Dimensional Hotel-Chapter 243: Hidden Dangers and Trade-offs

On the other end of the phone, someone was speaking in rapid bursts. Bai Li Qing’s expression was unusually grave. Yu Sheng stood beside her, unsure if he should interrupt or stay quiet, so he leaned in to listen. He caught words like “settlement,” “missing,” “traces,” and “surrounding energy reactions.” Then, when he heard the phrase “Angel Remnants,” he immediately perked up.

A while later, Bai Li Qing began issuing orders to the person on the phone. She told them to lock down certain “transport nodes,” pull surveillance footage, and scan the walls and Boundary Stone. After finishing the call, Yu Sheng took half a step back. His curiosity could no longer be contained. “So,” he asked, “something happened?”

“It’s the wreckage from Angel’s Descent,” Bai Li Qing said, taking a long breath. Though it was confidential, Yu Sheng was involved in the Angel’s Descent incident. They would need to cooperate in the future, so she did not hide the truth. “You’ve already seen the footage of its fall. Let me put it plainly: when Anka Aila went through the ‘Falling Ascension,’ its main structure broke apart and vanished. Still, a few fragments that carry an Entity fell toward the surface after crossing Boundary City’s airspace. The Special Affairs Bureau sent out several recovery teams. One of those teams just reported that some of the wreckage may have…gone missing.”

Yu Sheng felt a dull ache in his back molars when he heard this.

“There’s only an Impact Crater on-site,” Bai Li Qing said darkly. “The pit is empty. The Special Affairs Bureau is searching the surrounding area, but the outlook isn’t promising.”

“Hmm,” Yu Sheng muttered. “[Maybe it just vanished into thin air.]” He knew he did not sound convincing. “After all, we’re dealing with Dark Angels, right? They’re already strange when they enter our world. If some pieces disappear after hitting the ground, maybe that’s normal.”

“I wish I could think that way,” Bai Li Qing sighed. “But I learned long ago to dismiss the optimistic option first.”

“Alright, so were there any suspicious signs at the site?” Yu Sheng scratched his head. “Like someone who got there first?”

“That’s the biggest concern,” Bai Li Qing answered gravely. “Dark Angel fragments must never fall into the hands of Angel Cultists or those fanatics from Holy Revere Hermitage. Yet from the team’s report, nobody else left clear tracks in the crater’s vicinity.” She paused. “But that doesn’t guarantee someone didn’t take the fragments. There are always tricky types in this world—ones who leave no trace at all.”

Yu Sheng’s eyes went wide. “Seriously? Thieves can slip right under the Special Affairs Bureau’s nose and vanish like that?”

Bai Li Qing fell silent and stared at him.

After two seconds, Yu Sheng realized what she meant. He shrank back in discomfort. “Hey, don’t look at me like that. I didn’t take anything…”

“I know it wasn’t you.” Bai Li Qing’s voice was weary. After a short pause, she went on. “The incident happened in the ‘outskirts.’ Beyond Boundary City, the wilderness is less stable. Sometimes criminals crawl through gaps near the Boundary Stone to do sneaky things—black market deals, petty theft, that sort of thing. A few of them are skilled enough to hide their tracks. Even so, this is the Borderland. They rarely dare pull off anything big right under our gaze, let alone walk off with Angel Fragments—dangerous pieces that we’d normally lock up in a Core Containment Zone.”

“But they’d have to know what they were taking, right?” Yu Sheng spread his hands. “Maybe someone was just passing by, saw something shiny in a crater, and pocketed it without knowing it was a fragment. This world is one big collection of random possibilities.”

Bai Li Qing said nothing. She pressed her lips together for a moment, then pulled out her phone again to give swift orders to one of her subordinates.

Yu Sheng hovered nearby, watching her work. After a few minutes, he tried speaking again. “Just how bad could this get?”

“To be honest, we can’t be certain yet,” Bai Li Qing replied, glancing at him. “It all depends on who took the Angel Fragments and what those fragments really are. The first pieces we recovered are already on their way back to headquarters. Once there, the team will be quarantined for observation, and the fragments will go to the High Risk Laboratory after a basic risk assessment. We need to learn the true nature of these fragments. Maybe, as you say, they turn out to be special but harmless stones. But if we’re not that lucky…”

She let the thought trail off. Yu Sheng understood.

“Alright, we’ll wait and see,” he said, sighing as he returned to the sofa. He stared blankly at the sky for a couple of seconds before muttering, “[Anka Aila… Even in ruin, you’re leaving us a huge mess to clean up…]”

“Sometimes events spin out of control,” Bai Li Qing said as she sat down across from him. As Director, she seemed calmer than he was. “You learn to deal with it in time.”

