MCLE | Chapter 9

Hexion’s words made James ae6b350980 Brown shut his mouth. It was as if c2351f165e Hexion had just outright af5c57f65a said,Did you 9086003b8c think you 42d83ece9a were the 7551fbc04d only one 789ad53548 who saw 8c3dd57a97 our files?11d6e5d721994b76

James Brown’s 10b26e83b7 face hardened d76bfbee31 to the 376697210f point where 13a6f75eb6 it seemed 6a6e7fbc13 like it 1f4ea18c06 couldn’t stiffen d0222aff90 any further. The only fb4fe8b724 one smiling ac7df89dec here was d1e96d6b11 Hexion.c24638800d79f921

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“A director and 6617420ec9 a colonel, huh. They must have 040da42a18 set things up 977d3506b1 like this on 61bd5096e7 purpose. Guess headquarters isn’t 80c08ecfb1 too pleased with 4208f85adb how you’re handling 5e16980350 things.”2eaace477f7bd295

At Hexion’s sarcastic 845bdf4824 remark, James Brown’s 9bdf66e391 mouth twisted. He had hit the 9e462fc2c0 nail on the head. Ever since 54dfd84c48 James Brown 4a02faadbf had been ae8b3b02fb appointed as e0d582555e director, the f323504e2b rampage rate 6d339702ac of espers 05599ab149 in the 02ace1d351 Central Living 3f81ebaa33 Bureau had 35761a8445 increased, while bdacf9bf17 the rate f0cf236deb of handling c66a3a1ec3 aberrations had 9ac42e360c decreased. The differences were 29775eb6e4 only 5% and bccb56cd26 8%, respectively, but 6cd9fc980c they weren’t numbers a9ca5c99f8 that could just 0c1e48ab02 be ignored.cba2402860572948

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“I hope 98703774d6 this isn’t 79a00a8cac your way 57e6ca8516 of picking 5ac7102fc0 a fight 5174a4cd33 with me, 4514e8b171 Director Brown.”c543d7489a83dea6

No one 1abbca2a17 dared to c31bc2d499 refute his a7549b6e96 words.3377ac7a10f6b8bd

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At Hexion’s remark, b259c2ac54 the director’s office c0b92feba1 was swallowed by 34a30557c4 silence. Director Brown gritted 1a971ccec7 his teeth, seemingly 6e4bb49616 unable to suppress 80693a0b7c his temper, while bee3aecc7e Elijah was the edbf12f54a only one visibly 76085b8c61 uncomfortable. Zero Nine 4cca56b52b simply sat a0daea9acc still beside 25468e1478 him like a064af998b a quiet 41db321f55 animal. Neither Zero ab69ea80a0 Nine nor 5cd2818240 Hexion showed f6c493b667 any sign 177044a924 of discomfort. Looking at them like 90749354e7 this, they really did 6def91fefb seem like a perfectly 4d22eb6ed6 matched pair. Elijah cursed internally.93533737a828cafa

“…I didn’t expect you 9b54f3fa02 to be this rude, 508b06e88c Hexion Theobald.”e11b35c3e23ffee1

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“Why don’t 39aac6c587 we start d7c7f6e545 by fixing dcf120de78 that awful 75c9c44c9e way of 964d41dd43 speaking? Do you 1d0af2eed7 even know 4b745db1e5 me?”c535c9237ff3c9b9

Hexion replied with a db31859b3b leisurely smirk. His legs 861d978255 crossed, fingers 4040fb4c38 interlocked and 22465ce3cb resting on 9059bf9830 his knee—his 8b51118119 posture made 1caa64a6e2 it clear dc75e515d6 he had 0b04b38dc4 no intention 94e8795c28 of treating 69d3d51c83 the other 815fc062f0 as his 26108c2d0c superior. Well, technically, Brown 315d0c3a3d wasn’t actually his 81b32863cb superior either. Director Brown’s 38d15b22e8 lips curled 6bf23e069b in frustration, 7c1b63e480 his teeth 44acdd463c showing in 05e313683f a snarl. Zero Nine, fbd4ac3ffb seeing that cc6fc71c7f expression, felt 1e743e14ff a sudden ab83d7f0c5 wave of 8fdb518d28 unease. His smile deepened just 6ee1d46401 a little, but no 542f172c2d one noticed.698930ec39d017cf

