Appointment

Reports about the Quicksilver Needle casualties in District 12 had begun appearing one after another in District 14.

Over the past twenty years, regional conflicts in District 12 had almost never ceased. Countless people had died in assassinations, coups, armed clashes, and virulent epidemics. This incident, with nearly three hundred deaths, likewise sparked heated discussion.

Hesta frantically gathered related information, but there was little useful news.

Ligo had already returned to District 12. As a resident who had lived there for five years, most of the Quicksilver Needles killed in the accident had been her friends and juniors. On the night she learned the news, Tulan had not even known how to comfort Ligo. She could only sit silently beside her by the landline all night.

Office 7 had called at dawn the next day. Ligo was assigned as a team commander to the first investigation unit entering the heart of District 12. Unlike the rescue forces, this new unit, composed of four teams, had only one mission: investigate the true cause of the incident on site.

By the time Hesta got in touch with Tulan, Ligo had already been gone for about a week. Tulan said that almost none of the messages sent to Ligo—whether texts or emails—had received a reply. The only response from Ligo had been, "I'm here. Don't worry," when she first landed.

Tulan told Hesta that she, too, was actively applying to go to District 12. In fact, nearly all the Quicksilver Needles around her were applying to go there. This unprecedented casualty count had drawn everyone's attention. People guessed it was connected to recent attempts by governments across the districts to bring local AHgAs institutions under their control. So far, however, aside from District 14, no second district had truly accomplished that goal.

Then