Inside Jinghua’s Containment Unit.
A new orange-yellow box sat beside Jinghua’s door.
It was open, with used bowls and chopsticks inside.
It was a recycling box Jinghua had just set up, separate from the trash bin.
It was specifically for dishes and utensils.
The air conditioner was running in the Containment Unit, but Jinghua still wore her black-and-white dress and the large flower clip in her hair.
She sat at her computer desk, bored, playing games on her phone.
She’d downloaded a few rhythm games to play whenever she had free time.
“Beep beep.”
Just as a song ended, Jinghua received a message.
“Hm?”
She opened her messages and saw that it was from Gadra.
The message said:
“I’m doing fine.”
‘Was everything fine?’
It seemed like she hadn’t run into any danger.
Jinghua didn’t know what else to send.
They didn’t have much to talk about, after all.
‘Maybe I’ll send a cat nodding.’
She browsed her stickers and picked the cutest one, a ragdoll cat nodding, then sent it.
‘That should do it.’
After that, Jinghua went back to her game.
She was going to have a mirror call with Sister Zhiyi that evening, so it was better to stay in a good mood.
…………
That evening.
Gadra’s dorm room.
As the leader of the Special Operations Team, Gadra was supposed to live and eat with her team.
But she had another assignment lately, so her room had been moved closer to Jinghua’s.
That meant the A-10 dormitory area.
They were on the same floor.
The Third Special Operations Team’s dorms and training area were on the floor above.
Gadra walked naked into the shower and rinsed off in cold water without adjusting the temperature.
Her skin wasn’t especially fair or soft, since she often went out on missions, but she was still a young woman, and her body was quite toned.
She looked healthy, too.
Naked, it was easy to see that she’d built muscle all over.
She wasn’t bulky, and she still had the graceful, streamlined curves of a young woman, along with a sturdy, balanced build.
But most people weren’t lucky enough to see Gadra’s body.
Her lightweight armor weighed at least 30 pounds.
But don’t get the wrong idea.
She wasn’t actually expected to fight while carrying 30 pounds.
Her gear was supported by a mechanical exoskeleton.
The finely made exoskeleton helped Special Operations Team members carry more equipment and move faster.
Its only drawback… seemed to be the heat.
So every time Gadra returned from a mission, she took a long, cold shower.
Cold water constricted the blood vessels and helped keep her mind clear, making it easier to review and summarize her combat experience.
Besides, she didn’t want to get too comfortable.
A hot shower was just too pleasant.
That was the sort of thing you did for enjoyment.
She rinsed off in cold water, quickly scrubbed herself all over with soap, and was out of the shower in about five minutes.
Her hair was short to medium length, so it wasn’t much trouble to wash.
If it reached her shoulders, Gadra would cut it herself to just below her ears.
But… she was going out tonight… so she might as well wash up a little longer.
With that thought, Gadra stayed in the shower for another three minutes.
After showering and drying her hair, Gadra opened her closet and began picking out clothes.
‘Should I take off my armor… I shouldn’t wear these combat clothes.’
Gadra glanced over the closet full of simple, short-sleeved combat undershirts, then bent down to search the space at the bottom.
She pulled out a wooden box, set it on the bed, and opened it.
……
Inside were several light, airy dresses and a few small items.
Among them was a picture frame, but there was nothing inside it.
“It’s been so long since I wore these.”
Seeing the dresses, Gadra felt a sudden sense of unfamiliarity.
‘Should I really wear one? But if I’m taking off my armor, I can’t wear combat gear or anything like it.’
……
‘I’ll wear one after all.’
‘It’s not often I get to go.’
‘I’d better avoid the crowds as much as I can. It’d be awful if one of the team members saw me.’
…………
The Director’s room.
The Director sat in her room drinking tea, scrolling on her tablet as she checked messages from various channels and reviewed the work being done in each area.
Her room looked extremely lavish, with a level of taste most people couldn’t afford.
It looked like the sort of room a noble young lady would live in.
Unlike the blouse and lab coat she wore at work, she now had on a purple-black dress.
It was lightweight, but the stitching and fabric looked expensive.
“Knock, knock, knock.”
Someone knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
The Director’s voice wasn’t loud, but it carried through the door.
“Click…”
Gadra entered in a white dress, her steps a little hesitant.
“Director.”
