I sit perched atop the tower, letting the Saigon night winds weave through my snow-white fur, purging the heat and the residual irritation from that long-winded negotiation.

  "Damn it," I mutter, my tail waving lazily in the air. "Those old geezers from the Four Immortals Syndicate are as stubborn as bedrock. Just a minor turf dispute regarding the Sensitives' operational territory, yet they act as if World War III is imminent."

  Just as I resolve that mess, Nanao calls for help. I hear they lost track of a Sensitive in Japan.

  I look down at the spectral phone screen where the video call with those brats was abruptly disconnected when the elevator reached the 10th floor.

  "Did those brats really clip into another world?" I narrow my eyes, tapping my claws rhythmically on the tempered glass of the building. "Or did they just get lost in a pocket dimension created by an Anomaly? Probably the latter. An urban legend in this World 1031 isn't old enough to tear the fabric of the universe."

  Thinking this, I decide not to act rashly. I'll just wait a bit longer. After all, Nanao and Xiaolang are official employees; this case shouldn't be too hard for them.

  To kill time, I exit Solak and log into Goddit, the largest anonymous discussion forum in The Nexus.

  If GodBook is a flea market where Old Gods show off achievements, post selfies, and create cheap romantic drama, Goddit is the sanctuary for "intellectuals" (or those who claim to be). This is the place containing the most useful information and, of course, the most ridiculous conspiracy theories in the universe.

  I slide my finger, accessing my favorite sub-forum: g/Market1031_General.

  A post title catches my eye, with astronomical upvotes and comments.

  [DISCUSSION] Which Corporation was actually behind the Sensitive Grigori Rasputin?

  (Posted by: Anonymous_Deity)

  "Greetings, benevolent brethren, lately I have been digging up old files on that mad monk Rasputin in 20th century Russia. Psychological manipulation skills, persistent vitality (poisoned, shot, beaten without dying), and divine healing abilities... Clearly a high-level Sensitive or a top-tier Vessel.

  But the question is: Who stood behind him?

  

  
1. Heaven Inc.? Impossible. He was too debauched, seriously violating the ethical standards of the White Robes faction.


  
2. Olympus Corp? Possible, considering the hedonism. But Olympus usually likes pretty boys and flashiness, while Rasputin looked... well, a bit gross.


  
3. Asgard Industries? No signs of technology or ancient Runes.


  
4. The Jade Palace Conglomerate? Even less likely. He lacked any dignified aura.


  

  I checked the public personnel records of major corporations from that period. NO ONE CLAIMED RESPONSIBILITY. A character who shook a human empire, harvesting a massive amount of FP, yet remains 'ownerless'? Something smells fishy here."

  I scroll down to the comments section, smirking at the fiery debates of The Nexus netizens.

  @ZeusLover69: "Contraband of some god wanting to cause trouble, probably Loki."

  @OdinEye: "Playing big like that would have gotten the Bureau of Purification involved long ago. I bet it's the work of a Shadow Syndicate."

  "Spot on," I mumble, tapping lightly on the screen. "No big shot dares to claim it because the incident was too obvious and ended too tragically. It definitely involves the Shadow Syndicates again. They specialize in creating FP time bombs, scooping up profit quickly, then washing their hands and bolting when trouble strikes."

  I intend to type a few lines to show off my wisdom, but my eyes glance at the corner of the screen.

  30 minutes have passed without any reconnection signal from Nanao.

  My ears twitch once, standing stark in alertness. The relaxation from earlier vanishes, replaced by a sense of unease creeping into my gut.

  "Strange..." I retract my legs, standing up on the edge of the building. The night wind whips my face. "Did they fall asleep in there? Or... did they encounter something that couldn't be resolved in 30 minutes?"

  For a team comprising two gods and a potential Sensitive, 30 minutes is more than enough to clean up an urban legend. This silence... is not normal at all.

  "Not good."

  I exit the Goddit app, open contacts, and call the first name on the emergency list immediately.

  Beep... Beep...

  "Is that Itsuki? What kind of trouble is happening down there this time?" the steady voice of the Tiger God rings out, accompanied by the sound of typing on the other end.

  "There's a situation," I say quickly, my voice devoid of any joking tone. "Nanao, Xiaolang, and Kaito lost contact in Tokyo after attempting the Elevator Game. It's been 30 minutes. I suspect that bizarre ritual isn't simply leading to a pocket dimension."

  The typing sound on the other side stops abruptly.

  "I will check the soul coordinates immediately," Zhen Shan responds curtly. "Where are you?"

