Look, You're Still Fine

Lucia has been busy with work lately. Even though she was notified that her old friend Roy would be visiting today, she could only receive him at the police station office and nowhere else.

Thefts, assaults, fraud – ever since that incident began, it seems unrest has been fueling the townspeople's crime rate.

She was really—so tired. Especially her neck, it always felt like her cervical spine was numb.

"Knock, knock."

Two knocks echoed from her office's door, which wasn't fully closed. Lucia looked up from the thick pile of documents and finally saw the face she hadn't seen in years.

"Hi, Roy!" she exclaimed, standing up in surprise. She walked around her desk and gave the man who was a head taller than her a hug.

"Mmm, it's been a while," Yu Xing felt Lucia's embrace. Unlike the hot-tempered policewoman he'd imagined, she felt soft and yielding.

He released Lucia and took out a beautifully packaged box of chocolates from his bag. "This is a gift."

Lucia's face lit up with joy as she took the box. "Thank you, I love them. Sigh, it's a shame I've been so stressed lately and don't have much of an appetite. I used to be able to eat ten of these chocolates in one go!"

Yu Xing took the opportunity to observe her up close. Her form-fitting uniform perfectly outlined Lucia's curvaceous figure, while her black trousers hugged her long legs. With blonde hair and her usual makeup, her exposed neck and wrists were tanned, indicating she was often out on patrol rather than sitting in an office.

Masha and York followed behind Yu Xing, remaining silent and low-key since entering the police station.

The station was quite lax. Besides Lucia, who occupied an office alone, they only saw five other police officers. They weren't sure if the others were out on assignment.

The office windows were covered by curtains, making the interior dimly lit. Masha looked around in confusion. Before she could say anything, Lucia noticed her and looked surprised.

"Oh, look, a child!"

"...I'm not a child, I just look young." Masha said expressionlessly, refusing the hand Lucia had already extended to pat her head.

Lucia chuckled. "Such a spirited little girl. Roy, is this your sister?"

Yu Xing politely removed his hat. "No, actually... her name is Masha, and this is York. They are the ones you specifically asked me to bring in your letter... the Exorcists."

The word "Exorcist" struck a nerve with Lucia. Yu Xing could clearly see her eye twitch, and her mood visibly soured.

"Yes, let's get down to business." Lucia sat back down in her office chair, gesturing for the three guests to pull up some chairs as well. "My place is small, please forgive the lack of hospitality. Hmm... is the little girl really an Exorcist? Hey, don't glare at me."

Under Masha's wide-eyed stare, Lucia lost the will to question the Exorcists' professionalism. She sighed and began to recount her troubles.

It turned out the incident involved a family living in the northernmost part of Aurelian Town.

This family, the Browns, had only moved to Aurelian Town a year ago. They resided in the largest and oldest detached villa in town.

The villa originally belonged to another family, but they seemed to have encountered some trouble and moved away in a hurry, selling the house at a low price to the current Brown family.

A year passed, and for the most part, everything was peaceful. That is, until about a month and a half ago, when legends about the Brown family suddenly began to circulate.

Some said the Brown family never left the house, never appeared at the market, and even their neighbors rarely saw them.

Others claimed that every night, they could hear singing coming from the old villa. The singing would often stop halfway through, followed by piercing screams that sent chills down one's spine.

Yet, when someone knocked on their door the next day, Mrs. Brown would greet them with a smile, asking if they needed anything, and even inviting them in for tea.

Some were too scared and declined. Others went inside and came out unharmed, finding no irregularities during their visit.

But the nightly sounds didn't stop; instead, they grew louder and seemed to intensify, escalating from one person humming to a chorus of many voices.

Lucia had also visited the Brown's house and stayed overnight, but she found no issues. She couldn't arrest anyone from the Brown family. Since the rumors started, the townspeople had become uneasy, and the crime rate had risen. With no other options, Lucia thought of Roy and his friends who practiced exorcism.

"I hope you and your two Exorcist friends can investigate as travelers and see if someone is playing tricks, or..." Lucia rubbed her stiff neck, "...or if there's truly a devil at play."

