The next day
**[Current Mythic Rank: 1 (55/100)]**
**[Current Combat Level: Warrior 1 (1216/3000)]**
Levin reviewed his mythic rank and combat level. As expected, following his battle with Arios, both his mythic experience and combat experience had increased slightly.
Although his hidden strength had been revealed, the feints and deceptions employed during the fight had also served to mislead his opponent. Despite Arios's remarkable observational skills and extensive experience, he was still misled several times during the intense combat.
A single sparring match had yielded over a hundred experience points, truly living up to the term "experienced."
Levin was grateful that, despite whatever motivations might have driven Arios to help him conceal his true strength, he had not exposed him and thus compromised his plans.
After checking his experience gains, Levin proceeded to his office.
Ordinary officers lacked personal offices; their workspaces were typically the training grounds, patrols, or missions. However, officers like Ellie bore the responsibility of administrative tasks, which involved organizing and distributing tasks from higher-ups, leading teams, and preparing reports.
Now that Levin was a deputy sheriff in the Fourth East Division, he too would need to handle these duties alongside Ellie.
The Fourth East Division had only a small camp and a single office, which meant Levin would be sharing this space with Ellie.
"You're here? Please, take a seat opposite me," Ellie said, looking up from her desk with a gentle smile and indicating the empty chair in front of her.
Levin suppressed his instinctive anxiety and took a seat with a hint of nervousness.
Noting his apparent unease, Ellie assumed it was due to his first day on the job and offered reassurance: "It's alright; you're new here. Just review the previous work content and familiarize yourself today. You don't need to handle anything just yet…"
As she spoke, a blue crystal on the desk suddenly emitted a "ding" sound before gradually turning red.
Ellie glanced at the now-red crystal and said, "This means a new task has been assigned. For now, let's…"
While speaking, Ellie retrieved a blank sheet of paper from a drawer and placed it beneath the crystal.
The crystal's red hue deepened, eventually becoming pitch black, like a curtain unfurling onto the paper. It imprinted a series of words before turning red again, stamped with the City Guard Headquarters seal, and then dissipated.
The crystal returned to blue, leaving behind a stamped task document.
"This is the task transmission device assigned to each division by the headquarters, called a transmission crystal. Urgent tasks are sent this way," Ellie explained as she began to review the document.
Levin thought to himself, This is the "fax" of this world—much cooler than the one I used to know.
Ellie, observing Levin's reaction, handed him the task document with a furrowed brow: "Levin, take a look at this."
Levin took the document and read its contents:
"Weimar City City Guard Fourth East Division:
We have received notice from the security department of the Hain Empire that a criminal organization has recently been trafficking a new type of illegal hallucinogenic drug within the Empire. This organization has been traced back to our city by the Hain Empire.
According to the 'Joint Declaration on Transnational Crime between the Hain Empire and Weimar Free City,' you are tasked with investigating the new illegal hallucinogenic drug known as 'Kiss of Bliss.'
Weimar City City Guard Headquarters."
Hallucinogenic drugs—this is...
Levin hesitated to speak.
From his previous knowledge, illegal hallucinogenic drugs were typically highly addictive, inducing extreme euphoria or pleasure in users.
Ellie noticed Levin's reaction and inquired, "Levin, do you have any thoughts on this?"
Levin pondered for a moment before responding, "No, Chief. Since this is a task assigned from above, we'll handle it diligently."
Whether due to legal obligation or moral duty, Levin felt compelled to address the issue. The harm caused by such drugs in this world was similar to that in his previous one, leading to countless ruined lives and destroyed families.
Ellie nodded, "Alright then, we'll take on this investigation."
She hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Levin, if I'm mistaken, feel free to disregard me. But... are you a bit afraid of me?"
Of course, I am! You're a werewolf!
Yet Levin dared not voice this thought and quickly searched for a suitable excuse.
"Chief... um, it's not so much fear as respect," Levin replied awkwardly.
Ellie propped her chin on her hand and considered, "Is that so? That's quite rare, as I'm usually perceived as rather cute. Most people don't show me such respect. You're quite special."
Hey! Chief! Did you really just call yourself cute? You have quite the self-awareness... or not. Although you are indeed cute, it's rather unusual for you to say that yourself!
