I loaded the Mysticism panel.

Richard folded the parchment and glanced at old Biggs.

Old Big spread his hands, making a "don't get involved" gesture.

"I have no objection to my senior sister letting you learn it, since I can't learn it anyway."

Richard then tucked the parchment into the inner compartment of his shoulder bag.

He recalled the "Perception Shielding" technique that Dionysus had traded in the Theogony Salon.

The core of the entire silencing technique is to temporarily cut off the opponent's technique and breathing method.

If we think about it the other way around...

Mrs. McNeill clearly didn't have time to notice the fleeting look in his eyes.

She removed the rut net from the responder's chest cavity, folded it up, and put it back in the ebony box.

That's all for today.

The medium glanced at the clock on the wall; it was 1:20 a.m.

"I need to report the canal layout plan tonight."

She nodded to Richard.

"Get some rest, there's a debriefing meeting early tomorrow morning."

Richard responded and then looked at old Bige beside him.

Old Big waved his hand.

"You can go first, I'll stay and take care of the rest."

"The refining furnace only burned the outer part of the corpse; I still have to dismember it piece by piece to process the rest."

"Thank you for your hard work." Richard nodded and prepared to leave.

Old Big chuckled and pulled the copper penny out of his pocket again.

"Let me tell you, the longer I'm in this line of work, the more I realize..."

He glanced at Mrs. McNeil and swallowed the rest of his sentence.

"Never mind, let's talk about it later."

Richard took off the autopsy hood and hung it back on the hook behind the door.

…………

Back in his dorm room, Richard placed his shoulder bag on the headboard of his bed.

He first took out the parchment and unfolded it on the table.

His extensive knowledge made him able to remember things at a glance, but he still preferred to look at things several times.

Richard ran through the core structure of that silencing technique in his mind several times, and then silently considered the possibility of a "reversal" in his heart.

[Shadow Reversal] can only reverse the spells he has already mastered; he hasn't truly learned the Silence spell yet.

He folded the parchment and tucked it back into the compartment of his shoulder bag.

After turning off the wall lamp, he lay down on the cot.

The entire branch office building was very quiet, with the occasional thumping sound of a boiler coming from the other end of the underground passage.

Richard's mind was still racing.

External interface, silencing technique, thirteen points, response meeting, borrowed signed artifacts...

Each of these things alone would be enough for him to study for a while, but when put together, they become a tangled mess.

And the matter of that eye and that expert—he couldn't even think about those things.

He drifted off to sleep without realizing it.

In his dream, he was still in that overturned core area that shouldn't have been pitied.

The sea of ​​stars reflected overhead was as cold as frost reflected from the bottom of a well.

The first responder stood at the center of the pit and turned around.

"Should you agree or not?"

Richard had no salt under his tongue.

He opened his mouth to answer, but then swallowed the word "answer".

The person who responded smiled.

"You'll agree sooner or later."

Richard suddenly opened his eyes.

It was still dark.

…………

The summary meeting was held in the conference room on the second floor of the branch office.

Lieutenant Colonel Odd sat at one end of the long table, his steel prosthetic leg resting on the tabletop.

In the corner of the conference room, Xiao Ma sat on a chair against the wall.

There was no cup, paper, or pen in front of him.

The female group leader with a scar on her brow bone sat next to him and reached out to press on his shoulder.

The meeting began with a document regarding bereavement compensation.

Lieutenant Colonel Odd pushed the document to the center of the long table.

"Following the 'Regular Losses' category, the hunter was killed during a medium-sized weak point maintenance mission."

The amount of compensation, family resettlement, and posthumous award procedures will all be handled according to existing standards.

"Wait a minute." Wentworth looked up. "How do his parents explain this?"

"Carbon monoxide poisoning," the lieutenant colonel answered quickly.

"During the strike at the western suburban mining area this year, there was a problem with the air circulation in the mine. As an inspector, he went down into the mine with us to inspect it and was overwhelmed by the fumes."

"……clear."

Richard felt very awkward listening to this.

Lieutenant Colonel Odd signed the document and then passed it on to Mrs. McNeil for her signature.

When the document finally reached Wentworth, the inspector general paused slightly as he picked up his pen.

But he still put pen to paper.

"Next," the lieutenant colonel said, putting the document into the folder on his right.

"Begin distributing the spoils."

He nodded his chin toward Mrs. McNeil.

