Chapter 580: Compensation

Nina Jacobs had actually arrived outside the gates of the Falken Base a while ago.

She was also waiting for Kael Dolan to release her people. But just as she had anticipated, Kael had no intention of releasing them; he even wanted to humiliate the City D Base. That was why she made her appearance at the critical moment.

"What arrogance! You really think you can take over my Falken Base with such a paltry number of people? Do you think we have no capable fighters here?"

The cursing outside the gates continued. Kael had never been treated with such disrespect. "Everyone, hear my command! Take her down!" he ordered directly, boiling with rage.

The Superpower Soldiers of the base, who had been summoned, seemed a bit hesitant after receiving the order. However, the muzzles of the weapons team’s guns were already aimed at Nina Jacobs.

A towering Diamond Sand Wall suddenly materialized before the crowd.

"I won’t slaughter the innocent today, but my actions are fully justified. I have the Military Command Credential right here. I have the authority to execute anyone who defies orders on the spot!" Nina held up a dark green credential.

Accompanied by a powerful surge of Superpower energy and a searing wave of heat, a massive Fire Dragon manifested in midair behind her. Its dazzling fiery scales blazed brilliantly, and an imposing light seemed to radiate from its eyes. Along with the howling wind, a thunderous dragon’s roar echoed across the skies above the entire base.

Seeing the Fire Dragon again, Michael Miller and Marcus Palmer slumped to the ground almost simultaneously. It wasn’t their first time seeing this Fire Dragon, but this time, it was significantly larger than the one they had faced during their duel!

"To think a Three-Element Superpower User could be this formidable..." said Captain Percival Miller of the Psionics Unit.

He and Wyatt Vance had previously encountered Chester Pearson, Nina, and the rest of their group on the road to the City D Base. At that time, they and Irene Palmer had gotten into a conflict with them over mysteriously vanished supplies at a canning factory. Later, they even ran into a horde of Zombie Rats, and it was only thanks to Nina’s Fire Element Superpower that the rats were exterminated. Remembering this, they wondered how she could have become so powerful in the span of just a few months.

Wyatt also recognized the Military Command Credential. Exchanging a glance with Percival, the two immediately stepped forward and ordered the Superpower Soldiers, "Everyone, stand down immediately! Put away your weapons and withdraw your Superpowers! The Military Command Credential carries extraordinary weight. The City D Base has no intention of laying siege to us, so don’t cause a catastrophe!"

The crowd, already feeling caught between a rock and a hard place, quickly lowered their weapons upon hearing this.

Only then did Nina put away the Military Command Credential. She knew Kael probably wouldn’t recognize it, but Wyatt and Percival would have definitely heard of it.

"Commander Donovan, what do you think?" Chester Pearson asked with a smile. Let alone the opposition, even he was shocked by Nina’s display of power.

The surroundings fell completely silent. What made the people of the City D Base feel the most badass and proud was the colossal dragon still hovering in the sky behind them. The dozens of unit members who had followed them unconsciously straightened their backs.

"Kael..." Irene Palmer called out softly.

"Release them." The veins bulged on Kael’s neck. He practically squeezed those two words out through clenched teeth, using every ounce of his strength.

Godfrey Thatcher was so thrilled he was almost on the verge of tears. Harlan leaned to the side, covering his eyes as he laughed silently. Sure enough, whether it was in Keldorn or here, they always ended up relying on Nina to save them. But man, it felt incredibly satisfying.

"Wouldn’t it have been better to just do this earlier?" Chester remarked.

"You... you destroyed our base’s defensive walls! I think you’re nothing but a bunch of hypocritical liars!" Although Irene was scared, her anger ultimately gained the upper hand.

"If I can destroy the walls, I can naturally rebuild them." Nina channeled her Earth Element Superpower. The bricks, tiles, and rubble that had been sent flying earlier began to piece themselves back together, as if the scene were playing in reverse. The buckled section of the wall gradually returned to its original state. The walls of the Falken Base were not as thick or sturdy as those of the City D Base; whether she was destroying or rebuilding them, she could do it in no time.

