Chapter 193

Upon hearing the conditions laid out by the Aquarius Director, the middle-aged man paused briefly in thought before nodding and then asked:

“So, what if I steal the item, but you fail the inquiry at the end?”

“If I don’t pass the inquiry, my memories will be read. Given the number of infractions on my record, I’ll likely either be executed or turned into an anomalous item.”

The Aquarius Director smiled lightly without any hesitation about discussing her fate: “If I’m truly done for, this wristwatch will serve as my payment to you, and you can do whatever you want with that thing. Will it be enough?”

“In that case… it’s enough!”

“Well then, farewell.”

As the middle-aged man fastened the wristwatch, the Aquarius Director gave a slight nod, stood up from her seat, and walked steadily towards the door.

With her standing, the stars of the Aquarius Palace in the sky lit up one after another, briefly breaking through the sunlight and casting their light toward the position of the capital city, instantly illuminating the Aquarius Director’s figure while also catching the eyes of certain observant individuals.

…

“Get ready.”

After taking a sip of the dark brown tea from his bottle, the Red-haired Bureau Director turned around from where he was leaning against the window and said to Leon who was waiting in the office: “The Aquarius stars just lit up. Judging by the direction, it seems like the director used her authority to teleport back to the General Bureau. Now that you’re going undercover within the rebel faction, you won’t have to worry about bumping into her.

Also, this time is different from before. Remember, you have a maximum of two weeks for your investigation. Absolutely do not exceed that limit.”

After reiterating the maximum task duration, the Red-haired Bureau Director, unusually solemn, warned: “Leon, if the inquiry fails, Aquarius, who can teleport using the Star Palaces, might return earlier than me. The fake identity you created with photos may not be able to fool him.

Although I’ll try to delay him as much as possible, just in case, if I haven’t returned two weeks from now, regardless of whether the mission objectives are completed, you must immediately evacuate.

If the inquiry succeeds, you can always reconnect with the rebels later, but if it fails and you get caught face-to-face with Aquarius, I really can’t guarantee your safety.”

“I’ve understood.”

Facing the repeated instructions from the bureau director, Leon nodded and carefully memorized them. Then, unable to help himself, he asked:

“Bureau Director, what are the chances of success for this inquiry?”

“It’s decent.”

The Red-haired Bureau Director thought for a moment before answering:

“There should be four directors participating in the inquiry of Aquarius: the three directors overseeing the year-end review plus Honorable Taurus.

In addition, there are myself, Leo, and Gemini, the division bureau directors of the Zodiac Branches, as well as other branch directors who noticed activities by the Aquarius Director within their jurisdiction after receiving news.

We exchanged some intelligence and evidence, and we feel there’s about a 30% chance we can expose him right on the spot!”

“Eh? Only 30%?”

“Aquarius isn’t stupid; she’s always been very cautious. Having a 30% chance is already quite significant.”

The Red-haired Bureau Director said seriously:

“Moreover, this is an internal inquiry, not a court trial, so we don’t need a complete chain of evidence. We just need to expose all the suspicious parts and force her to confess her motives, which would count as achieving our goal.

As long as she can’t prove her innocence and can’t reasonably explain those suspicious and dangerous actions, that’s enough to take her down and forcibly subject her to memory extraction.”

“I see…”

“The Bureau Director, what kind of mistake generally warrants having your memory extracted by the bureau?”

“Don’t worry, it’s quite troublesome.”

Glancing at Leon, the Red-haired Bureau Director snorted:

“Only people who cause extreme harm and hold high positions are subjected to such treatment. Based on what you’ve done in the Lane family, you’re nowhere near reaching that level of scrutiny.”

“Hmm…”

“What, hearing about the bureau’s ability to extract memories has finally made you worried?”

Looking at Leon’s somewhat awkward expression, the Red-haired Bureau Director couldn’t help but glare at him and said irritably: “What kind of person you are, the investigators from the bureau might not fully understand, but could I not? So many nobles died during the Lane Blood Night, and they were all utterly wicked. How could it possibly have nothing to do with you? Mainly because that [Aspiration Heart] insisted that the Lane Blood Night was entirely orchestrated by Bobby Len. Considering it’s not your anomalous item and is hostile towards you, it had no reason to cover for you, so I didn’t think further.

But the other day when you took that heart from me, it was practically ecstatic upon encountering its former owner’s mortal enemy. It kept banging against the box from inside, desperate to jump out and stick to you. Even if I were stupid, I’d know whose side it’s on!”

“…”

“No content exists in 69shuba…”

“Anyway, be careful with this mission and don’t make too much noise again. Sigh…”

“Hmm… I’ll try to pay attention…”

“You’d better…”

“And let me remind you once more, when carrying out your missions, you can actually be a bit more conservative.”

Looking at Leon sheepishly nodding in agreement, the Red-haired Bureau Director sighed:

“When I ‘bowed’ to you last time, I activated part of [Slaughter Crimson Hair], slightly exceeding the human limit, thus recovering some memories related to the princess… Leon, it seems I suggested you propose to her.”

“Eh?”

“Don’t ‘eh’. I didn’t actually want you to marry her; I wanted to use proposing to the princess as a means to help you shed the title of Lionheart Duke. Who knew you’d actually succeed?”

Rubbing his temples, the Red-haired Bureau Director helplessly concluded: “Speaking of which, I sent you to investigate the Sheep Heart in the Lane family, and you ended up causing the Lane Blood Night; I suggested you claim kinship with the Lane family, and you somehow became the Lionheart Duke; I suggested you propose to the princess, and now you seem to have become a prince…

Leon, tell me honestly, what exactly are your plans for this mission? When I come back in two weeks, you won’t have infiltrated and become the leader of the rebels, will you?”

“Impossible! Absolutely impossible!”

After listening to his boss’s wild imagination, Leon couldn’t help but shake his head repeatedly: “Director, that’s prejudice. My choices have always been quite conservative!”

“As for what happened with the princess, I’m still unclear, but during the Lane Blood Night, Bobby Len sealed off the estate and wouldn’t let me leave. Otherwise, I would have definitely run away and wouldn’t have stayed to fight him to the death!”

“True, but what if you’re cornered again this time and forced to rise to power?”

“How could something like that happen?”

Faced with the Red-haired Bureau Director’s baseless assumptions, Leon couldn’t help but protest:

“This infiltration mission only lasts two weeks. How ridiculous would the rebels have to be for me to become their leader in just two weeks?”

(End of Chapter)