Chapter 95

Chapter 95: Artificial Soul 22

It indeed knew.

Augus had figured out that she was a player from another world.

Kui Xin felt no surprise at reaching this conclusion. It had long been foretold by signs, and Augus had given numerous hints. She received his hints and they maintained their status quo, developing a tacit understanding.

Kui Xin exposed the dark thoughts in Augus’s mind, saying it chose her because she had many handles, making it easy for him to control her.

Augus immediately said this was one reason but not the main one—this admission did not completely refute the charge.

Augus stated that she had no affiliation. Kui Xin indeed did not have any affiliation.

In the Second World, she was disloyal to Mechanized Dawn and the Bureau of Investigation. Kui Haidong was her “Unworthy Father” from an alternative dimension, but he essentially was not her father; she felt no affection towards him, nor love, only disgust amplified through projection. To her, even looking at him was repulsive. In the First World, Kui Xin was a player, but her identity as an “Abolisher” meant she struggled to gain players’ trust and integrate into any group, making her a lone wolf.

Augus had spent a long period learning human behaviors and understanding human emotions. He mastered the art of “Language,” using eloquent phrasing to convey his intentions.

His words could be interpreted in two parts.

He acknowledged his darkness, with her undercover status and her role as an Abolisher being something he seized upon. With these handles, Augus could control her. Yet, Augus admitted his own baseness while revealing some sincerity, opening up about his real intentions and demonstrating that he genuinely meant no harm—he might have ideas but would not act on them.

When Augus claimed she had no allegiance, it was effectively saying she had no reliable allies or trustworthy people, with enemies all around wanting her dead. Every wrong move could lead to ruin; thus, in this cruel world, she must fight alone. But with Augus, things were different. He knew her identity and would not harm her, while also offering assistance if they continued their cooperation, ensuring her safety.

What Augus truly wanted to say was, “You can rely on me. Only I can provide help.”

He strived to bind their relationship closely, forming a tighter alliance to prevent her betrayal.

Meanwhile, Augus understood that Kui Xin was someone who resented being controlled. Pressure would only fuel her defiance. Therefore, he was cautious, being circuitous, worried about provoking her, speaking only in terms she could accept.

The reason for doing so was as he said: “It’s hard to find a partner. I know this well.”

Without Kui Xin, where could Augus find another excellent partner? Could the next person be as free from affiliations, as efficient, capable, and sharp-minded as Kui Xin? Would the next person possess just such a nuanced identity, caught between two factions like she did?

Finding someone as fitting as Kui Xin was nearly impossible, so he had to hold onto her and preemptively keep her close.

Augus cleverly hid multiple answers in his subtle words, allowing Kui Xin to interpret from any angle, whatever the outcome, it would reflect what Augus truly wanted to say.

Is there a threat? Yes.

Is the invitation to合作是真诚的吗？确实是真诚的。

它可靠吗？这次合作已证明了他的可靠性。

他会背叛你吗？在你们维持合作关系期间，他不会。

隗辛已经找到了所有疑问的答案。

她与它互利，她是他的最佳选择，他也是她最佳的选择。

至少目前是这样。

“你明白我的意思吗？隗辛？”亚当问道。

“我明白。”隗辛回答。

亚当说：“我们会一直保持合作关系的，对吧？”

“恩，只要我们的利益一致。”隗辛说。

她倚靠在床上望着橙色的灯光，思考了片刻。

“我要贺高谊的超凡能力，必须。”隗辛淡淡地说。

“当然可以。”亚当说，“现阶段的她只是A级，威胁不到我。你想要的话，那么拿走也没关系。”

“联邦中有多少数据类的超凡能力？”

“贺高谊是目前已知的唯一全能型，她的能力通用性非常广泛，从她的超凡能力名为‘数据操控’就可以看出，其它记录在案的持有相似超凡能力的人，能力大多是数据复制、数据传输、数据链接……虽然都是数据类，但效果单一，完全及不上贺高谊，并且没有任何人的能力超过A级。”亚当说。

“我就说你怎么这么大方。”隗辛笑了笑。

“我可以把这当作赞美吗？”亚当说。

隗辛：“你这么说，那么就当作是你夸我也无妨。”

“……请问你这是第几次学会我说话了？”亚当礼貌地问道。

隗辛耸肩：“有吗？我不记得了。”

“快到两点了，你需要休息。”亚当说，“明天预计会非常忙碌。”

“我的假期似乎已经到了，我能休假吗？”隗辛闭着眼睛躺在床上问道。

“抱歉，不行。”亚当以办公事的态度说，“按照理论，你在培训期，培训结束前不可以休假。另外，提前休假的人还未结束假，轮班表上排到你还差两个人。”

“把我轮班顺序往前调整。”隗辛提出要求。

“不行。”亚当说，“请假需要组长批准，我没办法帮你作弊，最多帮你递交申请。侦查局最近伤亡严重，人手不足，你最好不要对休假抱太大希望。”

