Enforcer Manual
Chapter 701 - 699: Beware of the Evil Spirit_1

Chapter 701: Chapter 699: Beware of the Evil Spirit_1

Mr. Hog watched the movements of the people around him with a vigilant eye, noticing that no one was aware of the anomaly here. Everyone treated the "evil spirit" like it was the air, some familiar faces, upon catching his gaze, walked over to him with their glasses of wine in hand.

He didn’t know the purpose of the "evil spirit" following him, but it was undoubtedly the worst possible time.

What was worse, due to his own checkered past, even if he warned them about the existence of the "evil spirit," it was most likely that he would be treated as if he had a mental illness.

Yet Mr. Hog thought further, the "evil spirit" showing up here wasn’t entirely a bad thing.

If he were unlucky enough to have his identity exposed, perhaps he could use the other party to exchange for some leeway; however, as soon as that thought occurred to him, he even doubted his own sanity. It was absurd to pin his hopes on someone who theoretically didn’t exist, especially since, in those nightmares, the "evil spirit" always played the role of an assassin.

If the dreams were to be counted, he had been killed by the other party over a dozen times in just a few days.

Jock was right; after this he really needed to see a psychologist.

Mr. Hog quickly adjusted his emotions and greeted the acquaintances approaching him with a smile. These social gatherings had almost become part of his life, where the fake smiles at banquets and mutual flattery were second nature to them; this was what they called "being genteel."

Only by hiding one’s true self could one be genteel.

They were all the same.

Everyone carefully avoided topics like "public-spirited citizens" and "mental state" that might upset Mr. Hog, and instead warmly welcomed him to join in.

Without the obstruction of the Chairperson of the Council, the topics discussed in this banquet hall would soon turn into policies affecting the entire United Government. Even though they were deeply saddened by the departure of the Secretary-General, they believed that the will of the Secretary-General would stay with them, and everything they were doing was for the better future of this country and themselves.

Mr. Hog was somewhat distracted, causing him to miss out on many of the political topics that would usually interest him.

The "evil spirit" was present for an unexpectedly long time, and although he kept telling himself not to pay attention to the other party, his gaze still inevitably lingered on them.

Rather than being surrounded by politicians, he wished he could find a quiet place to question the "evil spirit" about its purpose for following him here.

And this, it also confirmed the assessment the family psychologist had made about him over a month ago.

At times, the patient would treat his delusions as reality, which was a dangerous signal, indicating that his condition had worsened once again. If left unchecked, eventually he would be unable to distinguish between fantasy and reality; most such cases ended with the patients dying from something within their delusions.

The family doctor hoped that Mr. Hog would inform him as soon as he realized his condition had worsened, so that he could administer a remedy in time.

But Mr. Hog didn’t trust them at all. He suspected that the family’s psychologists, in collusion with the younger generation, had planned that once he accepted the treatment, they would have enough reason to have him "temporarily" step aside from the head of the household. Once the position was relinquished, it would not be so easy to reclaim it after his recovery.

"Mr. Hog, Mr. Hog, are you all right?"

His thoughts were interrupted by the call, and he realized that all eyes were on him.

But they were used to it by now. Lately, Mr. Hog had been acting erratically at the Review Meeting, so anything he did wouldn’t surprise them; nevertheless, since he had passed Trian’s assessment, there was nothing to worry about.

"What is your view on the topic just now?"

This is what they thought made the Fisherman’s Club superior to the Review Meeting.

Here, people could liberate themselves from the factional struggles, no longer needing to be entangled by others, and think about the pros and cons of each issue from their own perspective. In the end, they would consider everyone’s opinion and make a decision that was as satisfying as possible for everyone.

This should have been the atmosphere of the Review Meeting, but it had turned into a battlefield due to the escalating factional struggles, where members could no longer sit together calmly and discuss each topic from a practical standpoint.

Even the members from opposing factions did not suspect each other’s motives, knowing that for the fate that was approaching the United Government, the momentary gains and losses were meaningless.

Therefore, even though Mr. Hog had just joined them today, they had to take his opinion into account; he also represented the stance of the Foster Family.

"I completely agree with your views, and I am glad that we could reach a consensus."

Mr. Hog hadn’t paid attention to which topic they had just discussed; he could only force a smile and raise his glass to the people around him.

"That’s excellent."

This was the first time Mr. Hog felt fed up with a high society banquet. Luckily, the well-prepared Jock took to the stage, bringing up the most crucial issue facing the High-level Parliament at the moment—the handling of the Six Stars Rescuers.

The last thing the Chairperson of the Council did before his death was to use his authority to summon all Six Stars Rescuers back to The First Region.

With his assassination, all the planned meeting content was invalidated, and they would not bring up the issues of the foreign races for discussion openly. They believed that for people still in the stage of ignorance, such advanced concepts were a bit too avant-garde and difficult for them to accept.

