NOVEL WEB Chapter 721
**Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.**
Los Calches, led by El Rizo, provided me with accommodation.
I spent 2 nights and 3 days researching the production method of mutant cannabis in the secret hideout of Los Cuts.
Knock, knock—
“NoName Wizard, are you there?”
“Yeah, come in.”
Two elite members set down heavy equipment in the room.
Thud-!
[Prime Editor – Search-and-replace genome editing]
“I needed a microscope. Can you set that up first?”
“Yes, understood. Wow, what a lab… it looks like a mad scientist’s place.”
“Hmph, something like that.”
“If the CEO of Janjeol is found out doing something illegal, it’ll be a disaster, right?”
“Why is this illegal? In Korea, where drugs are strict, hemp seeds are legal. When did I plant hemp or consume it?”
“…”
“Heh, isn’t that right?”
I flashed a smile at the organization members.
Did they want to use this to blackmail me?
They scrunched their faces and turned away.
“Gene editing. Isn’t that dangerous?”
“No, on the contrary, the hemp oil extracted this way is specialized for treating pediatric epilepsy. It’s all about how you use drugs. By the way, go get the boss.”
About an hour later, El Rizo arrived.
“That’s insane.”
His short remark made me chuckle.
“In this machine, you’ll see a library stocked with Schedule 1 and 2 drugs on the market. Fentanyl, methamphetamine, heroin, LSD, ecstasy, cannabis, and so on. We’ll temper this gene-edited seed in the Etheric Machine.”
[5 Circle Chant: Alchemist]
Whirring-!
“If we evenly sprinkle the engraving magic like this, it’s complete. The magic is a bit pricey, but you can use it in large quantities at once.”
“Hmmm… You’ve been planning this for a long time, huh?”
“I’ve just been thinking about it. Other drugs interfere with Dreaming Mode.”
The “Alchemist’s Mirror,” which shows the happiest moments in life.
Many people misunderstand that this moment is purely determined by dopamine levels.
Dopamine is commonly mistaken as the happiness hormone, but it’s simply a hormone involved in excitement and arousal.
True happiness is more aligned with what Aristotle defined as ‘excellence’ — ‘an activity of the soul.’
It serves as nourishment for the Aura Heart to perform more comprehensive imaginative functions.
To put it simply, when you ride a bicycle for the first time.
The experience of your father holding you from behind becomes an essential foundation for learning independence and trust in later life.
But—
“We recognized a significant issue regarding Dreaming Mode here at Janjeol.”
While happiness isn’t determined by dopamine, if the dopamine system breaks down, happy moments get disturbed too.
In other words, fentanyl and heroin users can hardly experience the benefits of Dreaming Mode.
At times, reports suggest that severe cocaine and nicotine addicts also see diminished effects from Dreaming Mode.
Particularly among smokers, ongoing complaints abound.
“They should quit smoking… Anyway, it’s tough to do business.”
El Rizo fiddled with the seeds before subtly asking me.
“What’s the principle behind it?”
“The suppression mechanism of mutant cannabis slows down the dopamine explosions caused by addictive drugs, making the brain perceive intense pleasure as an alien signal. As a result, instead of euphoric sensations from the drugs, only helplessness and emptiness remain, significantly decreasing the desire for the drugs.”
“?”
“To put it simply, other stuff just doesn’t taste good!”
I shook my head side to side.
“Wait… Why is cannabis included in the suppressants? Isn’t cannabis definitely a Schedule 3 controlled substance?”
“Heh. Well, even among cannabis, they need to compete, right? What’s wrong? Should I exclude marijuana?”
I grinned widely.
‘You have the chance to wipe out other cannabis growers completely.’
Long gazes exchanged.
“Yeah. The more mutant cannabis spreads, the more other products lose their value naturally. This is completely…”
El Rizo covered his mouth with his hand.
Heehee—
Behind his hardened expression, an uncontrollable joy was evident.
“Is this really the reason they call it a war between drugs?”
“On second thought, the term ‘drug war’ might be somewhat inappropriate? ‘Drug massacre’ might be more accurate.”
“Let me ask one more thing. If we grow Sinaloa into Mexico’s top cartel with this, what benefit do you get, NoName Wizard?”
“Oh? You’re planning to take Sinaloa for yourself, huh? You don’t look strong enough for that… Are you confident?”
“If I set up a proper farm, it’ll only take 5 years, no, 3 years. This organization is overwhelmingly lacking in funds right now.”
“That’s not what I meant. If the secret that mutant cannabis neutralizes other drugs gets out, everyone will want to kill you.”
“…”
“Not just in Mexico, but also in Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, and Afghanistan. And on top of that, we’ll have to deal with the Mexican police and military?”
A dominant cartel is powerful, but conversely, that’s how they receive much threat.
“I don’t necessarily think you need to be the producer, El Rizo. After all, I hold all the rights to update the library.”
This mutant cannabis undergoes the Etheric engraving process unconditionally.
El Rizo fell into thought.
He fiddled with the engraver several times.
“Is it possible to include the mutant cannabis itself in the library?”
“I hadn’t thought that far. It would be wasteful to eliminate something that we’ve barely distributed, but depending on the circumstances, if it gets too chaotic, I might consider it.”
“Haaa… NoName, you’re just like an American. Damn it.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
He was fully aware that he had lost the initiative.
“Of course! Why would I do something nice for the cartels?”
But from his perspective, it’s a deal that absolutely cannot be refused.
