CHAPTER 1459: NEXT STEP STRATEGY II

___At the wellington city__

In the narrow alley, a woman in a black trench coat moved quickly, hood drawn tight over her head. Her steps were uneven, hurried, and she kept glancing over her shoulder, and scanning the buildings around her for cameras she half-suspected were there.

At the far end of the alley, another figure lingered in the shade. Beyond the walls, the sunlit street carried on, vendors calling, footsteps shuffling past, wheels clattering over asphalt. Yet here she stood, set apart from it all. The hood of her jacket hung low, veiling her face and turning her presence into a riddle against the brightness of day.

The moment their eyes met, the first woman broke into a quicker pace. "I only have five minutes before someone notices I’m gone," she blurted, breathless.

The woman lifted her head, dark eyes burning with urgency. "Calm down, Jasmine." As her hood shifted back, her face came into view—it was Lydia.

She cast a quick glance over Jasmine’s shoulder to ensure no one had followed, then motioned sharply with her hand. "Follow me."

Lydia guided her through a back door into an abandoned toolshed warehouse. The air inside was heavy with dust and disuse, shadows stretching long across the cracked floor.

Waiting within were Maddeline and another female Noxcra agent, their figures half-lit by the dim light in the room. Jasmine froze on the threshold, fear flashing in her eyes, her breath quickening.

Before panic could take hold, Lydia’s calm, steady voice cut through the silence, "Don’t worry, they’re friends."

Maddeline offered a gentle smile, raising her hand in a calming gesture. Beside her, the Noxcra agent gave only a slight lift of her chin in acknowledgment, her sharp gaze unreadable.

Jasmine drew some comfort from Maddeline’s familiar presence, but she never seen the other woman, the one who radiated a dangerous air. Even so, she held her ground. At this point, there was no turning back.

"Let’s change our clothes." Lydia began stripping off her jacket.

Jasmine froze, second thoughts halting her movements. "What about my family?"

"They’ve already been relocated to Harland," Maddeline replied evenly.

"Will they be safe there?" Jasmine’s voice trembled.

Lydia let out a sharp sneer. "If Harland isn’t safe, then nowhere in this world is."

"That’s not what I mean..." Jasmine bit her lip, doubt written all over her face. "Are they truly already arrived in Harland?"

Maddeline understood her doubt, so she took her phone and handed it. "Here—take my phone. Call your parents."

Jasmine stared at the cell phone in Maddeline’s hand for a few seconds before taking it. With shaky fingers, she dialed a string of numbers and waited.

"Hello?" an uneasy but familiar voice answered.

"Dad? It’s me!" Jasmine’s voice cracked with relief.

"Jasmine? Honey, are you alright?" the voice behind the phone reacted in the same way.

"I’m fine. What about you and Mom? Where are you?"

"We are in Herriond, in Harland," her father answered.

"Thank goodness..." Jasmine exhaled, her chest loosening.

"Sweetie, don’t worry about us. What about you? When will you get here?" His voice carried both relief and worry.

"Soon," she whispered, turning toward Lydia. "Dad, I have to go now. I’ll join you soon."

"Okay. Whatever you do, be careful, sweetheart. Your mother and I are waiting."

"I know... I’m hanging up now." Jasmine ended the call and returned the phone to Maddeline.

"Let’s hurry," Lydia pressed.

This time, Jasmine didn’t hesitate. She stripped off her clothes and slipped into the outfit Lydia handed her. As they changed, Maddeline asked, "What about the other healers? Do they believe in the organization so much that they never question the strange things happening there?

"It’s... it’s not like that." Jasmine pulled Lydia’s jacket around herself, her hands trembling slightly.

She darted a glance at Lydia before continuing in a low voice. "My friend joined the organization a few months before me, and she sent me a message about the situation there. She said that after you left without authorization, it became an uproar. Then rumors began to spread inside Elysium and even reached White Rose Boarding School, where the healers train. My friend said people start becoming uneasy..."

Lydia’s eyes narrowed. "What exactly did they say about me?"

Jasmine swallowed hard. "Um... the official story was that you were having an affair to a married man, and to avoid scandal, you ran away and abandoned your duty. They even said you also embezzled some of the charity funds."

Lydia let out a short laugh, rolling her eyes. "Oh, brilliant. A scandalous affair and stolen money? Really scraping the bottom of the barrel, aren’t they?"

She smirked, shaking her head. "I’m almost offended they couldn’t come up with something more original."

Jasmine gave a weak laugh, rubbing her arm uneasily. She wasn’t sure if Lydia was truly amused—or just hiding sharper anger beneath her mocking tone.

Her voice faltered before she added, even softer, "But another rumor claimed you’d been chosen to receive the Saintess’s blessing—the highest honor a healer could hope for. No one could understand why you would leave just before that. Some whispered that maybe... You were trying to avoid the blessing. The question is ’why?"

