Volume 2 Honoring Robin Chapter 68 How to respond when a subordinate tests your identity? Waiting online, very urgent
The rooftop of the Iceberg Bar is quite lively after dark.
The new owner, Charles, is holding a party here to welcome his "distant friends" and introduce the bar's industry and operating model to the incoming "new manager" Jack Sparrow.
Speaking of which, Kite Man has been having some bad luck since he took over the Iceberg Bar.
It was said that the bar had completed its renovation and was about to open.
But just when the renovation was completed, the League of Assassins attacked Gotham, causing the bar to once again become "battle-damaged", and now it has to be renovated again.
It just so happens that Captain Jack, who has just joined Team K, possesses the powerful talent of "super charm" and it would be unreasonable not to make good use of it.
Feng Kite Man had no previous experience in management and operation. Now that he is rich, he plans to take time out to sue his ex-wife for custody of his son. Naturally, he is happy to have a sociable and trustworthy friend take over and he can hide behind the scenes.
As for Jack, he and his two female friends are new here and need some time to adjust to modern life.
What's more, this is in the "simple-folked" Gotham City. Before officially setting out on the mission, Mason felt that it would be quite appropriate for the three of them to stay in the Iceberg Bar to take care of logistics.
Dr. Harley and her good friend Poison Ivy, who had been strolling around with these "friends from the eighteenth century" for the whole day, were now each holding a microphone and jumping around and singing.
Everyone is happy.
Even Mason, who wasn't here, was very relaxed.
While others were enjoying themselves, Mason was closing the door to the world in an office not far away. He had just sent out the work report of Team K that he had written.
As a super-large organization spanning countless parallel worlds, the Star Society has an independent and mysterious postal system within it that can deliver messages and even items across the world.
But this "organizational benefit" can only be used by the team leader.
After sending the letter, Mason did not go out to enjoy himself. Instead, he assembled his "new toy" on the spot in the Kite Man's office and took out a large box as tall as a person from his suitcase.
On a mechanical stand inside was placed the "Anti-Superman Armor" that Mason brought back from the Batcave.
This thing is in tatters. It is obvious that the master has not repaired it at all since the last "heated exchange" with Dachao. Its condition is so miserable that it can be sent directly to a museum.
Most of its functions have been destroyed, and it remains mostly intact. Even the eye of the heavy black mechanical helmet has a clear fist mark.
This scar shows how heated the "first meeting" between Batman and Superman was.
Mason took a thorough look at the damage to the armor with the rigor that an engineer should have. After a preliminary inspection, the specific information label of the armor popped up:
Bat Armor Anti-Superman Series Prototype
Quality: Epic Engineering/Forged Items·Precision Craftsmanship
Features: Severe damage, Super defense, Super brute force, Thruster flight, Ultra-precision combat assistance, Bat fire control system, Deadly weapon slot [empty]
Producer: Bruce Wayne
Item Description: When Superman was hit by this thing, he actually felt a lot of pain, but he gritted his teeth and didn't say anything.
Tip: The armor's power system and internal suspension system are relatively intact, and its combat assistance and electronic fire control are not damaged. It can be restored to combat status after replacing the external armor and reloading the weapons.
Engineering Lv3 is required to operate this Warframe, and Engineering Lv5 is required to further upgrade the Warframe.
When seeing this prompt, Mason raised his eyebrows. With his current engineering knowledge, he could already use this set of armor, but he had to repair it first.
Just looking at its damaged state you can tell this was a big project.
Mason thought about it, walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, and under the lights of thousands of homes he took out the retro flip phone given to him by Alfu, dialed one of the numbers and put it to his ear.
Ten seconds later, the call was connected, and a deep voice sounded from the other end:
"Who?"
"Mr. Lucius, I'm Mason."
Mason wasted no time and got straight to the point:
"I want to discuss a deal with you. It does not involve business issues, but is just a communication between two engineers. I need a batch of fire control chips for some kind of intelligent individual weapons. Your laboratory has enough capabilities to develop it.
All it really takes is a modified and downgraded version of the fire control chip you use in the Batmobile."
"Well, that's a pretty big ask, Mason."
Mr. Lucius Fox on the other end of the phone was currently testing the effectiveness of an industrial printer in a newly built secret base.
He put the sophisticated earphones in his ears and turned on the recording function. While operating the complicated equipment skillfully, he said:
"You're asking me to sell you the most advanced technology from Wayne Industries' military division, something that's not even in production yet. But given your personal relationship with the actual owner of this company, it's not off the table.
I have not yet found any other company in the industry that designs individual weapons that require such a complex fire control chip, and I am very interested in this.
So I hope we can meet.
I mean, I need to see the blueprints you have in your hand."
"no problem."
