There is a grand festival going on in the city. This festival is called Redemption Day and was born to commemorate the birth of the second generation saint Stan Tito.
Because on this day, Stan Tito saved the city and ended the troll disaster caused by the crazy King Samo.
It was also on this day that the great Insai god took back the giant monsters of the royal blood family, gave mortals the power of rituals and miracles, and brought happiness and salvation to mortal lives.
Asai came in dusty clothes and stood on the street.
He raised his head and looked at this big city that had been mentioned countless times by the people in the town. In their words, it was described as like a paradise.
And in Asai's eyes, this is indeed the case.
He looked at the tall buildings, the commercial streets with glass windows stretching the entire street, and as a country boy who had never seen the world, he looked at the land of heaven that the townspeople talked about.
"Dong dong dong."
The sound of drums and conch trumpets sounded, city dwellers in gorgeous and fashionable clothes stood on both sides of the street, and a procession came from a distance.
The team came from a distance carrying a doll. People on both sides of the street saluted, and many even knelt down to pray.
Asai also became one of the crowds on the street. He asked the people around him: "What are you doing?"
"Redemption Day?"
When Asai heard these two words, he lowered his head and kept reciting the word salvation silently.
Finally, the team came to Asai.
He raised his head.
The puppet supported by the cloth shell was lifted high. Against the light, all Asai could see was a dazzling shadow, and there was endless light behind the dark figure.
"Heroes and Saints."
"The Great Stan Tito."
A smile gradually appeared on Stan Tito's face, and his steps became brisk as he walked towards the city.
Asay stayed in Anho City and became a low-level employee of the St. Ann District Security Team responsible for cleaning, and occasionally helped with night patrols.
at night.
When he walked through Salvation Street in St. Ann's District, he would always stop under the statue of Saint Stan Tito to take a look.
He suddenly felt severe pain in his head again, his eyes were dark, and another voice suddenly sounded in his ears.
The voice was extremely familiar, but Asai felt that he had never heard it before.
"Really strong people never follow the laws and rules of this world."
"Do whatever you want and make the rules."
"That's what's truly powerful."
Asai often has some strange words and memories popping up in his mind recently, and he thinks they are part of his fantasy.
He couldn't see who was speaking, just like a person couldn't see himself directly.
He could only perceive that the other person was standing on a high mountain shrouded in clouds, looking at a vast "sea".
"Who is this?"
Asai covered his head and felt relieved little by little.
He didn't understand why he saw such a scene, but if he couldn't figure it out for the time being, he should ignore him.
The next day, while he was sweeping the floor, another memory suddenly appeared in his mind.
He saw himself holding a scroll book and reading the text on the book.
Asai had never gone to school and did not know many words, but at this moment he suddenly recognized all the words on this scroll.
The first line reads: "Mind reading."
Asai closed his eyes and immediately felt his head buzzing, as if countless people were talking.
When I opened my eyes, this feeling disappeared immediately.
Asai walked into the lobby of the police station, stared at everyone in the lobby, closed his eyes and then opened them.
Only then did he confirm that the voice ringing in his mind was the voice of everyone here.
His ability is like reading minds, but it's different.
Mind reading is targeted at a certain person, and as long as he closes his eyes, he can hear what everyone nearby is thinking.
No difference.
Of course, there are disadvantages. Whenever he closes his eyes, he feels like countless people are noisy in his mind, which makes his head hurt.
evening.
He had just been summoned by a member of the security team and was about to accompany him on night patrol when a theft broke out on the way.
The house that was stolen was a businessman's house, and many people gathered around the door to watch the excitement.
Asai covered his eyes with his hands, looked around the crowd, and suddenly stopped.
He actually found the thief directly.
"That person stole it."
As soon as Asai pointed his finger, the man who was watching the excitement was so frightened that he immediately started to run away.
The security team caught him immediately and found some stolen items from his body.
"How do you know he is a criminal?" The members of the security team who had always looked down on him in the past and regarded Asai as a hard-working and stupid boy were extremely surprised.
"I can feel the criminal's breath." Asay said.
The security team member shook his head: "It's so ridiculous, you must have seen something."
Having said that, the other party still patted Asai on the shoulder.
"but."
"Amazing!"
A few days later, another vicious murder occurred in St. Ann District.
The deceased was a well-known local woman, with money and status, and a husband who was an official in the city lord's palace.
The people in the security team were very nervous, and the captain and his people immediately headed towards the scene of the crime.
