I walked through the dim staircase of the Coastal Metropolis, from the administrative floor down to the third. I had just received multiple pieces of shocking news from Song Qian Long, and I wasn't quite sure how to feel about it.

Phase II, huh...if these monsters that nearly destroyed the entire city are just the first wave, then I don't even want to imagine what the second will be like.

...Shenzhen...will it make it out of this alive?

*****

- 10 Minutes Ago, An Isolated Hallway of the Coastal Metropolis, Administrative Floor -

"Phase II...?" I echoed, unsure if what I heard was correct.

Song Qian Long nodded. "In other words...the current state we are in is only just the beginning."

I clenched my fists. "The Midnight Syndicate...they really are ruthless, huh?"

"That is only natural," the old man before me said quietly. "For if our positions were switched, the city of Shenzhen would show no mercy either."

I sighed. "Is that it? No other clues on what this 'Phase II' actually is going to be?"

Song Qian Long shook his head. "Unfortunately not. However, the good news is that surrounding cities have been contacted, and reinforcements from our side are on the way. In addition, the central government in Beijing will also be sending troops, though that will take a lot longer, given the distance between the two cities. But...together, I believe we can overcome this trial."

I scoffed. "Those other neighbouring cities are just worried that after Shenzhen is destroyed, next will be them. They almost certainly aren't helping out of pure goodwill."

"That may be so, but we are not in a position to grumble about what their intentions are. The reality is, we are in dire straits, and require immediate assistance. They are the ones providing that assistance, so we really have no right to complain."

"How many reinforcements are we getting, exactly?"

"The two neighboring cities, Dongguan and Huizhou, are each respectively sending a battalion of around 1,000 mages," Song Qian Long replied. "The IMF officials here are currently in the middle of contacting the city of Guangzhou as well, right in that other room."

As he pointed at a shut door across from us, I sank into thought. The cities closest to Shenzhen were Dongguan, Huizhou, Guangzhou, and...Hong Kong.

"What about Hong Kong? They aren't sending any troops?" I asked.

Song Qian Long scratched his cheek. "Actually, about that...the highway connecting Shenzhen and Hong Kong hasn't been used for the past two months. This is confidential, but...when we first received this news back in early November, we had contacted the Hong Kong government regarding this issue, but received no response. Since then, no vehicles have entered Shenzhen from Hong Kong."

"We have held off on reporting this to the federal government over in Beijing, since if possible the Shenzhen IMF officials wished to solve it on our own, without bringing in a third-party," Song Qian Long continued. "At the time, we agreed to report to the federal government if we still receive no response from the Hong Kong government by January. However, then...well, this invasion happened. But because of this mysterious event, we have closed down the highway the instant we realized this news, from the Shenzhen side. In other words, no cars can go to Hong Kong from Shenzhen either...just for safety.."

"What the hell...that's way too suspicious," I muttered. "The highway connecting our two cities has always been one of the most used and jammed roads of this entire country. And now, all of a sudden, no one is using it anymore? Even the city government can't be reached..."

Then, suddenly, my eyes widened as I realized something very dreadful. It was just a possibility, but...I had to verify this, just in case.

"Old geezer...if I remember correctly, the Shenzhen government should have cameras on that highway, right? Since the road is a shared property of both cities."

He nodded. "Yes, why?"

"...Have you tried accessing those cameras at all?"

"Of course. That is how we figured out there was not any vehicles coming to Shenzhen from Hong Kong."

I shook my head. "No...what you've been seeing all this time, could be mere looped footage."

"W-Wha-! Looped footage?! Impossible..."

"...Show me the footage," I said quietly.

*****

- The Control Room, Coastal Metropolis -

Song Qian Long brought me to the shut door from earlier, which was across from the isolated hallway we had just been in. During this crisis, this room was the new, temporary government office. All surviving IMF officials are in here, along with the top members of society in this city, including Song Qian Long himself and the patriarchs of the remaining three Great Families of Shenzhen.

He pushed open the door, and I looked around at all the high-tech equipment, from supercomputer clusters to holoscreens. As I inspected my surroundings in wonder, the other people in the room inspected me closely.

