A brief interlude—

Dangling upside down by her tail, Li Hua hung from the second floor railings of the Specialists department. With her eyes closed shut, she was in a state of deep meditative silence.

However! Let not one judge a book by its cover, lest one be fooled into thinking she was merely slacking to pass the time. Speak not of the average man, for not even prodigies and geniuses became masters overnight! Only with due diligence and the sacrifice of thousands of untold hours was one aspiring able to reach that pinnacle. Yet, though 10,000 hours of practice made a master, Li Hua could not be satisfied with only that much. For her, as a master, it was merely the starting line towards a lifetime of cultivation.

Perfection was a goal to strive for, yet it could never be reached. For perfection reached was no perfection at all. One could always become better. One could always find a way to surpass one's self of yesterday.

Thus, to rebel against the heavens, even burdened with the handicapped aether capacity of the Felid people, Li Hua endlessly practiced without wasting so much as a single iota of her internal energies. In a way much similar to casting supporting artes, she circulated the aether into the myriad of different configurations meant to bring out and enhance different facets of her own abilities. These were her martial artes, and they were styled to mimic after the varying aspects of the elemental forces of nature— but that concentration lasted only until she found herself yawning again.

She could not help it. It was an uncontrollable reflex after all. So after she did yawn, she carefully opened one eye to take a stealthy peek at her surroundings to see if anyone had noticed her just now.

The department was eerily silent and empty, but the single red light at the far end of the garrison continued to blink slowly to convey the mustering order still in full effect. The sky, too, was still so dark. With the way the indoor lights reflected on the window panes, it made it difficult for her to see anything on the outside, even if someone had been staring eye to eye with her right on the other side. The coast was clear and nothing had changed since Azusa and Azura both left for work earlier, but realizing that only brought her out of her meditation fully. There was nobody for her to bother and there was nothing for her to do.

She sniffed the air. Someone had been brewing coffee again. Did people really drink coffee so late into the night? It would surely mess with their sleep cycle, would it not? But then again, work already disturbed it enough that she could see why someone would not care.

Relaxing her tail then, Li Hua let go of the railing and dropped back down onto the first floor with a graceful thud. It was a perfect landing, with her body turning smoothly in the air to right herself up during the momentary fall. After landing, she frowned suddenly, before looking down at her stomach and patting it lightly with her left hand. She knew of this feeling well.

"Hungry…"

All that training and staying up had worked up an appetite for Li Hua and, for better or for worse, she was getting the late night munchies. There was just one thing about it however. Though she was hungry– and she would gladly eat if food was placed before her– she was not one to actually be bothered with preparing the food herself unless she was starved for days without a reasonable doubt. Though some might mark it as her being simply lazy or spoiled, such was the paradoxical nature of a Kaplan's pride.

"I need something to take my mind off this," Li Hua murmured as she started to stroll through the department.

Though she had initially tried to watch some movies to pass her time– something she and her younger twin sister loved to do– it was simply not the same without company. After all, she loved seeing other people's faces and their reactions when something exciting, scary, or anything emotional happened. By herself, she could hardly sit still enough to watch past the ten minute mark.

For the amount of SPs they had, their garrison was grossly disproportionate and spacious. Even being generous, they could easily have accommodated numbers several times what they currently had. As a result, it left a lot of empty and unoccupied space which was always an eyesore to look at when on the second floor. But that was just how it was around here because not many people were qualified to become an SP.

They were different from the other departments, with their thousands of people among their ranks. They were also different from the Vanguards, who, though miniscule in number, had entire teams of people working at their beck and call. To join their ranks, one needed to have a skillset either completely unsuitable to the operations of the other departments, or have skills be too valuable to be constrained to a single team. They were Specialists for a reason after all!

The distinction was a source of pride for its members. However, the downside was also that it was sometimes lonely to be here. If not for the slight noises from the other Specialists tucked away in their own little corners and the sounds of the air conditioning system continuously running, then she might have thought she was truly alone.

"What to do… what to do?"

Li Hua repeatedly murmured as she paced around. Being lonely was… lonesome. She could not find enjoyment in solace.

