Monster - Chapter 141
Chapter 141: Center City - Despondent
After leaving Sui Xi's office building, Lou looked out at the desolate scenery. Many people who had turned into monsters had been taken away, and now a sense of panic pervaded the city. Most people were unwilling to go out unless absolutely necessary, so despite the fine weather, the streets were sparse.
Lou walked slowly along the road. She told herself that she could do whatever it took to complete her mission, but for one, she hadn't been able to muster any energy since she'd "come back to life." For another, she didn't know what would happen if she, with a face identical to Lin Sandie's, rashly made a move on the people around Zhao Jie. Would it disrupt Lin Sandie's plans?
As her thoughts wandered, the sound of a siren brought Lou back to her senses. She turned to see a police car pass by. Already bored and unsure of what to do, she suddenly thought of Xing Meilu. The policewoman had vanished without a trace after the collapse of Dream Castle.
Thinking of Xing Meilu, Lou raised her hand and hailed a taxi. "To the North District Inspectorate."
Half an hour later, she arrived at the North District Inspectorate, the very place where Xing Meilu worked.
While registering at the security desk, the guard asked her the purpose of her visit, as was standard procedure.
"I'm a friend of Officer Xing. We lost touch, and I was wondering if she still works here," Lou asked with a smile on her approachable face.
"Officer Xing has already resigned." The surname Xing was uncommon, so the guard immediately knew who she was talking about.
Lou raised an eyebrow and quickly added, "What about the male officer who was always with Officer Xing? The really built one."
Because Lou had investigated herself before, she and the little crow had occasionally monitored the police's progress, so she knew Xing Meilu had a regular partner.
"You mean Officer Shen Fan. He's most likely out on patrol right now."
"Can I wait for him in the lobby?" Lou appeared very polite. The guard gave her another look, confirmed she didn't seem like a dangerous person, and let her through after she finished registering.
And Lou did, in fact, cause no trouble. She sat obediently in the Inspectorate's lobby until just after 4 p.m., when she finally saw Shen Fan return.
"Lin Sandie?" Shen Fan didn't know much about what had happened between Lou and Lin Sandie. His first instinct upon seeing her was to call out that name.
"I'm Lou, the one you people wrongly accused," Lou said, waving with a grin.
Shen Fan, who had been walking toward her, stopped in his tracks. His expression changed drastically, and he reached for the gun at his waist. But just as he was about to move, he found he couldn't budge an inch. His body only faltered for a moment before, like a marionette, he obediently continued walking toward Lou and sat down beside her.
"We're in the Inspectorate right now. If you suddenly do something strange, you'll cause a lot of trouble for me. Didn't you know?" Lou chided Shen Fan as if she were a member of the Inspectorate herself. The officer, now unable to speak, felt cold sweat bead on his forehead.
"Don't tell me you don't know why I was showing up at all those murder scenes. It's just like what you're doing now—a lot of people have turned into monsters. So from your perspective, I'm really not a bad guy."
Lou continued speaking as she released the lines binding Shen Fan. The moment he regained control of his body, he fought the urge to jump up. He took a sharp breath and looked at Lou. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm looking for the Little Police Flower. I ran into her in Disorder Land, but we got separated."
"Why are you looking for her?" Shen Fan frowned.
"...Can't I just have a friendly chat? You don't have to be so on guard. Go ahead, check my record. I haven't done anything wrong." Lou didn't understand why her reputation was so terrible when she'd only ever killed monsters.
Seeing Shen Fan remain silent, she stood up to leave, employing a tactical retreat. "Fine, I'll find her myself. It'll just take a bit more time."
Shen Fan scrambled to his feet. For some reason, he was naturally a little afraid of Lou. The recording of her first kill had left a deep impression on him. Besides, he had heard too many stories about her from Xing Meilu, including the fact that Lou wasn't even from Leviathan.
Lou snuck a glance at Shen Fan. Seeing his lips still pressed tightly together, she didn't push him. She turned and walked toward the exit, figuring she could just spend some time and money to investigate Xing Meilu's whereabouts herself.
Unexpectedly, Shen Fan chased after her just as she reached the Inspectorate's entrance. His brow was furrowed, his expression more solemn than ever. He pulled Lou to a secluded spot and said in a low voice, "When Captain Lu came back from Disorder Land, she was already… already infected. She was afraid she would hurt someone, and then starting in July, we received orders from above to capture anyone who was infected and had mutated…"
"You locked Xing Meilu up?"
