Chapter 293: Chapter 292 - Heartfelt Criticism

Chapter 292 - Heartfelt Criticism

Yuzu’s eyes calmly opened as her consciousness returned to the physical world.

Her hand was closed around a small item, one which she had brought with her from Ying Zhen. She discreetly slipped it into her pocket without looking at it, hiding the motion as she rose from her seated position. Her legs were aching but she resisted the urge to stretch them.

Somm had prepared the ox for the day’s travel, he was standing outside the ruined building, looking in through the broken section of the wall. Nilya was cross-legged across from her eating a piece of dried meat.

Seeing Yuzu stand up his eyes opened wide as he jumped to his feet and bowed at a ninety degree angle, “Thank you for saving me, miss!”

Yuzu rested her eyes on Nilya with a nonchalant, almost cold expression. She held eye contact until he trembled a bit out of nervousness, then relaxed her gaze and shot him a small, mysterious smile before turning to walk out of the building.

Kids are so easy to play with… She sighed inwardly with mischievous satisfaction.

Prior to returning to the physical world Yuzu had already carefully examined the strings in the marsh. Her return to the physical world and this next scene had already been settled in Yuzu’s mind.

As Yuzu and Nilya settled into the cart Somm channeled his powers into the ox, once again transforming it from a starving elderly creature into a lively beast of burden.

Somm walked over to the side of the cart as he checked over the strappings, “You fulfilled your promise true to your word, Shou Tao.”

“So it was written.” Yuzu’s face was shadowed in the hood of her cloak as she replied softly, “So it came to pass.”

The guru-chi paused, absorbing Yuzu’s words for a moment before nodding reverently.

Immortals, too. Yuzu hid a grin as she revelled in the cheesy lines that she had just spoken.

“It is time to depart. Bacchi is likely already on his way.” Somm said, “However, with Nilya back from the Trial, I can use my methods to deceive him, at least for the time being.”

He didn’t elaborate, though he had already activated some of his methods. The strings around the marsh were hazy, making it difficult for Yuzu to fully read the future of their surroundings.

He’s using a concealment method with a broad affect, then. Yuzu surmised. It likely doesn’t target Fate directly, since Fate is so obscure… At the same time, it doesn’t feel like the same type of concealment used by Argus and his Knowledge pathway…

Asking about the technique using Fate Cycling provided no answers. It was clear that the guru-chi had no intention of sharing his methods with her.

Yuzu’s eyes glimmered as she gained a deeper appreciation for the breadth and mystery of the Exalted world.

Murky water sloshed around the cart’s wheels as they took off into the marsh, a silence setting in between the three. Somm kept his eyes ahead, muttering strange words under his breath periodically. Nilya sat with the hollow ember cradled in his lap, the fiery glow of the spiritual egg keeping them warm under the weak rays of the sun.

Yuzu sat with her hands clasped together inside the folds of her cloak, her fingers playing with a small quartz medallion whose golden thread extended out to the sky far, far away to another world.

~

In a darkened office on the second floor of the Noga City Central Police Station, Finn stared darkly at a pile of papers on his desk. His complexion was pale, heavy bags hung under his eyes which retained a stressed clarity and focus. The top button of his shirt was undone and his jacket tossed haphazardly on the chair across from him. A thin layer of grease slickened his short white hair.

A brass timepiece on the table told him that he had been fifty hours without sleep. Sleep that would evade him still, as he read through the post-action report of the failed operation near the border of Fuha and the personnel files of his deceased teammates.

Abbott Deacon Glass of the Cloud Peak monastery was dead. So was the military squad that had been trailing him, a squad which his two teammates had been a part of.

Chronomancy forensics revealed that contrary to previous intel the Abbott was not fleeing alone, but had a companion. A demonic deer which mercilessly murdered every member of the squad after the Abbott had self-detonated.

The identity of the deer is unknown. Due to its intelligence and decisiveness it is suspected the deer is not a beast, but an Exalted human either in disguise or transformed.

The Exalted suspect immediately fled to the south border. Recommendation of immediate assignment of a special investigator to track them into Fuha.

Finn’s tired eyes read the report as he thought of the mistakes that he had made, the clues that he had missed. He had failed his teammates, and they were now gone because of him. Finn clenched the brush in his hand so tightly that the bamboo began to warp.

If he had personally been involved, would he have been able to notice that the Abbott was not alone? Or would he have made the same mistake and someone else would be sitting at a desk with his files in front of them?

Finn had received this report second-hand from secretary Anne, who had received them from a messenger on behalf of Colonel Gwynn.

