The final fate of Jiang Kelan himself was not recorded in the documents.
"I wonder who came up with this story," Leng Xianye remarked, joining the discussion as he pulled up photos of the documents on his watch. "It’s not that it’s weird... but the backstory makes it feel like the focus isn't actually on the birth of the variants."
Xin Ye hit the nail on the head: "It’s on Jiang Kelan and Gu Shaolou."
The five of them chatted idly, ignoring the envious or jealous glares from the eliminated espers as they made their way to the small conference room designated in the message from the Seventh Division’s Vice Chief.
As they reached the door, Tang Qiuqiu and Lian Muyun happened to be locked in a disagreement.
"Jiang Kelan didn't tell anyone the location of the butterfly’s original body; of course he’s a traitor to humanity," Lian Muyun argued, his perspective perfectly aligned with his status as the young master of the Second Division Chief’s family. "Otherwise, how do you account for all the lives lost to those butterflies?"
Tang Qiuqiu looked hesitant. He knew Lian Muyun was right, yet he felt Jiang Kelan occupied a gray area. "He always believed that experiments combining humans and variants were a taboo in the field, and in the end, he did help with the Survivor Project..."
Xin Ye considered asking Xun Yin for its opinion, but then remembered their argument from the day before and couldn't be bothered.
"What are you all arguing about? Get into the conference room already."
A voice that sounded slightly familiar to Xin Ye cut in. He looked up and saw two people standing on the other side of the door.
Yi Ting was still draped in her white lab coat, her slightly curly long hair tied back efficiently. A pair of glasses sat on her doll-like face, and a stylus was clipped to her breast pocket.
Beside her, Fu Shu, who stood two heads taller, clutched five black folders, obediently hanging his head like a pack mule.
Aside from Xin Ye, who had returned to the early days of the apocalypse, only Tang Qiuqiu had never been to Headquarters and didn't recognize Yi Ting. Lian Muyun, ignoring her feigned coldness, smiled and greeted her, "Long time no see, Sister Ting! Did you come all this way just to see me?"
"I just happened to be assigned to the Seventh Division. Don't flatter yourself." Yi Ting rolled her eyes irritably, then turned to Xing Yue. "I heard your ability went out of control in the simulation?"
Xing Yue hadn't expected that incident to be brought up again now that the competition was over. She gave a low murmur of affirmation.
"Come find me after the meeting. I’ll run a check on you," Yi Ting said, settling the matter without giving Xing Yue a chance to refuse. Then she suddenly glanced at Xin Ye and Leng Xianye. "Oh, and you two as well."
Xin Ye guessed this had to do with his new ability and remained silent. Leng Xianye, however, spoke up: "Why do I need a check-up too?"
"Didn't your 'Black Box' usage limit break through? Your old man has been glued to the simulation broadcast. He instructed me to look into it the moment it ended... Sigh, don't come one by one. All five of you come for a check-up. Otherwise, you're like a carton of loose eggs—it's a hassle."
After speaking, Yi Ting led the silent Fu Shu into the conference room. The five "eggs," who had suddenly found their small vacation interrupted by a medical appointment, looked at each other. Finally, Xin Ye nudged the other four into the room.
Inside the conference room, the virtual image of the Division Chief was already projected onto the seat at one end of the long table.
The staff sent from Headquarters and the five members of the winning team sat on opposite sides. Once everyone was present, the moderator wasted no time and cut straight to the chase.
It was nine in the morning. The preliminary rounds in the other divisions had ended an hour ago, and the list of all teams advancing to Headquarters for the second stage of the competition had been finalized. The next steps were to confirm the upcoming schedule and sign the personnel transfer contracts.
The top three teams in the final competition would earn permanent positions at Headquarters. However, during the competition period at Headquarters, the espers would already be classified under Headquarters' jurisdiction and would be eligible to perform missions.
The benefits and pay at Headquarters were indeed much better than at the divisions. There was only one catch: while division missions were mostly voluntary, and any mission exceeding the capacity of a division's high-level espers would be sent back to Headquarters, missions at Headquarters were assigned by a specialized department. Espers had no right to refuse.
Xin Ye skimmed the contract. It wasn't much different from the last time. He signed his name with crisp efficiency.
It was just an indentured servitude contract.
He cared more about the high-quality uniforms.
After the five of them submitted their contracts, the waiting staff took them away to be photocopied. This was one of the few times the Investigation Department used paper, allowing the espers to keep a copy for their own records.
Meanwhile, Yi Ting placed an electronic tablet in front of Leng Xianye, who was sitting in the middle.
"The team profiles you filled out earlier were too sparse. Before entering Headquarters, you need to reconfirm your team information. You also need to fill in who the captain is," Yi Ting said, unclipping the stylus from her chest and tossing it onto the tablet. "Fill it out. Hurry up."
