Chapter 5

5 Sixth Cleanup Bureau

“Although our Cleanup Bureau is a non-core division under the Police Department, we are not fully subordinate to the Kingdom’s Police Department—we’re a relatively independent and loose transnational organization with branches in every country, receiving assignments and leadership from each nation to handle special incidents.”

“Aside from the headquarters, whose location remains unknown, we have a total of 87 branches, each assigned a constellation as a codename. The one you’ve joined is Branch Six, codenamed Virgo, also known as the Virgo Cleanup Bureau.”

After calmly explaining the Bureau’s structure, the red-haired woman saw Li Ang visibly relax, her mischievousness satisfied. She smirked and pointed to the black goat beside her.

“As for our duties, we deal with these troublesome entities so they don’t disrupt ordinary people’s lives.”

“This includes, but isn’t limited to: soul-harvesting interdimensional demons, mad deities seeking to manifest their will, radical gods preparing to seize control of the world, peculiar anomalies born from human obsessions, oceanic races plotting to reclaim the land, ancient civilizations frozen in polar glaciers, undead phantoms escaped from normal time, primordial creatures surviving deep within the earth’s crust, indigenous populations thriving behind the moon…”

“…”

Fuck… is this world really this complicated? I thought it was just a 19th century with a botched tech tree, but I had no idea so many dangers lurked beneath the surface?

“You actually believed that?”

Seeing Li Ang’s wide-eyed shock, clearly taken in by her tale, the red-haired woman found it hilarious. She raised a hand to cover her slightly upturned, glistening lips, bent her supple waist forward slightly, and let out a soft, stifled laugh.

As her full figure swayed gently, the faint flush on her face deepened into a delicate rosy hue, like a vibrant oleander blossom blooming silently in the dim corridor, exuding a sweet, intoxicating fragrance laced with subtle poison…

So she was just messing with me… scared the hell out of me…

Watching the red-haired woman laugh so charmingly, Li Ang, though just tricked, found his heavy heart—weighed down by his sister’s relapsed illness—suddenly lighten. But…

Wait, what was I just asking? Did she answer me?

Amid the red-haired woman’s bright smile, a faint mist drifted through Li Ang’s mind. His clear memory suddenly blurred in one spot, as if something had been quietly erased.

Standing there, hesitating, unable to recall the reason after racking his brain, he set aside the strange fog and asked the question that mattered most.

“Um, may I ask about the Bureau’s compensation…”

“It’s quite good.”

Watching Li Ang’s eyes, catching that familiar dazed look, the red-haired woman smiled and replied:

“If you pass your probation, you’ll become an assistant-level public servant of the Kingdom, with a salary equivalent to a clerk’s—about 12 Gold Wheels per week.”

12 Gold Wheels? That much?!

Hearing the Cleanup Bureau’s pay rate, Li Ang jolted, instantly forgetting his minor doubts.

1 Gold Wheel = 10 Silver Wheels = 100 Copper Wheels. 12 Gold Wheels equals 1200 Copper Wheels. At 52 weeks a year, that’s 62,400 Copper Wheels annually!

In the capital, even a lavish breakfast costs only two or three Copper Wheels. After probation, my annual income of over sixty thousand Copper Wheels means I’ve leapt straight from poverty into the middle class!

Forget everything else—starting now, the Cleanup Bureau is my second home!

“Besides salary, you’ll also receive other benefits.”

Glancing at Li Ang, whose breathing had quickened noticeably,

the red-haired woman added with a smile:

“Regular clerks get two ten-day vacations per year, plus weekends off—roughly 160 days of rest including holidays. But our work is special—we must be on call at all times, so we don’t get those breaks. And since you’re not a fugitive but voluntarily joined a dangerous department, you qualify for additional perks.”

“In addition to doubled benefits like pensions and housing subsidies granted to other civil servants, you, your spouse, and all your direct relatives receive free medical care, with an annual reimbursement limit of 2,000 Gold Wheels.”

“When your children reach school age, they may freely enroll in any public school except the Imperial Inner Academy, without entrance exams—direct promotion guaranteed. Even if transferring externally, they may switch schools at will.”

“Once they turn eighteen, the Cleanup Bureau will issue you a recommendation letter. Except for the top three universities, which still require academic performance, they’ll all admit them without exams—even if you die in the line of duty, the letter remains valid…”

Die in the line of duty! I’ll die in the line of duty right now!

No! I mean—from now on, I’m alive as Cleanup Bureau staff! Dead, I’m Cleanup Bureau’s corpse! Cremated, I’m Cleanup Bureau’s ashes! Even if someone scatters me, I’m still Cleanup Bureau’s dust storm!

After taking two deep breaths, Li Ang, now overflowing with loyalty to the Bureau, raised his head, clenched his fists tightly, and forced his expression into calmness as he asked:

After secretly taking two deep breaths, Li Ang raised his head, clenched his fist tightly, and asked with as calm an expression as he could:

“Then… when can I start my duties?”

Returning to her large desk, she rummaged in a drawer, then tossed a palm-sized booklet toward him, smiling:

Take it. This is your ID. Write your name on it, then pin the badge inside your uniform—you’re done with the paperwork.

“Hold on to this—this is your identification. First write your name, then pin on the badge inside; that completes your paperwork.”

Catching the booklet, Li Ang opened it skeptically. After examining the emblem inside, he blurted:

Li Ang caught the booklet, opened his new identification with skepticism, and upon seeing the design of the badge inside, exclaimed in surprise:

“It’s the emblem of our Sixth Bureau.”

The red-haired woman explained: “The Cleanup Bureau’s symbol is a dung beetle pushing a dung ball—symbolizing how we clear away polluting things and draw nourishment and power from them.”

“But since we need to distinguish between branches, each has a unique emblem. For Sixth Cleanup Bureau, since we’re named after Virgo, we replaced the beetle with a woman pushing a dung ball.”

But since we need to distinguish members of different divisions, each division’s badge is unique—for example, our Sixth Cleanup Bureau, which uses Virgo as its code, has been changed to a woman pushing a dung ball.”

A woman pushing a dung ball… a female dung beetle? Who the hell designed this?

Holding the emblem—more like a cursed design meant to torment its wearer—Li Ang’s face twitched violently. He felt a million complaints bubbling inside him.

Forcing himself to swallow them down for the sake of the Bureau’s generous pay, he silently pinned the dung beetle-woman badge to his chest and took the feather pen the red-haired woman offered, writing his name inside the booklet.

Forced to swallow these old complaints by the Cleanup Bureau’s generous benefits, Li Ang silently fastened the dung beetle woman badge and took the feather pen from the red-haired woman, writing his name on the inner page of the booklet.

【You have successfully obtained employment and activated the Iron Badge: Probationary Worker】

【Probationary Worker: A job seeker hired for meeting basic position requirements but still under observation. The lowest rank in any enterprise or state department. Not yet officially employed, sometimes called a temporary worker.】

【Wearing Effect: Your work efficiency increases slightly while performing assigned duties.】

【Upgrade Path: If you wear this badge continuously for over two months without being fired, it will automatically upgrade to the Bronze Badge: Worker, and cannot be removed until upgraded.】

[Hidden Trait (No Need to Wear): If this badge has not yet been upgraded to Bronze and your department encounters a serious issue, your chance of being blamed and fired increases dramatically.]

【Note: This badge’s traits conflict with the previously acquired badge “Unemployed Youth.” The badge “Unemployed Youth” has been automatically removed.】

Please note: This badge's property conflicts with the already acquired badge "Unemployed Youth"; they cannot be worn simultaneously. The badge "Unemployed Youth" has been automatically removed.