CH 42.2

“Doctor?” Old Lee has finally finished tinkering with the door. It’s quiet once more.

He slowly moves along back to the counter, and glances at the neatly placed paper, then says, “you have definitely reminded us a lot of Doctor’s danger.”

“I wasn’t expecting…” Old Lee leans forward, staring into his eyes, “for you to choose him in the end.”

“Did you forget your duty?” Old Lee’s tone is serious, “did you forget why you gave up on the bright future ahead of you, on all your past glory, and joined us to become the blade in the shadows?”

“I believe in your loyalty to the Organisation, to the cause, so I cannot comprehend your choice at all.” Old Lee is keeping a careful eye on any changes in demeanour to Lin Yi, “is it because, Doctor did something to you?”

“You did submit a report on Doctor’s… accomplishments in the field of psychology.” Old Lee fails to glean anything from his expression, “did he affect your conscience?”

Lin Yi shakes his head calmly, “I know exactly what I chose, and what I decided.”

Old Lee raises his brow slightly.

“The Blade Hidden in Shadows, to Defend the Fairness and Justice of the Federation.” He remembers exactly what he felt uttering those words for the first time, but he finds himself rather unemotional when muttering them once more, “no one will know about us. Our deeds will be forgotten. Yet we are here, for the Federation, for the People.”

“I do not regret my choice at all. Even now, I still believe that we are necessary for the Federation.”

“Then, stay.” Old Lee tries persuading him, “you do not need to return to Stargaol anymore, nor see Doctor ever again. You can…”

“Old Lee.” Lin Yi interjects, “I’m not kidding.”

He pushes the paper forward to Old Lee, “with this, I am forfeit.”

Old Lee stares at the pen and paper for a few seconds, “your reason? At least give me one.”

“Never send anyone else to Doctor’s side.” Lin Yi gets up, giving his final, parting advice, “it is dangerous.”

“Xü Zheng!” Old Lee raises his voice, “what if I stop you?”

Lin Yi stops, and turns to Old Lee, telling him, “you can try and see how many it will take to do so.”

The mood is tense. A spark is all it would take to ignite an inferno.

“The Organisation has never had such a precedent.” Old Lee breaks the silence.

“So, it’s a ‘no’?” Lin Yi puts his hand back on the pen and paper in front of Old Lee.

Old Lee quickly extends his hand to stop the movement.

“You still want the file, huh?” Lin Yi chuckles, “I can tell you right now, that this file itself has just been a ploy by Stargaol. There is no guarantee any information within is real.”

Old Lee tugs the paper out of his hands.

Lin Yi lets go, allowing the pen to fall, dropping to the table, sliding to the ground.

“I suppose we will not see each other ever again, then… Fare thee well.”

Lin Yi leaves without turning once.

Old Lee stares at the paper for a while, then sighs.

“His pen.” A figure picks up the pen dropped onto the ground, and puts it back on the counter. He glances at the cup of tea left untouched there, chuckles, and drinks it all herself.

“Didn’t even touch your tea. He never was going to see you as a friend since he came inside.”

Old Lee furrows his brows at the door that has been properly closed and shut before he knew it, and then at the elusive man in front of him, “you’re not following him?”

“Someone is.” Then he extends a hand to Old Lee, “well? Let me see it.”

Old Lee hands him the paper, while voicing his dissent, “Xü Zheng’s perception is not to be taken lightly, especially when you are sending someone else…”

The shadowy man has finished reading the odd shapes and lines on the paper, then gives it back to Old Lee casually, “don’t worry. They won’t fail.”

The man is dressed in a black hoodie, showing practically no identifiable feature at all, with the hood lowered to its limits and revealing nothing but a slightly sharp jaw.

“There are other things to talk about instead of me; you’ve been exposed now. Time for an early retirement?”

Old Lee folds the paper neatly, then tells the shadowy figure, “I’ll do as the Organisation asks.”

“Not trying to test you.” The man knows exactly how these spies operate, “then let’s move on again.”

“Lin Yi said the info is questionable. You don’t look surprised?”

Old Lee is tidying up the store slowly, or more precisely, packing his things. His hands pause, “you are a bit talkative today.”

