The Cornflower Witch

Steam for heat dissipation sprayed from the smokestack, emitting a long, drawn-out sound, and then the train slowly started. Those heavy, sturdy wheels began to turn bit by bit, their rhythmic clattering sounds echoing continuously, growing faster and faster.

Like a steel fortress, the train pulled out of the towering station building, accompanied by ceaseless whistles and rumbling roars, charging into the distant wilderness, unstoppable.

...

The scenery outside the window changed, the white curtains fluttering, occasionally brushing past Sylutia's ear. She was currently leaning back in her seat, flipping through the booklet in her hand, which detailed the duties of the Inspection Department and the powers and mission of an Inspector.

This carriage was very quiet. The seats around her were all empty. In the other half of the carriage, members in deep blue uniforms sat, all armed with swords. They were sharp and capable, the elite of the Inspection Department accompanying Sylutia to the Hallett Special Zone this time, each above the Fourth Tier and well-equipped.

Although they were somewhat surprised by the airborne Inspector leading the team, under the effect of good discipline, these elites quickly adapted to the situation. Information about the new team leader quickly reached all members.

Hedra, Fourth Tier Secret Word, currently the third-year Chief at Tetis College, advanced using the "Astronomical Clock Page," had experience training in the Western Mountain Range, with outstanding performance, excellent talent and strength. Although she had never worked in the Inspection Department, she had interned in the Finance Department for the past six months, which was considered relevant to this investigation.

With these conditions stacked together, the group reluctantly accepted her identity. If it had been any other college student, or an inexperienced young team leader, they wouldn't have been so obedient.

Unlike the relatively peaceful environment of the Finance Department, the work of the Inspection Department was very challenging. The leader's abilities would be tested in various tasks and environments. Any shortcomings would be exposed very quickly. The intense conflicts and high-stakes challenges of daily work made the department's members unconsciously believe in a meritocracy of pure strength.

If you could implement the work with decisive means and execute it well, you would quickly build Prestige. But if you were incompetent and still sat in a certain position, you would soon be disliked and excluded by the entire department, making it difficult to proceed with the work.

Although Hedra had obtained the temporary recognition of these people, she only had one chance. If her performance during the journey was insufficient to conquer these departmental elites, she would quickly lose Prestige and find it difficult to command these personnel.

Sylutia, sitting in her seat, finished reading the booklet in her hand. She sighed at the uniqueness of this job and realized it would be a huge challenge. If she did well, she would gain recognition from many High-Ranking Officers of the Mage Alliance. If she made a complete mess of it, she would likely be excluded from the Mage Alliance's upper echelons in the future, becoming a marginal figure.

Normal study and practice would be fine, but becoming a marginal figure meant she would have no chance to step into the true core of the Mage Alliance, understand the secrets and plans within this massive organization, and that was precisely her purpose in coming to the Mage Alliance.

The girl rubbed her temples, put down the booklet, then took out a pair of glasses and put them on. They masked her original gentle temperament. Paired with the reflection on the lenses and this deep blue Inspector's uniform, her aura became sharp and capable.

Several hours later, a large cluster of buildings appeared ahead of the train. Although not as tall as the modern cities in Sylutia's memories, the towering spires that occasionally pierced the sky were still striking.

The train entered the Hallett Special Zone, then slowly decelerated. The harsh screech of brakes brought with it sparks, before finally coming to a complete stop.

After the train entered the station, the local officials who had been waiting for a long time stepped forward, and their gazes converged on the carriage door.

The heavy armored iron door slowly slid open. Air currents blew away the dissipating steam, revealing the group descending.

Sylutia recalled the stern and sharp figures she had seen in both her past and present lives. Her movements shed a bit of the usual light, lively grace of a young girl, and her demeanor gradually became composed and steady.

Seeing the Inspector in the Inspection Department trench coat step forward, her white hair fluttering in the wind, her eyes concealed by glasses, making it impossible to truly discern her expression, the expressions of the crowd became respectful.

At Sylutia's request, the welcoming ceremony was kept simple. Then, the convoy drove to a pre-arranged residence in the Hallett Special Zone.

Over the following days, Sylutia's team took over all the files and records of the train derailment case from half a year ago, then began to verify the procedures within, summoning and questioning relevant personnel.