She pointed her head up, up towards the ceiling where the skylights hung above, and up where she was unable to even gaze at the stars. The reflections of the lights were getting in her way. But then she had an idea and, being so bored, she acted upon it with spontaneous fever.

Her eyes darted around quickly to look for a window or some sort of opening for her to go through. She found one, right above where the call-light was, fifteen meters high. From a resting stand, she exploded forward with a single step and her speed took her immediately to the ADV that stood in the middle of her path. She vaulted onto its roof with an effortless bounce and then launched herself into the air using it as a springboard. From there, she sailed through the air like she was about to perform a slam dunk and gripped onto the window frame as though it were the basketball rim.

That was fun, she thought, though she could have just as easily gotten up here with a standing high jump. But now, dangling over a dozen meters into the air, she peeked her head through the window and looked around. There was about a ten meter distance between her and the roof.

"Li Hua, where are you going? The mustering order's still in place! You can't just leave without saying anything!"

"I'm just going out for a quick walk!"

"Through the window?!"

Before Li Hua could make it out fully though, she was spotted by Cypress on the ground. His tone was of half concern and half panic. She casually brushed him off however. After maneuvering fully through the window, she stood on the lower frame and gripped the upper one with her two hands.

"Ah, whoops. Careful now…"

As she flashed her right hand, the one which was bound by the Kaplan zhijiatao, and clutched the metal frame bare, she had to retract her strength in a hurry. Li Hua had to be extra careful with herself using that hand. Even with a tap, those claws, nonsensically sharp, had already sunken into the frame as if it were made of styrofoam.

Nonetheless, she put strength onto her other arm, pulled down, and tensed her body like a powerful spring. Then, exploding out all at once, she simultaneously kicked off the window and pulled up with her left arm. In that way, she was launched like a bottle rocket straight up into the air where she easily cleared the top of the roof and then continued going.

"Whee~!"

She exclaimed with innocent joy as she soared through the air. Out here, she could witness the sky, stars, and moon in full without anything bothersome getting in her way. More than that, the view of the midnight city lights were beautiful as well. She would have never seen such a thing had she and her twin sister chosen to stay back home.

However, lacking the artes to fly freely, Li Hua could not hang in the air forever. As she eventually came back down, she gracefully turned her body and landed, absorbing all the energy of the fall with her immensely powerful yet slender legs.

"Now then, what do I want to do up here?"

That was right, though she had gotten up here, she only did so on a whim. It was a spur of the moment decision. The reflections on the windows simply bothered her and she wanted to see the night sky. But now that she had seen it, she had fulfilled that nugget of desire.

…

…

"What's that?"

After being on the lookout for a good several minutes, something caught Li Hua's eyes.

Out in the streets, she spotted a heavily coated figure, male, leaving one of the guild's associated buildings: the research and development lab. He was nicely camouflaged in the dark, but he could not hide from the keen eyes of a Kaplan. He did not look like a guild member, nor did he look like the protesters who were camped out at the plaza out the front of the main hall either.

"There's something fishy going on here."

Li Hua concluded. Her instincts and trouble sensors were tuned in for this exact kind of thing. Just perfect too, as she was looking for something to kill her boredom.

Dashing across the roof, Li Hua built up speed until she finally reached the edge of the building where she leapt off without a second of hesitation. The warm stuffy air of Singapore brushed past her face as she flew past trees, smaller buildings, and walkways. Then, when she finally landed, she did so soundlessly atop a light post close to the coated figure.

It was the perfect location for her now, as the blinding light of the post allowed her to hide in plain sight from any onlookers standing at street level. However, hiding was not her intention.

"Hi," Li Hua said.

"Who goes there?"

The man's voice was gravelly and it was frantic as he turned around and looked everywhere for the source of the greeting.

"Just me. I'm on a little late night stroll."

"Then run along, girl. You should not be here."

"What if I don't want to?"

"It's dangerous to be out here at night. Go home."

After hearing her voice for the third time, he was able to finally discern her location. He shielded his eyes with his sleeves as he looked up towards the light post. It was difficult for him to see her figure clearly, but once he flipped a visor down on his head, he was suddenly able to make out everything. What was dark became brighter and what was bright became dimmer. The extremities of everything he saw became dampened and now he could see the world clearly.

