Chapter 93 007

The building was dark brown from top to bottom, shrouded by lush, towering trees, while thick vines climbed all over it, swallowing the entire structure from sight.

Following the dim, shaded passage inward, he emerged into a very spacious hall bathed in a soft radiance that illuminated the whole room.

Much like the Bounty Guild, there was also a reception desk here. A girl in a black, cinched-waist dress stood behind the counter. When she saw him, she smiled and said, "Hello. Please go up to the second floor, then all the way inside. The second room from the left at the end has a door plate marked seven-oh-seven. Someone is already waiting for you there."

"Huh? Joining the Enforcement Corps only requires picking up a mission, doesn't it?" Char asked in some confusion.

"That is correct, Mr. Char. However, in order to improve safety and mission efficiency, many tasks now have to be accepted as a team," the sweet-faced girl explained with a smile. "Each squad consists of five people: pursuit specialists and hunters. The strongest among them serves as the squad leader. Yesterday, Lord Bean already instructed that you be assigned to the squad led by Captain Purplethorn."

"Oh, I see." Char nodded and headed up to the second floor.

He frowned slightly, sensing a trace of trouble. After all, he carried far too many secrets to be suited to teaming up with others.

Once on the second floor, he saw one room after another, each door marked with a number, arranged in sequence from one to the next. It seemed these were the offices of each squad.

From the intelligence he had learned from Lyle, the entire Enforcement Corps had around three hundred support and intelligence personnel, while the official members numbered fewer than one hundred.

And yet these few dozen people were among the academy's top forces, responsible for maintaining order throughout the entire institution.

From this alone, one could tell that no one here was ordinary.

Given his current outward strength, the only reason he had been allowed in was through connections, by way of Lyle's request.

Moreover, Char deeply suspected that the formidable master of the hall had only agreed so readily because of Leslie's influence...

As soon as he pushed the door open, Char instantly felt a fierce aura of slaughter crash down upon him, like the breath of some dreadful beast.

A test of dominance?

He had long been prepared for this, and with a calm expression he stepped into the room, where he saw a bald man staring at him with clear hostility.

The man was the textbook image of a muscle brute, as bulky as Marcus, like a brown bear in human form. A hideous scar, like a centipede, ran along his left cheek, making him look exceedingly ferocious.

"So this is Squad Seven-oh-seven. I'm Char, the new member. Pleased to meet you." Smiling as though he had not noticed the other's expression at all, Char offered a brief introduction.

Besides the muscle brute, there were three other people in the room.

In the left corner sat an alluring beauty with a full, voluptuous figure, dressed in black leather armor that barely covered the essentials. A great expanse of fair skin was visible across her chest, and her long, rounded, pale legs were wrapped in black silk stockings, ending in high heels more than four inches tall. She was dozing there with her eyes half closed and did not spare him so much as a glance.

To his right, a child with black hair falling to the knees was lying across the table, playing with a doll. The hair obscured the little face completely, making it impossible to see their features.

Only one seemingly normal person finally lifted his head. His looks were almost unnaturally handsome, almost otherworldly. Yet what was terrifying was that a purple blossom seemed to be blooming within one of his eyes.

He stood and said indifferently, "I'm the captain, codename Purplethorn. Find a place and sit down first. Since everyone is here, I'll brief you on the mission."

Char gave a helpless smile and did not argue, merely finding a seat and sitting down obediently.

"This time it's a tier-two, three-star mission. The reward is three hundred contribution points. The target is a renegade tier-two soulmancer, and our objective is to capture him while minimizing civilian casualties."

The man who called himself captain spoke in a flat tone, his voice cold and devoid of warmth. "The directive from above is this: if the operation causes more than three deaths, the reward is halved. If the death toll exceeds ten, the mission is considered a failure, and two hundred contribution points will be deducted as punishment."

"Captain, may I ask what exactly that directive means?" Char could not help asking.

"It's simple. While on assignment, we have authorization to use lethal force. Anyone who resists may be killed on the spot." The seductive woman opened her eyes and stretched lazily, her ample curves rippling with a languid sway.

The bald, muscular man beside her could not help swallowing, though wariness also surfaced thickly in his eyes.

Authorization to kill.

"Impressive. I hadn't expected them to grant such power," Char said in surprise.

Truly a violent institution. While guarding the ordinary students, it also stood upon mountains of bones.

It was somewhat like the white-haired eagle across the ocean from the Celestial Kingdom: maintaining social stability through iron and blood, shooting down anyone who resisted, even at the cost of collateral damage.

"Tch. Some kid whose hair hasn't even grown in yet. Lord Bean is just making trouble for us," the bald man said as he flopped down into a chair, making it creak under the strain.

"We move out at night. Iron Tower, you're on the breakthrough. Venom Charm, release the poison smoke to clear the field. Little Gold, you stay by my side." The captain ignored his complaint and issued the orders directly.

Char waited for a moment, then asked in confusion, "What about me? What am I supposed to do?"

The other man looked him up and down and said coolly, "You just follow along and broaden your horizons. You'll get five percent of the reward, and you won't need to lift a finger."

"Kid, you should know that all of us have fought in over a hundred battles. In my opinion, you'd better crawl back and study for a few more years before coming back," the bald, muscular Iron Tower said indifferently.

"Mm, I really am a bit weak. Then let's leave it at that for now." Char did not get angry. He nodded quite agreeably and shrugged helplessly.

"Oh, right. Give yourself a codename. You'll need it for the report," Captain Purplethorn said.

"Mm, my main totem is the Moonlit Fox, so my codename will be White Fox." Char looked very well-behaved and obedient.

"Another soft little pretty-boy..." the bald man muttered, only to fall silent at once under the captain's gaze.

Char watched in silence. As the girl at the front desk had said, the captain was indeed the strongest in the squad. Even someone as unruly as the bald man feared him. A smile slowly curved Char's lips.

Interesting. The classes and research have almost made me forget who I really am. This is the kind of life that sets the blood on fire.

The law of the jungle, stark and naked: the strong rule all.

After they finished explaining the mission in detail, the squad disbanded and would regroup that night for the actual operation.

Char left the room. When he passed the front desk, he was stopped, and the girl handed him a palm-sized silver badge.

"Sir, this is your Enforcer's insignia. You may present it if you are obstructed by patrol officers, and it has many other functions as well. Now, please infuse it with your spiritual power to bind it to you."

Char took it. It felt very light in his hand, more like a wooden plaque than a metal one. On its surface were carved a golden shield and crossed swords, symbols of protection and battle.