The Teacher committed murder. News of it swept through the base like a whirlwind, and in no time, everyone knew. Nobody could believe it—the guy with no expression, no feelings, no reactions, not even a shred of consciousness—could kill someone. But the incident still caused a huge sensation, because the victims were from the Queen's Faction.
The Queen's partner killed members of the Queen's Faction. Now that's what you call awkward.
"Colonel, the reason we called you here today is simple—just to help us gather evidence. Your partner, codename 'The Teacher', is currently a murder suspect." In Cost's office, a young man in a suit was talking smoothly. The so-called colonel was actually Jill Young, who, as a battleship captain, also holds a military rank. Mecha Hunter pilots have even higher ranks, so with Jill's achievements, being a colonel makes perfect sense.
"There are three victims, and one of them is this Skyle. According to several people, Skyle was rude during pilot assignments and insulted the lieutenant colonel, which means there was already bad blood. Today, Skyle and two others came to your apartment. Based on the scene, they used violence against the lieutenant colonel and splashed him with ice water. Security footage shows that after Skyle and his crew left, the lieutenant colonel also left and followed them. Ten minutes later, all three were found dead in the men's restroom. The cause of death—this is wild—was blunt force trauma."
The young man produced a few photos—all showing the victims' gruesome states. The three were beaten so badly they were barely recognizable, bones shattered everywhere, their bodies just bags of broken meat. Honestly, it looked scarier than a horror movie.
"The first person to discover the bodies said he saw the lieutenant colonel walk out of the restroom right before he went in, so the lieutenant colonel is the prime suspect." The young man shrugged. "The motive? Plenty of old and new grudges. Time and place? All fit. As for ability, the lieutenant colonel didn’t have any weapons, but it’s pretty wild to beat three people like that in ten minutes. Still, we all know his combat scores are off the charts, his physical skills are elite—better than top special forces. I checked his psych report—he’s got some kind of long-term sleepwalking disorder. And sleepwalkers are freakishly strong, so it’s not impossible to beat people like that barehanded. That’s why he’s our number one suspect."
The young man had this air of superiority, his smile full of smugness. "Colonel, you’re his neural link partner, and your compatibility is extremely high. I want to ask you two things. First, does he have any violent tendencies in his subconscious? Second, could you be affected by him? Judging by the Berserker’s fighting style, it’s a real possibility."
The moment this guy opened his mouth, it was like he’d already nailed Jill Young for the crime—and was throwing shade at her too.
The young man smiled, and it was grating. "Let me be honest: pretty much everyone else on base has an alibi. Those who don’t aren’t connected to the case, so I’m certain it was the lieutenant colonel. He’s officially diagnosed with a rare sleepwalking disorder. Sleepwalkers aren’t criminally liable for murder, but they can be classified as dangerous individuals and forced into psychiatric treatment. Colonel, what do you think?"
Jill Young listened impassively from start to finish. Only now did she speak: "My thoughts? Who the hell are you supposed to be?"
"Me?" The young man's expression changed, looking sour. "I'm a special commissioner from the Global Unified Command Against Monsters!" This organization outranks the Mecha Hunter group and grants privileges anywhere in the world.
But the problem was, Jill Young didn't see him as special at all.
"You’re not a cop, not an investigator. You’re not law enforcement, not a lawyer. You’re just a snitch sent by a bunch of old geezers, and you dare to act high and mighty in front of me?" Jill's eyes flashed dangerously. "I’m even better at killing than that murderer—wouldn’t even need ten minutes to turn you into ground beef. Want to test me?"
"You!" The young man was furious, pointing at Jill Young and about to curse her out.
But Jill Young glared at him. "Don't believe me? Want me to prove it?"
An invisible wave of menace swept through the room, fierce and sharp. The young man was left speechless, mouth agape, then stormed out in a huff. Judging by his frantic footsteps, it was hard to tell if he was mad or just plain scared.
Now, only Cost and Jill Young were left in the room.
Cost finally spoke, "You shouldn’t have treated him like that. He’s a commissioner from the board, and he could really affect the outcome here."
"He can affect squat." Jill Young was annoyed, and didn’t bother hiding it. "You’ve been in the commander’s seat for a while—how can you not see it? The board waves a red flag wherever the wind blows. If they want to play it down, that guy can jump to the moon for all I care. If they want to make a fuss, he can stab himself in the back and it still won’t help. Judging by his attitude, the wind’s already set, and sucking it up won’t change a thing. Cost, is there some old geezer on the board who’s got it out for you?"
Cost didn’t argue—he couldn’t. After a moment of silence, he looked up at Jill Young, eyes serious. "Just tell me straight: did The Teacher really kill those three?"
"Absolutely not."
"Do you have any proof?"
"No, but if he did it, it wouldn't look like this. Shattered bones everywhere? That's just to scare the newbies." Jill Young raised her brows. "Let me be honest: we've both killed before, and I'm not afraid to own up. I don't know those three, and I don't care about the backstory. If that blockhead really did it, I'll take whatever consequences come. But if this is some setup, I'm not going to take the fall for nothing. So, don't expect me to confess to anything."
Cost stared at Jill Young, searching for something hidden. After a long pause, he finally nodded. "Alright, I trust you. If The Teacher didn’t do it, then someone’s trying to frame you. This whole thing is outrageous—the impact could go global. Maybe someone’s jealous of your status? Or..." Cost’s face darkened. "Is this a plot against the entire Mecha Hunter organization?" There’s always been someone on the board who’s out to get him, and now it seemed likely that guy was behind this mess.
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"It might be more than that." Cost's perspective was limited, but Jill Young saw a lot more. Still, there were things she couldn’t tell Cost—she’d have to figure it out herself. "Either way, set up a neural link. I need to know what really happened."
But Cost shook his head. "That’s not going to work. He’s already under watch as a dangerous individual. The board gave a direct order: guilty or not, he has to undergo further psychiatric evaluation. Until that's done, he can't pilot, and no neural link devices are allowed."
"How long will that take?"
"No idea. Could be a long time."
Jill Young frowned and turned to leave. She couldn't wait that long—she needed answers now, and she needed to fight back.
Trying to frame me? Then just wait for me to break your bones one by one! Jill Young cracked her knuckles as she strode toward her apartment, knowing that blockhead would still be there.
Sure enough, there were base personnel guarding the apartment entrance. The police hadn’t gotten involved yet, and that commissioner had rushed over solo without backup. The two guards tried to stop Jill Young, but after seeing her expression, they sheepishly lowered their hands and let her through.
Inside, blockhead was still sitting obediently in his chair as if nothing had happened. All this guarding, questioning, and drama—none of it existed in his dreamlike world.
Jill Young closed the door, dragged a chair over, and sat across from blockhead. She reached out her right hand and grabbed his left. Instantly, blockhead's eyes focused.
"Come on, let’s use that new move we developed the other day. Show me exactly what happened."
Blockhead nodded, and a golden light appeared. Two profile images floated in the air, burned into the void. Just two days ago, they invented a new special technique. It’s simple: a short-term mental link without any devices. Unlike the overpowering, all-consuming link used in mecha piloting, this one’s more like a conversation—a sharing of memories.
In this world, such a little trick seems useless. But pulling it off is no joke—it takes Insight Technique, fifth level.
That’s right—blockhead Jack Young officially reached Insight Technique, fifth level—photographic memory—a week ago.