Kingdom of Orleson, Green Shade City, Purification Bureau Scorpio Sub-bureau.
Seemingly sensing something unusual, the Scorpio chief, who was repairing a doll, looked up in surprise and gazed at the empty room opposite his office. A few familiar souls were slowly awakening there.
Why is this promotion assessment so quick? Wasn’t there supposed to be a collective investigation task? How have they all returned before dawn?
After frowning in confusion, the Scorpio chief put away the doll in his hands, preparing to ask those who went for the assessment to report back so he could understand what had happened.
However, the strange thing was, although those in the room had awakened, there was no movement, and no one came to find him. They all remained silent in the room.
Oh no, judging by this situation, they’re probably quite shaken.
After waiting for a long time without anyone coming, the Scorpio chief couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease.
His subordinates usually had pretty good psychological resilience. Even if they didn’t perform well in the promotion assessment, they wouldn’t take long to report in. Their current silence must mean they encountered Leon in the assessment. Eight against one, and they couldn’t win, taking a hard beating...
Well, I better go over there.
With an exasperated shake of his head, the Scorpio chief stood up, walked around his desk, left his office, took a deep breath in the hallway, and then sternly opened the door to the room opposite.
As expected, the gazes that greeted him were the blank eyes of the eight Scorpio Branch cleaners.
These subordinates, who were brimming with confidence and determined to challenge Leon before "falling asleep," now looked less like they were in despair and more like they’d been utterly ravaged, their eyes vacant.
Especially his favorite officer, Abigail, who usually was very proud and exceedingly confident in her strength. She was curled up on the sofa, holding her knees, occasionally shuddering intensely.
Damn Leon, his means are really ruthless!
Seeing his subordinates, whose confidence had been utterly shattered, with lifeless eyes, the Scorpio chief felt an immense heartache, resolving with difficulty to use a method of breaking before building to harshly scold them awake!
Slapping a cabinet by the door forcefully, the Scorpio chief angrily reprimanded:
"Where has your confidence gone? It was just a promotion assessment. Even if eight against one you couldn’t win, what does that prove? Is this face something you should be showing?"
Hearing the Scorpio Chief’s discontented questioning, the eight dazed cleaners finally came back to their senses, and one of them confusedly asked:
"Chief? What did you just say? What eight against one?"
Completely unprepared for such a response, the Scorpio chief Edward was momentarily stunned, then asked in confusion:
"In your current state, isn’t it because you lost eight against one in the assessment?"
Eight against one... as if we could?
Listening to their chief’s question, the eight cleaners glanced at each other and then shook their heads.
Not a loss in eight against one?
Seeing his subordinates shake their heads, the Scorpio chief couldn’t think of any other reason they would be so dejected. He frowned in confusion and asked further:
"So... did that guy disregard all decorum and go all out in the assessment? How many did he fight at once?"
How many he fought...
Recalling the situation of the second assessment round, the faces of the eight cleaners twitched in unison, and then they all turned their heads away.
After a moment, someone answered quietly:
"He... that guy fought over four hundred people in total... The second assessment round was a challenge system. Except for the woman from his sub-bureau, he challenged everyone at once, all the participating cleaners were beaten by him..."
Upon listening to Leon’s incredibly exaggerated achievements, Edward’s face twitched as well, and he began cursing a certain red-haired woman inwardly.
Allowing that guy to participate in this level of assessment was already quite oppressive. Who knew he could suppress them so thoroughly? Even the strongest-willed person would be at their wit’s end after being brutally defeated, played by one against four hundred. Fresh chapters posted on novel·fiɾe·net
"No worries, you...uh... you still have the chance to catch up to him..."
Looking at his subordinates who appeared utterly dispirited, Chief Edward had to give up his initial "breaking before building" plan, offering a few heartless comforting words before inquiring further:
"What about the third round? How did the third assessment go? Did any of you succeed in getting promoted?"
The third assessment...
Upon hearing the Scorpio chief’s question, it seemed to trigger some deadly keyword. The eight cleaners, who’d only just been spat out by Leon not long ago, shivered altogether. The first one caught and consumed by Leon, Abigail, began trembling uncontrollably again, her face turning paper-white.
Crap, surely they were dealt with again.
From his subordinates’ reactions, the Scorpio chief, feeling great distress, surmised they encountered something quite disastrous, his face nearly contorting with tension and worry.
Under his repeated encouragement and questioning, finally, one of the Scorpio Branch cleaners calmed down and fearfully recounted his experience.
"Director Pisces was ambushed. We followed the Goddess of Pleasure Dreams to continue the assessment. Then, a new King of Nightmares emerged, after which that guy...went berserk, consuming all participating cleaners, and, alongside the new King of Nightmares, devoured over twenty layers of the Dream Realm one by one."
Having fearfully recounted what transpired, the answering cleaner hesitantly added:
"Later... Luckily, Director Archer arrived in time in the Dream Realm, forcing that person to spit us all out. When we were spat out, Director Archer was standing there looking really displeased, urging that guy to hurry up and vomit or something...
Oh right, Director Archer also said that a very critical situation occurred this time, and said you should go to headquarters for a meeting after dawn."
Not only in the Scorpio Branch, but clean-up agents who’d been spat out by Leon, once returned from the Dream Realm through Director Archer, witnessed similar scenes repeatedly unfolding in over sixty participating branches.
And over four hundred cleaners who survived in Leon’s mouth due to Director Archer’s timely arrival, although ordered to remain silent about their experiences in the Dream Realm, successfully spread someone’s notorious reputation through their bizarre actions, ranging from fear to sobbing desperately.
[Although you did not directly harm them, the unreasonable devouring experience, followed by the slow digestion inside your stomach, and the frightening feeling of having their souls drained bit by bit, caused severe psychological trauma to numerous cleaners.
These cleaners who survived your grasp returned with the notorious tale that awarded you a Gold-level prestige badge: "Food God".]