Chapter 330: Chapter 331: Alvis Island’s Research Base
"I didn’t expect such a bustling town here," Vade remarked, sitting in the back of the vehicle, curiously looking back at the town behind them.
"The residents of this town are descendants of a long-extinct kingdom. They live off the land and the sea. This was originally the Chris Pirates’ first stronghold, and now it’s our largest overseas base. Our research base is built here, which is why the kingdom’s resources are heavily invested in this area," Aeridar explained.
"I see. To use such a large island as a research base, with plenty of manpower, funding, and space, that’s truly grand," Vade’s eyes lit up as he looked at the massive fortress-castle ahead. "The research base isn’t built inside this, is it?"
"This was originally the Chris Pirates’ headquarters. As for the research base, you’ll know once we’re inside," Aeridar chuckled.
The castle gates opened. Four members of the Fifth Division guarded the entrance, with barricades in front. The vehicle stopped at the gate because cars were prohibited inside the castle. Everyone got out and entered the castle directly.
"It’s been a long time," Aeridar reminisced, looking at the somewhat familiar castle. This was his first headquarters in the New World, though he hadn’t stayed long.
They passed through the outer fortress’s defenses and entered the inner fortress. Immediately, they felt a significant increase in people. It was bustling with activity, as the inner fortress housed not only guards but also various logistical personnel.
"Captain!"
"Your Majesty!"
"Commander Otto!"
"Commander Oliver!"
As Aeridar and the others entered, greetings immediately resounded. Everyone in the fortress looked at Aeridar with great respect and deference.
Aeridar smiled and waved, acknowledging them.
After all, they were all elite subordinates serving him, and being too arrogant wouldn’t be good. A superior should treat subordinates with both grace and authority; this was something he had learned from reading other novels.
Following Otto, they arrived at a large room in the back of the inner fortress. This room was immense, covering at least a hundred square meters, empty yet guarded by ten members in black suits.
"Open the passage, we need to go down," Otto told the guards. The guards said nothing, simply pressing a button on the control panel beside them.
Ding~
A soft chime. A section of the floor in the center cracked open, revealing a square opening about two meters wide. Then, something slowly rose from below.
"This design is truly ingenious!" Vade’s eyes gleamed.
"Oh my~ a fully enclosed, rail-guided elevator? You actually completed it, excellent work!" Aeridar’s face showed surprise, and he couldn’t help but praise them.
What rose was a four-meter-tall, silver-white metal box, enclosed on the top, bottom, and three sides, with only one side open, though it also had a handrail.
"This was done by those smart guys. Let’s go," Otto shrugged, walked forward, pulled open the handrail, and stepped inside first. Aeridar and the other two followed closely.
Once all four were inside, the handrail lowered.
Ding~
Another soft chime. They felt a slight sensation of weightlessness, then realized they were slowly descending. As the room above vanished, metal walls appeared before them. Seeing this, Vade grew increasingly excited. If just the entrance was this high-tech, then the underground research base must be massive. At least his own former ancient castle couldn’t compare to this place.
After an unknown descent of many meters, the elevator finally stopped with a ’ding.’ As they stepped out, they found themselves in another large room with the same decor as the one above, also guarded by six men in black suits.
"Follow me. They’ve been continuously expanding and renovating this place for the past two years," Otto’s ugly face twisted into a smile.
"Even uglier when you smile," Oliver quipped.
"Hook-nosed bastard, I’ll definitely gut you someday!" Otto’s face twitched, snarling at Oliver.
"Ugly brute, come at me if you dare!" Oliver roared back, not to be outdone.
Aeridar and Vade’s brows twitched, watching the two bickering. Amidst their squabbling, the four left the room and saw a long, wide corridor with white walls, ceiling, and floor.
"The first thing they expanded was the corridor entrance. It’s ten meters wide and thirty meters high, which makes transporting large creatures much easier," Otto explained to Aeridar and the others once they were outside, no longer bickering with Oliver.
"Grand, truly grand..." Vade praised, impressed.
"Did you complete our original design?" Aeridar asked in surprise. Since Aeridar hadn’t been here for two years, he had left everything to Switch Dalt and Otto. At most, Mina or Arlan would inspect the progress in Aeridar’s stead, or he would simply check on the experiment progress via Den Den Mushi.
"It’s not entirely finished, but it’s pretty close," Otto replied.
Following Otto, Aeridar and the others encountered many white-coated researchers along the way, as well as black-suited guards in chemical protective suits. Crucial intersections also had Den Den Mushi surveillance cameras covering every angle.
"Currently, there are over six hundred non-combat personnel, including researchers, in the base, and five hundred guards from the Fifth Division. The entire base is divided into six zones: Zone 1, the Central Area; Zone 2, the Experimentation Area; Zone 3, the Testing Area; Zone 4, the Confinement Area; Zone 5, the Storage Area; and Zone 6, the Logistics Area. The Logistics Area includes the mess hall, dormitories, food storage, and daily baths. Zone 3, the Testing Area, is the largest, while Zone 5, the Storage Area, is the smallest," Otto explained as they walked, adding, "We’re heading to Zone 3, the Testing Area, now."
After walking for more than ten minutes, they passed through a large metal door. They found themselves in an unusually spacious area, seemingly standing at a high vantage point. A thick glass barrier separated them from what lay below. This was a passageway, extending on both sides, with researchers occasionally passing by.
Below, they saw a square covering hundreds of square meters. They were over thirty meters above the square, and the ceiling was sixty meters above the square.
On the square, there was a giant lizard over ten meters long. This lizard was very strange: its mouth was full of sharp teeth, it had four legs, each with black fur and five sharp-clawed toes. Its body was covered in black scales with dark purple patterns, gleaming with a metallic luster. Its back was covered in sharp, sword-like black-purple spikes, and there were also spikes about five inches long at the tip of its tail.
This massive, bizarre lizard paced back and forth across the square, but all four sides of the square were enclosed by metal walls. It couldn’t escape and could only roar continuously upwards, having noticed the people above the square.
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