Chapter Sixty-Seven: The Laboratory... A Great Fire

October 22, 2237, Royal Academy of Sciences, London

A man in uniform walked along the edge of the corridor, brushing past others. All they knew was that he was the current Special Grade Scientist, the assistant to the current Royal Chief Scientist—Tyrone Taylor. Rumor had it that even Tyrone Taylor treated this man, Tynan, with deference... but that was all anyone really knew.

He paid no attention to the others, weaving his way deeper into the building. No one bothered with him; everyone was occupied with their own work. But Tynan was heading toward a particular place! In that direction, there was only one laboratory—a locked room, impenetrable even to the Royal's most elite infiltration unit, the Assassin Order. Its former owner was Cole—the former Royal Chief Scientist! Arriving in front of the laboratory, Tynan did not rush to open the door but turned a corner and slipped into an empty alcove.

Suddenly, a beam of red light flashed from the door, as if scanning something, and the door opened—but only a crack. Once the door closed again, a figure appeared behind it. "It's been a long time! Welcome back, Cole!" Tynan called out comfortably. In an instant, the pitch-dark room was illuminated, everything preserved exactly as it was two years ago—including the "Angel" mech suit! Even after two years, not a speck of dust or a single web marred the gleaming surface.

"It's been two years, old friend!" Unexpectedly, when Cole placed his hand on the mech, it seemed to come alive, nodding in response, though unable to speak. "I'm sorry! I forgot to install your speech module back then! You don't blame me, do you?" The mech shook its head in reply.

"Sigh! Damn it, they're determined to open that door at any cost! I have to take you with me! The blueprints must be left behind, but..." Cole slipped a ring onto his finger and, as if by magic, the blueprints floated out from the corner, igniting midair. After a portion burned away, the fire extinguished itself. "They don't know what's in the palace, nor can they take it. As for this one here... forced entry might work... but it doesn't matter! Come on!" Cole tapped the "Angel" mech's belt, and instantly, the mech shrank into a halo of light, transforming into a component on Cole's wristwatch.

"Ha! My inventions! Did you think I didn't want you anymore? Today, you shall see the light of day again! Prometheus!" With a sweep of his hand, a crimson crystal leapt from the cabinet and landed in Cole's palm, igniting with an inner fire. "No rush! No rush!" Cole chuckled. This crystal, known as the Prometheus Core, was Cole's masterpiece—the legendary eternal energy source, or, as some might say, the Eternal Flame.

"Once I leave, I'll disable the laboratory's surveillance shield. After that... the plan begins!" With that, Cole donned his invisibility cloak, opened the door, and slipped out unseen.

Surveillance Room

A guard lounged in his chair, sipping his afternoon tea. "What a boring job. I really don't see the point of monitoring a bunch of scientists." Suddenly, a glitch in the feed snapped him back to attention. To his surprise, the long-blackened screen of Cole's laboratory flickered to life, revealing blazing flames within. At first, the guard was unconcerned: "Cole's lab? Come on, how long has it been since he was here? His lab is supposed to have the lowest failure rate in the world. A fire? Impossible!" Little did he know, the fire had been set by Cole himself.

"Oh! Shit!" Moments later, the guard realized something was wrong. "Damn it! Royal fire alarm! Royal fire alarm! The Royal Academy is on fire! Request immediate backup!" For on the screen, a message had appeared: "Regret to inform you, the laboratory is indeed on fire!"

Royal firefighters arrived swiftly, but were at a loss. "Fuck! Why did it have to be Cole's lab? We can't get inside at all!" The fire chief slammed his fist on the surveillance room table, fuming, but it was still Cole's laboratory after all. "Activate the automatic extinguishing system. Flood it with carbon dioxide!" he ordered, initiating remote fire suppression.

Soon enough, the flames were put out. As the main door was opened, the firefighters rejoiced, but the scientists were already evacuating. "What's with those scientists? Never mind! Go in!" It was the worst possible order...

"What the hell?" When he saw the firefighters dropping one by one inside, he knew something was wrong. The air was thick with the scent of almonds... "Cyanide! Fuck!" The chief recognized the smell at once and spotted the emergency escape route nearby. "Damn it! It's a complete wipeout! Fall back!"

———Author's Note———

Just recovered from illness, still not fully well, but hurried through this chapter. It’s passable... I also hope everyone takes better care of their health! Don’t end up like Roland.