Asura in Arknights

"Okay, that's fine. It contains a sample of volcanic rock. Just be careful not to break it." Li Ang replied, shaking his arm as he put his hand down.

Another military policeman crouched down, looked through the contents of the package, and then looked up and said, "Captain, there's a stone inside."

"Then return the package to this gentleman."

"Thank you."

Feeling the package placed in his arms, Li Ang nodded slightly in acknowledgment. "Speaking of which, what happened around here? Why are you military police here?"

Generally speaking, except for a few locations within the city, the military police are stationed along with the towers on the outskirts of the mobile city, and the police station can handle most of the things that happen in the city.

And these two military police officers just said... they were here on a mission, tracking down suspicious persons?

Has something major happened in Brandenburg in the last couple of days that required the deployment of the military police?

Upon hearing Li Ang's question, the military police captain subconsciously frowned. He originally wanted to refuse sternly, but then he thought about it again.

The person in front of me... has a formal identity document issued by the council and has not been registered as an infected person. He can be said to be the cleanest person in Bradenburg, apart from the nobles, and is also a blind person who needs help from others.

After hesitating for a moment, the military police captain finally decided to reveal some information that could be disclosed: "I can't tell you the specifics, but a dangerous sorcerer has infiltrated this area, and we are doing everything we can to find him. If there are no leads in a few days, the council will issue a city-wide warrant for his arrest."

"You'd better stay away from here for a while, or you might run into that ruthless guy."

Adele hesitated for a long time when registering Li Ang's identity information.

Letania is a land of sorcerers, with a large number of sorcerers accidentally infected with Oripathy. Naturally, the laws governing infected people here are not as harsh as in other regions.

However, there are still differences.

Li Ang's symptoms were also very unusual. The density of Originium crystals in his blood was shockingly low, and the crystals in his eyes were also different from those of ordinary infected people. Unless someone could gouge out his eyeballs and take them for testing, conventional methods could not detect his Oripathy.

But who would treat a poor blind person like that?

So, quite simply, Li Ang passed the infected person test. He even went so far as to deliberately incorporate some Originium particles into his blood sample to avoid his blood analysis results being too outrageous.

Finally, with Adele's help, Leon acquired a near-perfect identity.

"Thank you for your warning. I just came here temporarily and I probably won't be coming back anytime soon."

"However... I have another favor to ask of you two officers." Li Ang scratched his cheek, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "Actually, I'm lost. Could you two officers lead me out of here?"

Li Ang could feel the captain's lips twitch noticeably.

……

Finally, the two military police officers led Li Ang out of the West District.

Seeing that Li Ang's figure had disappeared from sight, the military policeman asked the captain, "Captain, what should we do now? Should we go back?"

“…Go back and continue the investigation.” The captain took a deep breath and then said, “The Tower takes this matter very seriously. If it’s not handled properly, it might even alarm Her Majesty the Queen.”

"We probably won't have time to rest until we catch that damn thief and get the stuff back."

The military police complained a few times, but that was all.

He then followed the captain toward the West District.

However, before they could take two steps, the captain stumbled, as if he had tripped over something.

"Captain, watch out!"

The team members behind him quickly supported him.

"Damn it, what the hell is that?"

The two looked down and discovered that a crack had appeared in the paving stones by the roadside, and a dark tree root was growing out of it, lying right in front of them.

The captain cursed, "Damn it, how many times has this happened? Where did these rotten tree roots come from?"

"The vegetation in the city seems to be growing very well lately, but hasn't anyone from the municipal government come to trim it?"

The two military policemen returned to the West District cursing and swearing, while Li Ang, who had been eavesdropping from a distance, also overheard some useful information.

"Hmph... Did something important get stolen, and the thief hides in the West District?" Li Ang raised an eyebrow. "That's certainly a good place to hide, but... it's none of my business."

Chapter Twenty-Six: Prelude

After leaving the West District, Li Ang was very familiar with the roads ahead; he had already traveled them many times in the past week.

When Li Ang rushed back to the family quarters of William University, the sun had already sunk halfway below the horizon. He had originally planned to relax somewhere else today, but by the time he finished dealing with Adele's matter, the sun was almost setting.

Or it was because he wasted too much time looking for directions in the West District.

But whatever, it's already this late, and Li Ang isn't in the mood to wander around outside anymore. He takes the sample back and gives it to Adele, and that's the end of the day.

William University treated the Nauman family very well, allocating them one of the few detached villas in the family housing area.

That makes sense. Aside from being relatively inexperienced, Mr. and Mrs. Nauman are already considered to be at the dean level. Once the current dean of the Originium Arts Academy retires, Mr. Nauman might very well be the next dean.

Adele inherited their talents and even surpassed them. They were basically tied to William Academy, so giving their family this kind of treatment was not excessive at all.

Taking the key out of his pocket, Li Ang clicked open the villa's door.

The key was given to him by Adele. Adele sometimes went to the library to look up information that couldn't be borrowed and wouldn't stay at home all the time. To avoid trouble, Adele simply gave Leon the spare key to her house.

From this perspective, Adele's level of trust in him is quite high. Perhaps after the attack that night, Adele completely let down her guard against Leon.

"Adele, are you home?"

Upon entering the villa, Li Ang called out casually, but received no response from Adele.

The villa was quiet, with only the ticking of the huge grandfather clock in the living room.

Did she go to the library again? Slightly puzzled, Li Ang slowed his pace and went up the stairs to the second floor of the villa, arriving at Adele's room.

Li Ang gently pushed open the door and saw the girl lying on the table, breathing softly.

Yes, that's true... Li Ang has seen how hard Adele has worked during this time.