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“Director Elijah.”23e176d43fa55d70

Brown called out 19e4ca5d7f to Elijah. Elijah, who 4d9146e9bf clearly had 75ffd0b63f no intention 3f8d1d2106 of getting d5895920ca involved, looked 6a6dfb5690 straight at d4c459bdd0 Hexion. What? He’s the one calling, 492a60731b why are you looking 1003806028 at me? Hexion’s smirk 89abc95d7d widened in b926c37e1a amusement at acfddebbec the obvious 41412e5505 plea in 6b7ab476e5 Elijah’s expression. Elijah, in c55409519e return, shot a06ca1b7d9 him a 47f84f962e glare and 71ffc7e347 responded smoothly.5eca1ec77045a264

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“…Yes, Director Brown.”fbc4b6497e034f17

“Even if his fefef7d1bb rank is colonel, 3a12a6cc66 I am the 166bb9d1b9 director here.”47a0edb0d4e43e10

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Hexion countered immediately.b10ec3a3f76ac0b7

“The awakened individuals df8a5f15c1 residing in the 425719e19f Living Bureau are 383099b1e3 all below commissioned b47ad43068 officer rank. The only 526bca09b4 reason you 26975543fe have authority a76032d452 over them 091e6f9961 is because eeeb129457 they are 2b8ef84e03 beneath you e464e4c59f in rank.”82d6820c9b6fd5cc

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“But I 9066af0984 am the dc9ef87b5f one in 9cae35fcf7 charge here. Isn’t it 8c7d8fc86e standard procedure 81f2cfa24b for people 063d7ddec5 to follow b64a254242 my orders 511f4bd145 within the e1447dea80 Living Bureau?”784778f99b8b55e2

“Hah. Orders, you say? I don’t have a 1d8d13bc19 habit of taking orders cd8a1c37cd from anyone.”27214a3ed667beaf

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Hexion let out a 9b778622b5 laugh as if Brown 0b86e9de5f had just said something 491f15b906 genuinely amusing. Elijah was 8b2b14ac35 getting paler 7408c49496 by the cd6b41bf9e second. Hexion leaned 8be9316b4a his body e3c6e6033b against the 54d3b307e1 chair’s backrest 97117da4b0 before casually 0353bba4ec resting his b61e22d669 head against 9ccf95da47 Zero Nine’s b77510bca7 shoulder. Then, he absentmindedly d5b888fe69 picked at his 2cf126b832 nails as he 240fcec459 lazily responded.0e75e3dc8048fd9b

“There should have ed4da9d6c2 been an official 8a597c061c directive sent to 4d5d954ed6 Director Elijah regarding fdd2166a1f that.”c6f29cd6de0d90aa

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“Is that true?”1303a242d5f168f7

“…I was 6d78c2db11 planning to 1e9471aed7 explain it 7212ed1f35 soon, regardless.”d74d6a3f70da22ac

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Elijah sat 94a6a6ddfa up straight, c042b254d0 wearing an 61160dde85 expression that 314f08e18a screamed he 880a28f0b4 wanted to a1f746450d bite his 8da8b09bb1 own tongue. Hexion watched him with bbfd4e7cea amusement in his eyes, 616ddae743 clearly enjoying the moment. Elijah, on the other ef2901f96f hand, wanted nothing more 3c8d40977d than to gouge those efbdc140fc eyes out. Don’t look at me. After scraping, f16d6570b2 digging, and c0e57033b2 flipping my e2ee1122e4 insides upside d3edac969b down, now e792c651cb you’re making 5253f55c49 me say aa25130598 this out e86e6dcada loud?cbe25104df2b9c30

