(590 Monthly Pass Bonus, seeking Monthly Pass)

Yu Xiaodi stayed at Li Yan's house for the second time, and that night, nothing suggestive or ambiguous happened.

For Li Yan, who guessed their secret agreement, he also promised not to reveal it. Everyone pretended nothing had happened, allowing Xiaodi to fulfill her agreement with Yurong, to compete fairly.

In fact, Li Yan did not believe Yurong would compete fairly for him, because she is a passive and proud person. Accepting Li Yan required a long process. Competing actively with others for a man is not in her nature. In his estimation, Yurong might want to set a deadline for their relationship; things couldn't remain stagnant forever. A year later, it would be up to him to decide, and for now, it was a stepping stone.

Yurong adhered to the agreement and only informed Yue Yao about it, without disclosing the specifics. Yue Yao didn't understand as clearly as Li Yan speculated, but she faintly had a direction.

However, she was already busy with her tasks and didn't have much energy to worry about their relationship.

Because she had already represented King, taking on the task of executing the assassination on Si Country operatives! After she undertook this task, the number of S-Class assassins involved reached five.

Due to the special nature of this task, the target was not an ordinary tycoon or dignitary, not even a high-ranking official. In terms of capacity, they are well-trained professional operatives responsible for assassination; in terms of identity, they represent the intelligence agencies and military of Si Country, thus representing the country itself!

This weighty identity is troublesome!

An operative might only represent an individual, a department, or a division of a department. But a group of operatives executing a multi-department coordinated assassination action represents a country. Even assassins who care for money over life find such identities daunting. They are even more troublesome than assassinating a cabinet minister or even a president!

In a country like Si Country, although it's a presidential system, it's essentially divided into two systems: politicians and bureaucrats. Cabinet ministers and above are all nominated by the president. Though they come from bureaucratic backgrounds, within those four years, they become politicians. The president, likewise, is a politician. When politicians die, the impact is significant, but the actual blow to the nation isn't. If the president dies, the vice president takes over, and everything continues!

Politicians often change with each administration, so after four years, a new batch takes charge. However, in the military and intelligence departments, it's the bureaucratic system. A change in the defense minister doesn't affect the military's demand for budget, the generals, or the stationed forces abroad. The intelligence bureau reports to the president, yet no matter how the presidency changes, the intelligence system and senior managers remain stable. Everything stays the same!

The implication is that killing a president indeed offends the country, and it becomes dire in the short term, but if you elude capture, the repercussions aren't as severe. Once the Si Country president steps down, they, like ordinary people, must find ways to earn a living, and the state only protects them for a limited time. Afterward, they need to hire bodyguards for safety; if they die, aside from a larger impact, the successor is often too occupied with their own tasks to wholeheartedly seek vengeance, especially with a swift change in ruling parties afterward.

However, the system is different. If you kill a general, the military will pursue you for years. If you target SIA or BOI personnel, they will hunt you for years, as they are not just individuals. In other words, the enemies of a president concern the state, but a past president's enemies become personal, even in death. In contrast, SIA's enemies are the enemies of thousands of its intelligence personnel!

Of course, major intelligence agencies like SIA and BOI have tens of thousands of active intelligence personnel, with even more unofficial ones, though most are in civil roles, many with alternate jobs. Exaggerated, mythologized multi-talented operatives like James Bond from the "007" series, Jason Bourne from the "Bourne" series, and Jack Bauer from "24" exist, but they are few.

Therefore, the assassins' concerns are not about the operatives themselves but about the institutions behind them and their operational mechanisms!

...

"Are you sure there are so many?" Li Yan couldn't help but be surprised when he saw the list from Yue Yao. A rough glance showed nearly a hundred people!

Yue Yao smiled slightly: "This is the information obtained by those hidden 'leakers.' There might be that many, or perhaps the Si Country people anticipated this and deliberately set up false pretenses."

"Damn... deploying so many operatives for a single assassination is obviously fake. That's enough for a small battle, quite wasteful. They might as well just hire assassins; it would be more cost-effective!" Li Yan found it hard to believe.

"Hiring assassins is somewhat uncontrollable. If there's a leak-prone element within the assassins or platform, it can lead to major repercussions. Moreover, Si Country nurtures the most operatives worldwide; keeping them idle would be pointless. Besides, they might have other objectives beyond counting kills."

Li Yan became serious, "Perhaps... because this is happening within Yun Country's territory, they can't acquire much special privilege support, and SIA-like intelligence agencies have limited penetration into Yun Country. They're likely taking precautionary measures! If it's really over a hundred people... that's indeed a lucrative business."

Calculating at a million International Coins per head, over a hundred people translate to a billion International Coin deal!

Yue Yao frowned slightly, "With us now, only five people are taking action. If it indeed involves a hundred or more, each must face over twenty, which is no small number!"

Yue Yao worried not just about the numbers but also the skills of these people!

Agents, operatives, intelligence personnel, are all umbrella terms that include officials, management, administration, civil, technical, and action departments. Influenced by Si Country movies, Yun Country people typically refer to action-oriented personnel as operatives. Those executing assassination tasks are undoubtedly from the action-oriented assassin category.

These operatives' essence is actually no different from killers. The distinction is superficial—one serves money from commissions; the other serves money from government finance, giving them an elevated appearance! Essentially, they are all assassins, but killers have the power of choice; assassination-class operatives only have the power to follow orders.

These can be called comrades, and they are indeed tougher than ordinary killers. Whether lone killer or a member of a killer organization, none can compete with intelligence giants like SIA, BOI. They have government order channels, substantial funding, access to the best weapons, government background, military or cutting-edge research equipment, and superior logistical support...

Therefore, to truly eliminate one of them, an assassin must rely on personal experience, great strength, and the advantage of hiding in shadows.

This disparity causes many to hesitate, which is why more S-Class assassins must unite to complete the task.

"Twenty... If we kill strictly according to the list and data here, it's not a major problem. My biggest concern is that there are more than a hundred, with many more possibly just as bait!" Li Yan spoke softly.

Hearing this, Yue Yao was astonished: "No way?" Deploying over a hundred operatives for one person is already unimaginable. Having a hundred just as bait is too extravagant, isn't it?

"Hehe, this treatment may be better than that of a small country's leader, right?" Li Yan laughed, "But it's possible if Julian has significance beyond being killed or is somehow worth it."

"That would really be turning the tables..." Yue Yao sighed slightly. Those 'leak' supporters compiled the intelligence agency's data, amassed huge capital, and first targeted them for elimination. Yet if the opposite side truly uses the ruse, they could lure all the assassins out for elimination with just a few bait targets.

"Of course, so many would only be lists of possible targets they couldn't miss, with perhaps few true assassination operatives. They might come in batches, eliminating the need for many people at once."

Yue Yao nodded: "Indeed, if only five arrive in the first batch, they might not need to allocate an excess portion of their people, as we could watch ourselves battle it out. Killers won't spare competitors competing for more profits. Coming in waves is an excellent trap, but for those confident in themselves, it's a chance to hunt more targets. Yet as the sandpiper and clam fight, the fisherman gains; their arranged third party will profit, their hidden stakes winning out!"

"In that scenario, just a few bait targets, a dozen or so operatives, could resolve everyone. Once the word gets out, onlookers would shy away even more. That way, killing Julian would face no resistance from us." Li Yan said with a smile.

"You don't seem worried?" Yue Yao also smiled.

"Since we can see through this, how could our lovely peers not? Those daring to take the task are savvy folks, haha... If the Si Country people attempt to leverage this, I now want to see if they end up getting counter-disadvantaged instead." Li Yan laughed lightly.

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