The next day.
Louis arrived at the Security Bureau as planned to report for duty.
Thanks to yesterday’s string of incidents, he had been successfully transferred to the Criminal Investigation Special Response Team under Zhu Yuan.
He was now a newly hired temporary worker.
He still wasn’t qualified to enter Hollows on his own.
New recruits needed guidance from experienced seniors first, and Zhu Yuan was the perfect person for the job.
“Yo, Lou.
How’s your head feeling?”
Qingyi was already in the office.
The moment Louis pushed the door open and walked in, she smiled and came over.
Her expression shifted into that cute =ω= face.
“Thank you for your concern, Senior.
I’m fine.”
Louis smiled back at Qingyi.
Even though the girl didn’t look entirely human, he had long since gotten used to dealing with all kinds of strange beings.
In this world, intelligent machines were common, and so were demi-humans.
Most of them had animal ears and tails.
They were the cute type.
“As expected of the ‘Durable King.’ With you around, we’ll finally have a proper meat shield.”
Qingyi gave Louis a firm nod, acknowledging his new title.
Zhu Yuan’s side kick wasn’t something just anyone could take.
The last guy who blocked it lost all his teeth and spent several days in the hospital.
His brain was practically scrambled.
When Zhu Yuan kicked, she went all out.
“Criminal Investigation Special Response Team…
Just the three of us?”
Louis looked around the spacious office.
There were plenty of desks, but very few people.
“Actually, there are four.
You’re the temp.
Jane and Seth are out on a mission right now.”
Qingyi explained the team’s structure.
Besides Captain Zhu Yuan, there were three other members, each handling different duties.
Zhu Yuan didn’t just manage the Special Response Team.
She also handled traffic control, anti-terrorism, robbery cases, and pretty much everything else a police officer dealt with.
She was doing the work of five or six people on a single salary.
Even a donkey grinding away at a millstone would shed tears if it saw her schedule.
“Alright.
I hope I can become a full-time employee soon.”
Before long, Zhu Yuan called both him and Qingyi into the Special Response Team’s conference room for their daily morning meeting.
“It’s morning meeting time.
Before we start work, let’s go over recent events.”
Zhu Yuan placed several documents on the table, her expression serious.
Since Louis was new, she made sure to go over some precautions that weren’t usually mentioned.
“You should already know the basics about Hollows and Temporary Hollows.
They’re like an earthquake and its aftershocks.
Temporary Hollows always appear near the six major existing Hollows.
Our job is to stop the disaster from spreading further.”
“Studies show that lowering the activity of Ethereals inside a Hollow also reduces the Hollow’s activity.
That means we have to regularly go in and clear them out to prevent the Hollow from expanding.”
Zhu Yuan got straight to the point, laying out the dangers Louis would face in the future.
It wasn’t like they could just sit around drinking tea at the bureau if no crimes happened inside the Hollows.
They had to periodically enter and risk their lives to keep the Hollows from growing.
This was one of the main reasons the Security Bureau had such a high mortality rate among new recruits.
“Question.
If we eliminate all the Ethereals inside a Temporary Hollow, will the Temporary Hollow disappear?”
Louis raised his hand and asked.
If clearing Ethereals could stop a Hollow from expanding, then logically, wiping them all out might remove the Hollow’s power source entirely.
“Theoretically, yes.
But the resources and casualties required would be far more than the Security Bureau could handle.
For a single person to achieve that…
only the legendary seven Void Hunters could pull it off.”
Zhu Yuan gave Louis a strange look.
It was possible in theory, but no one was willing to try.
The threat of a Temporary Hollow wasn’t actually that severe, but completely erasing one took far more effort than simply containing it.
In any case, the Special Response Team couldn’t do it.
What surprised her was why a complete rookie like Louis would even ask something like that.
At most, he could handle sparring with a few Ethereals.
Thinking about clearing an entire Hollow was like trying to run before you could walk.
At that point, Zhu Yuan introduced the concept of the seven Void Hunters.
Louis, being new, didn’t really understand, so he glanced at Qingyi, who was slacking off at the conference table.
“Ah, those monsters…
The legendary Void Hunters.”
Qingyi spoke lazily while lying on the table.
She had entered power-saving mode.
No need to waste energy, so she looked completely unmotivated.
“You might not have heard of one named Wan Zhou, but you’ve definitely used the Bangboo she invented.”
“So she’s an inventor?
“She once successfully dissolved a named Hollow.”
Qingyi lifted her head and smiled at him.
Louis felt a surge of respect.
Temporary Hollows were usually just called by their parent Hollow.
If dozens appeared every day, the people in charge of naming them would go crazy.
Only the particularly powerful and high-ranking Hollows received actual names.
“Amazing.”
Louis thought that the seven Void Hunters were probably the pinnacle of combat power in this world.
If humanity ever conquered the Hollows one day, it would be thanks to people like them.
Maybe even himself one day.
“Our Security Bureau’s work also includes preventing ordinary civilians from entering Hollows.
People without sufficient adaptability will eventually turn into Ethereals if they go inside.”
Zhu Yuan continued the meeting without any annoyance at Louis interrupting with questions.
She was a very patient superior.
“Will anyone actually go in?”
Louis asked, confused.
The dangers of Hollows were broadcast on TV every day.
Who in their right mind would still want to enter?
“Don’t underestimate the Hollow Raiders.
Those criminals love running inside.
They’d rather gamble on whether they have adaptability than get caught and locked up by us.”
Qingyi pouted, clearly unhappy.
She and Zhu Yuan often chased Hollow Raiders into the Hollows.
Every time they went in, they had no idea what they’d face.
They’d survived this long through a mix of skill and sheer luck.
“So we usually follow the Hollow Raiders inside.
On one hand, to catch them.
On the other, if they transform into Ethereals, it speeds up the Hollow’s expansion.”
Zhu Yuan added that if Hollow Raiders fled into a Hollow, they had no choice but to pursue them.
Letting them escape caused problems.
Catching them caused problems too.
“It feels a bit…
complicated.”
Louis was left somewhat speechless.
The criminals in this world really were on another level.
They’d rather risk their lives than spend a few years behind bars.
Every last one of them was a ruthless character with their life on the line.