Chaos's signature, a cold betrayal

The touch on the fingertips is cool, smooth, and has a subtle metallic feel.

Lynn's gaze was fixed on the lower right corner of the official document.

[K-7-Chaos-M]

These tiny characters, etched using nanotechnology, pierced the deepest recesses of his mind like an invisible needle.

The low rumble of collapsing Spatial Rift all around seemed to isolate them in another world. The lingering energy Residual Echo left behind by the TVA forces after their withdrawal also completely dissipated at this moment.

The ruins were deathly silent.

His world, too, fell into a deathly silence.

K, Department of Technology.

7. The Seventh Laboratory.

Chaos-M, a material representing Chaos Magic.

Each character points to a name.

Wanda.

The name surfaced in Lynn's mind without causing any emotional ripples, yet it felt like a heavy weight, instantly sinking into the calmest lake in his heart, leaving no trace.

The ripples simply sink endlessly and coldly.

He had considered countless possibilities.

The mole within TVA, the ambitious figure in the Management Committee, Hela, Jean, and even Natasha, whom he has placed under house arrest. Everyone has a motive, and everyone is a suspect.

Only Wanda.

He always viewed her as a double-edged sword, both the sharpest and the most unstable. Her strength was like a volcano that needed to be calmed, and her emotions like a torrent that needed to be channeled. He used every means at his disposal to place her in the position of Technology Minister, using tedious official documents, massive budgets, and endless departmental wrangling to exhaust her energy, which was enough to destroy everything.

He treated her as a "problem" to be solved and a "risk" to be managed.

But he never considered her as a "chess player" hidden in the shadows of the chessboard.

The Clockmaker's words echoed in my ears.

"Every great artist has the habit of leaving a unique signature on their work."

Is this her signature?

She used a sheet of paper—the kind only her office could produce, imbued with her own power—to write a "confession" that would lead to his death.

This is not an oversight.

This is the height of arrogance.

It's a silent declaration: I set this up, and what can you do about it?

Lynn slowly folded the document back up.

His movements were slow, and every fold was perfectly aligned, as if he were handling an ordinary departmental document.

But if someone could see into his eyes, they would find no warmth there, only a bottomless, rapidly spinning, icy Nebula.

A question suddenly surfaced.

It's too obvious.

The signature was so clear and precise that it almost looked like a deliberately thrown bait.

If this was Wanda's plan, would she leave such an easily traceable flaw?

Or is this part of a larger plan?

Someone stole this paper from her office.

Then, using this piece of paper, they forged this confession and set up this trap.

The goal was to make Lynn direct his suspicions directly at Wanda.

If he becomes suspicious of Wanda or even takes action, the fragile balance between the two most powerful violent departments within the Management Committee — the Stability Maintenance Office and the Department of Technology —will be instantly shattered.

A civil Civil War was inevitable.

The person hiding behind the scenes can then reap the benefits.

Not many people can do that.

Hela? She acts domineeringly and prefers to crush people with absolute force rather than through such ingenious framing.

Qin? Her Psychic Power allows her to do it without anyone noticing, but her pride might make her disdain using such a framing tactic.

Natasha? She's an expert in this, but she's currently in the T-03 Defense Zone, physically isolated and unable to reach her.

Lynn's mind flashed through profiles of all the core members.

Everyone has the potential, but everyone seems to be missing the most crucial link.

He carefully placed the folded document into the inside pocket of his jacket, close to his chest. The cool touch kept him perfectly alert.

Regardless of the truth, one thing is certain.

This thin piece of paper has become the most fatal variable in this game of chess.

He can't trust anyone.

He must not let anyone know that he has already obtained this clue.

"Boom--"

With a deafening roar, the interrogation table not far away was swallowed up by a Spatial Rift that appeared out of nowhere, instantly turning into dust.

The Oblivion of this ruin is accelerating.

Lynn looked up at the dome above him, which was constantly collapsing and dissipating into Data Stream.

He should leave.

Just as he turned around, preparing to return to the Stealth Insertion Ship, his gaze was drawn to a faint light on the ground.

That was at the edge of where the interrogation table used to be, beneath a pile of dust.

A tiny, extremely subtle, Scarlet reflection.

Lynn crouched down.

He stretched out his finger and carefully brushed away the dust.

That's neither metal nor crystal.

It was an irregularly shaped fragment, about the size of a fingernail.

The material is very special, like some kind of specially treated leather, with a matte finish and marks on the edges indicating that it has been forcibly torn.

Lynn picked it up and placed it on her fingertips.

Scarlet.

Two related images instantly popped into his memory bank.

One is a pair of Scarlet magic gloves made of special dragon hide that Wanda wore in a private laboratory at the Department of Technology to protect herself from the corrosive power of Chaos Magic.

Another example is the Scarlet leather wristband that Natasha wore as an embellishment on her uniform during certain top-level assassination missions in the training grounds deep inside the Red Room.

Lynn's pupils contracted slightly.

The clues that had just become clear were now shrouded in a thick fog once again.

If that piece of paper was Wanda's "signature"...

So, whose "signature" is on this leather fragment?

Did Wanda accidentally leave it behind while setting up the venue?

Or was it Natasha... or rather, another flaw left behind by the person behind Natasha when framing her?

Or perhaps, the whole thing is a series of interconnected events from beginning to end.

The paper points to Wanda.

The fragments point to Natasha.

He was torn between suspicion and distrust between two of the most dangerous women, becoming mentally and physically exhausted, ultimately leading him to make the wrong judgment.

Lynn slowly stood up, expressionless.

He put the Scarlet leather shard and the document into the same pocket.

Then, without looking back, he walked towards the shadows where the Stealth Insertion Ship anchored.

Behind it, the entire XN-734 Ruins was emitting its final lament, collapsing into an indescribable Singularity that had returned to nothingness.

The ship's door slid open silently and closed quietly behind him.

It isolated us from all light and sound from the outside world.

Lynn stood alone on the deathly silent Bridge, looking out the porthole at the darkness that had completely vanished into nothingness.

He did not start the spaceship immediately.

He simply stood there quietly, like a statue.

After a long while, he finally raised his hand and connected to the encrypted line with the Liaison Office Chief Gwen Stacy.

No sound came out immediately when the line was connected.

A full five seconds passed before Gwen Stacy's voice, tinged with tension and restraint, finally rang out.

"Director."

"It's me."

Lynn's voice was so calm that it revealed no emotion whatsoever.

"I need you. Use your Highest Access Privileges to do something immediately."

"Please give instructions." Gwen Stacy's voice was firm and decisive.

Lynn paused, seemingly considering his words.

"Under the pretext of Liaison Office internal asset inventory and checking for redundancies, the Department of Technology's Seventh Laboratory reviewed the requisition records of all high-standard official paper over the past three months..."

"Especially the K-7-Chaos-M batch."