Asai immediately came forward and said, "I'll go too!"
The captain frowned: "What are you going to do? Have you finished cleaning?"
Asai immediately said: "I'm done, I'm done, I just want to go over and see how the adults solve the case, learn from it by the way, and brag about it with others in the future."
Normally Asai would not be able to say such words, he has become much more flexible.
A member of the security team suddenly mentioned the incident where Asai pointed out the thief before: "Take him with you, maybe it can be of some use?"
Captain: "Remember to obey orders and don't move."
When we arrived at the scene, a female clover was lying on the bed.
The opponent's head was hit with a blunt object and he was already dead.
Asai wanted to see if other people at the scene might be criminals, but he didn't expect that as soon as he touched the body, he saw the last scene he saw before the body died.
The last image that remained in his brain and reflected in his eyes suddenly flooded into Asai's mind.
Seeing Asai touching the body, the security captain immediately became furious.
"what are you doing?"
Asai said directly: "The murderer is the lover of the deceased. He is about the same height as me and also thin."
"He had premeditated it, used the other person's trust to enter the room, and then killed the deceased."
The people in the security team were doubtful, and the captain even sneered.
But it didn't take long before I really caught this man.
A man who had a very close relationship with the deceased and was about the same height as Asai.
Exactly what Asai said, the other party confessed not long after being interrogated by the security team.
This made ordinary members of the security team shocked by Asai's ability to solve crimes. They thought that Asai might really have some special abilities.
After this incident, Asai became a consultant to the security team.
On the same day, the businessman who had committed the theft before also came to the security team.
He sent gifts to Asai and thanked him in person for saving their losses.
Many people applauded Asai.
Asai clenched his fist tightly, his blood boiling with excitement.
But he said: "Nothing."
"I just did what I should do, a just person and a just thing."
"Like everyone else, we are working hard for a just cause."
---------------
Asai's special abilities made him think that he had awakened his powers.
Unfortunately.
He found a priest, who took one look at him and shook his head, saying that he saw no signs of awakening power in Asai.
There is no spiritual power in his brain, let alone the baptism and transformation of power.
Although this made Asai a little disappointed, after thinking about it, it seemed that it was nothing.
People will always become extra strong after truly enduring suffering and torture.
In the next year.
Asay's reputation is growing in the St. Ann District, especially in the Redemption Street area. He can tell what the most vicious criminals are thinking just by looking at them.
He could accurately describe who the murderer was just by looking at the body.
The former is something that some priests can do, but the latter is something that even ordinary priests are completely unable to understand.
He put on the most fashionable cloak and wielded a black cane. He looked like an upper-class aristocrat.
It seems that no one pays attention to his limping legs anymore, and even talking about his limping legs has become a kind of trend.
Asai came to the police station early in the morning and knocked on the captain's door.
"team leader."
"What I want to say is still what happened last time."
Although the consultant's name is very prestigious, it is nothing more than that. He is not an official member of the security team.
Asai wants to join the security force for real.
He even wanted to replace the captain.
He believes that if he can become the captain, he will definitely be able to do better than his opponent.
But when Asai mentioned formally joining, the security captain of St. Ann District always sternly refused.
"Be your advisor."
"We can just catch the criminals."
When Asai closes his eyes, he can hear the captain's heart.
"A cripple who is blind in one eye also wants to become a member of the security team?"
"What a joke."
Asai was a little depressed. He hated others mentioning his disability.
Suddenly an idea came to his mind, maybe he could use that special ability to deal with the security captain and pull him down from this position.
Just like the sentence that once came to his mind, the strong never follow the rules.
But deep down he felt that this shouldn't be the case.
Because what he wants is not just the position of security captain, but also other things.
He wants to defeat this captain and everyone else with dignity and dignity.
I want to tell everyone that he, Asai, is an upright person, a capable, bottom-line and moral person.
Asai walked out of the police station and came to the ointment shop across the street.
Before he could speak, a voice came from the counter.
"Still want a sugarpaste cube!"
"right!"
Inside the shop is a little girl who buys things here every morning when Asai walks by.
Asai nodded and said nothing.
He put the money on the table and took the paper packet.
At this time, a person came and suddenly blocked Asai's way.
The other person is quite tall, but at first glance, you can tell that he is a young child, still childish.
"Teacher Asai."
"I want to learn from you."
"Teacher?" Asai smiled. This was the first time he heard someone call him that.
But he didn't know why, this title felt so familiar to him.
Asai: "What do you want to learn from following me?"
