On the empty balcony stood an empty cardboard box.
But the big black dog that had been obediently staying inside before bedtime was gone!
Bo Ting jolted awake, his gaze fixed firmly on the box opposite him.
What the hell? Had Doudou escaped?
“Doudou?”
Bo Ting frowned and called out instinctively.
His mind had already conjured up the terrifying scene of Sister Han coming to pick up the dog later and not finding it.
Just as his thoughts grew more serious, in the pitch darkness, a rough, clipped bark of “Woof” suddenly came from the corner—sounding oddly obedient.
Bo Ting turned his head and spotted the black dog in the gap between the sofa and the wall.
Doudou’s black fur blended perfectly with the pitch-black sofa, undetectable in the power-saving darkness of the night.
Bo Ting, realizing it was just a false alarm: …
“Why do you have to be so black? You nearly scared me to death.”
“Whatever, as long as you didn’t run off.”
Relieved that it was just a false alarm, Bo Ting walked over, ruffled the dog’s head, and suspiciously checked it over. Unexpectedly, when he lifted its front paw, Doudou’s body stiffened, and a flash of… guilt? passed through its murky dog eyes.
Bo Ting: …
Good grief.
Had his mental state deteriorated that much?
Could he really see guilt in a dog’s eyes?
But why was this guy hiding if it hadn’t done anything wrong?
And why did it suddenly smell so bad again?
Hadn’t he just brushed its teeth that morning?
Bo Ting stared at Doudou strangely for a long while until the entire dog went rigid. Then, the doorbell rang outside, saving Doudou.
Huh, it was already one in the morning?
It must be Sister Han.
She had told him she would come pick up the dog in the early hours, though he was a bit surprised at the exact time—probably because she had been so busy lately.
Regretfully withdrawing his hand from the dog’s mouth, Bo Ting thought he should remind Sister Han later to pay attention to its hygiene once she took it home; let the owner handle the brushing herself.
The young man in his pajamas picked up his phone to confirm the message once more before leading Doudou to the entryway. His mood was much more relaxed than during the day.
In the middle of the night, the old, broken hallway light in their building was out again. As long as Sister Han’s phone light didn’t shine on him, she probably wouldn’t be able to make out his… figure from across the way, right?
It seemed like future interactions with people should happen at this hour.
Bo Ting nodded thoughtfully and unclipped the leash.
Even with its familiar owner’s scent just beyond the door, Doudou didn’t dare move an inch in front of Bo Ting. Only when the human leaned into the shadowy corner and cracked the door open, turning to look at it, did Doudou step forward as if confirming.
Bo Ting: “Go on, Sister Han is right outside.”
“Be good and listen when you get home. No running off, got it?”
His cool tone carried what seemed like caring advice, but it made Doudou shiver. It darted through the door crack, eager to escape.
Bo Ting: ???
It must have been thrilled to see Sister Han.
Whatever, no point arguing with a dog.
The hallway was pitch black at that hour, and due to the building’s layout, there weren’t even any windows in the corridor. It perfectly matched Bo Ting’s vision of a mutual obscurity.
Bo Ting vaguely heard Sister Han seem to grab Doudou’s leash. Just as he tilted his head slightly, the dog, finally free of Bo Ting’s control, went berserk, barking madly “Woof woof!” and yanking Sister Han toward the stairs to flee downstairs.
Sister Han: ???
What was going on?
Wasn’t her little darling usually so fierce? Why did it seem so cowardly today?
Full of question marks, Sister Han couldn’t help but want to scrutinize the young Bo across from her.
She remembered this Bo had just graduated not long ago—always honest and unremarkable. Other than a decent-looking face, nothing special.
Why did Doudou seem so afraid of him?
Sister Han’s bossy voice paused, but then she stumbled as Doudou tugged her, sensing the dog’s urgency. She felt a faint, imperceptible twinge of guilt herself.
Retracting her gaze, she mumbled a couple of sentences.
“Uh, thanks for today, little Bo.”
