Mercenary Black Mamba

The awkwardness you feel when the subject of your gossiping suddenly appears behind you...

The expressions of Mu Ssang and Ombuti became a mixture of smiles and tears. It was as if they had to drink a bucket of water infused with a heap of motherwort.

"Dear Rudrey is making tasty coffee, is she? Looks like the Harmattan will bring the scent of flowers instead of sand this year, right? I mean, I haven't been alive for that long, yet I still get to witness something so unbelievable!" Edel imitated Mu Ssang's manner of speech before pouting deeply. "Even a bum knows how to roll around, doesn't he? Yet, you think I can't even do that? I had no idea that my dearly beloved monarch and the governor-general that I deeply respect would start gossiping about a helpless woman behind her back."

"U-uh, t-that's not true. Besides, who is the helpless woman in this situation?" Mu Ssang began stuttering.

One word from Edel, and tens of thousands of people would unsheathe their swords and step forward. She was helpless? Now that was utter nonsense.

But Edel continued to drive the nail even deeper. "A Buddhist monk hailing from the east once said that you can become a saint by not gossiping behind people's backs. There's simply no way that our dear prophet Lord Dubaiburupa would talk about someone behind their back, now would he? This lowly woman must've heard it all wrong, I'm sure."

Mu Ssang suddenly felt dizzy. To think that sarcasm could fly out of her petal-like lips while she stared at him with eyes as pristine and blue as the lake's surface!

"Urgh...!"

Unable to think of an appropriate reply, Mu Ssang lightly embraced Edel. There was this very good solution called 'physical touch' available for lovers, and he decided to go for it. "That's not true. Besides, I prefer Rudrey that brews coffee well over Rudrey that cooks well. So what if you aren't a good cook? There are plenty of famous eateries in the world, anyway."

Edel turned her head toward Ombuti before poking her tongue out. He blinked several times before sneakily backing away.

"Hng, Calling my name now that you're in a pinch? While we were apart, it looks like you've picked up on how to sweet-talk a girl, haven't you?"

"What are you talking about? The only human female that seems like a biological woman in my view is Rudrey and no one else. Anyway, shall we get on a yacht and go on a pilgrimage of renowned Michelin restaurants around the world?"

"Oh! That's a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful idea! Let's take Dino with us, too. No one's better than Dino for my pillow, you see."

Edel completely forgot about teasing Mu Ssang by then, even blurting out 'Wonderful!' three times in a row. Traveling the world with Dubai… Just thinking about it made her heart race. Her face reddened like peach blossom petals, her breathing shallow and fast.

'Huk!'

Mu Ssang sucked in a deep breath. He found himself unable to scoff at the exaggerated Chinese expression meant to honor the Four Great Beauties, which described their beauty of having the ability to 'sink fish and entice birds to fall, eclipsing the moon and shaming flowers.'

Edel's bright face did not seem like it belonged to a human, but that of a beautiful flower in full bloom.

Mu Ssang's junior suddenly began twitching to signal its awakening. The superior physique would obviously result in superior seeds too. As his physique was strong, his sex drive was equally as virile. At this rate, his junior might rip open the fly of his pants.

'Na-mo-ra-da-na-da-ah-ya-ya~'

Mu Ssang hurriedly recited a Buddhist stanza called 'Ten Thousand Expulsions' in his head.

Priest Dae-woo created this self-hypnotizing illusion called the 'Ten Thousand Expulsions' in the hopes of making Mu Ssang devote himself to the ways of Buddhism. That was because things would spiral out of control if the Peerless under the Heavens (Mu Ssang)'s lust was not reined in.

Now sucked into the stanza's effects, Mu Ssang began mentally repeating the... "Process" of making love to ten thousand beauties and ejaculating.

One would grow sick and tired of a song one used to love after listening to it ten thousand times in a row. It was the same with one's favorite food too. Even the one and only uber-playboy would get sick of the deed after doing it ten thousand times in a row.

The teacher desired for his disciple to become the next Mahabali (benevolent and wise Asura), but Mu Ssang bearing the brunt could only shudder from the inhumanity of it all.