Mason nodded and said:
"But I have a small request. You cannot reveal this blueprint to anyone else. Of course, you can load it into the weapon system of the Batsuit as an experimental weapon.
In fact, in addition to this small fire control chip, I have some other needs in these high-tech fields. It would be great if we could achieve long-term cooperation between the two engineers.
How about this.
I will go to your home in two hours and bring the blueprints and the real thing of the smart pistol I developed. Please also bring what I need."
After reaching an agreement with them, Mason returned to his desk, took out some special steel from his bag and began to shape it with magic fire.
The precise shaping after the flame manipulation reached Lv2 saved him the trouble of using molds, and he turned the weak magical ores from the other world into some gun parts like flowing water.
Soon, three Quasar combat pistols that were missing fire control chips were assembled by Mason.
He glanced at the three engineering proficiency prompts, and after discovering that he had not yet upgraded, he patiently began to continue making this advanced pistol and the matching magic engineering pistol bullets.
Occasionally, I would rub a few upgraded flying bombs to change things up.
After obtaining the blueprints of the Batdrone from the Batcave, Mason's explosive gadget's destructive power and movement mode were effectively improved.
Finally, when the ninth Quasar pistol was assembled, a prompt finally lit up in front of Mason:
Successfully completed the production of an excellent quality and outstanding engineering craftsmanship item. The engineering proficiency increased by X40 and is currently at Lv4.
Unlock the higher-level branch blueprints of engineering bombs.
Engineering auxiliary item blueprints unlocked.
The character trait [Skillful Engineer] is upgraded to [Gun Engineer: Improves the production speed and quality of finished products when making weapon-related engineering artifacts]
A whole stack of drawings suddenly appeared on the translucent light screen in front of Mason, especially those engineering aids, which dazzled Mason.
There are also some quite unscientific "black technologies" among them.
For example, these two that Mason is examining...
"'World Enlarger and Reducer' and 'Gravity Well'?"
The young man stroked his chin and looked at the two things in front of him which were very unscientific in every sense. He was very interested but calmed down after taking a glance and finding that the minimum manufacturing level required was Engineering Lv5.
He then turned his attention to the Anti-Superman armor in front of him that was waiting to be transformed and repaired.
The improvement in his engineering level suddenly gave him a very bold idea. Batman had already proved with facts that this anti-Superman armor could not deal with Superman, so it was a failed design.
Maybe I should redesign and make it according to my own needs?
After all, it is the first set of mechanical armor that a 17-year-old can get at this stage of his life. It is understandable that he wants to make it more useful and cooler, right?
The more he thought about it, the more it made sense, so he began to plan to make a set of drawings first.
A few minutes later, Mason put away the nine Quasar pistols and a large number of explosives and bullets he made, and prepared to go to complete the meeting with Mr. Lucius.
Although my engineering is comprehensive, it is not without its shortcomings.
He has noticed that his knowledge is not enough in the field of high-tech. In fact, just looking at the "world amplifier" that was unlocked just now, he knows that this magical knowledge does not conform to the physical laws of this world at all.
It is a kind of "magic technology".
It seems that in terms of chips and electronic systems, I really need to find some external "suppliers".
——
While Mason was planning a major upgrade of his weapons and equipment, in the distant Star Castle, Mr. Hunter just returned to the quaint and quiet office with his sword and saw the letter on the table at a glance.
This made the great mentor raise an eyebrow.
There was no need to pretend to be a man in a field that made him feel at ease, so Mr. Hunter took off his cloak and mask.
While shaking her long silver hair, she took up a handkerchief to wipe the blood stains on her blood-red sword. Judging from the blood dripping from the blade, she must have just completed a dangerous hunt.
"Mason Cooper?"
Ms. Hunter picked up the letter on the table, looked at the signature and narrowed her eyes. She was a little unsure why this guy wrote the letter. After opening it, she found that it was actually a work report.
It is written in a realistic style and divided into three parts to carefully describe all the actions of Team K in the past month.
This includes calculations and plans for the plundering of resources in the Caribbean world and for long-term persistence, while at the same time fulfilling the responsibility of monitoring the base world and truthfully describing the crises occurring in Gotham City and the world as a whole.
The last part records in detail the contact between Team K and Team Hydra.
On the surface, there seems to be nothing wrong.
It is a work summary from a junior employee to his superior. The writing format is very standard, the wording and sentences are plain and unadorned, and the most rare thing is that the content is detailed and not watered down at all.
But who is Ms. Hunter?
The fact that she could rise to the position of one of the three great mentors of the Star Society proved that she was not only powerful in martial arts, but also mentally competent. Therefore, after reading it for the first time, she felt that there was something else in Mason's report.
After making herself a cup of coffee, taking off her combat boots and relaxing in the chair, she read the report carefully again.
Especially the second and third parts.
