Long-term salvation

Following behind the mole, Edith watched the middle-aged man smile and greet his subordinates as they passed by, and nodded in return after hearing the greetings from his subordinates.

Did they know they had been betrayed? Edith wondered.

Obviously, she was unaware and even had fantasies, just like the man in front of her.

Thinking this way, Edith followed the man through the corridor, walked down the stairs, and handed her credentials to the guards in different areas like a machine. When she finally felt a little bored, the corridor finally became quiet, cold and dry - this was the underground part of the Stasi headquarters and the location of the archives.

But in Edith's opinion, it was too quiet here, as if these things had been forgotten by people.

"The front is beyond your authority to enter, and the Ministry recently issued an order to seal the files."

The Mole whispered, holding a thin piece of paper with a red seal in his hand. This was obviously his greatest confidence in standing here, but the mark on the paper was also the thing he was most afraid to face.

"If you want to go in, just follow my orders. Don't look around or talk... Don't even think about going inside the archives! I can only lead you outside!"

"Okay, I'm not in a hurry then," Edith shrugged. "One day earlier or later is the same."

The Mole took a deep breath and then walked deeper into the corridor.

A dull explosion suddenly sounded!

It’s the above-ground office building of the Stasi headquarters!

The shrill sound of the fire alarm echoed throughout the corridor, but the explosions, large and small, continued one after another, sounding like an army launching an attack... Could it be that the Soviets had invaded Berlin again?!

Or did NATO launch an attack on the Warsaw Pact?

Startled, the Mole whipped his head around to look at Edith, who also wore a look of shock, clearly unaware of the situation. They exchanged glances, both caught off guard and a bit bewildered.

Without any hesitation, Edith came to her senses and said in a low voice:

"Take me to that archive!"

"……I see."

The two then walked quickly in the quiet corridor, but the more they walked, the more frightened they became - the guards here had all disappeared, as if someone rushed in and cleared them out, moved the bodies, and even cleaned the corridor.

Who is causing trouble here?!

Could it be our "allies"? But isn't blowing up the Stasi headquarters a bit too harsh?

Edith pursed her lips, her heart filled with anxiety and trepidation. She subconsciously reached for the small pistol strapped to her thigh under her skirt. Suddenly, she bumped into the man who had stopped in front of her and heard him say with forced composure:

"Which department are you in?"

"I'm from the 2000th Administration. I'm here to put the documents away," a young man said, patting the file bag in his hand. "By the way, please copy down our personnel file numbers... But you, wait, you're the head of Operations Section 3 of the Reconnaissance General Bureau... How come I've never seen the woman behind you before?"

"She was transferred here from out of town today."

"Out of town? I remember headquarters no longer allows non-resident personnel to be transferred in..."

The young man spoke, but the next second his eyes fixed, and he ducked down suddenly, dodging the shot from Edith's pistol. The bullet grazed his hair, leaving only a faint whistling sound. When the bullet embedded itself in the corridor wall, the nimble man had already leaped through the door of the next room and shouted again:

"I've called the guards!"

"—In this place where radio signals are blocked?" Edith sneered. She nudged the mole beside her and said indifferently, "He's seen you here. Don't be soft-hearted. Take advantage of the chaos up there to deal with him quickly."

"But, but I don't have a weapon..."

"Oh for God's sake, Max, you're a man! A man! Are your fists just for show?! Control him, I'll handle it!"

Listening to the faint scolding coming from outside the door, Huanghun let out a long breath, not even bothering to wipe the cold sweat off with the handkerchief in his pocket. After wiping it casually, he sighed softly:

"I didn't expect her skills to be so good—if I had reacted a little slower, I would have been shot in the head! And she was using a silenced pistol, so she's probably a NATO spy."

"You're being a bit presumptuous, Dusk, and it looks like you just tricked her."

Rhodes' voice rang in Huanghun's ears, but in the latter's sight, there was only a vague "smudge" that blended into the surrounding environment, violently opening file boxes one by one, sweeping away all the documents inside, and throwing them away somewhere unknown.

