Chapter 4: An Unavoidable Task

The call connected, and a cold, detached female voice spoke:

"Chen Zi'ang, you called two hours earlier than I expected."

"It seems you haven't entirely succumbed to the ape-like instinct of courtship to the point of forgetting that you are the Section Chief of the Field Operations Division for Intelligence Department Five."

Hearing Xia Qingyu’s sharp sarcasm, Chen Zi'ang finally let out a sigh of relief. No matter what, if she still had the energy to spout such nonsense, it meant the situation hadn't yet reached a point of crisis where she lacked the time for mockery.

"What's wrong?" Chen Zi'ang asked in a deep voice.

"Takano Seiko. Do you know her?" Xia Qingyu asked coldly.

"I do," Chen Zi'ang frowned. "What happened to her?"

"She has been implicated in a murder case in the North Sea District." Xia Qingyu paused for a moment before continuing, "I suspect she has become a Witch."

"A Witch?" Chen Zi'ang gasped, then forced himself to remain calm. "Are you certain?"

"I believe I used the word 'suspect'," Xia Qingyu replied coldly.

Sometimes Chen Zi'ang felt he had grown accustomed to her biting remarks, but other times, his blood pressure would spike unexpectedly—especially when he was caught making a mistake and subsequently mocked for it.

"Please send me the files," Chen Zi'ang tried to sound polite.

"Contact me after you've finished reading them," Xia Qingyu said, and hung up.

Chen Zi'ang set his phone down and turned to look at his younger sister’s face, struggling to lower his blood pressure. Well, at least his sister was adorable.

He looked back at his phone, opened the scanned documents Xia Qingyu had sent, and began to read carefully.

The victim, Miyuki Arai, had been murdered in the living room of her studio apartment, showing clear signs of torture inflicted by mysterious forces. Her limbs were covered in various degrees of bruising, and the forensic report identified tissue fragments from four different people.

Chen Zi'ang looked closely at the space in the margin, where Xia Qingyu had written three characters: *Living Dead.*

What on earth were "Living Dead"? Still, as foul-mouthed as Xia Qingyu was, her handwriting was delicate and elegant—surprisingly beautiful.

Tsukimiya Reina returned with their meal and saw Chen Zi'ang staring at his phone with a grave expression. Although she didn't look at the screen, the look on his face told her everything: some bitch had dumped more government work on him.

"What's wrong?" she asked, feigning ignorance.

"I'll send it to you," Chen Zi'ang replied without thinking.

The two sat down and began to study the case files, unaware that the helium balloon platform had already begun its ascent.

***

Miyuki Arai had been killed by some mysterious means; there was no doubt about that. The question was, who was the killer? Chen Zi'ang didn't want to suspect Ms. Takano, but at the moment, she was the prime suspect.

The Intelligence Division’s report was far more detailed than the North Sea District Public Security Bureau’s. The file clearly recorded that during their school years, Miyuki Arai had bullied Masao Takano. The reason was that Masao Takano bore a striking resemblance to a boyfriend who had cheated on her and dumped her in public—a fact she had personally admitted to her best friends.

She had eventually chosen to falsely accuse Masao Takano, not with the intention of killing him, but merely to humiliate and shame him. Such displacement of anger was a clear symptom of a compensatory psychological complex.

Another piece of damning evidence was that after Masao Takano committed suicide, Takano Seiko was deeply dissatisfied with the Public Security Bureau's conclusion. She subsequently quit her job at the law firm, deleted almost all her contacts, and sent written notices to all her relatives severing ties—a classic example of the Island-nation mentality of "not wanting to cause trouble for others."

Reading this, it was almost certain that the killer was Takano Seiko. Chen Zi'ang felt an indescribable sadness; the lawyer who had once been so dedicated to upholding justice had now become the very criminal she had once despised.

"What is there left to judge?" Tsukimiya Reina sighed. "It's obvious. Takano Seiko is a Witch."

"Sigh," Chen Zi'ang sighed again.

"Senior, I know you knew Takano-senpai... anyway, don't be too sad." Tsukimiya Reina offered comfort, though she was cursing inside. *What does a Witch have to do with us? I just know we were supposed to be on a nice space trip, and before we even reached space, that bitch sent us this. Her malicious intent is blindingly obvious.*

She had a sudden inspiration and cleared her throat. "We're out on vacation right now. Little Bamboo wouldn't want to see you like this, right?"

