In an unknown part of Supreme City, a woman tapped her foot impatiently as she looked at a motley group of mercenaries. She was sitting on a plastic chair in the middle of an abandoned factory, but she did not look afraid.

Perhaps, her confidence came from the four men in black fatigues behind her.

She looked at the group with disgust on her face. She could not believe that she had been downgraded to dealing with the riffraff by herself.

Her eyes settled on one of the younger mercenaries. He looked quite handsome and clean in comparison to the others. The only thing that ruined his appearance was a long scar across his face.

The woman licked her lips.

If she had time to play, she would have picked him. For a moment, she wondered if she could spare some time for a few games. However, she understood that it would affect her plans.

"I hope you are all clear about what is required. I do not need you to kill Zhong Feng. I just want you to create enough confusion and disrupt their security measures. It would be best if you could cause chaos at the party." The woman said with gritted teeth.

That man had caused her to lose almost everything. He had slowly chipped away at her resources, such that the board of the International Health Alliance had decided to close down their research operations. They were going to focus on their open charity operations until the heat died down.

She had tried to lobby for the research side, but her arguments had landed on deaf ears. The only thing that could change their minds was one: real results on the genetic project.

The hint from the board was obvious. They wanted Hu Lei, but they were not willing to take action.

The woman had spoken to one of the critical board members after being shut down. She was not willing to give up on everything she had worked for and the carefree life that she had built. If she was forced to work for an orthodox research institution, she would have to follow b*llshit protocols and ethics.

What was science without pushing the boundaries?

Her friend from the board had offered a simple and clear explanation.

Hu Lei was proof that the human race could rise beyond normal mediocrity. It was not only about the change in her eye colour. She had proven to be a superior being when she had survived in a cold, almost freezing basement on almost no food.

Moreover, the feedback sent from Antarctica before it was shut down had proved that she had inhuman strength and superior hearing and eyesight, among other gifts.

If the board had Hu Lei in their hands, they could manage the heat from the government. The big players in major governments were not interested in anything other than power. If the board offered them an opportunity to change their soldiers and make them as powerful as Hu Lei, no one would care about how they had come about the result.

The woman's eyes became harder. Her life had fallen apart, but she was not one to take it lying down. She would take Hu Lei, regardless of what it took.

After all, they also had some personal grudges.

The mercenaries nodded with excitement. Most of them had a bloodlust that went beyond money.

"You, come here." The woman pointed at the younger mercenary with a scar, while licking her lips.

In the end, she could not resist the temptation of the tender face. He looked like a flower between weeds.

"The rest of you, what are you waiting for? Go!" She shouted.

The young man stepped forward with hesitation as he faced the woman. The woman stood up with mature elegance which was enhanced by her beautifully cut pantsuit. She stretched a finger and ran it along the young man's face.

The young man slapped away the hand. The woman laughed.

"What is your name?" She asked.

The young man made some angry gestures, but he did not talk.

"A fighter who does not talk… I like you very much." She drawled.

The four men behind her looked at the young mercenary with pity. Their boss had some strange interests which often involved a lot of pain for her 'love interests'. And it seemed that she wanted to replace her last broken toy.

The young mercenary glared at her and turned to walk out.

"If you follow me, I will give you a lot of money. You won't have to live by fighting for your life." She said casually.

The man hesitated in his step before he kept walking.

"If you change your mind, meet me at the Rocky Dock after the party." The woman laughed with certainty that the man will come.

Then, she turned to the four men behind her with a cold expression.

"Get ready for the real work. Those stupid mercenaries are just our cannon fodder." She paused. "And take down our listing for Hu Lei and Zhong Feng."

The four men nodded. They had followed this woman for long, and they did not doubt her judgement. Though she had some perverted inclinations, she also had a brilliant mind.

She would never steer them in the wrong direction.

Sometime later, the young man who had been in the abandoned industrial facility drove through the city in a nondescript white car. He stopped at an abandoned area and took out disinfectant wet wipes from the glove compartment.

He made a disgusted face as he wiped off the scar from his face.

"Ugh, that junior sister of mine owes me big this time." He finally smiled with twinkling eyes.