Chapter 120: The Maverick’s Request
by xennovel“He wants to go out alone and track those Ability Users?”
Qinggang Main City, Administration Hall, Meeting Room.
A meeting was underway to summarize and address the recent attack by Ability Users from outside the city.
For Qinggang this special pollution cleanup which caused immense damage presented many issues to consider.
For instance dealing with the incident’s impact on the citizens stabilizing public sentiment handling the aftermath cleanup and so on.
Furthermore news had arrived that the pursuit of the Knight Orders who entered the city to steal the painting had failed.
Consequently Qinggang City faced numerous follow-up issues. They needed to uncover the true origins and identity of the Knight Orders investigate if other factions were backing them and reflect on the defensive vulnerabilities of Qinggang Main City and the Satellite Cities.
This was supposed to be a long and somber meeting but an unexpected situation had arisen.
Everyone’s attention had been drawn to something else entirely.
It was a work application report.
This report came from an external member of the Special Action Team stationed in the Second Satellite City under the Qinggang Special Pollution Cleanup Department.
Mr. Lone Soldier.
The applicant was seeking permission from Headquarters to leave the city and pursue the Ability Users who launched the attack within the city.
With the Knight Orders having caused chaos and escaped shaking Qinggang’s upper echelons this application…
Seemed quite reasonable!
…
…
“Is this some kind of joke?”
Minister Shen from the City Defense Department silently finished reading the application report. He suddenly slammed it onto the table his voice low and serious “During this special pollution attack incident he revealed many secrets we were completely unaware of. Now just as we’re about to conduct an investigation and inquiry into him he suddenly applies to leave the city…”
He paused then added gravely “I suspect he’s planning to escape!”
“…
*Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!*
As he spoke numerous gazes in the meeting room turned towards him.
Among them were four bald professors a female doctor wearing black-rimmed glasses three field-grade officers in high-ranking military uniforms a slightly plump middle-aged man and an old man in a white suit with calm wise eyes.
Minister Shen’s face flushed red under so many stares.
Pausing briefly he added “I know he performed great deeds in this incident and saved many people. But facts are facts. I have no objection to commending him but his concealment of his own abilities has always been a major concern for our High-wall City Special Pollution Cleanup Department. It represents a hidden threat. That’s why I proposed an inquiry!”
Whether intentionally or not he stressed the word “inquiry.”
Hearing this the expressions of the others softened somewhat.
“Ah so it’s not an interrogation…”
One of the bald professors with glasses chuckled “It would have been better if you’d been clearer. I thought you were going to ‘kill the donkey after the grinding is done’…”
“Exactly…”
The pot-bellied bald professor next to him chimed in “Strictly speaking the grinding isn’t even finished yet…”
“…
Minister Shen snorted heavily and turned his face away unwilling to speak to them.
“I also find it somewhat strange.”
At this moment a round-faced slightly plump middle-aged man sitting in the middle of the conference table smiled “A necessary inquiry can be conducted. After all our primary goal from the beginning has been to maintain safety and order within the High Wall. If Mr. Lone Soldier as a member of our Qinggang Cleanup Department suddenly becomes a problem himself it would undoubtedly be a disaster for Qinggang…”
“So I want to know what is his real purpose for wanting to leave the city?”
Pausing slightly he tapped the table lightly his gaze sweeping over the crowd “Is it to avoid the upcoming inquiry or… to leave for good?”
He mentioned several possibilities all resonating with the crowd’s thoughts. Many nodded in agreement.
“Also regarding the research on his abilities are there any results yet?”
The middle-aged man turned to the area with the bald men smiling humbly and frankly “I’m not an Ability User nor am I a relevant researcher so I don’t quite understand the extent of his performance during the cleanup of Special Pollution Source 094 this time. What I’m more concerned about is whether the abilities he displayed are something we can explain?”
“…
His words made the atmosphere in the meeting room slightly oppressive. Many lowered their heads to look at the files in their hands.
“Inexplicable.”
A fat man wearing a wig was the first to speak answering seriously “We also received the submitted materials as well as verbal reports from the City Patrol Army and other Ability Users. We’ve reconstructed the events of that time fairly accurately and organized the information…”
“It’s very strange. At the most critical moment all our personnel had withdrawn. No one witnessed Mr. Lone Soldier’s specific actions when dealing with that level 2+ mental monster. Post-incident site inspections found no specific traces either; it was handled very cleanly. We only know that a psychic explosion event occurred with a magnitude close to three thousand…”
“Anything else…”
He flipped through the files a couple of times while speaking then pushed them away regretfully “Nothing.”
“Hmm…”
The middle-aged man mused “Mr. Lone Soldier proposed letting others withdraw from the battlefield back then. Does that mean Mr. Lone Soldier did it intentionally?”
“There are many possible reasons we can speculate.”
Just then the polite spectacled bald professor spoke softly “It’s possible Mr. Lone Soldier knew what he was going to do and didn’t want others to see so he suggested they withdraw. This proves he was indeed hiding something…”
Hearing this the stern-faced Minister Shen immediately wanted to speak.
But the spectacled bald professor raised a hand slightly stopping him and continued “But there’s another reason. Mr. Lone Soldier might have believed what he was about to do was extremely dangerous. He didn’t want to harm his colleagues so he suggested everyone withdraw. This means he wasn’t confident he could handle the mental monster at the time but to save those polluted people…”
He slowly raised his head tapping his knuckles on the table “He took a gamble.”
In the meeting room quite a few people nodded secretly. Even Minister Shen held his tongue not speaking further.
The two different interpretations gave two different impressions.
The middle-aged man in the center smiled “So there’s very little we can be certain about?”
“Honestly yes!”
A bald professor wearing a Tang suit sighed “Dealing with a mental monster with a psychic power close to three thousand isn’t difficult. Whether it’s the special weapons we prepared or sending in the Doll it’s possible. But to eliminate this mental monster while also saving over a thousand people on site and preventing it from releasing its final radiation…”
He shook his head slightly “I can’t make a deduction.”
It was clear there was great regret on his face as he lamented “There’s too little data available for analysis. We’re not gods not even Ability Users. When faced with such uncertainties we can’t just rely entirely on guessing can we?”
After a pause he added self-deprecatingly “Although in our research we often rely on guesswork to make progress.”
…
…
“Speaking of which it is rather strange…”
At this point a middle-aged woman with permed hair and glasses possessing a gentle demeanor but from whom everyone else subconsciously kept a distance adjusted her glasses and smiled “Minister Shen why were you so obedient this time? You withdrew your men just because you were told to?”
As she spoke an expectant look appeared on her face “If only you’d left a few people behind to observe quietly…”
Hearing this the professors beside her nodded repeatedly saying “Exactly! Old Shen has really changed his ways…”
“Didn’t you used to suspect this and that tracking everyone?”
“Right! He even sent people to tail Old Chen before…”
“That makes me mad! All I did was take a few defective plasma rounds home for my grandson to use as fireworks!”
“Speaking of that I remember him seizing our funds…”
“Don’t be so harsh. Old Shen meant well besides hasn’t he learned his lesson now?”
“…
Listening to their chatter Minister Shen’s face fell but he remained silent saying nothing.