A tall man with glasses approached us and glanced at me briefly before turning his gaze on my godfather. "Who is this, Principal Song?"

"He is...my student," Song Qian Long replied calmly with a short hesitation. "Worry not, he is trustworthy."

"...How can you be so sure, he is just a kid!" another voice joined in. This one...was familiar. "Am I right, Xuan Kai...?"

I glared at the one who had called my name, and it turned out to be the Li family patriarch - Li Hai Tang. I've always disliked him, but as long as he doesn't start anything here...I won't make a move. Too many eyes. However...if an opportunity presents itself, I will not hesitate to cut him down, just like I did to Xuan Yang. Why? Because his sons were arrogant bastards, and he himself is one too. Ridding the world of them is doing a favor for the rest of the planet's population.

Other people present included the Yu family patriarch Yu Ao and the Qing family matriarch Qing Xin, who were both quite surprised to see me. However, they didn't say anything, unlike Li Hai Tang. I appreciated that.

But all of that aside, right now, I had more pressing matters.

"...Patriarch Li, I ask you to trust in me. Should any confidential information leak out because of this child...I will take full responsibility," Song Qian Long said, a serious expression on his face.

Li Hai Tang stared at my godfather for a while more, before finally shrugging and easing the tense atmosphere. "Well...I believe in your judgement, Principal Song. Just do not forget the words you said here today."

Song Qian Long didn't reply to him, but instead turned back to the guy with glasses. He seemed to be an IMF employee, working at the Shenzhen government. "Mr. Jia. Please bring up the camera feed for the Hong Kong-Shenzhen highway."

Mr. Jia frowned. "...Why now? We have this invasion to deal with right now - the highway issue can wait until a later date."

"...What if I told you...the two problems may be connected?" I interrupted, staring at Mr. Jia right in the eye. He was taken aback for a moment, before quickly composing himself.

"...I do not see what you mean," he said, before taking a deep breath. "However, I will still bring up the footage as requested. One moment."

"Thank you," Song Qian Long replied.

"Oh, and one more thing? Could you bring up the footage of each day starting from when this disturbance first began, and place them on separate panels, in a grid-like pattern? Then have them start playing at the exact same time," I added.

After around a minute or so, Mr. Jia was finished. The massive monitor on the wall before me split into many different panels, each showing a portion of the footage of the highway, the first panel dating back to early November. The final panel showed a live feed of the highway.

I inspected each panel closely as everyone else watched on in interest. Then, after several minutes, I closed my eyes and backed away.

Re-opening them, I spoke. "When all of this separate footage is playing at the exact same time...do any of you not find it odd? As if it is almost...too identical."

Song Qian Long stroked his beard. "Indeed...I feel like there is no difference at all between the footage from different dates. Of course, they all have one thing in common - no vehicles passed through from Hong Kong to Shenzhen, and vice versa. But other than that...it almost feels as if the exact same video is playing."

I chuckled. "That's because it is."

"...Come again?" Mr. Ji said.

I sighed. "Do you guys really not see it? Don't let 'common sense' sway your senses. The various footage being played in front of you right now, is the exact same thing. In other words...someone hacked the cameras."

"Hmph!" Li Hai Tang snorted. "How can you be so sure? The differences could just be so minimal the human eye cannot perceive it."

"I agree," one of the other IMF officials said.

"Yes, Patriarch Li has a point."

"Don't go listening around to this mere child's baseless conclusions, everyone. Principal Song, please have him leave," Li Hai Tang continued.

"Hold up. Why are you in such a hurry to swat me away?" I interrupted. "Patriarch Li, have you ever heard about something called 'science' before?"

"Huh?! What are you talking about?"

"If you knew the slightest bit of science, you would be able to see why I am so sure this footage is looped," I said with a sigh. "Listen, oh great patriarch. In winter, the sky turns dark earlier than usual. Surely everyone here has noticed this?"

Everyone listened to me intently, and didn't make a sound. It was a nice feeling, having these government officials and high-ranking members of society listen quietly to me speak like this.

"There is one day in particular where this change is most evident," I continued. "And that, is the end of Daylight Saving Time - November 6th. The day when we all push our clocks back one hour."