The Only One Who Can Untie the Bell Is the One Who Tied It

A ring just like the old magician's?!

Even though its color differed from the old magician's emerald ring, the patterns flickering within its smooth surface were clearly a "Magic Array"...

Ron was certain that this was an "Ability Amplifier" used by magicians.

These people... could they be magicians?

Ron stared at the ring on that person's hand in astonishment. Seemingly noticing his gaze, the black-robed man immediately withdrew his hand into his sleeve and shot Ron a vicious glare.

"Don't get into a conflict with them."

Xia Zhi tugged Ron along and immediately led him out of the elevator.

Watching the elevator doors close, Ron could not help frowning deeply.

Why would magicians appear at the Patrol Bureau in District D?

And besides...

He looked at Xia Zhi beside him and could clearly see a trace of displeasure on her face.

Clearly... she had some issues with these people.

Had she dealt with magicians before?

Ron considered his words before cautiously asking:

"Those people... who are they?

Are they Patrol Bureau officers too?"

"I don't know either."

Xia Zhi crossed her arms irritably. "A special task force parachuted in from above. A bunch of freeloaders who do nothing but make rice expensive... Remember when I said you did me a huge favor?"

A huge favor?

Ron immediately realized what Xia Zhi meant:

"You mean the serial killer I killed was the case they were parachuted in to handle?"

"That's right." Xia Zhi sighed. "They were in charge of that case. They even kicked our C-112 team straight out of the investigation unit because of it..."

"But after kicking us out, they never actually did anything. They just squat in a little room every day praying to some statue. I honestly have no idea what they want."

As she spoke, her expression brightened again.

"Luckily, there was you... If you hadn't dealt with that serial killer on the spot, who knew how many innocent Ideal City citizens he would have killed?"

Sorry, but the murderer you were investigating is standing right in front of you...

Ron thought silently, but one thing became clear to him.

...Clearly, Xia Zhi knew nothing about magicians.

If she truly knew anything related to Magic, she would definitely know what the higher-ups at the Patrol Bureau were doing—

Suppressing the news.

They wanted to suppress the impact of the "Magic" murder case...

Or perhaps... they wanted magicians to investigate magicians?

Ron fell into thought, unable to stop a sense of urgency from rising within him.

Sure enough, the Magician Association's influence in Ideal City was truly enormous...

It could even reach into a law enforcement agency like the Patrol Bureau. That was hard to imagine.

Although he had managed to pin the evidence on the killer who had just died by framing him, that did not mean Ron was completely safe.

Perhaps the magicians in the Patrol Bureau would close the case here, but the Magician Association still had a sword of Damocles hanging over Ron's head—

That was the commission the old magician had accepted.

Ron was certain that if the old magician did not appear at the commission site in a dozen or so days...

The Magician Association would likely begin investigating because of that as well.

A storm was brewing...

Perhaps he needed to think of a way to solve this problem.

Ron sighed inwardly and silently followed Xia Zhi to the director's office.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Xia Zhi knocked lightly on the door. Very soon, a rather young male voice came from inside:

"Come in!"

They pushed open the door. The room was plain, containing only a desk, a holographic screen, bookshelves stuffed with files...

And the steel-glinting Patrol Bureau badge hung high on the wall.

A young man sat behind the desk, wearing black-rimmed glasses. Though young, his hair was noticeably gray. Other than that, there was nothing remarkable about him.

When he saw Xia Zhi, his expression immediately turned serious, though his tone carried some helplessness.

"Again? I have to tell you, I have no choice but to follow orders from above. Don't be fooled by the fact that I'm the director of the District D Patrol Bureau. I'm still just a minor director.

No matter how many times you tell me, I can't put you back on the special task force..."

Xia Zhi shook her head.

"No need... because the killer has already been caught, and the case is about to be closed."

"He's already been caught?"

The young director looked up in astonishment. "Were they really that fast?"

"No." Xia Zhi shook her head, a trace of contempt entering her voice. "It would be nice if those freeloaders were that efficient..."

She pointed at Ron. "It was entirely thanks to a warmhearted citizen stepping in. When the killer committed another crime, he acted bravely in the face of danger and killed him on the spot in self-defense."

"...That impressive?"

The young director's expression changed as he looked at Ron, tinged with surprise.

He stood up and circled Ron twice, clicking his tongue in amazement.

