Not long after, Loren returned to the manor.
"Boss, that woman is awake. She's going crazy in there and keeps asking to see you. No matter what we say, it's useless."
Seeing Loren coming back, Tifa hurried over and told him about Viper's situation.
Hearing this, Loren frowned.
It had only been a short time, and Viper had actually taken the initiative to ask to see him—and seemed determined to do so. This was very abnormal.
He didn't believe Viper would be conquered so easily by him or would take the initiative to throw herself into his arms and insist on being with him.
This woman wasn't afraid of death before—how could she surrender so easily?
When things are this abnormal, something must be wrong. This matter probably isn't that simple!
"I understand. All of you, leave. No one may enter without my permission."
Loren walked to the door of the room where Viper was imprisoned and spoke calmly.
"Yes!" Tifa and 2B nodded in response and stopped moving forward.
Loren pushed open the door and walked straight in.
In the room, Viper was tied to an iron stool—no one knew who had bound her.
The technique was very artistic; it was clearly bondage.
Because Tifa and 2B thought Viper was too noisy, they had gagged her.
When Viper saw him enter, she immediately started whimpering, looking very anxious.
Loren stepped forward and tore off the tape covering her mouth.
"Let me go back quickly—there's no time left! If I don't return to the base before midnight, I'm done for!"
Viper said anxiously as the tape was ripped away, a look of fear on her face.
It seemed that failing to return to Hydra's secret base on time was worse than death.
"Are you kidding me? You're my prisoner now. Do you really think I'll let you go so easily?"
"You captured me just to make me submit to you, didn't you? I'm willing to submit now."
"…What?"
"Wait—didn't you say before that you wouldn't surrender even if I killed you? Why the sudden change of heart?"
"I did say that. But you didn't kill me—you imprisoned me. If that's how it's going to be, then I'm willing to surrender."
"No, I'm a little confused. So… I want you to submit, so I might as well kill you? But if I don't kill you and just imprison you instead, you'll submit?"
"Yes—but only if I return to the base first. As long as I get back, I'll obey you in everything."
"Hold on. Do you think I'm a fool? If I let you go and you return to your base, will you even care about me anymore?"
"I, Ophelia, swear by my true name: I will never deceive you. If I do, may I fall into hell and suffer forever!"
"Your oath means nothing to me. You'd better offer something of real value—like this: Why are you so terrified of not making it back?"
"If you're willing to tell me the truth… maybe I'll actually let you go."
Loren sneered and didn't agree to Viper's request.
When Viper heard this, she gritted her teeth and steeled herself.
She knew that if she didn't tell the truth now, she'd never leave this place.
Just thinking about missing the deadline sent a look of horror across her face.
"Because if I don't get back to the base before midnight… I'll be worse than dead!"
"Oh? What kind of fate is worse than death?" Loren's interest grew.
"When I joined Hydra, Dr. Zola implanted something in my head.
If I'm away from the base for more than 72 hours and don't return in time, my skull feels like it's being pierced by red-hot nails—excruciating pain, worse than dying.
So please—either kill me now… or let me go. I'll do anything for you!"
"…He implanted a controller inside your head?"
When Loren heard Viper's words, his eyes lit up, as if the door to a new world had been opened to him.
Seeing his expression, Viper's heart couldn't help but skip a beat, and he had a bad premonition.
"As expected of the Hydra organization! When it comes to cultivating member loyalty, they're truly unique and way ahead of the curve!
Why didn't I think of that? Coercion and inducement by external forces will eventually become ineffective.
It's far better to tinker with the brain directly and eliminate all chances of rebellion at the root. Not bad—really good!"
Loren muttered to himself, and then a crazy smile appeared on his face.
Seeing him like this, Viper's expression grew more and more terrified.
"What do you want to do?!"
"Hehe, it's nothing. I'm just going to perform a small operation on you. Don't worry—it won't hurt."
After saying that, Loren raised his hand and struck Viper's neck, knocking him unconscious again.
"Alice, scan her body immediately to see what's inside her head."
"Yes!"
"X-ray scanning initiated…"
Upon hearing Loren's order, Alice immediately activated the X-ray scanning device on the anti-gravity drone.
In just a dozen seconds, it had clearly scanned Viper's body.
Ding. Scan complete. Analyzing results… Results ready.
"Report to the boss: this woman has a micro-discharge device implanted in her brain, connected directly to her neural pathways.
Moreover, the device contains an encrypted signal receiver that constantly listens for a specific radio frequency.
If the signal isn't received for more than 72 hours, the device triggers a discharge, stimulating her brain nerves.
This causes cerebral vasospasm and disrupts blood flow—which is why she's been suffering from severe headaches."
"Embedding a micro-discharge device directly into the brain? That's a truly insane method."
"Although extreme, it's undeniably effective for ensuring obedience."
"Well, you're right—the method is good. It's given me an excellent idea. First, disable this device. I want to repurpose it for my own use." Loren paused, then said decisively.
"Boss, the signal receiver is encrypted. Entering the wrong password will cause a massive current surge, instantly frying the brain. Disabling it carries significant risk," Alice warned.
"It might be risky for others—but not for you. With your computing power, cracking the password shouldn't be difficult. Let's get started!"
"Thank you for your confidence, boss. Initiating password decryption…"
Ding. Decryption successful. Discharge device disarmed.
"Excellent. Send her to the secret laboratory. It's time to begin my first human transformation and enhancement project."
Loren's face twisted into a manic grin, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
Until now, he'd only upgraded and modified robots—never actual humans.
Viper would make the perfect test subject. Once this precedent was set and he gained hands-on experience,
he could create an army of enhanced humans to serve him in the future.
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