Chapter 31: Exclusive Supply

Dusk had fallen.

The sky was vast and boundless, yet divided into two starkly contrasting canvases. To the west, the sunset burned with an intense, fiery brilliance. To the east, however, all was tranquil and profound; deep, somber blues intertwined with faint hues of gray, across which a few pinpricks of light streaked before vanishing into the infinite blue-gray expanse.

The massive crater near the moon's south pole remained a startling sight. A dense trail of meteorites, resembling a coiled serpent, stretched from the crater all the way to the moon's near-earth orbit.

In Shichuan City, the streetlights along the roads had flickered to life. Above the sidewalks on both sides, colorful holographic advertisements began to dance, vying for the attention of passing pedestrians.

"Is it already past six? Time to get to work," Wakaba said as she emerged from a restaurant, checking the time.

She intended to head home, retrieve her gun, and go out to take on jobs. On her way, the streets were a tangle of vehicles and pedestrians. Holographic projections were everywhere, and young women dressed in provocative attire were already standing by the roadside, handing out flyers.

While waiting at a crosswalk, Wakaba caught sight of a news report playing on the wall of an office building across the street. It was a follow-up on the fire that had gutted a branch office of the Cohen Group the previous day. The report stated that the Public Security Bureau had determined the cause to be a programming error. The programmer in charge of the building’s security protocols was currently being interrogated and had confessed that the fire was a result of his own negligence. The screen displayed the wretched state of the building—charred black, with nothing left but its skeletal frame.

Wakaba glanced at it with fleeting curiosity before looking away and following the crowd across the crosswalk toward home.

Suddenly, she arched an eyebrow. "Wait, the Dean is summoning me? Something's wrong."

With that thought, her consciousness returned to her physical body.

***

Miyagi Hyakka Academy.

The flower arrangement class had already concluded, but Wakaba had been detained by a woman who looked to be in her thirties with a cold, indifferent expression. Dressed in a long black gown, she looked like a nun.

Wakaba recognized her as Miss Yuko, the Dean’s assistant, who held a position of high authority within the academy. She insisted that Wakaba accompany her to see the Dean, claiming the Dean had matters to discuss with her. With no other choice, Wakaba had to follow her toward the Dean's office while still wearing her heavy ceremonial kimono.

The Dean’s office was located within the futuristic complex at the heart of the academy. From the outside, the buildings appeared seamless, as if cast from a single piece, connected to one another by entirely enclosed cylindrical corridors.

Wakaba entered the Dean’s building and arrived at the familiar sandalwood doors. Once Yuko opened them, she was met with the Dean’s piercing gaze.

Yuko entered first and stood rigidly behind Yoko Toki. Wakaba crept inside and bowed respectfully. "Wakaba greets the Dean!"

Dean Toki looked silently at the door. The girl was breathtakingly beautiful, her petite, delicate frame enveloped in the heavy, ornate ceremonial robes. The V-neckline of the dress revealed a graceful, elegant neck, and her hair, dark as a storm cloud, cascaded down to her waist. Her beautiful eyes held a timid look, like the purest gems in the world.

The hem of her gown trailed on the floor; though it appeared thick and heavy, it featured a front-slit design that allowed her light, slender legs to be glimpsed with every step, a sight that tugged at the heartstrings.

"Do you know why I summoned you?" her voice was frigid.

"I don't," Wakaba shook her small head, her stunning, innocent face looking completely bewildered.

Dean Toki tapped the air above her desk, opening a video file on her holographic computer interface. The video played in mid-air. It was a recording of Wakaba dancing, and at the top, it was labeled with something like "The New Generation Flower of Miyagi Hyakka Academy..."

"Wakaba, do you have any explanation for this video?" Toki’s voice was low, her eyes like arrows piercing into Wakaba.

"I, I..." Wakaba nibbled her soft, pink lip, hesitating for a moment before lifting her head with a look of heroic sacrifice. "If you want me to betray my friends, then I advise you to give up on that idea! I, Wakaba, will never betray my friends! Even if you expel me, I won't say a word!"

