N-A-A Page 119
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Hawke's eyes suddenly sharpened. "Second, refuse. Then you and these twelve witches will lie on the experimental table, disassembled and reassembled until every last bit of useful information is squeezed out, and then physically annihilated. Your name will be as if it never existed." He stared at Bai Jing'en's pale face. "Director Bai, you're a smart person. You should know which option best aligns with the basic logic of surviving and living a meaningful life?"
The carriage was deathly silent, save for the roar of the engine and the witches' varying breathing sounds.
The witches naturally understood Hawke's meaning. Although they all remained silent, Baek Jing-eun could feel twelve gazes falling on her back.
Those "daughters" she created with her own hands and bound by command locks... their fates now rest on her every thought.
Ishikawa is dead, our company has been wiped out, and we can't go back to Korea.
The U.S. military had no interest in her, which is why she was given to Hawke.
The man before her was powerful, dangerous, and tinged with madness. Now he had offered her a condition she couldn't refuse—freedom, a platform to continue pursuing the pinnacle of science, and the power of life and death over her most cherished "works."
After a long silence, Bai Jing'en took a deep breath, as if she had used up all her strength.
She looked up and met Hawke's abyss-like gaze, the struggle and fear in his eyes eventually replaced by a rational light belonging to a scientist.
"...I need an independent, top-security laboratory."
She spoke, her voice regaining its usual calmness, though it was still hoarse.
"Furthermore, you can't treat these witches like disposable consumables; they are just pitiful clones with nowhere to come from and nowhere to go..."
This was her pledge of allegiance, and also the bottom line she set.
Hawke looked up at the twelve faces, and they were indeed all very beautiful. Some were charming, some were youthful, some were loli-like, some were voluptuous, some looked like mature women, and some looked like the girl next door.
But it must be said that Baek Jing-eun's aesthetic sense is indeed on point; even when cloning, she would choose people with high looks to clone.
Noticing Hawke's gaze, Bai Jing'en recalled the rumors about Hawke, and suddenly smiled, saying softly, "None of my 'daughters' have ever had a boyfriend."
"Hiss—" Hawke gasped upon hearing this, "Twelve...not even one?"
Bai Jing'en nodded.
Hawke finally revealed a satisfied smile; this was a huge win!
When Tony gets back from Afghanistan, we'll have to brag about it!
He didn't speak, he just extended his hand.
With her palm facing upwards, Bai Jing'en looked at the hand, then glanced at the bewildered yet somewhat dependent faces behind her.
Finally, she moved her arm with difficulty and slowly and heavily placed her hand on Hawke's palm.
My fingertips are icy cold.
215 The Witch Bows Her Head [Seeking Flowers and Subscriptions]
“Deal, Mr. Hawke.” Her voice was deep and clear. “From now on, my team and I… will be at your service.”
Hawke's hand tightened slightly.
“A wise choice, Manager Bai.” He helped Bai Jing’en up. “You will get what you want.”
After saying that, he turned to these... no... witches, especially Number 0, whose gaze was the most complex:
"Your 'Mother' has chosen to work for my future and your shared future. I will remove your genetic locks, the trackers within Zero's body, and the nanobombs. What I want is simple: loyalty and obedience. Under this rule, no matter what mistakes you make, I will be your strongest support."
Dead silence.
The roar of the engine became the only sound at that moment, but the air seemed to freeze even more heavily.
Twelve pairs of eyes, ranging from bewilderment, vigilance, numbness to shock, were now focused on Hawke, filled with disbelief.
Release control?
This word was as foreign to them as something from outer space.
From the moment they were born, shackles were a part of their lives, a Damocles' sword hanging over their heads, a source of fear etched into their very bones.
Ishikawa's death led to the collapse of the organization, but the chains binding him did not disappear; they were simply replaced by a new caretaker.
They have long been accustomed to being treated as tools, controlled, and consumed.
Freedom? That's just a vague, even dangerous, word.
Hawke's promise was like a beam of light suddenly shining into their dark world.
As the only one without a genetic lock but bearing the most direct physical threat, Witch Zero feels it most intensely.
The cold metal implant on her neck serves as a constant reminder of the fragility of life.
Her eyes darted around, churning with doubt, shock, and a hint of... a desire she had forcibly suppressed and that she herself was unwilling to admit.
This man has killed too many of her "kin," yet now he says he wants to give them...freedom?
"...Release~?" Number 0's voice was dry and hoarse, as if he hadn't spoken in a long time, with a metallic texture.
Her gaze was fixed on Hawke. "How will you prove it? This collar... is connected to multiple biosignal sensors. If it's forcibly removed or the signal is interrupted, it will..."
She didn't finish her sentence, but the lingering chill was clearer than any threat.
Hawke met her gaze without flinching, a hint of appreciation playing on his lips. "Proof?" He tilted his head slightly and said to the air, "Z, run the cracking program."
A faint buzzing sound seemed to come from the watch on Hawke's wrist, and the holographic projection lit up again, with complex energy flow diagrams and physical structure analysis diagrams rotating around the neck ring of Number 0.
