Deep within a forest somewhere in Tivian, inside a luxurious office within a towering military fortress, Gregorius looked at the man in military uniform before him with some astonishment. He never expected that the highest person in charge of the Igwinte Secret Agency was actually a member of the Royal Family! And he had personally met with him as soon as he arrived in Tivian. Had he done something so significant to warrant such treatment?
Facing this scene, Gregorius was somewhat bewildered. After being stunned for a while, he finally realized that the other party's hand was still extended towards him. He quickly reached out and shook the other party's hand.
"Ah... so it's His Highness Harold?! Greetings, Your Highness. Please forgive my rudeness just now, Your humble servant!"
After briefly shaking hands with the other party, Gregorius immediately knelt on one knee and hurriedly saluted him. Seeing this, Harold couldn't help but smile slightly and say,
"Not all Royal Family members are addressed as Your Highness. In the future, when you encounter someone with the surname Despenser, you'd best clarify before saluting, lest you make a fool of yourself, Mr. Mays House."
"Uh... so my address for you..." Gregorius felt a surge of nervousness in his heart upon hearing Harold's words, but Harold continued,
"Ha, no need to be nervous. Your calling me Your Highness is not wrong, I was just giving you a little reminder." Saying this, Harold slowly walked back to his seat at his large office desk and sat down. Then he looked at Gregorius and spoke.
"Get up. And in the future, when you see me at the An Yin Bureau, you don't need to give such a grand salute. Everyone should prioritize work, don't keep kneeling endlessly."
"Yes, Your Highness Harold."
Listening to Harold's words, Gregorius stood up, still feeling somewhat uneasy as he stood before Harold's desk. To this day, he still didn't understand why this Captain had summoned him, a newcomer, for a meeting.
After sitting back down, Harold slowly picked up a cup and placed it in front of him. Then he picked up a teapot and poured himself a cup of black tea, speaking to Gregorius as he poured.
"Gregorius Meshaus, born in Hunter Village, Igwin County. His mother disappeared when he was seven, and his father died from a hunting accident when he was ten. At sixteen... that is, three years ago, he came to Igwinte to work. Because he was involved in a local Extraordinary event, he joined the Igwinte Secret Agency as a Hunter nearly two years ago. Due to his outstanding performance, he was promoted to Apprentice half a year ago and became a Captain. Not long ago, he single-handedly captured a Black Rank member of the Ming Guan Jiao Tuan (Netherworld Coffin Order), and thus is coming to the main bureau for promotion. Heh... you're something, kid, an Apprentice capturing a Black Earth."
Filling the cup before him, Harold recounted Gregorius's resume. Although Gregorius didn't know the intention behind the Captain's actions, he still nodded and humbly replied,
"It was nothing, just luck. That cultist had lost the necessary equipment at the time, which is why I was able to defeat him."
"Luck is also a form of strength, no need to be modest about that." Harold replied, then he took out a small paper packet from his drawer. After tearing open a corner, he poured black powder into the cup. At first, Gregorius thought it was some kind of tea leaves, but it wasn't.
"You're probably very confused right now, wondering why I specifically asked you to come here to talk. The reason is actually very simple, because your background is clean enough."
Picking up the cup, Harold took a sip of black tea and then spoke to Gregorius again. Upon hearing Harold's words, Gregorius paused.
"Clean?"
"Yes, born in the countryside, and the An Yin Bureau you joined is Igwinte, far from the main headquarters. It's almost impossible for you to have any ties with the forces in Tivian. You also have a certain level of ability, a simple and clear record, and you're about to be promoted... What I need most recently are people like you." Putting down the black tea he had just sipped, Harold looked at Gregorius with sharp eyes and said. Gregorius's brows furrowed upon hearing Harold's words; he seemed to realize something and then asked doubtfully,
"Your Highness Harold... You need people like me, is it because something has happened within the main bureau?"
Hearing Gregorius's words, Harold looked at him with a slight nod of approval and replied,
"Yes, I'll be honest with you. There is a mole within the main bureau..."
Upon hearing Harold's words, Gregorius's heart tightened. Although he had suspected something before, hearing the other party's words still made him freeze in place. His eyes widened as he said,
"What... a mole? Your Highness... do you mean... there is an internal spy within the main bureau right now?"
"Yes, spies who infiltrated at some unknown time, in unknown numbers, and holding unknown positions... We have already leaked a lot of important information because of this mole problem, causing considerable losses... The mole problem has become my primary headache..."
Sighing deeply, Harold sat on his chair and said, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness, while Gregorius continued to ask,
"Currently, the An Yin Bureau... can't find this mole?"