  "Saigon. I'm preparing to head to Tokyo right now."

  I put away the phone, my body erupting in a spiritual blue flame.

  "Meet me at the Keio Plaza Hotel, Shinjuku. Don't be late, Boss Tiger."

  Without waiting for an answer, I shoot forward, leaving behind the brilliant city lights, cutting through the wind towards the Northeast.

  As I glide through the night sky, watching the city lights below blur past like rewinding comets, an ominous feeling pricks at my stomach. This is not just some mid-tier spatial trap. The stench of danger is pungent, stronger than stinky tofu.

  "If I just dive headfirst into that place with this fragile spiritual body, it might cost me a fortune in FP," I mutter, stroking my chin in calculation. "I need a high-quality, experienced 'vessel' to save costs."

  I steer, executing a perfect curve in mid-air, shifting my course from Tokyo to Osaka.

  My destination is the residence of one of the few ace cards the Jade Palace Conglomerate has possessed in the Japanese market for the last decade, long before we signed that twenty-eight-person expansion contract.

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Reo Kujo.

  If Kaito is a naive rookie easy to manipulate, Reo is an old fox in human skin (even though I am the actual fox). He is a Senior Sensitive with ten years of experience in the trade, a man who has survived countless spiritual potholes.

  He is a high school math teacher, just turning thirty, possessing natural platinum hair that stands out and a handsome face with a look of scholarly detachment. However, his personality is... well, let's just say it is as eccentric and flighty as the way he solves a complex integral problem. His students often see this handsome teacher muttering to himself in the hallway, laughing and talking to the air. They think he is stressed from lesson planning, but in reality, he is haggling over mission bonuses with me.

  I land on the windowsill of the staff room at a high school in Osaka. It is nearly 8 PM local time. The lights in the room are blazing, but the atmosphere is strangely quiet.

  And there he is, my Employee of the Month.

  Reo is sprawled on the long sofa in the corner, legs crossed, a thick book flopped squarely over his face to block the light. The steady rhythm of his breathing indicates he is enjoying the best sleep in the world, completely ignoring the pile of ungraded test papers on the desk.

  I tap my claws on the glass. Knock knock knock.

  No response.

  I phase through the glass, flying right up to him, pressing my fox snout close to his ear, and whisper in the most ghostly voice possible.

  "Wakey wakey, darling. The deadline has arrived."

  Reo does not flinch. He simply slowly lifts the book off his face, cracking open one sea-blue eye to look at me with utter boredom.

  "I recall blocking work messages after 5 PM," Reo says, his voice groggy but still dripping with sarcasm. "Are you skipping work to come down here and disturb the sleep of a law-abiding citizen again, Boss Fox?"

  "Get up now, there is a major incident," I say, cutting the chase. "I need you in Tokyo. Urgently. Three of our staff are missing, trapped in some bizarre ritual. And most importantly, the Sensitive involved is a high school student."

  Reo’s stretching pauses. He turns to look at me, eyes narrowing in judgment.

  "A high school student?" He raises an eyebrow. "You recruit underage children now? Tsk tsk, truly divine capitalism at its finest, absolutely no shame whatsoever."

  "Hey, don't get on your high horse," I retort, my fox ears twitching in annoyance. "The kid has immense potential. His foundation is rare. Haven't you always said you like teaching children with a mathematical aptitude? Consider this a difficult problem for you to solve."

  "No matter how much potential he has, if he croaks right after accepting the job, it is useless," Reo stands up, adjusting his loose tie. "Poor kid. When I first took the job, I remember the onboarding process being gentle and smooth. I was not thrown into a death trap on my very first mission like this."

  "Stop standing there being sarcastic!" I snap, looking anxiously at the clock. "Get to work, quickly! Zhen is waiting in Tokyo. One second of delay could mean the kid gets wiped."

  "I know, I know," Reo reaches for the trench coat hanging on the rack. "But let me say this first, I have been severely sleep-deprived lately. After this case, remember to compensate me with some extra overtime pay so I have the strength to teach tomorrow. Those little devils in class are even scarier than Anomalies."

  I slip into Reo's body, a sensation akin to shedding a constricting bodysuit for a loose, comfortable overcoat. This math teacher's aura feels stable, pristine, and most importantly... free of charge. I pilot his vessel through the night sky, touching down before the Keio Plaza Hotel lobby in mere breaths.

  Zhen Shan awaits my arrival. Beneath the sallow glow of the hotel entrance lights, the Tiger God stands clad in a black suit, looming like a towering mountain. His massive shadow stretches across the ground, while his black-and-orange striped tail flicks back and forth with impatience. Upon seeing me approach in Reo's guise, the round ears atop his head twitch slightly, and his amber eyes narrow in surprise.