“Close the door… Do you still have to call me that when we’re alone? You’re so distant.”
“……Sister Gamil.”
Gadra turned her head away and closed the door, not daring to look at Gamil.
That’s right…
Gadra and the Director, Gamil Scarlude, were sisters.
“……You’ve worked hard lately.”
Gamil looked at the dress Gadra was wearing.
“I haven’t seen you wear this in so long. It brings back memories.”
“It’s been all right… Why did you ask me to come tonight?”
“It’s nothing in particular. It’s just been too long since we’ve talked as sisters… Come sit down.”
Gamil stood and went to sit on her bed, patting the empty space beside her.
“……Okay.”
Usually decisive and meticulous, Gadra seemed like an ordinary young woman now.
She walked over to Gamil and sat beside her, looking a little uncomfortable.
“When was the last time we met like this?”
Gamil asked.
“More than a year ago… right before that accident.”
“Really? Time flies. Back then, you were still an ordinary member of the Special Operations Team. Now you’re someone others rely on.”
Gamil closed her eyes and tilted her head back, as if recalling the past.
“You’ve gone from Deputy Director to Director, too, Sister Gamil… Even though we work in the same place, we hardly see each other.”
“That’s true. The Containment Facility doesn’t have a Deputy Director anymore… None of the researchers under me were suitable, so I had to take charge.”
“……You didn’t call me here just to reminisce, did you, Sister?”
“……Let’s talk a little longer.”
Gamil reached out and turned Gadra’s face toward her, making her look at her.
Their red eyes met.
One pair was guarded, the other bitter and reluctant.
“To avoid suspicion, I have to keep my distance from you most of the time. Not many people at the facility know we’re related. But tonight, look at me properly, okay?”
“…………Okay.” Gadra nodded slightly.
The two began talking about the past.
Mostly about what had happened before they joined the Containment Facility.
Gamil was five years older than Gadra and was now 26.
Gadra wasn’t actually that old, but she’d been trained from a young age and seemed much more mature than people her age.
Their family had always had ties to the Containment Bureau, since they had provided a considerable number of anomalies.
In exchange for giving anomalies to the Containment Bureau, the family received the right to recommend candidates for positions there.
Of course, they couldn’t just sit around and do nothing.
Their parents had planned separate career paths for the sisters from childhood: one would conduct research, and the other would join the Special Operations Team and fight on the front lines.
Both sisters had worked hard and never let their family down.
In the end, their family had used its connections to place them in the same Containment Facility so they could look out for each other.
But the two of them hadn’t had a proper chance to meet and talk in a long time.
To strengthen the family’s position… and fulfill their mission, Gamil had joined the Containment Facility early.
By the time Gadra joined the Special Operations Team at the 37th Branch, the two had already spent a long time apart.
Besides, they couldn’t openly discuss their relationship.
It would inevitably invite criticism.
“Although the anomalies at the 37th Containment Facility pose little threat… you’ll be sent to help other facilities more often, too. According to your reports, attacks on the Special Operations Team have become more and more frequent lately.”
“That’s true… But I can still handle it.”
“……I want you to focus entirely on managing Jinghua.”
“What?” Gadra stared at her sister in disbelief.
‘Is she going to pull me off the front lines?’
‘No… I’ve spent my whole life preparing to contain anomalies on the front lines.’
“My work with the Third Team is going well. Why make a sudden change?”
“You misunderstand. I’m not trying to remove you from your current position… But I’ve had a new idea.”
“……What is it?”
“If we could put Jinghua’s abilities to use, how many casualties do you think we could prevent? I want to try moving forward with her training plan, then assign her to the Third Team.”
“…………Could her body handle it?”
Gadra had seen firsthand how physically fit Jinghua was.
Training Jinghua to work alongside the Special Operations Team… would take a lot of effort.
Besides, Jinghua would definitely protest against that kind of intensity.
And then there was the question of whether the team members, and Gadra herself, could accept trusting an anomaly with their backs.
“She won’t agree. And there’s my team, too.”
“We can work on the team’s mindset gradually. As for her… we can try testing her compatibility.”
“How?”
“Like before, train her. Have her assist with our research.”
“Is that really necessary? And if she loses control…”
“This is a compliance test… If she can pass it, I’ll assign Lin Zhiyi and Lisa to manage her with you. With researchers helping, we’ll make much faster progress.”
