Chapter 147

In the core area of the Serenitea Pot, inside the Information Technology Laboratory. The air was filled with a faint smell of burning, the crisp and refreshing scent of invigorating aromatherapy, and an invisible, oppressive weight. Raja, the mild-mannered scholar originally responsible for the daily maintenance and data management of the Akasha Terminal, looked haggard, his eyes bloodshot. On the light screen before him, complex streams of data were tangled like hemp, marked with several glaring red failure notifications—yet another attempted decryption of the Fatui's new encrypted communications had failed, resulting in delayed critical intelligence. He took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose hard, a sense of defeat and heavy powerlessness pressing down on his chest like a boulder. Ever since Operation Sharpened Edge began, the intensity and complexity of the information intelligence war had escalated exponentially. The encryption methods of the Fatui and the Abyss Order changed with each passing day, and their infiltration tactics were shifting and erratic, far exceeding his capacity for routine operations and basic repairs. The interception and decryption work under his charge frequently went wrong, and self-blame and worry gnawed at him day and night.