Soon, Ms. Hunter tasted the flavor.
“On the surface, it seemed that the captain of the Hydra team, Sandstorm, misjudged information during his cooperation with the local natives, which led to the leakage of intelligence, and directly caused the annihilation of the four high-level pioneering teams.
But in fact, Mason implicitly pointed out in the report that Team K played a key role in this.”
The hunter lady took a sip of the hot, bitter coffee, rubbing her cheeks and thinking:
"If we make a bolder guess, we can come to a surprising conclusion. The person who leaked the information was not Sandstorm's indigenous partner, but most likely Mason himself.
This little guy ruthlessly and cold-bloodedly sold the four high-level pioneer teams of the Star Society to the Justice League of his world in exchange for being able to enter the circle of the most advanced power in that world.
Especially when he describes in the last part how he helped Sandstorm escape.
It seemed like he was clearing me of suspicion, but in fact he was telling me that he had left a 'tail' for this matter, so was he actually asking for my instructions on what to do next?
No!
It’s more than that.”
Ms. Hunter put down the work report in her hand.
She stretched out her hand and played with the ends of her hair. After thinking for a few seconds, she whispered:
"Is he testing me? He wants to confirm my identity through my reply. It seems that he already knows that Old K is not absolutely loyal to the Star Club.
Another point."
She picked up Mason's work report again and carefully read the details of Team K's operations in the Caribbean World. As expected, she found important information that was only mentioned in a few words:
"Team K met friends in Caribbean World?"
Ms. Hunter looked at the line of words and roughly understood what Mason wanted to express.
They met Lao K’s former “friend” in Lao K’s exclusive pioneering world, and Lao K had reported this to them before going on his last mission.
This means that Mason already knows the existence of the "Quint Society", and this guy is using this incident to test whether he is a member of the small organization hidden in the Star Society.
"Sly little fellow!"
Lady Hunter snorted.
Annoyed, she crumpled up the work report, which was about to hit her face with abacus beads, and threw it into the trash can beside her. She didn't really like dealing with these bastards who would have ulterior motives even if they gave her a glance.
But now she had to give Mason a response.
Unfortunately, the rookie didn't realize that as a grand mentor, the extent of the "monitoring" he was under was far more than that of a C-level staff member like him.
I am not as free as he is.
We have to find a way to stabilize him first.
After much deliberation, the hunter lady finally made a decision. She opened the drawer, took out a piece of letter paper, wrote a few words on it, and then summoned the messenger of the Star Society to send the reply letter.
After doing all this, she did not rest. Since Mason had already told her the whole story, there should indeed be a safe solution to this matter.
Considering the internal trade fair that was about to begin, Ms. Hunter quickly made a decision.
She closed her eyes and called out to her two companions in the soul connection, her tone turning cold as she said:
"Swordsman! It's been several days since the incident, and your subordinates have caused such a big mess, but you haven't given us an explanation? Are you planning to pretend that the loss of 27 B-class personnel never happened?"
"Shut up! I'm checking!"
A slightly irritable female voice sounded, saying:
"You don't need to intervene."
"You? Investigating? Stop making me laugh."
Mr. Hunter sneered mercilessly:
"Your mind is completely at odds with the word 'investigation'. I think it's better to leave this matter to the more savvy 'Warlock'."
"Do not have time!"
Another gloomy male voice responded:
"You should know that an important moment is coming. I can't spare the time to ask about such trivial matters."
“Is it a small matter to kill nearly one-fifteen of the high-ranking personnel at once? Even though they are all cannon fodder in the hands of Lord Fate, they should not be wasted like this!”
Mr. Hunter sneered at this, took a sip of coffee and said:
"Let's meet, both of you. I found some clues. There is something else behind this matter. It may involve a traitor... That's right.
There's a traitor in our organization!
Again.
It seems like this shit will never stop.”
On the other side, when Mason returned to the Iceberg Bar with a box of micro fire control chips with satisfaction, the first thing he saw was the reply letter placed on the desk.
The signature is Mr. Hunter.
His heart suddenly tightened. He didn't expect that guy to reply so quickly!
Mason picked up the envelope and opened it, feeling quite expectant.
He really wanted to know how the mysterious Mr. Hunter would respond to him? Was she his friend? Or was the letter informing the execution team of the upcoming verdict?
With this thought in mind, Mason looked at the paper.
There was no reply, no confirmation, no threats or scolding.
There was only one word on the huge piece of letter paper:
"read"
From the light strokes of this word, Mason could even imagine the malicious smile on Mr. Hunter's lips when he wrote this word.
She understood and responded to Mason's probing, but she didn't answer at all.
"grass!"
Mason , who was full of expectations but felt fooled, tore the letter into pieces angrily and threw it into the sky.
Codes!
Met an opponent.
This is a high-end game!