He also saw Li Hua, who had been playfully perched atop the light post carefully watching his every move. From his body language alone, Li Hua could tell he could see her clearly now. That was a technology the guild of Singapore did not have. Considering the way the man was dressed, coupled with his gear and how he had been sneakily leaving…

"As I thought, there's definitely something fishy going on here."

After she said this, the man's expression washed away like chalk in the rain.

"If only you had played dumb and kept your mouth shut, I'd have let you go. But now…"

The man reached under his coat and picked up something metallic.

"I'll make it quick."

Bang! Bang! Bang! He pulled out a firearm and shot three ear ripping rounds in quick succession, all towards Li Hua. However, her reaction speed was nothing to scoff at either!

—Clang! Clang! With the back of a gauntlet which had not been there on her left arm before, she deflected the first two shots and then caught the third between her index and middle knuckles. It deformed under the strength of her grip.

For the speed at which he fired, his shots were too pinpoint accurate for him to be unaided. She suspected that the man was being supported by an exoskeleton underneath that coat. The bullets too, as she inspected the one between her fingers, she saw it was just a normal one without any traces of artes on it. For small firearms, Arcanians generally preferred aethertech ones, which chambered artes instead of physical rounds. She knew because she also had one strapped to her thigh: a particularly small one.

What this all meant though, was that there was a high chance it was a human she was facing.

"Interesting," Li Hua licked her lips. She could not hold it back any longer. Her instincts had been lit aflame and, by baring her fangs, the most gleeful smile spread across her face. If it was a fight he wanted, she was more than happy to oblige. She let go of the bullet and it fell to the streets below.

"Shooting first? You really are playing into the bad guy stereotype hard. But, since you've already sent me such a nice invitation, I can't possibly not accept. It'd be rude of me not to come play after all that, wouldn't it?"

Bang! Bang!

Clang! Clang!

"Damn Arcanian monsters!"

Seeing his shots do nothing, the man swore loudly using an Italian profanity. He fired at her again, but Li Hua had yet to take him seriously as she danced around nonchalantly atop the light post and even went out of her way to deflect all the shots with the back of her gauntlet.

Bang! Bang!

Clang! Clang!

"Hey, I know what that one means. I heard it in a movie once. Can you teach me all the other Italian curse words too?"

"Get down here!"

"If that's what it takes, then as you insist!"

Li Hua vaulted down and landed fifteen meters away from the man. Her stance was narrow, but provocative, with one hand behind her back. She then made a beckoning gesture with her fingers, welcoming his assault.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

"Isn't it about time for you to reload now? I know that's not an aethertech gun you're using."

Li Hua smiled but the man stayed silent, but his glare was furious. When he pulled the trigger for the eleventh time— Click! Nothing happened.

"I'll wait," she even said, and she meant it.

The man looked at his gun. Li Hua ended up being spot on with her intuition. In the heat of the moment, he had lost count of his shots: a rookie mistake for him. But keeping his cool, he switched out the magazine with another one from under his coat. However, as he reloaded his gun, Li Hua noticed how slow he was in his actions. It was meticulous and it was in stark contrast to how hastily he acted before.

She narrowed her eyes. Then, when one would least expect it, the man flipped the magazine straight towards her and— Bang! The magazine turned out to be a disguised firearm! The man was certain: from this distance, this unexpectedly, he would be able to hit her finally—

—Ping! Li Hua flicked the bullet out of the air and it embedded itself into the sidewalk.

"That's pretty cool, just like the protagonist of a spy film. But if this is all you can do, you'll never match the standards of our Vanguards."

Handling low velocity rounds like these was child's play to her. The man would need something that was much faster and packing much more heat if he wanted to be able to tag her in this bout.

Seeing this surprise attack fail too, the man was starting to become unnerved. Just who was this kid? She was not even taking him seriously with a gun pointed at her face. He had just one last resort. He dove his hands underneath his coat and pulled out a third firearm. This time however, Li Hua finally acted.

"It was neat the first time, but now it's getting stale. My turn."

Snapping with her left hand, Li Hua cast an arte that instantly caused the gun in the man's hand to glow bright red as if smoldering.

"Fuck!"

