After demonstrating how to remove the film, Yi Ting pressed it back into place.
"Don't touch it for the next two days. Wait until you’ve left Headquarters to strip it off, understood?" She packed away her tools and opened her laptop. "Let me go over your plan one more time to make sure there aren't any loopholes."
Entering and exiting Headquarters required card verification, and any non-mission-related departure required a formal application stating the reason. Yi Ting suggested that Xin Ye use an upcoming mission in a few days as his cover to leave, then tear out the metal film and head straight for the coordinates.
"I’ll find a way to get the mission details early and send them to you. By the way, do you want to double-check the coordinates?"
Xin Ye blinked, startled. "You can verify those?"
"Of course! I’ve known those coordinates existed for a long time. How else do you think I could be so sure you were telling the truth?" The researcher tapped the disassembled metal ball. "Inside my teacher, Jiang Kelan—the Frilled Shark—there is also a metal ball. Headquarters doesn't know about it."
"But that ball doesn't track my teacher. It tracks his close friend, Gu Shaolou, who once held a position equal to Vice-Chief Leng in the early days of the Mutation Investigation Department."
"Headquarters believes Gu Shaolou died long ago in a failed experiment to transform into a mutant."
***
"A toy factory?"
Xin Ye nodded, using a grooming brush on the Qiuqiu-cat in his lap. "It seems a small group of mutated domestic animals have gathered there, turning the abandoned factory into their new home."
"The factory is located in the city district, a place where labor was easy to find in the past," Xing Yue noted, marking her tablet. "It’s not too far from Headquarters. Quite convenient."
Lian Muyun had bought another drink of questionable, swirling colors. He took a curious sip and decided it wasn't bad. "Is this a 'newbie' perk?"
Perhaps Xin Ye had brushed a bit too hard, snagging a tangle. Qiuqiu let out a sharp *meow*. Xin Ye murmured an apology and asked, "If it's just a gathering of mutants, it shouldn't affect the human bases. Is there a specific reason listed for the clearing?"
"None." Leng Xianye scrolled to the bottom of the mission brief and found nothing.
They had gone together to update their employee cards that morning. With a free afternoon, they had gathered in the lounge to analyze the mission data.
The lounge was decorated much like the branch office’s cafe, the main difference being the price—it was much more expensive. Xin Ye felt the lemonade here had a much stronger synthetic aftertaste than the one back at the branch.
He had tested Leng Xianye earlier that morning and found that the other boy had completely forgotten their conversation from that night.
When Xun Yin asked if he felt sad about it, Xin Ye only shook his head without giving a clear answer.
This made a certain entity feel deeply that his "son’s" thoughts were becoming increasingly difficult to read.
"It looks no different from our previous missions. You could even say it’s quite simple," Xin Ye stated casually, lifting Tang Qiuqiu onto the table. "We’ll just head out when the time comes. I don't have any other special instructions this time."
Hearing this, Xing Yue felt the extensive notes she had taken were somewhat redundant. She still tried to argue her point: "Even the simplest mission from Headquarters shouldn't be taken lightly. It’s better to be over-prepared to minimize losses."
She felt the Captain had been acting stranger and stranger lately. Putting aside the "question" from before, Xin Ye had always been the most meticulous of the five when it came to pre-mission prep. Now, his attitude toward the mission seemed almost indifferent.
Xin Ye glanced, seemingly at random, at the small ring on Tang Qiuqiu’s paw—the transformed multi-functional watch. "You have a point."
"So, this time, make sure you all carry your own supply of medicine and bandages."
The moment those words left his mouth, the entire table went silent. Even the nearby teams taking a break stopped talking.
Lian Muyun, always sharp at reading the room, was the first to react. "Captain, are you still not feeling well? Are you taking the medicine Yue-yue gave you? If not, hurry back and take it."
"I didn't bring it," Xin Ye said, picking up the tablet he hadn't touched all day. He felt there was no point in preparing. "I’m heading out then."