At the mention of Little Bamboo, Chen Zi'ang pulled himself together and apologized, "Forget it. There's nothing we can do right now anyway. Worrying is useless."

"But Qingyu told me to contact her after I finished reading, and I..."

"That's easy," Tsukimiya Reina said, picking up the phone and dialing Xia Qingyu.

"Hello?" the cold voice came through.

"Do not assign us work while we are on our annual leave in space; please just go die a hundred times!" Tsukimiya Reina hung up, then looked at the stunned Chen Zi'ang, flashed a ladylike smile, and teased, "She didn't even block my number."

"I don't understand why she hasn't blocked you either," Chen Zi'ang said blankly.

"That's not the point," Tsukimiya Reina began to stir the pot. "The point is we're on vacation. If it were an emergency, fine, but to interrupt us with this? I think she did it on purpose."

No sooner had she finished speaking than Chen Zi'ang’s phone rang again.

"Let me hear what she has to say," he said, answering the call and holding it to his ear.

"How are the materials?" Xia Qingyu’s voice echoed.

"I suspect Takano Seiko has become a Witch," Chen Zi'ang replied.

"Yes, are you a broken record?" Xia Qingyu asked coldly. "Are you regressing from an animal into an inanimate object?"

***

"Listen, Qingyu!" Chen Zi'ang, finally losing his patience, replied bluntly, "We are on annual leave! And looking at these materials, the only possible conclusion is that Takano Seiko has become a Witch. As for how to find her, that’s a job for the city’s smart monitoring system. Just upload her facial recognition data; this has nothing to do with us!"

"So, you know the current objective is to find Takano Seiko as soon as possible," Xia Qingyu said, surprised. "Then where do you think she is?"

"Takano Seiko wants revenge for her son. Miyuki Arai, who framed him, is already dead. The subsequent targets must be the classmates who verbally abused him, and the two members of the Women's Mutual Aid Society who helped Miyuki Arai pressure the school leadership..."

"Those two are on the Spaceport," Xia Qingyu said suddenly.

"What?" Chen Zi'ang froze.

"They bought tickets to the Spaceport last Saturday," Xia Qingyu continued. "There is no record of return tickets, so they must still be on the Spaceport."

"And what about Takano Seiko?" Chen Zi'ang asked grimly. "Are there any traces of her heading to the Spaceport?"

"No traces found," Xia Qingyu said indifferently. "But if she has truly become a Witch, she doesn't necessarily need a ticket to reach space."

Chen Zi'ang pondered for a moment and had to admit that was true. The occult side possessed too many bizarre powers that could easily bypass modern technological surveillance. For instance, the "Thousand-Faced Incarnation" power from the Altar of Chaos, which could directly alter one's face and body into someone else's—who could track that?

Takano Seiko likely couldn't fly, but sneaking onto a tethered helium balloon or a shuttle wouldn't be difficult, especially the former. He pulled a map from the magazine rack beside the table and unfolded it, realizing the helium balloon platform was massive. It had viewing restaurants, restrooms, bars, cafes, VIP lounges, and even parking lots and swimming pools... It would be incredibly easy for Takano Seiko to hide and hitch a ride to the Spaceport.

"So, what is your opinion?" Chen Zi'ang asked with a sigh.

"I’ve already sent people to monitor North Sea University," Xia Qingyu said flatly. "As for the Spaceport, go to this address after you disembark and confirm whether those two are still alive."

"If they are, tell them to go to the Spaceport security zone and call this number; I have arranged for people to pick them up. If they are dead, investigate the scene and send me the report."

"Fine," Chen Zi'ang agreed quickly. "So, about our annual leave..."

"It counts as work; your leave quota will not be deducted," Xia Qingyu hung up.

Chen Zi'ang put down his phone and saw Tsukimiya Reina’s sullen expression, which clearly said, *I can't believe you.*

"Well, Reina..." Chen Zi'ang laughed dryly. "What can I do? The targets we need to protect are at the Spaceport, and we are the closest personnel who can get there."

Tsukimiya Reina didn't speak; she just pouted, looking aggrieved, as if to say, *Baby is not happy.*

"How about I feed you?" Chen Zi'ang had to play his trump card.

"Ah~~~~~"