  "Why so thoroughly prepared today?" Zhen Shan asks, his deep voice laced with sarcasm. "Did you perhaps catch the scent of budget and finally decide to deploy the premium hardware?"

  I smirk, adjusting the collar of the trench coat. "Hey, Boss Tiger, would it cost you a pound of flesh to offer a compliment? Why must you always put me down? I am demonstrating a high degree of responsibility here."

  "I thought you would consider such praise cheesy, formal, and cringeworthy," Reo's voice echoes in my head, dripping with mockery. "It turns out the Great Nine-Tails enjoys being flattered after all."

  This wretched teacher... The two of them, one outside and one inside, are ganging up to bully me. Why is a fox's life so hard?

  "Ahem!" I clear my throat loudly to drown out the snickering in my head and the smirk on the tiger's face. "Save your insults for later. We need to focus on the matter at hand."

  I step closer to Zhen Shan and lower my voice. "The situation is more critical than anticipated. The three kids were completely disconnected from the Nexus server after playing the Elevator Game. An hour has passed with zero contact. Given Nanao and Xiaolang's skill level, a mere pocket dimension created by an Anomaly could not hold them for this long. The high probability is... they have drifted into another world."

  "Very likely," Zhen Shan nods, his whiskers twitching. "I have already sent the spatial disturbance data from the time of disappearance to Alethea for analysis. Let us see where that damned elevator leads."

  Ting!

  Message notification sounds chime simultaneously from both my phone and Zhen Shan's. Big Sister Alethea has pinned an important message in the "Troublesome Trio" group chat.

  [Alethea]: "Bad news, kids. According to the information I just extracted and frequency comparisons, there is an 80% probability the assets have fallen into F-Rank worlds."

  Below is a list of worlds with the highest match rates. The first line is highlighted in bright red:

  World 4466 (Beta Hell): 66% Probability.

  Alethea: "The signal connection to the Nexus is weakest here, almost zero, due to the interference shell created by the Prime Deities to contain inmates."

  "4466..." Zhen Shan mutters, his claws unconsciously scratching against the fabric of his trousers. "That place is no playground for high schoolers."

  He immediately presses the record button, sending a voice message to Alethea, his tone heavy with command. "Sister Alethea, if you do not hear from us within the next hour, report directly to Department Head Ariel. Request the activation of the Emergency Rescue Protocol and open a Cloud-Hopper straight to World 4466."

  Message sent, he turns to me. "Let's go. We must enter the tiger's den ourselves..."

  We step into the empty elevator car. The doors slide shut, trapping us in the narrow space.

  Zhen Shan extends a large, fur-covered finger toward the control panel, then freezes in mid-air. He turns to look at me.

  "The floor code?"

  I blink. "Huh? You don't remember?"

  "I thought you remembered," Zhen Shan replies flatly.

  I turn to ask Reo in my mind. "Hey, math professor, you have a photographic memory. What is the sequence?"

  "I vaguely recall a 4 and a 10..." Reo yawns. "The rest beats me. I never play these childish games."

  The atmosphere in the elevator becomes incredibly awkward. Two gods and a veteran Sensitive stand dumbfounded before a button panel because... we forgot the password.

  I sigh and pull out my phone to text Alethea.

  ItsukiK: "Hey beautiful, what's the elevator code again? I totally blanked."

  Alethea: "Good heavens, you idiots! Google it on the mortal web! It's all over the net; I don't remember that nonsense either! Do not disturb me, I am running simulations!"

  After getting scolded, I begrudgingly open Google and type in the keyword "Elevator Game."

  "Okay, got it," I read aloud. "Up to 4, down to 2, up to 6... Truly tedious."

  Finally, after a bout of pressing buttons and waiting for the elevator to go up and down like lunatics, we reach the crucial step.

  Down to the 5th floor.

  Ding.

  The doors open. The 5th-floor corridor is empty and silent. There is no sign of the woman in red.

  "Strange," Zhen Shan frowns, his tiger nose twitching. "According to the legend, an Anomaly is supposed to enter here, correct?"

  "Ah, don't worry about that part," I wave my hand dismissively. "Nanao accidentally chopped her into sashimi. He has a hasty temper. It's fine; the ritual still counts as complete as long as we do not press floor 1 and exit."

  I reach out and press the button for the 1st floor.

  The doors close. Instead of going down, the elevator vibrates slightly, then begins to slide upward.