A short note was attached: I’ll deal with this from here. Move onto the smuggling investigation. Remember the advancement ceremony tonight.

He could feel the nonchalant dismissive tone in Gwynn’s note, read the meaning between the lines— You failed. Make sure your other duties are successful.

Perhaps what made this even more of a bitter pill to swallow was that the campaign had been a success up to this critical moment, before it all unraveled.

Gwynn had signed off on the squad that had run the operation. Did she feel the same weight of responsibility for their lives that he did for his team? Or were they just numbers?

The memory of cigarette smoke wafted in his mind briefly just before he was interrupted.

A quiet knock at the door drew his attention up as Minnie entered the room. The pretty officer was as composed as ever, her uniform neatly pressed and her hair tied tightly in a bun. It made Finn feel self conscious about his own lack of composure.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

He withheld a self-critical scowl as he let Minnie approach the desk without acknowledgement. In truth, he was getting his bearings, making sure he maintained a calm composure in front of his teammate.

“Leung and Wren’s families have been notified.” Minnie said in a solemn tone, “Is there anything else you need from me?”

“Yes… Tell Niles, Chu Huang and Williams to pack their things. We’re leaving for Huan at the end of the week.” Finn said, picking up a set of bound scrolls and holding it out to her while still keeping his eyes down on the report in his other hand, “We’re done with the Cloud Monastery case, I’ve had Williams write up a summary of the smuggling case, that’s now our team’s sole priority.”

There was a silence as the offered scrolls weren’t taken from his hand. After a few seconds he looked up to see Minnie looking at him with tense lips and a hint of rage in her eyes. Her hands were clenched at her sides, trembling from repressed emotion.

Their eyes met, and Minnie looked away as she mumbled softly, “At least…”

“What?” He asked, his tone perhaps a bit flatter and colder than he intended. He placed the scrolls down on the desk since she was clearly not interested in taking them.

Finn kept looking into her eyes even as she averted her gaze, his expression remaining neutral. He saw that she was struggling with grief, but also that she was dutifully fulfilling her role as an officer and teammate.

After delivering the news of Wren and Leung’s deaths, Williams broke down in Finn’s office. The young, blond officer primarily ran secretarial duties for the team, he didn’t have any field experience. After trying to calm him down Finn had sent a telegram to Minnie, calling her back via portal.

Minnie took the news in stride, calming Williams and sending him home. She assisted Finn with the procedures around the deaths while he notified Colonel Gwynn and the Police Chiefs in person. Up to this moment she had been a calm presence, not letting the events affect her performance.

But of course, she was affected too, how could she not be? Their team, which originally formed as a mismash of officers from the various departments in the force, had gained their identity and developed their camaraderie in the past two months of working together. Where Finn had managed the strategy and direction of the team, Minnie was the one who managed the “heart”.

But right now, at this critical moment, Finn didn’t need heart. He didn’t have time. He needed his team to remain professional and perform their roles. And for that he needed to stay strong and unwavering for them. If he couldn’t even do that, what kind of leader would he be?

These thoughts passed through his mind as he waited for Minnie to respond.

“Why are we dropping the case? Shouldn’t we be going after the people who killed— them?” Minnie asked, “It’s our responsibility.”

“It’s not our problem anymore. Gwynn took it over. There’s nothing I can do.” Finn said unapologetically, “We’re on the smuggling case now.”

“Then— why do we have to leave so quickly? Can’t we at least… at least give the team time to grieve.” Minnie said. Emotion swelled in her throat as she bit her lip, forcing herself to remain as professional.

You’re too cold.

The words that Minnie had said to him when he had just taken leadership of the team stabbed Finn in the heart. He knew Minnie was thinking it at this moment, criticizing him, judging him.

His eyes glanced at an envelope on his desk. This one from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the one headed by the smug, sharp-nosed Minister Byron that Finn had embarrassed not even twelve hours ago.

After reassigning Finn to the smuggling case, Colonel Gwynn had sent an order to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to arrange for transport and accommodations to Huan. This was a political necessity for sending a military team into the neighboring province.

Byron could neither refuse nor delay executing the direct order, but he didn’t offer any concessions to Finn. Five tickets on the next train to the port city Kanyou. The arrangements were strict and non-negotiable. No communication with Finn to discuss timing, accommodations or other important details. No wiggle room for his team.

Byron was clearly holding a grudge against Finn for embarrassing him in front of the other ministers and derailing his plans to incarcerate Char Char.

Because of this, Finn had very little confidence that he could make any changes to the arrangements. If he and his team weren’t on the train, Byron would no doubt do everything he could to make Finn’s life miserable going forward.