"Well, it's because I look young and generally maintain a friendly demeanor. It's rare to find someone like you who shows me such respect. Maybe you're just overdoing it?"
Levin wiped the sweat from his brow, replying, "Ah... yes, I suppose I am a rather earnest person..."
"Is that so?" Ellie's eyes blinked, "Alright, I'll take your word for it. If anything comes up, be sure to let me know quickly."
Whew... I managed to get through that. Levin breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't anticipated that his wariness of Ellie would catch her attention. Although he was unsure of her thoughts, it was best not to bring it up for now.
He couldn't very well ask her, "Chief, are you a werewolf?" What if she got upset and decided to bite him? That would be tantamount to suicide.
But postponing the matter wasn't a solution either. He needed to devise a "surface truth" that he could maintain in the long term...
Levin resolved that if Ellie asked again, he would say, "I've had a secret crush on you for a long time and was afraid you'd find out." Confessing was better than self-destruction.
"Kiss of Bliss" is a newly popular illegal hallucinogenic drug in the Hain Empire. It is more potent and longer-lasting compared to traditional hallucinogens, and naturally, it is also more expensive.
In the Hain Empire, hundreds of security cases have already arisen due to "Kiss of Bliss," with over a thousand drug abusers and traffickers apprehended.
According to the Hain Empire's security department investigation, these drugs originate from Weimar Free City, a commercial hub on the continent.
Weimar Free City was once the Weimar Duchy, situated at a crucial transport junction. During wartime, it was a strategic location fiercely contested, while in peacetime, it thrived as a commercial center.
After the legendary magi of the great nations on the continent developed apocalyptic-level magic, large-scale wars ceased to occur, with all conflicts confined to smaller-scale skirmishes.
In this context, the Weimar Duchy, lacking an apocalyptic-level mage, became a battleground and pawn in the power struggles among the great nations.
Eventually, eight high-ranking mages from Weimar collaborated to create the apocalyptic-level magical ritual known as "Falling Stars," which they performed on the battlefield, impressing the great nations and bringing an end to Weimar's chaos.
Following the end of the wars in Weimar, and after the power struggles among the continent's great nations and the rise of mage factions, the Weimar Duke abdicated. The Duchy was reformed into a Free City, disbanding all regular military forces while retaining only the City Guard. The ruling institution became the municipal government, and the highest authority was vested in the Council of Sages, composed of mages.
Weimar entered a new era of peace brought by Falling Stars.
The city transitioned from a war-torn battleground to a center of commerce and finance. The Council of Sages, adhering to a peace-oriented policy, developed Weimar's trade system, improving the living standards of its citizens relative to the lower classes in other continental nations.
In Levin's view, Weimar was at a stage roughly akin to the pre-Industrial Revolution era, with capitalism in its nascent phase, while other continental nations were at a level comparable to the Renaissance.
With the ruling faction being the Council of Sages, represented by mages, arcane technology in Weimar was highly advanced and widely utilized in daily life. Various convenient arcane devices were continuously shipped across the continent.
The unique arcane technology market and advantageous geographic location became Weimar's greatest assets, ensuring it was treated equally by numerous great nations.
On this basis of equal treatment, various great nations successively signed trade, cultural, and security cooperation agreements with Weimar Free City.
The Hain Empire, in turn, requested Weimar City's assistance in investigating the organizations involved in the sale and production of "Kiss of Bliss" within Weimar's borders.
The headquarters assigned this investigation task to all City Guard divisions, not just the Fourth East Division.
"So, Chief, how should we proceed with the investigation?" Levin and Ellie, dressed in plain clothes, wove through the alleys of the Eastern District.
"Call me Ellie here, not Chief. We don't want to draw attention," Ellie whispered, then added, "I have a contact here. Let me ask him a few questions."
Levin immediately recognized the need to avoid using titles in this context; if their status as City Guards was noticed by the wrong individuals, crucial information could be missed.
After navigating the alleys for a while, they stopped in front of a room at the end of an alley.
Ellie knocked on the door in a specific pattern—three long knocks followed by a short one. A man wearing a hood opened the door, glancing nervously around as if to ensure they were not followed.
"No tailing. I've checked," Ellie whispered.
"Good, come in quickly," the man said, looking briefly at Levin but asking no questions as he ushered them inside.
The door closed quietly behind them, and the alley fell into a serene silence as though no one had been there.