“Didn’t you just send them away before…”
“……I did it for their safety. But from what we’ve seen, Jinghua isn’t as dangerous as we thought. For the Containment Facility, and for our mission… we can try.”
“Our mission…”
The mission.
The Containment Bureau’s mission, Gadra’s mission, Gamil’s mission, the Scarlude family’s mission.
The Scarlude family had once been a prominent and powerful clan.
Until… the clan leader received several gifts.
Those gifts were anomalies.
The anomalies brought the family greater prosperity, but soon they also dragged it into a whirlpool of conflict.
Then, at the end of the last century and the start of this one, the predecessor of the Anomaly Containment Bureau, the Anomaly Management Foundation, arrived in Linghai Country and was accepted by its government.
The reorganized Foundation became a national organization of Linghai Country and turned into the Containment Bureau.
The Scarlude family had been caught in conflicts with other anomalies and families that possessed them for years.
It had long since lost its former glory, and everyone was exhausted from the fighting.
The clan leader made a decision: give the family’s anomalies to the Containment Bureau in exchange for protection from the government organization.
The entire family moved to Linghai Country.
From then on, the family devoted itself to fighting anomalies—or, rather, to making sure anomalies were managed in one place so they could no longer cause conflict between people or inflict supernatural harm.
In a sense, the younger generation of the Scarlude family had become a reserve force for the Containment Bureau.
“……I’ll try. But using an anomaly, something that’s still alive… it’s too unpredictable.”
Gadra resisted the idea strongly.
If all she had to do was manage Jinghua, that was fine.
But the idea of having a living anomaly cooperate with people, instead of studying anomalies and developing new technology for people to use, left Gadra feeling distrustful and uneasy.
It was an idea her family had instilled in her from childhood, and one she’d learned through experience.
“Yes.”
Gamil took Gadra’s hand and squeezed it a few times.
“That’s why we need a stabilizer. I know this is hard for you… It is for me, too.
After all, we’ve both seen the disasters anomalies can cause, and the terrible consequences of underestimating them.
So this time, our plan needs to be more rigorous.
Start by overseeing Jinghua’s training.
If she doesn’t show any obvious resistance or hostility after two weeks, we’ll put the plan into action.
Everything we’re doing is to better fulfill our mission.
Whether we study anomalies or have them assist us, the ultimate goal is to protect the ordinary world.”
“…………Okay.”
Gadra nodded.
“Then we’ll do that. I’ll try.”
The two began discussing how to train Jinghua.
While Jinghua had no idea, a plan called the [Jinghua Vanguard Plan] had begun.
But what did that have to do with Jinghua, the gray-white-haired little girl who ate 30 fried chicken drumsticks in one sitting and played games for 11 hours a day?
“Hey, hey~ Sister Zhiyi~” Jinghua was in a particularly good mood today.
“Hm? You look happy today.”
“Because it’s finally been quiet today. No weird emergencies, and I didn’t have to go for a checkup or train… I played games all day. It was so relaxing.”
“Is that so? That’s nice. Quiet days are good, too.”
“By the way, Sister Zhiyi, have you made any progress with your research?”
“……Not yet. But we may be able to see each other again soon.”
Lin Zhiyi wasn’t going to tell Jinghua what they’d discovered during the field investigation just yet.
It wouldn’t be good if it upset Jinghua… Before, Lin Zhiyi might have told her outright.
But now, she wanted to protect Jinghua and keep her from getting hurt again.
It was her own selfish desire… the sort of selfishness a researcher shouldn’t have.
“Really? That soon?”
“Yeah. The higher-ups… the Director said she’d give us an answer in a week, depending on the situation. Since she’s given us some leeway, there’s a chance.”
“Oh, wow… Oh, right, Sister Zhiyi. I can see something strange.”
“What?”
“I woke up after a nap this morning…”
…………
They talked late tonight, not ending the call until after 11:00 PM.
Lin Zhiyi was surprised she could talk with Jinghua for so long.
They’d mostly discussed how things had been going… and shared plenty of stories about the past.
Lin Zhiyi had originally wanted to study the humanities, but there weren’t many career prospects, so she chose science without hesitation.
Lin Zhiyi had taken the competition route, aiming for admission to a top-tier university through academic awards.
But just as she was thinking about which top university to attend, the Containment Bureau sent her a training offer.