Leng Xianye picked up the pen and first filled in the team name. The malicious name was promptly mocked by Yi Ting sitting across from him.
Then, his pen tip paused at the "Captain" column.
Xin Ye began to look down and fiddle with his combat gloves.
Lian Muyun and Tang Qiuqiu had overheard something during the competition and knew there was a minor wager between Xin Ye and Leng Xianye. Since it was healthy internal competition, they were happy to watch the show. Only Xing Yue was unaware of the situation and seriously asked for everyone's opinion: "What do you all think? The role of captain requires someone who can see the big picture and has a sense of responsibility. I’ll start by casting a 'no' vote for Lian Muyun."
Lian Muyun let out a "Wow." "Congrats to me for being eliminated early."
Tang Qiuqiu silently raised his hand. "I can't do it. I made so many mistakes in this competition... Someone else should do it."
Xing Yue nodded. Thinking it over, she realized she couldn't do it since the cause of her ability's loss of control hadn't been found yet. Based on ranking and performance, Xin Ye was the most suitable candidate among the five of them. She was about to suggest him.
But before she could speak, someone beat her to it.
"Choose Xin Ye," Leng Xianye said, his face still cold and his tone flat. "He’s suitable."
No other adjectives, just "suitable."
Xin Ye was playing dead when Xun Yin suddenly spoke in his mind: [I vote for Xin Ye too! He is the people's choice!]
*What a sudden "people's choice."*
"Your 'people' consists of just you, doesn't it?" Xin Ye knew he couldn't escape being appointed captain, so he could only vent by bickering with Xun Yin.
Xun Yin: [Are you going to do it or not? If you don't... I can't really do anything to you anyway.]
Xin Ye: "I'll do it."
He thought about it carefully; he didn't really have a reason to refuse.
The reason he had proposed the competition to Leng Xianye in the first place was to prevent the original protagonist, who hadn't fully grown yet, from losing confidence because of a "cheater" like him. Now that Leng Xianye could proactively suggest him for captain, it meant the boy had worked through it.
Xin Ye knew Leng Xianye wasn't the type to be petty—if he said he was willing, he meant it. If everyone thought he was suitable, he was willing to try being a responsible captain who could protect everyone. At worst, if he did a bad job, he’d just be kicked back to logistics.
Doing everything exactly the same as the last life would be quite boring, wouldn't it?
Xun Yin: [The main reason is that a captain's salary is higher than a regular member's.]
Xin Ye: "Do not use the vulgarity of money to ruin my noble internal inauguration speech."
Seeing Xin Ye nod, Leng Xianye wrote his name in the captain's column with a fluid stroke.
The other basic information was easy to fill out—family backgrounds, academic history before esper training, and so on. Finally, when it came to the information regarding their abilities, Yi Ting took the tablet and pen back.
"Nothing else. Follow me for the check-up," she said, tapping the tablet twice with the pen. "Get it done quickly so you can rest. We move out for Headquarters tomorrow."
Yi Ting led the five of them to the examination room. The process wasn't complicated—just a blood draw and a machine analysis. While waiting for the results, Yi Ting had them wait in the analysis room next door. Xin Ye sat back in his familiar spot and picked up a decorative biscuit from the table, holding it like a cigarette.
Lian Muyun snatched the seat next to Xin Ye. "Captain Xin, do you have any other plans for today?"
Captain Xin couldn't guess what his teammate was plotting, so he decided to fill his schedule to leave Lian Muyun no openings. "Yes."
Lian Muyun: "? What plans?"
Xin Ye: "Sleeping for the entire day."
"You just scolded me for that!!! ...Fine, I know you're tired, but don't be tired yet," Lian Muyun said, stuffing another biscuit into Xin Ye's mouth. "Have a 'smoke' to wake up. It’s like this: the four of us were planning to have a small party to celebrate. Guess who was isolated and received the invitation last?"
Xin Ye bit through the biscuit. "I'm going to sleep right now."
Lian Muyun wailed, "I was joking! Don't!!"
Xin Ye had had his fun. Realizing he really didn't have anything to do in the afternoon, he thought a team-building session would be good for bonding. He also wanted to probe into Xing Yue's loss of control. Just as he was about to nod in agreement, Yi Ting walked in with the reports.
She was always concise. She tossed four reports onto the table, but Xing Yue’s result was kept separate. Yi Ting told Xing Yue to come with her for another round.
Xin Ye looked at his report, which had changed to D+. He comforted himself; this was also a form of progress.
Lian Muyun was uninterested in his own report showing a promotion to A-rank. Seeing Xin Ye focused on the results, he was about to ask about the party again when he was interrupted once more.
Yi Ting, who was halfway out the door, stepped back inside.
