Then let the witch offer her loyalty

Chen Mo thought and thought, but couldn't come up with a good solution for the time being, so he slumped onto the table like a salted fish.

"I don't qualify~"

After a while, a colleague came over: "Chen Moxin, there's a letter for you."

Chen Moxin took the tightly wrapped letter, and when he saw the sharp blade and rose symbol on it, he was stunned for a moment.

"Sent from the court?"

He opened the letter; inside was a formal official letter.

[To the relevant leaders of the Witch Management Bureau:]

Hello, comrade.

[I am Lu Yangming, Deputy Presiding Judge of the Twin Cities Court. I have learned that your bureau's newly appointed agent, Chen Moxin, intends to become a witch hunter. We have comprehensively considered her family background, past life, abilities, and qualities.]

[An investigation revealed that Comrade Chen Moxin has a clean family background with no criminal record; she was diligent and hardworking during her school years, respected her teachers, and achieved excellent grades; after joining the Bureau, she demonstrated outstanding performance, bravely confronting criminals during missions and achieving remarkable results.]

In light of Comrade Chen Moxin's outstanding performance, we support his application to participate in the selection of witch hunters as an external recruit.

[Lu Yangming]

[August 3, 60rd year of the Long Night]

After reading the contents, Chen Moxin couldn't help but widen her eyes.

Without a doubt, this is a letter of recommendation.

And it was exactly what he desperately needed: a letter of recommendation to participate in the witch hunter selection.

Chen Moxin did not know this "Lu Yangming" deputy presiding judge.

This is the second-in-command of the Twin Cities Tribunal. For an ordinary officer like Chen Moxin who has just been promoted, the other party would never normally pay attention to her, let alone write a letter of recommendation.

In fact, very few people know that Chen Moxin even wants to become a witch hunter.

Why would Lu Yangming, who has absolutely no connection to him, suddenly write such a letter of recommendation to help him?

The answer is beyond doubt.

Chen Moxin lifted the letter and sniffed the faint scent of strawberry perfume that still lingered on it; the sweetness seemed to seep into her heart.

"It's delicious."

Chapter 48 Studying Journalism

Once you get the most difficult part—the letter of recommendation—the rest is easy.

Chen Moxin filled out all the preliminary documents and submitted them to the organization's superiors through a special channel. The rest was just a matter of following the procedures.

While waiting, he didn't stay idle; he planned to verify a hypothesis.

As a formal agent of the Administration Bureau, Chen Moxin can now freely enter and exit all non-classified areas, including the "Witch Containment Zone".

The word "inclusion" sounds like "imprisonment," but in fact, a witch being in the Bureau of Management is not the same as being imprisoned.

The Rose Empire does have a strict policy of controlling psionic energy, but the official stance is that witches are not defined as enemies.

Currently, the official attitude towards witches is twofold: on the one hand, they are highly vigilant about their danger, and on the other hand, they are regarded as "victims."

Just like if someone contracts a malignant infectious disease, the imperial government, while restricting their freedom, will not deprive them of their human rights, but will instead assume the obligation to take care of them.

The same principle applies to witch containment.

All witches taken in by the Bureau are provided with living support by the Bureau.

Of course, the containment procedures differ for different witches.

The Bureau's containment measures are divided into five levels, from lenient to strict: free containment, general containment, strict containment, special containment, and static containment.

Free Containment, as the name suggests, grants witches at this containment level a high degree of personal freedom.

They are allowed to live freely outside the city. Except for the requirement to return to the bureau once a month for routine reporting and to report in advance if they leave the city, they are no different from ordinary people.

Very few witches are allowed to be freely contained, because there are many prerequisites.

First, one must not have a prior criminal record, and there must be no malicious concealment, resistance to interrogation, or refusal to be arrested.

In addition, we should also contribute to the work of the Administration.

The so-called "contributing one's share" refers to voluntarily forming a spiritual contract with a witch hunter under official guidance, sharing one's spiritual energy with the other party. This behavior will greatly improve the bureau's evaluation of the witch.