The railway passing through the Hallett Special Zone was one of the three largest lines within the Mage Alliance. It had been built eighteen years ago. Many of those involved back then had since been promoted to High-Ranking Officers of the current Mage Alliance, or had retired or passed away.

Whether the cause of the accident was that the initial construction failed to meet the required standards, or that subsequent maintenance was poor, leading to corrosion and aging of the tracks, was a major point of contention in this case.

The train derailment resulted in approximately over three hundred deaths and over a thousand injuries. Although this death toll was not a major event in the current world, for the Mage Alliance internally, it was a significant blow. It caused many wealthy individuals to worry about train safety and switch to airships for long-distance travel.

For the massive conglomerate dependent on the railway, this was a very impactful matter. Because from the very first operation of railway trains over a hundred years ago, there had been much debate within the Mage Alliance. It was generally believed that the laying, construction, and subsequent maintenance of railway lines required a huge amount of the Alliance's budget and investment, and would be difficult to recoup for a long time.

Only in recent years, as the Mage Alliance developed considerable industry and the demand for freight increased, had part of the costs been gradually recovered, causing the voices of criticism to slowly fade. However, many still held negative views regarding the high maintenance and operating costs of the trains, believing the railway system supported too many wastrels and parasites consuming Alliance resources.

After this incident, the issue of the railway system was once again brought up. In the Alliance Council's meetings, many factions joined the condemnation, demanding a strict investigation, a reduction in the number of railway operations, and the dismissal of a large amount of surplus personnel.

To prove their own value, the conglomerate dependent on the railway had to demonstrate the value of the railway system and also clear the current negative public opinion.

Previously, the Inspection Department had sent people to investigate, but they encountered various obstacles along the way, even being unable to get the train into the Hallett Special Zone. Only after half a year of arguing in the council, facing increasing pressure, did the railway conglomerate have to compromise, leading to Sylutia leading this investigation.

Things were quite complicated.

After collecting the information, although it wasn't yet completely clear, many details and fragments were slowly starting to outline the truth.

This accident could be said to have resulted from a combination of various reasons. First, during the track laying process, according to regulations, additional reinforcement of the foundation was required in certain areas with poor environmental conditions. However, for this section in the Hallett Special Zone, the necessary reinforcement was not carried out at the time.

Secondly, after several years of operation, certain sections had gradually subsided, causing the tracks to deform. However, this process was very slow, deviating just a little bit each year. Even if some personnel noticed, they thought, 'It's been running fine for years, does it really have to be reported today?'

Once reported, it would involve the problems from the initial construction, as well as the oversight failures of the previous administrators. To maintain the facade of peace and safety, and to save costs, the personnel responsible for maintaining that section kept suppressing the issue.

Revealing the truth at this point would probably lead to investigating the current maintenance personnel and the construction departments of the past. But during this process, they encountered new problems.

According to the original construction blueprints, the Hallett Special Zone did not require foundation reinforcement, and the budget given at the time was barely enough for construction. The construction team completed the work according to the drawings, claiming ignorance.

Continuing the investigation, it was found that during the initial geological survey, the surveyors had already reported the local conditions and the need for foundation reinforcement. However, when applying for the budget, the Finance Department rejected it, citing excessive expenditure for that section. To obtain the budget as soon as possible and reap the economic benefits brought by the railway construction, the local officials deleted and cut out the geological issue, believing that even without additional foundation reinforcement, the problem wouldn't be too significant.

Finally, the proposal for the railway construction in that section was approved, funds were allocated, and construction began.

Logically, those local officials from back then were the primary culprits. But over the more than ten years the railway had been operating, had no one really discovered the problem? Or even if they did, they chose to conceal it, because stopping operations to repair the tracks would not only consume a huge amount of funds and resources but also stall the local economy. Furthermore, exposing the problem would inevitably lead to an upward investigation, dragging in personnel from several previous terms.

The accumulation of numerous factors led to the final accident.

After obtaining the results, Sylutia flipped through the long list of names in her hand. This was the roster of local officials, railway system maintenance personnel, and geological survey supervisors involved in the case over the years.