[Main Quest Triggered]

[Quest: Find the truth behind the strange events at the villa and report your findings to Lucia]

[Side Quest Triggered]

[Quest: Complete data on three types of Ghosts]

A long string of unfamiliar prompts appeared before Yu Xing.

[Ghost 1: Unknown]

[Type: Unknown]

[Resolution Method: Unknown]

[Ghost 2: Unknown]

[Type: Unknown]

All three of them received these prompts.

York looked at Lucia and suddenly let out a low chuckle that only Masha could hear. "Heh."

"What's Brother York laughing at?" Masha leaned closer, one of her twin ponytails brushing against York's fingers resting on the arm of his chair.

York thought for a moment and moved his lips. "This woman is not right."

Yu Xing, unaware of his teammates' conversation, simply nodded at Lucia. "Alright, we'll visit them shortly. Before that, I hope you can give us all the information you have."

"This... the Brown family hasn't been here long, and I haven't been in this position for much longer. I don't have much data, but it's all here. Hey, don't spread this around, and don't say I gave it to you." Lucia handed Yu Xing a thin file folder and rubbed her neck again. Yu Xing lowered his gaze and glanced at her collar.

"Are you not feeling well?" he asked.

"A little. Maybe I'm just too tired." Lucia sounded helpless when she mentioned it. She'd been feeling weak, her neck was sore, and she disliked sunlight lately.

Suddenly, as if struck by an idea, she jokingly said to York and Masha, "Maybe I'm cursed. With two Exorcists here, why don't you check me first? Will you agree, handsome stranger?"

York's sunny smile put Lucia at ease, so she relaxed her guard as she looked at him.

As for the loli Masha, she had already been ignored.

York remembered he had come as a friend of Detective Roy, so upon hearing the suggestion, he first looked at Roy.

Yu Xing nodded at him.

He felt that York, this teammate, was comfortable in every way. Though he had his own personality, he was very considerate of the bigger picture.

"Alright, Ms. Lucia, I can take a look for you." After receiving Yu Xing's approval, York patted Masha, "The bag."

Masha obediently turned her back towards York.

Seeing him pull a pure black Cross and a bottle of water in a glass vial from Masha's large backpack, Yu Xing's gaze swept between the loli and the tall young man.

Good heavens, no wonder they didn't bring a package. So all the exorcism tools were carried by the loli!

Is this some kind of super-strong loli trope?

He himself couldn't bring in normal Sacrifices, and his persona is a detective, so he doesn't have any direct means to "exorcise" ghosts right now. But his two teammates are Exorcists, they should have some power to attack ghosts.

Yu Xing: Tsk, unhappy.

York first uncorked the bottle of water, had Lucia stand on an open space, and sprinkled some water at her feet.

Then he raised the Cross--

At that moment, the cold, eerie aura within Yu Xing stirred restlessly.

This made him instantly recognize that the Cross was a Sacrifice!

Yu Xing: Why, tsk, even unhappier.

The loli pouted and trotted over to Yu Xing, tugging on his suit sleeve.

Yu Xing kindly bent down, bringing his ear close to the loli.

"Brother York said that Lucia is not right," Masha said sweetly, her voice like honey. Her breath brushed against Yu Xing's earlobe, but he remained unfazed.

"I know," Yu Xing replied. Recalling the deduction hints and his persona, he changed to a less rule-breaking angle and asked, "Has your exorcism technique improved? Is that Cross effective against demons?"

The loli thought for a moment: "Hmm..."

"The Cross belongs to Brother York, I haven't used it. It should be effective, right?"

In other words, this was York's Sacrifice, and she didn't know about it.

As soon as she finished speaking, Lucia let out a scream.

Yu Xing tilted his head to look and saw that York's Cross hadn't touched Lucia at all. Wisps of black mist were spreading from the center of the Cross, coiling around Lucia.

Lucia, who had just worn a nonchalant expression of "I'm just saying this casually, maybe exorcism can even cure my apathy," instantly showed a pained expression. She looked at herself in terror and muttered, "What's wrong with me? I'm in so much pain, what happened? Did I really get cursed!"

York still had that smiling demeanor. He lowered the Cross and walked in front of the stiff Lucia.

