Chapter 346: Deduction

Beyond these matters stemming from the assessment results, Xia Liang did not forget that she had other things to discuss with Cui Que.

The content, naturally, was about her meeting with the examiner Yue Ji after leaving the labyrinth, and the words Yue Ji had spoken to her.

These were issues she could not handle or make decisions on at her current stage, so Xia Liang naturally held nothing back, describing everything she had seen and heard in minute detail.

——"I understand."

The things Xia Liang described, especially the information that "something might have happened at the viewing platform," made Cui Que associate it with many things. It was not hard for her to guess that perhaps people from the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Ministry of Finance wanted to take advantage of the situation, or that it was even highly likely that the new Diamond, who was power-hungry, wanted to use this opportunity to extort something from the Ministry of Magic Affairs and the Research Institute. But these matters were not suitable to explain to the children; they could only be left for discussion with the others at the Ministry of Magic Affairs later.

And beyond these undercurrents, perhaps what Xia Liang needed most at this moment was Cui Que's opinion on Yue Ji's invitation.

"If the other party is from the Research Institute, she can actually be trusted for the time being. Her invitation is likely sincere and the matter is genuine."

Cui Que crossed her arms, a thoughtful look on her face: "If you can have professionals help you research the principles of your Magic Armor, it would probably be a good thing for you, Xiao Jin. But this also means your Magic Armor's capabilities will become completely transparent to the Research Institute... Do you have any personal inclination?"

"Ah, me?"

Xia Liang did not expect the ball she had kicked away to be thrown back by Cui Que. After blinking twice, she said truthfully: "If you think they can be trusted, then this should be more of a benefit to me, right?"

She reached out and counted on her fingers, analyzing as if tallying: "After all, if I understand my Magic Armor better, I can get closer to the core of my abilities. Maybe I can develop more uses and become even stronger..."

"Indeed."

Cui Que nodded in agreement: "The researchers at the Research Institute are the most outstanding scholars. In terms of knowledge and achievements in their respective academic fields, they are actually far more capable than me, or even Chao Yan. Your learning ability is also very strong; if you go there to study, you will certainly be able to make progress."

"So, should I go?" Xia Liang lowered her hand, her expression slightly tense as she waited for Cui Que's decision.

Without a doubt, she wanted to go.

The current Xia Liang would not hide her desire to become stronger. She had never felt satisfied just because her progress in the squad was ahead of others, so she would inevitably want to seize this opportunity.

Cui Que could see this and understand it, but when it came time to actually give her approval, she still hesitated for a moment.

She knew that once she agreed to Yue Ji's invitation, her own interests would be further bound to the Research Institute and the Ministry of Magic Affairs.

Although it was an absolute fantasy to talk about wanting to withdraw at this point, the only two endings left for Cui Que were either accompanying Emerald and the others to see it through, or having the matter exposed and becoming a wanted criminal for illegal border crossing. But sending Xia Liang to the Research Institute meant letting the children get involved in this matter to a certain extent.

If it were eventually exposed, and the Royal Court traced the relationship to this level...

Cui Que knew she shouldn't, but she couldn't help but have such thoughts.

So, with the words on the tip of her tongue, she didn't say them, but changed her phrasing: "After the assessment ends, I will take you all to the Research Institute together."

If things went smoothly, she would naturally have the time to take Xia Liang to find Yue Ji after the assessment.

And if things did not go smoothly, she and Yue Ji would likely both be waiting for their sentences in court, so she naturally wouldn't let Xia Liang get involved in any ties with the Research Institute.

As long as no overt evidence could be found, even if she was the captain of the Fang Ting City squad, if the captain were arrested, the team members would not necessarily be implicated, leaving some room for maneuver.

Of course, she also knew that when matters involved the Queen, all rules in the Magic Kingdom could cease to be rules; the Queen possessed the power to ignore all statutes and regulations. If the Queen truly intended to hold others responsible, then no matter how justified she was or how she tried to excuse herself, it would be of no use, but being prepared for such things was better than being completely defenseless.

Xia Liang naturally had no way of knowing the considerations in her heart. Even if she could sense something subtle from the atmosphere, she could not guess what Cui Que had not revealed at all.

When the discussion regarding Xia Liang was finished, the next person to take the initiative to speak was Lin Xiaolu.

"Speaking of which, I encountered a little something on my end too..."

Lin Xiaolu described her new teammate, Bo He, whom she met while forming a team, and the peculiar examinee, Arrowroot, whom she met in the labyrinth. She recounted the strange dispute that arose between these two and Bai Jingxuan, and did not forget to mention the "agreement" between Bo He and herself. After finishing this long string of things, she asked impatiently: "Cui Que, what do you think we should do next?"

If the news brought by Xia Liang made Cui Que realize the internal disputes within the kingdom they might face next, then what Lin Xiaolu said was undoubtedly the precursor to an event related to an external enemy.

"A Magical Girl who can devour Remnant Beasts, and Bo Xue can also sense an aura similar to a Remnant Beast from her?"

She summarized the series of events Lin Xiaolu mentioned, her brows slightly furrowed: "Are you saying that child might be one of Claw Mark's people?"

"Even more annoying than Claw Mark!"

Bai Jingxuan spoke up from the side to correct her: "Or rather, the smell is very similar to that bad Director!"

"Bad Director? Who?"

"The one on the night of the Moon Festival!"

Now Cui Que understood; Bai Jingxuan was talking about Moss.

And when the clues pointed in this direction, combined with Lin Xiaolu's description, the answer was already obvious.

"...Black Ash Dawn?" Not only Cui Que, but Xia Liang also reached this conclusion almost at the same time.

As far as everyone currently knew, the organizations that had mastered the use of Remnant Beast magic were none other than Black Ash Dawn and Claw Mark. Compared to Claw Mark, the degree of "beastification" shown by Black Ash Dawn was undoubtedly more thorough, which also matched what Bai Jingxuan said about it being "more like a Remnant Beast."

And although Xia Liang and Lin Xiaolu did not yet know, Cui Que was very clear about the source of the Remnant Beast magic within Bai Jingxuan.

The so-called "Saint Child Project" of Black Ash Dawn, and the existence of terms like Sacrificial Child, Beast Child, and Saint Child, all undoubtedly indicated that children like Bai Jingxuan were likely not isolated cases in this world.

And if the descriptions by Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan were true, then Cui Que had to provide a more shocking, even alarming inference:

——"Among the Magical Girls, there are actually people from Black Ash Dawn?"