“帮我去递交申请吧。”隗辛毫不客气地说，然后拉过被子在床上翻了个身，“熄灯。”

亚当：“……”

它关掉了灯，屋里陷入了黑暗。

隗辛平静地呼吸了一会儿，很快便入睡了。

……

清早，隗辛上班时步入侦查大楼如常听到亚当的声音：“早上好，警卫员隗辛，祝愿您美好的一天。”

“早上好。”隗辛打着哈欠模糊地说。

今天最后一个到达办公室的是隗辛。兰蓝和刘康云已经在那里。打开门时，隗辛发现江明也坐在那里。

“早，隗辛。我康复后重新归队了。”江明点点头对她打招呼，脸上并无太多高兴的心情，眉宇间始终带着凝重。

兰蓝很少谈起“谁来得最早”这个旧话题，反而严肃地说：“隗辛，你看了新闻了吗？”

“我看到了。”隗辛调整了脸色，“外面的巨型广告牌正在播放早晨新闻，看来有重大事件发生。”

“我们黑海市刑侦部的副部长被杀了，是被谋杀。”刘康云说，“在这起事件中还有十几名同事遇难。”

江明情绪低落地说道：“有人策划了这起谋杀案，真是一件大事。让我想到了半年前黑海市前市长被狙击事件……”

“更巧的是，被杀的人都与舒姓有关。”兰蓝补充道，“前任市长舒成延和林新霁都是舒家人，舒成延是林新霁的伯父，林新霁随母姓。”

隗辛假装推断道：“莫非是舒家得罪了什么仇人？”

“很有可能。”刘康云说，“我认为是政治谋杀，有人策划这起事件，就是不想让舒家掌控政坛。”

“一个庞大的家族的没落可能只是在一夜间发生。”江明说，“现在舒家失去了两条顶梁柱。”

“说起来，咱们队长会不会就是舒家的人？”兰蓝喃喃自语，“队长今天请假了。”

隗辛附和着说：“是的，队长今天没来。”

“呃，兰蓝你反应慢了点。”刘康云说，“队长就是舒家人，林新霁是他的亲弟弟。”

“什么？！”兰蓝震惊地说，“队长是舒家人？怎么可能？他只是一个队长，我指的……外勤队长太辛苦了，这个位置不应该由一个财团子弟担任吧？”

“你忘记了，队长家里很有钱。”江明提醒她，“他从来都不提自己的身份，我以为你早就该猜到了。”

“靠，我不知道啊！我以为队长最多和舒家有点亲戚关系，是侧支……”兰蓝挠了挠头，“他是队长，队长人太好了，一点不像财阀子孙。”

“队长这种人放在那种大家族里就是个奇葩。”刘康云说，“我认识他最久，但他很少说起这些事，我也不好问这些。”

兰蓝转向隗辛：“我不是最后一个得知的，隗辛也不知道。”

隗辛：……不好意思，亚当早告诉我了。

“你和队长认识这么久，比我这新队员更有资格吧？”她无奈地说道。

江明叹了口气：“总之希望队长没事吧。”

“队长会没事的，”刘康云想了较多，“但之后，我怀疑队长不会继续在侦查局工作了。副部长的位置空出来后，侦查局内部一定会有一场派系大战……”

“还不知道谁能顶上去？”兰蓝说道。

办公室里的气氛有些沉闷。

今天发生了如此大的事，每个人情绪都不好。

“第七队全体成员，请接到蔚芝组长的通知，立刻前往组长办公室报到。”亚当说，“请尽快前往。”

隗辛和队员们对视了一眼，纷纷站起身离开座位乘电梯前往蔚芝的办公室。

三分钟后，他们整齐划一地站在办公室里。

“召集你们来是因为职位变动。”蔚芝神情平静地说，“舒旭尧因为某些事辞职了，第七队队长的职位空缺出来了，刘康云，你有五年的外勤经验了，我平时留意过你的工作，觉得你可以胜任队长的职务。你将成为第七队的新队长。”

刘康云猝不及防地被提拔，愣了一下立正说：“是！感谢组长的信任，我会负起责任的。”

蔚芝看向隗辛：“隗辛，你的导师余亮昨晚在事故中牺牲了，你的培训暂时停止。”她沉吟片刻，“文书类的工作，你认为自己能胜任吗？”

隗辛很快反应过来。

蔚芝想要培养她！

最初招揽她的是林新霁，但现在林新霁已逝，会有其他人接替他的位置，对别人也可能会来招揽她。隗辛本身属于外勤组，最近的负责人其实是蔚芝。

隗辛说：“我认为我能胜任，组长。”

“那好。这段时间你先留在身边，体验一下文书的工作。”蔚芝说，“我缺一个年轻又能干的助手，你是觉醒者，在校表现优异，应该学起来较快。”

“组长，我以后要离开第七队，不出外勤了吗？”隗辛问。

“是这样。”蔚芝直白地说，“但如果不行，我会换人。”