Tread the Spot

The next day.

Since the Yasukuni shrine had just been burned down recently, the Sakura Country police force was on high alert.

Security was strengthened in many areas.

Especially in places like museums that were full of treasures, which could not be an exception.

After all, the items housed inside were priceless artifacts.

From a certain perspective, the museum was even more important than the Yasukuni shrine.

To prevent the recurrence of such a tragedy,

The police had dispatched a squad to patrol the premises around the clock, preventing any mischief from lawbreakers.

In the restroom.

Xu Mo stood by the sink, staring intently at his phone screen.

The video on his phone was a live feed of the museum's surveillance cameras, which Zhou Qiaoqiao had hacked into and shared with Xu Mo.

From the surveillance footage, a balding man clutching his stomach could be seen rapidly approaching the restroom.

Ten meters...

Five meters...

Three meters...

Xu Mo turned off his phone screen, pretending to be on a call as he exited the restroom.

"Excuse me, excuse me..."

Xu Mo emerged at just the right moment.

He collided head-on with the balding man, knocking him to the ground.

"Sorry, sorry," Xu Mo apologized in the Sakura Country Language while helping the balding man back to his feet.

Seeing Xu Mo's sincere apology, the man didn't say much more.

Plus, his stomach really was hurting, his face flushed red, so after Xu Mo helped him up, he rushed into the restroom without a second thought.

In his hurry to relieve himself, he didn't even get a good look at Xu Mo's face.

With just a brief encounter, Xu Mo had acquired the police officer's ID.

He had swiped it while helping the balding man up.

After lingering briefly by the restroom door for a few dozen seconds, Xu Mo left.

With the police ID, it would be much easier to scout the area.

He boldly observed all the security measures inside the museum, including surveillance cameras, alarms, and more.

This behavior quickly drew the attention of a patrolling officer.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Hearing the voice from behind, Xu Mo calmly turned around.

He scrutinized the uniformed officer from head to toe with a critical gaze.

The officer felt unnerved by Xu Mo's stare.

It was the kind of look he had only experienced from his superiors, and even then, only when they were scolding someone.

A moment later, Xu Mo furrowed his brow and spoke.

"Why are you the only one patrolling? Where are the others?"

The officer was taken aback.

Who was this guy?

Wasn't he supposed to be the one asking questions? How did it end up with him being interrogated?

Seeing the officer's confusion, Xu Mo took out his ID and flashed it in front of him.

"I'm here to inspect the museum's security measures. I'm asking you, why are you the only one patrolling?"

The officer was momentarily stunned.

In an instant, he had imagined Xu Mo's identity.

This must be a superior officer inspecting their work!

Having a police ID meant Xu Mo was an officer himself.

And the officer was certain that Xu Mo couldn't possibly be his equal in rank.

Because Xu Mo's arrogant demeanor was something he had only sensed from his superiors!

In fact, compared to his own superiors, he felt Xu Mo was even more arrogant.

Only those who had been in high positions for a long time would have such an air about them.

Realizing this, the officer became a little nervous.

He quickly bowed to Xu Mo.

"Sir, we're patrolling separately, the others are in different areas!"

"Hmm," Xu Mo nodded.

Then he took the opportunity to say, "You should give me a tour and explain all the security measures at the museum. I need to assess your work."

"Yes, sir!" The officer bowed again to Xu Mo.

Then he began leading Xu Mo, who he thought was a 'superior officer', on a tour of the museum.

As he guided Xu Mo around, he meticulously explained every single security measure.

Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have gone into such detail.

But this time was different - it was a critical period.

The Yasukuni shrine incident had just happened, so the museum, as an important site, was under close scrutiny from above. Not a single mistake could be made.

He provided such a thorough explanation to let Xu Mo, who he thought was an inspecting superior, know that they were not slacking off. Instead, they were taking the museum's security extremely seriously.

As for the officer never doubting Xu Mo's identity,

It was related to the burning of the Yasukuni shrine.

The officer was well aware that the higher-ups were now paying close attention to the museum's security.

Under such circumstances, having someone come to inspect their work was only natural.

...

Half an hour later.

Under the officer's guidance and detailed explanations,

Xu Mo had thoroughly grasped all the security measures in place at the museum.

He now had an intimate understanding of the museum's situation.

After learning about everything, Xu Mo decided to leave.

The scouting had gone smoothly, and next, he needed to formulate a detailed plan.

"You've all done an excellent job, considering every aspect. I'll make an accurate report to my superiors."

Upon hearing this, the officer let out a sigh of relief.

He bowed to Xu Mo again, watching as he left.

At that moment, the balding man whom Xu Mo had bumped into earlier appeared beside the officer.

He had witnessed the officer bowing to Xu Mo and watching him leave.

Puzzled, he pointed at Xu Mo's back and asked, "Who was that?"

"Captain, that was someone dispatched from above to inspect whether our work is up to standard. I gave him a tour and explained all the museum's security measures to him," the officer answered truthfully.

"Inspecting our work? And you explained all the security measures to him?" The balding man sensed something amiss. This person seemed suspicious!

Moreover, looking at Xu Mo's back, he suddenly felt like he had seen him somewhere before, but couldn't recall where at the moment.

"Are you sure he's from above?" the balding man asked.

Of course, the officer wasn't sure.

Because Xu Mo's identity was merely his own assumption.

He had never even seen what was inside Xu Mo's ID - only the cover.

Seeing the officer's reaction, the balding man realized the gravity of the situation.

Without further questioning the officer, he hurried after Xu Mo and tapped his shoulder from behind.

Xu Mo instinctively turned around.

Seeing Xu Mo's face, the balding man felt even more certain that he had seen Xu Mo somewhere before.

But he couldn't recall exactly where.

As a police officer, he had seen countless people.

Not to mention the massive flow of visitors to the museum recently.

At least tens of thousands of tourists came every day.

It would be strange if he could remember everyone's faces.

"Is there a problem?" Xu Mo spoke first.

Although he had bumped into this man earlier in the restroom and even stolen his police ID,

Xu Mo didn't show any signs of faltering.

Because he was confident that the balding man would never realize his ID had been stolen.

The collision at the restroom door was just an accident, an easy explanation!

Unable to recall where he had seen Xu Mo before, the balding man decided to drop it.

Instead, he stared at Xu Mo and said, "I heard from Inoushita-kun that you're here from above to inspect our work? Could you show me your ID, please? It's a special circumstance, I hope you understand..."