Chapter 194: 193 Exposure and the Director

So you mainly just want me to steal something for you? No wonder you gave me such a precious wristwatch.

Facing the Aquarius Director's terms, the middle-aged man paused briefly, then nodded and asked:

"What if I steal the item, but you fail the interrogation anyway?"

"If I fail the interrogation, my memories will be read. Given the number of my violations, I'll likely be executed—or turned into an anomaly."

Unfazed by discussing his own fate, the Aquarius Director smiled casually:

"If I'm truly finished, this wristwatch is your reward, and you can do whatever you want with the other item. Is that enough?"

"In that case… it's enough!"

"Then goodbye."

Watching the middle-aged man put on the wristwatch, the Aquarius Director gave a slight nod, rose from his seat, and walked steadily toward the door.

As he stood, the stars of the Aquarius Constellation in the sky flickered to life, briefly piercing through the daylight to cast their glow over the capital—and landing squarely in the eyes of certain observant individuals.

…

"Get ready."

After taking a sip of the dark brown tea from the bottle, the Red-haired Director turned from the window and addressed Li Ang, who waited in the office:

"The Aquarius Constellation just lit up. Judging by the direction, Aquarius used his directorial authority to teleport back to headquarters. Now you can infiltrate the rebels without worrying about running into him."

"Also, this time is different from before—remember, you have at most two weeks to investigate. Absolutely no extensions."

After reiterating the mission's maximum time limit, the Red-haired Director gave an unusually serious warning:

"Li Ang, if the interrogation fails, Aquarius—who can use the Star Palace to teleport—might return before I do. Your photo-based identity may not fool him."

"Though I'll try to delay him, for safety's sake, if I haven't returned by the end of two weeks, regardless of whether you've completed your objective, you must evacuate immediately."

"If the interrogation succeeds, you can re-engage with the rebels afterward. But if you're caught red-handed by Aquarius after failing, I truly can't guarantee your safety."

"I understand."

Facing the Director's repeated warnings, Li Ang nodded carefully, then couldn't help asking:

"Director, what are the chances of success in this interrogation?"

"Reasonable."

After thinking for a moment, the Red-haired Director replied:

"Along with the three Directors overseeing the year-end review and Lord Taurus, there should be four Directors participating in the interrogation of Aquarius."

"Plus me, Leo, and Gemini—three Zodiac Division Directors—and other Division Directors who, upon hearing the news, detected Aquarius's activity in their jurisdictions."

"We exchanged our intelligence and evidence, and estimate there's about a thirty percent chance we can expose him on the spot!"

"Huh? Only thirty percent?"

"Aquarius isn't an idiot—he's always been extremely cautious. Thirty percent is already a lot."

The Red-haired Director spoke seriously:

"Besides, this is an internal interrogation, not a court trial. We don't need a complete chain of evidence—just expose all his suspicious actions and force him to reveal his motive. That's enough."

"If he can't prove his innocence or reasonably explain those suspicious, dangerous acts, we can force him into memory reading."

"I see…"

After pondering this, Li Ang asked casually:

"Director, what kind of offense typically leads to memory reading?"

"Don't worry—it's a hassle."

Glancing at Li Ang, the Red-haired Director snorted:

"Only someone who caused massive harm and holds a high position qualifies for this treatment. The things you did in the Lyon family don't come close."

Only those in high positions deserve such treatment; given what you've done in the Lyon family, you're not even worthy of being dragged in for this level of inspection.

"What, now you're worried because you found out the Bureau can read memories?"

Seeing Li Ang's awkward expression, the Red-haired Director glared at him and grumbled:

"Who do you think you are? The Bureau's investigators might not know, but I know you better than anyone. So many nobles died in the Lyon Blood Night—all of them utterly wicked—and you think you had nothing to do with it?"

"That 【Heart of Ambition】 insisted it was all Bobby Lyon's doing. Since it's not your anomaly and opposes you, it had no reason to cover for you, so I didn't dig deeper."

"But the day you took that heart from me, when faced with the killer of its former owner, it went wild—pounding against the box, desperate to leap out and cling to you. Even I'm not that stupid—I knew then whose side it was on!"

But the day before yesterday, after you took that heart from my hands, it went wild with joy when facing the enemy who killed its former master—it slammed against the box, banging and banging, as if desperate to leap out and cling to you. Even I'm not that stupid—I know now which side it's on!

"Anyway, be careful on this mission. Don't cause any more chaos. Sigh…"

"Uh… I'll try to be careful…"

"You'd better be… And one last thing: when you carry out the mission, you can afford to be a bit more cautious."

Looking at Li Ang, who nodded sheepishly, the Red-haired Director sighed:

"When I bowed to you before, I activated part of the 【Bloody Hair of Slaughter】. My rank briefly exceeded human limits, and I recovered some memories of the Princess… Li Ang, wasn't it me who suggested you propose to her?"

When I bowed to you earlier, I activated part of the 【Blood of Slaughtered Hair】; my rank slightly exceeded the human limit, so I recovered some memories of the Princess… Leon, wasn't it me who originally suggested you propose to her?

"Don't 'huh' me—I never actually wanted you to marry her. I just wanted you to use the proposal as a way to shed your Lionheart Duke identity. Who knew you'd actually succeed?"

Pinching his brow, the Red-haired Director sighed in resignation:

"Come to think of it, I sent you to investigate the Lamb's Heart—and you triggered the Lyon Blood Night. I told you to reconnect with the Lyon family—and you became the Lionheart Duke. I told you to propose to the Princess—and now you're practically a Prince of the Blood…"

"Li Ang, be honest with me—what's your real plan for this mission? When I come back in two weeks, you won't have turned into the rebel leader, will you?"

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

After hearing his Director's wild speculation, Li Ang shook his head vigorously:

"Director, that's prejudice—I've always made conservative choices!"

"I still don't understand what happened with the Princess, but during the Lyon Blood Night, Bobby Lyon locked the estate—I would've fled if I could've. I never would've stayed to fight him!"

"True. But what if, this time, you're cornered and forced to rise up?"

"How could that even happen?"

At the Red-haired Director's baseless assumption, Li Ang protested:

"This infiltration lasts only two weeks. How absurd would the rebels have to be for me to become their leader in that time?"

This undercover mission only lasts two weeks—how absurd would the rebels have to be for me to rise to leader in just two weeks?