The medium placed the suitcase on the table and opened the lid.

She took things out of the suitcase in two batches.

The first batch consisted of several small porcelain jars sealed with black wax and tied with a red string.

Each jar has a handwritten label, and a seal is pressed into the corner of the label.

"This batch consists of spellcasting mediums found on the responder."

The medium placed the porcelain jars in the center of the table.

"The remaining grass in the two steel pipes, seven grams of black moss, and three grams of silent fern."

In addition, there were remnants of the outer interface, blood contract paper patterns, rubbings of wheel tracks... a total of seven items.

"This is the first time in the Empire that we have obtained physical evidence of the Echoing Society's true form."

"The Deep Boundary Collection Line is something that the Northern Branch Office has been pursuing for the past few years, but it has previously remained a hypothesis based on intelligence sharing with the Western Continent."

The arrival of this batch of goods today means that, for the first time, this line has been moved from paper to the territory of the Empire.

She pushed it toward Lieutenant Colonel Odd.

"I sealed it up along with the autopsy notes."

Lieutenant Colonel Aude glanced at the labels, said nothing, and simply moved the porcelain jars to the bottom of his right-hand file folder.

"According to the rules, evidence is not included in the distribution of spoils of war," the lieutenant colonel said.

"No one is allowed to touch it until the reply from above comes down."

"Understood," everyone said in unison.

Richard was slightly disappointed.

Mrs. McNeil's words from last night, "If you're interested, you can learn," are still ringing in my ears.

Now, the actual items must be handed over in person.

But he also understood that this was the rule and couldn't be forced.

The medium then took out a second batch from the suitcase.

This batch was packaged in glass jars, and each jar shimmered with a different light under the lamp.

"This is what we shouldn't have left us with during this mission, something that shouldn't have been left behind by the other side."

She pushed the first glass jar to the center of the table.

Inside the jar was a handful of dark gray stone chips, small in size, each with cracks along its edges, looking as if they had been repeatedly folded and flattened.

"The Echoing Stone," the medium explained.

"The debris scraped off the outer ring of the nine-layered stone ring, having been soaked in the sound of death for many years, has rewritten the etheric structure of the stone itself."

"This type of stone chips is not available on the market at all."

The branch office conducts maintenance twice a year, in spring and autumn. They're already lucky to have accumulated such a small number of cases.

Mr. Hutton gave a soft "hmm" from the side.

The old man's fingers, which were holding the teacup, paused for a moment beside the glass jar of the resonant stone.

Lieutenant Colonel Odd handed the jar of resonant stones directly to Mr. Hutton.

The old man did not refuse, took the jar, kept a quarter for himself, and gave some to the two sealers and Mrs. McNeil.

The medium pushed over a second glass jar.

The jar contained a handful of extremely fine, silvery-gray sand.

The color of the sand grains is almost fluid under the light. When you tilt it to the left, a very faint silvery-white layer floats on the surface of the sand, and when you tilt it to the right, it sinks back down.

"Juixingsha."

"That area shouldn't be pitted; it corresponds to the omen of a star hanging low."

"At the surface level, the places where stars hang down usually appear as a kind of 'hanging from top to bottom'."

Its produce also carries this sense of "uncertainty."

"Sand grains themselves cannot be used for combat, but they are an auxiliary material for advanced divination."

A little bit of stardust can also be added to the paste used for crystal ball bases, astrolabe pointers, and tarot card covers.

"In addition, it can also nurture certain rare objects related to 'hanging,' 'reflection,' and 'reflection.'"

She glanced toward Lieutenant Colonel Odd.

The lieutenant colonel tapped his index finger lightly twice on the table.

"Keep two grams in the public account for future use."

The remainder will be distributed according to contribution.

The medium responded and unscrewed the glass jar.

She used a tiny copper spoon to divide the handful of silvery-gray sand into seven portions and spread them on the table.

The three largest portions were given to Lieutenant Colonel Odd, Wentworth, and herself, respectively.

Mr. Hutton, Ms. Maud, and Mr. Spence each received a smaller portion.

The last, smallest one was pushed towards Richard.

"This one is for you."

Richard picked up the small handful of sand from the table.

He thanked them, carefully wrapped the sand in oil paper, and put it into his shoulder bag.

"Next is the etheric condensate."

Mrs. McNeil took out several smaller porcelain jars.

"Two pieces of high-purity condensate were left after the first part of the body was cut apart."

