Enforcer Manual
Chapter 679: Your Ability_1

Chapter 679: Chapter 679: Your Ability_1

"The Sinful Tree?"

Yaku perked up, took the nutrition injection the girl passed to him, and stuck it into the infusion port on his arm.

Given his identity, he should not have accepted an untraceable nutrition injection, but what was imperative at that moment was to regain his strength. The appellation made him recall the creature, resembling a tree, he had encountered in the sewers. If it had already been there for a while, then the situation could be much more serious than he had imagined.

"That’s the name I gave it, and it exists somewhere in the sewers."

The girl said, "You came from above, so you must have heard about the disappearances of people in The First Region, right?"

Several years earlier, the rate of disappearances in The First Region had been among the highest within the United Government, surpassing even most border cities with extremely high crime rates.

But because The First Region was tangled with too many powers, and institutions like the Counter-Intelligence Department and Military Intelligence Section Seven—who were fond of inviting people for tea without much ado—few paid close attention to these issues. They were generally considered results of factional strife, and for the average worker, all they heard was about a colleague reassigned to another city due to work arrangements.

"According to my investigation, over sixty percent of the disappearances in The First Region had their victims becoming nutrients for that tree."

"What did you say?"

"For several years now, someone has been surreptitiously feeding it, using the disappearances as sacrifices, luring them into the sewers."

The girl’s expression seemed genuine, "And I’ve been observing that tree’s patterns. Whenever it finishes feeding, it disappears until the day the next prey appears."

"If you know this much, why haven’t you reported this to the Review Meeting?"

Yaku couldn’t help but retort. If a Six Stars rescuer were involved in the investigation, they should have been able to quickly root out the so-called "Sinful Tree," and a tragedy like today’s could have been averted.

At these words, however, the girl just scoffed.

Rather than answering, she posed a question, "Think about it, why did you come to this place today?"

"Of course, it’s because of an incident nearby, and the company sent me to investigate..."

As he spoke, Yaku seemed to finally understand why the girl had asked that, stopping abruptly before asking, "The company didn’t send support?"

"No, and if I’m not wrong, this person should be the one who was in contact with you earlier, right?"

She handed over a piece of paper with only one name written on it.

"...How did you know?"

"He’s already dead, having jumped from a building more than seventy stories high."

The girl glanced at the old-fashioned radio in the corner of the room. Though she had lived many years below ground, it didn’t mean she was unaware of the surface world’s happenings, "I also know you’re a Five Stars rescuer, and I believe there are many people above looking for you right now."

To answer Yaku’s questions, she rummaged through a pile of miscellaneous items and then brought out a button-sized seal. Its pattern made Yaku almost blurt out, "You’re with Military Intelligence Section Seven?"

"To be precise, former Military Intelligence Section Seven. According to their records, I should have died in the line of duty a long time ago."

The ruby-like glint in the girl’s eyes revealed a flicker of resentment, "I once submitted my investigative findings, and this is what I got in return. What you are about to face is not just the ’Sinful Tree’ but also those who feed it from the shadows, those people..."

The girl’s voice suddenly cut off.

For she unmistakably felt a thick liquid dripping onto her shoulder. Turning her head, what met her eyes were black, glossy droplets, resembling resin.

She immediately knocked the black resin to the ground, her eyes conveying a trace of panic, and she asked with an urgent tone, "What did you do when you encountered that tree before? Did you interrupt its feeding?"

"...Are you referring to rescuing someone?"

"I should have known!"

Annoyed with herself, the girl stomped her foot and quickly made her way to Yaku’s side, propping up his shoulder, "Hurry, this place isn’t safe!"

Even Yaku now noticed the changes on the wall.

The previously smooth surface had begun to show slow-spreading, biomatter-like veins, with tendrils gradually blocking the exit to the outside world. Rows of serrated spines barred their path.

"It’s very hungry, and very angry now."

Ordinarily, after a feeding, the "Sinful Tree" would disappear for 7–15 days, but this time Yaku had interrupted its process, "It must have followed your scent here."

The girl supported Yaku with her left hand, while her right hand moved gracefully through the air as if playing the piano, severing the bone spines blocking their path with heated filaments.

Yaku, surprised, blurted out, "You’re also a Psychic?"

"It’s monomolecular wire, you’re so clueless!"

