The police always arrived last at the scene.
With several soft pops of displaced air, three figures shrouded in black robes abruptly appeared in the middle of the street. Several spellbooks glowing in different colors floated before them. The books were slightly open, their pages slowly turning amid a faint glow while tiny, intricate Runes rolled and flowed between them.
Zheng Qing could clearly feel the heavy pressure spilling from between those pages.
It was exactly the same as when Thomas had cast his spell earlier.
"Who cast Yin Qi Lei in the middle of the street?!" An exasperated voice came from beneath the hood of a short, plump black-robed figure. "Don't you know there are two alchemy workshops three hundred meters away? Are you trying to blow up Daming Market?!"
Beside him, a tall black-robed wizard silently pressed a hand against his spellbook. Four or five thick vines burst from the ground and tightly bound the snoring pig demon to the earth.
The other two black-robed wizards turned their gazes toward Zheng Qing.
The sparse pedestrians on the street were watching from afar. Only Zheng Qing sat near the pig demon.
"Wizard Alliance Investigation Bureau, Sudden Incident Rapid Response Team. Registered Wizard, Agent Andrew." The short, plump black-robed wizard nodded at Zheng Qing. "You were at the scene. Do you know who cast the lightning spell?"
The short, plump black-robed wizard was an Easterner with a baby face and no beard. Long, fine fuzz was clearly visible around the corners of his mouth. A Trident Sword insignia hung from his robe.
Zheng Qing obediently pointed toward the street corner.
"Thomas!" The short, plump black-robed wizard glanced over, then cried out in surprise, "Didn't you stay at the academy to become a teaching assistant? How do you have time to wander around Four Seasons Market now?"
"Bastard!" Thomas's face darkened. The corner of his mouth twitched as he snapped viciously, "I stayed at the academy. I didn't go to prison. Why can't I come to the market?"
He put away his brown spellbook, dusted off his robe, and strode toward them.
"Looks like you haven't been at the academy these past few days." The short, plump wizard shook his head meaningfully.
Thomas frowned.
"It was only a wild demon. Did you need to cast a lightning spell?" the tall black-robed wizard cut in. "And why is there a talisman pasted on this wild demon's forehead?"
Zheng Qing looked at the talisman pasted between the pig's snout and brow, musing that pigs apparently had forehead palaces too.
"We were inside Oster's Guardian earlier." Thomas stepped forward, crouched beside the tightly bound pig demon, and examined it carefully. "When this pig demon spotted us, it charged straight at us."
Only then did Zheng Qing learn the proper name of the light barrier that had lit up along the street earlier.
Oster's Guardian? It sounded like a protective spell invented by someone named Oster.
"You mean this wild demon could see through Oster's Guardian?" The tall wizard shook his head and denied it with absolute certainty. "This spell has undergone repeated review by the Wizard Alliance Grand Wizard Council. It can even block the sight of great demons. A mere wild demon couldn't possibly possess such an ability."
"That's why I'm curious too." Thomas pulled out a pile of bottles and jars from somewhere, along with a pair of earth-yellow leather gloves and tools such as tweezers, a bone saw, hammer, knife, and scissors.
"I plan to collect some samples and take them back to the academy laboratory for examination."
The Investigation Bureau agents exchanged glances and silently nodded.
"Those are the gloves you received in your second year, aren't they?" Andrew removed his hood, revealing his baby face, and clicked his tongue. "What a devoted romantic. I heard earlier that she was already married. Didn't you know?"
"I just can't afford new gloves." Thomas's tone was flat.
He crouched on the ground, pulled on the gloves, and skillfully began dismantling the pig demon with the scattered tools at hand.
Saliva, blood, brain matter, skin, flesh, fur, tooth sockets, cartilage, bone, and other unidentifiable connective tissues were deftly separated and sorted into different containers.
Watching his focused yet relaxed expression, Zheng Qing felt a little sick.
"He might be that fat man from earlier!" Zheng Qing cried quietly. "Shouldn't we notify his family? Isn't he still alive?"
The three Wizard Alliance Investigation Bureau wizards all looked at him in surprise.
"Any wizard contaminated by demons will fall and become a true demon. There are no exceptions." Thomas spoke with utter clarity and utter cruelty. "The Wizarding World has only one way of dealing with all demons."
Zheng Qing did not foolishly continue asking what that method was.
He took several steps back, moving farther from the dead pig. Then he anxiously examined the exposed skin on his body, checking whether he had been contaminated by anything unclean.
"Newcomer?" the tall wizard asked Thomas.
"A first-year freshman this year. He couldn't be any newer." Thomas put away the bottles and jars, rose with a smile, and said, "I just set off a little firecracker earlier, and it scared him half to death."
Zheng Qing fought the urge to snort through his nose.
"Don't make it sound so trivial! You cast a lightning spell! Everyone on this street nearly got blown away by you!" Andrew sighed helplessly. "What kind of lunatics does Starry Sky Academy produce?"
Hearing those familiar words, Zheng Qing could not help snickering.
Andrew turned and glanced at him.
Zheng Qing gave him a friendly smile.
"Thomas, the bureau has a joint investigation assignment. Want to lend us a hand?" Andrew looked back at Thomas.
"No." Thomas refused without hesitation.
"If you agree to this, the bureau can negotiate with Daming Market and not hold you accountable for dangerously casting spells." Andrew lowered his voice, tempting him quietly.
"No time!" Thomas pulled a long face and snorted. "I still have official duties. Tonight, I need to write an eight-thousand-word interviewer's report. If you need my spellcasting report, I can do it at the same time."
"Official duties?" Andrew glanced at Zheng Qing, stepped forward, and slung an arm over his shoulders. "This year's freshman, right? He looks so green! You can take him along and broaden his horizons. Kid, want to see what a great demon looks like?"
Zheng Qing glanced at the sleeping wild boar on the ground and shook his head like a rattle-drum.
A mere wild demon had nearly swallowed him whole. From the sound of it, great demons were even more terrifying!
He was only a scholar. When he encountered demons, he was supposed to run!
Who would go looking for demons on purpose?
"Which academy is he from?" Andrew lowered his hand and looked at Thomas with a sour expression. "He doesn't have even a shred of the vitality a young person should have."
"Jiuyou Academy. A scholarship student ranked second overall among this year's freshmen." Thomas wore a mocking smile. "I remember you were from Jiuyou Academy too. What was your rank when you enrolled? Second from last or third from last?"
"An academic star!" Andrew shouted, throwing his arm over Zheng Qing's shoulders again. "Quick, take a photo with us! It'll sell for a fortune someday!"
Zheng Qing tried hard to stand straight, his face flushing red with embarrassment.
"The kid's too shy." Andrew turned to look at him and smiled. "Just say whatever you want. Don't be so awkward."
"Can you reimburse me?" Zheng Qing made up his mind and asked loudly. "Suppressing that pig demon earlier used up one of my Calming Talismans. Can your Investigation Bureau reimburse me for it?"
Andrew was dumbfounded.
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