Chapter 2: No One Was Harmed
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
As the sun dipped below the horizon, the city was bathed in a soft, golden glow. The skyscrapers stood tall, casting long shadows that reached into the narrow alleys of the old town. The light barely penetrated here, where the tall buildings loomed over the narrow streets. The alleys were shrouded in darkness, and a strange dampness filled the air, in stark contrast to the warm, dry evening outside. Small patches of melting ice clung to the cracks between the bricks, a quiet reminder that something unusual had happened.
Shadows flitted between the buildings, moving like gusts of wind across the rooftops. They leaped effortlessly from one corner to the next, their forms shivering and then solidifying into wolf-like figures. Their faces were indistinct, almost blurry, as they prowled and sniffed at the ground. One of them raised its head and let out a long, eerie howl.
“Awooo…”
“Thud!”
A stone sailed through the air and hit the wolf square on the head, silencing its howl. A scolding voice echoed from the shadows of a nearby building. “Quiet! No howling in the city—and don’t think adding a ‘woof’ at the end will trick anyone! People aren’t that dumb. They won’t mistake you for dogs!”
The phantom wolves whimpered, backing away as if chastised. A small figure emerged from the shadows, her steps confident and purposeful.
She was a young girl, no older than sixteen or seventeen, with short hair framing her face and a single curl sticking up on her forehead. She looked mature beyond her years, dressed in a black skirt and a dark red jacket. As she walked past the wolves, they bowed their heads respectfully. She ignored them, her gaze fixed on a lifeless body lying in the alley.
Her expression darkened for a moment as she knelt beside the body, inspecting it. One of the wolves approached her, growling softly as if trying to communicate something.
“…The scent of rain?” she muttered, frowning. She looked up at the sky, which was clear and cloudless, even as the sun continued to set. The sky between the buildings was still bright, with no hint of a storm.
She frowned deeper, examining the gruesome wound on the man’s chest. “Rain… his heart… and the smell of frogs?” she whispered, as though trying to solve a puzzle.
Before she could ponder further, a sharp ringtone came from the small pouch at her waist, playing the familiar opening notes of “Journey to the West.” She sighed, answering it before the tune could play a fourth time.
“Hello, who’s this? …Oh, right, it’s me,” she said quietly, holding the phone to her ear. She waved her hand to signal the wolves to stand guard, then walked a few steps away from the body. “I’m here. My wolves were the first to catch wind of it, but… there’s nothing. We didn’t find anything useful.”
She glanced at the corpse again, her expression tightening. “It was ‘Rain,’ and there was a manifestation—a ‘Rain Frog.’ But it seems the rain only targeted one person. Yes, the victim was unlucky. By the time I got here, it had already stopped. The depth is back to Level L; the ‘Rain’ has disconnected from the Boundary.”
The person on the other end must have asked about medical help because the girl sighed and replied, “Send someone to collect the body. There’s no point sending a medic. No one survives a ‘Rain Frog’ attack alone. His heart’s gone… Yes, I’ll stay until the clean-up team arrives. Oh, and don’t forget to add this to my overtime pay.”
She hung up without waiting for a response, sighing deeply as she returned to the wolves. She beckoned one to lie down and sat on its back, propping her chin on her hand as she looked at the lifeless body.
“Poor guy. I wonder if you had anyone waiting for you. It must have been lonely, dying like this… in the rain, no less. I’d warm you up if I could, but I’m not a fairy tale match girl,” she said softly, her voice filled with quiet sympathy.
Time seemed to stretch on as she waited for the clean-up crew. Eventually, the distant rumble of an engine reached her ears, growing louder as it approached. It sounded like an old armored vehicle, dragging something heavy. The ground shook slightly as the van got closer, rattling over every speed bump in its path. Even the wolf beneath her seemed startled, though it stayed still with her on its back.