If he couldn’t fulfill his duties, his team would be in hot water in multiple fronts. It wasn’t that he didn’t think about his teammates’ mental states, or didn’t want to give them time off, he just couldn’t.

Finn couldn’t think of a way to sum up all of this information to explain it to Minnie, so he simply replied, “I can’t. The arrangements can’t be changed.”

Minnie fell silent as she finally turned her eyes back to meet Finn’s. Her gaze smouldered with complex emotion, her lips were pressed into a thin, impassive line.

“Our team isn’t the only one that suffered a loss.” Finn said as he tried to sound less harsh while expressing the reasons behind his words, “We lost two people. The military lost ten. Gwynn is assigning a different National Inspector to chase after the Exalted murderer, and our team is needed on the smuggling case.”

“Not too long ago you said I should put more faith in our team, that everyone is here to perform. So I won’t say that they can opt out, that they don’t need to come to Huan on this mission.” Finn continued, “The fact is, I need you, and I need our team, and we still have a job to do. If the team needs time to grieve then they have two days to do that, and then we need to get on that train out of the province.”

Minnie didn’t respond, but he could see from the look in her eyes and the tension in her lips that she was getting more and more upset the more he opened his mouth.

“Look—“ Finn did his utmost to hold back a sigh. He succeeded as he asked with an empathetic tone, “I’m doing my best here, and I need you to help me hold this team together. What else do you want me to say?”

“Nothing—“ Minnie quipped, taking the bound scrolls off the desk, “I understand, sir. I’ll do what I can.”

She turned, taking the few steps to the door, hesitating as she reached out the door knob.

“Actually, there’s something I want to say.” She turned to Finn, looking at him. Her gaze was fierce, but there was also empathy there, too.

“I understand that you’re under a lot of pressure right now, and honestly you get so much done I wonder when you have time to eat or sleep.” Minnie said, “Williams is a mess right now, and I’m honestly not far from that myself, but you just keep going like you don’t even care.”

“But… to be honest,” Her lips curled in a tiny smile as shook her head, “It’s one of the things I’ve always admired about you. How detached you can be from things. Like when you were doing Luan’s dirty work and all the other officers were making fun of you behind your back for being ‘Chief Yun’s pet’. You just came in every day and did your job.”

“And when you got promoted to Special Inspector and pulled rank on Chief Bear’s secretary, those rumours went around harder than ever. Do you know how many times I stood up for you when people talked behind your back?”

Finn’s mind flashed back to when Minnie had approached him in the station and let him know that she had figured out that he was on the team. She had said she’d seen his name on the morgue visitor list, but what if that was just half the truth? Perhaps his promotion had already somehow leaked out as a rumour just by chance, even though he’d done what he could to keep it discreet.

“I knew about the rumours. They were all baseless.” Finn said honestly, though from Minnie’s tone it sounded like the rumours were more widespread than he’d thought they were, “But you know I never gained a single thing from my connection with Chief Yun. I was a desk clerk for my first six months on the force.”

…Though my promotion to Special Inspector was because of Chief Fang’s connection to my father. Finn added inwardly with a bit of bitterness. But what’s the problem with taking advantage of your connections? Especially since Zwei and I uncovered Chief Bear and Vox as moles and uncovered their schemes.

The look in Minnie’s eyes told him that she knew exactly what he was thinking.

“That kind of attitude is why people don’t like you, Finn.” Minnie said with a sigh, “You act like you’re superior to everyone. And actually, you probably really believe it too. Especially with how successful you’ve been on the Cloud Monastery case lately.”

“The results speak for themselves.” Finn replied with a grumble, “It doesn’t matter what other people think, whether it’s good or bad, I’m doing my job.”

Minnie nodded, offering a small, sympathetic smile to him, “I know. That’s what I admire about you. Me, I feel the need to stand up for you every time someone talks behind your back or disparages your accomplishments. I feel like I have to be your cheerleader— and I know, you don’t need me to or want me to. But it’s important to me, because I guess I know I couldn’t be that way.”

She looked down at the bound up scrolls, her smile fading as the reality of their situation remained heavy on her mind, “And I admire that in times like these, you can think straight and stay focused on what needs to be done… Even if it sometimes feels like you shut yourself off and treat your teammates and everyone else like pawns on your chessboard.”

“Yeah. That’s what I wanted to say, Finn.” She nodded to herself, “That you’re a cold, heartless bastard.”

“But you just keep being you.” She smiled, turning and opening the door as she raised the scrolls in a toast to him, “And I’ll figure out how to hold the team together.”