After that day, Shirou's life hovered somewhere between being peaceful and not peaceful.
It was not just Shirou either. Lungmen's recent state was more or less the same.
There was no helping it. Too many people had their eyes on Lungmen, and even more wanted to take advantage of the chaos to fish in troubled waters.
It was said that Officer Chen, Hoshiguma, and Swire had already been living inside the Guard Department for several days straight.
With the three of them already this overwhelmed, the rest of the Guard Department naturally was not doing much better, so the atmosphere there lately had been rather grim.
All because of excessive overtime work.
Lin Yuhsia's side was the same as well. Apparently she had learned about Shirou drinking tea with Old Mr. Lin last time. She merely left behind a sentence saying she would handle everything properly before continuing to talk about other matters.
Later, when Shirou visited the candy shop again, the one receiving him was no longer Old Mr. Lin, but another employee instead.
Regarding this, all Shirou could do was sincerely hope in his heart that Old Mr. Lin was still alright.
These candies and biscuits had also been something Swire asked Shirou to buy, saying they would be placed inside the Guard Department for everyone to freely take and enjoy.
Otherwise, the atmosphere here was so oppressive that even she felt like she could barely breathe.
"Mm… this should be about enough."
After separating the candies and biscuits he bought and placing them in the break rooms on every floor, Shirou was in quite a good mood.
After all, tomorrow would be Remembrance Day. This was also the first time Shirou had celebrated a holiday here that felt somewhat similar to the ones from his past.
Although there was no trick-or-treating, it still gave him a certain sense of familiarity.
As for other holidays?
Penguin Logistics did not really celebrate holidays much. Remembrance day was only popular among them because, in a sense, it fit very well with the theme of holding parties.
After that would probably be Christmas and New Year's… those two also gave Shirou a strong sense of familiarity.
"Mr. Shirou! We are heading out on duty! We will leave this to you! Please put it on Officer Chen's desk for us!"
Nearby, several members of the Guard Department dragged their exhausted bodies toward the entrance. When they saw Shirou along the way, it was almost as if they had spotted a savior. They shoved the documents in their hands toward him before continuing on their way to their assignments.
"Alright, travel safely."
After briefly memorizing who the documents were supposed to go to, Shirou stuffed them into the pile of files he was already carrying under his other arm.
Quite a few people along the way had asked him to deliver documents to Officer Chen and Swire.
After all, throughout the entire Guard Department, he was probably the only person who could still regularly come into contact with those two while also being comparatively free.
Though saying he was "free" was not entirely accurate either, because he had basically been spending all his days inside the Guard Department recently. If any emergencies occurred, Shirou would have to head out on assignments just like before.
Of course, this had all been arranged through a request.
His most beloved boss had sold him out once again, though Shirou himself did not really mind. Besides, his boss had at least asked for his opinion beforehand.
As for whatever shady deal existed between the boss and Wei Yenwu, Shirou had no interest in it and did not bother listening.
After delivering all the documents he had collected along the way to their respective destinations, Shirou returned to the seat reserved for him within the Guard Department.
The desk was still relatively clean. After all, he normally did not handle paperwork, so most of the things there were miscellaneous odds and ends.
A Guard Department jacket was draped over the back of the chair. It was the one he wore during his newbie work. Unfortunately, it no longer fit him properly now, so it had simply been left there.
"Sigh… at this rate I really am going to lose my mind."
After seeing Shirou return, Hoshiguma quietly complained from nearby.
"Was it not said that every Remembrance day is like this? Or is this year especially exhausting?"
Hearing Hoshiguma's complaint, Shirou instantly understood what she meant. He walked over to the refrigerator in the nearby break room, took out a can of her favorite energy drink, and casually chatted with her.
"The total number of cases from the same period in the previous two years combined might not even compare to this time… Old Chen already said it herself. If she catches the people behind all this, she is definitely going to make them understand the anger of Lungmen's people."
Hoshiguma was more than willing to chat with Shirou for a bit. Constantly throwing herself into work was exhausting, so slacking off slightly while drinking an energy drink to recover some spirit felt rather nice.
"Uwah… so is she going to use a sword or her fists?"
Hearing Hoshiguma say this, Shirou immediately understood that Officer Chen was genuinely furious.
After all, she had already skipped past the stage of using Lungmen profanity and moved straight to planning physical violence.