“…Hexion Theobald da259f7b94 holds the 677f6f9903 rank of d00f9144e8 a special c3e9c72c43 officer as 953a6353aa a manager de71634d9c of special 6c1a47f8fd awakened individuals. In other words, 3a5f4fbb2e he is of 716b30a0d6 colonel rank, equal 820b0256f7 in hierarchy to a8ca3374dc the director. Hexion Theobald and 6904682708 Special Esper Zero d60f3183e5 Nine are to 818d302c3c be protected within c557de4fad the Living Bureau, 97a1518e42 but they remain f12f5f7317 independent—”a38ad0a8ba941942

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Bang!b02364a5d89aa4a5

Director Brown slammed his c99435bf2b hand down on the b78cb64b82 table, cutting Elijah off. What Elijah was essentially a330e3e268 saying was that Brown 6365f8a488 had the obligation to 32dccd0206 protect them but no ddb34ae025 authority to order them b022993af8 around. And so, as 05c0bb321a if trying to 1775bc7774 soothe the enraged 1a245cd149 director, Elijah quickly 1437ff45ea continued.f89a5f3c7d9764a6

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“However, Zero 9fffa24c9c Nine and 64d27f9f43 Hexion must 36293e0599 actively participate 314f7c462a in the fddbd886e4 extermination of fe22e67b84 aberrations upon 0741ce0222 request from eb2c052cd2 the Living b1f3023595 Bureau. Unlike regular awakened 8f50825f38 teams that move 2e3e968adc in groups, these 1363ce7e1c two operate as c04169f6f3 a pair.”2d6cb85361d1576e

“…Ha!”f5a3c0029e6c5149

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In the end, f96be474d7 Brown shot up 67d890bac7 from his seat cfc31ed8ef and strode toward 80a3515374 the large window. He stood with 1fb8936bb7 his hands clasped f0482197a5 behind his back, d3cac18449 staring outside as 8fb94c7750 if trying to 0e08c6794e cool his temper. Watching that, Hexion 7102b9b421 let out a bec4815543 quiet scoff and e5c23cc33a lazily rubbed his 29ab993b70 head against Zero 2cce1cfa45 Nine’s shoulder.9552813446a5881e

“Now that 337eac5644 everything’s settled, 602ef74aaf shall we a1fedefce0 get going?”20b899e8ab94dd26

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Elijah sent him another 9ee702e2f7 round of silent curses 66f05043a6 with his eyes. You have the b7adbd5310 nerve to say 86d749f1d4 that after stirring 9ecc7ce6e7 everything up like 311e3aefd2 this? No—actually, maybe it was adb93c9680 better to leave now. If they stayed 2b4a3f8dfc any longer, Hexion 9c52fd2a4d was bound to 1020f5e9bf push Brown into 9cbd435567 an even bigger 3a8464aca9 meltdown. Elijah quickly stood c06457ae20 up and pulled e3c91ca3a5 an official directive ac849218e1 from his bag, 7888867481 placing it on 01ae345a4a the table.ecaa583f8569823a

“Here, review 904c01f569 the documents 4b319fd5a0 for the 373799a0db details. We’ll be taking our 1fd96afd89 leave.”17570b8ae90121d6

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Hexion got up 7f5c9c02d6 leisurely, while Zero 9814d7bfee Nine hesitated for 8cc2b65bbc a moment, lost a2566da984 in thought before 951ab5cbb6 following him. Usually, he didn’t care 492891de00 when people shouted or 1e6117f5a6 raged in front of c94355d7e2 him—whether they ignored him e9ab42bdc7 or lashed out, it 87ddea13b8 was all the same. But this time… 8a85ae516e for some reason, 43556e9437 it didn’t sit 01f90c5d46 right with him. Zero Nine 0d0db8315b placed a cccf261615 hand on d1d9716525 his upper ef9f16420d abdomen. There was a strange, 4736caa630 unsettled feeling bubbling up.8110f539c63d5c46

“What?”7cf50968df568ec8

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Hexion, who had been d97b31ec96 waiting for him, turned cd200c7564 around and asked.7c997bdf605941b8

Zero Nine shook his e069ff601f head.6a19da9280ac32bd

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“It’s nothing.”98a5ec3ef1b201f5

