"Take something?"
Aika was interested now as well. She thought carefully for a moment, then looked at Fang Zheng.
"What does Father want me to take?"
"That."
Fang Zheng glanced around, then set his sights on a pen holder sitting on a desk in an office not far below.
"If you can bring that over without alerting anyone, I'll give you a reward. But let me warn you, it won't be easy."
"I understand, Father. Leave it to me."
At that moment, Fang Zheng clearly saw anticipation and excitement in Aika's eyes. Perhaps this was the first time since her birth that she had undertaken a task without knowing the outcome. Whatever she had done before, she had always gotten results immediately. But now, she was finally experiencing an unprecedented kind of tension.
"Phew... Haa..."
Aika took a deep breath. Then Fang Zheng watched her quietly cast a spell on herself. After that, she stood up, stepped out from their hiding place, and walked down the passage.
Along the way, Aika passed several researchers, but none of them noticed her. That was perfectly normal. Most Magi in the Nasuverse knew spells that "dispel idlers," and Aika was naturally no exception. However, she soon encountered an opponent.
Tap tap tap tap!!
Rapid footsteps rang out. A group of fully armed soldiers rushed in from the other side, carrying firearms. They stopped not far from Aika and looked around in every direction, seemingly searching for something. But they clearly found nothing—Aika's spell had perfectly blocked their senses. Unfortunately, Fang Zheng already knew that Aika had failed.
Looking at the soldiers before her, Aika blinked curiously. Then she changed direction, trying to slip around them. But to her surprise, the moment she moved, the soldiers seemed to receive some sort of command and