"Whatever you want to do," Huang Hun sighed, taking the pistol and bulletproof vest that Rhode threw to him. "Even if I said something wrong, it's a small matter. I just didn't expect... that there really were NATO spies infiltrating here, and they even bribed high-ranking security officials."

"Didn't I sneak in smoothly?"

"That's a pretty big difference, Luo... Boss."

An hour ago, Rhodes activated the stealth suit's camouflage system and, guided by dusk, entered through an underground passage where few people came and went. The heavy metal door there was no problem for him.

The bullets Nyaruko had given me were incredibly useful. With just one shot, they shattered the gate into pieces, even swallowing up the debris like a black hole! It felt like I'd been hit by a vortex torpedo... Maybe I'd actually been thrown into the other world.

Although the Stasi was on the eve of collapse, it obviously did not expect that anyone would dare to cause trouble directly in the headquarters - and for this reason, as long as the guards at key nodes were bypassed, other areas were basically undefended.

Avoiding crowded areas, Rhodes easily placed dozens of explosives of various sizes. To ensure the success of the operation, he also sprinkled gasoline in many places and cut off the power to the automatic sprinkler system to ensure that the fire extinguishing equipment in the Stasi headquarters building could not completely extinguish the flames. The Nikkis guarding outside would create chaos and prevent the arrival of the fire brigade.

"What are you going to do now?" Huang Hun breathed slowly, listening quietly to the footsteps getting closer and closer outside the door. "Should we just kill these two people and then rush out?"

"First, let's collect the files. I plan to take all the agent identity files here. Can you buy me some time? It will take me some time to sort out the files I can use and the ones I can't. Five minutes will be enough."

"I think headquarters will definitely send people down. Then, we might get into a firefight with them... Ah, two magazines?"

Huanghun looked at the bullets loaded into the magazine. The bullet tips were blood-red, bringing a sense of oppression that was completely different from its effectiveness.

"Frigga bullets and powerful tranquilizer bullets, use them sparingly. And do you need me to give you a hood?"

"...Thank you for your kindness and generosity, I needed it."

Chapter 243 Dusk? Joel? Ada? (3K)

The ground and underground seem to be two different worlds, even though they are only connected by a few stairs and elevators.

The people on the ground were running and shouting, frantically collecting information and leaving in different directions; the people underground were holding weapons and murderous intent, silently waiting for the enemy to approach, just to decide the outcome and life and death here.

A few minutes? In less than ten minutes, Stasi agents and East German soldiers would rush in and put an end to this boring standoff once and for all—neither side had time to waste, each with its own agenda.

As dusk slowed down his breathing, he heard the footsteps of a man approaching, taking two steps and stopping again, with hesitation and fear.

That being the case...

The moment the Mole carefully leaned out and looked into the archive room, Dusk suddenly stretched out his left hand to grab the former's wrist, took the opportunity to pull him into the room, and punched the latter's side with his right fist - intense dull pain mixed with difficulty breathing rushed into the traitor's brain, making his entire thought replaced by blank noise - the next second, the Mole's Adam's apple was hit hard again!

With a choking sound, Dusk twisted the Mole's arm, turned the man, who was still dizzy and in pain, around, and pushed him as a cover to facilitate leaving the archive room.

As soon as he stepped out of the door, Huanghun suddenly lowered his body, pulled out his pistol and fired three shots in a row towards the front!

The bullet flew past Huanghun's ear, tearing off his hair.

The bullet grazed Edith's cheek, leaving a slightly bleeding wound.

"..."

Amid the mole's faint cries of pain, Edith crossed the short corridor like a whirlwind. She and the mole were not far apart to begin with, and the previous dodge had not created much distance between them.

In reality, Edith didn't want to distance herself—the hooded Stasi agent across from her was actually armed! As a result, she had no advantage in terms of ammunition capacity, firepower, or even cover. Only close combat offered her a fighting chance!

In an instant, Edith stepped forward, grabbed the Mole's tie, and pulled his body to the side. She then stepped forward with her right foot, twisted her body, and kicked her opponent with her left leg.

