At the cafeteria, Edsel was sitting at a table while eating his steak. The noise of students chatting and eating filled the room, but he ignored all of it.
Suddenly, Silas walked towards him and dropped his plate on the opposite side of the table before sitting down.
"Ahem, my lor—I mean, Edsel, I havnt't heard from you since we arrived," Silas said quietly while glancing around to make sure no one was listening.
"Well, a few things happened that kept me busy," Edsel responded without looking up from his food.
"I did hear the rumors about what you did to the whole class. That was careless, don't you think ?" Silas asked while leaning forward.
Edsel stopped cutting his steak and looked up.
"Careless? What made you think that? They were going to secretly attack me anyway, so I simply dealt with them before they could try."
"Okay, okay, I understand," Silas said while sighing. It was not like he could argue with Edsel about anything.
Fighting carelessly was dangerous, of course, but Edsel was both stubborn and intelligent.
He must have had a reason for doing what he did.
"Anyway, it has been five days since we left Cairo, and I wanted to report on what is happening there."
"What has happened during those days? Has there been any progress with our plan?"
Edsel asked while resuming his meal.
"Well, there has been nothing major to report so far. But regarding the plan that you wanted, breeding a new generation of orcs by mixing a human female and a male orc simply cannot work. Biologically, it is impossible for them to produce offspring together."
Edsel frowned at the information.
"I already know that. What do you think I assigned you to do this task for? You are the type of person who is obsessed with experiments, so figure something out to make it work."
Silas trembled slightly at Edsel's impatient tone.
"I know, I know! That is why I have already come up with a solution. I created a sample that will put the human females into heat, like wild animals, and then transform them into half orcs so that they will not die during the process."
Edsel considered the plan.
"I see. That way, the process will actually work. But how did you come up with this solution so quickly?"
"I had a supply of dead female orc blood with me. I used them to experiment on the male orcs first to see how they would react to the pheromones. Once I had the formula right, I moved on to testing it on a human subject."
"Have you tested it on a human yet?"
"Mery helped me by bringing one of her friends to the laboratory. I tested the sample on her, and she has not fully transformed yet. But I can assure you that the male orc was completely drawn to the pheromones that she was radiating. It was like watching animals reproduce in the wild."
Edsel set down his utensils and stared directly at Silas.
"I hope that you do not fail with the results. Before a month passes, I want you to make sure that not a single human remains in Cairo. Do you understand?"
Silas nodded quickly, though he could tell that Edsel was not satisfied with the current progress. Did he want him to push harder and work faster?
"Yes, I understand completely," Silas responded while swallowing nervously.
Calix walked towards their table and dropped his plate with a loud clatter.
A pile of steak slices was stacked one on top of another, and he sat down immediately while stabbing the meat with his fork and shoving it into his mouth.
"What a vulgar bastard you are," Silas said while glaring at Calix. "What did you come here for? Did you come here to start a fight?"
Calix started laughing loudly while chewing his food. "Kukuku, Edsel, do not tell me that you subdued this pathetic bastard too?"
He pointed at the chains that were visible on Silas's chest, which only those bound by the authority could see.
Edsel continued eating his steak in silence while ignoring both of them completely.
Silas's eyes widened completely as he rubbed them vigorously, trying to make sense of what he was seeing.
Chains were emerging from Calix's chest, the same dark chains that connected him to Edsel.
"What is this? How is this possible?" Silas stammered while staring at the chains.
He looked down and saw Edsel glaring at him with cold eyes. He shuddered immediately and sat down while staring at his food, not daring to say another word.
"Pfft, hahahaha! That serves you right for overreacting like a fool," Calix laughed loudly at Silas, who was now ashamed of his outburst.
Edsel sighed while watching the two of them bicker.
He glanced across the cafeteria and saw Edwin staring directly at him from another table.
Edsel smiled at him, and Edwin felt the surge of anger piling up inside his chest each time he saw that face.
*************
Meanwhile, in Cairo, Les was standing in the laboratory with his arms folded across his chest. He scratched his head in frustration while muttering to himself.
"Damn it, damn it all! That bastard child Calix is getting on my nerves just by existing!"
He complained loudly.
Mery startled at his outburst.
"Did something happen while you were away?"
Les turned to her with an irritated expression.
"Nothing at all happened. Let us just go down to the cells now. I am sure that your little friend is already down there, halfway through her transformation."
"She is not my friend. I told you that before," Mery responded quietly.
"Just forget about it and follow me!" Les snapped while walking towards the stairs.
"Yes, sir," Mery said while nodding and following behind him.
The moment they arrived downstairs, the entire chamber stank of blood and rotten flesh.
Mery covered her nose with her sleeve while looking around at the dimly lit cells lining the walls.
"Will all the women be able to fit in this space?" she asked while surveying the area.
"This place is big and wide enough to hold everyone. Of course it will work out for our purposes. Now stop asking so many questions. We have arrived at our destination," Les said while stopping in front of one particular cell.
Mery paused and hesitated when she saw what was inside.
A woman was in the middle of her transformation, caught between human and orc. Her skin had turned almost green, her body was swollen like a bloated pig, and her nose had grown large and misshapen. Her eyes were wild and unfocused.
The woman was shedding tears, but the moment she noticed Mery approaching, she let out a guttural sound.
She ran towards the bars of the cell and slammed her transformed body against them, making the metal rattle.
"Open this cell and breed me! Come on, do it! Do it now!" the woman screamed while clawing at the bars.
Les pulled out a handkerchief and covered his nose.
"The transformation is a success, although her mind is completely broken at this point. That male orc we put in with her could not keep up with her demands. Ugh, her pheromones absolutely reek right now."
Mery kneeled down in front of the cell while shedding tears.
She did not know why she was feeling both sad and angry at the same time.
"Me…ry…..Me…..ry," the woman whispered, her voice now sounding almost monstrous and unrecognizable.
Les stared down at Mery with a cold expression.
"The plan worked as intended. I hope that you know what your next mission is, correct?"
Mery wiped her tears and stood up slowly.
"Yes, sir. I understand my mission completely. I will guide everyone from Cairo to this place."