“Colonel Brooks, isn’t this a bit... too hasty?”

The voice in the headset was still hesitant: “At the very least, he should be taken to the main city for final testing, to determine his risk of losing control...”

“After all, he is...”

“...”

“I’ll report to Professor Bai separately when I get back!”

Grace Brooks spoke decisively, yanked off the headset, and looked a bit annoyed.

A bunch of armchair strategists!

How could they possibly risk bringing him to the main city before confirming his stability?

As for determining his risk of losing control, are they trying to say he’s a schizophrenic lunatic, prone to problems?

But of those who have been recruited now, who is actually normal?

If simply discovering he has the potential for schizophrenia makes them think he’s crazy, then if she showed those people—who hide in the rear and evaluate everything—the video from that digital camera, what kind of fright would they be in?

There was a file she hadn’t shown Brian Carter, which listed his risk assessment: 75%.

According to current world standards, if the risk assessment reaches 80%, recruitment and guidance are absolutely forbidden.

If the risk of losing control reaches 90%, you must always be ready to eliminate.

If the risk of losing control hits 95%, even if he’s done nothing, he must be exiled to the wilderness, or directly eliminated!

...

...

If that digital camera were handed over to those people, she was sure Brian Carter’s risk assessment would break 80%.

Maybe even 90%!

But Grace Brooks felt that the choice she was making now was not wrong.

The obstacles to rebuilding civilization are beyond imagination.

Ambitious mining companies, the Tech Church, knight orders roaming the wilderness...

And those psychic monsters hidden among the crowd...

All these unstable elements could bring enormous threats to the high city walls at any moment!

With just Qinggang’s army, there’s absolutely no way to resist...

...

...

Without using abilities, persuading one person is already very difficult—persuading a group is even harder.

So Grace Brooks didn’t plan to persuade them, just to do what she thought was right.

She firmly believed: the problem Qinggang faces now isn’t about choosing someone, but having no choice at all!

Only madmen can fight monsters!

Chapter 10: So Many Toys

“Although I don’t know when I’ll become a full employee, this income is already very high...”

“A fixed monthly salary of five thousand, plus the one thousand I get from the company, means I can make six thousand!”

“And now, if there are investigation or cleanup tasks, there are extra rewards...”

“The reward for eliminating a level one psychic monster is thirty thousand, level two is three hundred thousand...”

“Even without counting the task bonuses, just my two jobs together bring in six thousand a month, which is already a lot. After spending five hundred on food, I can still save five thousand five hundred. That’s sixty-six thousand a year, and in ten years, six hundred sixty thousand...”

“At the elementary school, I need to move them as soon as possible. Where they live now, the water and electricity supply is unreliable, and it’s too close to the high wall—very dangerous. I checked before: if I buy a big house far from the wall, enough for a teacher, a security guard, and a dozen kids, it’ll cost a bit over a million. If I save five thousand five hundred a month, then...”

“At most, fifteen years of saving will be enough...”

“...”

Brian Carter calculated all this in his mind, and suddenly felt full of hope.

He was still young—fifteen years was doable.

Besides, if he took on a few more tasks each time, he could earn even more rewards, right?

Of course, there were still many problems. For example, he needed to become a full employee soon—what if he got fired before that?

If everything went smoothly, not only could he buy a big house sooner, he could also have more money for food, and maybe even take Ms. Deer to the main city to see a top doctor and cure her leg.

...

...

Thinking about all this, Brian Carter got off the bus, hands in his pockets, walking slowly down the street in a great mood.

When he was almost back at the apartment, he stopped—he wasn’t in a hurry to go back just yet.

“Big brother, what are you doing? Mom and Dad are waiting for you to come home for dinner!”

A voice sounded from the streetlamp beside him. Brian Carter looked up and saw Sophie Carter sitting on the crossbar of the lamp, hugging that patched-up teddy bear, her slender legs swinging in the night breeze, a mysterious smile on her face.

“Sophie Carter, I just happened to want to talk to you about something.”

Brian Carter thought for a moment, slowly looked up at Sophie Carter on the streetlamp, and said, “I just got a new job, which can earn me much more money than before, enough to rebuild our old home. I really want to do it, but this job might require using abilities a lot. I wanted to ask...” He paused slightly, then said, “Can you lend me your ability?”

“Lend you my ability?”

Sophie Carter smiled from the streetlamp, her smile a bit eerie: “Big brother, what will you trade me for it?”

Brian Carter thought for a moment, and tentatively asked, “The screaming chicken?”