Chapter 126: 125 Invitation

Unaware that Li Ang had developed a new misunderstanding about her, the female police officer hurried up the stairs with a sense of unease and rushed into the Director’s office, speaking rapidly to explain Li Ang’s purpose.

“This… is rather inconvenient.”

After hearing the female officer’s words, the scar-faced giant put down the map of the Capital City and said with a troubled expression:

“Your Clearance Bureau has always held the highest authority in the entire Police Department. If this were merely about interrogating rebels, I wouldn’t refuse.”

“But you demand complete secrecy during the interrogation, no written records, and no one else to know—this is unacceptable.”

“Though the prisoner isn’t the mastermind, she did participate in the assassination of Princess Wang Nuwei. If I allow you private access to her, I won’t be able to answer to the higher-ups.”

“…”

If you put it that way… it’s indeed true.

After hearing the scar-faced giant’s explanation, Li Ang couldn’t help but frown.

_ttkΛn_co

In the case involving the assassination of Princess Wang Nuwei, the Secret Investigation Bureau truly couldn’t give him special treatment—but according to his own director’s logic, matters concerning anomalies must be kept strictly secret, with as few people aware as possible.

After all, in this highly idealistic world, “knowing” and “believing” are themselves forms of power; the more people who learn of the Clearance Bureau and anomalies, the stronger the anomalies become within its jurisdiction.

If we followed the standard interrogation procedure—with Secret Investigation Bureau personnel present throughout and written records kept—the “anomaly concentration” within the Clearance Bureau’s jurisdiction would certainly rise slightly in the near term. This must be avoided at all costs—but judging by the man’s attitude…

“Director, you can use this excuse to brush off others, but why are you trying to deceive even the person I brought?”

While Li Ang was still pondering how to persuade the scar-faced giant, the female officer spoke sharply from beside him:

“Ever since the old director fully stepped down, the Secret Investigation Bureau has been entirely under your control. And now, the Minister of Public Security who oversees our Police Department is your distant relative by marriage—no one can challenge you.”

“Meanwhile, the Cabinet, the Academy, and even the Prime Minister are all locked in a bitter feud over the Lai family. Even Princess Wang Nuwei herself has no time to care about this assassination case anymore—so who exactly are you trying to answer to?”

“…”

His excuse for evasion exposed face-to-face by his own trusted subordinate, the scar-faced giant’s expression grew uneasy. He glanced at Li Ang’s strange expression, then cleared his throat awkwardly twice:

“Cough… Well, even if that’s true, I’ve only been in office a short while—I can’t afford to act too recklessly. I must at least…”

“Forget it! You’re just afraid of taking responsibility!”

Rolling her eyes at the scar-faced giant, the female officer, who knew her superior’s character all too well, sneered:

“You’re clearly highly capable and skilled—but whenever trouble arises, you retreat. Even the smallest matters, you won’t step forward… Hand me your authorization!”

“Fine~ Take it, take it!”

After being scolded by the female officer, the scar-faced giant didn’t get angry. He immediately pulled out the Director’s authorization and handed it over, then, with his rugged, scarred face, spoke in a solemn tone:

“If anything goes wrong in the end, don’t blame me…”

“Say I stole it!”

“Deal!”

After the female officer took the authorization and hurriedly led Li Ang downstairs, the scar-faced giant fell silent for a moment, then pulled another identical authorization from his drawer and quickly left his office…

…

With the Secret Investigation Bureau Director’s authorization, Li Ang and the female officer passed through without hindrance—beyond necessary registration, they encountered no obstacles, descending straight to the Secret Investigation Bureau’s dungeon and successfully reaching their target.

“You talk to her first. I’ll stand guard outside.”

After observing the female prisoner—her face pale, eyes bloodshot—the female officer shook her head, greeted Li Ang, then left the interrogation room and brought over a small stool to sit outside the door,

ensuring no one could enter and disturb them.

Even with her watching, Li Ang did not lower his guard. He pressed his hand against the Black Goat’s horns and used his Soul Vision to repeatedly scan the surroundings, confirming no one was eavesdropping, before sitting down and speaking to the silent prisoner:

“I’ve come to tell you some good news.”

“I know.”

The prisoner nodded, a genuine smile of satisfaction appearing on her pale face.

“Bobby Lai is dead, right? And the Lai family is in chaos—nearly all its core members are dead. The Lai family is finished!” ???

Li Ang’s brow twitched. He narrowed his eyes and asked:

“Did Isla tell you this?”

“No. That girl may be naive, but she’s still disciplined on matters like this. Aside from letting slip the news of Bobby Lai’s death, she told me almost nothing.”

Not the female officer?

Hearing the prisoner’s words, Li Ang paused, then frowned:

“Then how do you know these things?”

“Strictly speaking, I ‘saw’ them myself.”

She pointed to Li Ang’s pocket containing the [Bloodstained Plague Belt] and smirked:

“That night, the bandages left by my husband were wrapped around your wrist. Though you suppressed them constantly, as their original owner, I could still sense events around you… like how, wherever you went, members of the Lai family died.”

At this, the prisoner finally smiled, her face glowing with delight as she asked:

“I couldn’t see the details directly, but every time you lost a small patch of skin, someone from the Lai family suddenly died. So not all those deaths were caused by Bobby Lai—at least half of them were your doing, weren’t they?”

“…”

Careless. I never thought the bandage had even a trace of perceptual ability… How foolish. I thought I’d concealed it perfectly, yet before the General Bureau’s investigators even arrived, half the truth had already leaked.

Internally warning himself never to underestimate any anomaly, Li Ang frowned deeply at the prisoner and said:

“Are you trying to frame me?”

“Of course not.”

The prisoner smiled and shook her head:

“You helped me avenge my family—I’m grateful to you. Why would I harm you? As for whether this is framing… don’t you already know the truth?”

“Heh. We’ve spent years trying to kill only mid-level officials. But in one night, your actions achieved more than our collective efforts over three or four years!”

After speaking slowly, the prisoner, still chained to her chair, fixed her gaze on Li Ang’s furrowed brow and said seriously:

“Honestly—would you consider joining us?”