Amidst the whistling wind, Huanghun subconsciously released his left hand from holding the Mole's arm, and at the same time raised his right hand to block the fierce kick. With a subconscious groan of pain, he used the force to twist his body, grabbed the Mole's arm again with his left hand, and dragged him to block Edith's hook punch.

“Puga?!”

The two teeth, dripping with saliva and blood, danced in the air, but were knocked apart by their owner's head the next second, falling to the ground and becoming garbage that no one cared about.

After holding the Mole's body and letting him block another heavy punch for him, Huanghun pushed him towards Edith, and at the same time, he shot the Mole's calf with his gun, causing the unfortunate guy to shrink his body downwards due to pain, and then fired two more shots at Edith who had temporarily lost her cover!

Bullets pierced the air with sharp explosions, leaving four shallow holes on the corridor wall, and they felt extremely regretful for not being able to taste human blood.

Before the first gunshot reached her ears, Edith had already crouched down, using her smaller frame compared to the men as a shield. Then, she took another step to the left and pressed her knee against the mole's left ribs, causing him to cry out in pain. Then, she drew the pistol from her waistband and fired two shots back at him from under his armpits!

Huanghun dodged two bullets by turning sideways, and kicked the mole on the back, causing it to stagger and collapse completely, and Edith, who was hiding under the mole's body, was also knocked down.

"waste!"

Edith cursed angrily. She didn't care about the amount of ammunition at the moment, but fired continuously on the spot. The bullets successfully hit the opponent, but only left a slightly concave white mark on the bulletproof vest.

In her heart, she cursed the CIA executives who had forbidden field agents from using Atlas weapons. Edith tucked her body behind the mole, bent her legs, and kicked it at her opponent with all her might. It was the right decision, but it only bought her a few seconds, during which time Edith could breathe some air again. Her pistol was out of bullets.

The crisp clicking sound was like the evening bell ringing by the god of death.

Maybe I won’t die, after all, that would be the same outcome as death, but... as long as I’m alive, there’s a chance, right?

"I surrender! I know who else in the Stasilievskyi community has been bribed!"

I know nothing! Edith complained in her heart, but she still put on an expression of unwillingness and despair, threw away the pistol and raised her hands, then slowly stood up under the gaze of the dusk.

The next second, she heard the Stasi agent in front of her ask:

"Boss, do we need to spare her life?"

Boss? Who? Who is he talking to? Wait... isn't this the Stasi?!

Before Edith could figure out what was going on, she saw a blurry shadow—a "creature" wearing gear that could mimic the surrounding environment and colors—walk out of the archive room, and then a sharp gaze flashed across her face.

"It's a CIA dog... Oh? It's Miss Edith Blackwater, who graduated from Harvard University. I thought you were going to be sent to Southeast Asia - is it because the time has not come yet? By the way, have you tattooed a cross on your right arm yet? Honestly, I admire your taste."

"..."

Gazing at Edith's gloomy face, tinged with barely concealed shock, Rhode pondered the matter and decided to let the CIA agent go. Of course, he also needed to add fuel to the fire, to further confuse the CIA, KGB, and Stasi in the European intelligence community, so they wouldn't have to track him down day after day. As for the timing of releasing her... Given the timing, the Stasi should have realized the situation and sent someone to the underground archives, right?

"By the way, is your boss and contact at Langley still Richard Ravencroft (Edith's boss in Black Lagoon)? I remember that CIA field agents don't easily change their superiors."

Edith's heart sank at these words. She didn't know how to respond, much less how the person before her had learned her information, and even her boss's. Furthermore, why had this person told her? Hospice care for the dying?

She didn't believe that all spy agents were as stupid as the useless mole under her feet - was he leaking the information intentionally to cause chaos within the CIA, or was he trying to kill someone with a borrowed knife? But none of this mattered now.

Edith had just surrendered to save her own life, so now she had to pass on this information—someone inside the CIA was leaking information about field agents and contacts—and send this information out, which was enough to determine the lives of hundreds or thousands of people!

Gritting her teeth, Edith took a half step back and whispered:

"I surrender. I can exchange the information for my life."

