Life Game In Other World
Chapter 475: Goose Leaves Trace (Big - for Monthly Votes)

Chapter 475: Chapter 475: Goose Leaves Trace (Big Chapter for Monthly Votes)

The sunset’s afterglow gradually vanished at the city’s edge, as the dazzling neon lights came on among the closely packed buildings.

The office, bustling during daytime hours, was now left with empty seats hidden beneath the dim light.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation was one of the few employers in Limen City that allowed its employees to leave work before the sun went down.

Yet, some office lights remained on, belonging to the few who were working overtime.

The office of the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation was among them.

Unlike the relaxed comfort of most employees, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Limen City often worked late into the night.

Nock walked through the dimly lit corridor and stopped at the door of the Director’s office.

Knock— Knock—

He raised his hand and gently knocked on the door.

"Come in."

A slightly weary voice came from inside.

The door of the office slowly opened.

Nock hesitated for a moment before stepping into the office with a slow stride.

"Is there something you need?"

The Director was hunched over his desk, intently scrutinizing the data on his computer screen.

The bright glow of the screen illuminated his cheeks and his polished forehead.

After a moment without a reply, he lifted his head and saw Nock standing before his desk.

He regarded Nock’s hesitant expression, lowered his head again, and asked nonchalantly, "Have you figured it out?"

"Yes," Nock hesitated before speaking softly, "I was too impulsive today. I could have chosen a more gentle approach to get involved in the case investigation. I could have used the power of the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate those materials."

He paused, then added, "Director... thank you..."

"Don’t thank me. I haven’t done anything for you,"

The Director didn’t look up, his fingers dancing across the keyboard as he continued to work through the files.

After finishing his sentence, however, his fingers briefly halted, "Life presents many challenges, but not all will offer you a second chance to correct them. I don’t know what you’ve realized, but I hope that in the future, you’ll retain the level of retrospection and contemplation that you have today before you act."

Nock watched the middle-aged Director in front of him, not quite sure what to say. He eventually nodded gently, "I understand, thank you, Director."

"So, you’ve met the person impersonating ’Zadi’?"

As he heard Nock’s reply, the Director’s typing resumed.

"Director, you know he is..."

Nock was taken aback.

"A man who can kill without blinking an eye and who’s performed many assignments in the Research Institute over several years, he’s either an undercover agent or a bad guy. An undercover doesn’t need to find you, and a bad guy wouldn’t look for you."

The Director continued to type without pause, "Judging from the change in your thinking since you returned from meeting him, the person you met must be quite charismatic and sincerely aiding you. This rules out the possibility of him using you, and naturally, he wouldn’t be Zadi."

Nock was shockingly at a loss for words.

"Growth isn’t just about changing one’s thinking; it also involves continuous learning and accumulation every day. No one becomes superhuman simply by changing their mind."

Director Thorin lifted his head, gazing at Nock’s face.

In that moment, Nock’s perception of the Director, who usually appeared affable and gentle, underwent a complete transformation. He hesitated before saying slowly,

"We went to the Senator’s house today..."

"I don’t know where you went today," the Director looked down again, "you don’t have to tell me, and I don’t want to know. The ’Zadi’ case has been handed over to others. You’re on suspension now; you don’t have to report anything to me."

He paused, then added, "Because you used the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s name to go to the Senator’s house today, you will be disciplined. I’ll notify you of the specifics of your punishment."

Nock opened his mouth, then slowly closed it, swallowing back the words he was about to say.

At that moment his wristband vibrated. He lifted it and looked.

It was a new email from Pete.

The Director was still head-down working, seemingly unaware of his movement.

Nock thought for a moment, then opened the email.

The content was simple: Pete hoped he could obtain the case files related to the assassination of Jeno’s father many years ago.

Nock was stunned.

This ’senior officer’ seemed to have too much faith in him.

All file inquiries at the Federal Bureau of Investigation required authorization, and he had no such clearance to access past case files, especially those regarding sensitive cases such as the assassination of a Senator.

The sound of rapid keyboard tapping reached his ears.

Nock hesitantly looked up towards the Director in front of him.

He was unsure if the Director would support him, as the Director had made it quite clear he did not want to be involved in this matter.

Unlike him, the Director had family, children, and was the support of an entire household.

After a brief moment of thought, he spoke, "Director, I’d like to review the files from the Senator’s assassination forty years ago..."

"Do you want to leave the Major Case Section and go to Records?"

The Director looked up at him.

"What?"

Nock was confused.

"That would be a fitting punishment," the Director took his hands off the keyboard and leaned back in his chair, "but you graduated at the top of your training class. If you go to Records, your career is as good as over."

Without waiting for Nock’s response, he continued, "How about this: I’ll transfer you to Records. Stay there for a while, and depending on your performance later on, we’ll see about bringing you back."

"I..."

Nock was at a loss for words.

"If you have no objections," the Director pulled open a drawer beside him, took out a card stamped with the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s seal from a stack of cards, "this is the key card to the Records room."

He slapped the card down on the desk, "Remember, this key card is valid 24 hours a day, but there’s no staff on duty in the Records room at night. Without colleagues to oversee, it’s best not to enter the Records room alone to prevent file leaks. Also, I will enable your account to access Records later,

"Remember, absolutely do not download any software of dubious origin online, as this could result in your account being hacked, and hackers could obtain your identity verification code through Trojan programs. Thus, hackers could log into your account and read online files.

"Moreover, if your wristband is implanted with a password without your remembrance, and if you forget to cover the camera when entering the Records room, then hackers could use your wristband’s camera to view the paper files stored in the Records room."