"You Superpower Users from City D sure are something else," Kael said through gritted teeth.

"You flatter us. However, Commander Donovan, you’ve reduced my people to this state. You’ll have to pay a price for that, one way or another." Nina looked at Holly Morgan and Reginald Sutton as they were brought out; their clothes were covered in distinct restraint marks. Like Harlan and the others, they must have been injected with some kind of drug that rendered them temporarily unable to fight back.

Only after Holly saw Nina did the murderous fury in her eyes slowly begin to subside.

"What kind of price do you want?" Looking at the Fire Dragon that looked ready to swoop down at any moment, Kael’s eyes were filled with resentment and fear. He couldn’t help but wonder why he hadn’t awakened a Superpower himself.

Nina walked over to her people and asked, "Do you clearly remember who did this to you?"

"Exactly eighteen people, no more, no less. I remember them all. Speaking of which, you should be familiar with this drug," Harlan replied. A drug that suppressed a person’s ability to use their Superpowers—they had seen it at the Lornwood Base too. To think they’d have it here as well.

"It seems Commander Donovan really went out of his way to ’entertain’ them," Chester chimed in, having waited until their people had been brought out to speak. It made perfect sense why Nina was so furious.

Nina pulled a small medicinal vial from her clothes and had Harlan drink it. Then, she said to him plainly, "Is crippling one of their hands enough for you, Mr. Maxwell?"

"More than enough." Amidst his surprise, Harlan also realized what Nina had just given him. He was astounded that she had actually given him a bottle of Holy Water to drink right in front of so many people.

The surrounding crowd immediately caught on when they saw Harlan return to normal so quickly. They were utterly shocked, wondering if the City D Base was already capable of casually handing out Holy Water to cure people of toxins.

Soon, agonizing screams rang out under Harlan’s Superpower knives. Nina’s expression remained unfazed. Harlan was a doctor by trade; there was no one more fitting than him to cripple those people’s hands. Even if they had a Healer treat them, those hands would likely never fully recover.

"What... what exactly is going on?! Commander Donovan, you have to stand up for us!" Rosaline Webb had just been dragged out. Before she could even figure out what was happening, the tendons and bones in both her hands were cleanly severed. She shrieked in constant terror.

"Captain Pearson, are you satisfied now?" Kael asked.

"Commander Donovan, you don’t think this is the end of it, do you? We haven’t even tallied the damages caused by this incident. Your base still needs to compensate us for the lost wages, travel expenses, and emotional distress of all these people." Nina checked the time. They still had plenty of it.

"Nina Jacobs, don’t push it! This is a blatant case of a large base bullying others!" Hearing the demand for compensation, Irene immediately retorted.

"It’s already hard enough for a base to survive! Are you trying to squeeze us dry?" another person beside her echoed with an indignant expression.

"Oh? And who was it just saying that no matter how many Intermediate users came, they’d be served like kings?" Holden Shaw laughed upon hearing this.

"Exactly. Didn’t Miss Palmer say your base could afford it? Why are you trying to back out the moment compensation is mentioned?" Chester also felt that demanding compensation was completely justified now. Simply venting their anger wasn’t enough. They couldn’t just let the loss of their manpower and resources slide.

Kael held back Irene, who was still trying to argue. "How much do you want in compensation?"

Nina held up a single finger. "Exactly 100,000 Crystal Cores, no more, no less. Additionally, that Mr. Palmer hiding behind you still owes me 5,000 Crystal Cores. Since this ’fine bird’ has chosen to roost with you, your esteemed base can foot that bill as well," she added.

Just moments ago, Chase Gallagher had informed her that Marcus hadn’t paid the 5,000 Crystal Cores after losing their match. To think he had actually run off to this place.

"One hundred thousand?! Why don’t you just rob us?!" Irene cried out, her heart bleeding at the thought of such a massive sum.

"Give it to her." At this point, Kael only wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible.