Chapter 29

“Hmm?”

After giving Leon, who had just entered the room, a once-over and noticing not only the dirt on his clothes but also the bandages on his hands, the red-haired Bureau Director, who was drinking plain water, couldn’t help but pause slightly, then asked curiously:

“This mission was just to investigate the situation. You can peek into others’ soul states ahead of time. How did you end up like this? Was that anomalous item dangerous?”

“The anomalous item wasn’t dangerous; it was actually quite a good thing. But there was some issue with compatibility between it and me…”

After briefly recounting his experience, Leon hesitated for a moment, looking at the red-haired woman in front of him whose laughter had curved her eyes, before finally blurting out despite his grim expression:

“Director… may I ask you something?”

Upon hearing this, the red-haired woman’s smile immediately faded as she became wary and gripped her deflated money bag tightly.

“Leon, don’t get me wrong. As the director of the Virgo Bureau, my salary is a bit higher than yours, but so are my expenses… so um…”

“You’ve misunderstood. I’m not asking you for money; I really want to ask you a question…”

Blinking with slight exasperation, Leon recalled the information he’d seen and furrowed his brows deeply: “Director, before coming to report to you, I first went to the archives department of the Road Administration Department next door and applied to review their records from over ninety years ago. I found the Happiness Apartment… um… the archive related to today’s anomalous item.

The old couple’s alms house sheltered more than three hundred orphans and disabled people at its peak. Apart from receiving a small water fee discount from the Water Power Corporation due to the large number of users, they never received any assistance from the kingdom and mostly relied on their savings to maintain the alms house.

Later, when the old lady fell ill and realized she might not last much longer, she submitted over thirty applications to the Road Administration Department, hoping to transfer the alms house into an official municipal facility and continue operating it with her own property until everyone inside passed away, after which it would be closed. But it was never approved.”

After summarizing the situation, Leon took a deep breath and clenched his fists:

“On the way here, I kept thinking about it. This was clearly a win-win situation. The people without working ability could maintain the alms house using the old couple’s wealth and barely survive; the Road Administration Department wouldn’t need to spend anything extra, nor even send additional personnel to manage it.

But why didn’t the person responsible for the approval back then approve it? Why would they rather watch those orphans and disabled people starve or freeze to death right outside the door of what used to be their home, under the ‘Happiness Apartment’ sign, instead of approving her application?”

“You’re wrong. The Road Administration Department would have had to pay quite a bit.”

After hearing Leon’s question, the red-haired woman closed her eyes briefly before calmly countering:

“Assume you were the person responsible for this back then. Let me ask you, why didn’t your managed alms house accept those people if the kingdom already had its own alms houses, but instead they were housed by citizen-built ones? What exactly has been your job performance?

Also, if you took over this alms house, even though you wouldn’t need to send personnel daily, you would still need a responsible manager. In case of accidents like fires or other incidents leading to casualties, would you be willing to take responsibility? If the fire was caused by someone in the alms house, could you accept being dismissed due to negligence? Lastly, accepting donations from citizens for an alms house doesn’t count as merit. Moreover, once recognized as a legitimate municipal facility, if the alms house collapses due to lack of income and eventually shuts down, the manager will definitely be held accountable.

Such a task with no benefits, only trouble, and almost certainly leaving a stain on one’s record, how could anyone willingly take it on?”

“…”

…

It’s so true… sigh…

Looking at the young man in front of her, who had fallen silent after her questioning and whose expression grew increasingly gloomy, the red-haired Director sighed inwardly. Then, she stared directly into his eyes with a stern expression, reminding him:

“Leon, I understand you dislike these things, but remember, our work at the Clearing Bureau is merely to keep ‘anomalies’ out of normal people’s lives. The rest isn’t something we can meddle in arbitrarily.

According to the agreement between the Clearing Bureau and the various kingdoms, unless it involves anomalies, we absolutely cannot use ‘inhuman’ powers to interfere. This is both the survival guideline of the Clearing Bureau and the bottom line the kingdoms can tolerate.

So listen carefully. Absolutely do not cross this line. Think twice before acting and don’t harm yourself. Understand?”

“I appreciate your concern, but I truly didn’t plan to do anything…”

“That was all more than ninety years ago. Not only have the people expelled back then died, even the person responsible for the approval is dead now. What can you possibly do?”

“…”

Yes, in this matter, there’s indeed nothing you can do. But what about the affairs of the Road Administration Department and the Water Power Corporation? Or the many other things you’ll encounter in the future?

Glancing at the shopping bag trembling slightly in Leon’s hand, the red-haired Director sighed again inwardly, her gaze towards Leon becoming increasingly complex.

Even though that goat is gone and I can’t check your state through the soul vision anymore, I know that goat too well. From the moment you lowered your head and stayed silent, it must have been excitedly shaking…

“Let’s leave it at that… you’ve worked hard today.”

Without continuing the discussion, she quickly skimmed over the report Leon handed her, suppressing the strange déjà vu feeling in her heart, and softly consoled him:

“Your hands are injured. I’ll give you another half-day off. Go home and rest well.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t force myself to ignore those matters. I won’t stop you from investigating the Water Power Corporation either. I’ve even secured an anomalous item for protection, which will be delivered tomorrow, so you can safely evacuate after causing trouble.

But you must remember, when you want to act, you must find appropriate reasons to intervene, just like with the Water Power Corporation this time. And absolutely do not casually use ‘anomalies’ to influence ordinary people. That’s my bottom line, and the Clearing Bureau’s!”

“Um, I’ve remembered…”

Looking at Leon, whose expression was still somewhat somber, the red-haired Director couldn’t help but rub her temples and continued to remind him:

“Leon, I know you’re the type with strong moral values and a sense of justice. Actually, I don’t dislike your personality at all; I even admire your persistence in holding onto your principles after struggling through tough times.

But you must also realize that even though we possess extraordinary abilities, we are still part of humanity and cannot exist separately from the human community. We must still follow some basic rules of societal operation.

Even if you were the king of a kingdom or even the director of the Clearing Bureau, you couldn’t make everything go according to your wishes or handle every injustice you see… I know these words might not sound pleasant, but I hope you’ll think about them more.”

“I will… sorry for bothering you today.”

After bidding farewell to the red-haired Director who had earnestly advised him repeatedly, Leon slowly returned to his own office. His eyes fixed on another shopping bag on the table, his mind continuously replaying the Director’s evaluation of him.

Is my moral view noble? Is my sense of justice strong? Is my principle firm?

My seized pension, the alchemical factory that caused Anna’s lung disease and refused compensation, the hundreds of patients lying in hospital corridors after drinking polluted water supplied by the Water Power Corporation.

And those pitiful people who were mercilessly evicted from the alms house, dying in despair during that cold winter ninety-four years ago, whose names weren’t even recorded…

Though saying this might feel somewhat shameful, I really want to know now. Is the problem with me? Or is it with this damn world?

…

“Let’s go.”

After standing by his desk for a while, Leon picked up the shopping bag filled with gray cigarette packs and gently touched the black goat’s horn damaged by scissors, muttering thoughtfully: “Find a quiet place… I’ll treat you to a smoke.”

(End of Chapter)