"You don't seem to think highly of Agent L. Is it because she replaced Agent K?" Agent Z asked Agent O after the two were left alone in the room.
Agent K was indeed excellent. As one of the MIB's earliest members, he was an object of admiration and respect for many who came after.
Of course, that included Agent O.
For the Organization, Agent K was like a flag, similar to a spiritual totem.
"Agent K's contributions to the Organization deserved a dignified and grand retirement ceremony…" Agent O first expressed her regret, then continued, "However, quietly fading into peace was his choice, and we should respect that."
"As for his replacement, Agent L, from my observation, her personality is not suited to be an Agent."
Laurel might be very smart, and her courage might be adequate. But her self-centered personality could very likely cause problems in future operations.
Yes, the female forensic doctor's performance in the MIB these past two days was somewhat like a "Little Fairy" with an overinflated ego.
She took Agent J's care for her for granted. Knowing that he liked her, she even had a tendency to turn him into a free tool.
However, when Agent J had further intentions, she chose to ignore them.
How could the worldly Agent O not see through Laurel's little tricks?
However, such matters also required mutual consent, and Agent O had no good way to help Agent J. So, the only thing she could do was create more opportunities for the two young people to interact.
As for how the two would develop afterward, and whether Agent J could extricate himself from the quagmire, that would depend on fate.
"Forget it, let's not talk about Agent J's new partner." Agent Z had also observed Agent L, and she didn't leave a good impression on him either.
After skipping over the female Agent's matter, Agent Z continued, "Let's discuss how to compensate Agent K. Oh, by the way, he's called Kay now."
Due to the unique nature of the MIB, every retired employee would have their memory wiped, so they wouldn't remember having worked there.1
Therefore, the distribution of these people's pensions required the Organization to find a way to send them out as "benefits."
Agent K had worked for the Organization for over forty years, so the welfare benefits he enjoyed were naturally in a league of their own.
This required Agent O and Agent Z to discuss it thoroughly.
...
Meanwhile, Mike arrived at the Organization's research department. All the high-tech products used by MIB Agents were manufactured and developed here.
However, the messy, market-like scene before him was inevitably shocking.
"Hello, excuse me, who is the head here?" Mike found a relatively young-looking researcher who was currently observing a mass of liquid, possibly an alien organism, with an ultra-large microscope.
"Head? We don't have a head here, only research teams." It seemed that progress was not going well, and this researcher, around thirty or forty years old, sounded a little impatient after being disturbed.
"Then where is your team leader?" Mike patiently asked.
After all, it was understandable for people engaged in scientific research to have eccentric temperaments.
Moreover, this middle-aged man with thick hair seemed easier to talk to compared to the other "mad scientists" who either had gray hair or were incredibly intelligent.
"What do you need our team leader for?" The middle-aged researcher, unwilling to waste time, looked at Mike and asked directly.
"I have Agent O's permission to pick up two 'Noisy Crickets.'" Mike didn't waste words either.
"Then you should go to the Weapons Research Team. Keep going straight back; they're at the very end… We are the Biological Research Team…" The middle-aged researcher finished speaking all at once and then returned to his biological research.
Indeed, there was a reason why everyone recruited by the MIB's research department was special.3
Mike shook his head and followed the direction the other person pointed, walking all the way to the latter half of the research department.
The spatial layout here looked more dispersed, with many high-tech products from alien civilizations displayed around.
"Mike?"
Just as Mike was about to ask someone, a slightly surprised voice came from beside him.
"Mike, I wasn't wrong, it really is you!" A short old man in a white coat with hardly any hair on his head emerged from a pile of cluttered items.
"Dr. Sturgis?" Mike was also a bit surprised, "Didn't you go to Houston to be a professor?"
Yes, this person was indeed Dr. Sturgis, who had previously taught at Texas and also an old friend of Mike and Sheldon.
The three had once worked together on a rocket launch project in the same research team and had even applied for the Nobel Prize for it.
Of course, they failed in the end.
And as far as Mike knew, Dr. Sturgis's insistence on going to Houston at the time was because the university there collaborated with the Aeronautics Bureau, and he could continue his rocket research there.
"You might not believe it, but I only researched rockets at Houston University for a little over a month before I was brought here by a mysterious person…" Dr. Sturgis's face was filled with excitement, "This place is simply heaven—"
It was understandable. Dr. Sturgis possessed super high intelligence and a rich research foundation. Allowing such a talent to continue spending time and energy researching outdated space technology was clearly a great waste of resources.
After all, compared to alien UFO technology, the rocket launch technology researched on Earth was many versions behind.
"I'm an intern here now, working with my mentor on a damaged alien flying saucer. I heard that the flying saucer was previously on top of the Twin Towers…"
Talking about his current work, Dr. Sturgis grew more and more excited. Then he realized that chatting here was somewhat inappropriate, so he changed the subject and said, "Oh, by the way, Mike. Why are you here too? Could it be that the research department here took an interest in you as well?"
John sounded happy as he spoke—
Judging others by himself, perhaps in his eyes, being able to research cutting-edge technology in this place was a very happy thing.
And Mike's previous learning and research abilities had given the old professor the misconception that he was a researcher.
"No, I am an Agent of the Organization." Mike stated his identity.
"An Agent? That's a pity…" Dr. Sturgis's face showed regret.
In his mind, Mike, whose intelligence was no lower than Sheldon's, would surely achieve something if he brought that talent to the field of scientific research.
Fighting and killing were nowhere near as interesting as doing scientific research and advancing civilization!
"Then why are you here?" Dr. Sturgis finally accepted the fact that Mike had become an Agent.
"I came to see if there are any 'Noisy Crickets' left here. Oh, by the way, a Noisy Cricket is a powerful and compact weapon…" Mike, fearing the other party wouldn't understand, added an explanation.
"What a coincidence, I know about the 'Noisy Cricket.' I even participated in its design before. Of course, only as an observer." Dr. Sturgis revealed, "And the one who led the design and development of that weapon is my mentor here."
By time, John had been in the MIB's research department for over two months, so he indeed had the opportunity to participate in the development of the "Noisy Cricket."
"That's great! Can you take me to see your mentor? I want to ask him if he has any Noisy Cricket in stock." Mike explained his purpose.
However, the whole thing was indeed very coincidental. Who would have thought that people who were originally in Texas would meet in New York after going their separate ways?
And in such a way.