"I have tried many methods, but they have all been useless. That mole is deeply hidden and very cunning. Conventional methods have not revealed anything at all, and the usual internal self-inspection procedures are completely ineffective. So, I want to try something different." Harold continued, and Gregorius tentatively asked,
"So... Your Highness is looking for me... because of the matter of finding the mole?"
"That's right, I'll be direct with you... Because the previous few self-inspections yielded no results, I suspect that the mole has infiltrated some key positions, which makes me lose confidence in the people within the main bureau. Therefore, I thought of having people who have little connection with the main bureau and are far from the secret world of Tivian investigate this matter." Harold looked at Gregorius and said calmly. Although Gregorius had somewhat guessed Harold's intention before, he was still startled upon hearing him confirm it, and blurted out,
"You want me to investigate the mole in the main bureau? But, Your Highness, I'm just a newly transferred Apprentice, and I have absolutely no similar experience!"
"Don't worry, you'll be a Black Earth soon, and you won't be alone. Besides you, there are others transferred from remote branch bureaus, and I will also assign someone absolutely trustworthy to lead you. In the near future, you will be a small team, a team directly under my command. One of your major tasks is to secretly investigate the leakage incidents within the main bureau."
Harold waved his hand and said lightly. Listening to Harold's words, Gregorius was momentarily at a loss for how to respond. At this moment, his heart was churning, and various unbelievable thoughts were swirling in his mind.
Gregorius never expected that the Captain of the main bureau had already realized there was a mole within the An Yin Bureau, and had realized that the mole might be deeply entrenched and involved in something significant. Therefore, he intended to organize a team that had little connection with the main bureau and Tivian to conduct the investigation, and he would be one of them.
What surprised Gregorius even more was that if he had been successfully swapped on the train, then there would definitely be a mole in the secret investigation team that Harold was preparing to organize! A mole in the anti-mole team!
Thinking of this, Gregorius couldn't help but feel a lingering fear. If the scheme of those people on the train had succeeded, this team, which had not yet been formed, would likely become completely ineffective because of the mole who replaced his identity, and the main bureau might never be able to root out the mole. And if his being swapped was also a deliberate act by that group, doesn't that prove that Harold's plan to form the team had already been exposed? To what extent has the Eight Point Nest infiltrated the main bureau then!
Gregorius stood there, stunned, thinking about the consequences if he were truly replaced. After a long time of lingering fear, he finally said to Harold with relief.
"Your Highness has entrusted me with such a task, I will definitely complete it with all my might."
"Good, very proactive, but don't rush to start this task yet. On one hand, your teammates haven't arrived, and on the other hand, you still need to be promoted. To participate in such a task, an Apprentice is definitely far from enough." Saying this, Harold took another sip of the red tea in his cup, and after savoring it for a while, he continued to look at Gregorius and said.
"Since your review is complete, hurry and begin your promotion preparations. Oh, by the way, have you thought about which branch path you want to be promoted into?"
"Uh... there are options? Shouldn't it only be possible to advance to a Wind Art User?" Gregorius was startled by Harold's words. He had initially thought that after coming to the main bureau, he would definitely only be able to advance to a Wind Art User of the Storm Path, just like his old director James, but he didn't expect there to be other options.
"Hehe, indeed, the Storm Path is the signature of our Prit An Yin Bureau, but that doesn't mean we only control this one branch path. You still have some choices." With a light chuckle, Harold then began to list them to Gregorius.
"The Storm Path, primarily'Shadow' and secondarily'Stone', is originally a family inheritance of our Despenser Royal Family since ancient times. Under our bestowal, many people in our country's An Yin Bureau and military are now Extraordinaries on this branch path. It is precisely by relying on this powerful ability to control wind that our country has been able to overpower other nations in naval battles and gain strong maritime power. This complete storm is the symbol of Prit."
"Therefore, the Storm Path has the most people in our bureau. The Storm Path is also the most stable route for you, with the greatest potential for future development."
Harold finished speaking, then paused for a moment to let Gregorius digest the information a bit, and then continued to speak.
"Outside of the Storm Path, our bureau has actually recently acquired a new branch path primarily'Shadow' and secondarily 'Cup', named the Blood Darkness Path. This was an unexpected gain we obtained after recently taking down a den of an evil society. This branch path possesses the ability to easily change one's appearance, and upon reaching the Chalk stage, one can even easily hypnotize humans, transform into bats, and quickly recover from injuries by consuming fresh blood."
