“During the Qingchuan Public incident, the Metamorphosis Society deployed two unprecedented B-Class Mutants with stable minds.”

As Qin Zhizhi spoke, a series of images appeared on the projection.

“Additionally, the Metamorphosis Society released a large number of D-Class Failures, along with a few C-Class Mutants, to create chaos and divide the battlefield.”

The image froze on a frame showing three streaks of different colored lights darting across the campus.

“It is confirmed that three Magical Girls appeared during this incident.”

“Judging by the Magical Girls’ response time to the incident, it is highly probable that these three Magical Girls are students at Qingchuan Public.”

“If we continue the investigation, we should be able to lock down their true identities.”

As soon as Qin Zhizhi’s voice faded, the Division Chief of the Medical Rescue Division, Ye He, spoke up softly:

“Eh—and after locking down their identities? What do you want to do, Zhizhi?”

Qin Zhizhi turned to look at her. Ye He’s youthful, girlish face was filled with worry, and her clear eyes made no effort to hide her fondness and bias towards the Magical Girls.

So, Qin Zhizhi spread her hands.

“My side is only responsible for intelligence. How to handle them is your business.”

Right at that moment, the voice of Lu Chen, Division Chief of the Containment and Management Division, rang out.

“Of course, it means arrest, imprisonment, torture, and interrogation.”

The conference room instantly fell silent.

Lu Chen rested his folded hands on the tabletop, his expression gloomy, and only the word ‘somber’ could be seen on his sharply defined features.

His tall figure cast a large shadow over the conference room’s round table, bringing with it a faint aura of darkness that emanated into the surroundings.

It was visible to the naked eye that the other Division Chiefs were keeping a certain distance from this gloomy creature.

The gloomy creature, seemingly completely unaware, continued:

“This is an excellent opportunity to further understand the Kingdom. There is a contractual connection between the Magical Girls and the Kingdom’s Envoys. If we can capture them and reverse-engineer that connection, we might achieve unprecedented progress. We must use every means available to pry out information, even if it goes against ethics.”

“……”

Everyone looked at him, dumbfounded and speechless.

For a moment, you could hear a pin drop in the conference room, and everyone held their breath.

Lu Chen looked around and also fell silent, until the second hand of the clock on the wall ticked past half a minute. Then, in a voice even deeper than before, he said:

“Actually, I was just trying to make a joke. It seems it didn’t go over well. I apologize.”

More than just not going over well, Ye He was almost scared to tears by you… Did you people in the Containment and Management Division grow up listening to these kinds of jokes?

Luo Wenzhou’s mouth twitched.

Being the only normal person and leader among this bunch of weirdos was truly not an easy task.

In another year…

No, half a year.

He would apply to Headquarters for a transfer from this position, even if it meant a demotion.

Luo Wenzhou silently made up his mind, then pulled the meeting back on track.

“The investigation into the Magical Girl’s true identity can continue, but keep an eye on your priorities. Our current focus is still the Metamorphosis Society; we can’t let The Kingdom distract our main efforts.”

“Third agenda item. The Mutant that was brought back is now in the Containment and Management Division. Have we learned anything?”

Everyone looked at Lu Chen again.

Lu Chen slowly raised his head, just about to speak.

However, Qin Zhizhi suddenly raised her hand.

“I will report on his behalf.”

Lu Chen paused, then silently lowered his head again.

No one spoke in the conference room, but almost everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief in their hearts.

Then, a photo of the restrained Veil Weaver appeared on the projection.

In the photo, Veil Weaver no longer showed any trace of composure. She was fixed in a special Containment Room, her body covered in tubes, her eyes vacant, and her face pale.

“Her codename is Veil Weaver, a B-Class Mutant. She retains a high degree of intelligence, and her abilities are Thread manipulation and mental interference.”

“The process of obtaining information from her went surprisingly smoothly.”

At this point, Qin Zhizhi’s expression twisted slightly.

“Perhaps because she possesses intelligence, she was even more… incapable of enduring the Containment and Management Division’s methods than those Mutants who have completely lost their minds.”

In the conference room, aside from Lu Chen, a subtle bead of cold sweat rolled down everyone else’s faces.

Qin Zhizhi continued:

“The information provided by Veil Weaver corroborates the clues Bai Yu obtained in X City. The head of the Metamorphosis Society is indeed known as the Doctor, but she is unclear about the locations of the Metamorphosis Society’s bases. It is suspected that her memory was artificially erased.”

“However, we have finally figured out the core objective of the Metamorphosis Society. According to what Veil Weaver said, the Metamorphosis Society wants to seize ‘The Crown’.”

Luo Wenzhou frowned.

“The Crown?”

“It can also be called The Origin, The Metaphysical, The First Seed… whatever you want to call it. Anyway, the Metamorphosis Society believes that the source of all Special Abilities comes from that thing.”

“I’ve heard similar claims,” the Division Chief of the Equipment and Logistics Division mused for a moment, then said, “But I remember this theory isn’t accepted by the academic community due to insufficient evidence.”

“But the Metamorphosis Society obviously believes in this theory.”

Qin Zhizhi paused for a moment.

“Veil Weaver also said something very strange. She said The Doctor told her this, ‘All Calamities are waiting for their king to descend’.”

This ominous-sounding sentence was like a drop of ink falling into a cup, raising a faint sense of unease in everyone’s hearts.

Luo Wenzhou asked in a deep voice, “So, is it actually The Doctor who wants to obtain The Crown and become this so-called king?”

“It’s not that he wants to.”

Qin Zhizhi looked at the crowd.

“According to Veil Weaver, The Doctor has already obtained a shard of The Crown.”

Qin Zhizhi silently played an audio recording—

In the conference room, everyone had different expressions. Even Bai Yu’s expression became serious.

Qin Zhizhi spoke again:

“And there’s one last thing—”

“Veil Weaver insists that she didn’t lose to SAVE, nor did she lose to the Magical Girl. She lost to an unknown girl who suddenly intruded onto the battlefield.”

An extremely blurry image appeared on the projection, originating from fragments of a damaged surveillance camera inside Qingchuan Public.

Amidst the dust, firelight, and shattered pixels, a figure intertwined in white and black could be faintly seen.

Even though the image was so blurry it was almost unrecognizable, that inhuman beauty still seeped through the broken footage.

As if determined to shock them to their core, Qin Zhizhi said in a solemn voice:

“Veil Weaver said that she felt the exact same sensation from that white-haired girl as she does from The Doctor.”

“It was the aura of The Crown.”

No one spoke.

Luo Wenzhou looked at the blurry image, his eyebrows knitting tighter and tighter.

After a long while, he finally spoke slowly:

“Regarding that white-haired girl, based on the testimony of Gu Xinglan from the Special Operations Division, her existence is confirmed without a doubt.”

“She defeated Veil Weaver, made no demands, and left the scene before the main force arrived.”

Luo Wenzhou took a deep breath.

“Then, onto the final agenda item.”

His gaze swept across everyone in the conference room.

“Regarding the identity, stance, and our response plan for that unknown girl.”

“She might actually be the thorniest part of this entire incident…”