The Eldritch Files

”Are they seriously leaving me hanging?”

This time, Han Su didn’t leave immediately after receiving the mission notification. He waited another five to seven minutes, confirming that the Flashing wouldn’t happen again, and felt a sense of surprise.

Being dragged back when you didn’t want to go was unpleasant, but being all ready to go only for nothing to happen was also strange in an indescribable way.

Lost in thought, he left home. He took a taxi to the base, showed his credentials, and received his firearm. After stuffing it into his briefcase, he hailed another taxi and hurried to the intersection at Pinghu Road.

’What’s the mission this time?’

As he neared his destination, he composed himself and thought, ’Back when I first finished the assessment, the instructor said stun batons were better than guns. He claimed Investigators disliked firearms, calling them old-fashioned weapons with too many flaws. Looking at it now, that was complete bullshit.’

’They just didn’t trust us yet, so they fobbed us off with stun batons.’

’Otherwise, why would they immediately tell us to come to the base and pick up guns and ammo with our credentials the moment a dangerous mission comes up?’

”...”

When he arrived at the destination, he found it to be a bustling, lively area.

It was a major intersection with many crisscrossing roads. Arriving at the meeting point, he was surprised to see a few familiar faces: Doctor, with his gold-rimmed glasses; Black Tiger, dressed in casual camouflage; and Crow, wearing tight jeans and headphones.

Besides them, there were a few others who had been assigned to the D3 and D4 groups after training. They were wearing standard-issue uniforms, unlike the plainclothes worn by those from the D1 and D2 groups.

They exchanged brief greetings, but everyone’s attention was fixed on a small restaurant nearby.

This small restaurant was the designated meeting point. It seemed to have been temporarily commandeered; the owner and waiters were nowhere to be seen. At a table in the back sat a man with slicked-back, shiny hair, a silver briefcase resting by his feet.

The man had triangular eyes and a protruding mouth that resembled a bird’s beak. He was not what you’d call handsome, but his presence clearly made him the center of attention.

He was currently looking at a street map and asked in a cold voice, ”How many Executors have been dispatched?”

Beside him, a man who looked like an assistant replied in a low voice, ”Sixteen.”

Upon hearing this, the triangular-eyed man grew annoyed. He glanced outside coldly and said, ”The Bureau is getting stingier and stingier. What can we possibly do with so few people?”

The assistant answered quietly, ”They’ve all been sent to capture the Ghost Truck. That thing has been on the run for too long, and someone up top is getting unhappy.”

He spoke very quietly, but Han Su was able to read his lips.

The triangular-eyed man, however, didn’t bother to lower his voice despite discussing such secrets. His face was grim. ”Useless fools. Taking this long to catch a single C Level anomaly. Are we supposed to just stop doing our jobs?”

But while cursing, he glanced at his watch and ordered, ”Send out everyone who’s here now.”

”Keep pressing the Bureau. I want anyone else they can spare sent over immediately.”

”Today, we must find that door!!”

”...”

The assistant-like man nodded hurriedly and walked out. By the time he reached the doorway, he had puffed out his chest, all traces of his cautious demeanor inside the restaurant gone. He cast a cold glance at the crowd gathered at the entrance and said:

”Who is partnered with whom?”

”...”

Everyone looked at each other. A few people moved to stand together, but most, like Han Su, Black Tiger, Doctor, and Miss Crow, remained standing alone.

”We’re Executors from the D2 Group, so we usually operate solo. We...”

Seeing the others team up, Black Tiger started to explain, afraid there was a misunderstanding, but the assistant cut him off impatiently. ”D1, D2, what’s the difference? You’re all Executioners, aren’t you?”

He pointed randomly. ”You and you, a team. Go check Fu Street. You and you, a team. Check Line Two. And you, you...”

He assigned them into pairs at random, his expression frosty. ”Listen up. I need you to get a clear look at every face that passes by. If you encounter anyone whose face you can’t see clearly, you are authorized to open fire immediately and alert us!”

”And remember, you idiots, I mean you can’t make out their face—like it’s covered in fog or a double image. I don’t mean you can’t see their face at all. People wearing masks don’t count, understand?”

”...”

His attitude was terrible, but at least the mission parameters were clear. Everyone knew the rules of the Disaster Management Bureau, so no one asked any further questions. They simply followed his assignments and quickly dispersed to patrol their designated areas.

’But... shoot on sight?’

Looking at the pedestrians coming and going on the street, they all felt a knot of tension.