Nock stared at the keycard, startled by what he heard.

"You must remember, if the archive room causes a data leak due to a mistake, if it is discovered that it was your fault, then you will be suspended and face punishment."

"However, there is a benefit to the archive room; there is a duty room. If you encounter any problems, you can temporarily stay there, as so far no one dares to come to the Federal Bureau of Investigation to commit murder."

Having said that, the director stretched and continued with his work.

If it’s discovered, there will be punishment.

Which means, if it’s not discovered...

Nock reached for the keycard that had been placed on the desk. He looked at the director, who was focused on his work, hesitated for a moment, and whispered, "Thank you, Director."

This time, the director did not respond; he seemed not to have heard Nock’s words and continued his work with concentration.

Nock glanced at the director, bowed slightly towards him, and then turned towards the office door.

The office door slowly opened once more.

Just as Nock was about to step out, he hesitated, turned around, and asked softly, "Director, why..."

He didn’t finish his sentence, but he knew the director would understand what he meant.

The only response was the clatter of the keyboard and the silent night outside the window.

Nock paused, then slowly turned back and left the office.

When the office door closed again, the director slowly stood up from his chair and stretched.

He turned around to gaze at the brightly lit city outside the window.

On the desk beside him, next to a happy family photo frame, lay two silver medals.

The Federal Silver Star Medal, a moderately difficult award to earn within the Federation, was granted to warriors who had made significant contributions in combating exotic beasts or cult members, or in any task fought for the Federation.

Beside those two silver medals was a storage chip with the face of a somewhat reserved young man printed on it.

It was the promotional documentary chip distributed internally by the Federal Bureau of Investigation about Ande.

The dazzling neon lights reflected in Thorin’s eyes.

Who hasn’t been young before.

——

"Judging by the level of decay in this grass root, the plant has been dead for at least fifteen years,"

Roger carefully examined the grass root that He Ao had brought out from Janos’s underground garden, pondering.

"If the information I’ve obtained is correct, this plant has been completely neglected for about forty years,"

He Ao, sitting on the sofa, spoke softly.

"That’s unlikely," Roger thought for a moment and shook his head, "This is Dream Bellflower, a more common Transcendent ornamental plant with a lifespan between seven to eight years; it can’t live past ten years."

He hesitated, "It’s not entirely impossible, though. If a Priest of the Life Goddess was blessing it with the Life Goddess’s Blessing during its growth, it could potentially live beyond fifteen years."

"So, you’re saying that with the continuous nourishment of Life Force, the life of this plant could be significantly extended?"

He Ao propped his face with his hand, gazing at the grass root.

He recalled the intense life force he had felt in that underground garden and pondered, "What if we replace the priest of the Life Goddess with the Fountain of Youth?"

"Then perhaps it could last much longer."

Roger too fell into thought, "Given the life force of the Fountain of Youth, even after the Fountain has been drained, this plant might live for several decades."

He Ao sat on the couch, once again deep in thought.

There were no traces of a spring being dug out from the ground in that underground garden; if the Fountain of Youth had truly been there, then was it transported from somewhere else?

What role then had Jeno’s father played in it?

Considering the vitality of that underground garden, even if it hadn’t contained the Fountain of Youth, it must have hosted some other high, life-force-bearing presence.

Of course, the most probable was still the Fountain of Youth.

After all, the Fountain of Youth seems to be the highest echelon of life-affiliated entities in Limen City; even if there were other higher beings, they would likely be connected to the Fountain in some way.

Moreover, if Jeno’s father had really summoned a Higher Being, or if he himself was one, it wouldn’t have been so easy for him to die.

Considering the crimson stains mixed with the soil, the original murder scene of Jeno’s father might not have been the three-way intersection where the body was discovered.

Just then, He Ao’s wristband vibrated; an email from Nock.

He opened the email, which contained an extensive file on the Senator assassination case of years past.

In addition to that, Nock had sent his own account and password, and also the gist of what Director Thorin had told him before.

In fact, He Ao had already roughly figured out Director Thorin’s general attitude from Nock’s description.

Director Thorin had his own notion of justice, but he wasn’t just an individual; he had responsibilities towards his family and, in his position as the head of a Federal Bureau of Investigation branch, to his superiors as well.

He wasn’t like Nock, a young man on his own, carrying various types of responsibilities on his shoulders.

But he would still help Nock, or more precisely, He Ao who was investigating the Research Institute case behind Nock, as far as he was able.

This was also the reason why He Ao directly asked Nock for the case files; he wasn’t really asking Nock, but inquiring through him to Director Thorin.

The end result was as He Ao had expected; Nock managed to send the files over.

He Ao had Eve forge hacker clues following Director Thorin’s hints and then replied to Nock’s email,

[Stay in the Federal Bureau of Investigation and don’t go out. I’ll take care of the rest.]

Nock was still too young and not yet fully grown.

This was the consensus between He Ao and Director Thorin, so Director Thorin arranged a job for Nock that would allow him to stay put in the Federal Bureau of Investigation, while He Ao took responsibility for advising him as a ’senior’.

Nock would certainly feel rebellious, but he would listen to the advice of He Ao, who had earlier left a profound impression on him.

This was the tacit understanding between He Ao and the ’Director’ he had never met.

After sending the email to Nock, He Ao turned his attention to the case files concerning the Senator’s death in the past.

The content of the files was immensely rich, filled with a multitude of photos from the scene and various testimonies.

He Ao started reading from the very beginning of the files.

Soon, parts of the files confirmed the guesses he had made moments before.

The initial murder scene of the Senator from years ago wasn’t at the three-way intersection, but inside the underground garden.