The man swore with another Italian profanity. His hand had been burned touching it. Not only that, his coat had been set on fire and he was forced to quickly throw it off, ditching anything left within. When he looked up. Li Hua had crossed the distance between them with a single step. She reached out with her right hand, clawed with the zhijiatao, as blueish-white and purple electricity arced between her finger tips.

"Hi."

Li Hua smiled mischievously. Then, with the tip of her index finger, she touched his forehead.

"Now, bye. Good night."

She discharged her arte, sending the current of electricity passing through her zhijiatao into the man's body.

…

However, instead of falling stunned by the arte the way one would by a taser, the man managed to keep standing. In the next moment, something small and cylindrical was tossed up in the space between him and Li Hua. He snapped his eyes shut. She did not.

"Did you really just—?"

—It exploded.

"Motherfucker!"

So it was a flashbang! Li Hua swore in her native Kaplan tongue and shielded her eyes with one arm. But it was a little too late for that. She stumbled a few steps back. Her eyes stung and it hurt to even keep them open.

"You almost got me there. Shit, my hand's burnt!"

The man told her. But even if she could not see, she could still hear his footsteps coming closer, and also the handling of a magazine. Click. A firearm had been reloaded. She readied herself to counter.

"No more dancing. No more blocking. This is good night to you."

He pulled the trigger.

…

—But once again, the unexpected happened! From the night flew a dart and, striking the barrel of the gun, it tore the weapon from the man's hand.

"What? Where?"

The attack surprised him the most all night. What the hell was that? Where the hell had it come from? He snapped his head around but he saw nothing even with the aid of his visor.

"I was trying to be nice to you before, but now you've done it!" Li Hua growled.

"No!"

—He had forgotten about the girl! But it was too late! She had already recovered from the flashbang. He suddenly felt her crushing vice grip over his arm and shoulder and then the next thing he knew, his world had been flipped upside down. He felt his breath leave him all at once as she threw him to the ground and twisted his arm behind his back.

She began to question him.

"Is that an exo-gear you're wearing? I wanted to break half the bones in your body at least, but the impact felt different, just like when I tossed that one Scout. It'd explain why my arte didn't stun you before. What were you doing here? You selling drugs? Stealing intel? Come on, say something, Mister film noir man. Kinda suspicious of you to shoot first if you ask me, no?"

"Grh…!"

The man gritted his teeth in resistance. Li Hua was too strong. He could not budge even as he struggled with all his might with her crushing strength pushing down onto him.

"Not going to answer? Fine by me. I'll let the police take care of you. We're next to guild property. There are cameras everywhere. It's over for you."

…Crack!

"What's that?"

As she pinned the man down, she heard something break. It sounded like a glass vial, but also metallic too. Then, something like white smoke began to leak from the man's body. Curious, she touched it with her finger—

…

…

"What in the world was that?!"

Li Hua gasped. What had just happened? All her senses became white the moment she touched the smoke. How much time had passed? A second? A minute? It was like she had just blacked out for a moment there, but everything was white.

"Wait, where did that guy go?"

Feeling her face, she remembered what she had been doing. But when she looked around, the man from earlier had already disappeared.

He had gotten away.

"Ah… whatever."

She did not care anymore. Rather, there was something on the ground that interested her more. It was the gun that was struck from the man's hand earlier, but there was just one particular detail about it that immediately caught her attention. There was a bamboo straw embedded into the barrel. When she walked to inspect it closer, the bamboo had actually pierced clean through the metal and was pinning the gun down into the concrete like a nail. She was strong enough to pull it out though.

"This is…"

Li Hua suddenly felt a gaze, but when she turned, the line of sight was clear for kilometers. When she looked back at the bamboo straw and saw the straight line trajectory towards where she had felt the gaze, she put two and two together.

"Kaplan Strawhats…"

Her family was butting in on her business again.

…

But of course, the night could not end just there for Li Hua. As she stood inspecting the bamboo straw, familiar blue and red sirens approached. All the gunshots had attracted attention. But with the perpetrator gone, she was the only one left at the scene.

"SPF! Put your arms in the air!"

"Ah…"

Li Hua raised her hands as the Singapore Police Force arrived and their voices, amplified, blared over her.

"Bai's going to give me an earful for this."

Well, at the very least, her boredom had been solved.

…

…