After that, Lin Zhiyi studied all kinds of subjects at the Containment Bureau’s school, learning what she needed to research anomalies.
Naturally, Lin Zhiyi had no chance to live the kind of poetic, carefree life people associated with the humanities.
After earning enough credits and passing her tests, she was sent straight to work at the 37th Containment Facility.
Of course, she had a senior researcher to guide her.
A researcher’s job was incredibly dull.
Every day, she analyzed all sorts of collected information or arranged experiments to gather different data…
Sometimes she’d have an idea, build a theoretical model, and test it…
In short, research wasn’t as simple as people imagined, nor was it full of twists and turns.
Most of it was dull, repetitive work.
All told, Lin Zhiyi had been at the Containment Facility for nearly two years.
The only thing she’d developed herself was an anomaly vital-sign detector.
The one Jinghua had.
Ordinary vital-sign detectors could fail because of an anomaly’s unique properties, so Lin Zhiyi had used previous theories and her own data to develop a detector that worked with most anomalies.
It could also send signals in real time and track changes in an anomaly’s index.
After that… for one reason or another, she kept taking over anomalies left behind by other people, collecting data without finding many leads for her research.
She just kept working… until Jinghua arrived.
To Lin Zhiyi…
Jinghua was a small, unexpected delight in her dull research life.
She could probably call it a delight.
Although she didn’t dislike her day-to-day research work… she’d chosen it herself, and having Lisa cling to her every day kept things from getting boring.
But when a kind, innocent girl like Jinghua appeared before her, so quiet, Lin Zhiyi felt something rare… or perhaps something she’d felt long ago.
Was it what a normal person was supposed to be like… or what a child was like?
She could sense a kind of vitality.
Unlike Lisa, who was so lively she could be a little annoying, Jinghua had the feeling of a young life… fragile, yet full of hope.
Maybe it was because Jinghua herself was so petite.
And she really was cute.
Although all sorts of things had gone wrong while they were together…
Lin Zhiyi did feel that her life had become a little different.
Maybe this was the kind of daily life she could have as a researcher.
It was late… time to sleep.
She’d talk to Jinghua again tomorrow…
There were still plenty of days ahead and plenty of time.Inside Jinghua’s Containment Unit.
A new orange-yellow box sat beside Jinghua’s door.
It was open, with used bowls and chopsticks inside.
It was a recycling box Jinghua had just set up, separate from the trash bin.
It was specifically for dishes and utensils.
The air conditioner was running in the Containment Unit, but Jinghua still wore her black-and-white dress and the large flower clip in her hair.
She sat at her computer desk, bored, playing games on her phone.
She’d downloaded a few rhythm games to play whenever she had free time.
“Beep beep.”
Just as a song ended, Jinghua received a message.
“Hm?”
She opened her messages and saw that it was from Gadra.
The message said:
“I’m doing fine.”
‘Was everything fine?’
It seemed like she hadn’t run into any danger.
Jinghua didn’t know what else to send.
They didn’t have much to talk about, after all.
‘Maybe I’ll send a cat nodding.’
She browsed her stickers and picked the cutest one, a ragdoll cat nodding, then sent it.
‘That should do it.’
After that, Jinghua went back to her game.
She was going to have a mirror call with Sister Zhiyi that evening, so it was better to stay in a good mood.
…………
That evening.
Gadra’s dorm room.
As the leader of the Special Operations Team, Gadra was supposed to live and eat with her team.
But she had another assignment lately, so her room had been moved closer to Jinghua’s.
That meant the A-10 dormitory area.
They were on the same floor.
The Third Special Operations Team’s dorms and training area were on the floor above.
Gadra walked naked into the shower and rinsed off in cold water without adjusting the temperature.
Her skin wasn’t especially fair or soft, since she often went out on missions, but she was still a young woman, and her body was quite toned.
She looked healthy, too.
Naked, it was easy to see that she’d built muscle all over.
She wasn’t bulky, and she still had the graceful, streamlined curves of a young woman, along with a sturdy, balanced build.
But most people weren’t lucky enough to see Gadra’s body.
Her lightweight armor weighed at least 30 pounds.
But don’t get the wrong idea.
She wasn’t actually expected to fight while carrying 30 pounds.
Her gear was supported by a mechanical exoskeleton.
The finely made exoskeleton helped Special Operations Team members carry more equipment and move faster.