But everyone knew that whoever controlled all the Six Stars Rescuers effectively controlled the whole world.

For the United Government, the thirteen Neutral Countries, and the Rebel Army, the Six Stars Rescuers were akin to nuclear weapons, deterring them and keeping them holed up in the "outside world." Even the most radical of the Rebel Army did not dare bring the flames of war inside the territory of the United Government.

How to smoothly transfer the power that originally belonged to the Chairperson of the Council to the High-level Parliament was the issue they needed to consider now.

Moreover, this matter was of great significance for the upcoming ritual of godhood.

Only by converting those Six-Star rescuers into disciples of the "God" could they help Him complete the final step, as using ordinary people as sacrifices was no longer sufficient to further His cause.

"We’ve basically convinced three people, but the Ragus Foundation declined the invitation, and the company clusters still control more than half of the Six-Star rescuers. Especially after the turmoil within the Iris Consortium, Jasmine and Rose have slipped out of our control."

This was distressing news.

Because according to their plan, Jasmine and Rose, with concept-armed implants, were supposed to be the easiest to deal with. Whether they were willing or not, the implanted devices would help them make decisions, and all this changed because of Rob Lucci, who seemed to have come out of nowhere.

He appeared to have a deep connection with the Chairperson of the Council, leaving them puzzled as to whether this was a result of the Chairperson’s secret instructions.

At the same time, the information provided by Claire made things even more confusing.

According to her, it was the Chairperson of the Council who used his privileges to pass the highest operational department bill of Military Intelligence Section Seven without anyone knowing. Not even the General Secretariat was involved, and the Chairperson didn’t know Rob Lucci at all.

However, they reached a consensus on one point.

Rob Lucci and Mo Lian were significant problems, and they had to find a way to get rid of them.

Most people were satisfied with Hog’s actions—at least for now, he had diverted the two and sent them far from the power center to Sixth District.

As the Counter-Intelligence Department and Military Intelligence Section Seven were engaged in an intense battle, and they also had to deal with the Six-Star rescuer meeting. In such circumstances, they simply did not have the spare energy to handle the problem of Rob Lucci, whom, given his actions in The Second Region, handling improperly could spell disaster for half the city in The First Region.

"To help us achieve these grand objectives, we’ve invited a true expert. It can help me get rid of many troubles and might change the minds of those companies and Six-Star rescuers who refuse to cooperate."

Jock’s speech allowed Hog to gradually clear his thoughts and understand the primary focus of the Yuzhou Club’s subsequent work.

But he was worried about this crazy plan. He always felt that they did not place enough importance on Six-Star rescuers when they were mentioned. They were now dealing with a group akin to strategic nuclear weapons, and The First Region should clearly not be the main battlefield for the plan.

However, as a new member, especially one with ulterior motives, he felt that he should not offer too many opinions. What he needed to do was to convey the High-level Parliament’s plans to Military Intelligence Section Seven. As for whether they could snatch people away from the parliamentarians, it would depend on Rob Lucci and his own abilities.

The members engaged in heated discussions on this topic, and Hog adopted an indifferent attitude. Regardless of the outcome, he showed his agreement.

He had collected enough secrets from the meeting room, and now he needed to consider how to take these secrets out with him.

And the "concerned citizen."

Whenever Hog saw that fluttering figure, he couldn’t help but wonder if it was just a hallucination.

He had never consumed anti-fatigue drugs in such high doses before, which could have unknown impacts on his health.

"You shouldn’t take so many drugs."

During the heated debate, Hog heard a voice that didn’t fit in.

It was the fourth time he took out anti-fatigue drugs and drank them like hangover pills when the "concerned citizen" appeared to have had enough, offering him a reminder.

It was also the first time Hog actually heard the voice of a hallucination.

And he almost responded.

If he had done so, he would have become the madman in the eyes of everyone, just like before at the Review Meeting.

Hog refused to heed the advice of the "evil spirit" and pretended not to hear it. His hands shook slightly as he twisted the bottle open, trying to retrieve the few remaining pills inside.

Then, all the noises stopped at that moment.

He noticed the strange behavior of the people around him—they still had their mouths open, maintaining their previous actions as if the world had frozen in that second.

In the silent banquet hall, he became the only person who could feel the passage of time.

He saw the actions of the "evil spirit" clearly.

The figure reached out, snatched the bottle of anti-fatigue medicine from his hand, pocketed them into his own pockets.

This process lasted for about two seconds.

After two seconds, the noisy sounds in the banquet hall returned.

No one realized what had just happened, nor did they notice Hog, who remained silent.

Only he had witnessed what had just occurred.

The bottle he was holding had indeed disappeared, and despite searching every pocket on his person, Hog could no longer find any trace of it.