Dumping The Ice King His Mini-Tyrant novel Chapter 500

Selene picked up the mic and addressed everyone present. “The signal transmitters and receivers aren’t made by QuanTech Innovations, nor by Vaughn Enterprises. They’re not even part of what makes this self-driving truck special. Right now, I’m destroying the transmitters on the vehicle. I want to run the test again.”

“Brilliant move!” Annalise Johnston snapped, her voice cold and sharp. “Selene, have you lost your mind?”

But Annalise’s outburst was only heard by those sitting up in the stands.

Gwyneth leaned over, whispering, “Why would Selene do something like that?”

Annalise pressed her lips into a thin line. “She just wants attention, that’s all. She’s a little too confident in her own tech, if you ask me.”

Gwyneth frowned, not understanding why Selene would deliberately destroy the transmitters for everyone to see.

Down on the test track, Selene flipped open her laptop, preparing to restart the test. Several engineers exchanged nervous glances, one of them calling out, “Mr. Thompson, you can’t do this!”

“Mr. Thompson, the test was already a success. There’s no need to do it again!”

Ignoring them, Selene’s face hardened as she pressed the start button. “You really think this is interesting?”

The self-driving truck began to move, accelerating as if it were barreling down a highway.

“Just like before,” Selene instructed. “You’ll play the part of pedestrians and step out in front of the truck.”

But not a single staff member moved.

“What’s wrong?” Selene asked, her gaze sweeping over them. “Without the signal receivers, you’re too scared to take part in the test?”

A few of the engineers looked especially uncomfortable. One stammered, “Mr. Thompson, we just want the test to go smoothly, that’s all…”

Before he could finish, the driverless truck veered out of control and slammed into a streetlight.

Without the signal receivers, the truck was like a headless beast, unable to recognize any obstacles in its path.

It smashed through the streetlight, then careened toward the wall of the test arena. Panic erupted among the staff.

The moment she spotted Selene, her face twisted in rage. “Are you insane? You just ruined the entire test!”

Selene looked her in the eye. “Who ordered all those extra signal receivers to be installed?”

Still half-deaf, Annalise raised her voice. “I did!”

“And why so many?” Selene pressed.

Annalise growled, “To improve the chances of success!”

“And how is that any different from faking the results?” Selene shot back. “How much did it cost to install all those receivers? When this truck is actually out on the road, do you expect every pedestrian it encounters to be carrying a transmitter?”

Selene’s voice was icy. “You’re falsifying the results now, but when these self-driving trucks actually hit the streets and something goes wrong, are you going to take responsibility?”

She gave a bitter laugh. “Of course not. You only have a one-year contract with QuanTech Innovations. When the trucks are launched, you’re not the one in charge—Harrison and I are. When something bad happens, we’re the ones who’ll be blamed.”