Chapter 983: If I Take Another Mission with Lyon, I

Are we just waiting for that Lyon to return?

After hearing the thrush’s account, the white snake’s eyebrows beneath its mask slightly furrowed, then it asked with puzzlement:

“Did Aquarius tell you exactly how he plans to do it?”

“I asked, but he refused to tell me.”

The thrush mask sighed helplessly:

“He only told me that the woman from the Virgo Division, though nearly flawless, has her most important defensive anomaly device fundamentally crafted by Aquarius and Taurus together.

As one of the creators of that defensive anomaly device, Aquarius didn’t leave any obvious backdoors—but there are still ways to cleverly bypass it.”

“…”

According to Aquarius’s intelligence, to deal with the red-haired woman, one must first neutralize her defensive anomaly device—so in summary, all his words amounted to nothing.

After pondering possible moves by Director Aquarius, yet finding no clarity no matter how hard he thought, the white snake frowned tightly and pressed further:

“Did he ever explain why he’s been fixated on the Virgo Division? His ultimate goal shouldn’t be replacing Taurus and ascending to the Watch Palace, right? What’s the point of staring at that woman in Virgo?”

“He did mention this.”

After a moment’s thought, the thrush mask replied:

“He said that even if none of the Twelve Zodiac Divisions show up, Taurus will still have three directors guarding him during his ascension—direct confrontation is impossible, so he must find another way.”

“And this ‘other way’—he still didn’t tell you a single word. We still only know he’s targeting the Virgo Division, right?”

“Hmm…”

“…”

If we can’t get answers, fine. Director Aquarius was never aligned with us anyway; his goals differ entirely from the Execution King’s Society. Let him do whatever he wants—as long as he remains hostile to the Cleanup Bureau.

“Thrush.”

As the white snake shook his head helplessly, the black cat listening nearby suddenly spoke up:

“Earlier, you told us Aquarius said he’d found a way to handle the Virgo Division and was just waiting for that Lyon to return… What exactly did that mean?”

“Huh?”

The thrush mask froze slightly, then asked in surprise:

“What’s wrong with that statement?”

“No, it’s actually quite interesting.”

After the black cat’s question, the white snake seated at the head seemed to grasp something, his eyes thoughtful as he spoke:

“On the surface, it suggests the man who holds a grudge against Lyon plans to wait until Lyon returns to the capital, then crush him and the entire Virgo Division together. But if you think deeper, there’s another possibility…

Perhaps Lyon himself is part of Aquarius’s plan against the Virgo Division—only when Lyon returns to the capital will Aquarius’s plan be able to begin!”

…

“Achoo!!!”

After a huge sneeze, Lyon, whose nose had been persistently itchy for no reason, rubbed it absentmindedly and muttered under his breath:

“Isn’t it past the estimated time? Why hasn’t Director Edward woken up yet?”

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

Hearing Lyon’s complaint, the emerald-eyed girl kneeling beside the Scorpio Director turned back, apologetic:

“Director’s soul was severely damaged and thoroughly scrambled—he’ll need more time to regain full clarity.”

“Mona’s right.”

At that moment, another emerald-eyed boy nodded in agreement, then rapidly matured two sunflowers, plucked the seeds, and eagerly offered them to Lyon.

“If you’re bored waiting, eat some sunflower seeds… Don’t worry, these black sunflowers are a specialty of our Olesong Kingdom—they’re delicious raw, no roasting needed.”

“Ah, thank you, Senior Rubin.”

＿ttkΛn＿co

Surprised his muttering had been overheard, Lyon smiled sheepishly, accepted the glossy black seeds, and added apologetically:

“I’m not blaming Director Edward—I just worry because the 1.3 million citizens of Krook Kingdom are still waiting for resettlement, and the only anomaly device capable of contacting the Central Bureau is in Director Edward’s hands. So I’m anxious. Sorry.”

“No problem, no problem, we understand.”

Rubin’s attitude toward Lyon—who had pulled his dead self back from the Underworld, single-handedly turned a failed mission around, preserved the Machine in Zone One, and even secured him a new body—was beyond generous.

Worried Lyon might get thirsty from eating seeds, Rubin activated his anomaly again, rapidly matured a strange shrub, plucked a coconut-like fruit, cracked it open, and offered the juicy flesh to Lyon, smiling warmly:

“As for the 1.3 million people, you don’t need to worry. Before your soul was expelled, with your Lyon Value at 60, we instantly matured over fifty acres of banana trees and coconut groves—enough for them to eat freely for over a week.

