Chapter 402: Chapter 402: The Inspector’s Authority
"Abigail!" Reid’s eyes widened; he stared at his superior as if he didn’t know her, coughed twice in a hurry, "...That’s not something we should be saying."
"Relax. Since I dared to show off my ability, I naturally have the confidence to keep the Mechanism from catching him." Chen Xuan said with absolute certainty.
Because this "friend" of his didn’t exist in the first place.
But in Honglian’s ears, those words turned into something else.
Shixin was a collective of ability consciousness, a higher-level existence; how could the Mechanism possibly catch it?
"I’ve completely understood your plan." Abigail rose from the sofa and instructed her still-dazed adjutant, "Reid, let’s head back to the Mechanism."
"Honglian and I will stay here and wait for your good news." Chen Xuan said, seeing them off.
...
The New City Branch, located on the fourteenth floor of the Condé Nast Building.
From the moment you step through the door, you immediately understand what power and wealth look like: armed security guards with loaded guns stationed before the security gate, receptionists at the front desk greeting tenants with practiced smiles, gleaming marble floors, and lavish décor that lets you practically smell the money in the air... Everyone walking here unconsciously straightens their back, because they know that having the privilege to set foot in this place already means standing at the peak of life.
Abigail didn’t dislike this atmosphere, but she couldn’t say she liked it much either. After achieving something, people need to affirm themselves through the rewards they reap; that’s only human. But if you soak in the atmosphere of power and wealth for too long, it’s easy to lose your way and forget where you came from.
Take the Dimensional Limit Mechanism as it was now, for example.
In the past, she always hurried through this stretch, never willing to linger even a second, yet today things were different. Each step she took was slow, as if she were full of curiosity about everything around her. Whether it was the receptionists bowing their heads respectfully to greet her, or the white-collar workers at the side whispering about her appearance, she was willing to cast them a glance and let her gaze rest on them for a few seconds. That sense of novelty made her seem almost like she was coming here for the very first time.
Only Abigail herself knew what exactly she was "observing."
Multicolored hues rolled into her mind like a surging tide.
So the oh-so-reverent receptionist was actually quite indifferent inside, whereas those gossiping white-collar workers were comparatively more friendly—she could easily guess why. Repetitive tail-wagging work would make the receptionist equally tired of every tenant; the white-collar workers’ snarky, vulgar comments were just a social reflex to blend into their circle, as if failing to do so would make them seem humorless or low-status. Put them in a one-on-one situation and they’d surely switch to a completely different face.
She’d been able to guess these emotions before too.
But that had been nothing more than guessing.
What could be more refreshing than seeing the truth directly?
When she stepped into the Mechanism’s office, the squad captain, Landa Miller, looked up at Abigail, then turned his gaze back to the computer screen. "You just went out?"
"Mm. To meet a source." Abigail took off her coat and handed it to the adjutant beside her.
From the reflection in the window behind him, you could see he wasn’t busy working at all, but watching a ball game.
"I know headquarters’ agents have a lot of contacts, but please don’t forget, Miss Abigail, what comes out of these people’s mouths isn’t necessarily the truth." Landa muttered, "The branch’s intel team can fully supply all information needed for your operations. Or is it that... headquarters doesn’t trust our work?"
A dark-navy gleam rose.
He was clearly rejecting her; disgust accounted for more than half of his emotions.
Abigail smiled. "Looks like you’re not one of them."
His hostility was perfectly normal—who would ever welcome an inspector from above coming to audit their work?
"Not one of what?" Landa frowned.
"How many staff are still in the building right now?" Abigail countered instead of answering.
"Uh... about half." He glanced at the wall clock. "It’s well past off-hours. I get that you’re eager to nab the Evangelicals, but this isn’t something you can rush—"
"Send a notice to those who’ve gone home, tell them to report back to the building immediately." Abigail cut off the squad captain mid-sentence. "No one currently here is allowed to leave. Just call it... an emergency assembly."
Landa froze, then obvious anger crossed his face. "Miss Abigail, you don’t have the authority to do that! What emergency assembly... What exactly is the emergency here? Unless you can give me a reasonable explanation, there’s no way I’m recalling them!"
"I’ve received reliable intel that Evangelical Association members have already infiltrated the branch, and now is the time to drag him out." Abigail said evenly.
"An Evangelical mole? What nonsense are you spouting?" Landa let out a disbelieving laugh. "I know the agents still working here inside and out. I won’t claim they’re all paragons of loyalty to the Mechanism, but they sure as hell look down on a two-bit outfit like the Evangelical Association. Headquarters already reviewed their résumés and emails too, didn’t they? If you think someone’s suspicious, kindly present your evidence."
"Mr. Landa, according to the Mechanism’s operational code, in special circumstances where the disciplinary agent deems it necessary, she is authorized to issue orders in place of the squad captain." Reid reminded him icily.
"Ha, you think I haven’t read those documents? ’Special circumstances’ means the captain is incapacitated or absent. I’m very much alive and kicking right here." Landa said with disdain. "In terms of rank, disciplinary agents are a level below branch squad captains. If you think my handling is out of line, you’re free to file a report with headquarters."
"Sigh..." Abigail let out a breath. "Who said that condition isn’t being met? Isn’t it just about to become reality?"
Reid turned around and locked the office door.
"Wait—" Landa was stunned. He suddenly realized they weren’t joking. "Are you out of your minds? I’m the unit head, and you’re going to lay hands on me!?"
"Who said it was me? Isn’t it the mole who attacked you?" Abigail rested one hand against her forehead. "Of course, you won’t be able to argue otherwise, since you’ll be lying in a hospital bed for quite a while."
God-gifted Abigail...
The rumor-bound name suddenly surfaced in Landa’s mind.
She was one of those rare agents in the organization who could clearly have served as an Ability User of the Arbitration Court, yet ended up in the disciplinary department. Some said that with her skillset, she’d rank among the top even in the Arbitration Court.
Landa considered himself quite capable, his ability outstanding, but he didn’t think continuing to provoke her at this moment would be a wise choice. The authority of a squad captain was important, sure, but only on the premise that you could still actually be one, wasn’t it?
He immediately made a one-eighty. "No need to get worked up, I can call everyone back! But you’d better be clear about what you’re about to do. If this triggers a wave of collective complaints, don’t blame me for not warning you in advance!"
Abigail let her hand drop, sounding as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. "Thanks for your cooperation."
...
With the emergency assembly order issued, the fourteenth floor became busy again.
Roughly thirty minutes later, all the off-duty agents had returned to the branch. Everyone was talking at once; the atmosphere was tense and restless.
"Damn it... Can someone tell me what’s going on? I didn’t even finish my shower."
"Who the hell knows. But I heard someone saw that lady from the disciplinary group go into the captain’s office."
"Don’t tell me this is one of the leadership’s sudden brainstorms?"
"Keep it down, the captain’s here."
The main conference room, packed with over two hundred people, immediately quieted down a little. Landa walked up to the podium together with Abigail. But unexpectedly, the squad captain only said a simple, "Everyone’s here, right? Miss Abigail from headquarters has something to say to you all," then stepped aside.
"Good evening, and I’m sorry to cut into your time." Abigail tapped the microphone and began, "But please trust that this is necessary—because there’s a traitor among us!"
Before she’d even finished, the room erupted into an uproar!
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