FI CH 7

Chapter 7: Rainforest Siege (I)

After that day, the entire Guide Guild and Sentinel Guild knew about it.

The Sentinel-Guide Association was thrown into chaos, busy arranging a slew of follow-up training programs for the two. The thing they had long hoped for had finally come true, and the immense joy was evident on the face of the person in charge.

The matter of offspring among ability users had always been a major concern—especially in an era riddled with frequent warfare, where the number of Sentinels and Guides was steadily declining. And now, finally, there was good news. What a cause for celebration!

He He rushed straight to the Sentinel Guild the moment he heard the news, but Bai Hua wasn’t there. He searched everywhere and still couldn’t find a trace of him.

He He assumed Bai Hua had run off again, but their superior could only sigh and said, “He went on vacation.”

When a top-ranking Sentinel stormed into your home in the dead of night, brimming with killing intent, demanding immediate approval for a leave request—who would dare refuse to sign it?

So Bai Hua left without a word, luggage in hand, continuing the rest of his vacation. With this time included, he had a full ten days off, completely disrupting the training schedule the Sentinel-Guide Association had carefully prepared for them.

He He asked in disbelief, “So he really escaped all that training this time?”

The superior said, “I think so.”

“How did he even know about the Association’s plans? Who told him?”

“Who else could’ve leaked the info so clearly if not Kurosawa?”

“Oh my god…” His own Guide helped his Sentinel skip the two-person compatibility training. He He was speechless. “They really are… the perfect match?”

“They’ll get plenty of practice—on the battlefield.”

He He gloated, “What I’m more curious about is… what would happen if they decided to team up and go against the Sentinel-Guide Association. That’d be really entertaining.”

“They might be a bit willful, but they’re reasonable. Even if not for their own sakes, something like that would never happen.”

As it turned out, their superior was absolutely right. Ten days later, Bai Hua obediently returned to report back to the Guild.

After a peaceful, undisturbed vacation, he was in surprisingly good spirits.

By the time he returned, Jing He had already undergone interrogation.

The results were quite unexpected.

According to Kurosawa’s report, it appeared that Jing He had some of her memories erased, and had also been taught how to manipulate mental landscapes. As if someone had tried to erase all traces, every memory of the people she had come into contact with was removed—and the one who did it was another Guide. A Guide erasing another Guide’s memories… what a terrifying ability.

However, Bai Hua didn’t seem particularly interested in any of that. He simply asked, “What’s going to happen to her now?”

The interrogator didn’t expect this kind of question. After a moment’s pause, they responded a bit uncertainly, “Ability users are rare, so the higher-ups will probably keep her under observation for now. As for the actual sentence… it’s still unclear.”

Bai Hua gave a short “mm,” walked to the special holding area to observe Jing He for a moment, then quietly left.

After that, he accepted a few ordinary missions on his own. When he returned to the Sentinel Guild, he overheard others discussing another incident involving a berserk ability user.

This time, it was a Sentinel who suddenly lost control while stationed at the Northwest branch, injuring many people before being subdued by a group of fellow Sentinels. He was temporarily detained while the cause remained under investigation…

Bai Hua hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but with his sharp hearing, it was hard not to pick up on these things.

Two ability user incidents in a single month… that was a bit too frequent.

He didn’t bother listening to the details. After reporting his mission, he simply went home.

A few days later, in the middle of the night, he was woken up by an emergency call.

It was from Kurosawa.

“Jing He has been rescued.”

Bai Hua sat up instantly, wide awake. “What happened?”

“It’s a long story. I’ll explain everything in person,” Kurosawa said, naming a meeting location before hanging up.

The rendezvous point was once again at the Southeast Division.

By the time Bai Hua arrived, Kurosawa was already there, along with two other Sentinel-Guide pairs—six people in total. One of the Sentinels was an old acquaintance of Bai Hua’s, named An Shi.

With just a glance at the group, Bai Hua immediately understood: this was a mission assembly.