Other factors include a positive personality, emotional stability, and good interpersonal relationships.

In short, the witches who are granted "free containment" are all well-behaved and virtuous girls.

The second category is "general detention".

This is the most common containment measure used by the Bureau, and 80% of witches are at this containment level.

These witches will be housed in the "General Containment Area" within the Administration Bureau, which has complete living and entertainment facilities to meet all their daily needs.

Apart from participating in law-abiding education and training every week, the witches have free time to do as they please. Whether they go to a coffee shop to pet cats, go to the library to read books, or play games in the dormitory or sleep in late, no one will care.

Compared to free containment, witches under general containment have relatively limited personal freedom and cannot leave the containment area normally.

If you need to go out for personal reasons, you need to apply to the bureau in advance and you can only be allowed a certain amount of time to go out after approval.

In their daily lives, the female supervisors in the containment area also assess the witches' behavior.

For behaviors such as non-cooperation with management, disruption of interpersonal relationships, unauthorized use of psychic powers, or other negative actions, the supervisor will impose corresponding penalties on the witch and deduct points from her behavior score.

If a witch's behavior score is too low, she will be forcibly expelled from the general containment area and transferred from "general containment" to "strict containment".

The days under strict custody were very difficult. Not only was the food and accommodation poor, but they also had to participate in labor reform and legal education, and were only allowed two hours of free time each day.

Above that is "Special Management Detention".

Witches at this containment level are either extremely wicked in their daily lives, and ordinary punishments have no effect on them.

Either the witch herself has very unstable abilities or personality, making her extremely dangerous.

The special management and containment area is located deep within the administration bureau's territory, isolated from other areas. It is guarded by dedicated armed sentries 24 hours a day, and has a large number of early warning and defense facilities.

Witches in the special containment zone are not allowed to go out, cannot contact the outside world, and are prohibited from participating in any group activities. The only area they can move around in is their own containment room, making them truly "stay-at-home".

If "special management containment" can barely be considered "living," then the highest level, "static containment," is utterly inhumane.

Witches placed in static containment are placed in life support chambers, where they are given nutrient solutions and sleeping pills 24 hours a day, forcibly stripped of their consciousness, and are generally not awakened.

In other words, forcibly turning someone into a vegetable.

Just how defiant would a witch have to be to be subjected to such containment measures? Chen Moxin really didn't know.

It is said that there is currently a witch under static containment within the Twin Cities Authority, but Chen Moxin's current level does not have access to her specific information.

To be fair, as long as the witch doesn't do anything reckless, the conditions offered by the Administration Bureau are very favorable.

Take the most common "general management shelter" as an example. They provide food when they are hungry, free accommodation in well-furnished dormitories, high-speed fiber optic internet and top-of-the-line computers, and a wide range of entertainment facilities such as cafes, libraries, and mini-cinemas.

For witches like Liu Lan, who have a history of absconding and resisting interrogation, their containment level was lowered from "strict containment" to "general containment" after they cooperated well.

The Bureau has been extremely kind and compassionate towards the witch.

Some might ask, if the treatment is so good, why are there still so many witches outside who don't actively cooperate with the containment?

First, human nature is a major pain point.

Imagine you suddenly gained superpowers. Would you secretly enjoy them yourself, or would you proactively report them to the government?

The latter exists, but the former has more.

Besides human nature, there are two other reasons.

First, the Rose Empire has a low-key administrative style, often focusing on getting things done quietly, unlike the Azure Federation across the sea, which boasts about itself for every little thing.

Imperial governments often work quietly and don't like to sing their own praises.

This is true not only in the realm of psionic control, but in many other areas.

Secondly, the media played a crucial role in this success.

These media outlets, like Rose Empire, are adept at being subservient to foreign powers while launching powerful attacks domestically.

When other countries are embroiled in major scandals, they collectively play dead and don't report a single word.