Number 0's pupils contracted instantly!
What was projected was the core, most hidden structure of her neck ring and the pre-set logic for its destruction.
Hawke... he truly owns everything in this company!
The other witches, witnessing all of this, began to breathe rapidly.
A witch with shoulder-length short hair and eyes that had once been as lost as a stray lamb trembled slightly. She subconsciously looked at Bai Jing'en, as if seeking confirmation.
Bai Jing'en met her gaze and nodded slowly, almost imperceptibly.
This tiny movement, like a silent electric current, instantly struck the witch.
She suddenly lowered her head, her shoulders heaving violently, and a suppressed sob escaped from her throat.
It wasn't fear, but rather an emotion that had been suppressed for too long and forgotten even by oneself—something called "hope," quietly sprouting from the soil of despair.
Another witch, tall and with a mature and sophisticated air, pursed her lips, her wariness replaced by a deep and complex expression.
She watched Hawke's tall and composed figure from behind.
This man is powerful enough to crush them, yet... powerful enough to seem capable of truly fulfilling that incredible promise?
She remembered Hawke's words: "Loyalty and obedience... Under this rule, no matter what mistakes you make, I will be your strong support!"
The cold promise carried an unprecedented, almost "protective" connotation.
This is completely different from Ishikawa's attitude of simply using and discarding things at any time.
A slight wavering quietly cracked through her icy defenses.
The witch No. 0 felt the cold light projected onto her neck and sensed the changes in her companions' emotions.
Hawke’s display of power startled her, and his promise of “freedom” and “support” thawed her long-standing numbness.
She knew what Bai Jing'en's choice meant—it was a choice that determined the fate of all of them.
And the "mother"... chose to believe this man.
All the struggles, doubts, and resentment eventually turned into heavy exhaustion and a sense of acceptance that even she herself found absurd.
She slowly and with great difficulty lowered her head.
This gesture of submission, performed by the strongest witch, Number 0, instantly triggered a chain reaction.
Like dominoes that have been toppled.
The second witch lowered her head, then the third... The short-haired witch stopped sobbing and lowered her forehead;
The mature, older-sister-type witch also took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and lowered her head...
One after another, the twelve bound witches in the carriage all made the same gesture—bowing their heads to Hawk Lane, the man who had just declared himself their new master.
........................
The transport truck took them to the airport, where a private plane was quietly waiting on the runway.
Hawke stepped onto the gangway first, followed by witches with different expressions, and Baek Jung-eun, whose face was calm but whose eyes were complicated.
At the end of the empty private runway, a Bombardier Global 7500 with sleek lines and a cold metallic sheen waits quietly, like an elegant, lurking steel behemoth.
The scenery inside the cabin was completely different from any mode of transportation they had ever experienced.
Spacious and bright, the air is filled with the fresh scent of high-quality leather and filtered air from the new ventilation system, replacing the oppressive smell of laboratory disinfectant, electronic odors in the monitoring room, and gunpowder smoke.
The leather sofa is spacious and comfortable, and the soft, warm light replaces the harsh, cold light source.
Even the most wary witch unconsciously relaxed a little the moment she stepped into this space.
The deep, powerful hum of the engine replaced the vehicle's jolts, and the plane taxied smoothly and took off with a tremor.
As the feeling of weightlessness transformed into smooth cruising, an unprecedented sense of ease quietly spread throughout the cabin.
There were no cold, hard commands, no ubiquitous surveillance cameras, and no fear of being sacrificed at any moment.
Through the huge porthole, they saw the rolling sea of clouds below and the afterglow of the setting sun gradually sinking into the horizon in the distance, a scene so magnificent it seemed otherworldly.
216 He and Sister Zero... in that...? [Please subscribe and give flowers]
After a brief silence, the boldest of the seven witches, with her neat bob haircut and lively eyes, curiously poked at the complicated control panel on the armrest of the seat and exclaimed softly, "Wow, can this play movies?"
She glanced instinctively at Hawke sitting on the single sofa opposite her, her eyes filled with a childlike probing.
Hawke was flipping through an email when he heard this. He looked up with a hint of amusement in his eyes: "Not only can it play movies, but it can also stream any program you want to watch from around the world. Number 7... would you like to watch something different?"
He deliberately dragged out his words, with a hint of amusement, and issued the command directly to the air: "Z, play that video that I've been saving in my cloud drive for the lovely Ms. 7."
Number 7's eyes widened, as if realizing something, and he quickly waved his hands: "No, no, no, Mr. Hawke, I was just joking, I..."
Before Number 7 could finish his awkward words, a rhythmic chant came from the screen: "Huluwa, Huluwa, seven gourds on one vine..."
Number 7's cheeks instantly flushed red. She pursed her lips and muttered softly, "Mr. Hawke is so mean!"
This caused several witches nearby to cover their mouths and chuckle, making the atmosphere even more relaxed.
Another tall, voluptuous, and mature woman, the third witch, seemed unable to bear seeing the seventh witch's predicament any longer. She looked at Hawke with a hint of defiance and said, "Boss, does the freedom you promised include the freedom to make jokes like this?"