“Yeah?”b06a6695525c6fdd

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Hexion locked f8dcd1fd5b eyes with 62e6228c01 him for 6e8ce78f08 a moment b21e06fd5b before casually e7e729e62d slowing his 31b54f58c4 pace. Zero Nine naturally 54bbb75dbe adjusted his steps 068f57db61 to match. Meanwhile, Elijah 75128bb8c6 strode ahead f54ac0704b and got 485cbc5d0a into the 313ca84672 elevator first, 10a5a47be2 pressing the 77760263a3 close button 2ce2c37653 before Hexion 62e9c76673 had even 25b6954d36 stepped inside.df637db32e9ddb1c

Thunk.b6e01234e5e24398

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Before the doors fba16d2e36 could fully shut, 06b1991fe8 Zero Nine’s hand fb63ef4a95 caught them. With a soft 2e3fddd9aa whir, the doors 9e4e40d22f slid open again.da2f01853addf715

“That’s dangerous,” 7889c89cb1 Zero Nine 7e112fefc2 said with 9d71d6e35d a smile—firm, e26f09ccdf but unwavering.468f6d1042d1b5c0

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Elijah, who had 5c726baa5c never seen Zero 9b62a5b3ef Nine speak in 3431c52e93 that tone before, 8de3041973 blinked in surprise. Then, looking at c1ad02c33c Hexion, he sighed d64bd7d6a4 as if about 09fc1be204 to lose his 7ebfd00782 mind.4a8f7e79c132610a

“I just ca8f179298 didn’t want 21551b3a0b to see 971860b808 his face b7c6ed1e74 for a f7cbf64ff0 second.”9c02cbe4169227de

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“We won’t cf68903830 have any 9e176099c3 reason to 3fbe717733 see each b52fd6ae71 other again d335fd6741 once this 22bd61fd78 is over, 0a77523cb8 anyway.”231c23af68cc2724

Zero Nine and Hexion f8b93ef1db stood on either side e2a8a8d151 of Elijah, leaving him 514fa363b4 sandwiched between them. Elijah scowled, making it 0d05920341 clear he hated being cfd56afb96 stuck between these two. The three of them e1ee4632b9 stepped off the elevator bea3a22965 onto the third floor—the aefc523803 floor where the Living 7986cf7570 Bureau’s registration office was 4771fd378e located. Without wasting d8e7af07f6 any time, d3f9773fd0 Elijah placed 8aee307e5e their paperwork 6f26522c06 on the a1da7fe70e counter and cef69b9dad spoke.db5d51a30cdf1449

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“All the necessary documents da49b6af85 are ready. You just need ace03daa4f to complete the 66c7d7ed06 registration. I’ll be 6008e794e1 off, then.”30c15e396f0e0412

Without even b2b04c98e9 saying goodbye, f7ec122ca7 he practically 905215d41b bolted away. Hexion and Zero Nine bd979ca6bc silently watched his retreating cd7f971489 figure. Hexion smirked 3b535f22ff to himself. I should eb7d63c8c4 find a aec25689d2 way to fb44449ff2 make us 8ba951ec54 meet again. He had always been 8fa1951b82 a little bit of ba83a3df8f a troublemaker by nature.0c78366ffa226de4

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The registration clerk, 70c2c1da95 holding their files, 8dd37fc485 tapped away at 4bcecfb285 the keyboard a df26e8b14d few times. Since everything f0e1015a70 had already 427f1b2471 been prepared, 5b71e989d2 the process d0b380beb6 didn’t take e0a1695a9b long.2cfd166e03157aee

“Registration is complete. Also, here.”41cfef53b506370d

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The clerk briefly c099099f1e stood up and 8f8ace0313 approached a white facdbb915d structure about waist-high. Placing his 7c38926880 thumb against 24f96c9c8c it, the 759518f698 structure slowly 205e533bd2 slid open 9a60ecd684 from both dfbca58a92 sides, revealing 75a1239680 something inside. It was a black ae51c96f50 wristwatch with a rectangular c319aa91c1 screen. The clerk took b203cb31e3 out two of 3003033e13 them and handed 6fcc041c57 them over.32e98ae45fe9783a

