Chapter 148: Trial |
Half a month later.
The Pan-Continent Alliance was a global military organization operating openly in the public eye. However, the location of the First Fortress, frequently used as the central decision-making hub for the 108 Orders, was an absolute secret guarded by top-tier security. Angie realized this all too well when she boarded her flight with a full set of luggage, only to disembark over ten hours later with nothing but her flattened small handbag.
Exiting the airport, the venue was immediately visible. Rather than a simple conference hall, it resembled a military bastion, sitting proudly among a desolate, dreary expanse of gray architecture. Endless permanent fortifications stretched into the distance nearby, and an extensive network of underground bunkers surely lay beneath the surface. It looked as though it belonged to a completely different era than the clear blue sky above.
After this thought popped up, Angie felt a deep sense of helplessness. She was letting her imagination run wild again.
Then again, why else would it be called the First Fortress.
According to the Final Protocol she had learned during her training, when an Anomaly threatened the very survival of human civilization, this place would serve as their last bastion.
But thinking about that right now was a bit too paranoid. She needed to worry about herself first.
After passing through several more security checks, she finally entered the conference hall and was greeted by a much richer palette of colors—red carpets, flowing fountains, grand chandeliers, and a massive monument engraved with the Alliance oath.
Angie paused by the fountain for a moment, using the relatively calm surface of the water to check if her lipstick had worn off.
Considering the relative distance between the training base and the Tenth District, she might very well have ended up at the southernmost tip of the continent.
"The meeting is about to begin. All attendees, please enter the venue...
"
The broadcast spurred the remaining representatives in the reception area into motion. Angie followed their pace toward the main conference room, but right before the luxurious double doors, she abruptly veered off into a side corridor. She presented the identification badge hanging around her neck to the agent standing guard.
"Stick to the wall after you go in, and find your seat number in the gallery," the agent instructed.
The agent opened the door for her.
Angie slipped under the blackout curtains behind the door, stepping into the dim light and a surging wave of noise.
Whenever a landmark resolution or a large-scale operation was on the table, all representatives of the 108 Orders—the core foundation of the Alliance—would be present. At this moment, the venue was already packed to the brim. The 108 seats were positioned in the center of the plaza-like conference hall, radiating outward from the main podium. The gallery seating formed concentric circles around the perimeter, hidden in the dimmer areas of the room.
By the time Angie hunched over and crept through the shadows along the wall, the hall had fallen dead silent. The Archbishop was delivering the ceremonial opening remarks, spouting standard bureaucratic pleasantries.
Just before the main agenda began, she located her seat in the gallery and sat down between an older man with a perfectly smooth, bald head and a woman in a business suit. The two of them gave her a brief glance and a polite nod fit for a stranger before turning their attention back to the brightly lit center, reading the subtitles on the nearly ten-meter-tall massive screen.
"...What this meeting will determine is whether or not to add the New World Society to the list of friendly allied organizations."
After the Archbishop finished speaking, it was the turn of the parliamentary assistant sitting parallel to his right, who slowly began to explain the specific details.
Angie quietly took a deep breath, trying to soothe her nervous heart.
Today was a trial—a trial of the New World Society and, by extension, of her.
"On April 5th, the Physics Department Evaluation Team operating in the Tenth District discovered traces of the New World Society activities for the first time and established a temporary cooperation with their intelligence officer."
"Subsequently, a communicator from the New World Society proactively contacted the Alliance and began providing the Spirit Vision Department with substantial intelligence regarding the Management Authority."
"As of now, the Society has delivered a total of seventy-five intelligence reports to the Spirit Vision Department, with sources spanning all twelve major districts and an accuracy rate of up to ninety percent."
"Through reverse analysis of their intelligence-gathering methods and channels, it is estimated that the New World Society has a personnel scale of under one thousand members, with no fewer than fifty undercover agents planted within the Management Authority..."
In the gallery, Angie thought to herself, 'Yeah, that communicator is Shi Rang, a guy with such incredible acting skills that he even fooled me. If it weren't for him, I'd probably be rotting in a prison cell with gang members right now. Heaven knows when the New World Society recruited him, or how many times he's snuck off on his own in secret.'
It didn't take long for the parliamentary assistant to finish reading the document.
Following a few minor clarifications, the Archbishop immediately announced the start of the voting process.
