Chapter 10: Chapter 4: Police
"Suit yourself."
The Flame Crow Maiden saw Sean’s attitude and didn’t try to persuade him further. To be honest, she found his courage to resist quite admirable. She wouldn’t deny that a small part of it was due to Sean’s appearance—the guy was definitely her type—but that wasn’t enough to make her stay any longer.
She had finished her business in Holkaydo.
The next thing on her agenda was to attend the "Dawn Conference."
She needed to find an absolutely safe place.
"I’m leaving. You should stay away from them on your own."
"Wait."
Sean raised a hand to stop the maiden.
The maiden paused, her back to him. The wind blew a strand of hair past her ear as she glanced back at him over her shoulder. "What is it? You want me to walk you home, too?"
Sean: "..."
’That’s not it.’
"I still don’t know your name," Sean asked.
"Want to repay me? Why don’t you wait until you can enter the Void Technique Space." The maiden lifted her chin, her pale neck arching like a proud little swan. She tossed the words over her shoulder, then leaped into the air with a light push of her toes. Her graceful figure silently erupted in flames, and she once again became a Flame Crow, flapping her wings and flying into the distance.
This time, she left no feather behind.
’Void Technique Space... What’s that?’
Sean stared at the sky in a daze before letting out a self-deprecating laugh.
’Did she... just look down on me?’
It made sense when he thought about it. After all, his awakening wasn’t even complete. He was just an ordinary person, nothing more.
In contrast, using an Illusion Form-type Magic required a Wizard to have Magic Power control of at least Tier Three. For a transformation like the maiden’s—crossing species and drastically changing one’s physical form—it would likely require Tier Four.
And the maiden looked quite a bit younger than him, maybe only seventeen or eighteen. She was clearly gifted in Mysticism and had every right to be proud. Or rather, according to the worldview depicted in his book, her level of pride was hardly pride at all. If it had been some flashy dude with a temper, any stray dog that dared to look at him twice would have gotten a Fireball Technique to the face.
Because Tier Three was the entry point into the true Extraordinary Domain. It was the first point of balance between the Power of Science and Mysticism. A Wizard of this Tier already had the ability to go head-to-head with most light firearms. Only by reaching Tier Three did one have a chance of surviving the Witch Hunt Operation.
And "surviving" was just the beginning.
Sean walked out of the alley. Standing at its entrance, his gaze passed over the pedestrians on the street to land on the silhouette of Florist Hospital. He stared at it for a long moment, then lowered his head, popped the collar of his trench coat, and walked briskly toward the taxi stand.
...
Nine in the morning was peak rush hour in Holkaydo.
It took Sean almost an hour to get home.
His apartment was on the third floor. As soon as he stepped out of the elevator, he heard the sound of a screwdriver turning.
A repairman in blue and white overalls was replacing his door.
The short police officer, Boger, was also there.
When he saw Sean return, a smile immediately spread across his face. He greeted Sean, "Mr. Sean, good morning."
They had arranged to have the door repaired in the morning, but Sean hadn’t expected them to be this early. He took out his phone and saw he had two missed calls.
"I called you earlier, but you didn’t pick up, so we just came on up," Boger explained with a smile. "I thought you were sleeping. It was only when I went inside to look for you that I realized you were out. I had the serviceman start replacing the door, thinking that if you weren’t back by the time he finished, I’d text you to come pick up the key at the station."
"You know how it is. This district is full of trivial matters, but we can’t ignore them or we’ll get complaints. The sooner this door is fixed, the sooner I can get back to the station and handle my duties."
"Sorry about that."
Sean said apologetically, "I left in a hurry this morning and forgot to leave a note. I usually keep my phone on silent. I’m sorry to have held up your work."
"No worries, it’s not like I waited for you, right?" Boger let out a hearty laugh. "But you, you’ve really got some nerve. Going out when your door won’t even close. If a thief got in and took something valuable, you’d be kicking yourself."
"Don’t be so careless next time."
"Right."
Sean went inside. "I’ll get you both a glass of water."
"No need, he’s almost done," Boger said, waving his hand.
Just then, the repairman put down his tools. He took off his stained white gloves, grabbed the handle to close and open the door, and tested it a few times. After confirming there were no issues, he nodded at Sean and Boger, then squatted down to pack up his toolbox.
"Alright, if you have any problems with the door later, feel free to contact me," Boger said jokingly. "Lifetime warranty."
"Remember, always lock the door when you go out next time."
He patted Sean’s shoulder and got into the elevator with the repairman.