Although they had mentally prepared themselves when they received their firearms, it was still hard to imagine shooting at these pedestrians, at least not before seeing anything strange.

It was obvious that the girl codenamed Crow wanted to be partnered with Han Su.

But they were all new, unwilling to cross any lines. They didn’t dare refuse the assignments given, so she could only walk off in another direction with Doctor.

As for Han Su, he was paired with a stranger. They went to their assigned position on Line Two and began to walk the route from one end.

This person also seemed to be from the D1 or D2 groups, but he didn’t look familiar. He must have passed the assessment earlier than Han Su.

Neither of them introduced themselves. They just walked down the street in silence. Their plainclothes didn’t attract any attention. As for the others in uniform, pedestrians simply assumed they were from the Public Security Bureau, so they didn’t arouse any curiosity.

Report in every five minutes. The mission continued like this.

But as the minutes ticked by and the night grew deeper, the number of pedestrians in the commercial district actually increased. However, the person with the unseeable face mentioned in the mission briefing had yet to appear.

’Is this going to be another mind-numbingly boring patrol?’

Han Su was thinking to himself when a voice suddenly came through his earpiece. It was the Investigator. ”This isn’t working. Listen up. I need you to recite a Spell.”

”It’s very simple. Just repeat these syllables after me...”

”...”

He could faintly hear the assistant’s brief, startled cry on the other end. ”Mr. Strange Bird, this is...”

”Shut up!”

”...”

The Investigator codenamed Strange Bird harshly rebuked his subordinate, then his voice became gentle again. ”You should all remember the first principle of carrying out a mission as an Executioner:”

”Obey!”

”Once this mission is complete, I will report your merits to the Bureau. It will help raise your evaluations and get you promoted to Investigator sooner.”

No one protested. Everyone listened in silence. Strange Bird let out a soft chuckle and slowly uttered a few words: ”I command you to appear in Light!”

He spoke haltingly and with extreme slowness. It sounded like the meaning of those words, but his intonation twisted every syllable, making it sound incredibly bizarre and sending a chill down one’s spine.

To be precise, it was as if he had turned simple language into something that possessed a strange power.

’I command you to appear in Light?’

A flicker of doubt appeared in Han Su’s mind, but he did not recite the words.

He knew that ever since joining the Disaster Management Bureau, the first principle for an Executioner was to obey.

But the first Spell he had encountered in his life was too mysterious, and it made him reluctant to casually chant other spells.

Just then, his phone beeped. Han Su took it out and was surprised to see a message in the small group chat he had created with Doctor, Crow, and the others after the Disaster Management Bureau’s assessment. A person with a black avatar had sent a message:

”Don’t!”

”...”

’Is Miss Crow warning me, too?’

Han Su’s heart tightened. They sometimes chatted about things in this small group, but with the Disaster Management Bureau’s rules, they were always very careful and cryptic.

But now, during a mission, she sent such a direct message without any attempt at concealment?

As he was thinking this, he caught sight of his partner’s mouth moving out of the corner of his eye. Watching his lips, he could clearly see that he was reciting the Spell.

Han Su immediately tensed up. He felt a cold breeze drift past him, and the hairs on his body stood on end.

Just then, his partner walking beside him noticed his gaze. He lifted a hand to his earpiece and said coolly, ”It’s not smart to act clever like this. As an Executioner, if you want to live, if you want to get promoted, sometimes you have to gamble.”

”That door isn’t necessarily in our patrol area. Even if you recite it, there’s a one-in-five chance of survival. But if you don’t, and you offend Mr. Strange Bird, he’ll make you realize...”

”...just how worthless the life of an Executioner is!”

”...”

”Ah, the veteran is passing down his wisdom?”

Han Su let out a soft breath, his eyes already scanning the faces in front of him warily. ”And what if,” he said in a low voice, ”you end up being that one in five?”

As he finished speaking, his body had already gone rigid, every hair on his skin standing on end.

Diagonally in front of him, he saw a figure walking toward them. It looked like a woman who had just gotten off work, carrying a small purse. With her slender figure and weary posture, she was a common sight in the city.

But the crucial thing was, Han Su couldn’t see her face. Her face seemed to be obscured by a ball of distorted light. At a glance, a passerby wouldn’t have noticed.

Only by looking closely could one detect this faint strangeness.

”BANG!”

For a split second, Han Su was still trying to assess the situation in his mind, but a gunshot suddenly rang out next to him. He saw that his colleague had already raised his hand, the muzzle of his gun still smoking.

The woman with the blurry face collapsed, falling stiffly to the ground.