"You just said the tree is angry... will it chase after us?"

"I don’t know, no one has ever interrupted its feeding before, and please talk less to conserve your strength."

The girl had to consider their next move.

They couldn’t stay in the sewers any longer. Despite the risk of being detected by Military Intelligence Section Seven and the Counter-Intelligence Department, they had to make it back to the surface.

But then...

She turned to glance once more at the abode where she had lived for many years.

She had written down all of her research on the "Sinful Tree" there; the reason she hid her identity and stayed here for so long was to reveal the true faces of those who fed it.

"Pick up the pace, we’re getting out..."

The sight outside the passage once again interrupted her thoughts.

At that moment, she truly understood what an angry "Sinful Tree" would do—the ground beneath her feet was no longer the floor of the sewer, but a collapsing mass of roots oozing black liquid. Unbeknownst to them, these black roots had already obscured the entire space outside the passage.

Roads, walls, ceilings, even the water had been stained black.

And now it was as if they were inside the belly of this tree.

Her ankles were becoming increasingly heavy.

With each step she took forward, the roots tried to entwine around her ankles to drag her whole body down—she had once witnessed the tree eat; it always liked to wrap its vines around its prey’s body while they were still conscious, letting them sink little by little into the intricate tangle of branches and sprouts.

It seemed to enjoy letting its food watch their own bodies being dissolved and absorbed as nutrients.

"The nearest exit from here is still... 50 meters away."

A deep sense of powerlessness surfaced in the girl’s heart. The searing monomolecular wire cut repeatedly through the roots that surged towards them, but it couldn’t keep up with their rate of healing and growth.

The tree hadn’t stopped growing.

The ground and ceiling were closing in at a visibly rapid pace, the entire space shrinking as more and more roots compressed it, and they were like food that had fallen into the belly of a predator, with a 50-meter distance as impassable as a chasm to them.

The girl realized clearly that with just her legs and feet, she would never reach the other side, long since devoured.

She could only place her last hope on the half-dead Yaku she was supporting. "You’re a Five Stars rescuer, aren’t you?"

"Yes."

"I’m asking you, can you fly?"

It was a remarkably abrupt question, but Yaku gave a wry smile, "Maybe I can..."

He measured the distance between them and the exit.

Earlier, he had used this method to escape the pursuing roots and get outside before the passage completely closed, but that’s why he knew very well his current physical state wouldn’t allow him to remain stable mid-air, let alone while carrying another person.

The price of a failed landing would be like casting himself into the net, falling into those roots and voluntarily becoming nourishment for the Sinful Tree.

However, if he stayed put and focused all his energy on ensuring a smooth landing for the girl, it might just give them a sliver of chance to survive.

"If you don’t trust the Military Intelligence Section Seven or the Review Meeting, after you leave this place, go find a Six Stars rescuer named Jasmine."

What a rotten day.

Yaku gazed at the passage that was getting narrower before him and let out a long sigh.

It seems that fortune-teller did have some skill.

"Wait a minute, you’re not thinking of..."

The girl caught on to the deeper meaning in Yaku’s words before she could say more, she was interrupted, "Listen up, I am a proud Six Stars candidate, and it’d be too much of a failure if I can’t save even one person in a single day! The plan is this, I will use my ability to..."

The words fell away.

A gentle evening breeze blew over them, also dispelling the stench of the sewer.

Yaku seemed to hear the sound of car tires.

Turning toward the noise, he saw a luxury car pass by them, driving forward.

A blank in his consciousness lasted for several seconds, and when that blank ceased, a sudden wave of panic and unrest washed over him.

What just happened?

If he remembered correctly, he was explaining his plan to the girl; he would use a barrier to eject her and try his best to ensure she landed smoothly.

But why had he suddenly appeared here, tens of meters from the sewer exit?

The girl beside him was staring at him with an incredulous look.

"Your ability... what on earth is it?"

Clearly, it wasn’t only them who had experienced a lapse in consciousness.

Yaku clearly saw the driver of the luxury car swerve violently, steering the vehicle straight onto the sidewalk.

Not far from them, a briefcase-carrying office worker sat down hard in front of a lamp post-style billboard, clutching his face and letting out a wail.

He also saw a drone smash through the company’s glass window, flying straight into an office, while the person controlling the drone slipped and tumbled down the stairs.

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