Chapter 386: 386 Dispute and Decision

"Probably not…"

Upon hearing the request from the Taurus Director, the square-faced middle-aged man hesitated, then frowned and refused:

"Even if the headquarters is sealed, we can't guarantee absolute safety—and you're about to ascend to the Palace. You cannot be disturbed in any way. I cannot leave now!"

"It should be fine—it's just less than a week."

After thinking for a moment, the Taurus Director spoke again, urging:

"The headquarters location is extremely secure; ordinary people can't even reach it, and with both me and Mimi as directors here, even if dozens of True Gods focus on us at once, we can hold out until you return."

"This… still won't work. You understand how vital the Watch Palace is—we simply can't afford to gamble."

The square-faced middle-aged man showed slight hesitation, but ultimately shook his head:

"Your combat ability isn't outstanding, and the true Pisces Director's soul is still asleep. Mimi's mind is only about six years old—she can only normally manifest the Star Palace and cannot activate the Pisces Secret Art at all."

"If I leave the headquarters and leave you two alone, and something unexpected happens, everything will be lost. I cannot take this risk!"

"But Olivia's situation is also urgent!"

The Taurus Director pulled his collar closed, his face filled with worry:

"Though her power is strong, she holds no advantage against the Dream King. Even if she risks entering the Abyss of Fallen Souls, she cannot catch the Dream King, who freely roams through living beings' dreams."

"If we do nothing, once the Dream King successfully descends, even if we can remotely assist by burning a quarter of the Sun to scorch the Dream Realm and reduce his damage, hundreds of thousands will be affected!"

"Though the scope is vast, those people will only suffer nightmares for life—they won't die!"

The Sagittarius Director insisted:

"After this attack, we can amplify the effect of the 【Illusion Jar】 further—then even those affected by nightmares will forget them instantly upon waking, minimizing all impact on lifespan and soul."

"But there's still an impact!"

The Taurus Director exclaimed urgently:

"When these tormented people grow old, their souls will detach from their bodies far earlier than normal people—years before true death, they'll begin losing memories one by one, even becoming hollow shells devoid of soul!"

"And what about the Virgo Division's Cleaners? After the Dream King's descent, he'll immediately seek out their souls! Those kids are still on missions—if…"

"The Virgo Division personnel can be evacuated in advance!"

The Sagittarius Director's face tightened, his expression stubborn:

"Aren't they all already deployed? Now send Scorpio and Leo Division forces to locate them by address and order them to evacuate the Kingdom within three days!"

"The Dream King is always cautious—he never leaves the Abyss of Fallen Souls lightly. If the Virgo Cleaners evacuate quickly enough, they have a high chance of escaping, and may even return after the Abyss departs—everything will remain unchanged…"

"How could there be no change?"

Faced with the square-faced man's repeated refusals, the usually gentle Taurus Director finally lost her temper—her kind face shimmered with white radiance, losing all warmth; a deep crimson flush spread from her cheekbones to her eyebrows.

"Andrew! That's hundreds of thousands of lives! And the Cleaner Bureau's duty is to protect…"

"The Cleaner Bureau's duty is to ensure human survival—only after securing that priority does protection of ordinary people come into play!"

Facing the Taurus Director's fury, the square-faced man's brow furrowed tightly, meeting her gaze without flinching, his expression resolute:

"Aquarius has already cooperated with the Dream King to repair his soul—why couldn't he cooperate with others? If you have a problem here, the consequences won't be limited to just those hundreds of thousands. I absolutely will not leave!"

"But it's only a week! I can…"

"Against an opponent who can peer into the future and possesses multiple time-related anomalies, not even a single minute's vulnerability can be allowed!"

…

"Both of you, stop arguing for now."

Amid the dispute between the two current Directors, the Red-Haired Director finally found an opening to speak.

After glancing at the stubborn square-faced man, she sighed inwardly, knowing he would never be persuaded, then spoke up:

"Taurus Lord, let's follow Sagittarius Director's proposal… Please help me contact other nearby Division heads to locate Emma and the others as soon as possible, and order their immediate evacuation from the Kingdom."

"Olivia? How are you…"

"Taurus Lord, please let me finish."

Interrupting the Taurus Director, the Red-Haired Director turned to the square-faced man in the 【Celestial Mirror】, her expression calm:

"Sagittarius Lord's point isn't without merit. My speculation that Aquarius seeks to use the Dream King to repair his soul may be wrong—perhaps his true goal is to lure Sagittarius Director out of headquarters."

"After all, the anomaly that stabilized Mimi's soul was originally created by him and you together. Aquarius also knows the Pisces Director's four-soul succession pattern well."

"Given that Aquarius knows the headquarters is nearly empty, we cannot rule out the possibility that he plans to strike while we're vulnerable—we should indeed be more cautious."

Seeing the Red-Haired Director acknowledge this possibility, the Taurus Director fell silent, then frowned and asked:

"Then what about your side? Are you truly going to ignore the Dream King?"

"Of course not."

The Red-Haired Director shook her head:

"Though difficult, we must still act… Please prepare with Pisces and Sagittarius Directors to mobilize the three Zodiac Star Palaces before and after the Abyss's descent, burning the Dream Realm in advance to ease our burden."

Here, she hesitated slightly, then took a deep breath and made her request:

"Also, please help me contact the Scorpio Division Director. Use your three statuses to forcibly summon him here immediately—I'll kneel before all headquarters personnel and beg his forgiveness during this year's year-end review!"

"Olivia…"

Watching the Red-Haired Director clench her fists, the Taurus Director's lips moved slightly, then she sighed:

"I'll speak to him. This time, you've truly been wronged."

It was indeed a wrong—yet a small wrong, better than mass death. At least the heart would feel less burdened.

The Red-Haired Director smiled faintly, saying nothing. On the other side of the 【Celestial Mirror】, the square-faced man glanced at her, hesitated briefly, then extended his finger and traced a bow-wielding Centaur emblem onto the mirror's surface with his nail.