No, You're Not Qualified

Ding.

The elevator doors slowly opened. Inside were three people: two young women from the Internal Affairs Management Department in skirt suits. When they saw Alex, their eyes lit up. They instinctively tucked their hair behind their ears, held their folders, and greeted Alex with smiles.

As for this newcomer who had arrived and immediately taken the powerful position of captain of the Special Ability Handling Team, both his post and his looks had stirred the curiosity and interest of everyone at Police Headquarters.

At the police station, important news unrelated to cases spread exceptionally fast.

Alex's background had already become known to many. He was Bert's son, specially approved by the Commissioner to enter the police force, lead the Special Ability Handling Team, and handle anything related to superpowered crimes.

He had entered as a First Grade Inspector and taken command of the newly formed Special Ability Handling Team. This had even given Headquarters staff the impression that, as superpowered crime increased in the future, this so-called Special Ability Handling Team might very well evolve into a department dedicated to superpowered crime, with Alex becoming a Division Chief wielding real authority. It was entirely possible. Alex's future seemed limitless, and nearly the entire police station spent all day talking about him.

Alex wore a gentle expression and smiled faintly as he greeted them one by one. When he and Jenson had passed through the Internal Affairs Management Department earlier, his outstanding looks had already won him the favor of many women. The two before him were among them.

Of course, there was no shortage of dissatisfied men.

One young plainclothes officer in the elevator wore a grim expression, watching the two women beside him chat and laugh with Alex in obvious displeasure. They were bold, humorous, and witty, their laughter unending as they laughed so hard their chests trembled. They were extremely forward.

Using Alex's recent arrival as an excuse, the two women invited him on a date. When that failed, they suggested a newcomer party instead. Alex smilingly declined, saying he needed to familiarize himself with the work.

Kevin stood to one side, practically invisible. His face twitched. He had never seen the bitches from Internal Affairs act so proactively before. He had really learned something today—when women took the initiative, they practically threw themselves at a man with shining eyes.

Especially since everyone in the entire police building was talking about Alex—about how Alex had stepped over their boss's head and snatched the position with the Special Ability Handling Team—Kevin felt even more aggrieved. The way he looked at Alex was filled with hostility.

The elevator descended to the sixth floor. With a ding, the doors slowly opened.

Alex stepped out first and bid the two women farewell. Their faces were full of regret, and they were reluctant to part with him.

Around people he did not know well, Alex was warm, easygoing, and polite. He lacked the affected gentleness and aloof superiority of aristocrats. He could smile and meet everyone's eyes at the same level. Even women as low-ranking as them felt respected, as though basking in a spring breeze. Their hearts melted beneath his gentle gaze, and no woman could ignore that radiance of his.

Men, on the other hand, found it far more grating. Most of all, Kevin watched the two rather pretty women reluctantly say goodbye to Alex while blocking the elevator doors. His nose nearly twisted with anger.

Only after seeing Alex head toward the Electronic Information Department did the two pretty women withdraw into the elevator. They chattered nonstop, their eyes shining as they praised Alex's gentleness and courtesy, saying he had utterly intoxicated their hearts.

Especially when he heard them deeply regret being unable to have a one-night stand with Alex, Kevin felt like his heart was about to burst backward. He gave a heavy, displeased snort through his nose, said, "Ignorant women," then strode out of the elevator and headed in the opposite direction from Alex.

"What was that? What a rude person."

"Such a petty man. He can't compare to Alex."

"People under Al Swan really have no manners."

The two women watched Kevin's departing back in dissatisfaction. They knew their excessive enthusiasm had made Kevin unhappy, but they could not help comparing him to Alex. Forget Kevin—even Al Swan, that guy who relied on connections, could not compare to Alex in rank, looks, or the way he treated others.

Al Swan's lofty, arrogant manner and his habit of looking down on others—how could he possibly compare to Alex, who was handsome, powerful, gentle with people, and looked them in the eye as equals?

After that comparison, the two women no longer had Al Swan in their eyes at all. Their discussion of Alex in the elevator grew even more fervent, and they deeply regretted that they could not spend more time with him.

Kevin heard the two Internal Affairs colleagues behind him calling him petty and flew into a rage. He truly wanted to turn around and curse them out.

What did they mean, a petty man?!

What did they mean, he couldn't compare to Alex?!

What did they mean, people under their boss had no manners?!

If Kevin had not turned around and seen the elevator doors closing, he truly would have wanted to slap those two bitches. Furious enough for his liver to ache, Kevin returned to the office with his face still red with rage.

Back in the department office, the atmosphere was grim and tense. Kevin saw his boss, Al Swan, sitting in his office chair with a dark expression, his fingers continuously tapping the desk. The surrounding colleagues looked at one another, silent as cicadas in winter. They could only listen in oppressed silence as Al Swan's fingernails tapped against the desktop. The tiny tap tap tap tap... seemed amplified at that moment, stabbing at everyone's pounding hearts.

Everyone had heard that Alex had taken Al Swan's captain position.

Kevin looked at his boss Al Swan's cold, grim face, then recalled the dissatisfied mockery from the two Internal Affairs women at the elevator. Unable to hold back, he approached Al Swan. "Boss, Alex..."

Al Swan's finger stopped tapping the desk. In an instant, the hearts of everyone in the office rose into their throats. They held their breath, not daring to exhale. On his gloomy face, his eagle-sharp eyes fixed on his subordinate.

The entire office was silent enough to hear a pin drop. Warm sunlight streamed in through the windows, yet everyone felt a chill run through them.

Kevin's body trembled and his heart quivered. Only then did he remember that his boss was in a bad mood. Sweat began to bead on his forehead. Al Swan's gaze was like an attack launched by a predator from the skies, piercing his heart and leaving him unable to breathe.

Kevin gritted his teeth. "Boss, we can't just sit here and wait. The captain position of the Special Ability Handling Team should be yours.

We have to prove we don't need Alex!

You can lead us to capture this superpowered criminal."

Al Swan raised his brows, like an eagle spreading its wings. His sharp eyes were like talons already piercing a little white rabbit's body, seizing its prey. He stared at Kevin and said coldly, "I don't need your reminder. I'm no worse than anyone. If our informants had news, I wouldn't be sitting here."

Over the past few days, they had already put out every message they could. Yet no news had come back. Without a target, they could not investigate. There was nowhere to look, so they could only remain here, holding back their frustration and racking their brains for clues they might have overlooked.

And he had heard that Alex had always paid close attention to information concerning superpowers. A large part of the reason the Commissioner had recruited him was precisely because of that. This made Al Swan even more irritated. He had always dealt with ordinary criminals and had never faced superpowered crime. How was he supposed to capture The Multiplicity without a single clue? That stumped him.

Kevin's back was drenched in sweat, as if he had taken a bath. He let out a soft breath, thought of the Alex he had just seen, and rolled his eyes before saying in a low voice, "I just saw Alex enter the Electronic Information Department."

Al Swan's face remained dark and cold as his eyes turned contemplative. Before long, a fierce glint flashed through them. He abruptly stood up and picked up his black leather case.

Seeing that Al Swan was about to act, Kevin was delighted. He hurriedly said, "Boss, I'll go!"

Al Swan directly picked up the black leather case and put it on, pressed the pistol at his waist to settle himself, then walked out of the office without looking back.

"No. You're not qualified."