"Well, obviously both of…"
Before Hoshiguma could finish speaking, an extremely terrifying voice suddenly came from nearby:
"You two seem to be having quite the pleasant conversation, hm?"
It was the very person they had been talking about.
At a glance, it was obvious that Officer Chen's mood was absolutely terrible.
The enormous pressure from work alone was already crushing her, though she was used to that by now.
But hearing people nearby gossiping about her? That she could not tolerate.
"Cough cough… it was nothing, really. Would you like a drink?"
Caught red-handed by the person herself, Shirou coughed awkwardly twice and immediately handed over the energy drink originally meant for himself, attempting to use it to extinguish her anger.
If reality had visual effects, then Officer Chen probably would have been surrounded by blazing flames at that moment.
"It had better be nothing."
Taking the energy drink from Shirou's hand, Officer Chen opened it and gulped it down in one go. After finishing it, she looked slightly more energetic.
Who knew whether the energy drink actually worked, or whether it was simply psychological.
Just as Hoshiguma had said earlier, the number of cases this year had clearly increased dramatically. One could practically say it was the busiest year since she took office.
If next year ended up like this too…
Just imagining it gave her a headache.
Still, the main issue this time was that mysterious infected organization stirring things up behind the scenes. The overwhelming majority of cases were related to the infected.
This had also caused Lungmen citizens' opinions of the infected to worsen even further. Although public opinion had already hit rock bottom before, the trouble caused by these people had made the infected's situation even more precarious.
She could understand what those people were thinking, but unfortunately, they had chosen the wrong method.
"I know everyone has been exhausted these past few days. Just hold on a little longer. Things will improve a lot after Halloween."
Looking at the exhausted Hoshiguma, Chen spoke reassuringly.
These next two days were extremely critical. The other side would very likely make a move when Halloween festivities reached their peak, so as long as there was even the slightest suspicious clue, the Guard Department would dispatch people to investigate thoroughly.
Better to be more exhausted than to let even one suspicious person slip through.
"Understood."
Both Hoshiguma and Shirou nodded at the same time.
This was not the moment to provoke her further. If she exploded, the two of them would definitely become the first victims. Better to leave that special honor to someone else.
For example, Swire?
Speaking of Swire, Shirou suddenly realized he had not seen her bickering with Officer Chen for several days now. Presumably neither side had the energy for it anymore.
Strangely enough, he kind of missed it.
Just as Shirou was about to help Hoshiguma deal with some paperwork, the phone on Officer Chen's desk rang several times before she picked it up.
"This is the Lungmen Guard Department Inspection Unit… Understood. I will head over immediately to take a look."
After putting down the phone, Officer Chen rubbed the space between her brows, trying to wake herself up a little.
"Is it a particularly troublesome case?"
Seeing her expression, Shirou's first thought was that the case must be very difficult.
The result, however, was completely different from what he expected.
"It is somewhat troublesome. We received a report that several wanted criminals have gathered together."
Officer Chen had no intention of hiding it, because Hoshiguma would be participating in the operation, and Shirou would be coming along as well.
The danger posed by a single wanted criminal was already severe, let alone an entire group.
Who knew why these people had decided to stir up trouble at a time like this? Did they think the Guard Department's workload was not high enough already?
Still, since they had gathered together, they might as well be wiped out in one go.
She did feel slightly apologetic toward Shirou, though. It was basically time for him to get off work, yet now he would be forced into overtime because of this mission.
After silently repenting for two seconds, Officer Chen directly addressed the two before her:
"Hoshiguma, take two squads with you. Shirou, you are coming along as well. The targets this time may be extremely dangerous, so if necessary, lethal force is authorized."
"I understand."
Hearing her words, Shirou finally realized just how troublesome this case truly was. Otherwise, Officer Chen would not have spoken beforehand about being permitted to kill the suspects.
Usually, she only issued such orders when the targets were highly likely to endanger people or frontline Guard Department personnel.
"Do not put too much pressure on yourself. Did Old Chen not say it too? They only might be very troublesome. Relax a little."
Seeing that Shirou seemed somewhat nervous, Hoshiguma stood up and patted him on the back several times, trying to ease his tension.
After those pats, Shirou was no longer nervous.
His back just felt burning hot with pain.
Well, compared to before, when a single pat felt like his entire body was about to fall apart, this at least did not hurt quite as much.
"I am fine."
Forcing out a somewhat strained smile, Shirou replied.
Although the smile was stiff, Hoshiguma did not pay much attention to it. She directly went to gather the squads while Shirou headed off to change into tactical equipment.
Mainly tactical clothing, protective gear, and a higher-quality communicator.
After all, whenever Shirou mobilized slightly too much power, there was always a chance that the communicator would be destroyed on the spot. So they simply gave him a sturdier model instead.
This communicator had already survived longer than most of the others.
Its only drawback was that it was rather expensive.
Very quickly, Officer Chen's and Hoshiguma's squads assembled, and together with Shirou, the unofficial extra member, they departed.
Inside the vehicle, Officer Chen briefly explained the known situation through the communicator.
"The location is in the factory district, specifically an abandoned factory. I should not need to explain what kind of place that is. Also, the targets are multiple wanted felons, all highly dangerous criminals. Be careful."
Since Shirou was riding in the same vehicle as Officer Chen, he received the information directly on-site.
If he remembered correctly, the abandoned factory district… did not really have any good sniper positions.
Which meant this time he would probably have to move directly alongside the other Guard Department members.
That was not too much of a problem. After all, not every operation offered a good sniping location. Shirou's close combat ability was not weak either; he was simply more suited to operating alone.
The reason was simple.
His destructive power was just a little too great.
It was technically possible to assign teammates to Shirou and force him to hold back, but that was not particularly practical. That was why, during Guard Department operations, Shirou usually served in a sniper role instead.
Officer Chen naturally understood this, so she directly assigned him to move together with her.
Coincidentally, both of them were the type whose destructive capabilities became a little excessive once they started fighting.
After the vehicles reached the designated area, everyone got out and began organizing their equipment and weapons.
Although the group only consisted of Shirou, Officer Chen, Hoshiguma, and two squads, the number of vehicles was still fairly high due to the weight of the tactical gear and weapons.
"So the plan is to infiltrate without alerting them?"
Noticing that the parking location differed somewhat from the target location they had originally discussed, Shirou asked.
"Yes. We do not have enough manpower to establish a complete encirclement."
Officer Chen, who was adjusting the tactical gear on her body, spared the time to answer briefly.
The reason they parked farther away was naturally to avoid making too much noise and alerting the criminals inside.
Under normal circumstances, they might have been able to spare enough personnel to completely surround the abandoned factory and launch a direct assault.
Unfortunately, the Guard Department was currently short on manpower, and most personnel were already in poor condition. Conducting a full assault under those circumstances would be extremely dangerous.
A smaller assault force required a far more precise battle plan.
The factory's interior terrain, the number of criminals, their positions, their weapons, and even possible Originium Arts all needed to be considered…
At this moment, Officer Chen was trying to formulate a detailed operational strategy using the extremely limited information available to her, and to do so within the shortest time possible.
At present, the Guard Department did possess drones capable of confirming such information.
However, the moment the drones were deployed, they would almost certainly alert the people inside. As such, drone deployment would only be considered after Guard Department personnel had already been positioned.
The second option was Shirou's eyesight.
Unfortunately, there were no suitable vantage points nearby for reconnaissance. Otherwise, she would have been able to create a far more complete and safer operation plan.
Under the current circumstances… they could only adopt a gradual assault strategy.
In other words, they would control the entrances and exits as much as possible while suppressing enemy firepower and dividing the enemies' attention, gradually securing victory step by step.
This was the safest method.
Once the entrances and exits were secured, they could send drones inside. The more information they gathered, the more advantageous the situation would become for them.
"..."
Seeing how busy Officer Chen seemed, Shirou had no intention of disturbing her and quietly organized the supplies inside his tactical backpack instead.
Most of what he carried consisted of emergency medical supplies.
Other people usually packed Originium explosives or crossbow bolts, but such things were largely useless for Shirou. After weighing the options, he chose bandages and medicine instead.
These were the items Shirou carried on almost every mission, and they were used quite frequently.
After all, injuries during combat were unavoidable. Not everyone possessed the ability to tank bullets or Arts with their bare body.
After finishing his preparations, Shirou looked toward the abandoned factory in the distance.
For some reason, he could not shake the feeling that all these people suddenly gathering together at a time like this… seemed a little too coincidental.