Plus, Franky has already taken a team to the harbor to fish—he’s reliable in this area. Even if Director Edward never wakes up, those 1.3 million won’t starve.”

“Franky’s that good?”

Hearing Rubin’s assurance, Lyon asked in astonishment:

“He can catch enough fish for 1.3 million people? Are there really that many fish nearby?”

“No, no, you misunderstood.”

The emerald-eyed boy waved his hand, smiling as he explained:

“Feeding them is my job. Franky’s responsibility is securing other essential supplies—winter coats, medicine, tents for shelter, that sort of thing.”

“Wait, you can fish those up too?”

“Besides fish, he can fish up anything.”

“…”

Damn, that’s exactly the kind of thing a true fisherman would do…

“Heh, Franky’s ability is incredibly useful in situations like this.”

Watching Lyon’s stunned expression, Rubin chuckled:

“In our Olesong Kingdom’s warehouse, there’s a small pond anomaly dedicated to him. Thanks to the effect of this 【Irrational Pond】, as long as his Lyon Value holds out, he can retrieve any item from the kingdom’s storage.”

So that’s how it works…

Nodding in understanding, Lyon was about to ask more, when a delighted shout came from behind:

“Director! Come quick! Director Edward’s awake!”

Finally awake!

Hearing Mona’s call, Lyon and Rubin immediately brightened, stuffed the seeds into their pockets, and hurried over.

After a moment of dazed confusion, the Scorpio Director’s gaze sharpened instantly. He stared at the cheerful emerald-eyed girl beside him, then hesitated:

“Philia… you’re Mona? Why do you look like this?”

“Yes! Yes! I’m Mona!”

Seeing the Director recognized her immediately, the female cleaner Mona nodded eagerly, then explained:

“Our original bodies were destroyed, and we had no time to slowly regrow them—so we used the Machine’s original parameters and made minor adjustments based on the Krook royal family’s appearance. That’s why we look different now.”

After explaining her changed appearance, Mona added excitedly:

“Director! You’re finally awake! So much has happened since you collapsed—even Execution King’s Society arrived.

Fortunately, it was Lord Lyon who defeated Prince Andre and preserved the Krook royal bloodline, convinced him to betray the Execution King’s Society, and sent him to the Underworld… In short, our mission succeeded!”

Mission… succeeded?

Hearing Mona’s excited report, and seeing Lyon and the green-eyed boy—presumably Rubin—running over, the tense Scorpio Director let out a long breath, then slowly stood up.

“Thank you.”

Pushing away Mona’s hand as she tried to support him, the Scorpio Director—whose soul still couldn’t fully control his body—looked at Lyon, who was energetic but unmistakably exhausted, and murmured with complex emotion:

“Thanks to you, this mission wouldn’t have succeeded. Without you, I and Mona and the others probably wouldn’t have survived… I owe you one.”

“No need for thanks.”

Lyon smiled.

“I’m one of the investigators on this mission. No debt exists—this was all my duty.”

“There’s no ‘duty’ here. You didn’t just complete the mission—you saved our lives. That’s a debt I owe you!”

Firmly insisting, the Scorpio Director steadied himself, then clenched his teeth and asked seriously:

“Where is Princess Philia? And Franky, Nicole, Alger? Are they…?”

“Don’t worry—they’re all fine.”

Understanding the Director’s concern, Lyon replied:

“Princess Philia is calming the Krook Kingdom’s citizens. Nicole and Alger are protecting her to prevent further issues. Franky just left with a team to fish—he’ll return from the harbor only after gathering enough supplies for 1.3 million people.”

Phew… at least no one died…

Upon hearing everyone was alive, the Scorpio Director’s tense expression softened, and he felt grateful he hadn’t rejected the Sagittarius Director’s proposal but had instead dragged Lyon along against his better judgment.

But when he heard Franky’s destination and purpose, a wave of inexplicable terror, accompanied by a chilling dread, surged from his tailbone straight up, making him stammer:

“W-Why fish up so many supplies? And… and didn’t you complete the mission? Didn’t you preserve the Krook royal family?”

“Well…”

Seeing the Director’s soul surge wildly, Lyon gave a nervous laugh and stammered:

“I did preserve the royal family… but… uh… the Krook Kingdom is gone.”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“Director! Director, what’s wrong? Don’t faint on us, Director!”