The Eldritch Files

’Is everything going smoothly?’

Seeing it was a false alarm, Han Su turned to look.

He had just given the order for the Ghost Truck to hide as deep as it could.

But would hiding like that really prevent the Disaster Management Bureau from detecting it, creating the illusion that the mission was complete?

Just then, his phone buzzed.

It was a message from Miss Ai: [C+ Level Ghost Truck fluctuations are no longer detected. Please confirm if the mission is complete.]

Han Su immediately replied: [Complete!]

Miss Ai: [Congratulations, Mr. Butcher. Please exit the mission area. Professional personnel will be dispatched for inspection.]

Only then did Han Su finally relax. He looked up at the cat-faced mask and found it a bit strange.

She was straddling a motorcycle, her breathtakingly long legs clad in riding boots. She chuckled. ”That sure wasn’t easy. Turning such a simple mission into an earth-shattering commotion. I had no idea people from the Disaster Management Bureau had to work so hard these days.”

Han Su stared at her for a moment before speaking. ”Miss Wei, why are you here?”

The woman in the cat-faced mask visibly froze. ”?”

Nearby, upon hearing the motorcycle, Xu Ji had secretly picked up a rock.

But when he saw who it was, he relaxed, tossed the rock aside, and clapped his hands. ”Yeah, Miss Wei, don’t tell me you like to come out here to race on the highway too?”

The cat-faced woman was stunned. She touched the mask on her face—still there. Awkwardly, she said, ”I’m not...”

”What are you doing wearing a mask?”

Xu Ji narrowed his eyes. ”With a figure like yours, you’d have to wrap yourself up completely to not be recognized, right?”

Han Su was also puzzled. Logically, he should be wary of someone who appears so mysteriously, but facing her, he instead felt a sense of ease. He turned to pack his things and asked politely,

”Did you also accept a commission?”

”Thanks.”

...

This made Wei Lan a bit embarrassed. She said, ”Can you guys show a little respect for my disguise?”

...

The surrounding fog was now dissipating quickly, revealing vehicles and personnel approaching from all directions. Among them were people dressed like ordinary civilians, as well as fully armed personnel in uniform, led by Secretary Cui Qiao.

The approach of these armed personnel made the others, who had accepted the Xu Family’s commission, keep their distance and just watch from afar.

”What’s the situation?”

Secretary Cui Qiao strode over, her expression grave.

Her pupils contracted slightly as her gaze swept over the person on the motorcycle, but she didn’t say anything immediately.

”The mission is complete.”

Han Su pointed to the pile of wreckage on the ground, then picked up the Spear of the Dead Sea, which was now just a piece of scrap. ”Is the equipment from the Disaster Management Bureau always this flimsy?”

...

Secretary Cui Qiao’s face turned exceptionally grim as she stared at the piece of scrap metal. She was too preoccupied to mourn the instantaneous destruction of such an expensive item; her mind was filled with the malicious gaze she had felt from the direction of Qinggang City. Shaking her head, she said to Han Su in a low voice,

”There was a malicious Penetration during your mission, but it seems the invasion failed. Someone very powerful blocked it.”

She glanced in Wei Lan’s direction as she spoke, then added, ”As for the other matters, we’ll need to report to Director Zhang and investigate using higher-level clearance.”

”However...”

Her tone shifted as she suddenly asked, ”Since the Nail of the Dead Sea is destroyed, how did you deal with this anomaly?”

”Before this thing malfunctioned, I had already pierced the core of the Ghost Truck.”

Han Su casually tossed the broken piece of scrap to the ground. ”So, you could say it and the Ghost Truck took each other out.”

He paused briefly, then turned to Xu Ji. ”Right?”

Xu Ji declared loudly, ”That’s right! I saw it with my own eyes!”

Secretary Cui Qiao’s expression soured. She took a few steps closer, appearing to inspect the Spear of the Dead Sea, but as she brushed past Han Su’s shoulder, she whispered, ”That’s plausible enough. Write that in the report. It won’t stop us from using this to investigate the malicious Penetration.”

”We don’t need the witness.”

As she spoke, she frowned, her gaze sweeping over Miss Cat Face and Xu Ji, who were watching the show. ”The Disaster Management Bureau is handling an anomaly. Spectators are not permitted. Your presence here makes you deep-contact individuals.”

”I can take you back for questioning right now!”

”...”

”Got it!”

Nearby, Wei Lan, or rather Miss Cat Face, revved her motorcycle’s handlebar and chuckled. ”The Qinggang Disaster Management Bureau may not be great at managing its own affairs, but it sure puts on a big front. Are you saying there’s no room for those of us who don’t join the Bureau to even survive?”

Secretary Cui Qiao’s face darkened. ”You’re wearing a mask, so I can’t issue a warrant for you. But if anyone sees the face under that mask, don’t even think about setting foot in Qinggang City again!”

Miss Cat Face immediately laughed. ”Then I’ll get out of your hair right now.”

With that, she patted the back seat and said to Xu Ji, ”What are you waiting for? You want to get dragged back for questioning by the Disaster Management Bureau?”

Xu Ji snapped out of it and quickly hopped onto her bike. With a twist of the throttle, the two of them shot off, quickly disappearing into the vast night. Neither Secretary Cui Qiao nor the security personnel she brought with her made any move to stop them.

’The Disaster Management Bureau’s attitude toward these people from Mysterious Organizations is really complicated...’

Han Su watched them leave. The people at the other blocking positions had also withdrawn, without a word and without revealing their identities.