Maddeline’s curiosity sharpened. "So what did the other healers say about it?"

Jasmine gave a nervous shrug, her shoulders curling inward. "Not much. My friend said they were warned not to gossip, especially about the Saintess. After that, no one dared bring it up. Honestly, I didn’t think much about it... not until I joined the organization."

"What happened?" Lydia asked.

Maddeline noticed the shadow tightening around Jasmine’s face. Leaning closer, she asked gently, "Did you find out something?"

Jasmine hesitated, her fingers twisting together before she finally spoke. "I don’t know... but from the beginning, everything felt wrong. My family’s fairly well off, but when I came to the White Rose boarding school, it was too...grand. The uniforms, the food, the rooms, even the furniture, everything is too luxurious. I thought I’d lived comfortably before, but when I got there, I realized my lifestyle was quite modest."

"And you don’t like that?" Lydia stifled a chuckle.

"I liked it at first... but it felt—unnatural." Jasmine’s voice dropped, her eyes flicking between them as if afraid someone might overhear.

"I don’t know what the situation was when you were there, but for me, we barely did anything. We were pampered, spoiled even. Hardly any homework, almost no tests, and whatever we wanted was provided. But in return, we weren’t allowed to question anything. No complaints. No criticism. Just follow the rules."

She hesitated, her fingers tightening against her skirt. "The only ’work’ we had to do was a bit of social service outside once in a while—though even then, most of the patients were brought into Elysium instead. It felt staged, like they wanted us to be seen, to look good... but never actually touch the outside world."

"They never liked it when we interacted too much with the outside world... even with our own families," Lydia said in agreement.

Jasmine’s breath hitched. "That’s right! It was like they were trying to isolate us, keeping us swayed by the luxurious life inside the organization." Her eyes darkened, her voice dropping to a whisper. "I don’t know how else to explain it. I felt like livestock... being fattened up for something I couldn’t see."

"And no one questioned this?" Maddeline asked, curiosity laced with unease.

"Strangely... no." Jasmine made a helpless wave with her hand.

"Everyone just seemed... happy."

"What do you mean?" Lydia frowned, not following.

"I don’t know how to explain it." Jasmine pressed her lips together, unease flickering in her eyes. "Everyone there was just... too cheerful. Always smiling, always happy, like no one ever had a bad day. It wasn’t normal. Even when I tried making cynical jokes, they just stared at me with big smiles like they didn’t understand, like the idea of being upset simply didn’t exist."

She shivered, her voice dropping lower. "It felt forced... like something was making them that way. Even my friend started to change. She laughed too easily, smiled too much. It was like watching her slowly turn into a stranger."

"...And how did you feel?" Maddeline pressed gently.

Jasmine brushed her hair back, shaking her head. "I... I felt dizzy. Nauseous, even. At first, I thought maybe it was the food or the weather. I don’t know. But I just... never felt comfortable there."

Her gaze drifted, eyes going blank as her voice dropped to a mutter. "That’s why I tried to escape..."

"Well, luckily you met us," Lydia said with a comforting smile.

"Yeah..." Jasmine nodded, a grateful smile tugging at her lips.

At the moment, Maddeline and the Noxcra agent exchanged a quiet, meaningful glance—an unspoken acknowledgment of how serious Jasmine’s words truly were.

"Let’s not waste more time," Maddeline cut in, her tone firm. "We need to move before anyone notices you’re gone." She handed a vial of Versipell potion to Lydia.

After changing clothes, Lydia cast a shapeshifter spell, molding her features into Jasmine Wu’s likeness, then drank the potion to strengthen the disguise. Maddeline pressed another vial into her hand. "This is a new concoction from N.I.M.s. It’ll last two days.

I’ve given you more, it should be able to cover for a week. Just make sure no one discovers them."

Lydia tucked the vial inside her bra with a steady hand. "Don’t worry. I’ll manage."

The Noxcra agent produced a small box. Inside lay a pair of plain silver stud earrings. "These are protective amulets. If something goes wrong, throw one and it’ll release sleeping gas. But always keep at least one on you as a barrier." She then handed Lydia a sleek watch. "This is your signal. Press the screen twice if you’re in danger, and we’ll come for you."

Lydia nodded firmly. "Understood."

Maddeline’s eyes lingered on her, now disguised as Jasmine Wu. "Be careful. Remember what Lory said—safety first."

"Yes," Lydia agreed with a nod.

"Remember, we’re all watching over you," Maddeline added, gripping her hand tightly.

"I know." Lydia took a deep breath, her resolve settling in. "I should go now." She pulled up her hoodie, opened the door, and slipped out.

Maddeline stood frozen for a moment, staring at the closed door. Slowly, she exhaled a heavy sigh, then reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone.

"It’s started," she whispered into the receiver.