Vol 2 Chapter 158 Gradually Clarifying Thoughts
When Veronica returned to Rainbow Cloud Wetlands again, her emotions had stabilized considerably, yet she was still deep in thought.
From a rational standpoint, she clearly understood that most of Erald's advice was correct. In fact, if she were to objectively evaluate her current situation as a third party, she might have offered similar suggestions as Erald.
But when the matter involved the Garden Defense battle, when current events gradually overlapped with the remnants of that battle twenty years ago, Veronica realized she might be far less rational than she imagined.
The sches of Claw Marks and Black Ember Dawn were absolutely nothing good, so allowing their activities to continue was unthinkable. The responses from the Magical Affairs Court and Research Court were perfectly reasonable - even if there were selfish motives involved, they certainly weren't bad actions.
Thus, the problem undoubtedly lay within herself.
What kind of mindset made her so reluctant to directly oppose these "city guard traitors"?
Perhaps it was because her view of these "old comrades" remained filtered through nostalgic mories.
Because they had once fought desperately for the sa goal, because they had once battled the sa enemies together, because they had tasted the sa pain and sorrow... Too many "shared experiences" made her unconsciously view herself and them as similar people.
She knew full well that people could change. Even Mohe, who had gone on missions with her recently and had many exchanges, might have just been putting on an act - pretending to be an idealist while secretly being a bloodstained executioner... She had considered all these possibilities.
Yet at the sa ti, she couldn't help wondering: was there any chance these forr comrades, even while being part of Claw Marks now, were fundantally different from people like Sparrow, Yuan, and White Wolf?
This might sound like an excuse to exonerate her "old comrades," but it wasn't entirely impossible. Based on the information Veronica had, Claw Marks' mbership could be divided into at least three groups by origin and ti period.
The first group was undoubtedly Claw Marks' founding core - White Wolf's trusted aides from when she was still Purple Diamond in the magic nation, consisting of Finance Court mbers and magical girls with vested interests in the Finance Court. These magical girls were White Wolf's loyal followers who had betrayed the nation for her - capable of anything.
The second group were the "washouts" who inexplicably joined when Claw Marks began defecting from the nation. Like Mohe and many magical girls who had been disabled in the Inter-Realm War, their combat effectiveness had greatly diminished.
The final group were those who joined after Claw Marks beca independent and gained notoriety - magical girls who defected due to misconduct and joined this "traitor organization" by reputation. Without exception, these were hardly good people;
their voluntary defection and joining already declared their intentions - they had likely aid for wrongdoing from the start.
Among these three groups, the first and third were undoubtedly terrorists. But the second group remained full of unanswered questions.
Judging by composition, they were Claw Marks' most misfit mbers. Beyond that, what exactly they experienced postwar that led to their defection, why they joined White Wolf, and what they did after joining were all major mysteries.
Moreover, if Mohe hadn't lied or concealed part of the truth, her description of her "work" sounded nothing like terrorism but more like so sociological experint.
Compiling all this information led Veronica to face a rather broad question:
Were these "old comrades" of hers already plunged into darkness, standing against normal society? Or were they trapped in quicksand but still lucid, just waiting for soone to pull them out?
Pondering this, Veronica unconsciously arrived at the cabin where Mohe and others had previously lived.
The cabin was now lit, but the camping equipnt outside indicated new occupants. This ant her question would never be answered by the original residents.
And if she couldn't get a definitive answer to determine how to regard these people, what else could she do?
Gazing at the brightly lit white viewing cabin, Veronica stood still, gathering her overly long skirt in her arms without moving for a long ti.
Was there a solution that could both ensure safety during the certification assessnt while allowing security forces to show so restraint - not imdiately going for lethal force against Mohe's group, leaving room to inquire about the truth? All while not revealing her interference with Magical Affairs Court operations or leaking her communications with Claw Marks, preferably even distinguishing between Claw Marks and Black Ember Dawn to selectively eliminate the latter's pests...
"...Ah."
She had it.
After a long while, Veronica conceived a sowhat clumsy and inefficient but perfectly executable plan to realize her will.
—Why not have herself capture Mohe's group while letting Research Court handle Black Ember Dawn?
She could recognize fellow forr city guard comrades, so she wouldn't target the wrong people from the start. By personally intervening, she could control the combat intensity to avoid imdiate lethal force. And if questioning confird soone had completely fallen beyond redemption, she could personally bring them to justice.
Undoubtedly, this was the safest approach she could devise.
The only concern was being recognized when confronting Claw Marks mbers, so perhaps the examination site layout needed slight adjustnts to ensure encounters occurred unnoticed.
Additionally, the security force distribution, spectator area adjustnts, and examinee activity zones... all needed corresponding modifications to accommodate this plan.
As Veronica ntally outlined specifics, she turned and walked toward her own cabin, holding up her skirt.
Having clarified the core concept, there was no need for solitary brooding - she could present this plan to the Magical Affairs Court and have Folding Crane Orchid and others help refine it.
With night deep, if she didn't return soon, her juniors would worry.
After walking awhile, Veronica reached the cabin.
Unexpectedly, soone stood at the door.
Lin Xiaolu held her phone, biting her thumbnail pensively while pacing within several ters of the entrance as if wrestling with a difficult decision.
"...Why isn't she back yet? Did sothing really happen? Should I call? But if it's so important occasion, my call might cause trouble. Yet if sothing did happen, not calling would be wrong..."
Veronica could faintly hear her strange mutterings.
Lin Xiaolu's odd behavior continued until Veronica's approaching footsteps beca audible. Looking toward the sound, her face first showed "anticipation," "reassurance," and "joy," then shifted through "confusion," "surprise," and "awe," before finally settling on "admiration," "amazent," and "being moved."
Had she not seen it herself, Veronica would hardly believe one's face could display so many expressions in seconds - especially when that person was her own daughter.
"...So beautiful."
Finally, Lin Xiaolu's expression settled on "enrapture." Gazing at Veronica's appearance, she clasped her hands as if worshiping a deity and closed her eyes:
"O gods, if this is a dream, let never wake. If reality, let my opened eyes still behold this peerless sight."
After this incantation, she reopened her eyes. Confirming the vision remained...
Lin Xiaolu shed tears.
"I live to witness this mont, Veronica! You're practically an angel!"
She assud a posture halfway between lunging for an embrace and reverent worship, frozen in awkward adoration.
This exaggerated, almost clownish performance left Veronica montarily speechless.
Looking down at her attire, she realized she'd been so preoccupied during the return trip that she'd forgotten to change out of the princess dress worn to the gathering.
Was the outfit really that effective?
As Xia Liang and Bai Jingxuan erged, drawn by the commotion, and displayed similarly awed expressions (albeit to varying degrees), she received her answer:
—Well, it seed Erald indeed had excellent fashion sense.
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