Sean watched them leave. ’This cop is pretty cheerful,’ he thought. ’Much more approachable than the stereotype. He seems easy to get along with, too... Wait a minute.’
’Why did I think "too"?’
The elevator doors slid gently shut. At the same time, the door to the neighboring apartment opened cautiously, just a crack.
A woman poked her head out, glanced around, and seeing that Boger was gone, whispered to Sean, "Did you get in trouble?"
Sean found this amusing. "If I was really in trouble, would I be standing here talking to you?"
"Good point." The woman sighed in relief. "I opened my door to get my milk just now and saw that cop go into your place. He seemed to be looking for something. He was in there for a long time before coming out. I thought he was collecting evidence against you."
’Looking for something?’
’Wasn’t he looking for me??’
The smile on Sean’s face suddenly froze.
"How long is ’a long time’?" he asked.
The woman thought for a moment. "About half an hour?"
Sean: "..."
He knew why he’d thought "too."
’Another one who hides his true self behind a friendly face!’
"Oh well, forget him. As long as you’re not in trouble, that’s what matters. That way, even if you end up in my bed, I won’t be guilty of harboring a criminal." The woman didn’t seem to notice the change in Sean’s expression. She shot him a flirtatious wink. "Hey, handsome. My husband is away on business lately. He won’t be back for a month or two, so... want to come over for some milk tonight? Big Sis will warm it up for you personally."
"You’ve turned me down so many times. You should say yes at least once, right?"
"Big Sis has professional recording equipment at home, all set up. You can record it, then use the tape to threaten me into any position you want. I definitely wouldn’t want my husband to find out, you know~"
"Any position?"
"That’s right." The woman batted her big, watery eyes. "Big Sis has practiced yoga."
Sean: "In that case, can you make a triangle? It’s the most stable structure."
The woman: "?"
"Too pointy, no good. How about something a little rounder? What about a backbend? You can get in from the front or the back..."
BANG.
The only response she got was the cold sound of Sean slamming his door.
The woman: "..."
"Look at you, all high and mighty."
Having her warm invitation met with a cold shoulder, the woman stood there awkwardly for two seconds before huffing in annoyance. "So what if you’re a little handsome? What’s so great about that? One of these days, I’m gonna pin you down and have a son even more handsome than you, then we’ll see if you can still act so smug, hmph!"
BANG!
She slammed her door, too, even harder than Sean had.
The woman had no idea that Sean was doing it for her own good.
In every sense of the word.
First, Sean didn’t want to destroy her family.
Second, if Quill and the others found out she was getting too close to him, the neighbor and her family could be in danger.
Making simple small talk to maintain a basic neighborly relationship was the absolute limit.
Sean had risked going to Florist Hospital to ask Chris a few things and to confirm some suspicions. Now that Chris was dead, he pretty much had his answers. Boger’s two-faced nature only further proved it—
He had been targeted by the hospital long ago and had been under their surveillance the entire time.
Sean returned home, turned on the lights, and immediately noticed with a single glance that the living room was different from how he’d left it this morning.
Like many single men, his place was a mess—or at least, it couldn’t be called tidy. He usually only vacuumed and mopped, never bothering to organize much. But there was a method to his mess. Whether it was the cups, the sofa cushions, or the tissues and trash can, everything was placed according to his personal habits. He could spot it if even one thing was out of place.
What’s more, Boger hadn’t even tried to be subtle.
The most obvious sign was that the glass shards and spilled milk on the floor were gone.
If he were to ask Boger, Boger would surely answer with a smile, "I just helped you clean up a bit while I was there."
He might even make a joke of it: "I was just doing you a favor. Mr. Sean wouldn’t sue me for trespassing, would he?"
Clearly, these traces were deliberately left for him to find.
As if on cue, Sean’s phone screen lit up at that very moment.
A text message from Boger appeared—
"Mr. Sean, I left in such a hurry I forgot to tell you—I’m actually a huge fan of your books. A loyal fan, really. If I remember correctly, you have a book signing in Old Segal City on the 1st of next month, right? I’ve already applied for Fieldwork with my superiors to have me transferred over to be your security. You’ll have to sign a few extra copies for me then. See you at the venue. Don’t be late. /smile/ /smile/"
The polite smiley faces at the end of the text were particularly jarring.
Sean stood in his living room, looking around. In that instant, the ceiling, which should have been only four or five meters high, seemed to suddenly rise, stretch, and spin, becoming vast like an enclosed sky. And in the places he couldn’t reach, it was as if pairs of eyes were watching him, laughing mockingly, and saying to him:
"Sean, you can’t escape."
...