“What can I say? Lin Yi’s choice is far too surprising. I talk when I’m surprised.” The man leans on the counter.

“Surprised, huh.” Old Lee looks at the pen Lin Yi left behind. It’s smooth in appearance, looking no different from any other pen sold in any store. It is utterly unremarkable.

He grabs it, and unscrews the tip, revealing the ink chamber from the barrel. Running his finger over the metallic chamber, he can feel a small series of raised extrusions on the surface.

He then sighs once more and screws the chamber back in. He unenergetically asks, “did you know about him seeking a professional psychologist through the Organisation’s channels?”

“I don’t have as much clearance, you know.” The shadowy man sways his hand a little, intrigued, “just tell me about it.”

“I already did.”

“Hey, are all you spies like that? Leave riddles and everything up to interpretation? You’d be confusing the heck out of any dense fellow.”

Though the man has also done his deductions in the two seconds, “so he was influenced psychologically, making the choice involuntary?”

“Only he knows the answer.” Old Lee also packs Lin Yi’s pen with his things, and looks around the run-down general store one last time, “it’s time you went. And I should, too.”

“Tch.” That’s the last syllable left by the shadowy figure before he disappears without a trace.

The shut door is swaying in the wind again, creaking.

Old Lee shakes his head. What they have been after all this time wasn’t the info——But the code the info is written in.

The secrets of the bottom floors of Stargaol is hardly important to them when they still have Nianluo to defeat.

Nianluo operates mainly by lobbying and coercing parliamentarians. Over time, it has become a massive, rotten leech on the Federation, sucking Her blood dry.

Perhaps it was not too much of an issue in the past, but right now, they could just be that last straw the toppled the entire deck of cards.

For the Federation, for the People.

They do not forget their declaration.

Lin Yi has left the commercial area behind, walking to a wholly different direction now.

Before going to Old Lee, he already made appointments with someone else——If Old Lee did try to keep him by force, the consequences might have been more dire than he could bear.

Lin Yi gets on to a public airship, and discreetly glances behind himself.

The identity of the person he is about to see means that their place of meeting is quite exclusive as well——At least, none of those tailing him will be able to enter.

The airship stops at the station. Lin Yi steadies his cap as he walks into the independent lounge ahead.

A blue light flickers, verifying his identity, allowing him unobstructed entry.

Some time later, a young couple appears quite lost as they scan a card at the entrance to this lounge, and are blocked outside due to clearance issues.

“What the hell?” The couple complains, and hurries away.

Past a corner, where eyes do not see, an unremarkable stranger takes the card back from the couple, apologising profusely, “sorry about that. Looks like my mom changed the keycard again. Sorry for wasting your time, how about this, I’ll pay you extra for the trouble…”

The irritated couple appears slightly relieved at that.

Though the next second, a shadowy figure emerges, and taps his long fingers gently on their necks.

The couple suddenly faints.

“That’s shoddy work.” A simple comment from him, “form over function.”

The unremarkable person mumbles, “he knew we were following anyway…”

“He went in?” The shadowy figure looks into the distance, while shoving the couple into his lap, “send them where they should, and clean up properly. Don’t spook them.”

“Got it…” The person says, then tries to peek where the shadowy man is looking, “Teach, whose house is that?”

“Don’t ask, and get back to work.”

The person shrinks a little, and quickly leaves with the couple in tow.

The man, after staring some more, opens a console to send a message.

Shortly after, a message comes back.

[Got it. No clear connection, but this is Black Glove’s private space]

Black Glove? Nianluo?

Not the Doctor?

The figure starts working out all the implications of this leaning on the wall, and starts to smile.

Author’s notes: Feels like a lot of dear readers would be confused by the last part, so… let’s dig up my flag from Chapter 40.

If that doesn’t work, I will use the chapter tomorrow to make it all clear!

【His sole response to being a target of loyalty is to lift a brow.

“It seems you do not plan to make good on Black Glove’s promise?”

Jian Si is hesitant, as he does not know whether Jiang Yiyi is supportive, especially as he is asking right now.

He has a simple, all-encompassing answer, though, “I’ll do as you wish.”】