"Miss Edith, based on what we know about you and the Stasi, your intelligence is worthless," Rhodes said with a smile. He slowly approached the CIA agent, watching the latter subconsciously retreat in fear. "But given my personal dislike for the CIA, I won't let you die easily. Where do you want to start? From the left hand, or the right hand—both? You're such a greedy girl! I'll interrupt you all at once."

"..."

Edith pursed her lips tightly, lowered her hands, and slowly reached for her waist, where a small dagger was tucked. The reason why she didn't use this thing to fight her opponent to death was very simple - a gun was fast and accurate within seven steps.

But now it’s different. It would be more dignified to die with a dagger.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment, and oppressive silence filled the entire corridor. Until a few seconds later, the sound of hurried footsteps of one or a dozen people suddenly broke the silence, accompanied from time to time by the sound of firing from MPi-KM (East German copy of AKM) rifles.

The gunshots echoed through the corridors, making an uncomfortable boom.

Rhode secretly sighed that the timing was perfect. If it had been delayed a little longer, it wouldn't have mattered. It would have just made Ms. Edith suffer a little more... It wouldn't have been unfair for all of these CIA people to be dragged out for a shooting contest.

Just as he signaled for Huanghun to leave first, he pretended to make an angry noise and turned to look at the other end of the corridor - but the first person to appear in front of him was a woman's figure:

Joel?!

She wore a half mask that resembled a masquerade ball, had long black hair, and an enchanting figure with an agility that ordinary people could not achieve. More importantly, she held two golden needle-shaped kunai in her hands.

Are there still people using this thing for assassinations these days?! And why, in the information provided by the All-Seeing Eye, is there a label for "Strong Psychic/Body Enhancement"? But considering this girl was able to fight wild boars single-handedly when she was little, and still manage to jump around even when swarmed by bees, if she didn't have some body enhancement, she probably wouldn't have grown to this size now.

"Eh hey hey?! Why is there someone else here?!"

The woman screamed like an idiot, sounding like someone whose body preceded her brain.

Hearing this voice, Rhode thought about the information fed back by the All-Seeing Eye and suddenly felt a headache. While blocking Yoel's subconscious attack, he didn't have time to pay attention to the dull pain in his arm and shouted loudly:

"One of our own! Why would an ICA assassin like you come here... Wait, you didn't think that the Stasi headquarters was in chaos after the bombing, so you thought you could take advantage of the chaos to kill your intended target?"

"what."

Hearing this short voice, Rhode slapped his forehead helplessly, turned around and punched Edith, who was about to sneak away, and said to Huanghun:

"Let's get out of here, and this girl is a fool, take care of her."

"I can't see the body... I'm not stupid! Wait, how do you know I'm from the ICA?"

Rhodes didn't reply. He just felt that the girl in front of him was the same as Weihua at home. In that case, let a smart person take care of her.

"I understand," Dusk nodded slightly. He glanced down at the still dazed Mole and aimed his gun. "Although I really want to try you openly, the conditions don't allow it—you're getting away with it, you traitor who betrayed your country."

He pulled the trigger, and the bullet pierced his head, splashing ugly blood on the ground.

Chapter 244 Walking Away (3K)

A dozen or more East German soldiers and Stasi agents were rushing to the underground archives. Many of them had black soot on their faces from smoke and looked quite embarrassed.

Because of this, they felt a surge of anger, completely wiping out their worries and hopes for the future. With the reunification of Germany imminent, what couldn't be done afterward? Were the Stasi truly made of clay?

Boots clattered chaotically across the corridor, followed closely by the thunderous roar of a dozen rifle and pistol fire. The gunfire overlapped, setting everyone's teeth chattering. The gunfire reflected on the metal doorknobs on either side, twisting their curved surfaces into swaying, fiery snakes.

Bullets grazed the last feet of Rhode and his companions, shattering the wall at the corner of the corridor, leaving dozens of slightly larger dents on the wall. Paint and gravel on the wall splattered in the air, raising clouds of slowly sinking dust.