The young man was a little naive: "I want to follow you and learn to be a detective."
Asai shook his head: "I am not a detective, I am a member of the security team."
"What I pursue is not money, but the cause of maintaining stability and justice."
After hearing this, the young man quickly said: "This is what I want to say."
Asai ignored him and walked along the road.
The young man quickly followed him and kept saying: "Teacher Asai, just accept me!"
"I can do anything you ask me to do. I'm not afraid of hardship."
Asai still ignored him, but something seemed to have happened in front of him at this moment, causing a huge commotion.
Accompanied by screams, there were also crowds of people surrounding him.
"what's going on?"
Asai reflexively felt that something terrible must have happened, and he immediately hurried over with a cane.
He squeezed through the crowd, and many people on the street recognized him and immediately stepped out of the way.
In the alley in the early morning, there was a body lying.
It was an extremely horrifying corpse, with the chest and abdomen completely cut open and all the internal organs inside.
The organs were all thrown on the road, with gnawing marks on them.
When everyone present saw this scene, they either screamed in fear or turned their heads and vomited.
"It's an ogre!"
"How did this thing come to our city?"
"The dead person looks like a child. I don't know whose child he is."
Asai didn't know what an ogre was, and it was his first time to see such a tragic and evil scene.
He endured the feeling of vomiting and stepped forward to touch the body.
fortunately.
The brain and eyes were not damaged, and Asai saw the scene the deceased saw before he died.
It's a pity that the other party was wearing a dark cloak, covering himself tightly.
He only heard one sentence: "Fresh flesh, blood of children."
Then the screen disappeared.
Asai found the person beside him and asked him.
"What was that ogre you were talking about?"
The other party immediately said: "Haven't you heard of it?"
"It's a kind of monster that specializes in eating people, but this kind of monster was transformed by ordinary people."
"They have the appearance of a shamrock, but they are extremely evil. They like to eat people and drink blood."
"Because God once punished the monsters, all monsters could not exist in the town, but this kind of monster has escaped God's punishment."
"But I heard that God's punishment is still effective. They cannot reveal their identities in the city. Once they are discovered or use evil power, they will be wiped out in an instant."
Asai frowned, it was actually related to monsters.
Asai: "So, this kind of monster can still pretend to be an ordinary person and hide in the city?"
The other party nodded: "The City of God's Advent captured a lot of these monsters back then, and they were all famous figures in the city."
Asai: "According to you, as long as you find this kind of monster and expose them, they will be dead?"
The other party slapped him: "Of course, how can these evil monsters fight against God's will?"
"When exposed to the sun, it's time for their destruction to come."
Asai doesn't know if this rumor is true, or if this criminal is really such a monster.
But having clues and signs to pursue is better than being completely confused.
And Asai immediately thought that this case would not be like the previous cases.
It will definitely cause a sensation in the entire Anhuo City and alarm many people.
The emergence of such a case related to ogres will definitely make the entire city panic.
If he can solve this case and find out the identity of the real culprit behind the scenes, his reputation will spread throughout Anhuo City.
He could push away the lame and ostracizing St. Ann's Sheriff and take his place.
perhaps.
His chance to become a security captain has come.
Even the position of Sheriff is not impossible in the future.
Asai saw the young man who had just chased him to recognize him as his teacher. He was retching on the corner of the street, his eyes revealing fear.
It seemed that he was too frightened by the cruel and bloody scene.
Asai knew that these children were just like him before. They had never seen real terror and despair, so they didn't know how high the sky was.
With a lot of bravery and fantasy, he thought he could do anything.
"How about it?"
"Frightened?"
The young man immediately stood up straight: "No."
Just after he finished speaking, he bent down again.
"vomit."
Asai patted him on the shoulder: "Then you do something for me. If you do it well, I will let you be my student."
The young man looked at Asai excitedly: "Really?"
Asai: "Really."
Asai said to the boy: "Do you know the children around here?"
The young man nodded: "I know a lot of them."
Asai said: "Please help me check the origin of this child, whether he is from Redemption Street or St. Ann District."
"If so, just check who his friends are and where he likes to go on weekdays..."
The young man wrote them down one by one, then turned around and left excitedly.
Following the instructions of the famous Asai on Redemption Street, participating in such a big case and arresting an extremely evil criminal made the young man feel as if he had been tasked with some kind of mission.
Asai suddenly remembered something and asked.
"what's your name?"
The young man said: "My name is Colin."
At this time, people from the security team also rushed over.
