The January Director, Torrent, the god of mechanics and enlightenment.
The name immediately came to mind for Gilan.
He recalled some descriptions in the " Chronicles of the Hour-Gods," where " Torrent " was the last of the twelve Hour-God to ascend to the throne.
The exact year and month of His birth are unknown.
However, the church that believes in the " Torrent," namely the " Mechanical God Church," the internal faith organization of the "Imperial Machinery Union," only appeared a little over a decade ago.
The belief in the " Torrent " is confined to the Empire and is only beneficial to the Empire...
For some reason, Gilan suddenly had this idea.
Combining this with the " Art Decree " issued by the Empire, he also thought of the Ovena Federation. The mainstream beliefs there seemed to be the " Hour-God Lady Ya " of June, the " White Dove Poet " of October Director, and the " Hour-God Miss Elegy " of April.
The * Chronicles of the Hour-Gods * provides some descriptions of these three Hour-God:
" Lady Ya " represents the fields of dance, sculpture, and architecture.
" White Dove Poet " represents the fields of literature and drama.
" Miss Elegy " represents the fields of music and painting.
Therefore, there is a saying that these three are collectively referred to as the " Three Art Hour-Gods," or "Supreme Elegance."
'The Seven Arts...'
Gilan's eyes were filled with thought.
'So that's why the Empire issued the " Art Decree " to eliminate the influence of the Federation's faith? At the same time, it strongly supported the Machinery Union, causing productivity and technology to develop rapidly, catching up with the Federation...'
Through these seemingly insignificant details, he appeared to glimpse a war without gunfire between two great powers.
Gilan took a deep breath and continued reading the newspaper.
The three newspapers had some overlapping news, but the " Muse Post " had a separate exclusive report.
The headline is:
"Great news! The Führer Statue will be completed ahead of schedule, and is expected to be finished in early October!"
The subtitle is:
"The Fifth Wonder of the Empire is about to be born! Respect to His Majesty Caesar!"
Gilan recalled that when he first arrived in the capital, old Charles had said that the Führer Statue was originally expected to be completed by the end of this year or the beginning of next year.
But now it's happened several months earlier.
He glanced at the specific report, but the news seemed to be just hearsay, without any concrete evidence. It was merely a casual joke made during an interview by the chief architect and manipulator of the Grek of state's face.
Gilan shook her head.
He didn't care about that.
Knock knock.
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
Gilan put down her newspaper, got up, and walked to the door. She glanced through the peephole and couldn't help but frown slightly.
A strange woman stood outside. She had blonde hair in a ponytail, fair skin, light red lips, and wore a women's suit and hat. She carried a small handbag in one hand and held a cigarette in the other, seemingly lost in thought.
Click.
The door opened.
The woman outside the door was startled at first, seemingly not expecting anyone to actually open the door. But she quickly recovered, hurriedly threw her cigarette on the ground and stomped it out, smiling as she extended her hand and said:
"I didn't expect you to actually be home, Mr. Gilan. Sorry to bother you. I'm Rebi Lund, a top reporter for the Valerian Times ' and editor of the 'Legendary Figures' column."
"Hello."
Gilan raised an eyebrow and reached out to shake hands with him.
He had just read a headline about himself, written by the woman in front of him. He never expected her to come knocking on his door.
"May I come in? I'd like to discuss some things with you."
After shaking hands, the woman smiled shyly.
After a moment's thought, Gilan opened the door completely, turned to the side, and gestured.
"Please come in, Ms. Rebi."
Judging from her clothes and appearance, he estimated that the woman was around twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old and guessed that she was probably married, so he addressed her as "Madam".
Rebi didn't correct him, but nodded politely and went inside.
Gilan went to the kitchen to make her a cup of tea. When she brought it over, she saw Rebi sitting on the sofa, picking up the " Valerian Times " that had been on the coffee table with great interest.
"Thank you." The woman took the tea and smiled, "Mr. Gilan, have you already read the report I wrote?"
"Hmm." Gilan sat down on the other side and nodded. "It's well-written, but there's too much fabricated content."
"I'm sorry," Rebi shook her head somewhat embarrassedly. "That's also why I came to visit Mr. Gilan."
"Now, you're quite famous in North Muse." Rebi raised her beautiful blue eyes, looking at the blond youth before her with admiration. "The youngest staff master, a high-ranking Prohibition Agent, a nobleman from an earl family..."
"These titles would be dazzling halos on any young man... but they all come together on you, making it hard not to attract attention."
"Especially these past few days, Mr. Gilan's actions in the South Muse have earned my even greater admiration, which is why I was in a hurry to write that article."
"But in order to ensure the accuracy of the report, would you be willing to grant me a private interview?"
Rebi her lip and hesitated for a moment.
"I want to get firsthand information from Mr. Gilan, including the entire process of your arrest of the bootlegging convicts..."
Gilan fell into a deep thought.
The female reporter seemed somewhat nervous and apprehensive.
"That's possible..." he said slowly.
Reporting allows more people to know and better understand his "agent" image, which is beneficial for him to fulfill his "secret mission."
Gilan was certainly willing to do anything that would grant her more "guiding power".
"Mr. Gilan, please rest assured."
Seeing this, Rebi spoke up at the opportune moment.
"I guarantee I will portray you as a true star, without any negative portrayals whatsoever. I know that high society values reputation, and you can rest assured on that point!"
"That's good." Gilan nodded.
That's exactly what he wanted to hear.
Upon Rebi's face lit up with joy.
She thought for a moment and then suggested:
"Furthermore, I would like to obtain an exclusive interview with you. If you are ever out on a case again in the future, please contact me as soon as you return, and I will try my best to write a headline story about you..."
"Of course, in return, I can pay Caesar for this."
Rebi set out conditions.
But then she suddenly realized that the other person, being a nobleman, probably wasn't short of money, so she pursed her lips and quickly added:
"If you're not satisfied, I can even cook you a lavish 'lunch'..."
She emphasized the word "lunch," implying a deeper meaning.
"I know a lot of 'dishes,' Mr. Gilan will definitely be satisfied."
As she spoke, the female reporter gave the blond youth a flirtatious smile, hinting at something.
If it were someone else, Rebi wouldn't have reacted this way.
But the other party was a young and handsome nobleman, an agent, and a master of cane magic—he was exceptional in every way. If she could have a wonderful and in-depth conversation with him, she would be the one who benefited.
Rebi even more than happy to oblige.
"Exclusive interviews and firsthand information, no problem."
Gilan understood the subtext and glanced at the female reporter.
"Lunch is unnecessary. I have a big appetite, and I'm afraid you'll overwork yourself and it will affect your work today."
Upon hearing this, the female reporter's eyes shone even brighter.
"It's alright, as long as Mr. Gilan is full..."
"In that case, alright then." Gilan nodded.
Rebi's heart raced, and she felt a strange sense of anticipation.
She forced herself not to think about what would happen later, then took out a notebook and pen from her bag, coughed to cover her emotions, and forced herself into work mode, saying:
"Alright, let's begin the interview."
"Hmm. Go ahead and ask."
"My first question is, what preparations will Mr. Gilan make before taking action...?"