"We acquired this branch path not long ago. Compared to the Storm Path, this branch path is not complete; we have only mastered it up to the Chalk stage. However, because this Blood Darkness Path is just starting in our bureau, we are willing to spend more resources to cultivate the first batch of newcomers on the Blood Darkness Path. If you are willing to choose this branch path, you will be our key training target, and you will be provided with ample resources. As long as you perform slightly outstandingly, there is a very hopeful chance of being promoted to Chalk."
"However, after the Chalk stage, we lack the rituals for this branch path. But for an ordinary Hunter's lifetime, being able to reach the Black Earth Stage is already something to be thankful for. Reaching Chalk requires great opportunity, something that is hard to come by. So generally, things beyond Chalk are not something you need to think about. For you, this is exactly an opportunity."
"Now, I've told you all the branch paths you can choose from. Just tell me directly after you've considered it."
Harold said this to Gregorius, and Gregorius was startled again after hearing his words. A confusion that had been in his heart suddenly cleared up at this moment.
Gregorius had always been puzzled. He came to Tivian to be promoted to Black Rank, and that guy named Yadlin was clearly a Black Rank. How would he face promotion after coming to the main bureau? Black Earth couldn't possibly be promoted to Black Earth, right! If he couldn't use Wind Art after being promoted, wouldn't he be exposed?
Now it seems... the other party knew that the An Yin Bureau had new promotion branch paths, and this branch path would be the same as the one he was originally on, so there was absolutely no need to worry. Because after pretending to complete the promotion, he only needed to show his abilities. So, could the promotion information for this branch path have been deliberately leaked by the other party?
'It seems... the main bureau has been infiltrated by the other party much more severely than imagined, even this step has been grasped...'
Listening to Harold's words, Gregorius thought this in his heart, while also lamenting that the work of catching moles in the future would probably be very difficult.
Lamentation is one thing, but Gregorius here still needs to make a choice. However, while it's called a choice, Gregorius actually has no choice. If he truly wants to help the main bureau find the mole, the best way is to use his identity as Yadlin in the eyes of the Eight Point Nest. And if he doesn't want this identity to be suspected by the moles in the bureau, he must follow the script and choose the Blood Darkness Path. Moreover, the Blood Darkness Path will also have resource preference, which is very good...
'Anyway, being able to reach the Chalk stage in this lifetime is very worthwhile. Being able to be a key training target and reach Chalk more easily, this is definitely worth it...'
Gregorius thought this in his heart, and then silently made the decision to choose the Blood Darkness Path, for better advancement opportunities and to be a more dedicated undercover agent.
...
Tivian North Suburb, outside the East Gate of King's College, Royal Saint Crown University, Green Shade Town.
In the afternoon, Dorothy, wearing a small hat, a beige long-sleeved coat, and a pleated skirt, was walking down the streets of Green Shade Town with her bag. She had just taken advantage of the non-rainy weather to do some shopping in the City, buying some reserve snacks, tea leaves, and coffee to prepare for the increasingly changeable and cold weather recently.
Humming a tune, Dorothy walked forward step by step, and after a short while, she arrived in front of her own door. However, as she was about to enter, she suddenly noticed that her mailbox was open and something was stuffed inside.
'Is there a letter? At this time, it wouldn't be Gregorius, would it? Logically, he should have arrived in Tivian by now, but he should still be under review and wouldn't be able to see family members so quickly, right...'
Dorothy was puzzled in her heart, then took out the item from the mailbox, and found that it wasn't a letter, but a small rectangular package. There were no words written on the package, but there was a faint smell of machine oil. Smelling this scent, Dorothy knew what was going on.
'This was stuffed in by Beverly... That guy really acted as my mail carrier personally.'
Thinking this, Dorothy immediately picked up the small package, quickly opened the door and entered the house. After simply putting everything away, she quickly walked into her study and opened the package. And in fact... Dorothy had already pretty much known who sent this before. Now, only Adele would frequently send her things through the White Stone Craftsmen's Guild line, and there could only be one thing Adele was sending now, which was her teacher's information.
Opening the package, sure enough, an old yellowed notebook appeared before Dorothy's eyes. Dorothy recognized the handwriting on the cover at a glance, knowing it indeed belonged to Dalena.
Turning the pages of the notebook, Dorothy briefly previewed it twice, and then her heart couldn't help but tremble. There was no other reason; the content of this notebook was none other than Dalena's research on the ruins of the Xing Shu Xiu Shu Hui (Star Numerology Scripture Society)!
Dorothy finally had clues about the Xing Shu Xiu Shu Hui (Star Numerology Scripture Society)!