And when Mu Ssang's flesh did not want to go back to sleep even after experiencing ten cycles of the 'Ten Thousand Expulsions' stanza, Monk Dae-woo could only lament his disciple's lack of Buddhist ways.

According to various research done on the subject, an average man would have sex 2,580 times in his lifetime. What made the Ten Thousand Expulsions stanza so fearsome was that it fooled one's brain and body into thinking that one was doing the deed without actually doing it.

In other words, Mu Ssang's sexual experience would leap up by ten thousand encounters with one recital. And this was the secret to his vigor that would not run out even if China's legendary Four Great Beauties jumped on him all at the same time.

However, not even Mu Ssang trained in the ways of Ten Thousand Expulsions stanza could do anything about his lust energized by love.

Actually, there was something about his body that Mu Ssang was not aware of. An Epidium's physique would start secreting a powerful pheromone during the state of arousal. This was the result of Concretus's desperate attempt at increasing the number of Epidiums by altering their genetic structures to resemble that of a collective intelligence species.

His thick lips quickly covered Edel's fluttering petals.

"Hmm~"

Edel shuddered grandly from this exhilaration and she started rocking her entire body. In less than a blink of an eye, her body grew hot, while her spine arched back.

Even if this was the first kiss of a man she loved, what she felt could not have been right. Never mind feeling sweet or her consciousness getting hazy, it felt as if she would die if she did not make love to him this instant.

Panicking somewhat, Edel quickly pinched Mu Ssang's forearm. "Huh-uhk! Dubai, there's something wrong with me. What did you do?"

A man that did not partake in the feast despite an aroused beauty waiting for him on the dining table and instead choosing to recite some Buddhist chant was a f***ing idiot. And Mu Ssang happened to be that f***ing idiot.

'Dammit, I guess I'm also an incorrigible bastard of a man, then!'

Edel's passionate response actually helped Mu Ssang regain his self-control. This was the "benefit" of the Ten Thousand Expulsions.

His life went out of whack because of 'dicks'. His mother going missing started because of someone's dick, and the twisted path his life had taken ever since then was also because of someone's dick. Then again, 'dicks' were always present in the incidents worthy of a spot in history books, now weren't they?

"Two people who like each other will become weird when they are together, you see." Mu Ssang took his lips away.

"Oh my goodness, what should we do, in that case!"

Despite replying like that, Edel did not allow Mu Ssang's lips to retreat.

"Ombuti will make fun of us though."

"No need to worry, love, since he's already gone."

Ombuti, who boasted supernaturally quick wits, would obviously not stand around like an idiot. Indeed, he had disappeared in the blink of an eye. With things like this, Mu Ssang had run out of excuses. Not even angels could stop humans in heat, after all.

"H-hahaha, Margerie is still waiting for us, isn't he? We're all doing this to put food on the table, so let us quickly wrap this up and enjoy the dinner, shall we?"

Edel finally regained herself when the topic of food was brought up. "Oh no! I left a pot on the brazier and completely forgot about it! What should I do? I was preparing a dish meant to surprise you, you know? Hiiiing!"

"A dish to surprise me?" Mu Ssang instantly flinched.

The corners of Edel's eyes arched up ever so slightly.

"Hoh-oh! I'm really looking forward to it."

Mu Ssang's complexion switched so quickly that even the legendary fairy pitta paled in comparison.

"Let's go!"

Even the one and only Mu Ssang got helplessly dragged away by Edel. This was why men had to be careful - the moment they opened themselves to love, they would morph into a meek little calf with its nose pierced.

*

"I knew that would happen." Ahmmad smiled softly while looking up at the staircase.

Mu Ssang and Edel were in the lead of the group coming down. One step behind them were Ombuti and Margerie, while the rear were taken up by Ariba and Samdi.

"Looks like he's become an underling, too?" Sun Woo-hyun tilted his head in slight confusion.

Margerie's arrogant air when he first stepped into the Yoa House was nowhere to be seen, and now it looked like he was Wakil's devoted follower.

"Most likely!" Ahhmad nodded.

After all, Dubaiburupa was someone who would not bat an eyelid even when the Seven Sisters (seven oil supermajors) showed up before him, never mind just Total's chairman.