"A high school student? I never expected District D to produce a genius like this. A true young hero..."

As he spoke, he looked at Xia Zhi.

"But if you're applying for a bravery award, just write up the paperwork according to procedure. There was no need to come to me, right?"

Xia Zhi shook her head. "His College Entrance Exam is coming up, and he doesn't have enough time... I want to help him apply for a Good Citizen Medal."

A Good Citizen Medal?

Ron had heard of such a thing. In theory, these medals were awarded by the Patrol Bureau to commend exemplary citizens within its jurisdiction—

But the standard for what counted as "exemplary" had always been vague, with the Patrol Bureau holding the final say.

In other words... this was an honorary prize reserved for the wealthy.

He had heard that these honorary awards were merely one small part of how rich people earned extra points on the College Entrance Exam.

They could even bring certain conveniences in real life, such as discounts when using public facilities funded by the Moen Municipal Government... Ron had never imagined that he could receive something like this too.

"You want to pull strings for him?"

The young director pushed up his glasses. "You know this alone isn't enough... Are you going to use your own points to make up the difference for him?"

Xia Zhi nodded. "Yeah. He did me a huge favor."

"Send me the file. I'll submit an application to the logistics department. It should only take a few days... Your name is Ron, right?"

The young director turned his gaze toward Ron and smiled.

"All right, little hero. The medal should be delivered to your home in a couple of days. Make sure to receive it when it arrives. This thing recognizes the medal, not the person."

It recognized the medal, not the person?

Wouldn't that make it perfect for private transactions?

Well, as expected, it was something rich people could buy with money.

It really fit Ideal City's established image... Ron found himself momentarily unable to complain.

After quickly registering his personal information, the young director sent Ron and Xia Zhi out of the office.

Xia Zhi led him out of the Patrol Bureau and teased him.

"Want me to give you a ride with my superpower?"

Remembering that dizzying sensation as though every ounce of strength had been drained from him, Ron shuddered and immediately shook his head like a rattle.

"I knew it... Fine, I've already booked you a car.

Head back on your own. That case still has to go through the final closure procedures, so I need to be there. I won't see you off."

She waved at Ron, then turned smartly and hurried back into the Patrol Bureau building.

...She really was a good person.

Watching Xia Zhi's departing back, Ron felt quite favorably toward her.

He could sense a clear sense of justice in Xia Zhi, her dedication to her duties as an officer, and her friendliness toward ordinary citizens...

If all Patrol Bureau officers were like her, perhaps Ideal City's crime rate would drop by another ten percent?

Forget it, what was he thinking?

In Ideal City, was he really expecting grassroots Patrol Bureau officers to all reach that standard?

Did he take the Moen Municipal Government for a charity?

He could not forget that the municipal government's true nature was that it had once been the largest commercial conglomerate in the world...

"Moen Commerce."

Thinking of this, Ron shook his head, cast aside his unrealistic fantasies, and got into the hired floating car Xia Zhi had booked for him.

Meanwhile—

"You're saying this person was another wanted criminal?! A Fire Control user with an ability record?"

Xia Zhi stared at the forensic examiner in front of her, who wore a biohazard suit and mask, her tone urgent.

"Where's the victim? Where are the ashes left by the victim?"

"I know what you want to ask, Xiao Xia... but don't worry. We did detect an unknown ability influence."

The obviously elderly forensic examiner gestured for her not to worry, took a transparent little box from a cabinet nearby, and placed it before Xia Zhi.

"Try it and you'll know."

Xia Zhi gently opened the lid, bringing her fingers close to the ashes—

Before she even touched them, the space around her rippled with faint waves.

"Just as expected... the same as before. It can affect my ability..."

She murmured to herself. The forensic examiner put away the ashes and reassured her.

"Don't worry... It's very likely that this person's ability mutated, causing this situation and making us think there were two killers with similar methods.

But in fact, they were the same person."

The same person?

Xia Zhi frowned, yet she could not shake the strange feeling in her heart.

Although that did seem reasonable... ability mutations were so rare that one might not appear among tens of millions of people.

Could it really be such a coincidence?

Besides, when he had tried to kill Ron, he had not displayed anything beyond the abilities of an ordinary Fire Control user.

Xia Zhi thought of those people wrapped tightly in black robes. Not long after the killer's body had been transported over, they had all hurriedly left...