Seven medium-concentration condensates were left behind after the response team's "harmony" and "final notes" dispersed, and several low-concentration condensates were left behind by the Fog Shadow Riot.

She delegated the allocation of this batch to Lieutenant Colonel Ode.

The division of lieutenant colonels is very straightforward.

Two high-purity pieces were given; one was given to Mrs. McNeill (to be used as a vessel for nurturing spirits), and the other was placed in the branch office's account.

The seven medium-concentration pieces were distributed to everyone present according to their contributions.

The low-concentration group will be discounted according to the fieldwork allowance.

Richard also received a piece of medium-concentration condensate, as well as a cash portion of three pounds.

The condensate was wrapped in oiled paper, slightly smaller than a longan, and felt cool and heavy to the touch.

"I have seen all your contributions."

When Lieutenant Colonel Aude pushed the congealed substance in front of Richard, he spoke his first words to Richard that day.

Richard was about to speak.

The lieutenant colonel raised his hand and gestured, meaning "Let me finish speaking first."

"Based on the standard attrition rate, the sacrifice of a professional-level hunter is acceptable within the system."

The lieutenant colonel's steel prosthetic limb made a soft sound on the table.

"But from my personal point of view, every single death counts."

"Your injection pulled Wentworth back from its slump."

Otherwise, given last night's situation, we'd have to sign another compensation document at today's debriefing meeting.

Wentworth nodded at the other end.

"We will keep a record of your contributions. In the future, whatever you need, who you need to find, or what information you need to check, the branch office will give you the green light."

"There is a procurement channel within the branch office."

Mrs. McNeil added from the side:

"It's listed on the inventory list of the Northern Branch Office, specifically for registered employees and trainees."

"Any spellcasting mediums used in teaching, training, and live-fire exercises can be applied for through this line."

The price will be based on market value; it won't be cheap or expensive.

"The key is the source... Every bit of fodder, every piece of ore, and every drop of reagent has been inspected by the General Administration before being put into storage. You can use it with confidence once you have it in your hands."

"Thank you all," Richard said.

The branch office's internal procurement channel—this benefit serves as a resource access point.

There are countless traps lurking in the black market outside.

Although going through procedures is troublesome, "trouble" is better than "traps".

Mr. Hutton coughed softly beside him.

"According to the rules, the meeting should end here today."

The old man turned his gaze to the lieutenant colonel.

"But that picture..."

Lieutenant Colonel Odd's face darkened.

"We'll wait for Manchester City's reply on this matter."

The lieutenant colonel placed his right hand on the table.

"Everyone should keep their mouths shut until Manchester City gives its approval."

Do not spread what happened last night, do not discuss it in private, and do not write it into any unencrypted documents.

"Yes," everyone answered in unison.

Meeting adjourned.

Richard stood up.

He glanced toward Xiao Ma's side.

The boy who had just graduated from military academy was still sitting in the chair in the corner, his eyes vacant.

Richard hesitated for a moment, but in the end said nothing.

There are some things that someone like him, a complete stranger, shouldn't be talking to.

He turned and walked towards the conference room door.

As he walked to the door, Wentworth called out behind him.

Richard, I have something for you.

Richard stopped, and the two walked along the third-floor corridor.

At the end of the corridor, in the center of the wooden door of the room, is the number "307" made of copper nails.

Wentworth pushed the door open.

The room was simply furnished.

A desk, a filing cabinet, and a glass cabinet leaning against the corner.

One of the items was a dagger with an extremely thin blade, and the other was an old pocket watch that had been half-burned.

Several unfinished documents were piled on the desk, the top one titled "Supplementary Application for Pension".

Wentworth didn't let him look at the table any longer.

The head of the inspection team pulled out a palm-sized wooden box from the bottom shelf of the filing cabinet.

He placed the wooden box on the desk and opened the lid.

Inside was a revolver.

Richard's gaze immediately fell on the gun.

This gun is quite different from my police-issue Webley. The barrel is shorter and thicker than the Webley's, and the black blue glaze has a matte sheen under the light.

Each of the six slots on the revolving wheel is embedded with an extremely fine silver wire.

The handle is made of dark brown hardwood, with a small silver nail embedded at the very end.

The silver nail was positioned precisely against the base of the user's palm.

A line of Latin text was engraved on the side of the gun barrel.

Richard read it aloud.

"...ebenum (ebony)."