The city of Kagoshima had been peaceful, as if it were just another ordinary day. Dark clouds continued to gather in the sky, and rain fell incessantly. Fortunately, the crops in the fields had already been sown and were growing vigorously, so the rain did not significantly affect many people.
However, amidst this calm, a group of people sat in a conference room within the government building. The common citizens were completely unaware of what had transpired the previous night. Many in the upper echelons, especially those from the seven great families, knew that a battle had taken place.
The members of the seven great families were full of confidence. They believed that with the help of the esper from Tokyo, and over five hundred individuals operating missile launchers, the combination of powerful espers and invincible missiles would be unstoppable.
Yet, even with such confidence, it had vanished after a single night. The elites of Kagoshima had not received any news from the front lines for the entire night. Coupled with the heavy rain, lightning, and thunder from the previous night, it had made it nearly impossible for anyone to venture into the mountains to investigate.
Thus, those in Kagoshima who had not received any news could only gather together to consider their next course of action. They needed to prepare for both outcomes: if their side achieved victory, they would swiftly divide the spoils; but if the two foreign espers emerged victorious, they would have to figure out how to evade retribution.
"My servants have brought back the esper potions and extraterrestrial elements, but the quantity is rather small," a middle-aged man said, placing a box on the table. Upon opening it, three pale green potions were visible, along with a considerable amount of white powder.
The method of extracting esper potions was not particularly important. Many countries had already published the formulas, meaning that with simple reagents, one could extract extraterrestrial elements and gain esper abilities.
However, the required raw materials were not obtainable by ordinary people. After all, to obtain esper potions currently, one could only kill a Corpse King. Corpse Kings were usually surrounded by at least tens of thousands of zombies, and powerful Corpse Kings were often accompanied by millions of zombies. It was completely impossible for ordinary people to obtain them, making esper potions incredibly precious, and no one ever complained about having too few.
Unfortunately, despite the precious esper potions laid out on the table, no one reached for them. They were uncertain if they had won. If the enemy reappeared, they would have to return the items obediently.
"Perhaps we don't need to worry. Maybe it's just because the front lines encountered a torrential downpour, and they couldn't contact us quickly. They might be cleaning up the battlefield right now," a young person spoke up, trying to boost morale in the somber atmosphere.
"That's right! We saw the fires near Sakurajima Volcano from the satellite images. That indicates the missiles have been launched!"
"Or, why don't we send someone into the mountains to observe? That way, we can establish contact!"
"People have already been dispatched, but the mountain paths are difficult. We don't know the exact situation yet."
A dull discussion ensued in the conference room. Everyone was very tense about the current situation. Their greatest fear was receiving bad news from the front lines, but the people sent from the city could not reach their destination in a short time, so the atmosphere in the conference room could not improve.
Just then, a message arrived from the soldiers at the city gate, directly calling one of the individuals in the conference room. It turned out that the eldest daughter of the Fujino family had returned!
"Miss Ranzi said she has important intelligence to discuss, so she is rushing to the conference room immediately. Please gather the key personnel," the soldier relayed Ranzi's message.
Everyone quickly responded, "No need to gather them; we are all here. Let Ranzi come quickly!"
Upon hearing that Ranzi had appeared, everyone gradually relaxed. Ranzi had returned from the front lines, which meant the plan had gone smoothly. Otherwise, she would likely have been killed by the enemy by now. And now, Ranzi was probably the one sent back specifically to deliver the news.
When Ranzi walked into the conference room, everyone frowned upon seeing her appearance. They hadn't expected the esteemed eldest daughter of the Fujino family to be dressed like this. Her clothes were stained with mud and water. Although they had been dried, the mud stains were still clearly visible. Furthermore, Ranzi's hair was disheveled, looking very messy, which was not how a young lady of a noble family should appear.
"Ranzi, how did the front lines go? Why do you look like this?" everyone began to inquire as soon as they saw Ranzi.
However, Ranzi smiled and stood at the forefront, saying, "The front lines have been completely annihilated. I am here to persuade you to surrender. I forgot to tell you, I am now one of Lord Shen Fuyao's people. Prepare to surrender; continuing to resist is futile."
Her words stunned everyone present. They had never expected such a turn of events. The assassination plan against the two espers had been devised by Ranzi, yet now she claimed to have defected to the enemy, and the front lines were annihilated. How was this possible?
"Ranzi, this is not the time for jokes. Everyone here is older than you and your seniors. You should show us some respect and not talk nonsense!" an old man stood up and said earnestly.
Ranzi smiled and then continued, "You all think I'm joking? Then you can look at this!"
As she spoke, Ranzi took out her phone and found two photos. They showed Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi taking shelter from the rain. Yue Hengyi's legs were bandaged, and Shen Feng was boiling ginger soup. These were scenes she had captured the previous night, which would be useful for today's plan.