Watching the girl's spirited, beautiful expression, Yoko Toki couldn't help but sigh and rub her forehead. *This idiot—she's being sold out and is still helping them count the money!*

"We already know the source of this video is Dr. Kijima Hara-ai from the Medical Department..."

"It isn't her!" Wakaba raised her head, frantically denying it. But her exquisite, world-class face clearly betrayed a sense of panic.

"You don't need to defend her. She has confessed to her crimes: secretly inciting students to film private videos and selling them outside the academy. We have already handed her over to the Procuratorate..."

As Yoko Toki spoke, she saw Wakaba’s blank expression and remembered that the girl didn't know what the Procuratorate was. "...You can think of it as the Public Security Bureau."

Upon hearing this, Wakaba wilted like a shriveled eggplant, lowering her head in deep disappointment. "Will Dr. Kijima be alright?"

"You're still worried about her?" Yoko Toki was speechless. "The last time you were kidnapped and nearly died out there, it was all but confirmed that she was colluding with the bandits... and you're still worried about her?"

"Dr. Kijima isn't that kind of person. She must have had some hidden hardship," Wakaba blurted out.

Looking at the girl who was beautiful but undeniably dim-witted, Yoko Toki felt a pang of regret for having summoned her to investigate. She truly suspected that someone could lure this fool away with a single lollipop, and she would probably end up helping them count their earnings afterward.

"Go back now... Oh, tomorrow, you are to go on an internship outside the academy with some of the senior students," Yoko Toki said.

"An internship? An internship for what?" Wakaba had heard senior students talking about internships in the academy, but she didn't know what they entailed.

"An internship in what you've been learning. Yuko will be going with you; just follow her arrangements." With that, Yoko Toki waved a hand, dismissing Wakaba.

Once Wakaba had left, Yuko, who was standing beside her, couldn't help but speak up. "Dean, it's one thing for ordinary students to go on internships, but why must Wakaba go as well?"

Yoko Toki sighed deeply. "There's no choice. That Lord helped us during the operation to rescue Wakaba, and again in rooting out Kijima Hara-ai as a mole... We owe that person too many favors; we cannot refuse."

"Which 'Lord' is powerful enough to make you unable to refuse, Dean?"

"Who do you think?"

Yuko froze at the question, her pupils constricting. "Shichuan City... Could it be that Lord?"

Dean Toki did not answer, which was a clear confirmation.

"If it is that Lord, then indeed, you would be unable to refuse," Yuko said. Then, a look of worry crossed her face. "If it were just a normal internship, that would be fine, but what if that Lord decides to do something to Wakaba..."

"Rest assured, that Lord has guaranteed that nothing will happen to Wakaba; it is merely a standard internship," Yoko Toki said. She gave Yuko a meaningful look and added in a deep voice, "Besides, do you think that Lord lacks the sense to know what can and cannot be done? Remember, if the Imperial family grows angry, even we small figures would struggle to escape the fallout, but could that Lord truly remain unaffected?"

"That is true," Yuko nodded. Nobles, after all, valued their own lives.

"Furthermore, in addition to Wakaba, the other students going on the internship tomorrow are there to be appraised by that Lord. I believe he will be satisfied," Yoko Toki added.

Yuko was shocked. "While it wouldn't be too conspicuous if a few mediocre students were appraised, the students going tomorrow are not mediocre. If the inspectors from above find out..."

"What if they do find out?" Yoko Toki glanced at her, her tone flat. "While it is theoretically true that the students of Miyagi Hyakka Academy are exclusively for the Imperial family, there are so many branches, and thousands of outstanding students. In the end, only the top students from each academy catch the eyes of the royals. As for the others who are weeded out, don't they end up with other nobles anyway? I am simply accelerating the process."

"I understand, Dean," Yuko nodded.

Yoko Toki waved her away, instructing her to prepare thoroughly for tomorrow's internship, ensuring there were no mistakes and that the Lord was left satisfied. Her motivation was twofold: firstly, the Lord’s status and influence; and secondly, the reward he offered was simply too great—so great that failing to be proactive would be a disrespect to her own future.