CH 12

“Helloooo? Anyone there?”

“Helloooo? I think you forgot someone in here! An innocent person! Hellooooo!”

Lu Yibei slammed the door of the interrogation room and sighed.

If Mr Rabbit killing someone was real and not a dream, does that mean that his previous dream was real too?

If it was real, then who was the girl sitting by the edge of the building?

‘My mother? My ex-girlfriend? My future daughter?’

‘Where is that building anyways?’

Lu Yibei shut his eyes, attempting to remember every single detail of his dream. He was sure that there was no such building in Huacheng, let alone one tall enough to tower over the entire city.

“God damn it, is anyone there?! I’m still here! What you are doing is inhumane and a violation of my human rights! When I get out of here…”

Squeak!

The iron door swung open, and Lu Yibei swallowed his words immediately.

The maid walked in with a straight face and said, “What were you saying?”

Yibei could finally get a good look at the girl—she wasn’t very tall, and she donned a traditional French maid outfit, which was black and white. Her figure is well-proportioned despite most of it being concealed under the frills of her dress.

Her face had anglo-saxon features, and her face had freckles dotted over it. She wore a pair of black-rimmed glasses, and a pair of deep amethyst orbs stared back at him. Her light-grey, curly hair reached her ears, making her look like a sheep.

Yibei knew well that she was nothing like a sheep but a wolf in sheep’s clothing!

How could somebody this delicate know of such heinous torture methods?

Yibei straightened his back and shook his head rapidly, “No, no, I was saying that, uh, when I get out of here, I will keep my mouth shut! Yes! As if nothing had happened to me! And, and-“

“That’s enough,” the maid interrupted. “You can leave.”

“Huh?”

“We got what we wanted. Would you rather stay inside here?”

“No, of course not! It’s just that…” Lu Yibei scratched his head. “You guys are some kind of special force that deals with strange rumours and urban legends, right? Is it safe to just let me go?”

Lu Yibei wasn’t a fool, however. After his few previous encounters, he has a gut feeling that all of those rumours being spread across the city were real.

He has seen stories like these on the Internet before: a strange man-in-black saving somebody from a haunted campus, a strong monk confronting a monster in an abandoned factory, a female centaur with silver armour chasing a vampire…

Most of these posts are popular online since they seem outlandish yet are true enough to exist in the real world.

Part of what Yibei said was true—they are, in fact, a special force that deals with strange rumours and urban legends.

“You’re asking too many questions. You’re welcome to stay here overnight, though,” the maid smirked.

“Don’t I need to sign an NDA or something? You’re letting me off too easily,” Yibei asked suspiciously.

The maid’s eyes twitched: ‘Damn, he’s good.’ Their plan to lure Mr Rabbit out by using him is thwarted.

It’s not like he guessed it either. He was just babbling and yapping and happened to guess his current predicament.

“One last chance—are you leaving or not?” If you don’t leave, I’ll lock you up in this room for the rest of your life!”

“Okay! Okay! Geez, I’m leaving!” Yibei put his hands up in mock surrender.

She sighed in relief and uncuffed him, then found a hood under her skirt and threw it at him.

Lu Yibei stared at the hood that she had just produced from underneath her skirt.

“What are you doing? Put it on and follow me!”

“Right, right, you can’t let me know where your headquarters are. Right, I get it. Okay.”

He put the hood on immediately and sniffed hard.

Fortunately, there wasn’t any strange smell. It was warm, with a vague scent of jasmine.

In the darkness, Yibei was pushed forward by the maid.

“We’re here,” the maid said with a disgusting tone. The hood was snatched from his head violently, and Yibei found that he was right in front of his apartment.

That walk lasted a few minutes, but they appeared right in front of his doorstep. Lu Yibei stared forward as his brain started to connect the doors…

‘The base of their operations must be in my community!’

“Go home. Remember, do not mention anything that happened today to others. We’ll know.”

“W-wait.”

“What is it?”

“Could you leave your contact information with me? W-what if that rabbit… thing finds me again?”

“There’s no need for that. He won’t come looking for you.”

“Okay…” Yibei leaned forward slightly, rubbing his index finger and thumb together. “Then, do I receive any rewards for helping you with this case? I am a remarkable citizen help-“

“No.”

Yibei returned to his apartment and locked all his doors and windows. Putting his hands on his hips, he decided that it wasn’t enough and found a safety latch and a car battery in his storage. After plugging in the safety latch, he connected them with a wire.

Although the maid told him that Mr Rabbit wouldn’t be targeting him, he didn’t believe her at all.

Recalling his dream, Mr Rabbit would knock on the door and twist the door handle before letting himself in. Even if something as trivial as a safety latch won’t be able to stop him, it’ll buy Yibei some time.

After finishing his setup, he felt that something was missing. He glanced at the statue of Acala, the Immovable.

“D-don’t worry! I’m not gonna do anything inappropriate.”

He clasped his hands together and bowed to the statue before picking it up and heading upstairs.

The closed warehouse was dark, and a pungent, rotting smell permeated the air.

Somebody pushed the door open and entered.

The man sitting on the chair stood up quietly. His body was exposed to the faint light outside the door, but his face remained shrouded in darkness.

He looked at the strange figure that wore a rabbit head and had bloodshot eyes in front of him. The corners of his mouth twitched into a sinister smile, and he announced, “Mr Rabbit, shall I congratulate you for getting rid of that pesky Twilight’s control? I’m sure you’re all prepared by now.”

When the man spoke, it was as if a cicada was speaking alongside him, which echoed in the dark and empty warehouse. It was irritating but strangely charming.

“Thanks to you,” the rabbit giggled. “Something bad is about to happen, though. My last target was taken in by the Night Division, and I’m worried that…”

“You’re worried that they’ll use that person to track you down, and you want me to get rid of them.”

“Yes! I predict that they are using him as bait so that they can capture me!”

“Hehe,” the man giggled too. “Well, twenty copies of psychic spirits, please.”

“Are you insane?” the rabbit growled, baring his sharp fangs. “Twenty copies of psychic spirits? Don’t make me laugh. I have so many of them! There’s no need to be afraid of those people in the Night Division.”

“But you’re afraid, aren’t you? Listen to me: I didn’t ask you to fork over the spirits now. Remember when we hunted for the Witch’s Egg? We had so much fun together, no? Twenty spirits and I’ll help you awaken the Witch’s Egg, and you’ll be able to grow stronger.”

“I accept.”