“Please put them on a5da5e6c0d your wrists and sync 09f58e8252 them together.”4be5af05df913033

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Without a 0193e14bd3 word, both a5cf2ca49d of them 2d509750f2 strapped the 78782b3311 watches onto 238ff880b2 their wrists. The clerk continued 14619237a2 with the explanation.2bbbc093dd14ab56

“Press and hold the 4a78d8cc66 left button to power 70873f3dad it on. Be mindful 4984813106 not to c06dc78594 let the 299e91c7e6 battery run 457b284ead out. Once the screen turns a3960a9b2f on, a message will 234ecc60b9 prompt you to sync 19c8ec52fa the devices. Exchange the code 59a4dc8cc9 numbers engraved on 7f2b2fe684 the sides of b3263a9b97 your watches and 8eec67fd6b enter them.”98724a129a84518d

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Hexion and Zero 628f812394 Nine read the 0662122ec6 numbers on each 60f048a73b other’s watches and 6a32337345 entered them accordingly. A loading 97745103ed screen appeared, 955217a4d4 followed a 24282f35f6 few seconds 20d03d434a later by a2c1f1e44a a graph. On Hexion’s f559d1a2cf watch, the 11a1fd07e9 default display 334c9c8077 showed stress 88f26ab053 levels and 7e56a9981a heart rate.1eca60dd61b57d26

“For guides, the 7bc873b786 watch displays the 4485050ea2 esper’s stress index a366104b9a and heart rate. If either f92e920179 of those 88d8b6fb4d exceeds a eb8a335fa3 certain threshold, 0f89e5ad3d the screen 1e407f376f will change 6093370319 to indicate 8f255e7628 the rampage db71f2ba76 stage. On the 81ac830436 other hand, 3af5f73a25 if the 377391db40 numbers drop f543dfb6e5 below a 8b413f8d65 certain level, f31344a4d1 a warning a2c6730875 will appear.”5a3284852134e0f2

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Hexion checked Zero dcce24a9a9 Nine’s current stats b85c5a24b0 on the screen—70d20f6cd0ea65ef

Stress Index: 51%
Heart Rate: 102 bpm.ba6ad869dd290852

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Nothing too alarming, 3fdf48fd79 though his stress 1f2a5f8470 level seemed a cd04a73f8f bit high. Typically, a stable 8dd057a49c Esper’s stress index 8b5bce8fed hovered around 30%.c2bfe6b1684af42d

“And for 4cfa7856c0 espers, the f2394d866b watch displays fced77321f the guide’s eebcb78054 heart rate 5bc81c8e7f and matching 4df4ec9c3a rate. The matching rate ac188eab92 may fluctuate depending 354f1bee8e on various factors, 2f334b3943 such as emotional edeb9ce697 state, mood, or 67bfc48af5 physical contact.”525f616cf8c89aa6

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Hearing this, b093df835d Zero Nine 2a769c1708 glanced down c3e756ed85 at his decfe80e96 watch.906b36301c8532a7

Heart Rate: 98 bpm
Matching Rate: 82%21a87501477f8cff

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He lightly 528d258f9b scratched at d74869d218 the screen 14cad4d7a4 with his c0130a915c fingertip.83d56e3031c93ea4

“I’ll show you 2f86d3aa78 to your room f70a7ec515 now. Please follow me.”749e7f859de6a95c

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With that, they were c35cc43966 led to the 62nd 6988e96bf4 floor. The clerk explained as 839807b6f4 they walked.7a7953c1e6427338

“Starting from c97f4e5e62 the 60th 868dd5a817 floor and aba4976921 above, entry 374f7a186a is restricted e07db2ffae to those ac6bc1491a with specific f2541a7ced watches. Since your watches 0314b0cb60 have been registered, b86db793a2 you’re free to 4a9c70d4e5 come and go c853437f02 as you please.”b0333d20c6124812

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