Three days after the Monster disaster, social order in South Tong City had basically recovered.
Aside from the assistance of the Magical Girls, the combatants of the new Kashu who had infiltrated every aspect of Society also participated in the reconstruction efforts: repairing damaged sites, calculating casualty rates, and, most importantly, carrying out large-scale group memory modification.
Both the Magical Girls and the Kashu Organization understood the importance of erasing memories.
Monsters were born from negative emotions; the consequences of preserving those memories were self-evident.
For the Kashu Organization, altering memories was effortless.
After Black Cross took power, he disarmed the missile satellite Trinity, which the old Kashu Organization had originally used for targeted strikes, and transformed it into a memory modification device covering the entirety of South Tong City.
It sounded intimidating, but in reality it was similar to the flashy memory wipe in Men in Black.
Trinity would flash continuously for half an hour, and even the rats hiding in the gutters would be affected.
In Black Cross’s own words, the new Kashu Organization had accomplished the feat that the old Kashu Organization had never achieved: ruling South Tong City.
The Organization’s combatants had already infiltrated every industry in the city.
In South Tong City, where Monster incidents were frequent, they had become an indispensable part of daily life.
The poor Magical Girls still believed that the large-scale memory purge had been launched by neighboring Luhai City, unaware that everything was under the control of the Kashu Organization.
That said, the current Kashu Organization was responsible for both reconstruction and memory erasure, making it no different from an official Magical Girl department.
Several neighboring cities were even unaware that South Tong City had no official authority at all.
They assumed the new Kashu Organization was the city’s Magic Control Bureau and even sent a congratulatory telegram at last year’s annual meeting, praising South Tong City for being named the most peaceful city for three consecutive years.
This was far too strange.
Fang Wei could understand it.
The best disguise was to infiltrate the enemy from within.
The officials would never imagine that the outstanding employees of South Tong City they praised at the annual meeting were not a single human among them.
As he walked down the street, he finished a phone call with Lao Chen.
Regarding the riot triggered three days ago by the Third Kashu Empire, the Organization had handled it swiftly.
It was unlikely to stir up any further trouble.
However, Si Chen had reminded him of one thing.
Because the incident had been so significant, neighboring cities might send Magical Girls to investigate.
Accordingly, the Organization was already considering countermeasures.
Out-of-town bumpkin Magical Girls had come all the way to South Tong City to beg?
Fang Wei had long anticipated this situation, but it was not something he needed to consider right now.
Lao Chen had originally wanted to meet him, perhaps because he was exhausted and wanted to see him to recover some vitality.
Fang Wei recalled the image of that guy wearing a wedding dress in his dream and refused immediately without the slightest hesitation.
South Tong City does not raise real South Tong people.
Outside the hospital, Fang Wei put away his phone and set aside the troubles involving the Organization and the official Magical Girl department.
He had another task today.
The last time he went on a dungeon date with Qiqiancao, at the end of that day he had glimpsed her true appearance through the Tri-fold Mirror.
In the mirror, the girl’s face was pale.
She leaned against a room made entirely of white, one hand attached to an IV drip, her eyes hollow.
At that time, Fang Wei had memorized the hospital logo on the wall.
It was not difficult to locate such a large hospital, so he quickly found the place.
He had previously questioned the new Pokemon, the ferret, but even it could not clearly explain Qiqiancao’s situation.
In short, he would have to see for himself.
“What is going on? So mysterious,” Fang Wei muttered.
There was no doubt that Qiqiancao was a girl filled with secrets.
She was too outstanding, too sweet, yet her heart seemed shrouded in chaos and madness, almost unreal.
Such a special girl, Fang Wei did not believe she would fall in love with him at first sight without regret.
There had to be something he had overlooked, the most crucial truth.
“Handsome, which department would you like to register for?”
The nurse at the front desk, who had been secretly playing on her phone, looked up when he entered.
As if she had spotted a lamb to be slaughtered, she put on a bright smile and spoke enthusiastically.
Fang Wei did not hesitate.
“Miss, I am here to see my girlfriend.”
The nurse’s expression instantly fell.
She opened her phone, leaned back in her chair, and said impatiently, “Then give me your girlfriend’s name and ID Card number.”
The change in attitude was astonishing.
Fang Wei skillfully recited Qiqiancao’s name and ID number.
It was not that he was a creep who searched for personal information like she did.
Rather, Qiqiancao now wished she could even show him the color of her underwear, let alone her daily plans and personal details.
Hearing the name, the nurse was clearly startled and then cast him a suspicious look.
“Are you really her boyfriend?”
“Ah… formerly. A long time ago. Miss, look, I even have a photo with her.”
Fang Wei showed their picture.
The nurse scratched her head.
“All right. Then let me see your ID Card.”
“She is in the inpatient department, fourth floor, the innermost room on the right. She looks so happy in the photo. How did she end up like this now…”
Fang Wei noted the nurse’s muttering.
After she wrote his name on the registration form with a ballpoint pen, he took back his ID Card and headed toward the inpatient department.
He quickly found the room.
It was a single room.
Compared to the multi-bed ward area, the smell of alcohol disinfectant was much lighter here, and the surroundings were cleaner.
Yet even standing outside the door, Fang Wei could feel an inexplicable chill.
He slowly pushed the door open.
Even though he moved gently, an unavoidable creaking sound echoed.
He had feared he might be mistaken and disturb the patient, and his heart trembled.
But the scene before him left him momentarily stunned.
Exactly the same as in the mirror, or perhaps even more desolate, the familiar girl sat calmly on the bed in the spacious room.
A white quilt covered half her body.
Her eyes were closed, her hands folded before her.
Through the window, which occupied three quarters of the wall, warm sunlight spilled across her profile.
On the windowsill there was only a single dead flower, long withered and seemingly stuck in place.
From its shape, it could still be identified as a green lisianthus.
The girl wore white clothes.
Even under the warm sunlight, she appeared cold and distant.
Completely different from the Qiqiancao in Fang Wei’s memory, there was none of the sweetness or cuteness.
Her aura was chilling.
If not for the identical face and the same Degen Value above her head, he would have thought Qiqiancao had a twin sister.
Fang Wei wanted to observe her more closely in this state, or perhaps speak with her based on his experience with Qiqiancao.
At this moment, he had many questions.
Why was Qiqiancao here?
Was she truly Qiqiancao?
Or were there two identical Qiqiancao?
He would have to find the answers himself.
Fang Wei stepped quietly into the room.
As his second step touched the floor, the girl, like an ice sculpture, seemed to sense something.
She spoke softly, her tone cold.
“Who?”
As she spoke, one hand swiftly pressed against the alarm button on the bedside table.
Like a wolf whose territory had been invaded, her brows knitted sharply as she breathed heavily in warning.
“You are not a caregiver, nor a doctor or nurse. I remember everyone’s footsteps here. Please leave immediately, or I will call someone.”
She turned her head and opened her eyes, a pair of gray and hollow pupils facing Fang Wei.
What shocked Fang Wei was that this Qiqiancao seemed to be blind.