The moment they arrived at the scene, many members of the security team were vomiting.
Although they can be considered experienced, they have never seen such a perverted scene.
The security captain of St. Ann District looked very ugly. Such vicious cases actually appeared in St. Ann District and Redemption Street.
You should know that not far away there is even a statue of the saint Stan Tito. This can be said to be a blasphemy and insult to the saint.
He was under great pressure. If he couldn't solve the case immediately, he would probably be in big trouble.
He asked Asai: "Do you know any clues?"
Asai shook his head: "The other party is very cautious and has planned for a long time."
"And it happened late last night, and no one saw what happened at the scene."
----------------
In the small building of the police station.
The security team had already found out the identity of the child that day. The child's parents were workers in a nearby weaving workshop, and their family lived in St. Ann District.
Asai sat on the table and put his cane aside.
He attended meetings as a consultant and provided his own ideas.
"What can be confirmed is that the place we found was the first scene, but the other party did not commit the crime randomly. The target of this ogre was the child."
"Children rarely appear on the streets in the middle of the night. There must be a reason why this person is targeting this child."
The security captain expressed a different opinion: "Why do you think so? Maybe the other party committed the crime randomly, but it was just a child who happened to pass by that day."
"If it was a premeditated crime, why not choose a more hidden place?"
"But choose to be at a place where you are likely to be discovered?"
Asai: "Then how do you explain that the other party is carrying a special scalpel?"
"A kid who wasn't supposed to be there showed up, and a guy with a scalpel happened to be waiting there."
"Tell me, what is it if it's not premeditation?"
Security Captain: “We can’t draw a conclusion yet.”
Asai said nothing more: "Okay, let's investigate separately and share the information and results with each other if there is any."
This is also the best way.
Although the security captain did not deal with Asai, and Asai felt that the other party was not capable enough, in terms of work attitude, Asai felt that the other party was still serious.
Asai left the security station, and all the members of the security team became busy. No one dared to leave the place empty.
At the corner of the street, a young man waved to Asai.
Asai walked over with his cane, and the other party immediately handed over a piece of paper: "I wrote this down, and everything you want is on it."
Colin found detailed information about the deceased, the other person's living habits, and the other person's social circle from the children's mouths.
Asai looked at it bit by bit and immediately saw the abnormality he wanted.
"What is this?"
"The Conjuring Game?"
Colin immediately said: "There is a game that is very popular among children recently. If you perform this ritual in the middle of the night, you can communicate with the world of the dead and attract ghosts."
"You can ask the ghosts questions and get answers no matter what they are."
"The game must be played alone, and it must be in a place where no one will pass by, otherwise it will disturb the ghosts and cause disaster."
"This game is very popular among children. The successful ones will be praised by the children and considered to be the bravest."
Asai's head started to spin rapidly: "This may be the prisoner's way of luring the children out, and a way to select targets."
He felt that he had to take action immediately.
Asai believed that since the other party committed a crime once, there would definitely be a second time.
If the other person is not caught as soon as possible, a second person will be killed soon.
Colin didn't understand: "But how do we catch each other?"
Asai believes in his own ability, the ability to see through everyone's hearts: "The other party is deliberately spreading games about spiritualism, and he will definitely pay attention to which children will play spiritualism games."
"You also go to some nearby children's groups and spread the news, saying that a child is planning to perform a soul-calling ceremony on Good Morning Street at twelve o'clock in the evening three days later. It can be said that the other party wants to ask about his dead grandparents.
"
"Make the story more realistic and more realistic."
Colin nodded and then said.
"but."
"If we really meet that ogre, are we his opponent?"
Asai asked the priest. The so-called ogre is a bone demon. This kind of thing cannot use extraordinary power in the city, and is similar to ordinary people.
Although Colin is not old, he is tall and strong.
With the two of us together, dealing with each other should not be a big problem.
"I will ask the security department for weapons. Then the two of us will be waiting for work, so there will be no big problem."
"The most important thing is that as long as I can get within twenty or thirty meters of the other party, I will be able to discover the true identity of the other party. Whether or not I can catch him then is the next best thing."
Asai said calmly: "As long as he dares to show his head, he won't be able to escape."
Colin looked at Asai with admiration: "This is the legendary... special ability!"
Asai didn't admit it, just smiled.
Colin took a deep breath, cheered himself up and left.
After walking a few steps, he spoke to Asai.
"Do not worry!"
"Teacher Asai, I will definitely do a good job."
