"WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR DEPARTMENT DOING???!!!!"
The scream tore through the sealed meeting room, slamming against the metallic white walls with such force that the soundproofing system automatically reinforced another layer.
No one spoke immediately.
On the desk, the semi-transparent screens trembled slightly, data flickering as if debating whether to continue recording the meeting or not.
Across from the girl was a man sitting in a chair, quite similar to the one from before, with a silver stripe running along his helmet. A symbol of some rank or department.
His voice rang out, even, low, and devoid of any personal emotion.
"Please remain calm."
"And watch your language."
"What do you mean???!!"
She slammed her hand hard on the table, the sound of metal hitting metal echoing dryly.
"You assigned a rookie to lead a mission right away???!!"
"You know damn well that's not allowed??!!!"
A few eyes in the room shifted slightly.
The man with the silver stripe didn't move an inch.
"Please note."
"Our department has requested and received proper approval from higher-ups."
He raised his hand, a holographic screen unfolding, a series of S-level authentication codes scrolling by.
His voice continued evenly.
"Moreover, the assignment of missions in our department is not within your access scope."
"We have no obligation to provide detailed information."
Suddenly, his voice dropped half a tone.
"If you continue this unauthorized behavior, we will be forced to report it back to higher-ups for handling!"
The atmosphere froze.
The girl standing opposite...
suddenly fell silent.
A strange contemplative air spread through the room.
Her back suddenly straightened.
The killing intent, the rage from earlier, seemed drained from the air, vanishing without a trace.
She took a deep breath, adjusting her collar.
Then looked straight at the man with the silver stripe.
"I understand the situation."
Her tone suddenly became serious again.
"The argument just now was my personal mistake."
"It has nothing to do with the department I'm in charge of."
The girl bowed slightly, a completely standard gesture.
"Thank you for reminding me about the access scope."
"I'll take my leave."
Without waiting for a response, she turned and left the room, while the silver-striped man simply watched her depart silently.
The metallic door closed behind her with a soft *hiss*.
The long, white, and cold corridor.
Her footsteps echoed evenly, neither fast nor slow. As if still trying to suppress something...
◇
One month later, since the day Uzuki completed his first mission...
Uzuki walked silently through the forest.
The suit was still that suit, clean to the point of being out of place amid the wild green.
Those emotionless eyes. And the strange aura emanating from him... unchanged.
No sign of emotions.
No remnants of memories.
Nor anything to show that the past month had ever existed...
As if everything... had never happened.
He walked lightly between the tall trees, leaves blocking the light.
As if searching for something.
Or... as if being guided.
Suddenly...
*Rustle*
A very faint sound came from the bushes behind.
Uzuki didn't turn his head.
His gaze even shifted in the opposite direction, as if the sound wasn't worthy of attention.
The air paused for a beat.
*Whoosh!!*
An object shot out from the bushes, aiming straight at Uzuki.
But...
It didn't even touch him.
A thin cut, so fine it made no sound, sliced through the air.
The creature's body was split in two, flying to either side, falling to the ground with two heavy thuds.
Uzuki turned slightly. Just a small motion, almost instinctive.
His eyes glanced at the creature that had attacked him.
In his hand, hidden behind his back, a long survival knife had appeared at some point.
The creature on the ground twitched lightly once... then went still.
It was just a giant lizard, the size of a chicken.
Not rare. Not dangerous.
Uzuki didn't stop.
He didn't look again.
He continued deeper into the forest.
The trees seemed to silently pass by Uzuki, and vice versa.
Uzuki didn't care if Mother Nature noticed him or not, and perhaps the reverse was true as well...
Suddenly, he stopped before a canopy.
Suddenly, Uzuki halted.
In front of him was a strange canopy.
Broad leaves, hanging low, covering a space completely separated from the rest of the forest.
The trunk and branches twisted and intertwined like a bonsai, but on a scale... that shouldn't exist.
Around the base of the tree, a lush green carpet. It was too green.
The soil was soft, fertile to an unnatural degree.
From the middle of the canopy, a thin stream of pale green water, emitting a very faint light, like a small spring breathing.
The water fell straight to the ground.
And right at the point of contact...