“Doudou’s probably tired; I’ll take it home to rest.”
“We can talk another time if there’s anything.”
“Sure, Sister Han.”
Bo Ting, standing in the shadowy corner, nodded politely without a hint of displeasure.
Only after Doudou dragged Sister Han into the elevator did he finally exhale, relaxing as he rubbed his shoulders. Back home, his fingers flew across the daytime chat thread to update:
“Great, Doudou’s home.”
“Tonight I can finally sleep easy!”
…
The next day, after searching Ligang and Wenhua Districts, the Resurgence Management Office members exchanged strange looks.
After a full night of searching yesterday, they hadn’t found the victim?
Last time they spotted the reporter, the office had easily located the body. But this time, nothing.
Had the target’s abilities improved, or had something unexpected happened?
Yin Liao’s expression grew grave, and even the usually carefree Captain Lu Jingshan looked serious.
“Something’s off.”
Just as the two exchanged odd glances and prepared to request the second squad’s assistance, Little Wang, who had been sent out, let out a startled cry.
Wang Dong rushed over quickly.
“Captain, we found something.”
“Come take a look.”
“What is it?”
Seeing Little Wang, who couldn’t keep a secret, hesitate, Lu Jingshan sensed trouble. He and Yin Liao placed hands on their weapons and followed Wang Dong slowly.
As soon as they passed through the alley ahead, at the boundary between Ligang and Wenhua Districts, they spotted a red garbage bin.
No, the bin wasn’t red.
It was stained red by the blood constantly oozing out.
Fresh red blood still dripped steadily. As they approached, their first thought was that they’d found the victim.
However, when Yin Liao, wearing isolation gloves, swiftly tipped over the bin, a body thudded to the ground.
It wasn’t the victim—it was the mutated A-level weird.
The Wandering Chef!
Its face was printed on the Resurgence Management Office’s wanted files, instantly recognizable.
But how was that possible?
Had the Wandering Chef died last night?
An A-level weird with tricky abilities had died silently right under their noses without them noticing?
Lu Jingshan fell silent for a moment, lit a cigarette. Just from the form, it was clear this weird was deader than dead; its eerie aura was even starting to dissipate.
And from the state, it had been dead for at least ten hours.
Meaning it died shortly after arriving here last night.
Cough. Choked by the smoke, Lu Jingshan looked up: “Ask the team members sent out last night if they noticed anything unusual.”
“Especially any strange sounds.”
The kill site was right here—surely there had been some noise?
He methodically issued orders. Once the others left, Lu Jingshan paused, rubbing his face.
“Could I really have guessed it?”
“Our Mengjia City is full of heroes and talents; this trash really ran into a tough opponent?”
“But weird—the wound on its neck doesn’t look much like it was made by a human ability user.”
The Wandering Chef had died from an unknown wound on its neck.
Judging from the fatal marks, it looked more like—it had been torn by some animal.
And a one-hit kill at that.
Yin Liao: …
The situation was too bizarre; even Yin Liao, who rarely joked, wasn’t sure if he should call out the captain’s crow mouth.
“First, isolate the weird corpse and send it for examination.”
“I’ll check the surveillance.”
Both had an uneasy premonition but kept it unspoken.
Half an hour later, Yin Liao finally pulled up the nearby footage.
But the video was completely beyond his expectations.
“—A dog?”
The squad members crowding around watched in disbelief again.
The footage was a bit blurry, but the camera outside the convenience store barely captured a trace.
Last night, the Wandering Chef had indeed come to Wenhua District but was attacked by a dog on the roadside.
The stuttering video didn’t capture the dog’s exact appearance. Then, through the screen, a sudden “Woof” was heard, and a blurry shadow lunged at the Wandering Chef standing outside the convenience store.
Immediately after, the footage froze…
Yin Liao pinched his brow, rewound and replayed it, then set down the mouse with a strange expression:
“Has this dog mutated?”
He recalled something else:
“So, did any of you catch where it came from initially?”