The Sentinel-Guide Association typically assigned six-person squads for joint operations. The large-scale manhunt for Jing He last time had been an exception. At that moment, it suddenly became clear to Bai Hua: Jing He’s identity must be either extremely important, or she was going to play a crucial role in this mission—as a pawn or bait.

Sure enough, Kurosawa’s next words confirmed Bai Hua’s suspicions. “There’s a tracking device on Jing He. We’re following the signal to trace the mastermind behind all this.”

The rest of the team exchanged glances. That single sentence revealed a lot.

If this had just been suspicion before, then the Sentinel-Guide Association was now certain—someone was secretly organizing a rebellion from the shadows. Currently, Jing He was the only lead they had. There was no way they could let that go. So, in the absence of any solid clues, they devised this strategy—leaking false intel and letting Jing He be “rescued.” Now that the enemy had taken the bait, all that was left was to verify the lead.

Bai Hua grasped the key issue. “Where is she now?”

Kurosawa pointed at the tracker on the table. A red dot was rapidly moving on the screen—leaving the country and crossing the sea. The speed was far beyond what any land vehicle could achieve.

“Jing He is on a private aircraft,” Kurosawa said quickly. “And it’s still in motion.”

Another Sentinel spoke up. “Where are they headed?”

Kurosawa shook his head. He hadn’t been able to retrieve any relevant information from Jing He’s memories. That most likely meant this was her first time going to the location as well.

But Bai Hua had a different concern. “Won’t the people who rescued her notice the tracking device on her?”

“Unless they thoroughly search her, they likely won’t find it right away. It was implanted using a unique Guide ability, and paired with a custom-modified tracking device,” Kurosawa explained. “But eventually, they will find it.”

The group fell silent. From all this, it was clear—the mission ahead was going to be extremely difficult. There was a strong possibility they’d come face-to-face with the enemy… or even with that powerful Guide capable of erasing other people’s memories.

Bai Hua asked again, “What exactly do we need to do?”

“Bring back intel on the enemy—number of people, abilities, anything we can get. But self-preservation is still the top priority.”

If their suspicions were correct, this could involve an organized faction of rogue Sentinels and Guides.

Bai Hua stared at the red dot on the tracker, lost in thought.

Without knowing the enemy’s destination, there was nothing they could do for now. Everyone began minding their own tasks, except for Kurosawa, who remained fully focused on the device.

From the moment Bai Hua arrived until now, not a single superior officer had shown up. That indicated the urgency of the situation—everything had already been entrusted to Kurosawa.

Kurosawa seemed used to this kind of pressure. His thoughts were clear, his actions orderly and calm.

Only now did Bai Hua begin to understand why the Guide Association placed so much trust in him. Lost in thought, he didn’t realize he had been staring at Kurosawa the entire time.

Kurosawa quickly noticed, but didn’t look away. He simply asked, “What is it? Not going to take a break?”

Bai Hua paused, only then realizing Kurosawa was speaking to him. He replied, “Sentinels don’t need much sleep. You, on the other hand—you’ve been here all night, haven’t you?”

Kurosawa gave a small chuckle, one tinged with something personal.

It was then that Bai Hua noticed—once Kurosawa went into mission mode, he became a completely different person: focused and decisive. But outside of work, he was easygoing, almost casual—like now. The contrast between the two sides of him was stark, yet somehow they melded perfectly into a single personality.

After laughing, Kurosawa composed himself again and said, “I’m used to it.”

They didn’t continue the conversation. Bai Hua was never much of a talker anyway. Out of boredom, he began checking over the supplies distributed to him by the Association. He suddenly found a small white packet—Guide Suppressants^[1]. These pills could prevent an unbonded Sentinel from entering a berserk state during intense combat, and they also helped suppress loss of control during heat triggered by compatibility.

He hesitated for a moment, initially planning to take them out—but when he thought of Kurosawa, he ended up putting them back.

Three hours later, the red dot on the tracker stopped moving, settling at a fixed position on the map.

Kurosawa called out to everyone, and they all gathered around the screen. The marked destination was—“Tropical Rainforest.”

(To be continued…)