With a gun pointed at him, the young man in the black shirt raised his hands to show he wasn't a threat, a move not of weakness but of great wisdom; if he provoked the other person, or resisted after being warned, the other could 'legally' shoot and kill him without bearing much legal responsibility.
"Hmph!" The members from the agency across from him sneered at such a habitual offender but remained vigilant nonetheless.
The captain tilted his head, signaling two members to step forward to disarm the young man in the black shirt and prepare to tie him up.
Although they had no law enforcement powers, they could still send the young man to the police station's cells, where a lawyer appointed by the company would naturally charge him with his crimes.
Seeing the agency members about to approach, the young man in the black shirt frowned and took a slight step back; he wouldn't surrender without a fight. With his identity, ending up in a police station would spell no good news.
His current identity was forged, not that of a real legal citizen within the Federation, which meant once his records were exposed, he would no longer have 'human rights.' At that point, even if he died in prison, there would be no one to inquire after him.
Lacking 'human rights' was tantamount to being non-existent, not even considered human – such were the bottom-tier rules of the Federation.
As seconds ticked by, the young man in the black shirt, while showing a disdainful expression of indifference on the surface, was trembling slightly in his legs and fingers, always ready to strike.
However, he didn't get the chance to resist because someone interrupted the process.
A black Hover Car descended, and a burly man stepped out; spotting the young man in the black shirt illuminated by the light, he held out a hand in front of the agency members.
"I think, we might start by talking." The card he revealed bore the Edith Academy logo.
After the scanner in the sunglasses confirmed the key on the card and cross-checked it with the official website, the leader from Raincoat Agency furrowed his brows and waved at his companion to pause their actions.
Although Edith Academy was only ranked fourth within Star Domain, it was a member of the First Rank, and the gap between it and the first place wasn't vast. If he were just an ordinary student at the academy, Raincoat Agency wouldn't care much, but the man had taken out a special black card indicating his status and certain influence within Edith Academy.
"You want to protect him? I must warn you in advance, he is a criminal wanted by 'Tri-Point Workshop,' a dangerous element involved in the patent wars, and 'Tri-Point Workshop' won't easily compromise."
To many companies in the Federation, their technical patents were as vital as life itself. If any rival dared to pry or steal them, they would tirelessly seek revenge, regardless of whether the means were legal or not. And thus, the ensuing patent wars were incredibly brutal, often causing headaches for the federal authorities.
"Though we don't want to offend 'Edith Academy,' if you can't sort it out with 'Tri-Point Workshop' within an hour, we will still proceed to arrest him."
"I know." Valke took a deep breath, feeling somewhat suppressed but looking at the young man in black across from him; he picked up his personal terminal.
"Hello, is that you, Teacher Xi Ma? Sorry to disturb you at night. It's , I have a friend..." His words slowly spread through the night, and the surrounding people quietly listened to Valke's conversation until, after a long while, he finally put down the terminal.
A mere 16-minute call felt longer than a decade to Valke; by the time he hung up, he was sweating profusely without realizing it.
He rarely asked for favors, even less so in such an unreasonable manner, but this time was an exception. Such an act made him feel both ashamed and small.
But as long as he was still alive, that was all that mattered.
After a long wait, a member of Raincoat Agency received a call. The captain nodded, glanced at Valke, and after ending the call, he walked over and patted Valke's shoulder.
"You're highly regarded, aren't you? If only I had your Talent back in the day."
After speaking, he led his subordinates into the agency's special Hover Car and departed into the night, leaving the two men under the night sky.
The young man in the black shirt looked extremely disheveled, his clothes torn and dirty, stained with grime and blood, and his body bore many wounds. Valke, on the other hand, wore high-quality fabric, clean and neat, powerful and stable. Even though they were merely three meters apart, the distance between their worlds was immeasurable.
The two boys who used to rummage through garbage piles for food now stood in two different worlds.