Even the post-mission settlement would be handled through the Black Table. In theory, they had nothing to do with him.

However, Black Tiger, Crow, and the Doctor were now slowly walking back from a distance.

They all looked grim, especially Black Tiger. He already had a buzz cut, but now his hair was standing on end.

As if he’d been electrocuted.

”The mission is complete.”

Han Su turned to them. ”As the blocking team, you’ll need to write reports too. You didn’t abandon your posts at any point during the operation, did you?”

Black Tiger’s face was grim. He glanced at Secretary Cui Qiao and said, ”No, but someone still broke through.”

”I couldn’t beat her.”

”...”

Miss Crow’s gaze swept over the scrap metal on the ground. The lingering scorch marks hinted at the intensity of the recent confrontation.

She also gave a slight nod.

Only the Doctor slowly looked up and said, ”I was at my blocking position the whole time.”

He paused, then decided to confess. ”Actually, at the beginning, I wasn’t at my post. But then I saw all these ’enthusiastic citizens’ show up, so I went back to my position and didn’t leave. I even recited the blocking Spell when I felt the Ghost Truck trying to escape.”

”In that case, our reports should be easy to write.”

Han Su nodded. ”Let’s head back to base. Miss Crow, would you mind riding with me?”

Miss Crow hadn’t expected Han Su to say that. After a long moment, she gave a slight nod.

The Doctor and Black Tiger took the car they came in, while Han Su and Miss Crow got into another. He thought to himself,

’The malicious Penetration Secretary Cui Qiao just mentioned... was that the mutating monster?’

’What is that thing trying to do? Does it want me dead, or is it trying to stop me from getting my Investigator License?’

”...”

As he sat with his eyes closed in thought, Miss Crow just sat there in silence.

She didn’t know why Han Su had asked her into this car, not until he opened his eyes and looked at her.

”Miss Crow.”

Han Su’s voice was a bit distant. He suddenly asked, ”On whose orders are you approaching me? Or should I say, observing me?”

Miss Crow froze. For an instant, intense panic, fear, shame, and even a thread of terror flashed across her face.

But that was immediately followed by a direct stare at Han Su, her eyes filled with a bestial wariness.

It was as if she had forcibly switched to another persona in that instant—her gaze turning cold, sharp, and hostile to everything.

”I considered you a friend.”

Han Su remained perfectly still, just looking her seriously in the eyes. ”You can choose to tell me, or you can choose to keep your distance from me starting today. Or, you could go directly to the person who gave you the order and ask her exactly what she wants with me.”

”I value you as a friend, but I have no interest in playing these spy-versus-spy games.”

”...”

Miss Crow’s hard, cold expression instantly crumbled, defeated by a wave of shame.

The wariness on her face receded, but her face flushed bright red.

Endless remorse seemed to overwhelm her. Meeting Han Su’s gaze, she seemed to find it even harder to compose herself.

”I... I don’t know...”

She suddenly stammered, ”They just... they just told me to come, so I came...”

She spoke with great effort but found it increasingly difficult to continue. Suddenly, she forced out, ”I... I will ask why!”

The next moment, she yanked open the door of the moving car and leaped out into the darkness on the side of the road, startling the security guard who was driving.

Han Su stared at the open door, a black hole swallowing the night wind, and slowly reached out to close it.

Miss Crow hadn’t done anything to wrong him, but her position was awkward. It was better to get things out in the open.

The completion of the Ghost Truck mission should have been a relief.

But the vast unknowns and unexpected events had filled him with a strong sense of insecurity. The Disaster Management Bureau seemed to hold great power, and its rules were binding for many, but only within the city limits. Outside the city...

It was powerless!

After a long while, he let out a low sigh and began to sort out his thoughts. ”Finally, how should I write this report?”

’First, I used myself as bait to lure out the Ghost Truck. Very reasonable.’

’Second, I arranged for three Executioners to handle the blocking detail... Never mind whether it’s reasonable for three people to guard six positions; the Ghost Truck didn’t escape. That’s a fact, and Miss Ai should accept that result.’

’And third...’

’Although the special weapon, the Nail of the Dead Sea, was damaged, I still managed to eliminate the Ghost Truck while under attack. Also very reasonable...’

”...”

This time, Han Su wrote the report with exceptional care.

From the initial preparation phase to the execution phase, to the onlookers he encountered and the failure of the Nail of the Dead Sea, every detail was meticulously recorded.

Of course, he also admitted the mission was not perfect.

For instance, passersby had intruded upon the mission site.

However, since the Ghost Truck had already been dealt with, these passersby weren’t considered dangerous contacts.

If the Disaster Management Bureau had the means, they could go find them themselves. It had nothing to do with him.

Of course, he still had worries when submitting the report. He didn’t know if Miss Ai could perform a deeper scan and discover the truth, nor did he know if the wreckage left from the Ghost Truck’s mutation would be accepted as proof of the mission’s completion.

However, this worry was quickly dispelled by Miss Ai’s reply:

[Investigation report accepted. Ghost Truck wreckage has been recovered. Relevant files are being closed.]

[Thank you, Mr. Butcher, for your efforts in defending the line of reality. Your initial rating is improving. Please keep up the good work!]

[...]

’Another similar response. Does this mean Miss Ai has approved my report?’

A strange feeling arose in Han Su. Everyone in the Disaster Management Bureau, from top to bottom, always talked about how important and strictly reviewed these reports were. ’So why do they always feel so simple to write?’

’Is it because my writing is just that good?’