Chapter 149: Order Referendum |
As soon as these words were spoken, an uproar erupted across the venue.
A sense of despair spread through Angie's heart. She gripped her handbag tightly, warping the synthetic leather.
The Archbishop conversed briefly with a parliamentary assistant. The latter adjusted the main screen, bringing up an investigative report.
It clearly displayed the Pan-Continent Alliance's surveillance records on the Communicator codenamed "Deer Hunter." A massive amount of photographs, supplemented by Shi Rang's movement tracks, laid the evidence bare for everyone to see.
The representative continued, "Aside from a few brief periods where he slipped surveillance, during the times of frequent transmission and messaging, this Communicator was never seen making any actual contact. Field Agents conducted a carpet search of everything around his home that could serve as a Dead Drop. Ultimately, we reached a conclusion—the New World Society could not possibly be transmitting information through normal means!
"I must remind everyone, never forget our oaths and primary mission."
The representative of the Human Supremacy Guardians haughtily surveyed the venue. His gaze intentionally lingered near the glowing blue lights before he finally took his seat.
Several members of the bishopric on the rostrum conversed in low voices for a moment. Soon, the Archbishop announced, "The information is verified."
The expressions of the representatives shifted slightly. Many nodded in agreement, already having made their judgments.
However, once the Alliance's core principles—the Five Great Missions—were involved, the situation changed.
The 108 Orders formed the core of the Pan-Continent Alliance, but they also had their own people embedded within the Alliance's five major departments and even the bishopric. Similar situations were not uncommon in previous meetings, but it was exceptionally rare for someone to present such crucial intelligence and deal a fatal blow to the opposition.
For Angie and the New World Society, this was absolutely disastrous news.
After the Human Supremacy Guardians' representative presented the evidence, the red lights multiplied rapidly. The vote count began to skew in a terrifyingly one-sided manner.
Regardless of how many centrist Orders had learned of this evidence in advance, an Order Referendum was never conducted solely based on the stances of the representatives or the groups themselves. More often than not, it was an opportunity for various factions to flex their Political Power, form alliances, and draw their lines in the sand.
Now was the time to take a stand.
"Anomaly technology should not exist. Changing the world using technology that belongs exclusively to humanity—that is the very purpose of the Ritual Department's existence. The Wisdom of Man Order casts a dissenting vote."
[29—29—0]
"We oppose the existence of this society. We vote against it."
[29—30—0]
The vote count began to reverse. Angie's stomach spasmed with pain.
The heavy air conditioning in the venue left her whole body numb. She could not help but feel resentful toward Investigator Scarlett, the hands-off boss who had dumped all the responsibility onto her.
At the very least, Scarlett had been directly appointed to her position by the leadership of the Spirit Vision Department. She definitely could have relied on those connections to conduct useful lobbying before the meeting began. Yet Scarlett had tossed every single task onto Angie, turning her into a Commander Without Troops who was only nominally in charge of the New World Society's affairs. Already burdened with the suspicion of colluding with the enemy, Angie faced obstacles at every turn, making it impossible to work effectively.
Sitting in the gallery right now, Angie was no different from a prisoner stripped of the right to defend herself.
She could only sit here and await the verdict.
"Then what are we still waiting for? Why didn't the Physics Department immediately dispose of this organization? Are we really going to alter over a decade's worth of operational guidelines for such a tiny intelligence group? Today's meeting is already bordering on shaking our primary missions! The Commerce Order opposes the resolution!"
[29—45—0]
Angie tallied the votes in her mind. Once the dissenting votes exceeded the halfway mark, no amount of praying would save them.
Half of 108 was 54. They were only nine votes away...
"This sort of accusation carries the suspicion of being conservative just for the sake of being conservative. Before further contact is made with the personnel of the New World Society, it is difficult to determine whether that is scientific tech, Paranormal Technology, or the utilization of an Anomaly. The evidence presented so far is insufficient to sway our decision. The Silver Moon Court abstains."
[29—45—1]
The first gray light blinked on.
An abstention was only marginally better than opposition...
[30—46—1]
[30—47—2]
[30—48—5]
As the number of remaining representatives dwindled, Angie felt like she was suffocating. She started wondering where she would be detained and how she might go about applying for a transfer to a prison in the first four districts.
"Beep!"
The numbers on the giant screen shifted again, but this time, it was the affirmative votes that increased.
