Temporary Investigator

"You don't have any other choice." The other party didn't shy away from it.

Just as she said, Sun Hang had no other choice. He struggled to sit up, took the tablet, and glanced at the document on the screen.

The title of the document read "Temporary Investigator Employment Contract" in large characters.

Sun Hang's name had already been filled in on the Party B line, while Party A was an entity named "Junshi Human Resources Company."

"A labor dispatch company? So... I'm just an outsourced temporary worker?" Sun Hang asked.

"Investigators are officially employed personnel. If you can pay off your debt and obtain citizenship, you can participate in the relevant selection exams," the other party said. "But for now, you can only work for the Investigation Bureau as a Temporary Investigator."

"..." Sun Hang fell silent.

Even though he had amnesia, he still knew what kind of work investigators did.

More than two hundred years ago... or perhaps three hundred years ago, entities known as "Anomalies" appeared on the Xiazhou Continent without warning. They were like an irresistible disaster, devouring a large portion of humanity's living space and compressing human activity areas to about one-third of what they were before the Anomalies appeared.

Not only that, but this proportion was shrinking every year—currently, less than 20% of the Xiazhou Continent remained in human hands.

Although Anomalies were called "things," they did not have a fixed form—they could be living beings, or "inanimate objects," or even a "phenomenon"... But regardless of their form, Anomalies were extremely dangerous to ordinary people.

Furthermore, Anomalies had the ability to infect things they came into contact with. People called this ability the "Anomalization Virus." Most people infected with this "virus" eventually turned into "Anomalies"... or part of an "Anomaly."

Before the development of effective medicine to suppress "Anomalization," this "virus" had raged like a plague, causing many deaths.

Investigators, as the name suggests, were people who specifically investigated these Anomalies.

The danger of this job was self-evident.

Sun Hang felt that anyone who signed this "contract of servitude" would most likely never be able to repay their debt, even until death.

But for the Investigation Bureau, this was sufficient... After all, if a formal investigator died in the line of duty, the Investigation Bureau had to pay a huge sum in compensation. In comparison, temporary workers like himself were much more cost-effective.

"What will you do to me if I don't want to do this?" Sun Hang asked. "Kick me out of the hospital, or directly out of this city?"

"No, you will not be free until you have paid off your debt." The other party took out a capacitive stylus and handed it over. "The only choice you have now is what kind of font you want to use when you sign."

Sun Hang took the capacitive stylus and thought for a moment.

Based on the "remaining" knowledge in his mind, he should have been an ordinary person before losing his memory.

As an ordinary person, he knew about the existence of "Anomalies" and "Investigators," but he knew very little about the details—in this era, anything related to Anomalies was almost a taboo topic. Except for a very small number of people with special interests, few would actively seek to understand them.

Most people would just wish that these things would stay as far away from them as possible, preferably never intersecting with their lives.

"If I become a Temporary Investigator, what will you provide me with? For example, intelligence, equipment, or training?" Sun Hang looked up at the other party and asked. "Even if Temporary Investigators are just cannon fodder sent to die, they should at least be able to contribute something. We can't let taxpayers' money go to waste, right?"

"Everything you mentioned will be provided," the other party nodded and glanced at her watch. "It's getting late, please sign quickly."

Sun Hang let out a long sigh and signed his name at the end of the contract.

The woman in the black suit put away the tablet and took out two identification cards from her pocket, throwing them to Sun Hang.

One was the Xiazhou Federation's temporary citizen ID card. Sun Hang's photo was already attached, and his name was printed on it. However, apart from these two items, all other information, including gender, was blank.

Sun Hang glanced at the issuing authority of the ID card, which was the Tianfu City Population Administration Bureau.

"So I'm in Tianfu City now..." Sun Hang murmured to himself.

Tianfu City was located in the southwestern part of the Xiazhou Federation, bordering the edge of human-controlled areas, making it a standard "frontline region."

The other ID card was the "Temporary Investigator Certificate" issued by the "Tianfu City Anomaly Investigation Bureau." Sun Hang's photo was also on it, but his name was not. Instead, it bore the number "Temporary Investigator 0420."

"Your codename from now on will be 0420," the woman in the black suit said. "Investigators refer to each other by their numbers."

"What's your number then?" Sun Hang glanced at her and asked.

"I'm not an Investigator," she said, standing up and delivering her parting words. "You'll be discharged in three days, and someone will come to pick you up then."

The woman in the black suit left. Sun Hang stared at the identification cards in his hands, lost in thought.

This was a job that could get him killed, with a mortality rate far higher than that of extreme athletes who flirted with death daily.

He hadn't considered running away... but the problem was that he had nothing, and he had lost his past memories. In this unfamiliar place, even if he managed to escape the hospital, he would have nowhere to go.

Although the laws of the various city-states in the Xiazhou Federation differed, the authority of the Investigation Bureaus, as special departments dealing with Anomalies, was generally very high. They could even mobilize the military at will... Opposing the Investigation Bureau was tantamount to seeking death.

That woman was right; he truly had no other choice.

According to the contract, Sun Hang needed to complete one C-rank mission, or four D-rank missions, or sixteen E-rank missions to pay off his entire debt. However, Sun Hang had no idea what kind of difficulty and danger these A, B, C, and D mission rankings represented.

He reached out and pressed the call button by his bed.

A moment later, the same nurse in a pink uniform who had been there before walked into the ward.

"Nurse, could you do me a favor?" Sun Hang asked.

"Please go ahead." The nurse's attitude was much better than that of the cold staff member from earlier.

"Could you help me borrow a device that can connect to the internet, like a phone or a tablet? I want to look something up." Sun Hang said.

The nurse didn't agree immediately. A look of difficulty appeared on her face.

"...I don't even have internet access?" Sun Hang frowned slightly.

"Mr. Sun, you just woke up from being unconscious. It would be best for you to rest more during this time..." The nurse's tone carried a hint of apology and awkwardness. "Besides, please try not to leave this room unless absolutely necessary."

"Okay," Sun Hang nodded and lay back down.

This wasn't just a hospital room; it was also a prison cell.

Sun Hang rested his head on a pillow with a faint smell of disinfectant, his eyes fixed on the ceiling light. He silently thought, "...Change for me."

Nothing happened.

The light remained a pale white, and the unbearable throbbing deep in his brain didn't appear.

"Could it be... it really was just a coincidence?"