Asai waved his hand: "I'm waiting for your good news."
---------------
Three days later.
According to the plan, Asai and Colin lurked in an abandoned building on Good Morning Street in the middle of the night.
This place was chosen well, and there are all kinds of strange rumors among the children. Although it is scary, the more it is, the more children will like it.
I have to say, it’s a great place to play the Conjuring game.
Colin huddled together, the night wind passing through the room was indeed a bit cold: "Why is there no movement yet?"
Asai: "Don't talk."
He pays careful attention to everything around him and will immediately notice any figure that appears.
As long as the other party has a little thought and comes to take a look, he will definitely be caught by him. Asai is very confident.
But after midnight, Asai also felt a little tired.
"Is it because you didn't make up the story well and no one believed it?"
Colin shook his head: "How is that possible? I made it up really well."
"The name of the daughter of the ointment shop I used was widely known among the children in the neighborhood, and her grandparents passed away not long ago. I made up the story perfectly."
"I also went to the ointment store three times to buy things in exchange for her not to expose me."
Asai's expression suddenly changed, and he looked at Colin.
"What's your daughter's name in the ointment store? Is it the one opposite the police station?"
Colin nodded: "Yes!"
As soon as Colin finished speaking, Asai immediately stood up and rushed out.
Although his limping steps were slow, it could be seen that Asai was running fast with all his strength.
Colin didn't understand why Asai was suddenly so excited: "That person hasn't come yet? Will our efforts be wasted if we run out now?"
Asai ran out and immediately said: "Why are you still squatting?
"Go to the ointment store quickly and see if the daughter of the ointment store is here."
Only then did Colin understand what was going on. A sudden chill hit his body and made him tremble.
He immediately rushed towards Salvation Street and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
When Asai arrived, the entire Salvation Street was already lit up.
Asai followed the sound and came to an old building.
The name engraved next to the door of the house is the surname of the owner of the facial ointment shop. This is their family's old house, but it should not be inhabited by anyone.
Asai walked in, took a look, and then closed his eyes.
The little girl who was looking after him every time he passed by the facial ointment shop, and he would always ask her a question, had fallen into a pool of blood, and her death was horrific and miserable.
Asai came out.
He looked around for Colin, and finally saw him in the corner of the yard.
The other person huddled together shivering, leaning against the pillar and trembling constantly. He stuffed his head into his knees, as if he was afraid that others would see him.
Asai walked forward quickly with a cane and came to Colin.
He yelled at Colin angrily: "I asked you to make up a name at will, but who asked you to write your real name?"
"I asked you to make up a story. Who asked you to write her name?"
Asai used his cane as if he wanted to beat Colin.
But he slowly put it down, knowing that it was not all Colin's fault.
Asai was very angry, he was extremely angry.
He was angry with Colin and also angry with himself.
"Why didn't you tell me in advance? Why didn't I ask you in advance."
"Damn it!"
"Damn it!"
Colin, who was paralyzed on the ground, was like a corpse. He could not utter a single word in the face of Asai's accusations against him and himself.
Asai sighed and said nothing more.
He returned to the scene of the crime and followed the security team to search for every clue.
Asai said nothing, but he was shouting crazily in his heart, and his eyes turned red.
"catch him."
"I must catch him."
------------------
After a busy night, Asai stopped early in the morning.
He found that Colin was missing. After asking around, he found out that Colin had gone back. He was a little worried about Colin's condition.
After asking all the way, he found Colin's home.
"You're talking about Colin! His house is at the end of the alley."
"This child is pitiful. He has always lived alone and has never had many friends."
Only then did Asai learn that Colin was an orphan, and his parents disappeared in an accident.
It's just that he never believed that his parents were dead, and he hoped to find his parents.
perhaps.
This is why he wants to become a detective and considers Asai his teacher.
"Dong dong dong!"
When Asai knocked on the door, he found that the door was not closed at all.
He opened the door directly, walked in with his cane, and shouted at the same time.
"Colin!"
"Colin."
Crossing the corridor, Asai looked towards the rooms on both sides.
Sudden.
Asai stopped.
He saw a figure hanging in a room. The thing was swinging heavily in the shadows, making a creaking sound.
Asai involuntarily took two steps back, and it took him a long time to slowly walk inside.
Colin committed suicide.
He left a letter with only three words on it.
"sorry."
Asai stood under Colin's body holding the letter without making any movement.
Suddenly, he kept beating himself with his cane, making wild beast-like noises from his mouth.