "I have to report to Jack when he gets here. Once he realizes their value, he will demand to see my inventory to make sure I didn't steal any."

Dayle frowned. "He can do that?"

Dayle did not know much about gaming, but from his research, he discovered that asking someone to reveal their inventory was one of the most intrusive and rude demands in gaming. A gamer's inventory was private because it usually contained items they did not want to be revealed to the public. It could be quest-related, or something they looted. Either way, the contents, for the gamer's safety should not be revealed.

Queen nodded. "Unfortunately, it's one of the downsides of being a scout or spy in a raid. We're often asked to reveal our inventories. Eventually, you get used to it, and don't bring along anything you can't afford to be seen by others."

Dayle fell into thought, pondering how to tackle this situation.

At this point, Raines held up her hand. "Hey, we were always planning to dip halfway through, anyway. How about one of us takes the eggs back to Kudan while the remaining explore the base?"

Dayle's eyes lit up. "That! Let's do that." He paused and then said with a triumphant grin. "I'm the only one who doesn't have Dee's number, so I'm definitely staying. So, it's up to you both. Who's going?"

Raines' expression turned ugly. "How in the hell do you always manage to make everything work in your favor?"

"Who knows? Maybe lady luck loves me?" Dayle grinned and then waved his hands. "Alright, both of y'all decide who's coming with me."

'Tch.' Raines clucked her tongue and then raised her fist as she turned to Arthur. "I'll Rock-Paper-Scissors you for it."

Arthur nodded and then held out his hand. "Rock-paper-scissors."

Arthur chose rock, while Raines went with scissors, causing her brows to scrunch in despair.

Out of desperation, Raines belatedly yelled, "Best two out of three!" Thankfully, Arthur went along with her plea. "Rock-paper-scissors!" Unfortunately, Arthur's rock once again crushed her scissors. "Ugh! What kind of person doesn't change their choice in the second round?"

"Someone who knows his partner's stubbornness." Arthur laughed as he looked at his fist. "Well, since I won, I suppose the right to choose is mine." To Raines' shock, Arthur then said, "I'll return to Kudan with the eggs. You two can go explore." However, he then held out his hand and demanded, "Dayle, your revolvers, and Raines, your rifle. I'll be taking those with me."

"My boy, Art!" Raines jumped with joy and then hugged the young man. If it weren't for their helmets, she would have given him a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you!" Raines said as she removed her rifle and then handed it to Arthur. "Take good care of her."

Dayle, however, snorted as he handed his revolvers to the youth. "I know I said ladies love a gentleman, but you shouldn't do it at my expense. I can't believe you would let me go into an undisclosed location with this wild woman without supervision."

Raines' brow rose at Dayle's provocative words. "What's that? Wild woman? Would you like this wild woman to go wild on you right now?"

Dayle shivered. "Sorry. I misspoke." Having confirmed the team's movement, Dayle turned to Queen. "There you have it. Art will take the eggs back to Kudan." He paused, and then added, "Add us to your friends' list so we can let you know when to come to pick it up."

"Ah, rather, you can just add Arthur," Raines interrupted. She sneered at Dayle and then continued, "Art's the one handling the eggs anyway. We wouldn't want to force you to add more friends than necessary."

The Friends List was one aspect of gaming that was split down the middle. Roughly half added people indiscriminately to their list. It did not matter if they only spent a single mission with someone. The other half treated their Friends List like a private hub of their close online friends. For such people, asking to be let into their Friends List felt intrusive.

As a result, rather than ask, most gamers just sent Friend Requests to the people they liked. Whether the other party accepted or not would then be left up to fate. This way, the awkwardness of a frontal rejection could be avoided.

Raines was not sure which of the parties Queen belonged to. She did not feel comfortable asking a high-leveled player to add her as a Friend. Many would interpret that as wanting to mooch off Queen. Also, and perhaps more importantly, she did not want Dayle to get the contacts of a beautiful woman. She had no desire to deal with the inevitable drama and repercussions.

"Ah, yes. You can just add Arthur," Dayle seconded. He maintained a thin smile, but his heart bled. Damn it. Why did he insult Raines? That woman's vengeance was always swift and painful.

"Pfft. You guys are pretty tight." Queen chuckled as she observed Dayle's sullen expression and Raines' triumphant smile. She then looked at Dayle and said, "I like your team, so I'll add you all. I have a feeling we'll work together soon enough. Besides, you can call me if you have any questions."

"Haha, yes! To future collaborations." Dayle laughed and then quickly went through the process of adding Queen as a friend. When everything was completed, he looked at Arthur. "Take the eggs and get moving. We'll use the chaos to slip away." He then looked at Queen. "Sorry, we can't stay longer. We need to disappear before Jack gets here. Will you be able to handle things here?"

