"I'm blaming the Cult."
Kai blinked.
"The Cult?"
Dr. Z nodded.
"They kidnapped one of your Outlaws."
"I specifically told them..."
"...not to touch those people."
He sighed.
"They ignored me."
"Then naturally..."
"The Outlaws redirected all of their attention."
"...Toward my laboratory."
Another sigh.
"So now..."
"...it's under a mountain of sand."
He shrugged.
"Oh well."
"Water under the bridge."
Kai narrowed his eyes.
"...You're not with the Cult."
Dr. Z looked genuinely confused.
"The Cult?"
Then burst into laughter.
"Hahahahahaha!"
"No."
"We're not with the Cult."
"We're from the Illu—"
He suddenly stopped himself.
His eyes slowly met Kai's.
"...Ah."
"I see what you did."
Kai hadn't done anything.
He simply stayed quiet.
Dr. Z chuckled.
"Almost made me say something troublesome."
Kai kept his face calm.
But inside—
His thoughts raced.
So there really was another organization.
Separate from the Cult of Azathoth.
Whether they worked together...
Or one manipulated the other...
He had no idea.
Dr. Z stretched lazily.
"Anyway."
"If you still want the operation..."
"I'll need to rebuild my equipment."
"My surgical tools."
"My calibration arrays."
"My mana stabilizers."