He walked straight out of the lounge, the low pressure radiating from him causing other ability users to instinctively move out of his way.
Xing Yue wondered if she had said something wrong to upset him, her fingers nervously rubbing her stylus. Leng Xianye couldn't watch any longer and spoke up: "Xing Yue, it’s not your fault. Xin Ye was being too abrasive today."
Tang Qiuqiu shifted back into human form and sat in the seat Xin Ye had just vacated. "Did something happen recently? I feel like the Captain’s been in a bad mood ever since the finals ended. Isn't winning first place something to be happy about?"
Lian Muyun nodded. It was indeed something to be happy about.
If only there weren't so many strange, unsettling details being unearthed.
Aside from Xing Yue, the person most familiar with Yi Ting was Lian Muyun. The issue of the blue materials had been shelved within the team for a long time. Seeing that no one else was asking, he decided to make a trip to the Research Department himself.
And that was when he saw Xin Ye walking out of Yi Ting’s office.
Lian Muyun had never seen Xin Ye look so soul-crushed. In his memory, the Captain was always calm and gentle, able to organize any problem logically. He would joke around with them and was, quite simply, the best Captain.
He didn't understand what could make Xin Ye wear such an expression. So, he waited a moment before going in to see Yi Ting.
Yi Ting told him: "He found out about your next mission. He probably thinks it’s too difficult."
But Xin Ye’s behavior today didn't match the "mission is too hard" excuse at all. Besides, if there was a problem with the mission, why couldn't they just sit down and discuss it together?
Whatever Xin Ye was hiding, it was definitely no small matter.
Lian Muyun decided he had to keep a close eye on Xin Ye over the next few days, but he couldn't tell the others for fear of alerting the target. If something happened, it would be disastrous.
He shadowed Xin Ye for several days, constantly messaging him to chat, inviting him to eat, or asking to practice at the range. Xin Ye’s abnormality seemed to have peaked that afternoon in the lounge; usually, he was still easy to talk to. It actually made Lian Muyun look like the abnormal one, constantly clinging to the Captain—he even got a look of disdain from Fu Shu, who had also wanted to grab lunch with Xin Ye.
The only thing that hadn't reverted to normal was Xin Ye’s insistence that they prepare their own mission gear.
"You don't have a single record of buying bandages?" Xin Ye’s tone of disbelief was like a parent frantic that their child had never bought a textbook. "Take two rolls. And get two flashlights as well. Do you expect me to prepare everything for you for the rest of your life?"
The two of them stood before the large screen in the Resource Procurement Hall. Lian Muyun’s eyes ached from looking at the item list. He had initiated every other meeting, but this time, Xin Ye had summoned him. "You're so intense, Captain... my eyes are blurring. No, my precious eyesight is for aiming at mutants! So yeah, how about you just keep preparing things for me for the rest of your life?"
After saying that, he playfully hugged Xin Ye. The latter stiffened for a fraction of a second before pushing Lian Muyun away.
Xin Ye: "Keep dreaming. Keep looking. You aren't leaving until you've picked everything out."
Lian Muyun: "...Don't be so strict."
"This isn't being strict. This is something you should have been doing all along."
After helping Lian Muyun add the necessary items, Xin Ye paid with his own employee card and said he would send a final checklist to the group chat later.
The supplies were delivered to their dorms by logistics that night. Looking at the overflowing plastic crates, Lian Muyun felt that after all these days of observation, Xin Ye seemed to be fine.
On the day they set out for the toy factory, Xin Ye was perfectly normal. He even went out of his way to apologize to Xing Yue.
"We have to go on foot again, but I’ve already cleared it with Sister Ting. I’ll message her when the mission is over, and she’ll drive out to pick us up."
The trek would take two and a half hours. Along the way, he re-explained the mission parameters and the key locations on the satellite map for everyone.