Although she never said it, the fatigue that accumulates in the body is not so easy to eliminate, and if you really think about it, Adele's health is not particularly good.

She has already worked very hard.

The warm sunset cast its glow on the floor, filling the room with the unique fragrance of wooden furniture. Adele's serene sleeping face made it impossible to disturb her.

This scene must look beautiful now.

Unfortunately, Li Ang didn't have the tools to record all of this, nor could he see this scene. All he could perceive was a cold, black-and-white image.

For the first time, Li Ang felt a deep sense of regret because of the deficiency in his perception of vision.

Let Adele rest for a while; I shouldn't bother her at a time like this.

Thinking this, Li Ang quietly stepped back.

Just as Li Ang was about to leave Adele's room, a very faint, dreamlike voice drifted over.

"Lyon? Is that you?"

Li Ang stopped what he was doing.

Unbeknownst to her, Adele had quietly opened her eyes, leaning on her desk and tilting her head as she looked at Li Ang at the doorway.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up," Li Ang said somewhat apologetically.

"Ugh..." Adele rubbed her eyes, stood up and stretched. "I woke up on my own. It feels like I slept for a very long time."

"The sun is about to set," Li Ang reminded him.

"Is it already this late?" Adele was startled.

"Oh no! My thesis!"

Remembering what she had been doing before falling asleep, Adele hurriedly turned around and rummaged through her desk.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the several sheets of paper on the table filled with writing.

Although she accidentally slept until this time, thankfully she finished all her tasks for the day and didn't fall behind much.

Seeing Adele's flustered state, Leon couldn't help but smile. "Adele, I've brought back the sample you requested. Is this it?"

As he spoke, Li Ang handed the package in his hand to Adele.

Adele opened the package, carefully touched the surface of the rock, and then nodded. "This is it."

"In this way, we have the last material needed for the paper."

Adele placed the volcanic rock sample on the desk and said softly, "Thank you."

“It’s nothing,” Li Ang shook his head and replied.

As for getting lost in Xicheng District... let's not talk about it.

"By the way, Adele, what exactly is this rock?" Putting aside his previous embarrassing incident, Leon asked with some curiosity, "This shouldn't be an ordinary volcanic rock sample, right?"

If Li Ang remembers correctly, Adele conducted on-site research on the volcano in Dua Town before.

If Adele wanted a regular volcanic rock sample, there was no need for all that trouble; she could have just collected it in Duva.

There must be something special about the sample that Li Ang just brought back.

“You’re right, this is definitely not an ordinary volcanic rock sample.”

Adele nodded and replied, "To be precise, this is a newly formed Originium vein."

-------------------------------------

It was very late at night, and there wasn't a soul in sight on the street.

The West District is no longer as bustling as it was during the day. Most of the military police who were patrolling the area have returned to their camps to rest, with only a small number still patrolling at night.

At this moment, all was quiet.

Inside Mr. Austin's apartment, the music had long since stopped, and the expensive phonograph had not escaped the young man's clutches. After losing its usefulness, it was roughly dismantled into pieces and scattered everywhere.

He couldn't use music to cover up his actions at night; that would only provoke the neighbors to come knocking on the door in even greater anger.

What young people need most right now is time.

Inside the collection room, Mr. Austin's body had been laid down, and several wounds on his body had been covered with a pale green bud. His chest was rising and falling slightly, making him look as if he were still alive.

In the living room, the young man paced back and forth anxiously, but he had to be careful not to wake his sleeping neighbors. However, these concerns only made him feel more frustrated.

Finally, the young man abruptly stopped, his bloodshot eyes widening.

"We can't wait any longer."

During the day, the young man had already observed the military police conducting a search of the apartments across the street. It might be tomorrow, or it might be dawn, before they start searching this area.

Although these were all stupid things Austin did, he is now also involved in them.

"This is the only way... we can buy ourselves a few more days."

The young man finally made up his mind and prepared to try something dangerous.

"The traitors of the twins are still asleep. I'll miss my chance once they wake up."

The young man moved his finger, and Austin's corpse on the ground sprang up as if electrocuted, twitching incessantly.

As large amounts of white foam spilled from the corners of his mouth, Austin's body gradually quieted down.

Suddenly, the corpse opened its eyes, which were now only white, and turned its grim, grotesque face toward the young man beside it.

The scene unfolding in the darkness was chilling; the moon in the night sky withdrew its last ray of light due to the arrival of dark clouds, leaving only a hoarse voice echoing in the shadows.

"I am Austin...I am Austin..."

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Learning Makes Me Happy

Since that day, time has passed little by little.

During this period, nothing major happened in Brandenburg, and the only noteworthy event had nothing to do with Li Ang.

The council chamber issued a nationwide arrest warrant, offering a huge reward from the Tower to anyone who provides information leading to their arrest.

It is said that the newspaper also published a photo of the wanted criminal, but this was of no use to Li Ang, since he could not see what the person in the photo actually looked like.

Ordinary people rely on observing features such as appearance and physique to identify a person's identity, while Li Ang relies on the energy fluctuations emanating from each person.

Just like fingerprints and irises, in Li Ang's perception, the fluctuations emitted by each person are completely different. At least so far, Li Ang has never found two people whose fluctuations are exactly the same.

Therefore, even if Li Ang coveted the bounty, he had no incentive to search for the wanted criminal.

Li Ang quickly put the matter out of his mind and continued his painful job search, repeatedly going through the process of attending interviews and being rejected.

Actually, not all interviews were rejected. The few successful interviews either offered extremely low salaries, which were not enough to support Li Ang's expenses, or they simply wanted to take advantage of him and squeeze out all his remaining value before kicking him to the curb.

Those people's greed and malice were so blatant that Li Ang didn't bother to say another word to them.