"Follow this highway north for thirty kilometers and we'll reach Northsen. It's the northernmost city under the Alliance's jurisdiction. Once we cross the border from there, it's only a day's journey to the Lost Lands." In the passenger seat, Emily held a map, estimating their remaining travel time.
After the group of suspected genetic researchers had departed, Que Tang had located her hidden cache of supplies. After loading everything into the vehicle, the two of them had driven for two days almost without rest, taking turns at the wheel. Finally, as the second day drew to a close, they were on the verge of arriving at the Alliance's northernmost frontier.
"If we're going to cross the border, we need to find the contact person in Northsen who coordinates with the defectors," Que Tang said, pulling the car into a gas station and stopping beside a pump. She stepped out, inserted the nozzle into the tank, and then leaned down to look inside the car. "I'm going to the restroom." She waited for Emily’s nod before heading toward the distant facilities.
Emily watched her retreating figure until she vanished around a corner. Immediately, she twisted the face of the watch on her left wrist, revealing a sophisticated mechanism beneath, which featured a uniquely shaped indentation. She then pulled a necklace she always wore from beneath her collar and pressed it into the slot. As the two pieces clicked together, the watch emitted a soft beep. Lifting her wrist, she spoke into the watch: "AG1806, heading toward Northsen." After a second beep, she promptly detached the necklace and snapped the watch face back to its original state.
Que Tang happened to return just then. She stowed the nozzle, paid in cash, and climbed back into the car. "Tank's full. Let's hit the road."
An hour later, they entered the city.
Unlike other major Federation cities, Northsen—being so close to rebel territory—was teeming with patrolling guards. The city also housed the Federation's largest military base on Earth.
Que Tang drove straight to the West District. This was the most lawless area of the city, where many defectors arrived each year, waiting for an opportunity to slip into the Lost Lands.
Though the Federation was well aware of this, they were powerless to stop it. They had no choice but to deploy extra guards to maintain order, but the defectors also understood the Federation's limits. Consequently, they rarely caused trouble within the city, maintaining a state of grim equilibrium between the two sides.
Que Tang navigated the winding streets with familiarity, eventually pulling into a dark alley and parking at the curb.
"We'll rest here today and head out of the city tomorrow," Que Tang explained from the driver's seat.
"Do you have a lead on the contact?" Despite the long journey, Emily showed no signs of fatigue, observing her with a stern, humorless gaze.
Que Tang remained silent.
The two of them exited the car and climbed a dark stairwell into a residential building. Behind a dim counter, a clerk whose features were obscured by the shadows asked only for the number of rooms and the duration of their stay. After the bill was settled, he handed them the keys and gestured vaguely toward the rooms before ignoring them entirely.
They navigated the gloomy corridors until they reached their door and stepped inside.
"I'm afraid the noble Excellency Vrataski will have to endure staying in such a dilapidated inn," Que Tang remarked, looking at the aged furnishings. She raised an eyebrow at a prominent stain on the bedsheets, her tone devoid of any real sincerity. She walked to the window and pushed it open to look outside. To the right was a rusted fire escape, and below was a cluttered mess of street vendors.
"What are you looking at?" Emily's voice appeared right behind her.
"Nothing." Que Tang pulled the window shut. "Rest here for a bit. I'm going to head out and see what information I can gather." Turning around, she realized Emily was standing almost flush against her. She immediately took a step to the left to escape the other woman's personal space.
Emily stared at her without a word.
Que Tang looked away. "You haven't slept in days. Get some rest. It'll be your turn to keep watch tonight." With that, she grabbed the keys and left, ignoring the slight curl at the corner of Emily's mouth.
Que Tang left the inn and got back into the car, driving aimlessly until she reached the Great Library in the East District. After parking in a secluded spot, she blended into the crowd and entered the building. She bypassed countless bookshelves before arriving at the inquiry desk, where a young female librarian was organizing books.
"Excuse me, could you tell me where the books by Agatha Doyle are located?" Que Tang asked the librarian with a smile.
The librarian paused her work, staring coldly at a virtual screen before questioning Que Tang. "Which book are you looking for?"
"I'm looking for *Anna from Finland Station*."
"Category seven, Ancient Literature." The librarian pulled out a slip of paper with '742.650' written on it and handed it over. "This is the call number."
"Thank you." Que Tang offered her thanks and walked naturally toward the shelves. Locating the Category Seven section, she scanned the range of numbers until she found 742. She crouched down to search book by book, finally finding 742.650. She pulled it out, opened it, and found a metal card tucked inside.
After Que Tang departed, Emily walked to the window of their room and opened it. A silhouette immediately darted inside, sitting on the windowsill to face her.
"Meow~" Little Mushroom blinked.
Emily stroked its head. "Good work."
Little Mushroom rubbed its head against her palm.
***
Que Tang’s hand slipped, and the book accidentally fell. As she crouched to pick it up, she seamlessly hid the card in her sleeve. "This isn't the book I wanted. I'll go ask again," she muttered to herself. She replaced the book and turned away from the shelf.
She walked out of the library with a pace that seemed leisurely but was actually quite swift. Suddenly, she ducked behind a nearby statue. She observed a man who had followed her out; his expression was grim as he looked left and right. Realizing he had lost her, he immediately raised his wrist to speak into his watch. After a brief communication, the man headed off in the direction Que Tang had originally come from.