Whenever the imperial government encounters any problem, even a minor one, they immediately launch a massive propaganda campaign, giving the impression that the country is about to perish.

The same applies to the management bureau and the media.

The media frequently reported that the Bureau of Investigation was extremely strict in its investigations, relentlessly pursuing any witch they discovered and often resorting to violence, causing families to break apart and even death.

He also subtly mocked the Empire's psionic control policies by comparing them to the free air that psionicists in the "Azure Federation" can breathe every day, making all sorts of sarcastic remarks.

However, when the topic turns to the harm caused by fanaticism and the containment and protection of witches, they fall silent, adhering to the principle of not reporting, not forwarding, and not discussing.

Studying journalism.

Chapter 49 Third-Order Awakening

After passing through the outer sentry post, Chen Moxin entered the general containment area, where more than a hundred witches currently reside.

The layout here is somewhat like a mini university town, with warm beige exterior walls enclosing hundreds of acres of land, and corridors connecting dormitory suites with common activity areas.

The morning was very lively. The music room was filled with the clear, melodious sound of a piano, and the air was filled with the aroma of caramel wafting from the bakery, attracting many grey doves that wanted to peck at the breadcrumbs.

In the gardening room, a girl wearing an apron was transplanting sunflower bulbs into a pot, while her companion sat beside her, knitting a scarf and chatting and laughing with her.

In the game room in the northwest corner, people were playing games together, and shouts of "Go and control him!" could be heard from time to time. Outside was a basketball court, where several young girls were playing basketball, their ponytails swinging in the air in sharp arcs, full of vitality.

Chen Moxin found the female supervisor on duty, explained her purpose, and quickly found Liu Lan with her guidance.

After an initial adjustment period, Liu Lan has gotten used to life here and has made many friends.

At this moment, she was chatting with two women of similar age in the small garden. As usual, she was wearing a classic cheongsam and casually sitting on a marble table, gently swinging her long legs encased in black stockings.

"Liu Lan, someone's looking for you," the female supervisor called out.

Liu Lan turned her head and looked over. When she saw Chen Moxin, she immediately became excited: "Moxin!"

She ran over and grabbed Chen Moxin's arm, the immense evil compressing into a pleasing arc.

Seeing Liu Lan's enthusiasm, the female supervisor wisely said, "Then you two chat, call me if you need anything."

After the supervisor finished speaking, he left the small garden. The women who had been chatting with Liu Lan also left with smirks, leaving the two of them alone.

Liu Lan gently shook Chen Moxin's arm, her expression a mix of maturity, beauty, and sadness, like that of a young girl: "You promised to come visit me often, but you haven't..."

Chen Moxin smiled and said, "We're here now. This place is so beautiful. Let me show you around."

The two walked in the garden, and along the way, Liu Lan talked about her life in the shelter during this period.

"It's really nice here. I can sleep in every day, have tea and chat with my friends during the day, and watch movies in the multimedia room at night. They also provide free snacks and drinks."

"Looking back now, I was so stupid to even think about running away. It was all Zhang Hao's doing... Ugh, why am I bringing up that scumbag again?"

"I've completely forgotten about him, really. Don't be angry when I mention him, okay? You're the only one in my heart."

"Mo Xin, how have you been lately? I heard you got a permanent position. Congratulations! That's another step forward in your career."

Just as Liu Lan was chattering away, Chen Moxin led her around a corner and to a large tree.

Suddenly, Chen Moxin exerted force on his hand, and Liu Lan was caught off guard and was pinned down by the tree.

She looked up in surprise and saw a pair of jewel-like amber eyes in front of her.

"Mo...Mo Xin?"

Chen Moxin looked into her eyes, her voice soft and magnetic: "Don't move, this tree will block the surveillance camera."

For a moment, Liu Lan's heart was pounding.

Blocking the surveillance camera...

and then?

If anything happens, make sure to block the surveillance camera...

It seems like all that's left are those shameless things.

Does the first time have to be in the wild...?

Isn't that a bit too daring...?