Each of them had only made a small mistake, but these errors accumulated, ultimately leading to the collapse of the entire situation. Even more terrifying was another point: even when obvious problems appeared within the system, everyone chose to selectively ignore them to keep their own positions unaffected.

Ignoring the problem meant bearing only a very small part of the responsibility. But once exposed, they would face the storm of the entire system.

"Sir, the information and list have been compiled." A member of the Inspection Department in a deep blue uniform came before Sylutia.

"Good, put it down," Sylutia nodded.

The truth was clear now, but how should she report it? The Inspector position she held currently had considerable autonomy, and during this time, she had received signals from many people hoping she would downplay the serious issues.

Fortunately, she was different from other Inspectors in the Inspection Department. She currently had no family within the Mage Alliance, no friends or teachers who could be used as leverage against her, and it was even difficult to coerce her with matters of future prospects. This left the various factions arguing outside somewhat helpless when it came to her, this Inspector.

Everyone was now waiting. Waiting for her to finish the first draft of her report, or to define the nature of the entire incident and submit it to the Alliance Council.

So, how should she summarize and report...

Sylutia stared at the blank pages before her, deep in thought. She could simply present the complex truth of the incident without making any judgment, and wait for the result of the arguments in the Alliance Council.

Of course, she could also make a certain summary, elucidate the truly important systemic reasons behind the accident in her report, and express a certain decisive inclination.

The former would be very safe, seemingly not offending anyone. But it would also disappoint all parties. The railway system's hoped-for vindication wouldn't happen; the opposing faction's goal of attacking the railway conglomerate to cut spending wouldn't be immediately achieved; and even the Dean who had assigned her to investigate the case would be disappointed by her choice to back down, not truly dare to take responsibility, and failing to express her own judgment and insight.

Was this a test for herself? Sylutia wondered.

But what she couldn't figure out was why she was chosen to face such a significant test. Although she performed like a genius, the entire Mage Alliance was not short of geniuses. Her former roommate, Aurora, for instance, was also a very formidable genius, just delayed somewhat by changing her previous path of study.

The previous fifth-year Chief, Norez, was also an extremely impressive figure, now at the Fifth Tier, and he wasn't even thirty yet. He was arguably one of the top talents.

Unable to figure this out, Sylutia set it aside for now. Her attention returned to the immediate problem: how to make the report.

The people who should be arrested had to be arrested; the people who should be punished certainly had to be punished. But how to resolve the systemic issues that caused this accident?

She was currently just a small Inspector in the Inspection Department. She certainly couldn't change the organizational system problems of the entire Mage Alliance. And such difficulties were almost a common ailment of large organizations. In contrast, organizations like the Hidden Grove Alliance, which were composed of independent smaller groups, were less likely to encounter such problems.

Within large organizations, the power of an individual becomes relatively small, and there are also various locked-down rules and regulations. While they clarify responsibilities, they also make it costly for anyone who tries to break the chain of silence.

Within the framework of classical states and organizations, every small lord or chieftain was a fully responsible person. They themselves decided gains and losses, without implicating others. But individuals in large organizations are not like this. The establishment of various processes and rules improves the clarity of organizational operation, but rights and responsibilities can become unequal.

That is, those who bear immense responsibility often do not wield immense power.

At this point, to complete the immediate work or avoid conflict, one could only take risks and continue. But once the problems of the entire system were exposed, a relatively insignificant individual would find it difficult to bear the backlash.

Sylutia thought while writing in her report, narrating the cause and process of the entire accident, compiling and summarizing it. She didn't just state how to punish, but also elucidated the systemic issues this incident had exposed, along with recommendations.

"...Although this type of problem will continue to occur in various places, to reduce the occurrence of such accidents, it is necessary to establish some additional reporting mechanisms to bypass the risks faced by individuals exposing systemic problems."

"Secondly, if the officials managing the local railway system wield immense power, they should also bear immense responsibility. Only then can they be urged to resolve potential hazards, rather than choosing to continue suppressing the problems."

"It is unwise to let mid- and lower-level personnel bear all the responsibility, as this exceeds the limits of what they can endure, and also leads to higher-ups shifting blame and abandoning their subordinates..."

After finishing the report, Sylutia sealed it, then led her team to board the return train.