The moment cultivation succeeds, sitting on a pile of cash is merely a matter of time.
I stood up from the cold laboratory floor.
“Oof. My legs are going numb. Anyway, that’s all for me. Now you’re lending me your members, right?”
“Wait.”
“What? It’s no fun if you turn on me now.”
“That’s not it. Sinaloa is currently divided into two factions. The Zambada family’s Vicente Zambada Vieja, and the Guzman family’s Alejandro Guzman Montero. The cartels they lead are pretty much evenly matched.”
“Zambada and Guzman. I’ve heard those names a lot.”
“It’s a grudge that’s been going on for 30 years since my father’s generation. The moment I side with one, civil war is inevitable.”
I searched for the Sinaloa bosses on the internet.
“Wow, the bounty on both is 50 billion… Quite tempting.”
I smacked my lips.
“Don’t even think about it. They’re people whose whereabouts in Mexico are uncertain.”
“True. If they’re targeted by the U.S., they must be hiding tight. I just need to rescue the kidnapped employees. In the process, I’ll catch the rude ones who blocked the VP access.”
“NoName Wizard, do you know what it means for one cartel to interfere with another cartel’s affairs?”
“War?”
“Exactly. It’s war. It’s not something that can be solved just by talking.”
“Hah… This is all my fault for sticking with a weak cartel like Los Cuts. I should have sided with Sinaloa from the start…”
“Do you want to die?”
El Rizo flared up for a moment.
Surprisingly, this boss accepts my harsh words without any problem.
“Maybe it’s because I’m still young?”
I might as well enjoy the privileges of being young at such times.
“Los Calchona is an organization loyal to Guzman. If you want to get your hostages back, you’ll have to ask Guzman for direct help.”
“Then I take it there’s a reason I shouldn’t.”
“I don’t mind. But…”
El Rizo trailed off.
It felt as if something unpleasant was going to come out.
“Guzman is the one who ordered blocking access to Dreaming Mode via the Magic Power Plant.”
“Ah… Then can’t we request Zambada? After all, Guzman is the second-in-command and Zambada is the top dog.”
“Days ago, Zambada issued a summons to all branch leaders of the Sinaloa cartel. I was also present at that meeting.”
“And…?”
“Zambada agreed to block access to Dreaming Mode. No, he went so far as to issue an order to destroy the Dream Capsules.”
“…”
“Looks like a civil war is going to break out soon.”
I hung my head and stared for a long time at the shadow cast by the moonlight.
‘So that’s why they were trying to remove the Dream Capsules. They can’t afford to receive even a little treatment. But was the moonlight this bright?’
Just as I was about to turn back.
Boom—!
In the midnight glow of the full moon, a thunderous explosion echoed from outside the window.
“Wha…!”
“What’s that noise?”
We both rushed to the window to see outside.
Red smoke billowed from a place at least several kilometers away.
Whew-!
Alarms echoed from everywhere, regardless of the house, street, square, or location.
El Rizo dashed to the living room and turned on the TV.
[Breaking News: An explosion terror attack and gunfire have occurred in the Lezarkadas area of Ciudad Juárez. Citizens are urged to evacuate to safe locations immediately.]
* * *
“The civil war has already begun.”
The next morning.
Mexican soldiers guarding the ruined urban buildings.
Amidst the swirling red smoke and debris, the casualty numbers were recorded.
Nine deaths, twenty injured.
All but one civilian injury were cartel members.
The governor of Chihuahua, Mexico, delivered a speech urging the Sinaloa cartel to cease the civil war.
But somehow, his voice lacked strength.
Perhaps it was the threat of being murdered if he spoke too harshly.
Netizens on the internet ramped up their criticism towards the incompetent and corrupt politicians.
“Yes, I’m in Mexico City. Yes, thank you for your concern. Have a nice day.”
I hung up the call that came in this morning.
“Embassy?”
“Oh, how did you know?”
“South Korea does a good job taking care of its citizens in such times. It’s an enviable country.”
Although Koreans don’t think that way, when compared to Mexico, it looks like a fairy tale.
The wars between cartel factions are tangled with numerous interests like a spider web.
You can’t merely think of it as two factions facing off in a team match.
Some cartels take the first step to demonstrate loyalty, while there were also cases of cartels killing off those they found troublesome.
“So even organizations like Los Cuts play the field from the middle to the end?”
“… Is this wise? NoName Wizard, you’ve been quietly scratching the surface for a long time?”
We had been making plans for the cultivation of mutant cannabis.
In the process, I also learned about El Rizo’s life.
If I were to summarize his life in a Korean style, he was the head of a farming cooperative smuggling ice apple to the Taiwan Triad.
He was a case that had given up the avocado business to enter a power struggle, only to end up failing in northern Mexico.
Yet he seemed to have quite a reputation, as he commanded 100 combat team members, mostly from self-defense forces.
“Let’s carry out the operation.”
Operation name WWE.
1. From now on, I will give my all to get kidnapped by Los Calchona.
2. —Los Cuts— Los Calches will dramatically rescue me.
3. El Rizo, the head of the cooperative, will rise to power in Sinaloa in one fell swoop.
The plan was flawless.
“How are you going to get kidnapped? Who? Daring to? You?”
“…”
“Drop this ridiculous plan—”
“Oh, I just thought of something! If I sneak in, wouldn’t that be the same as getting kidnapped…? Hehe.”