I, The Janitor! Chapter 154: Rebel Faction Meeting - Novel Cool

Chapter 154: Rebel Faction Meeting

Chapter 154: Rebel Faction Meeting

"Leon Lane..."

As Leon held his sister's family portrait, pondering how to uncover the secrets of the Water Bottle Director and expedite the Bureau's investigation, a group of people were also studying his files, contemplating how to remove this obstacle from their path.

"Do we have to take action? Can't we deal with him through normal means?"

After quickly flipping through a few documents, the short man sitting at the far end of the long table couldn't help but speak first:

"His schedule is pretty fixed. He leaves from Bridge Street every day to go to work in the Civic District where the Police Department is located. If we set up an ambush in advance, we might only need a few bombs..."

"That won't work."

The young man sitting across from him shook his head, his teeth clenched in anger, and said, "He's from the Cleanup Bureau, and he has more than one Anomaly for protection. Ordinary alchemical bombs probably won't kill him."

"Then let's blow up his home!"

The short man suggested again:

"Even with Anomalies for protection, it's unlikely that he's guarded 24/7. We can sneak over at night and blow up the entire apartment building on Bridge Street!"

"We can't get past it."

A young woman wearing a hat shook her head and spoke quickly, "The view from that apartment is excellent. The balcony in the northwest corner allows a direct observation of the entire street. When I was planning to assassinate the Princess, I considered making that spot my first sniper position.

But as soon as I climbed over the fence, I saw a terrifyingly muscular old man holding a pair of large scissors and staring at me. I shot at him, but it didn't affect him. He retaliated with a pair of scissors and almost took my life.

Later, I brought twenty people with me, but in the blink of an eye, they were all tied up tightly by an old white-haired lady and thrown into the trash cans at the street corner.

That old man didn't kill me, but he held a pair of scissors over a meter long and snipped at my head for more than half an hour. He shaved off not only my hair and eyebrows but also my nose hair. It's still not grown back."

The young woman slightly raised her head, showing the others her empty nasal cavity, and then sighed, "Later, I found out that the apartment itself is an Anomaly. The muscular old man and the white-haired lady inside have been dead for over ninety years. With those two ghosts guarding the apartment, if we want to sneak in and plant bombs, we'd probably need a heavy weapons unit to force our way in."

"Oh, right. Have you seen heavy weapons? Last month, I secretly went to the Lane Armaments Company and saw that the Ministry of War's heavy weapons order was only half-completed, but they dared to mark it as complete on the invoice. Currently, only the most important units are equipped with them. We can actually take advantage of this..."

"Alright, Charlotte. Your intelligence is very useful, but we're here to discuss how to deal with Leon Lane."

Interrupting the young woman, the middle-aged man sitting in the central position spoke, "According to Barton's intelligence, this employee of the Cleanup Bureau is not weak. For someone with Anomalies, the chances of dealing with them through normal means are slim. We need your help."

"We can handle the task, but what happens after we take action?"

An old man with a shabby appearance sucked on his toothpick and reminded them, "He's an employee of the Cleanup Bureau. Our ability-granting ally told us that the director of the Maiden Bureau is incredibly strong. Even if we all attack together, it might not be enough.

If Barton were still here, we could kill him in the replica space he created. But now that Barton is gone, killing him might provoke that woman to take action herself..."

"That won't happen. The woman from the Maiden Bureau has her duties, and she usually doesn't take action personally. Moreover, we don't necessarily have to kill him; erasing his abilities and memories should be enough."

The middle-aged man turned his head to look at the drowsy child sitting to his right and lightly knocked on the table as he spoke, "Phoebe, you will join this mission. Your task is to make the target forget all intelligence related to us and erase his ability to peer into others' souls. Can you do it?"

"Huh?"

Upon hearing the middle-aged man's question, the sleepy little girl shuddered and then asked in confusion, "What mission?"

"..."

"Ambush Leon Lane."