Three giant numbers popped up on the massive display screen in the hall—a blue, a red, and a gray "0".
Just like all previous meetings, this was a voting resolution cast by the representatives of the 108 Orders.
A brighter white spotlight illuminated the right side of the hall, and the Order representative seated at the head of the right flank was the first to speak.
"Considering the scale and strength of this so-called New World Society, we do not believe any exceptions should be made for them. The list of friendly allied organizations has been obsolete for over a decade, and there is no need to revive it. The Alliance must not allow the world to regress to an era where various anomalous organizations ran rampant. Signing the Purge Agreement with the Management Authority back then was a formal resolution as well. Why should we overturn that decision now? The Supreme Principle Society opposes this resolution."
A red light blinked on at the representative's seat, and the red zero on the big screen ticked up to "1".
Other Order representatives in the same section immediately followed suit, speaking one after another.
"...Small organizations like this are often easily carried away by success. The lesson of the Esoteric Society is still fresh in our minds. We cannot give them even the slightest illusion that they are on equal footing with the Alliance. The Silver Brotherhood opposes this resolution."
"
"...Rather than allowing them to maintain their independence, completely absorbing them is the better option. The Demon Slayer Order casts a dissenting vote."
"6
"...We will not greenlight an organization that lacks the strength to handle a Threat Entity. The Skinner Brotherhood chooses to oppose."
Representative after representative cast their dissenting votes, painting the right side of the hall in a sea of red lights.
[0—25—0]
Angie pulled her small handbag to her chest, hugging it a little tighter as she pressed it against her stomach.
'A bad omen,' she thought. 'But those rows on the right are definitely the ultra-conservatives, which is why they are sitting together. The Alliance has a full 108 Orders. Once the other factions start speaking, the situation will change.'
The speaker spotlight flowed down the right side of the hall, cycling through the rows of seats a few times before jumping to the far left of the venue—illuminating the white, undecided seats that stood in stark contrast to the sea of red lights.
A representative straightened his bowtie and rose from his seat.
The reformists had begun to speak.
"Over forty years ago, the chaotic world order forced us to establish a partnership with the Management Authority, jointly purging, dismantling, and absorbing other anomalous organizations."
"The cooperation between the Management Authority and the Alliance wiped them out cleanly, allowing the major districts to return to a state of stability."
"However, current realities have proven that even with the Eleventh and Twelfth Districts quarantined, order continues to deteriorate in many parts of the continent. The Management Authority, true to form, has chosen to shrink back from this, proving their unreliability. It is time for us to make a change."
"The Tuning Academic School agrees to accept the Society."
[1—25—0]
The blue number shifted for the first time.
Angie let out a long breath, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.
The fate of the New World Society was her fate. Even though she hadn't spoken with a single one of their members yet, she was already chained to their little boat.
Whether this boat would capsize, sink, or be intercepted depended entirely on the trajectory of the massive Pan-Continent Alliance dreadnought sailing beside it.
"Absorbing every resource into the Alliance is not always beneficial. Small organizations have their distinct advantages. Just like the insects of the Ascension Society and the cowards of the Library, their forces may be weak, but they can always sting you from where you can't see, disappearing without a trace the moment you raise your hand to swat them."
"Annexing the Society means disrupting their intelligence network. Undercover personnel fear a change in leadership more than anything, which would result in the loss of numerous invaluable intelligence channels."
"They once monitored a private dinner gathering among the facility leaders of the Second District. I have no doubt that they could plant a bomb under those people's chairs if necessary. Amina Revanchism stands with them."
The radical reformists stood up to speak one after another, turning on more and more blue lights.
Soon, the votes began to show a slight advantage.
[29—25—0]
Exactly half of the Order representatives had completed their voting.
The centrist representatives whispered among themselves, wearing enigmatic smiles that tugged at the nerves of both the left and right factions, as well as all the attendees in the gallery.
The next speaker spotlight illuminated the dead center of the hall. The leading voice representative of the centrist faction was about to speak.
The man casually adjusted his microphone before stating, "The Human Supremacy Guardians cast a dissenting vote. We have already secured conclusive evidence—the New World Society is utilizing anomalous methods to conduct espionage. They are exactly the kind of target the Alliance needs to eradicate."