A white flower was blooming.
Thin petals, pure white, but the edges reflected a faint pale green hue, perhaps dyed by the water itself.
Uzuki knelt down. He used that very survival knife.
The blade sliced through the stem with a clean, precise cut, so accurate it didn't disturb a single petal.
The flower detached from the ground.
Uzuki picked it up, observing it for half a second.
"..."
He said nothing.
Perhaps...
This was exactly what he was looking for.
Everything around remained unchanged, the *rustling* of the trees still echoing steadily, the sound of the small stream still resounding...
Uzuki stared at the flower a little longer.
As if confirming whether he had truly found the right thing.
The wind around him still blew rhythmically.
Uzuki's hair fluttered lightly.
But something was strange?
It was faster?
It was colder?
Then...
Suddenly, the forest seemed to howl. A strong wind surged.
Uzuki's hair was whipped violently, and he immediately leaned to avoid his original position.
Immediately!
The wind swirled like a sentient being, charging straight at Uzuki.
He couldn't do anything.
Uzuki raised his hand to shield his face, his body pushed back half a step.
This wind was no ordinary wind; it was cold, extremely cold, almost paralyzing.
The pressure was terrifying, like a hydraulic press trying to crush Uzuki's body.
Snow?
Or rather, it was a blizzard?????
Something that clearly couldn't appear here, yet it was trying to engulf everything around, including Uzuki.
He tried to shield his face with both hands.
His body stood firm against the storm's power.
But suddenly—?
Everything suddenly felt unnaturally light.
The storm came quickly, and left even quicker.
In an instant, everything returned to normal.
Uzuki slowly opened his eyes.
Somehow...
The scenery around had completely changed!
The lush green forest vanished.
In its place was an icy forest.
Tree trunks covered in a layer of white frost.
Leaves turned into cold crystal spikes.
The ground sunk deep in thick snow, unnaturally so.
And the sky was covered in a bizarre black hue, but the ground was completely bright as day, despite the sky showing no trace of light.
As if something had swallowed up the entire area. Or... this wasn't the reality everyone knew.
Uzuki's breathing was a bit heavy.
He quickly raised his arm slightly, pressing on the face of his SmartWrap.
But it showed no response at all.
Perhaps something in this space prevented his device from functioning.
Uzuki tried to maneuver in this icy landscape.
Then suddenly?
A sound rang out.
Low, slow, not like ordinary speech.
...but like a poem recited amid that deep darkness.
Each word poignant, beginning to echo...
"A frozen paradise in a land without people."
"Mortal duties cannot reach here."
"O sinner burdened with guilt."
"You cannot step out of this prison."
Each line glided with the wind, silently weaving through every cell in his body.
Uzuki immediately heightened his alertness.
He turned toward the source of the voice, his gaze sharpening for the first time since entering this icy forest.
From within the misty snow...
A figure gradually emerged.
Light reflecting off the metallic surface, white to the point of being nearly blinding.
Not warm light.
But cold light, pure, carrying no emotion.
It was a warrior.
A knight clad in white armor, the plates seamless, smooth, without a scratch, as if it had never engaged in battle, or nothing worthy had ever touched it.
In his hand was a long European sword, the blade gleaming like mother-of-pearl, reflecting the entire white snowy sky.
Just a glance was enough to know.
This was not a weapon for intimidation.
But a weapon for judgment.
With each step the knight took forward, the snow underfoot immediately froze solid.
No sound.
Leaving no trace.
Uzuki slightly lowered his center of gravity.
The survival knife slid into his hand naturally, the blade angled downward.
A posture not exaggerated.
But ready to react.
Suddenly, something fell from his body.
It was the flower from earlier. Yet it wasn't affected by the harsh temperature; instead, it was emitting a green light, pulsing as if alive.
In that moment, he seemed slightly stunned, as if he had discovered something.
But then he picked up the flower and put it in his pocket. As if this thing was truly precious to him.
Uzuki quickly regained his posture.
He looked straight at the warrior approaching with killing intent.
He didn't know what the figure before him was.
Didn't know where he came from.
But one thing Uzuki felt very clearly...
The person standing before him...
His target was surely the thing he was holding.