The little girl sniffed and continued to ask in bewilderment, "Who is Leon Lane?"

"He's an employee of the Cleanup Bureau who exposed Barton's identity and took Samantha's abilities."

"Who are Barton and Samantha?"

The middle-aged man patiently explained in response to the little girl's repeated questions, "They are our companions. Barton is a spy embedded in the Secret Investigation Bureau, a muscular uncle with a scar on his face. Samantha is the aunt with bandages on her hands who can heal others and also make them rot."

"Oh..."

The little girl nodded as if she sort of understood, rubbed her eyes, and then asked again, "Then who are you?"

"I... never mind."

The middle-aged man rubbed his temples in exasperation and gestured to the seat next to the little girl. "Lucy, your sister's forgetfulness is acting up again. She's impossible to reason with in this state. Just go ahead and implant the necessary information directly into Phoebe's mind!"

"Okay."

A hoarse, aged voice sounded, and an old crone with a face full of wrinkles sat up straight, extending a trembling hand to touch the little girl's forehead.

After seeing this peculiar pair of "sisters" ready, the middle-aged man nodded in satisfaction and then instructed the wrinkled old woman, "Lucy, this time, our target has the ability to peer into others' soul states. So, after we finish the meeting and select the ambush team, I'd like you to do something extra."

"No problem."

"Thank you for your efforts."

After nodding his thanks to the old woman, the middle-aged man leaned forward slightly, placing his hands on the table, and spoke directly. "So, next, we should decide on the best location for the ambush. Any suggestions?"

"I suggest we strike while he's at work!"

A man with severe burns on the right side raised his hand and proposed coldly, "We'll all go in together, kill that red-haired woman at the Purification Bureau, then burn the rest of them to death, and after that..."

"Alright, that's enough. Shut up!"

Hearing the burn victim's suggestion, which was either foolish or suicidal, the middle-aged man sighed and waved him off.

With a strange blast, the burned man instantly disappeared from the room, leaving behind only an empty chair covered in ash.

"There's no need for such stupid ideas. Are there any more sensible suggestions?" the middle-aged man asked, rubbing his temples.

"I have one," said a disheveled old man, raising his hand. "How about ambushing him during the Duke of Lionheart's succession ceremony?"

The Duke of Lionheart's succession ceremony?

After hearing this suggestion, the group of rebels in the room fell silent for a moment before nodding in agreement one by one.

"That's a great idea!"

"It's perfect!"

The middle-aged man in the lead thought for a moment and then nodded with a smile. "It's indeed an excellent choice. The Duke of Lionheart's succession ceremony will have the presence of the royal family and many nobles.

If we're lucky, we can not only solve Leon Lane's problem but also take out a large number of nobles and officials in one go.

Let's set the ambush for tomorrow's succession ceremony! As for the specific team members, are there any volunteers?"

"I want to go! I want to go!"

After hearing the middle-aged man's words, a bald woman, whose hair had been shaved by the old man, eagerly raised her hand, "I can do it from five kilometers away..."

"Not you," the middle-aged man interrupted her again, shaking his head. "Your ability is stealthy, and you can operate from a distance, making you an excellent assassin, but your destructive power is insufficient. We can't guarantee that you'll be able to break through the target's protective anomaly.

"Then count me in!"

Just as the bald woman pouted in dissatisfaction, ready to argue, a thin young man stood up, his face filled with excitement. "Barton stayed behind to cover for us, and I escaped with Samantha. This time, I..."

"I'm sorry, but you're not suitable either," the middle-aged man said, shaking his head. "You and Barton were close. I'm afraid you might try to avenge him and kill the target, which would complicate matters. It's best if you stay here."

"..."

The young man sat down, his eyes filled with disappointment. The middle-aged man decided to skip further inquiries and directly named the team members. "Alright, in addition to Phoebe and Lucy, David and Luke, you two will join them! Your abilities are the most suitable for this mission.