Its only drawback… seemed to be the heat.
So every time Gadra returned from a mission, she took a long, cold shower.
Cold water constricted the blood vessels and helped keep her mind clear, making it easier to review and summarize her combat experience.
Besides, she didn’t want to get too comfortable.
A hot shower was just too pleasant.
That was the sort of thing you did for enjoyment.
She rinsed off in cold water, quickly scrubbed herself all over with soap, and was out of the shower in about five minutes.
Her hair was short to medium length, so it wasn’t much trouble to wash.
If it reached her shoulders, Gadra would cut it herself to just below her ears.
But… she was going out tonight… so she might as well wash up a little longer.
With that thought, Gadra stayed in the shower for another three minutes.
After showering and drying her hair, Gadra opened her closet and began picking out clothes.
‘Should I take off my armor… I shouldn’t wear these combat clothes.’
Gadra glanced over the closet full of simple, short-sleeved combat undershirts, then bent down to search the space at the bottom.
She pulled out a wooden box, set it on the bed, and opened it.
……
Inside were several light, airy dresses and a few small items.
Among them was a picture frame, but there was nothing inside it.
“It’s been so long since I wore these.”
Seeing the dresses, Gadra felt a sudden sense of unfamiliarity.
‘Should I really wear one? But if I’m taking off my armor, I can’t wear combat gear or anything like it.’
……
‘I’ll wear one after all.’
‘It’s not often I get to go.’
‘I’d better avoid the crowds as much as I can. It’d be awful if one of the team members saw me.’
…………
The Director’s room.
The Director sat in her room drinking tea, scrolling on her tablet as she checked messages from various channels and reviewed the work being done in each area.
Her room looked extremely lavish, with a level of taste most people couldn’t afford.
It looked like the sort of room a noble young lady would live in.
Unlike the blouse and lab coat she wore at work, she now had on a purple-black dress.
It was lightweight, but the stitching and fabric looked expensive.
“Knock, knock, knock.”
Someone knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
The Director’s voice wasn’t loud, but it carried through the door.
“Click…”
Gadra entered in a white dress, her steps a little hesitant.
“Director.”
“Close the door… Do you still have to call me that when we’re alone? You’re so distant.”
“……Sister Gamil.”
Gadra turned her head away and closed the door, not daring to look at Gamil.
That’s right…
Gadra and the Director, Gamil Scarlude, were sisters.
“……You’ve worked hard lately.”
Gamil looked at the dress Gadra was wearing.
“I haven’t seen you wear this in so long. It brings back memories.”
“It’s been all right… Why did you ask me to come tonight?”
“It’s nothing in particular. It’s just been too long since we’ve talked as sisters… Come sit down.”
Gamil stood and went to sit on her bed, patting the empty space beside her.
“……Okay.”
Usually decisive and meticulous, Gadra seemed like an ordinary young woman now.
She walked over to Gamil and sat beside her, looking a little uncomfortable.
“When was the last time we met like this?”
Gamil asked.
“More than a year ago… right before that accident.”
“Really? Time flies. Back then, you were still an ordinary member of the Special Operations Team. Now you’re someone others rely on.”
Gamil closed her eyes and tilted her head back, as if recalling the past.
“You’ve gone from Deputy Director to Director, too, Sister Gamil… Even though we work in the same place, we hardly see each other.”
“That’s true. The Containment Facility doesn’t have a Deputy Director anymore… None of the researchers under me were suitable, so I had to take charge.”
“……You didn’t call me here just to reminisce, did you, Sister?”
“……Let’s talk a little longer.”
Gamil reached out and turned Gadra’s face toward her, making her look at her.
Their red eyes met.
One pair was guarded, the other bitter and reluctant.
“To avoid suspicion, I have to keep my distance from you most of the time. Not many people at the facility know we’re related. But tonight, look at me properly, okay?”
“…………Okay.” Gadra nodded slightly.
The two began talking about the past.
Mostly about what had happened before they joined the Containment Facility.
Gamil was five years older than Gadra and was now 26.
Gadra wasn’t actually that old, but she’d been trained from a young age and seemed much more mature than people her age.
Their family had always had ties to the Containment Bureau, since they had provided a considerable number of anomalies.
In exchange for giving anomalies to the Containment Bureau, the family received the right to recommend candidates for positions there.