After presenting the evidence, Ranzi continued, "Do you understand now? The eight espers who went to assassinate them last night have all been killed. Furthermore, over five hundred soldiers who departed from the city have also been wiped out. Lord Shen Fuyao and Lord Yi Hengyue are unharmed!"
Everyone looked at Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi in the photos and fell silent. Their worst fears had materialized. Their side had not achieved victory; instead, the enemies were still alive and did not appear to be seriously injured.
"Ranzi, so you defected to the enemy? You change your tune very quickly," someone sneered. It was a great irony that the person who planned everything was alive, while almost everyone involved in the plan was killed.
Everyone in the conference room glared at Ranzi with anger. It was clear that Ranzi had become a traitor. Perhaps the annihilation of the front lines last night was due to Ranzi's defection.
Seeing everyone accusing her, Ranzi smiled and said, "It's easy for you to say. Uncle Matsushita couldn't wait to open fire when I was still in danger. I don't believe you didn't know about this, nor do I believe you have no intentions towards my family's assets. It's likely that someone among you even instructed him to fire missiles at me. Now that I've turned to Lord Shen Feng, it's quite normal!"
Everyone was rendered speechless. It was indeed as Ranzi had said. They had also considered taking advantage of the situation. After all, only this single bloodline remained of the Fujino family's main branch, and the collateral branches were watching covetously. This was a prize everyone coveted. If they could kill her, the Fujino family's assets could all be divided.
However, what they hadn't expected was that Ranzi not only survived but also defected to the enemy. The speed of her change in allegiance was truly astonishing.
Ranzi continued, "As long as you surrender, I guarantee I can persuade Lord Shen Feng not to pursue this matter further. If you provide a few scapegoats and perform ritual suicide publicly, then everything will be fine!"
Silence fell upon the conference room as everyone considered Ranzi's terms. They had surrendered once before, so surrendering again was not a problem. Their families would not suffer any substantial losses. However, this would mean that important figures in the family would have to account for their actions. A sect leader had already died, and this time they couldn't easily get away with using temporary workers.
Suddenly, someone noticed Ranzi's address: "Wait a minute, you just referred to Shen Fuyao as Shen Feng. What does that mean?"
Ranzi found a chair and slowly sat down, then said, "This is what I wanted to tell you. I now know the true identities of these two foreign espers. They are not unemployed vagrants with no background; they have very powerful connections. One is a genius from China's Esper Management Bureau, and the other is the City Lord of Chongqing, China, who commands nearly a million people and is a sixth-tier esper, the first in the world to break through the evolution barrier!"
Her words immediately stunned everyone in the conference room. They had never expected these two enemies to have such formidable backgrounds. Especially China's Esper Management Bureau, which was said to have many talented individuals, with no less than ten powerful espers. Chongqing was even more remarkable. They had heard that only Chongqing could mass-produce evolution bases and had over a dozen espers under its command, controlling the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. It could be said that the backgrounds of these two individuals would draw attention anywhere.
"But, didn't these two die? How are they here?" someone asked the most crucial question.
Ranzi said calmly, "That is not something we can know. Perhaps they have special missions. I want to remind you that their backing forces are absolutely not to be provoked. Now that we have angered them, we can only apologize, otherwise, casualties will increase!"
Upon learning the true identities of the enemies, the important figures from the major families began to hesitate. It seemed that surrender was the only option. After all, the opponents had formidable backgrounds, and if they truly angered them, no one could protect them.
"But it's easy for us to surrender. How do we explain this to Tokyo? What if Tokyo sends more people? We've also lost the supplies we promised them, and Tokyo will surely not let this go. We can't afford to offend Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi, and we can't afford to offend Tokyo either!" someone voiced the most critical concern.
"There's no need to worry about that. I've already thought of a solution. We will not respond to Tokyo's communications at all. If espers come, let Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi deal with them. Also, reveal the true identities of these two to Tokyo. If the people in Tokyo are smart, they will know not to provoke these two and use China's powerful influence to suppress Tokyo!" Ranzi said with a smile, as if everything was under control.
Everyone looked at Ranzi in silence. The room was filled with people over thirty years old, including many in their fifties. Yet, now they had to listen to the advice of a sixteen-year-old girl. They felt unwilling, but thinking of the power represented by Ranzi, they felt powerless.
"Let it be this way. Since someone has to bear the blame, then let us old guys die. As for you youngsters, the future is yours to shape. Ranzi, a gentleman's transformation, you have learned this very well!" an elder from another family stood up. In Japan, there was a culture of respecting elders, meaning juniors or younger generations must obey the instructions of their seniors, or they would be criticized.
At this moment, an elder stood up to make a decision, and others knew that the matter was over, and the ones to atone would be the elders. Their status was noble enough to be responsible for this defeat.
However, the elder's criticism of Ranzi was also evident. Although not direct, the sarcasm in his words was strong. He was implying that Ranzi's change of allegiance was too rapid, as fast as a leopard. Such a speed of positional change was beyond the reach of ordinary people.