"Absolutely!" The man who had initially suggested the bomb idea responded with a nod.

"Okay," the scruffy-looking old man agreed with a nod.

"Then let's do it!"

After finalizing the chosen individuals, the middle-aged man watched as they approached Lucy and willingly accepted the memory overwrite. He couldn't help but nod in satisfaction.

Once everyone had undergone the memory overwrite, he waved at everyone in the room, and a strange boom sounded. Everyone inside vanished, leaving only a set of dusty chairs.

The middle-aged man at the head of the table seemed to have aged a decade in an instant. His once jet-black hair now bore streaks of white.

...

Could no one survive into the future?

Looking around the empty conference room and at the dusty chairs, the visibly aged middle-aged man sighed deeply. He stood up with some effort, controlling his future body, and walked towards the door.

After making changes the last time, he still couldn't alter the kingdom's fate of destruction. The once-thriving capital was reduced to ruins by the bombing, leaving countless people homeless and living in misery.

In the futures where he successfully assassinated the princess, the royal family and nobility surrendered. They ceded territories and offered reparations, even handing over all ports, mines, and more. Their legal currency was forcibly abolished, and the once-prosperous nation was nearly drained dry, though the people managed to scrape by.

As for the middle-aged man and his gathered "rebels"... In every future, none of them existed, and he alone endured the pain of a fallen nation. Only by staying alive could he repeatedly send messages back to the past, trying to save his desperate homeland.

The middle-aged man, now walking with a limp, reached the door and took a deep breath. His gnarled hands grasped the rusted door handle tightly.

Here we go! The Lane family, having caused a massive financial deficit for the military, is now extinct. A new Duke of Lionheart has taken their place. Let's see what this future holds!

"Squeak!" The sound of the old door hinge was grating, as if opening a door between two worlds. Warm, almost blinding sunlight streamed in, accompanied by a bustling commotion. It all fell upon the middle-aged man, who stood there in shock.

"What... What is this?!"

Before him were meticulously designed buildings, bustling streets filled with people, enormous zeppelins flying with satin ribbons, and a crowd gathered around a massive, peculiar screen at the street corner, discussing something animatedly. The middle-aged man was utterly dumbfounded.

Success! I've finally succeeded! The kingdom is saved!

A surge of overwhelming joy seized his heart, and tears streamed down his face. He couldn't help but fall to his knees and let out a hysterical roar.

"Ah! You scared me!"

"What's wrong? Why are you shouting?"

"Prince Leon is caught in an affair, and he's happy about it?"

"Guard! Guard! There's a madman here!"

"..."

Amidst the curious stares and whispers of the onlookers, the middle-aged man, who had finally witnessed a brighter future, raised his arms and shouted towards the sky with unbridled joy.

"Long live the kingdom! Long live the kingdom!"

Startled by his outburst, the surrounding crowd took a few steps back, then began to whisper among themselves in confusion.

"Is he crazy?"

"Is something wrong? Why is he shouting about the kingdom?"

"Yeah, wasn't the kingdom destroyed long ago?"

What? The kingdom is gone?!

After hearing the conversation between the two middle-aged women carrying shopping baskets, the middle-aged man sprang up from the ground and pounced on one of the women, shouting frantically:

"How could the kingdom be gone? Who did this? Who did this?!"

"No, no... It wasn't me! I didn't do it!"

Terrified by the "madman's" actions, the woman carrying the shopping basket trembled and raised her hand, pointing towards the large screen at the street corner.

"Prince Leon did it. You should go find him! It has nothing to do with me!"

Leon... Prince? Following the woman's direction, he looked at the strange screen at the street corner, where a handsome man was gesturing with his hands, repeatedly emphasizing that the affair rumors were false and that he had done nothing wrong that night. The middle-aged man stood frozen in shock.

Leon... Lane? I'll go back and finish him off!

(End of Chapter)

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