[31—48—10]
An unusual silence fell over the venue for a fraction of a second before a wave of whispers swept through the voting area and beyond.
On one side of the hall, the representative of the Human Supremacy Guardians, who had spearheaded the wave of opposition, glared fiercely at the man standing amidst the newly illuminated blue glow.
"It is Bishop Noel."
"The Truth Supremacy Order didn't follow with a dissenting vote? Have they had a falling out?"
"I thought he was always a staunch anti-anomalist?"
Bishop Noel, the representative who had just cast the vote, pulled his hand away from the button and slowly raised it high, requesting the floor for an extended speech just as the Human Supremacy Guardians' representative had done. The giant, glowing blue characters on the screen, combined with the blue radiance at his feet, cast his figure in an incredibly majestic light, making him look like a descending savior.
The Archbishop nodded, granting the request.
Noel cleared his throat and began.
"Gentlemen, we all know that the Anomalies in the world are currently experiencing an explosive surge. Their numbers are constantly increasing, leaving all our departments operating far beyond their capacities. To deal with the endless emergence of Threat Entities, we passed proposals authorizing small-scale evaluation and Combat Groups, throwing our members into endless battles time and time again.
"Look at our old rival, the Management Authority. They have also been forced to adapt, deciding to utterly exterminate the things they call 'Distortion Phenomena' instead of containing them like before. If they do not, their overburdened facilities and personnel will inevitably collapse under the strain.
"Right now, we are all operating under immense pressure. A machine running on overload cannot endure for long.
"It is time to change our methods. Before the Management Authority one day crumbles and allows the things they have collected, sheltered, and detained to escape into the human world in droves, we must take the first step.
"The Ritual Department and the Spirit Vision Department have tried for years, yet failed to successfully infiltrate the core systems of the Management Authority. Ever since they decided to use that Anomaly as a means of communication, the difficulty of hacking them has skyrocketed. The Management Authority is building a one-sided wall of intelligence. They have never ceased their infiltration and espionage against us, yet they manage to lock us out entirely.
"But today, this insignificant little society has revealed its most crucial value to us—
They can bore a hole straight through that wall.
"My colleagues, a rat is despicable, and an ant is not worth mentioning. But if it can carve the first crack in the dam for us, then it has utility.
"We must be prepared. We must brace for an offensive, and for that, we need intelligence.
"If we eradicate them, are we also going to destroy the accompanying intelligence agents who utilize Anomalies? If what they possess is an advanced form of science, or some morally ambiguous Paranormal Technology, and we throw away our greatest opportunity to infiltrate the Management Authority because of it, wouldn't that merely sow deeper divisions among ourselves?
"Opening the roster of 'friendly peer organizations' to them is, in my eyes, perfectly justifiable. We are facing an impending war. And in war, the ends justify the means.
"The Truth Supremacy Order approves of the existence of the New World Society."
After Noel took his seat, the venue remained devoid of sound for a time. But from the way people exchanged glances and the subtle shifts in their posture, Angie could tell that many had been swayed by his words. Even the representative of the Human Supremacy Guardians restrained his anger—the shift was so swift it made Angie wonder if they had colluded in advance.
Perhaps this was a psychological tactic.
It was a remarkably clever speech. It placated the conservatives while appealing to the reformists. Most importantly, it firmly gripped the deepest, unspoken thoughts of everyone present—
The Pan-Continent Alliance and the Management Authority were currently maintaining a superficial cooperation, but everyone knew that one day, this balance would be shattered.
A single Crown cannot be shared by two.
"As a forward offensive, I believe the New World Society makes for a qualified vanguard. The Solar System Media Order casts an affirmative vote."
"...
...They do have their merits in espionage, something the Spirit Vision Department cannot achieve.
The Eye Order casts an affirmative vote."
The blue lights multiplied unceasingly. The numbers on the giant screen jumped wildly, ultimately displaying a definitive result.
Angie's tightly clenched hands finally relaxed.
[50—48—10]
The Archbishop stood up to announce the result.
"The resolution has concluded. The Pan-Continent Alliance will reopen the roster of 'friendly peer organizations.' The New World Society will become the first friendly organization on this list...
"
Angie did not hear a single word of what was said after that.
She sagged with relief. Looking as though she had just crawled out of deep water, she didn't even have the strength left to perceive the outside world, save for breathing.
From this moment on, her fate would be tied even more firmly to this mysterious organization.
The New World Society had "survived."