Chapter 357

“What do you mean ‘your Emma’… Could it be that there’s actually something going on between the two of you…”

“You’re overthinking this.”

From Leon’s shocked expression tinged with a bit of weirdness, the Red-haired Bureau Director roughly guessed his thoughts and quickly let go of his collar, muttering irritably, “Emma and I are just friends! The best kind of friends! And uh… aside from that, she’s also my biggest creditor. There’s nothing else between us!”

“Oh…”

“Oh what oh?!”

Seeing Leon’s suddenly enlightened expression, and recalling the scandalous Marquis drowning incident that had spread like wildfire through the city, the Red-haired Bureau Director couldn’t help but flare up in anger, glaring nastily as she said, “You damn fool, you’re such a genius at pretending to be clueless! And don’t give me that crap about ‘with William and Melanie’s help, everything will be fine.’ Pfft! Emma might as well have written her feelings all over her face—there’s no way you didn’t see what she was trying to say!”

“…”

“Hurry up! Give me a straight answer! What exactly do you think about Emma?”

“And by the way! That female police officer from Secret Investigation Bureau who always eats lunch with you, and Princess Veronica who supposedly has an engagement with you—what do you plan to do about all these situations?”

“…”

Seems like even the [Master Performer] skill doesn’t work too well on the Bureau Director…

After giving a slightly awkward laugh, Leon scratched his head and said, “Emma and I are just friends, the kind who became acquainted after a few clashes. As for the princess, I’ve been trying to call off the engagement, but every time, she manages to talk me out of it. Three times already, and I still haven’t succeeded.”

“The reason I pretended not to understand earlier was mainly because of the princess… After all, regardless of how things really are, we do have an official engagement between us. It feels a bit improper to resolve things without clearing the air first…”

Good grief, who would’ve thought someone so compatible with demonic anomalies would secretly have such high moral standards…

After analyzing Leon’s expression and confirming he wasn’t lying, the Red-haired Bureau Director’s mood softened slightly. She then narrowed her eyes and warned him, “I don’t care what you choose in the end, but as Emma’s best friend, you better handle this properly. At least don’t hurt her again, or else don’t blame me for coming after you!”

“Ah… Though I don’t want to hurt Senior Emma either, isn’t this using your position for personal vendettas, retaliating against me?”

“I’ll retaliate against you if I want! Got a problem with that? If you’re unhappy, go complain to headquarters!”

“…”

Putting aside whether complaining would even work, headquarters is over seventy thousand kilometers above the ground. Do you seriously expect me to get there? Looking at Leon’s speechless expression, the Red-haired Bureau Director released some of her pent-up frustration before hesitating momentarily. She then quietly added, “Also… To be honest, I’d rather you weren’t together with Emma.”

“Wha-?”

Upon hearing the Red-haired Bureau Director’s words, Leon was momentarily stunned, his brain automatically slipping into recall mode. He remembered their mutual fondness for… er… bonding over drinks, as well as that warm and passionate kiss they shared in the Deathscape.

Could it be… could it be that Director likes me?! Am I secretly some kind of heartthrob?!

“The relationship between Emma and the Deathscape is much closer than you imagine, far beyond just one [Sin of Baohua].”

Among cleaners, only Emma can freely enter and exit the Deathscape and form contracts with its True God. Even Little Elie seems to have certain issues…”

The Red-haired Bureau Director frowned deeply and continued, “Leon, to be honest, when the Baohua family fell into trouble, I specifically looked into their situation.

Do you know what? If Emma hadn’t entrusted Elie to someone else and somehow managed to escape from the Deathscape, exactly nine hundred ninety-nine members of the Baohua family would have died beneath that tree. This number caught my attention immediately…”

“Huh? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

“…”

Because I suddenly thought… I thought you were competing with Senior Emma for my affections… How could I possibly say that?

With the help of [Master Performer], Leon suppressed the overwhelming sense of shame rising within him. Taking a deep breath, he maintained a poker face and replied, “I just didn’t expect there to be more to the story…”

“It shouldn’t be.”

The Red-haired Bureau Director shook her head and said:

“Leon, remember this: as a cleaner, learn to rely on your abilities, but never blindly trust them!”

“I carefully compared, and most of the information your ability reveals pertains only to the anomaly itself. There’s rarely any mention of things outside the anomaly, so it can only serve as a reference point and should never be used as decisive evidence.

For instance, I ask you, since Emma broke away from the Deathscape, which led to the appearance of [Baohua’s Sin], how did she manage to bypass the three-headed dog guarding the entrance? Did your ability explain that?”

“This… indeed not…”

At this, Leon couldn’t help but pause, his eyebrows furrowing deeper.

“But I’ve read in other anomaly introductions that the Hound God spends most of its time sleeping while guarding the gate, occasionally leaving briefly to hunt for food. Could it have been sheer coincidence…”

“Why does this coincidence happen to Emma?”

The Red-haired Bureau Director sternly said, “That dog conveniently leaves neither too early nor too late, precisely when nine hundred ninety-nine souls of the same bloodline, dying under the same circumstances, with almost identical regrets and grievances, all converge together to enter the Deathscape?”

“Moreover, numbers like nine hundred ninety-nine, seven, thirteen, six, three, and one hundred eleven often correlate with rituals in mysticism—they absolutely cannot be ignored. Nine hundred ninety-nine especially relates to ‘arrival.’ Considering this deliberate number and the overly close connection between Emma and the Deathscape, I can’t help but speculate.”

“After all, the downfall of the Baohua family occurred during the invasion of Frostland Country, and the subsequent war brought about a massive amount of deaths—the perfect nourishment for whatever entity wishes to descend from the Deathscape.”

“…”

Now that you put it that way… it’s not entirely impossible…

Recalling the tragedy of the Baohua family, Leon couldn’t help but nod solemnly.

If you don’t delve deeper, the Baohua family’s tragedy seemed merely due to Leonard’s ambition, with no hidden manipulators behind the scenes. But everything was just too coincidental.

After all, if only the person in charge of the trade route had been someone else, or if the Baohua family had received timely information, or if the reconnaissance hadn’t been conducted by Leonard, or if the royal family had attempted communication before acting, the outcomes would have been vastly different. Yet, each time, the worst possible result occurred.

So… Could the fall of the Baohua family not be so simple?

“Director.”

Calling out to the Red-haired Bureau Director, Leon frowned deeply and asked, “Have you told Senior Emma about these speculations?”

“How could I?”

Replied with a sigh after a somewhat helpless counter-question, the Red-haired Bureau Director continued,

“Not to mention the lack of evidence, should I tell her that a Sovereign of the Deathscape might want to descend, manipulating events behind the scenes and using the lives of her entire clan to complete a ritual? Right now, she still has hope for revenge. If I reveal my suspicions to her and make her realize the Baohua incident might involve a Sovereign from the Deathscape, Emma would likely never be happy again.”

“Besides, although the Gold Nightingale Marquis was a total bastard, he did take Little Elie away, preventing her from dying under the red cedar tree. Perhaps that’s what disrupted the arrival ritual.”

“So if the situation truly aligns with my guesses, and a Sovereign from the Deathscape wanted to use this to descend, then he might have inadvertently saved half the Capital City…”

(End of Chapter)