Thursday, 10:30 a.m., the special investigation team's conference room. Luo An took out a photograph the size of a modern touchscreen smartphone and slowly pushed it in front of Vireness. The scene in the photograph was simple: on a wooden table, two items lay to the left and right. On the left was an open notebook with some telephone numbers and, written thereafter, dates and times whose meaning was unknown. On the right was another photograph; the person in it bore a strong resemblance to those in the White House, only much younger, around thirty years old. As for the content within the photograph... Stars surrounding the moon. Vireness's eyelids twitched and her complexion changed instantly. With a slap, she flipped the photograph over and placed it face down on the table, glanced around at the few people in the conference room with a stern face, and looked at Luo An as she asked: "Who else has seen this photograph?" Mona, Reesi, and a few others were on the other side of the conference table, quite far away. Luo An shook his head, took a step forward to block Vireness's line of sight: During yesterday's operation, Mona only discovered some employer information under the "Skull Flower" organization in Sofia's computer, but this photograph that Vireness now held was found by Luo An later while sorting the information. Luo An had heard tales of that young man's reckless and wayward past, how he ultimately had an epiphany and, with the relentless effort of three successes amidst three failures, as well as the help of his family background and his father, the President, ascended to greatness. But upon seeing this photograph... Luo An had to admit he was still too young and lacked imagination. Knowing the deep implications behind the matter, Luo An had been keeping tight control over this photograph. No one else in the special investigation team had seen it. Hearing Luo An's reply and seeing his serious expression, Vireness felt slightly relieved, yet she asked sternly: "Is this Sofia's trump card?" Luo An nodded and, out of caution, added: "I'm the only one who has seen the photograph, so those numbers in the notebook haven't been investigated yet." Vireness stood, her face serious as she looked at Luo An: "This case stops here. I'll take care of what follows, and your investigation team only needs to complete the routine procedures. Understand?" Luo An nodded and whispered: "Please be careful, Chief." Vireness gave Luo An a reassuring look, carefully took the photograph and some documents, and quickly left the conference room with Winslow's protection. As the door of the conference room closed, Mona, Michelle, and Reesi exchanged glances; although curious, they all tacitly refrained from mentioning the photograph and instead asked: "Luo An, what do we do next…" "Just like always, keep doing what we're supposed to do." Luo An smiled and stretched leisurely in his chair. After all, the direct culprit, Blue-eyed Roy, guilty of the murder of the former NSA Director, had been caught by the special investigation team. The case was solved, the credit gained, and how Sofia Norman would be dealt with was a matter for the political realm. And when it came to political affairs, Mr. Clement had more experience. Luo An believed this powerful figure would protect him and treat him fairly. Mona breathed a sigh of relief, feeling as though a great weight had been lifted. Michelle picked up some documents to continue working. She trusted Luo An; if he was confident, then there would surely be no problem. Reesi thought for a moment, circled around the conference table to come close to Luo An, and asked quietly with a smile: Updates are released by novelꞁire.net "Speaking of which, the 'Skull Flower' assassin organization has been severely damaged by this affair, but those assassins still exist. What should we do about these people?" "Follow the FBI's rules: consolidate the information on the assassins, upload it to the FBI's database, and decide whether to issue a warrant based on the circumstances." Luo An spread his hands: "Assassins and prostitutes have been around since the dawn of humanity. The former get paid to harm, the latter get paid to ward off harm, both skilled in taking human lives. Here, in this free, democratic federation, there's no way to completely eliminate them, sticking to the rules is just fine." Elsewhere, after swiftly returning to the FBI Washington Headquarters, Vireness made a beeline for Mr. Clement's office. Learning from the secretary that Mr. Clement wasn't in the office and was attending a meeting with the director, Vireness immediately changed her destination, heading straight for the FBI Director's office. Inside the FBI Director's office, Robert was discussing some matters with Mr. Clement. Just then, there was a sudden burst of urgent knocking on the door, and without waiting for Director Robert to speak, Vireness pushed the door open and entered. FBI Director Robert frowned, noticing Vireness, he glanced at Mr. Clement without revealing any reaction. Mr. Clement narrowed his eyes slightly; he understood Vireness's temperament and habits, it was rare to see Vireness flustered and impolite, he asked in a solemn voice: "It's the case involving the former NSA Director." Vireness closed the door and said with grave emphasis: "The case has been cracked by the Special Investigation Team led by Luo An Greenwood, both the assassin and the mastermind behind the scenes are caught." Director Robert's eyes lit up with joy; since he knew Luo An, Luo An had never let him down, and the decision to hand over the case to Luo An had indeed been correct. In Director Robert's eyes, Luo An Greenwood had excellent case handling abilities, a high level of investigative skills, solid political acumen, and strong physical fitness, almost the perfect head for a Special Investigation Team. The only drawback was that Luo An was under Clement, and there were absolutely no signs or thoughts of switching allegiances in his behavior. This left Director Robert with mixed feelings—happy that Luo An hadn't betrayed him for temptation, as loyalty is priceless; exasperated that such loyalty also meant that it was very hard to poach Luo An into his own hands. However, presently, Director Robert and Mr. Clement have the same objectives and are temporarily on the same team, so the issue of Luo An's allegiance could be temporarily ignored. Pushing his thoughts aside for the moment, Director Robert tucked away his smile and asked: "Since the case has been solved, is there another issue?" Vireness didn't speak; rather, she took out a photograph from her bag and slowly placed it on the director's desk. Upon seeing the photograph inside the photograph, Director Robert's pupils constricted, eyebrows furrowed as he turned to Vireness: "Where did Luo An get this? Has anyone else seen this picture?" After listening to Vireness's explanation of the case and that only Luo An himself had seen the picture, Director Robert's frown eased slightly, and he let out a small sigh of relief. Mr. Clement glanced at the content in the photograph, immediately falling silent before suddenly narrowing his eyes and saying: "Vireness, you may leave now, the Special Investigation Team will take a break starting tomorrow." Vireness was stunned, her face full of confusion, Mr. Clement didn't explain further; Director Robert, beside him, blinked and then said: "Vireness, you personally lead the team, take care of the follow-up work regarding Sofia. Luo An and his Special Investigation Team will take a temporary leave, with resumption date to be determined." Seeing that Director Robert and Mr. Clement reached a consensus so quickly, Vireness instantly understood that the 'holiday' they mentioned was not an exile, but a protection for Luo An—the matter at hand was too far-reaching, it was best to keep Luo An away for a while. Assured that there was no harm to Luo An, Vireness nodded and left the office; Director Robert and Mr. Clement began to discuss the photograph in low voices. Meanwhile, in the Special Investigation Team Leader's office, Luo An was on the phone with Mona.