"I... I'm not dreaming, am I?"
The Idol Detective was a detective, after all, so she didn't pass out like the victim had. Even so, she stood beside Duanmu Huai, staring uneasily at the pile of human skin on the ground before them, her face filled with disbelief.
"Do you think you're dreaming?"
"To be honest, I'd rather think I was dreaming. What exactly was that just now?"
"That's not important. What matters is that we have to go back!"
"Go back? Ah... right!"
Hearing Duanmu Huai, the Idol Detective froze for a moment before suddenly remembering that the Gourmet Detective had gone to investigate the boy's home. Now that the boy had turned into this... monster that she didn't even know how to describe, what about his family?
"Shouldn't we call the police?"
"Are you serious?"
Duanmu Huai bent down, picked up the human skin, stuffed it into a random pocket, and looked at the Idol Detective as though she were an idiot. The latter froze for a moment before helplessly spreading her hands.
"I was just saying."
The Idol Detective wasn't stupid, either. She already knew that the city's police department had been infiltrated like a sieve, so reporting it would be no different from walking into a trap.
"What about her?"
"Just leave her here. When she wakes up, she'll probably think she only had a nightmare."
"That's probably for the best."
The Idol Detective gave the unconscious girl lying on the ground a complicated look, but didn't say anything more. She merely sighed before leaving the alley with Duanmu Huai.
"Bzz... bzz..."
A noisy sound rang in the Gourmet Detective's ears. He slowly opened his eyes and stared at the dim ceiling overhead, unable to figure out what had happened to him.
"Ugh... what happened...?"
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