With his back to Yu Xing and Masha, his smile suddenly turned malicious. In Lucia's bewildered gaze, he extended his distinctly jointed right index finger and poked Lucia's face.

Thwack.

Lucia's head fell to the ground. The severed neck was incredibly clean, and blood hadn't even had time to flow.

Only a second later did red liquid spurt out with a "plop." York, quick as lightning, used the black robe he had conveniently placed nearby to shield himself, not a single drop splashing.

"What's happening to me? It hurts so much..." Lucia's head rolled twice on the ground, tumbling to Yu Xing's feet. She stared with wide, amber eyes, still asking, "It hurts so much, was I cursed?"

The temperature in the office had dropped significantly without anyone noticing. The curtains were tightly drawn, concealing the outside world. Behind the three of them, the office door, moved by no wind, quietly closed.

"Oh my gosh~" The loli's eyes widened as she grabbed Yu Xing's clothes, "She--"

It seemed the loli wasn't very brave.

"Don't be scared," Yu Xing patted Masha's head and looked at York, "What happened to Lucia?"

York turned his face, and that momentary malicious smile was as if it had never appeared, still smiling sunnily, "What else could have happened? She died long ago."

Yu Xing glanced around upon hearing this.

The police office was in disarray. The headless body stood rigidly, blood splattered all over the floor, and the head stopped at Yu Xing's feet, muttering.

The door was shut, the temperature had dropped; it was clear something was about to happen.

In one of the breaths, Lucia stopped her repetitive babbling.

Her head faced Yu Xing, she blinked, and two lines of blood tears slowly flowed from the corners of her eyes. She asked, "Roy, what happened to me?"

Yu Xing realized that the ghosts in the deduction always targeted him. It wasn't him who did it, did he have some kind of aggro mechanism or something?

The loli keenly sensed the "Main Tank #1" and let go of Yu Xing's clothes, trotting over to York's side. York, his smile undiminished, looked at Yu Xing, seemingly wanting to see how Yu Xing would answer Lucia's question.

Under normal circumstances, his demeanor was as gentle as a boy next door, but smiling in this situation gave off a subtle sense of incongruity.

Hmm... the kind that suggests mental instability.

"Roy, am I a demon?" Lucia's entire face twitched, revealing an expression that resembled a smile.

Lucia smiled and said, "Roy, I'm in so much pain. What exactly happened to me?"

Yu Xing thought, With eyes that big, can't you see where you fell from? There's a headless corpse with a great figure standing two meters away from you. Take a look, it'll be a novel experience to see your own body.

He ultimately didn't say it out loud. The main focus of this deduction should be the Brown family; he didn't need to make things harder for himself. Besides, the Main Quest also required them to bring the investigation results back to Lucia.

Yu Xing's expression relaxed, as if he hadn't noticed any danger. He bent down and picked up Lucia's head.

A flicker of interest arose in York's eyes, while Masha trembled.

"It's okay, Lucia, you're just too tired," Yu Xing cooed at Lucia like a kindergarten teacher comforting a child. He avoided the bloodstains on the ground and walked to the standing corpse.

He adjusted the head to a suitable angle and carefully reattached it to the severed neck. After fitting it, he examined it closely, reaching out to make a few adjustments.

Instantly, a "perfectly restored" Lucia stood there.

Lucia looked at him with tear-streaked eyes.

Yu Xing: "See, Lucia, you're fine. You were just too tired earlier, not thinking straight. You need to rest, my friend. It would make me very sad to see you so exhausted."

Lucia: ...

Little Masha: What is this?! You're saying it so sincerely, I almost believe you!

York: Interesting. Roy is like a lunatic.

Lucia, whose head had been reconnected to her body, took a moment to adjust before turning her head.

It actually reconnected.

Lucia's face gradually calmed. The temperature in the room warmed, and the door creaked open.

"Oh, it feels like a dream. I guess I really do need to rest," she said, scratching her hair. She seemed to have forgotten about York's exorcism, oblivious to the bloodstains on the floor and the tears on her face. She returned to her initial state from when they first met and casually sat down on the office chair.

"Hurry and find the Brown family. They're in the northernmost part of town."