Of course, they couldn’t just sit around and do nothing.
Their parents had planned separate career paths for the sisters from childhood: one would conduct research, and the other would join the Special Operations Team and fight on the front lines.
Both sisters had worked hard and never let their family down.
In the end, their family had used its connections to place them in the same Containment Facility so they could look out for each other.
But the two of them hadn’t had a proper chance to meet and talk in a long time.
To strengthen the family’s position… and fulfill their mission, Gamil had joined the Containment Facility early.
By the time Gadra joined the Special Operations Team at the 37th Branch, the two had already spent a long time apart.
Besides, they couldn’t openly discuss their relationship.
It would inevitably invite criticism.
“Although the anomalies at the 37th Containment Facility pose little threat… you’ll be sent to help other facilities more often, too. According to your reports, attacks on the Special Operations Team have become more and more frequent lately.”
“That’s true… But I can still handle it.”
“……I want you to focus entirely on managing Jinghua.”
“What?” Gadra stared at her sister in disbelief.
‘Is she going to pull me off the front lines?’
‘No… I’ve spent my whole life preparing to contain anomalies on the front lines.’
“My work with the Third Team is going well. Why make a sudden change?”
“You misunderstand. I’m not trying to remove you from your current position… But I’ve had a new idea.”
“……What is it?”
“If we could put Jinghua’s abilities to use, how many casualties do you think we could prevent? I want to try moving forward with her training plan, then assign her to the Third Team.”
“…………Could her body handle it?”
Gadra had seen firsthand how physically fit Jinghua was.
Training Jinghua to work alongside the Special Operations Team… would take a lot of effort.
Besides, Jinghua would definitely protest against that kind of intensity.
And then there was the question of whether the team members, and Gadra herself, could accept trusting an anomaly with their backs.
“She won’t agree. And there’s my team, too.”
“We can work on the team’s mindset gradually. As for her… we can try testing her compatibility.”
“How?”
“Like before, train her. Have her assist with our research.”
“Is that really necessary? And if she loses control…”
“This is a compliance test… If she can pass it, I’ll assign Lin Zhiyi and Lisa to manage her with you. With researchers helping, we’ll make much faster progress.”
“Didn’t you just send them away before…”
“……I did it for their safety. But from what we’ve seen, Jinghua isn’t as dangerous as we thought. For the Containment Facility, and for our mission… we can try.”
“Our mission…”
The mission.
The Containment Bureau’s mission, Gadra’s mission, Gamil’s mission, the Scarlude family’s mission.
The Scarlude family had once been a prominent and powerful clan.
Until… the clan leader received several gifts.
Those gifts were anomalies.
The anomalies brought the family greater prosperity, but soon they also dragged it into a whirlpool of conflict.
Then, at the end of the last century and the start of this one, the predecessor of the Anomaly Containment Bureau, the Anomaly Management Foundation, arrived in Linghai Country and was accepted by its government.
The reorganized Foundation became a national organization of Linghai Country and turned into the Containment Bureau.
The Scarlude family had been caught in conflicts with other anomalies and families that possessed them for years.
It had long since lost its former glory, and everyone was exhausted from the fighting.
The clan leader made a decision: give the family’s anomalies to the Containment Bureau in exchange for protection from the government organization.
The entire family moved to Linghai Country.
From then on, the family devoted itself to fighting anomalies—or, rather, to making sure anomalies were managed in one place so they could no longer cause conflict between people or inflict supernatural harm.
In a sense, the younger generation of the Scarlude family had become a reserve force for the Containment Bureau.
“……I’ll try. But using an anomaly, something that’s still alive… it’s too unpredictable.”
Gadra resisted the idea strongly.
If all she had to do was manage Jinghua, that was fine.
But the idea of having a living anomaly cooperate with people, instead of studying anomalies and developing new technology for people to use, left Gadra feeling distrustful and uneasy.
It was an idea her family had instilled in her from childhood, and one she’d learned through experience.
“Yes.”
Gamil took Gadra’s hand and squeezed it a few times.
“That’s why we need a stabilizer. I know this is hard for you… It is for me, too.
After all, we’ve both seen the disasters anomalies can cause, and the terrible consequences of underestimating them.
So this time, our plan needs to be more rigorous.
Start by overseeing Jinghua’s training.
If she doesn’t show any obvious resistance or hostility after two weeks, we’ll put the plan into action.