Once the man was about three hundred meters away, Que Tang stepped out from behind the statue as if nothing had happened and headed toward a park to the rear-left. She pulled up her hood and quickly merged with the strolling pedestrians, slowly moving toward the park's other exit. Just as she was about to leave, she saw the man who had been tracking her standing right at the entrance. Their eyes met.
"She's here!" the man shouted, charging forward.
Que Tang immediately bolted.
A chase ensued through the park. Que Tang carefully dodged obstacles, intentionally weaving left and right to use the crowds to block her pursuer's line of sight.
At the next exit, she turned unhesitatingly onto the main street. Seeing an alleyway between two buildings across the road, she dashed recklessly through the traffic.
The man and his cohorts followed. Seeing her move, they split into four pairs, heading in different directions to cut her off.
Not long after Que Tang ran into the alley, the man caught up.
"Impossible. How could I be exposed the moment I stepped into Northsen?" Que Tang thought grimly. She didn't notice a dark shadow leaping down from above until it was too late; she instinctively caught it in her arms.
Que Tang’s running slowed from a sprint to a jog, finally coming to a dead stop. Still clutching the object in her arms, she stood rooted to the spot.
"Found you." At the man's shout, pursuers surrounded her from all sides. They thought they had the advantage of numbers, but in the next second, the man was dumbfounded.
Que Tang snatched up a metal rod from the ground. Like a baseball player, she swung it with a single motion, sending one man flying. She began walking toward the leader, her face masked with murderous intent.
The man froze for two seconds before frantically pulling out a stun gun. Just as he aimed to fire, Que Tang suddenly appeared before him. She grabbed his hand and snapped his wrist with brute force.
The man’s agonized scream instantly echoed through the alley.
Que Tang picked up the stun gun and used it to knock him unconscious. Standing amidst the pile of downed men, she silently grabbed the heavy weight perched on her shoulder and held it in front of her face.
"Little Mushroom... do you have a death wish?" Que Tang asked with a pleasant, terrifying smile.
"Meow~ Host, I am so overjoyed to be reunited with you, how could I possibly have a death wish?" Little Mushroom looked at her with teary eyes.
"Is. That. So?" Que Tang asked through gritted teeth. "Then why did you transfer me into this mission without my consent? Is there no conspiracy here?"
"Awoo! Host, you must believe me! This was all caused by a glitch in the central control system. My loyalty to you is as clear as the heavens and as bright as the sun and moon, meow~" In its desperation, Little Mushroom even started making dog noises.
"Loyalty?" Que Tang, her face full of murderous intent despite her "moe" smile, slowly spat out the word. "What is loyalty? Can I eat it? I don't know if you have loyalty, but I know for a fact you spend all day坑ing me. So..." Her expression shifted, her tone becoming cold and stern. "Speak. Why was I suddenly sent into this mission?"
"Meow~ It really is a problem with the central control system. Word is the system was hit by an alien virus, causing the programming to go haywire. As a result, all hosts currently on missions had them terminated, and those not on missions were deployed immediately. It really isn't my conspiracy, Great One!" Little Mushroom’s expression was so sincere it was a wonder it didn't drop into a kowtow.
Based on her painful experience of being deceived countless times, Que Tang had finally learned not to fully trust it. "Forget it, I'm already in the mission. Speaking of which, what kind of ghost mission is this? I had amnesia the moment I arrived?"
"Meow-wu, that was also a 404 Error. The shock during transmission was stronger than expected, causing the host to suffer temporary memory loss. Because of that, you and I were sent to different locations. Meow~ I went through untold hardships, relying on our super-link to find you from afar. Isn't the host moved? Although this point is very important, repeating it three times would look like I'm padding the word count, so I won't. But the host must believe my heart is true." Little Mushroom spoke with utmost gravity.
Que Tang stared at it coldly, saying nothing.
It blinked, ignoring her icy scrutiny, and continued to act cute. "The host has surely experienced the nature of this mission by now. Currently, you are playing the female lead of a mecha novel."
"I know that. But this novel..." Que Tang’s lip twitched. "The female supporting character and the female lead are rivals on the surface, but behind the scenes, they're actually involved. Am I supposed to deliver myself into the supporting character's mouth to fulfill her wishes this time?"
"No, no. The host's mission this time is to help the female supporting character clear all obstacles on her political path and help her become the Federation Prime Minister. Meow~"
"Is this a No-CP novel?" Que Tang asked after a moment of silence.
"Meow... the male lead of this book and the protagonist you are playing eventually become partners on the battlefield. Meanwhile, the female supporting character has a thousand tangled, inseparable threads of rivalry with you..."
"You don't have to make it sound so ambiguous," Que Tang said with disgust. "In short, I just need to follow that supporting character—who might sell me out at any moment—into outer space, right? It claims to be a mecha novel, but mechas only appeared at the very beginning. So far, it's just been a long road trip of driving and running away. The author is really padding this."
"Meow~ You have to escape first. Driving a giant robot would be too obvious. Once you get to space, you can pilot them however you like."
"Let's go back, or the supporting character will get suspicious," Que Tang muttered, turning to walk out of the alley.
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Transmigrated as the Mary Sue: The Villainess's Revenge System | Chapter 75 | The System's Return | Novela.app | Novela.app
