Chapter 229

Why are these things just displayed like that?

Kanade Kotone just thought Huachao Cai was very rich and might be able to offer some feasible suggestions, but she didn't come here to ask for a diamond ring.

Huachao Cai chuckled, "Don't look at me like that, these are just imitations, not diamond rings."

"Oh, that's all right now."

Kanade Kotone immediately composed herself, and when she looked again, she found that the sparkling rings were no longer so dazzling.

Oh, it's a fake. I know these things well.

No more stress!

"Because I heard that your problem is 'not being able to find a style you like,' right? Don't worry, we own several jewelry stores, and these are sample designs from there that haven't been released yet. If you like them, you can buy them directly. I can guarantee that these styles are absolutely unique."

"Um... that's not what I meant..."

Yukina quickly waved her hand.

These were all design samples that hadn't been released yet; wouldn't that make them trade secrets by default?

Although it wasn't that serious, Yukina didn't want to accept such a favor—she had only come to seek advice from "mature older sisters."

Under the table, Yukina grabbed Kanade Kotone's hand and pinched it hard. Kanade Kotone in pain, then saw a rare look of embarrassment in Yukina's eyes.

So Shiomi- san can make that kind of expression too? -- Although I really want to gloat, Kanade Kotone doesn't know what to do right now. To be honest, Huachao Cai seems really off today... Huachao Cai and Yukina are meeting for the first time, so why is she suddenly being so "enthusiastic"? The Huachao Cai I remember isn't like this at all.

Even the Kanade Kotone.

Huachao Cai maintained her elegant smile and pushed the ring box in front of Yukina.

"Want to choose one? Two or three are also fine!"

If you don't choose, Huachao Cai won't be able to proceed to the next step, right?

Yukina declined, Kanade Kotone.

An odd coffee and tea party began between the three of them in a subtly awkward atmosphere.

147. Net

As dusk deepened, the city was bathed in a shimmering golden light.

Evening is the busiest time of day in Xijing City. Saori walks alone on the bustling streets, wearing a hood, one hand in her pocket, the other scrolling through her phone, and a candy dangling from her mouth.

Man appears to be a harmless girl being pushed along by the crowd.

In reality, she was on a mission to "track down human traffickers." This inconspicuous attire was Saori's best cover, preventing her from arousing suspicion or attention. The target was suspected to be lurking in the deep alleys of this area, and the special forces members under Fushihara Ayaka were already lying in ambush in the surrounding houses and fire escape routes, waiting for orders.

This is a busy downtown area, and they must ensure the mission proceeds smoothly without threatening the safety of pedestrians on the street. The best way is for "Vanguard" Saori to rush in and capture the enemy in one fell swoop. This is the most efficient and safest method—the other special forces members are just a second layer of insurance.

Before being temporarily assigned to the support unit and Maesakagawa, she had been participating in various "cleanup" missions under the arrangement of Fushihara Ayaka —simply put, finding and hunting down criminals, and convicting or arresting them.

Actually, this kind of mission wouldn't normally require an agent, even though Saori has long since been removed from the official Saori. However, for some unclear reason, the unstable elements in the Xijing City have become increasingly rampant recently, and when there's a shortage of manpower, Saori receives missions. As a removed agent, it's somewhat inappropriate for her to appear publicly to deal with the Erosion Disaster; conversely, these clandestine missions are more suitable for her.

Therefore, Saori received more and more of these kinds of missions. Sometimes it was to investigate a certain area, and sometimes it was a secret assassination mission to help deal with some tricky problems.

Among these problems, the most serious are the two major areas of addictive drugs and human trafficking.

The problem of rampant illegal drugs stems from a dark period of history, while human trafficking is a "black industry" that gradually emerged later. Disappearances are inevitable during Erosion Disaster, creating a convenient excuse and opportunity for criminals. This makes such incidents difficult to investigate. This problem exists in every city, including the former Xijing City. However, thanks to the joint efforts of Masaki Hina and Fushihara Ayaka, the criminals lurking beneath the surface finally backed down. But recently, they have suddenly reappeared.

With Masaki Hina absent and Kusei Maki busy with the operational arrangements and preparations for the Maesakagawa Garrison District, all these issues threatening the city's security fell on the shoulders of Fushihara Ayaka and Saori.

For the past month, Fushihara Ayaka and Saori have been relentlessly pursuing the criminals, gradually uncovering a complex web of intricate connections. At least thirty criminals have died at their hands, and many more have been arrested. Saori always appears and disappears mysteriously, perfectly executing mission after mission with the power of an agent, just as her current code name, "Shadow," suggests.

"How's the situation now?" Saori asked softly, her phone still connected.

"There was no unusual activity at the target's location."

