Qin Xin had made her resolve clear to Jiang Yuan, but he didn’t know how to respond.

In that brief moment of hesitation, the noisy roar of an engine rose nearby—and grew louder as it approached.

Jiang Yuan turned around. A petite girl was speeding toward him on a motorcycle that was clearly far too big for her. She skidded to a clean, sharp stop right in front of him.

“That’s enough catching up. Qin Xin, you’re going back to answer some questions. You should know what to say.”

The petite girl was Yi Nanye. A faint smile played on her face, as if she were pleased to have interrupted Jiang Yuan and Qin Xin’s heart-to-heart.

“I understand.”

“Then get in his car. He’ll take you there.”

Yi Nanye pointed to the blue car that had brought them here. Qin Xin didn’t waste time arguing. She stood up and left at once. She was always efficient, never one to drag things out—as her earlier treatment of her classmates had made clear.

Once she decided something needed to be done, she did it.

Yi Nanye watched Qin Xin get into the car and drive away. Only then did she slowly approach Jiang Yuan, grab him by the collar, and haul him to his feet.

“Jiang Yuan, you sure know how to work things to your advantage. You tied your situation directly to Qin Xin’s. Did you think that would make it harder for me to come down on you?”

After piecing together what had happened on the way here, Yi Nanye had realized what Jiang Yuan was up to. And he’d admitted it himself, too. Jiang Yuan really was cunning. He’d insisted on going to school just to get bullied—maybe because he wanted Qin Xin to step in for him.

“I do want to change my situation, but I never meant for her to go after you.”

“I suspect you did. Thirty-five people were injured by Qin Xin. Every one of them had third-degree frostbite, with the affected tissue nearly dead. They’ll definitely have lasting complications, and several of the worst cases nearly needed amputations!”

Jiang Yuan listened to Yi Nanye’s report. He stared blankly for a moment, then suddenly spoke.

“It was that bad? I’ll have Qin Xin go apologize.”

“An apology won’t do a damn thing. I admit they weren’t blameless, but Qin Xin went too far. I think she should be placed under supervision, too.”

“If you could do that, you would’ve already. The fact that you’re going out of your way to tell me all this means you can’t.”

Jiang Yuan smiled. He knew Qin Xin wouldn’t be punished. Their positions were different: when Qin Xin did something wrong, all it took was a light apology for the world to forgive her.

“You little schemer, Jiang Yuan. You do realize I’m going to report every last detail of what you’ve done, right?”

“I know.”

Of course Jiang Yuan knew Yi Nanye wouldn’t let this opportunity pass. Her eyelid twitched several times. She took a few deep breaths to calm down, released Jiang Yuan, then immediately pulled out her phone and reported the whole thing.

Right in front of Jiang Yuan!

“I have a matter to report. Jiang Yuan has behaved improperly. He exploited Qin Xin’s feelings for him, pretended to be injured, and used that as an excuse to retaliate against his classmates. He knew his position and still went out looking for trouble. His actions appear to have been deliberate. I recommend a new containment assessment.”

Yi Nanye was serious. What Jiang Yuan had done was genuinely unsettling when she thought it through. She had no idea how far ahead he’d planned. Had he known all along that someone would give him trouble, and that Qin Xin would step in?

Had he even planned his next move in advance—cooperating with the government to earn merit, clearing his own name in the process, and pushing Qin Xin forward as the one responsible for his achievement?

After Yi Nanye finished her report, the person on the other end of the phone fell silent for a long time.

“Yi Nanye, we’ve determined that Jiang Yuan doesn’t need to be placed in containment for now. In light of his good conduct today, his supervision level can be lowered by one grade. In addition to the standard conditions, he’ll have one extra hour of unsupervised free time each day. Please make sure you comply.”

The words that came through the phone left Yi Nanye unable to believe her ears.

His supervision level was being lowered by one grade?

“I believe this decision is extremely unwise. I formally request a new review!”

“Yi Nanye, remember the limits of your authority. You have no right to interfere excessively with the measures taken against Jiang Yuan.”

“But—”

“Remember the limits of your authority.”

The person on the other end repeated the earlier words in a low voice. Yi Nanye had nothing to say. The call ended, and the steady beeping pulled her thoughts back to the present.

She turned and glanced at Jiang Yuan. He was on the phone, too. He’d already been informed that his supervision level was being lowered. From now on, her responsibility for his safety wouldn’t be limited to protecting his life—she’d have to ensure his basic physical safety as well.

In other words, she had to stop anything that might leave Jiang Yuan injured.

“Fine. Very fine. I underestimated you.”

Yi Nanye sneered and applauded Jiang Yuan. He only shrugged.

“You were reasonable enough before we split up. I don’t know what you imagined on the way here, or how much malice you assumed on my part. But I haven’t done anything wrong. I understand what the higher-ups want better than you do.”

“And I’ve done it. It’s as simple as that.”

Jiang Yuan had one goal: to build mutual trust with the people at the top. The government had to believe that even as Codename Jiang, he wouldn’t pose much of a threat. He had to believe that the government would adjust how it handled him based on his actions.

This was a foundation on which they could gradually build a truly unbreakable bond of trust.

“But I think you’d make me trust you more by doing nothing than by doing the right thing. My trust in you may be small, but you can see it changing. You should understand one thing…”

“I’m the one who spends twenty-four hours a day by your side!”

Yi Nanye said it as if she were claiming him as her own. She was telling Jiang Yuan to cooperate, not question her, and not get on her bad side—or he’d have a miserable time from here on out.

“But you can’t prove I’m innocent, and I don’t have to earn your trust. As more Espers awaken in the future, it’s not impossible that someone else could take your place.”

Jiang Yuan’s words made Yi Nanye laugh in anger. In theory, he was right—but no one else who could supervise Jiang Yuan up close would be found anytime soon.

“Fine. I’ll follow the rules. Let’s see how you’re going to get rid of me.”

“With all due respect, picking a fight over this is bad for both of us. You can go off and do your own thing, and I can still be properly supervised. What’s wrong with that?”

“Then just think of me as a woman who won’t leave your side no matter how shameless I have to be. I want to follow you to the ends of the earth, until one of us reaches the end of our life.”

Yi Nanye gritted out a line that sounded romantic, but sent a chill down Jiang Yuan’s spine.