Spoiled by Mr. Russell, Chapter 2130

Although Fred could usually appease the Queen with a few words, this time she remained unyielding. After a moment's contemplation, Fred straightened. "All right, Your Majesty. I'll tell you, since you've already discovered it. The lab began as a small workshop. You know I've been working on the R10 experiment for you. R10 is a codename; there were others."

The Queen raised an eyebrow. "You're saying there were nine other similar experiments?"

"Yes," he nodded, after a slight hesitation.

The Queen tilted her head. "And after R10? Were there any further experiments?"

Fred assessed her, weighing whether to reveal more. After a few seconds, he nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty."

He was unsure of her knowledge and dared not probe. He knew her well, having served her for nearly thirty years. She might appear kind and approachable, but only Fred knew her ruthless nature when dealing with enemies. Even he couldn't predict her actions. "How many?"

"More than ten, but most failed and shouldn't have continued," he replied truthfully.

"So you conducted all these experiments for me?" The Queen smiled, her expression unreadable.

Fred couldn't discern pleasure or displeasure in her flat tone. He straightened again. "No."

"Oh?"

"I admit I didn't conduct them all for you, Your Majesty. I did them for Yudonia!" His gaze was firm. "Also, a virus our lab created caused the pandemic in Burnwken. That wasn't my intention, however."

The Queen simply said his name, "Fred," then fell silent. After a time, she looked at him, her expression shifting from conflicted sorrow to anger. "Do you know how many of our people died during the pandemic?"