"Captain Lu requested it herself, before we even received the order."
That sounded just like the Little Police Flower's personality. Lou stuck her hands in her pockets, thinking of the Xing Meilu she knew—a woman so righteous she was almost rigid.
"What are you going to do with the Little Police Flower now?"
"There's a medical organization called Bite Mark that has some very advanced ideas about treating the infected. It's still in the experimental phase, but Captain Lu will be one of the first volunteers. You shouldn't come here again." Shen Fan was clearly still very wary of Lou. Though he told her this much, he didn't specify when Xing Meilu would be going to Bite Mark.
"I understand." Lou didn't press further. Perhaps in the two days since she'd woken up, everything she felt she could do, or wanted to do—no matter which clue she followed—ultimately pointed to Bite Mark, and to Lin Sandie.
But Lou was afraid of Lin Sandie. She didn't really want to face her. The more she avoided it, however, the deeper Lin Sandie's mark seemed to be etched into her heart. Maybe she shouldn't keep hiding like this.
After bidding farewell to Shen Fan, Lou took no further action. She didn't return to Black Goat Walled City, either. Instead, she hired some detectives, tasking them with investigating the movements of Zhao Jie's family and matters related to Bite Mark. Then she went back to her hotel and lost herself in video games for several days. Only when the investigation yielded results did she begin to tail her targets. For a senior Sentinel like Lou, who had already recovered some of her skills, monitoring a few ordinary people was the simplest thing in the world. She just used the timeline provided by the detectives to secretly attach lines to Zhao Jie's family members in the places they frequented each day, and her surveillance was complete.
So after finishing this task, Lou stood alone by a frozen lake in a park, staring blankly at Zhao Buqing, who was walking her dog not far away. Zhao Buqing was around thirty years old, the daughter of Zhao Jie and his second wife. Though not much older than Lin Sandie, by seniority, Lin Sandie would probably have to call her "auntie."
Not that Lin Sandie would ever associate with the Zhao family again, of course. She was probably still thinking about how to get revenge on Zhao Jie. Sigh, Lin Sandie is such a mama's girl, Lou thought. She doesn't like to talk much about herself, but I get the feeling she really loved her mother. She died when Sandie was so young, yet she remembers her so clearly, just like how I miss Little Rabbit… Speaking of which, Lin Sandie's mother was also named Zhao, and my surname is Zhao, too. Is Zhao a common surname in the south of Leviathan?
Lou's thoughts drifted back to Lin Sandie. She bent down, scooped up a handful of snow, and packed it into a snowball. She tossed it in the air a few times. She was about to throw it, but then she changed her mind, crouching down again to build a snowman by the lakeside.
During her long years of searching for Little Rabbit, Lou had often felt this same sense of boredom. In one Tower World after another, she would meet people like Lin Sandie who could stir something in her, but she would always quickly forget them and continue her journey.
This had happened many times in the first 200 years. But in the centuries that followed, Lou no longer felt this way about anyone. Her colleagues would tease her, saying it was because she was old, that the emotional soil in her heart had dried up and would never again grow a flower bud for anyone. Lou had deeply agreed. All that mattered was her earnest search for Little Rabbit.
This occasionally brought her comfort. She was invincible. She had no burdens, no baggage, no attachments. All she had to do was look for and think about Little Rabbit. No one could make her stop.
Lou thought she would be like this forever. But after so long, Lin Sandie had brought back this feeling, leaving her somewhat at a loss. Could soil that had already turned barren become fertile once more?
Maybe I should be a little more shameless. Lin Sandie is already used to my shamelessness, anyway…
Lin Sandie was always restrained and polite with her, but beneath that restraint was a deep desire, as if she wanted to devour a person whole.
Lou would always pretend not to notice. She would deliberately provoke Lin Sandie, making her restraint and composure crumble just for her.
For Lou, that was a twisted thrill of its own.
She had been truly awful to Lin Sandie.
But she couldn't help it. Because she was special.
Lou couldn't help but mutter this in her heart. She didn't want to admit that when she was with Lin Sandie, she couldn't actually control herself. She always let her instincts take over and draw her closer.
She stood up, her hands red from the cold, and looked at the snow rabbit she had built. This time, Lou didn't kick it over. Instead, she took out her phone and took a proper picture of it before leaving the park.
Just then, snowflakes began to fall quietly. Lou's figure, seen from behind, looked both despondent and lonely.
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