Fushihara Ayaka's voice came through the earpiece, "Saori, where are you?"

"Ready to take position."

As she spoke, Saori turned from the busy main road into a side alley without attracting anyone's attention; she appeared to be just an ordinary girl taking a shortcut to somewhere else.

After Saori's figure disappeared around the corner of the alley, the air trembled slightly, and a silver light flashed and vanished in an instant. Her gray hair fell from under Saori hood, and when you looked again, Saori's figure had gradually blended into the shadows of the deep alley at dusk. Her footsteps became extremely light, and the alley was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The target was located in what appeared to be an ordinary general store, situated at the intersection of a narrow alley between buildings. People would occasionally pass by, and the liaisons of these "black organizations" would blend in among them, using the purchase of small items such as lighters and cigarettes as cover to secretly exchange information.

In addition to this method, these organizations also use lights, codes, and other means to communicate. They have even set up their own communication lines and base stations to disguise themselves, making them difficult to detect even if people are sent to check regularly.

In short, the criminals living in the shadows of the city have formed a vast web, Fushihara Ayaka has finally managed to gradually pull this web to the surface. Now is the time to capture them all in one fell swoop.

Not long after, Saori appeared at the back of the building where the convenience store was located. This was the side entrance of the convenience store. She inserted an extremely thin plastic tube into the ventilation vent, and it crawled inside like a snake. At the end of the thin tube was a very concealed small camera device. It slowly crawled inside the ventilation vent, and then crawled out of the ventilation vent inside the convenience store, transmitting the image back into the building.

"Shadow is in position," Saori said, checking the screen on her phone, her brows furrowing slightly. "But... I haven't spotted the target. Is he really here?"

"No?"

Fushihara Ayaka paused slightly, then immediately ordered, "Tsk... these rats are all incredibly cunning; we might have been tricked."

This isn't the first time something like this has happened. Criminals who roam the city's darkness are far more prepared in terms of escape methods and backup plans than one might imagine, and catching them often requires considerable effort.

"Shadow, break in quickly. Our people have already restricted traffic and the flow of people, so don't hold back," Fushihara Ayaka's voice rang out again. "Go!"

At a command, the ambushing special forces soldiers sprang into action, and several gunshots rang out from the deep alley. As an intelligence exchange point, this alley naturally had several checkpoints set up, but these were useless against the well-trained elites of the Special Disaster Division, and they were eliminated one by one without any effort.

With a flick of her wrist, Saori wielded the chain like a knife, causing the flimsy iron door to shatter violently, a large section of it caved in and flying backward, smashing through a large section of the wall.

Dust billowed up, Saori quickly glanced at it.

This is the side door of the convenience store. Looking through here, you can see the warehouse, which, along with the front door, leads to the dark interior of the store. Scattered everywhere are torn packaging bags, unburnt paper scraps, shavings of wood, oil-covered newspapers of unknown purpose, overturned cabinets and drawers, and furniture lying on the floor.

It looked as if it had been ransacked by thieves.

"Looks like I'm too late..." Saori, carrying the chain, stepped into the house. A damp, musty smell wafted through the air. Saori pursed her lips, glancing at the overturned beverage and liquor bottles on the floor. The bottles were unopened, and the dampness on the floor was barely visible, indicating that some time had passed. "The target has already left."

148. Holiday

The gunfire in the alley gradually subsided. Only a few minutes had passed since the operation began, but thanks to the Special Disaster Relief Special Forces' well-prepared and rapid raid, the "outposts" were quickly taken down.

These are battle-hardened warriors, and the Special Disaster Division, which assists agents in combat, is full of such people. Ordinary people, even with weapons, are still no match for them.

Saori conducted a quick search of the convenience store's warehouse and then reported the situation to Fushihara Ayaka.

"We've been beaten to it? It seems something went wrong with the plan... They even went so far as to leave those 'outposts' as a smokescreen to mislead us. This person is quite decisive."

Fushihara Ayaka paused, her expression unreadable. "Fine, let's come back then. Even if we escape from here, we still have other goals."

"Are we just going to leave this place like this? What about those guys around here?" Saori asked.

"It's alright, those small fry weren't worth much anyway," Fushihara Ayaka seemed unconcerned about the defeat and showed no intention of pursuing the matter further. "You can retreat for now. Since he beat us to it, our encirclement is pointless. It's too close to the city center to push things too far. Let others handle the rest."

"That's true..." This place is too close to the street, it's best to avoid causing a disturbance. However, compared to Fushihara Ayaka, who seemed not to care much, Saori seemed a little disappointed. "Anyway, the mission failed, but... you don't seem worried at all."

"There's nothing to worry about. There will always be times when things don't go smoothly at work. Just try your best next time," Fushihara Ayaka, unconcerned. "Besides... the net is about to be closed, catching these parasites is only a matter of time."