The girl looked up, watching as a battered van rounded the corner, struggling over the bumps like a rusty tractor. She watched with mild curiosity as it finally came to a stop. Several men in tactical gear jumped out, immediately pushing the van from behind as if they’d done it countless times.
A middle-aged man in a coffee-colored coat stepped out, followed by a young woman in a white dress. They glanced back at their struggling team before walking toward the girl, their expressions resigned.
The girl rolled her eyes, getting off the wolf’s back as they approached. “Seriously, can’t Team 2 get a new van? Does the Special Operations Bureau really have such a tight budget? One of your gadgets probably costs more than that piece of junk.”
“Shh!” The middle-aged man quickly raised his hand, glancing nervously at the stalled van and his team. “Keep it down… You don’t understand. Our bureau’s got… special issues. The van’s just acting up today. Replacing it isn’t an option.”
“Big organizations sure have their share of problems,” the girl muttered, clearly uninterested. She turned to the woman in the white dress. “Good evening, Dr. Lin. It’s been a while.”
“It’s evening now, Little Red Riding Hood,” Dr. Lin replied with a faint smile. Her thin lips added to her reserved demeanor. “How’s your injury from last time?”
“Almost healed,” Little Red Riding Hood said, flexing her right wrist. “You know, wolves have pretty amazing healing abilities.”
“Humans have the strongest healing abilities,” Dr. Lin corrected, her tone serious. “We’re just good at avoiding injury in the first place.”
“Oh,” Little Red Riding Hood said, a little absentmindedly, before shifting her attention to the body. “Anyway, let’s focus on this for now. The victim is male, early twenties. Looks like his heart was taken by a ‘Rain Frog.’ Time of death—about two hours ago. I haven’t searched him yet, wanted to keep the scene intact.”
She glanced at Dr. Lin. “By the way, you came all this way… Don’t tell me you’re here to treat him?”
“No, I’m not a miracle worker,” Dr. Lin replied, shaking her head. She crouched beside the body, inspecting it. “I’m here because this place is close to my house.”
After a moment, she found an ID card and held it up. “The deceased’s name is Yu Sheng, age twenty-four. Address is 77 Wutong Road in the old city,” she said, comparing the ID to the victim’s face. “Captain Song, you should use the bureau’s resources to contact his family.”
The man, Captain Song, nodded, leaning over to look at the ID, frowning. “Why’s the photo so blurry?”
Hearing this, Little Red Riding Hood leaned in as well. The portrait on the card looked like it had been smeared with gray grime, making the face almost unrecognizable.
Dr. Lin rubbed at it with her fingers, but the grime wouldn’t come off. It was more stubborn than she had expected, covering the entire card.
“You can barely read the name,” Little Red Riding Hood muttered. “The ID number’s almost invisible too. We’ll have to scan the chip at the bureau.”
Captain Song sighed. “What a shame. It would’ve been helpful to have clear ID. Now we’ve got even less to work with.”
Dr. Lin nodded thoughtfully, her gaze drifting to the bloodstains that had nearly been washed away by the rain. “With so little evidence, it’ll be hard to figure out what happened.”
Little Red Riding Hood listened quietly, then looked up at Dr. Lin, saying something unexpected. “Good evening, Dr. Lin.”
“Good evening, Little Red Riding Hood,” Dr. Lin replied with a smile. “How’s the patrol going?”
Little Red Riding Hood stroked the head of a large wolf beside her, looking around. “It rained pretty hard here, which means a ‘Rain Frog’ probably manifested. But, luckily, there don’t seem to be any victims.”
Dr. Lin looked relieved. “That’s a good sign, then.”
Just then, the sound of a sputtering engine came from nearby. The old van roared back to life, the engine finally running smoothly. The operatives who had been pushing it stood by, panting. One of them hurried over to Captain Song.
“Captain, the van’s ready. Should we head back?”
Captain Song nodded and turned to the others. “Alright, let’s get moving. And don’t forget to give Dr. Lin a lift.”
Ohhh? Cognitive change?