Queen revealed a brilliant smile. "Just who do you think I am? I've been dealing with people like Jack since I was a child." She paused and then added, "More importantly, something been's bothering me for a while."

"Oh? What's that?"

Queen pointed at Dayle's head. "What happened to your helmet? And how are you still fine after so long?"

Dayle tapped his chin. "Ah. I forgot to put it back on. Eh..." Dayle hesitated, unsure of how to phrase his next few sentences. Eventually, he sighed and said, "I unlocked a weird constitution. I'm immune to the radiation."

"Whoa—"

"But, it's a secret. So, please don't tell anyone."

Queen nodded. "Don't worry about it. There are all sorts of people with secret, hidden abilities. I won't tell anyone about yours. It can be your trump card in a big fight one day."

Dayle smiled. "Thanks."

Boom!

An explosion suddenly rocked the building, causing the ground to tremble.

"That was close." Arthur urgently reported. "We need to get going before the others make it into the facility."

Queen nodded and then looked at the trio. "Good luck, you guys."

Arthur slung a rucksack containing the eggs over his shoulder and then said, "Thanks for the help, Queen. We will make sure to repay this favor someday." With those words, he dashed out of the room.

Dayle watched Arthur disappear into the capsule forest, and then looked at Queen. "Keep in touch," he said with a grin and then ran with Raines into the capsule forest.

Queen chuckled as she watched the duo. "Of course I will. You still have my egg."

Roughly fifteen minutes later, Jack Rifle and an elite team walked into the chamber, their scarred armor revealing hints of a bitter fight outside. Thankfully, they emerged victoriously. The Nexus would no longer plague adventurers in this area.

Jack's sharp eyes immediately noticed the missing eggs. "What happened? What are those?"

Queen obediently reported everything she knew about the eggs, and then shared the data with Jack. There was only one difference in her information. She claimed the lost eggs were transported to the motherbase a few weeks ago because of the increased human activity.

Jack, not one to believe in mere words, checked Queen's inventory and then crosschecked her story against the logs in the data files. Fortunately, Queen's tampering went undetected, causing Jack to believe her story.

Jack scrunched his nose in anger. If they had been a few weeks early, then he could have taken one or two of these things for himself. Who knew how much each would be worth later down the line? As it stood, however, there were only two samples. He could not justify taking either for himself.

The expedition leader sighed and then shook his head. No use crying over spilled milk. Even without the eggs, the expedition was a smashing success. The base's armory held a lot of weapons and vehicles that could be sold for a tidy profit.

"Good work, Queen." Jack suppressed his regret and praised Queen. Without her pathfinding abilities, the expedition would have lost men to the city's monsters. "You will receive your payment when we get back to Kudan."

Queen nodded. "Thanks."

"Hey what happened to that fucker that was with you!?" The power of grudges was scary. Queen looked at Gunroy, whose sneer-filled eyes shone through his clear-view helmet. "Don't tell me he croaked! Ha! That sissy was all talk and no bite."

Jack's eyes immediately narrowed as he looked at Queen. "That's odd. You didn't mention them in your report? Why's that?"

Queen inwardly swore at Gunroy. Damn bastard ruined everything. However, Queen, if nothing else was especially quick-witted. Adopting a derisory smirk, she cursed, "Don't remind me. One of them slipped and fell from a vine into a herd of shiverhorns. The others stupidly jumped down to save him. Well, you can imagine the rest. Thanks to those fools I had to waste my oculars and a perfectly fine drone."

Jack frowned. He did not like it. Something about the situation stunk, but he could not put his hand on it. Normally, he would have demanded to see the body, but shiverhorns famously froze and then shattered their prey. There wouldn't be traces either way.

"Haha! I knew that trash was in over his head." Gunroy guffawed. "Low-levels should act like low-levels and stick to beginner zones."

Perhaps influenced by Gunroy's words, Jack relaxed and then nodded. "Indeed, they seemed to be complete beginners. It's no wonder they still rush to save each other like that." His suspicions allayed, Jack smiled and then said, "Well, I have to supervise the clean-up. Queen, will you be staying or going?"

Queen laughed and patted her gauntlet. "As you know, information is my currency. I need to go turn this in before someone else does." She waved at Jack and then said, "Remember to call me when you get back!" With those words, Queen left the facility.

Several minutes later, Queen breathed a sigh of relief as she sped across the wasteland. "That was close. Gunroy, that bastard. Almost ruined everything."