Leng Xianye saw her staring at a new message projected from her multi-function watch with a deep frown. Realizing it must be something serious, he asked, "Researcher Yi... has something happened?"
Hearing Leng Xianye’s voice, Yi Ting quickly composed herself.
"The departure time, originally set for 8:00 AM tomorrow, has been moved up to midnight tonight. Headquarters has assigned an S-rank mission: 'The Asylum.' You need to complete the mission before the original scheduled arrival time at Headquarters."
She knew this mission was too much for a team that had only just begun to gel, but she was merely the messenger. She had no power to help these espers. "Hurry up and refit. Assemble at the parking lot on time. I’ll drive you to the mission site."
The mission came so suddenly that the group, who had been chatting idly moments ago, now looked stiff.
Xin Ye was the fastest to adjust. He planned to head back and pack his bags immediately. He patted Lian Muyun on the shoulder. "Forget playing this afternoon. Go get some rest, okay?"
Hearing Xin Ye’s words, Yi Ting nodded slightly, satisfied with the new captain’s reaction.
She had actually preferred Xing Yue as captain, having watched the girl grow up at Headquarters, but this Xin Ye seemed to be performing well too. She put an arm around Xing Yue’s shoulder. "Did you hear your new captain? Come with me. Once we finish the deep scan, you can get a little rest."
However, she only held her for a few seconds before Xing Yue gently pushed her away.
"Wait a moment, I'll be right there," the girl said softly, then returned to her teammates' side.
Tang Qiuqiu, sitting on Xin Ye's other side, grabbed his sleeve. "Xin Ye... Captain! Wait a second, we... we have something to say to you. Just sit for a moment."
Leng Xianye was looking down, sending a message, and didn't look up.
Xin Ye was bewildered, but then Tang Qiuqiu turned into a kitten and jumped into his arms. He had no choice but to listen and sit down.
Soon, someone knocked on the doorframe and handed in a sizable package. Yi Ting caught it and handed it to Leng Xianye, who had stood up specifically to take it.
After unwrapping the package, Leng Xianye placed a beautifully decorated box in the center of the table. He and Lian Muyun opened the lid together, revealing the surprise inside.
A cream birthday cake. The candies decorating it made it look exceptionally sweet, but the most eye-catching part was the decorative biscuits stuck in the middle of the cake to serve as candles.
Xun Yin, who had been unusually quiet today, spoke softly: [I didn't tell you at the stroke of midnight, but happy birthday, Xin Ye.]
Tang Qiuqiu meowed a few times, then realizing he couldn't count, blushed and transformed back into human form. He huddled close to Xin Ye and shouted, "Three, two, one!"
Xing Yue set off a small party popper that Leng Xianye had just handed her. The four of them shouted in unison, "Happy Birthday!"
Xin Ye, who had been able to instantly accept a sudden S-rank mission, was now stunned for a long time. Lian Muyun rested his hands on Xin Ye's shoulders and rambled, "We were going to celebrate at the little gathering this afternoon, but then the mission came... Rest definitely comes first! So we had to move it up to now. Does our birthday boy want to make a wish?"
Last night, the Mirror had sent a message to Lian Muyun, telling him today was Xin Ye's birthday.
One told another, and another told three more. Thus, the team had organized a birthday plan behind Xin Ye's back.
Xin Ye’s mind was a bit of a mess, so he obediently did as he was told. He gave a mock blow toward the biscuits acting as candles and said, "I hope we can always stay together."
Tang Qiuqiu felt a bit sad that he hadn't stopped Xin Ye from saying the wish out loud. "It won't come true if you say it."
"A birthday boy's wish always comes true, no matter what." Leng Xianye glanced at the biscuits. "I think we can go a very long way together."
Lian Muyun affirmed, "All the way to the end of the apocalypse? Then we can retire and go fishing together."
The group laughed and joked around Xin Ye. Xing Yue couldn't help but smile too. "So we don't have time to eat the cake together? Xin Ye, do you want to take the whole thing back and eat it with your Mirror?"
"There’s plenty of time," Yi Ting waved her hand. She wasn't so heartless as to disturb these kids' rare warm moment. "Xing Yue, call me when you're ready. I'll wait for you." With that, she stepped out.
Xin Ye called the Mirror out. The two of them held hands and cut the cake together.
At midnight tonight, his birthday would be over, and the team would set out to complete a new mission and begin a new journey.
Xin Ye smeared a bit of cream on everyone's faces. He couldn't help but think that for the sake of moments like these, he was willing to walk this path again, even knowing how long and arduous the road ahead would be.
The apocalypse would surely end once more.
***
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Promoted to Protagonist: Persecuted by the Meta-Narrative | Chapter 21 | The Chosen Captain | Novela.app | Novela.app
