Chapter 54 - 51: Colleagues

Chapter 54: Chapter 51: Colleagues

"The Newcomer Guidance Department?"

"Exactly. This department has always existed, but it used to be quite small. Its main responsibility is to find those who have just been entangled by Nightmares, guide them through their initial Nightmare, and discover talents among the new Dream Descenders."

The speaker was Shi An’s old acquaintance at the Countermeasures Bureau, Old Song.

Old Song had also been transferred to the Newcomer Guidance Department this time. Given his profound seniority, past dedication, and flawless track record, this transfer was effectively a promotion.

The Newcomer Guidance Department held significant authority, and its benefits far exceeded those of the peripheral departments. According to Old Song, had it not been for his outstanding performance during the recent sudden invasion incident, he wouldn’t have been assigned to such an important department right after formally entering the Countermeasures Bureau.

...

After hanging up the phone with Old Song, Shi An opened his interface to check.

[Safe Zone]

[Level: Level 2]

[Employees: Blood Hand Seal, (Pending Contract)]

[Buildings: Purification Spring, Wizard’s Alchemy Workshop]

[Blueprints: Wizard’s Alchemy Workshop, Training Ground]

[Dream Curse Object Templates: Shadow Giant Scissors·Complete, Dripping Blood Tap·Complete]

[Others: ...]

Three days had passed since the Safe Zone was upgraded to Level 2. During these three days, although no large-scale Nightmare incidents like the previous one had occurred, nor had any extraordinarily talented Dream Descenders arrived... given the sheer base number, the population of Dream Descenders in the Safe Zone was much larger than before. Naturally, some capable individuals had successfully conquered Nightmares. Three in total.

The efficiency seemed low, but since they were just pickup groups and everyone was merely at the Fusion Stage, their actual combat record was quite good. Under normal circumstances, even with a Control Stage expert leading a fixed team, they might not necessarily conquer an ordinary minor Nightmare.

The three successful Nightmare conquests had also brought Shi An three optional loot rewards. Unfortunately, the option for employee conversion didn’t appear, and the quality of the loot was relatively low. Ultimately, Shi An chose "Two Member Cards," "One Member Card," and the "Training Ground Blueprint." The blueprint was the most precious piece of loot among them, and Shi An already met its construction requirements. However...

Shi An mused, "There are no empty building slots left.

"Even though I could demolish the workshop, the Wizard’s Alchemy Workshop is incredibly useful. It can manufacture several highly practical items, and its importance to the Safe Zone might even surpass that of the Training Ground."

After all, no matter how practical the Training Ground was, it was a facility that required a significant time investment. The time Dream Descenders spent in a Nightmare was already limited. Between exploring, conquering the Nightmare, resting, and communicating with others, they barely had any spare time left. Shi An coveted this Training Ground mainly because he wanted to build it for his own use.

"The number of building slots is still too small. Aside from upgrading the Safe Zone to obtain a new area, I wonder if there are any other ways to open up more building slots."

...

Countermeasures Bureau, Anping District Branch.

Riding his electric scooter, Shi An arrived and met his colleagues from the Bureau. One of them was Old Song.

Old Song was the leader of their group. Aside from Shi An, there were four other members: Li Hao, a corporate slave around Shi An’s age with a broad and plump physique; Jiang Yilu, a female college student currently interning, wearing round-framed glasses; Zhou Luokai, a high school student, a part-timer, and an old acquaintance; and Zhang Yuning, a young girl who was a Dream Descender. As a group of six, Shi An wasn’t sure about Li Hao and Jiang Yilu’s backgrounds, but Zhang Yuning was a genuine Dream Descender, and Old Song was a seasoned veteran who had worked in the Countermeasures Bureau for over two years. Zhou Luokai, codenamed K, was a promising rookie the Bureau was heavily investing in.

Just by looking at the lineup, Shi An could tell how much importance the Bureau placed on the Newcomer Guidance Department. Or rather, they especially valued the newly expanded department. Shi An could guess the reason.

"It probably has to do with the increasing frequency of Nightmare invasions," he thought.

"I saw it in Old Yao’s memory fragments before. The Countermeasures Bureau has adjusted its strategy and intends to select and cultivate a batch of elite Dream Descenders.

"Apart from the few elites secretly trained by the Bureau itself, the rest will indeed have to be selected from the general public."

However, Shi An was still a bit puzzled. With the most resources, information, and the righteous authority on their side, it shouldn’t be difficult for the Countermeasures Bureau to gather the vast majority of Dream Descenders in Baijiang City, right? He also wondered why K had been assigned to the logistics department.

Old Song explained, "Zhou is just a high school student, after all. Aside from Nightmare conquests, the Bureau won’t assign him too many tasks."

"I heard Shi An was here, so I came over too," Zhou added.

Zhou had always felt that he wasn’t a genius. He had only stumbled his way through the initial Nightmare. For his first official Nightmare, although he cleared it directly, it was under the guidance of the Manager, Miss Xi Xue, and Uncle Yao. Even so, he had been scared to death. Yet, Shi An could charge in and out of a Nightmare-invaded area multiple times with just the body of an ordinary person. He deeply admired him.

Old Song said, "Even though our Newcomer Department is an important one, it is often quite laid-back. We only need to mobilize when we receive information from sister departments. On a regular basis, whether you go out to stroll around for clues, slack off in the office, or work out at the training ground, it’s all fine.

"As long as you report for duty promptly when there’s an assignment. But then again, we won’t get any emergency tasks here anyway."

Shi An thought, "Fantastic! Absolutely fantastic!

"I can access crucial information while still being able to slack off. Is there a more perfect position than this?"

"So what are we doing today? Are there any tasks?"

"For today, everyone should just get familiar with the office. We’ll go out for a team lunch at noon. The organizational budget is quite ample."

As expected of a seasoned veteran who could become a group leader despite being an ordinary person, Old Song’s mastery in slacking off and utilizing funds had reached the pinnacle of perfection. Thus, after slacking off for the entire morning, the group of six went to Wanmeng Mall, not far from the branch, for a massive feast. The organizational budget was indeed ample.

After they ate and drank their fill, Li Hao suggested, "Let’s go sing karaoke."

Zhang Yuning chimed in, "Or we could go play a murder mystery game. The six of us can form a full group."

Shi An was speechless.

He thought, "Although I joined the Countermeasures Bureau with the intention of slacking off, why does it feel like my colleagues are even better at it than I am?

"This Bureau is doomed."

Old Song coughed dryly. "That might be a bit inappropriate. It is a workday, after all."

Shi An suddenly had a thought. "Wanmeng City Mall... I read in the files that there’s a Dream Descenders’ black market here, right? How about we go take a look at the black market?"

Going to the black market didn’t seem much different from window shopping. However, it could also be considered market research and familiarizing themselves with the Dream Descenders’ circle, which counted as work. If their superiors found out, they might even praise them.

K strongly agreed. "Plus one! I haven’t been to the black market yet."

The other three had no objections; they had nothing better to do anyway.

Old Song pondered for a moment. It seemed feasible. Although it was called a ’black market,’ it was actually under the supervision of the Countermeasures Bureau. At the very least, this particular one located in the bustling downtown area was, so safety was guaranteed.

"In that case, let’s go."