Unless those people are reckless enough to run off to the occupied areas Beyond the Boundary, aren't they just stuck in Xijing City playing cat and mouse?

No one would actually dare to go Beyond the Boundary.

Aside from agents, almost no one can survive in the Beyond the Boundary region—affected by the position of the White Hole Erosion, even if humans living there are not hunted down by the Erosion Entity and wandering Dregs, they will gradually turn into Dregs due to the invasion of Corruption Energy into their bodies.

"Hmm... okay."

"What's wrong? You seem to be bothered by it?"

"Of course I care," Saori, gazing at the shattered mirror on the ground, half her body hidden in the shadows cast by the setting sun. "I just want to kill these people as soon as possible."

"Oh?"

Fushihara Ayaka smiled gently, "What's wrong? Shadow, you seem a bit more 'emotional' today. You would never have said something like this before. Is it because you met with Furan?"

"No... I just can't understand..."

"What happens?"

"Maesakagawa, I kept thinking about something... Furan, Senior Efnir, Yukina and the others, those agents, and those soldiers, they fought and fought for this city, getting injured time and time again, and even sacrificing their lives in the end. But in this city they risked their lives to fight for and protect, these rotten people who reached out their claws to others have emerged. Senior Qinglan and Senior Flying Swallow are no longer here. I heard that back then, this city was even more corrupt than it is now. Did they ever regret it for even a moment because of the people they were protecting?"

Saori lowered her voice, "Is it just me who feels this way, or is this the way the world really is?"

"I see..."

This is understandable. Saori had always been active on the battlefield as an agent, and was ultimately one of those who lived in the sunlight. She didn't have a deep understanding of the other side of this city hidden in the shadows, and even if she had heard about it, it was difficult for her to empathize with it.

After becoming "Shadow," Saori lived in the shadows every day, her hands often stained with blood. How could her heart remain unchanged? Moreover, Furan's injury during the Battle of Maesakagawa further aggravated her.

On one side are her close friends, former comrades-in-arms, and respected seniors who fight for the city's future; on the other side are lawbreakers who disrupt public order and bring instability to the city. Caught between these two worlds, it's inevitable that Saori's mindset will become unbalanced.

This is exactly the same as when Fushihara Ayaka was young.

"Anyway..." Fushihara Ayaka sighed softly, "Shadow, don't overthink it. You just have more power than others. Don't let it get you into the mindset of being a savior or a hero."

No one is a hero obligated to save the world, and no one is a saint who sacrifices himself for the sake of enlightenment.

Everyone is simply living this way out of necessity; they just choose different paths, that's all.

"If some people didn't disappear from the world, more people would suffer unnecessarily, but the world isn't full of people like that... Duty and responsibility are different concepts."

"I understand... but I want to seek change."

"Change... that's just how the world is, and we can't change it."

Even so...

"Shadow, changing this world is much more difficult and painful than you imagine. Willpower alone is not enough."

"Um..."

Saori is not incomprehensible.

White Hole Erosion threatens the last spark of human civilization. In such a crisis, what can even the greatest perseverance do?

Moreover, Saori herself believed that she probably didn't have enough willpower.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been tempted by the Apostle a month ago and done something he would later regret.

"Oh," Fushihara Ayaka paused, then suddenly said, "How about we take this opportunity to give you a break? You need to relax."

"A holiday?" Saori instantly thought of Shiina Rin. In a few days, she might be able to meet Shiina Rin.

But after thinking about it, she shook her head. "Why give me a break? The 'catch' is coming up soon, isn't it? Just give me some games and movies to help me relax."

"What does it matter?" Fushihara Ayaka laughed. "We've been doing this before you joined us, haven't we? Oh, right, it just so happens that it's Efnir's birthday in a few days. Her sister is even throwing a birthday party, but she can't reach you, so I'm letting you know here."

"Huh? It's your birthday, senior??"

This is somewhat unexpected news.

"Yes, I think she would be very happy if you could show up."

"..."

Saori fell silent.

If it weren't for what happened a month ago, Efnir would probably have welcomed her, right? But now... what right or position does a deregistered agent have to expect that kind of treatment?

"I... I think I'd better not go..."

"Alright, alright, I told you to take a vacation, so take a vacation," knowing roughly what she wanted to say, Fushihara Ayaka interrupted her, "Stop dawdling, go back now and hand the scene over to my people."

Saori Bushiyuan Fushihara's offer. After a moment's hesitation, she finally sighed and didn't continue to decline, "Then... alright..."

After all, she still wanted to see Rin and needed a vacation.

149. Secret passage

"Oh, and remember to send the record over."

"Um."