*

"Wakil, at the current rate of development, Novatopia will need another decade before it's fully settled. If you wish to speed up the process, you need to construct a power station first."

"The French government is constructing an HFO power station as we speak. The oilfield's discovery came at a remarkable timing, in other words."

"Ah-ha! In that case, under this one's personal command is a mercenary company called Blue Water, Wakil. How about deploying them to secure public order?"

"Not much crime happens in Novatopia. The worst that happens here are some angry punch-ups born out of differences in religious customs. The special strike force is enough to maintain the public order for the time being."

'As expected of Lord Dubaiburupa!'

Margerie was impressed. Mu Ssang's response seemed unhurried despite how insanely urgent this situation looked. But that only made Margerie more anxious about wanting to be useful somehow.

All of Dubaiburupa's retainers were remarkable individuals. Margerie felt this urgent pressure to do something big so that his worth could be acknowledged.

"Should I prepare heavy equipment and weapons, then?"

"Dapsang. I may exist with Novatopia, but I am not Novatopia. Its governor is Ombuti, so you should discuss such things with him."

Black Mamba had not once thought of taking on headache-inducing problems by himself. He had laid out the table, so it was up to other people to play their roles accordingly.

"Governor, what do you need?"

"The influx of refugees is getting higher every day, but the construction of residential areas are failing to keep up with the demand at the moment. The Jipoon Dari house scheme has not made any notable progress so far.

"Even though we've been devoting our full attention to the project, the rate of progress has not even reached 15% yet. My heart bleeds every time I see refugees staying in tents waiting for their allocated residents." Ombuti, seizing this opportunity, began whining as if he had been waiting for this moment all along.

There was no way that an experienced merchant would let a wealthy financier slip through his fingers.

"Oh, my! The clothing, food and shelter issue of the citizens needs to be stabilized for the society to settle down, which in turn would lessen Wakil's worries, too. I get it now. I shall take up the responsibilities for constructing one hundred thousand residential housing. I shall also start the construction of additional facilities such as shopping malls and parks. Governor, you should focus your energy in another area."

Margerie was refreshingly straightforward with his offer.

"Huh! Are you being serious?" Ombuti's eyes grew wide.

The Jipoon Dari one hundred thousand residential homes construction scheme was the core of Novatopia's development plan. That's because said development plan originally called for around five to six hundred thousand citizens to be secured first before resettling them to different areas.

'Is this why the master accepted Margerie as Dapsang?'

Mu Ssang was only trying to be generous, but Ombuti was in charge of Novatopia's operation. As such, he was looking at this situation from a different perspective. For one thing, just the cost of building a hundred thousand houses would be around two billion Francs.

To think that there was someone capable of treating two billion Francs as some pocket change! A man with a scope as large as Wakil had made his entrance, it seemed.

Both Edel and Samdi's eyes widened in surprise at the sheer scale of money being talked about here.

"Wakil told me about 'Assez a qui se contente', you see. I no longer harbor fear in my heart. Let's call this my first investment into my second hometown."

Margerie was pleased by the reactions of Ombuti and the others.

As expected, one should not hold back when it comes to spending money. If one chose to drizzle pee on a frozen foot, you would not make much of an impact other than making it smell a bit. The good example would be all those donations he made to Africa and other poorer regions around the world.

The amount of donations he made here and there certainly was not insignificant, but almost none of that money was spent on the good cause. Most of them ended up in the back pockets of politicians or high-ranking officials of poorer nations.

The only reason why he still donated despite knowing this truth was not for the poor people, but for the sake of Total's smooth operation. But now that he had become a member of Nova, Margerie could no longer turn a blind eye toward the construction of Novatopia.

By doing this, he would certainly earn Wakil's approval, demonstrate his capability to other retainers and even help out those in need, too. Killing three birds with one stone, in other words. Two billion Francs was a bargain considering the benefits.

"Dapsang, thank you!"

"Don't mention it, Governor. Honestly, it's me who's truly grateful. Although I couldn't become a member of the Black Culture, it's already a massive honor to become Nova's member. Hahaha!" Margerie laughed happily away.

After receiving the name Dapsang, Margerie learned about the existence of another loyal organization called Black Culture.