Everything we’re doing is to better fulfill our mission.
Whether we study anomalies or have them assist us, the ultimate goal is to protect the ordinary world.”
“…………Okay.”
Gadra nodded.
“Then we’ll do that. I’ll try.”
The two began discussing how to train Jinghua.
While Jinghua had no idea, a plan called the [Jinghua Vanguard Plan] had begun.
But what did that have to do with Jinghua, the gray-white-haired little girl who ate 30 fried chicken drumsticks in one sitting and played games for 11 hours a day?
“Hey, hey~ Sister Zhiyi~” Jinghua was in a particularly good mood today.
“Hm? You look happy today.”
“Because it’s finally been quiet today. No weird emergencies, and I didn’t have to go for a checkup or train… I played games all day. It was so relaxing.”
“Is that so? That’s nice. Quiet days are good, too.”
“By the way, Sister Zhiyi, have you made any progress with your research?”
“……Not yet. But we may be able to see each other again soon.”
Lin Zhiyi wasn’t going to tell Jinghua what they’d discovered during the field investigation just yet.
It wouldn’t be good if it upset Jinghua… Before, Lin Zhiyi might have told her outright.
But now, she wanted to protect Jinghua and keep her from getting hurt again.
It was her own selfish desire… the sort of selfishness a researcher shouldn’t have.
“Really? That soon?”
“Yeah. The higher-ups… the Director said she’d give us an answer in a week, depending on the situation. Since she’s given us some leeway, there’s a chance.”
“Oh, wow… Oh, right, Sister Zhiyi. I can see something strange.”
“What?”
“I woke up after a nap this morning…”
…………
They talked late tonight, not ending the call until after 11:00 PM.
Lin Zhiyi was surprised she could talk with Jinghua for so long.
They’d mostly discussed how things had been going… and shared plenty of stories about the past.
Lin Zhiyi had originally wanted to study the humanities, but there weren’t many career prospects, so she chose science without hesitation.
Lin Zhiyi had taken the competition route, aiming for admission to a top-tier university through academic awards.
But just as she was thinking about which top university to attend, the Containment Bureau sent her a training offer.
After that, Lin Zhiyi studied all kinds of subjects at the Containment Bureau’s school, learning what she needed to research anomalies.
Naturally, Lin Zhiyi had no chance to live the kind of poetic, carefree life people associated with the humanities.
After earning enough credits and passing her tests, she was sent straight to work at the 37th Containment Facility.
Of course, she had a senior researcher to guide her.
A researcher’s job was incredibly dull.
Every day, she analyzed all sorts of collected information or arranged experiments to gather different data…
Sometimes she’d have an idea, build a theoretical model, and test it…
In short, research wasn’t as simple as people imagined, nor was it full of twists and turns.
Most of it was dull, repetitive work.
All told, Lin Zhiyi had been at the Containment Facility for nearly two years.
The only thing she’d developed herself was an anomaly vital-sign detector.
The one Jinghua had.
Ordinary vital-sign detectors could fail because of an anomaly’s unique properties, so Lin Zhiyi had used previous theories and her own data to develop a detector that worked with most anomalies.
It could also send signals in real time and track changes in an anomaly’s index.
After that… for one reason or another, she kept taking over anomalies left behind by other people, collecting data without finding many leads for her research.
She just kept working… until Jinghua arrived.
To Lin Zhiyi…
Jinghua was a small, unexpected delight in her dull research life.
She could probably call it a delight.
Although she didn’t dislike her day-to-day research work… she’d chosen it herself, and having Lisa cling to her every day kept things from getting boring.
But when a kind, innocent girl like Jinghua appeared before her, so quiet, Lin Zhiyi felt something rare… or perhaps something she’d felt long ago.
Was it what a normal person was supposed to be like… or what a child was like?
She could sense a kind of vitality.
Unlike Lisa, who was so lively she could be a little annoying, Jinghua had the feeling of a young life… fragile, yet full of hope.
Maybe it was because Jinghua herself was so petite.
And she really was cute.
Although all sorts of things had gone wrong while they were together…
Lin Zhiyi did feel that her life had become a little different.
Maybe this was the kind of daily life she could have as a researcher.
It was late… time to sleep.
She’d talk to Jinghua again tomorrow…
There were still plenty of days ahead and plenty of time.