The entry order was a collective maneuver. Although Xin Ye’s tone had been poor a few days ago, his judgment was sound. Mutants evolved from domestic animals were generally gentler and lacked aggression. The layout of the toy factory was also open and bright, making it ideal for combat.
In the original novel, the toy factory was a minor mission the protagonist's party cleared in passing, spanning only a few thousand words. Despite having called it "simple" himself, Xin Ye was incredibly thorough in his explanation to his teammates.
Upon reaching the main entrance, Xin Ye used a dagger to casually slice through the wall of purple grass blocking their path.
"These were ornamental plants used for decoration. Because their roots are confined and they’re mostly surrounded by other beautiful but harmless flora, they rarely mutate into anything highly dangerous," he explained as he led the way, commenting on everything they saw. He was exceptionally talkative today. "If you see these in the future, you can clear them directly. Ninety-eight percent of the time, they’re harmless."
Leng Xianye asked, "What about the other two percent?"
Xin Ye replied, "Then you’re just unlucky."
Leng Xianye: "..."
The first building at the factory entrance was a glass showroom. Such structures were aesthetically pleasing but far too fragile in the face of disaster. The roof had been completely shattered, leaving a floor of glass shards, though the building blocks used for the displays inside had surprisingly remained standing.
Tang Qiuqiu went up to admire a mountain made entirely of blocks, complete with a minecart track circling it and numerous tiny miner figurines in various poses.
Lian Muyun extended a finger and flicked over the foreman figurine. Tang Qiuqiu grew anxious and immediately stood the little man back up.
Xing Yue couldn't stand her teammates' lack of focus. She got straight to the point: "Captain, where do you think the mutants will be concentrated?"
"Since they’re treating this as a new home, comfort is the priority. The weather outside is harsh and the conditions are brutal. Domestic animals would naturally gather in a place that mimics a home environment." Xin Ye snapped his fingers. "The warehouse for plush toys? Piled together, they’re soft, and the space is large. It’s perfect for small animals."
The factory map was easy to find; there was one every few steps, printed on iron plates nailed to the walls. Though mostly rusted, they were still legible.
As they moved deeper, the industrial atmosphere thickened, yet the directional signs and building exteriors maintained an animated style designed to appeal to children. The clash of the two styles made Lian Muyun chuckle.
"What kind of 'cute' version of an extermination mission is this?" He shifted from a two-handed grip on his gun to a single-handed one. "I feel like even if a mutant jumps out... it might be a little domestic bunny. Instead of getting hurt, maybe we’ll just lose a bit of our health bar?"
Leng Xianye and Lian Muyun had played many games together as kids. A pixel-art game screen immediately popped into his mind. "Or maybe we just lose half a heart."
Tang Qiuqiu had never played video games, and a hint of longing appeared in his eyes. Xin Ye reached out and ruffled his cat ears.
"If the apocalypse really were just a monster-slaying game, that wouldn't be so bad, would it?"
***
The night before departure.
【Didn't you participate in this mission in the original text? Why are you staying up late cramming and writing notes now?】
"Having the experience of the mission once doesn't feel like enough... I should tell them more about it. I said I would teach them..."
【Do you know what you look like right now? Like a dying man desperately rummaging through his drawers to see if there’s anything left to leave for his poor children.】
"Isn't that exactly what this is? Can you guarantee I’ll survive? The ocean is deep, and I’ll be all alone."
【...】
"..."
【Jian Weiwei—or rather, I—pushed the truth to you early. Once Headquarters realizes you know the truth, devouring the Core becomes an inevitable path. Leng Xianye’s ability hasn't reached S-rank yet, and your ability will always stay at D-rank. No one but you can do this right now. So be brave. Don't run away.】
"...After devouring the Core, the Black Box will vanish. Will the Reflections vanish too?"
【...】
"If only I could see you in person. I’d beat you so hard your own mother wouldn't recognize you."
***
