Eastern region, organization headquarters.
"So you're saying a strange group claiming to be from Earth showed up near the southern border?" asked the organization leader, Rimuto, with a calm tone.
"Yes," replied Eliza's proxy, a small old man curled up inside a black robe. "They used strange weapons that could kill Yoma, and they even had flying cities."
"…" Rimuto closed his eyes, silently assessing the credibility of this report.
The organization had been founded by a rival nation of the Asarakams. In order to create soldiers capable of fighting them, the organization ran Claymore experiments across the continent, trying to develop stable warriors that could close the combat gap.
The war on this burning continent wasn't looking good. Asarakams were basically cheat codes in physical form—over 3 meters tall and capable of transforming into even more powerful monsters. The nation backing the organization was no match.
Warriors made from Asarakam flesh were unstable. They constantly consumed energy, and the organization's burden was enormous. The Claymores were currently the most reliable fighters, though they still risked awakening.
It was hard. Rimuto sighed inwardly. "So No. 17 said the Earthlings landed on the continent riding a sky city?"
"Yes!"
The organization officials whispered among themselves. They couldn't believe something so absurd.
"Leader, should we send the Cleaners over?" The Cleaners were Yoma and awakened beings who worked for the organization. They were used to wipe out villages that didn't pay and to reduce the continent's population regularly, sometimes capturing young girls for the organization's use.
"Let me think." The sudden appearance of Earthlings put Rimuto in a tough spot. The key thing was, their weapons could harm Yoma. That meant they might work on Asarakams too. As someone entrusted by his nation with this responsibility, Rimuto was loyal to the core. He was willing to sacrifice anything for victory.
Should they wipe out the Earthlings and steal their weapons? Or probe them first, then decide?
Many thoughts raced through Rimuto's mind.
"How many of them are there?"
"Not many, around 40."
"Hmm." Rimuto nodded. "Send the Cleaners nearby first. Watch them for a while. If they're not useful—eliminate them."
"Understood."
Meanwhile, the expedition team hadn't done anything outrageous. They just collected some rocks nearby for analysis and captured a beast for study. Then they stayed in the village and used drones to observe from afar.
Kid had instructed everyone not to wander. This planet wasn't safe. Thankfully, everyone cooperated and stayed in the village, learning the local language from the residents.
Language was necessary. Both wormhole bases might need to rely on this planet for food and water in the future. Since the core planet was closer than Earth, and Earth's current tech made transporting supplies inefficient, it was smarter to source resources here and reserve transport for critical cargo.
With the wormhole staying open, they had no other choice. The wormhole was a shortcut to Earth and couldn't fall into the hands of hostile aliens. That meant Defense Bureau troops stationed here were a must.
Liu A'dou didn't wander either. He focused fully on keeping everyone safe. Even though he was dying to know what kind of creature a Asarakam really was—its flesh could trigger such crazy transformations.
"Kid, I need to talk to you."
An Rong and Sony called Kid down below the Wu Gang. It was quiet there, with no one around to interrupt.
"What is it?" Kid asked curiously.
"Kid, we discovered something. Those Yoma might actually be human." That was the result of the two scientists' research over the past few days.
Liu A'dou already knew. The Yoma on this continent were just people parasitized by Asarakam cells. "So what?"
An Rong was clearly upset by Kid's indifferent response. "What do you mean, 'so what'? That means Yoma aren't monsters. They're just sick people."
"Oh? And what do you plan to do about it?"
"We need more equipment. Maybe we can make a cure and save them," Sony said excitedly. "Those Claymores killed the wrong people. If we have the right tools, we can analyze those parasitic cells and figure out a way to get them out of the human body."
"You want to save them?" Kid clicked his tongue. He knew this was something that would definitely cause a head-on clash with the organization. It had to be handled carefully.
"Of course we do. We can't just stand by and let people die," An Rong added. It was obvious the two of them had already talked this through.
"But we're outsiders. We don't understand them well enough yet. Let's not rush into this," Kid said.
His cautious attitude made the scientists frown. This didn't seem like the decisive Kid they knew. "What are you trying to say, Kid? What's with that tone? Don't you want to save them?"
"Personally, of course I do. But the core planet has its own rules. If we don't handle this carefully, we might end up making enemies for Earth. So we have to be extra cautious. We can't just push our own good intentions on the locals." Liu A'dou thought to himself, 'We're in the same universe. This isn't a case of doing something and just walking away.' If this were a different universe, Liu A'dou wouldn't hesitate to act. Even if someone Started barking about it later, he wouldn't have to deal with it. That was the thing—Liu A'dou was still just a regular guy. He liked pushing his ideas onto others but hated being blamed for it.
"If you agree we should save them, then what's there to hesitate about? We'll save them first. What's more important than life itself?" An Rong said. "Even if they don't appreciate it, we should still do it."
It was a bit like how America spread democracy and freedom across the world—whether small countries wanted it or not, they forced it on them anyway.
An Rong and Sony felt they were rescuing the locals and expected gratitude. But the locals might not want help. Forced aid might actually offend them. They were forcing their values on others. Honestly, most people did that. Liu A'dou was the same—he liked pushing what he thought was right onto others. Superman, Batman, Iron Man, and Captain America all had their own personal codes and hoped everyone else would live by them.
Normal people were the same. Like parents who, thinking it's for their kid's own good, planned out their child's life without asking them. Young people too—they always thought they were right and would go all out trying to convince their peers. That's why there were so many flame wars online.
But values and ways of doing things weren't math or physics. There's no single right answer. Everyone sees things differently. Convincing one person is hard enough—convincing a group is way harder.
That's why Liu A'dou was still weighing the decision—rescue them or not? He was thinking further ahead than the two scientists.
"Kid, say something. If you won't prepare the equipment, I'll file a request myself. The higher-ups will definitely approve it," said An Rong.
She was being naive. The higher-ups weren't just thinking about a few lives. They also had to consider how people on the core planet would view Earthlings in the future. Saving lives might seem like a good thing, but if it caused resentment from the locals, it wouldn't be worth it. They still knew very little about this world or the locals' ideology. The higher-ups weren't going to take that risk.
Yoma were part of the experimental continent. Removing them carelessly could trigger a massive chain reaction, with unpredictable results.
Kid thought it over for a moment, then suddenly relaxed and smiled.