“You’re surprisingly at ease,” Yu Sheng said, finishing the drink he had left on the table. “Seems there’s no quick fix for this, so I’ll head back. I’ve got a bunch of stuff at home.”

“Alright,” Bai Li Qing said, rising to her feet. “I won’t see you out.”

Yu Sheng nodded. But just as he reached for the Door, he remembered something. Turning back, he looked at Bai Li Qing. “Oh, one more thing.”

“Go ahead.”

“‘Fairy Tale’—the orphanage with Cursed Children—is holding a celebration tonight,” Yu Sheng said earnestly. “It’s in the Valley. I know the Special Affairs Bureau has always looked out for that orphanage. So…would you like to come?”

He hesitated, then added, “I know you’re busy, especially with all this trouble. If you can’t make it—”

Before he could finish, Bai Li Qing interrupted. “Will that ‘Hunter’ be there?”

Yu Sheng paused, then nodded. “Yes, ‘they’ will be there. Squirrel will come too.”

“I have time,” Bai Li Qing said, and a small smile seemed to appear on her lips. “Could you pick me up beforehand?”

“Sure. It’s set to start around six. I’ll call you in advance,” Yu Sheng said with a grin. He gave a casual wave. “See you tonight.”

“See you tonight.”

The phantom Door closed in silence and then vanished. Bai Li Qing stood there for a moment, thinking quietly about Yu Sheng’s departure. She sighed, soft and barely audible, then turned and walked back to the bar.

She poured herself half a glass of strong liquor and settled onto a barstool, sipping slowly.

Behind her, in the empty air, giant eyes without color began to take shape. They watched her in silence.

“You should just say you want to go. No need to pretend you’re only going because of those Deep Diver matters.”

“It was just an offhand question,” Bai Li Qing answered without turning around. She heard the voice echo in her mind. “What about you? What did you talk about with him?”

“I asked about the Dark Angels,” the eyes said slowly. “Then we just made small talk. Oh, and I told him my name.”

“Your name?” Bai Li Qing stopped mid-sip, surprise creeping into her voice.

“Do you really need to sound so shocked?” The eyes drifted in front of Bai Li Qing. They floated a few meters away. “I only gave my name. Basic courtesy.”

Bai Li Qing paused, gaze fixed on those eyes. After a while, she finally spoke. “Wait…what was your full name again?”

“…”

“Just joking,” Bai Li Qing said, tugging at the corner of her mouth. “We’re all wound so tight. A bit of humor helps.”

“I forgot you used to tell jokes,” said the voice. It was hard to sense any emotion from that gaze, but it seemed just a little gentler now. “But let’s get back on topic: when do you plan to reveal the news about this ‘Angel’s Descent’?”

“Once the recovered fragments are safely returned to headquarters,” Bai Li Qing replied. “As for the details of Anka Aila, I’ll only share them with Terra Academy, the Alglade Astrological Society, and the Bamosa Hermit Society. We’ll keep quiet about the fact that Dark Angels can be reached through communication, at least for now.”

“Oh?” The eyes showed a hint of confusion. “Why hold back? Isn’t it exciting to learn something new about Dark Angels after all these years? This might be a breakthrough in our understanding.”

“And then, out of the woodwork, we’d see groups calling themselves ‘Rational And Objective’ or ‘Universal Love And Progress.’ They’d wave little flags, urging every faction to ‘understand and communicate’ with the Dark Angels. They’d go on about the tragic fates that might lie behind each Dark Angel and demand we ‘save’ them. Give it a few months, and they’d be shouting slogans like ‘Love And Understanding,’ ‘Reflection,’ or ‘Tolerance’ to criticize the front-line forces that have fought the angels all this time.”

Bai Li Qing paused and let out a soft sigh. “One group of Angel Cultists is headache enough. Imagine if we also had Dark Angel protection groups. Can you picture how absurd that would be?”

In midair, the eyes gave a faint quiver.

“[If I still had skin, I’d have goosebumps right now,]” they murmured.

“Exactly. Mob wisdom and mob foolishness are both astounding forces in this world,” Bai Li Qing said, swirling the liquor in her glass. “I hate that kind of nonsense. So at the very least, I want to delay it. Even if one day we really do learn more secrets about the Dark Angels—even if we find that, like Anka Aila, they can be reasoned with—then we must make sure it happens in a controlled, steady way. Above all, we need to ensure the best interests of our world. In the end, I’ve always disliked stupidity.”

She took another sip. The pale eyes watched in silence as she lowered the glass.

This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation