"Come in."

A robust voice echoed from the room. Cheng Ye turned, patted Raul’s stiff shoulder, and pushed the door open.

As the North Station’s duty chief, Binn Downs had a spacious 150-square-meter office.

The office was divided into two areas.

The outer area featured a massive floor-to-ceiling window filling the entire west wall, offering a sweeping view of the wasteland beyond the checkpoint.

In front of the window stood a deep walnut executive desk, neatly arranged with leather folders and a brass paperweight. An old-fashioned clock ticked steadily in the corner.

The inner rest area was separated by a rosewood screen inlaid with mother-of-pearl patterns, faintly revealing the outlines of a leather sofa and a whiskey cabinet.

This was the office of a man who knew how to enjoy himself.

Cheng Ye stepped in slowly, his gaze sweeping to the wall opposite the door, where photos of past North Station duty chiefs hung, settling on the central solo portrait.

The man in the photo sported a neatly trimmed gray-white beard, his eyes sharp as a hawk’s, Cheng Ye’s stereotypical image of a quintessential British gentleman.

The real man now sat behind the desk, a half-smoked cigar between his fingers, flipping through documents. Ash fell into a carved wooden ashtray, piling into a small mound of pale gray snow.

"Station Chief Downs, hello. I’m Cheng Ye, the trainee inspector reporting for duty at the North Station today."

"Young man, I’ve heard your name before."

Binn Downs looked up slowly, setting down the papers with a smile. "But that goes back seventeen years, when your grandfather was still around."

"My grandfather?"

Cheng Ye kept his expression neutral.

How Cheng Long died and where remained a secret Liu Bi refused to share, saying he’d reveal the truth only after Cheng Ye completed his first field mission and could survive independently, let alone anything about a “grandfather” he’d never even heard of.

Wait, how did his predecessor have so many impressive relatives?

With that kind of background, how did he end up so miserable in the inner city, coughing to death?

"Ah, you don’t look a bit like Cheng Long, but your grandfather? You’re the spitting image of him."

Downs’ gaze drifted, his words rambling as if lost in memories from long ago.

It took over ten seconds for him to snap back.

"If you hadn’t fired a shot, I’d have given you 90 points for today’s performance. At your age, you’ve shown more potential than Cheng Long, more mature, more cunning."

"If you’d fired just one shot, I’d drop you to 70. Knowing how to use the rules to protect yourself and restrain your enemies? A wise man deserves praise!"

"But alas, you fired two shots, so I can only give you a passing 60. Don’t emulate Cheng Long or Liu Bi. They got where they are not by muscle or recklessness but by luck."

Speaking as if mentoring a junior, Downs drawled, occasionally flicking ash from his cigar.

"Don’t worry too much. I had some ties with that old codger Cheng Wu. Though he didn’t have the face to ask me to look after his kin before he left, I won’t go out of my way to ‘focus’ on a junior like you at a time like this."

"Stay inside the checkpoint, and I’ll ensure you’re absolutely safe. No one will target you deliberately."

"But beyond that line…"

Downs pointed to the window. Cheng Ye turned and saw a bold three-meter-wide yellow line stretching across the front of the eight inspection channels.

The yellow line was striking. Crossing it meant leaving the channels, entering the wasteland beyond the isolation zone.

"Any other questions?"

"None. Thank you for your care, Station Chief Downs. I’ll remember it!"

Cheng Ye bowed slightly, warming to the old man.

With Downs’ status, there was no need to deceive him. If he wanted to make a move, there were countless ways to do it.

His words suggested the Western faction wasn’t as monolithic as Cheng Ye thought, there were differing voices within.

That made sense. A faction with only one voice would be the real anomaly.

"Good. Since you’ve earned a 60, this first evaluation is yours. And remember to come to me for a signature before each rotation."

Downs pulled a text-filled sheet from a leather folder.

The top half listed Cheng Ye’s basic info, the bottom half was for trainee evaluations, and a vermilion North Station seal stamped the bottom.

Per the checkpoint’s trainee-to-official rules, Cheng Ye needed three such evaluations from the Central Main Checkpoint, North, and South Stations to become a full-fledged first-tier inspector.

Downs giving him one now showed approval of his performance at registration, his tactics and mindset met the minimum inspector standard.

Of course, Cheng Ye guessed that if he’d scored Downs’ “90,” he might be holding two or even three sheets right now.

But…

"Thank you, Station Chief!"

"Go on."

Cheng Ye nodded, folded the evaluation sheet, tucked it into his backpack, and left the office.

Surprisingly, Raul hadn’t left. He stood by a railing not far from the office, waiting.

"Hm? Got something to say?"

Cheng Ye was curious.

In typical villain fashion, Raul should be tossing out threats now, saying this wasn’t over.

As long as Cheng Ye stayed at the North Station, the second-generation heirs would band together to target him until he begged for mercy.

But reality was the opposite.

"Inspector Cheng, if possible, I’d like to make a deal."

Raul approached, his earlier stiffness gone, his expression calm with a hint of flattery.

"Oh? Let’s hear it."

"Garcia is Jamie’s uncle. He targeted you largely to avenge him. When we egged Jamie on, we just wanted to see an Easterner inspector embarrassed. Honestly, whether it was you or another Easterner today, we’d have done the same. It wasn’t personal."

Cheng Ye hummed, signaling him to continue.

"The East-West faction feud is between inspectors, about interests. It has nothing to do with us juniors who don’t know when we’ll inherit."

Raul lowered his voice. "Jamie’s dad has only one son. Even after kneeling to you, he’ll still become an inspector. But I’m different. My father has four sons. I’m the eldest. If I’d caved to you today, he’d never let me inherit."

"So you want me to play along?"

"No need." Raul shook his head quickly. "Just don’t spread what happened today. Don’t make it like Garcia, Jamie’s uncle, bragging in Easterner circles. I’ll ensure today never happened, and everyone will forget this unpleasantness."

Huh, this guy’s got some brains.

Cheng Ye narrowed his eyes, sizing up the blond boy.

Others still carried the naive arrogance of youth, but Raul showed a calculating streak beyond his years.

"What’s in it for me?"

"A promise."

Raul straightened, his fingers absently rubbing a cufflink. "I thought hard, and it’s the most valuable thing I can offer. As long as it doesn’t touch the inspector faction feud, I guarantee I’ll back you unconditionally once within the North Station."

"Or, to be precise, even if you’re caught in a direct faction conflict and trapped here, I can buy you time to call for Easterner help."

The first part didn’t faze Cheng Ye, but the second… his eyelids twitched.

"Your balls are pretty big, huh?"

"You flatter me."

Realizing the deal was struck, Raul exhaled deeply, flashing a genuine smile.

"There’s only one inspector seat, and my three brothers are eyeing it. Do you think I should roll in the mud with them or make friends with someone bold enough to fire a gun at the checkpoint?"

"Fine, I’ll act like nothing happened today."

Cheng Ye waved him off and walked away.

Just a bunch of greenhouse-grown second-generation brats, nowhere near as ruthless as the orphanage kids.

Besides, he hadn’t planned to publicize this anyway. Getting Raul’s promise was an unexpected bonus.

But after a few steps, Cheng Ye stopped and turned, startling Raul into near-PTSD.

"Anything else?" Raul forced down his panic.

"I’m assigned to Zone A today, right? First time here. Why don’t you show me the way?"

"My pleasure."

Damn it, say so earlier, you scared the hell out of me.

Raul relaxed inwardly but resolved to steer clear of this plague from now on.

He should’ve known, someone daring to hit the North Station on their first rotation wouldn’t come unprepared.

It was just his youthful appearance that misled everyone into thinking he was an easy target.

But in truth, they weren’t even in the same league as Cheng Ye. His ruthless tactics outshone some second-tier inspectors.

And the trickiest part? This guy knew how to wield the checkpoint’s rules.

Leave dealing with a brain like that to Harlin’s faction inspectors.

"This kid’s too hot-headed. I bet he won’t last a few rotations before he’s done for."

Footsteps faded outside.

A figure emerged from behind the office screen, none other than Deputy Station Chief Evan Davidson.

"Ruthless but rootless, he’s just headstrong, harming himself and others."

"So I said, he’s a bit like Cheng Wu."

Downs chuckled, his words carrying a double meaning.

Davidson’s face shifted, his back straightening. "I’ve been too busy with field duties to discipline properly. Rest assured, Station Chief, this won’t happen again."

"Good. The North Station’s been noisy lately. Wouldn’t want outsiders laughing at us."