Chapter 29

29 Questions

“Director, the investigation mission is complete…”

“Hmm?”

After glancing at Leon as he entered, the red-haired director, who had been drinking boiled water, paused slightly—she noticed dust caked on his body and bandages wrapped around his hands—and asked curiously:

“What happened to you? This mission was just a survey, right? You can peek into others’ soul states ahead of time—shouldn’t there have been no trouble? Was the anomaly dangerous?”

“The anomaly isn’t dangerous—it’s actually quite a good thing—but the problem is, it just doesn’t get along with me…”

After briefly recounting his ordeal and seeing the red-haired woman before him smiling with crinkled eyes, Leon, his expression grim, hesitated a moment before speaking up:

“Director… could I ask you something?”

Upon hearing this, the red-haired woman immediately snapped her smile shut and clutched her empty purse tightly.

“Leon, it’s not that I’m stingy—just as director of the Virgin Bureau, though my salary is a bit higher than yours, my daily expenses are also much greater, so… uh…”

“You’ve misunderstood—I’m not here to borrow money. I really just want to ask you a question…”

After blinking in disbelief, Leon recalled the documents he’d seen and frowned deeply:

“Director, before reporting to you, I went to the Road Administration Department’s archives and requested access to their records from over ninety years ago. I found the file on Happiness Apartment… yes, the one tied to today’s anomaly.

The elderly couple who built the charity home once sheltered over three hundred orphans and disabled people. Aside from a slight water fee discount from the Water Company due to high usage, they received not a single coin of aid from the Kingdom, relying entirely on their savings to sustain the home.

Later, when the old woman fell gravely ill and realized she wouldn’t last much longer, she applied to the Road Administration Department over thirty times, hoping to convert the charity home into an official municipal facility so she could continue operating it with her own assets—at least until everyone inside passed away before closing it. But she never succeeded.”

After summarizing the situation, Leon took a deep breath and clenched his fist:

“I’ve been thinking all the way here—this was clearly a win-win situation. Why was it never approved?”

“Those without labor capacity could have survived on the couple’s wealth, barely holding on; the Road Administration wouldn’t have had to spend anything—no extra budget, no added staff needed.

So why did the official in charge back then prefer to let those orphans and disabled people be driven out, left to starve and freeze to death right outside their former home, beneath the ‘Happiness Apartment’ sign, rather than approve her application?”

“You’re wrong. The Road Administration would have paid a heavy price.”

Hearing Leon’s question, the red-haired woman closed her eyes briefly, then asked calmly:

“Suppose you were the official in charge back then. Tell me this: the Kingdom already has its own charity homes. Why didn’t your institution take in those people, but instead let a civilian-built charity home shelter them? What kind of work were you doing?”

“And if you took over this charity home, even if you didn’t need to assign staff daily, you’d still need a responsible director. If a fire or other accident caused casualties, would you be willing to take the blame? If the fire was started by someone in the home, could you accept being dismissed for negligence?”

“Finally, accepting a civilian-donated charity home isn’t considered an achievement. And once it becomes an officially recognized facility, if it later collapses due to lack of income, the director will definitely be held accountable.”

“A task with no benefits, only a mountain of trouble,

and almost certain to leave a stain on your record—who would ever want to do it?”

“….”

……

So similar… sigh…

Watching the young man before her fall silent, his face growing darker, the red-haired director sighed inwardly, then fixed her gaze on his eyes and said sternly:

“Leon, I understand you find these things repulsive, but don’t forget: our Clearance Bureau’s job is only to keep ‘anomalies’ out of ordinary people’s lives. Everything else isn’t our place to meddle in.”

According to the agreement between the Clearance Bureau and the various Kingdoms, unless an anomaly is involved, we are strictly forbidden from using 'non-human' power to interfere. This is both our survival code and the boundary the Kingdoms tolerate.

“So listen carefully: absolutely, absolutely do not cross this line. Think twice before acting. Don’t get yourself killed, understood?”

“You’re overthinking—I never intended to do anything…”

Hearing this, Leon clenched his fist tightly, then lowered his head and asked calmly:

“That all happened over ninety years ago. The people driven out are dead. Even the official who approved the decision is dead. What could I possibly do?”

“….”

Yes, you can do nothing about this case—but what about the Road Administration and the Water Company? What about all the other things you’ll encounter later?

Glancing at the shopping bag in Leon’s hand, slightly trembling, the red-haired director sighed inwardly again, her gaze toward him growing complex.

Though I can no longer use Soul Vision to check your state after losing that goat, I know that damn goat too well—since you lowered your head and fell silent, it’s already trembling with excitement…

“That’s enough… You’ve worked hard today.”

Without further discussing the topic, the red-haired director took Leon’s written report, scanned it quickly, suppressed the strange sense of déjà vu in her chest, and gently comforted him:

“I see your hands are injured—I’m granting you half a day off. Go home and rest properly.”

“Don’t worry—I won’t force you to ignore those things, nor will I stop you from investigating the Water Company. I’ve even secured an anomaly to protect you—it’ll be delivered tomorrow, so you can escape safely if you get into trouble.”

But remember: whenever you want to act, you must find a valid reason to intervene, like you did with the Water Company. And absolutely never use 'anomalies' to affect ordinary people. That’s my boundary—and the Clearance Bureau’s boundary!

“Yes, I remember…”

Watching Leon’s still-unsettled expression, the red-haired director rubbed her temples, then added:

Leon, I know you’re the type with strong morals and a sharp sense of justice. I don’t dislike your personality—in fact, I deeply admire how, after struggling through so many hard years, you’ve still held onto your boundary.

“But you must understand: even with abilities beyond ordinary humans, we’re still human. We can’t exist apart from society—we must still follow its basic rules.”

“Even if you were a Kingdom’s emperor or the Clearance Bureau’s director, you couldn’t make everything happen as you wished. You can’t fix every injustice you see… I know these words may sound harsh, but I still hope you’ll think carefully.”

“I will… Sorry for disturbing you today.”

After bidding farewell to the red-haired director, who had repeatedly urged him, Leon walked slowly back to his own office, his eyes fixed on another shopping bag on his desk, his mind replaying the director’s words.

Is my morality noble?

Is my sense of justice strong?

Is my boundary firm?

The stolen war widow’s pension, the alchemy factory that caused Anna’s lung disease and refused compensation, the hundreds of patients still lying in hospital corridors after drinking the Water Company’s contaminated water.

And the poor souls, driven mercilessly from the charity home, who died of cold and hunger in that bitter winter ninety-four years ago, their names never even recorded…

Though saying this feels strangely shameful, I truly want to know now: is the problem with me—or with this damn world?

……

“Let’s go.”

After standing at his desk for a moment, Leon picked up the shopping bag full of gray cigarette packs, then touched the goat’s horn, chipped by the scissors, and murmured thoughtfully:

“Find a quiet place… I’ll treat you to a smoke.”