Could it be... that there was another secret hidden behind this case?

A warning from the extraordinary stirred within her, and her sixth sense sounded the alarm.

Later, she might have to keep an eye out for similar cases...

Deep in thought, she made up her mind.

Ten days later.

Ability Training Center.

Ron pushed open the door of the Immersion Pod and sat up from within.

"Failed again..."

Deng Yin put on his glasses and approached with the data records.

"Your Personal Reality intensity has clearly reached Lv.2, and your computing power far exceeds Lv.2 as well, but no matter what, we can't unlock your Ability Model restrictions to Lv.2."

He opened the data display and pointed at the records on it.

"According to the theory, if you want to become a Lv.2 Superpowered, you should need to control 10% of your Ability Model.

But whenever I adjust the restriction to 10%, your ability goes out of control and your computing power collapses..."

He shook his head and sighed.

"It seems that awakening your Ability Model too late still damaged your Personal Reality.

Although we don't yet know the extent of the damage, I don't think we can push you to Lv.2 before resolving it."

There was no way?

Ron clenched his fist and felt the wind flowing through the gaps between his fingers. It seemed that with a single thought, he could alter the wind's direction and hold it in his palm.

His ability had improved by leaps and bounds.

He was certain that the ten days of special training had worked... Compared to himself ten days ago, Ron now possessed far stronger control over Vector Manipulation.

Back then, he could only alter the vector of one object at a time, and his maximum output was only enough to kick a pebble to the speed of a handgun bullet.

Only through close contact, by twisting the flow of someone else's blood, could he display lethality far beyond that of a Lv.1 Superpowered.

But now, if he wanted to, he could control more than a dozen pebbles and fire them out in an instant.

His output limit had also increased greatly, enough for a pebble to strike with the power of a rifle bullet...

But he had not advanced to Lv.2.

Whenever he tried to cross the ten-percent threshold, the ability entirely under his control in his palm would scatter away like fine sand.

Ability Overload, computing power collapse... It was as though everything had returned to the time before he had been able to restrict his ability.

Seeing Ron's silence, Deng Yin feared that he might be upset and comforted him gently.

"Although Ideal City now places increasing importance on actual combat ability, and a substantial portion of the College Entrance Exam's ability rating points is tied to arena battles, being Lv.1 will indeed make things somewhat difficult for you. But you don't need to worry too much...

Your ability is special enough and powerful enough that you still have a chance to defeat Lv.2 users even as a Lv.1.

You definitely won't get a particularly high score, but earning enough of a rating to enter Moen University shouldn't be difficult."

Just enough of a rating to enter Moen University...

Ron sighed, thanked Deng Yin for his help, and returned to his small apartment.

If it had been before, he might have been quite happy, but now that he was only one step away from becoming a Level 2 Superpowered, he could no longer be satisfied.

Because he knew that if he could become a Level 2 [Vector Manipulation] user, he would definitely be able to achieve an unimaginable score on the College Entrance Exam.

After all, simply becoming a student at one of the Three Great Academies would allow him to defer repayment on his student loan from the megacorporations.

And the higher his score, the higher his admission ranking, and the more of his loan would be forgiven.

On top of that, there were scholarships from corporations and schools, even assistance with developing his ability...

Ron could not simply scrape by with a guaranteed A rating and cross Moen University's threshold without pursuing those rewards that could so clearly improve his life dramatically.

So... did he really have no chance?

Looking at the Dimensional Update Manual, Ron fell into thought.

Maybe there still was.

Among the loaded settings, the Loss of Control for [Beyonder Loss of Control] had already reached sixty percent.

Ron vaguely remembered that when he had first loaded [Beyonder Loss of Control], the setting's Loss of Control had only been fifteen percent.

Then... was the fact that he could not control [Vector Manipulation] beyond the ten percent limit fundamentally related to [Beyonder Loss of Control]?

Since it was related to Beyonder Loss of Control...

Ron looked at [Enter World Save] in the manual.

Then those Beyonders who focused on resisting the contamination and loss of control of Potion Sequences, and could even wield such powers without collapsing—

Wouldn't they be more professionally suited to this?

For example, that young Saintess who was clearly a Beyonder... could she have a way to ease the loss of control?

Ron pondered for a moment before finally making up his mind.

The one who tied the knot had to untie it...

It was time to visit the Potion Era once more.