"The Black Culture is just an informal organization independent of religious or cultural backgrounds. Its purpose is to guard Dubaiburupa, Chairman. But Wakil is building up the association called Nova with a bigger picture in mind. With this, I assure you that you shall soon witness a world quite different from what you've been accustomed to."

"Hahaha, I didn't say that because I was unhappy. No, I'm just envious of you, Governor."

"Even though I'm the head of Wakil's servants and the Governor of Novatopia, I still haven't received a Nova yet. That's why I'm envious of you instead, Chairman."

"Is that so? It seems that I need to do a better job of safeguarding it, then."

Margerie sneakily obstructed Ombuti's gaze while stashing the bone dagger deep inside his inner pocket. However, he still had no idea the true significance held by this dagger with the word 'Dapsang' engraved on its hilt.

*

Once Margerie made his appearance, his bodyguards hurriedly rushed up to him.

"Thank you for your hard work, everyone."

"...?"

The sudden compliment from the chairman caused the bodyguards to stare at each other's faces. They were ready for the event of getting fired here, yet ended up being praised for some reason. Not only that but his attitude of serving Mister Gulbeig as his master also came across as rather weird.

'He's changed somehow!'

Margerie's personal physician tilted his head in confusion.

It felt like the Chairman's face had gotten younger. His previously-cautious steps had become confident and outgoing. Clear vigor could be heard in his voice, too. But the physician could not hold onto his puzzlement for too long.

"Thank you, sir!"

The members of Margerie's entourage shouted energetically.

The dealings of the higher-ups were none of their business, after all. And now that the threat of dismissal was gone, everyone felt relieved and happy.

That's right — those unfortunate enough to encounter Black Mamba would have to walk the path of destruction, while those lucky enough to meet Mu Ssang would become so much happier in their lives. It was the manifestation of Bali the Asura's nature, as intended by Monk Dae-woo.

Margerie solemnly declined the invitation to attend the feast and hurriedly left the residence. The exploration and development of an oilfield was a race against time. Depending on the trend of international oil price, hundreds of millions in dollars would be gained or lost in a day.

And so, 'Dapsang' Margerie, now equipped with at least thirty engines, forgot about what Mu Ssang told him and ran straight back to his place of work.

*

The MSF hospital was located in Jipoon Dari's bustling central district. Unlike its sister hospitals in other African nations, the one in Jipoon Dari was a proper five-story French-style building with plastered walls. The white building surrounded by lush palm trees reminded one of a resort rather than a hospital.

"La-la-la~♬"

On the 3rd floor's surgical ward...

The chief surgeon, Roman Walter, was hurriedly getting ready to depart.

A hum unconsciously left his lips from the thought of finally seeing Edel again after four long years. Back then, he let his guard down and ended up losing her, but now? He planned to properly grab hold of her this time.

"How have you been all this time? Nein, nein! Nothing bad has happened to you, I hope? I still love you. Yes, yes!"

Feeling like buoyed floating balloons, Walter even began applying foundation around his eyes, only for his hands to come to a sudden stop.

"I wonder, has that dirty black kicked the bucket by now?"

Wazalan was an Arab and not a black African, but in Walter's eyes, they were all the same.

Some orally-administered chemical drugs were dangerous to consume simultaneously. For instance, if you consumed the ursodeoxycholic acid meant to protect one's liver and the diabetes drugs from the tolbutamide family at the same time, you ran the risk of developing sudden hypoglycemia.

In other words, you must never take ursodiol, diabetic treatments and drugs meant to treat hyperlipidemia at the same time. You even had to be careful when taking aspirin; if you took it along with some warfarin, which was an anticoagulant, you would end up with a nosebleed.

One of the more lethal cases would be taking the athlete's foot medication from the itraconazole family along with the antihistamine, terfenadine.

Itraconazole was cheap, so it was often used in the military. Meanwhile, terfenadine could block the potassium channels found in a person's heart, leading to arrhythmia. Someone who had been taking itraconazole for a long time could suffer from a heart attack if they also took terfenadine on top.

Not only was Walter a narrow-minded individual, but he was also a racist. He was definitely not the type of person to prescribe life-saving medicines to someone like Wazalan who hindered him in the past.