The hunter woman’s death sentence on the anomalous hole had shifted from “immediate execution” to “suspended execution.”

  That small change allowed me to breathe a little easier.

  Since the hole’s destruction had been postponed until tomorrow, I could still go back and explore it today.

  How much I could actually learn in the limited time remaining was another question entirely. The most critical unknown was the pattern behind the hole’s appearance and disappearance.

  Why had it appeared when Chang'an was alone the night before last, and again when both of us were present—only to vanish the moment Agent Kong arrived? The answer had to lie somewhere in that sequence.

  While continuing to monitor Agent Kong and the hunter woman’s conversation, I turned over the terms they had used.

  The “fallen hunter” they mentioned was undoubtedly the serial killer. Whether that specifically referred to Alice remained unclear, but from the term alone, it was obvious that “hunters” were people who hunted things related to the demonic or supernatural. The definition of “demonic” likely extended beyond anomalies like the hole—it probably included fallen hunters themselves.

  And “fallen” might mean hunters whose prey had shifted from “demons” to “humans.” That speculation aligned neatly with the serial killer’s recent behavior.

  The hunter woman’s tone carried a strong sense of mission to eliminate anomalies, and she had mentioned that Luoshan should deepen cooperation with the public security system. In my view, “Luoshan” was likely an officially recognized anonymous organization dealing with the supernatural—or perhaps an official organization operating outside the normal public security framework.

  An organization handling supernatural incidents really did exist!

  The realization filled me with a private thrill, as though the wildest fantasies I’d chased were finally stepping into reality one piece at a time.

  After that, the hunter woman seemed to have nothing more to discuss with Agent Kong. He soon ended the call, turned around, and returned to the complex—heading straight for the apartment door.

  He unlocked it with a key, entered, and began inspecting the place.

  His main focus was the ritual array on the floor. He didn’t step inside the circle itself but circled around it, observing from different angles. He even took out his phone and snapped multiple photos of the array from various positions.

  To avoid being spotted if he suddenly turned, I had the firefly attach itself to his back.

  “This shouldn’t be possible,” he muttered to himself. “Why could such an incomplete array activate? There aren’t any surrounding conditions that could compensate for its defects…”

  He examined it from several more angles, then finally gave up. He casually tossed the black shag carpet back over the spot and left the apartment.

  —

  While continuing to monitor Agent Kong, I didn’t stay idle either.

  Maintaining the surveillance, I moved to a nearby computer mall and bought the equipment I would need for exploring the hole later.

  After Agent Kong left, I didn’t rush straight back to the apartment. Instead, I released several more fireflies around both the interior and exterior of the complex, checking for anyone suspicious.

  Even Agent Kong and the hunter woman didn’t know why a fallen hunter would have set up an incomplete ritual array in that apartment. So I had to consider the possibility that “the hole’s appearance aligned with the fallen hunter’s expectations”—perhaps it was deliberately engineered.

  Was the fallen hunter continuously monitoring the fifteenth-floor apartment? Constant surveillance for eight full months seemed unlikely, but close attention during periods when someone was actually living there was entirely plausible.

  I absolutely did not want some unknown dangerous figure watching my every move while I explored the hole.

  Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

  Perhaps the landlord should be added to the list of suspects. Someone in that position would know exactly when a tenant moved in and could reasonably keep tabs on changes in the apartment.

  Right now I was simultaneously monitoring four separate locations: Alice’s position, Chang'an’s, Agent Kong’s, and the interior/exterior of the complex containing the fifteenth-floor apartment. In other words, four different scenes were unfolding in my mind at once—with the last one being especially critical. It felt like trying to solve multiple unrelated high-difficulty problems simultaneously. Even though I allocated most of my focus to the apartment complex, my concentration was draining rapidly.

  I took short breaks now and then—looking at distant scenery to relax my mind—then resumed checking. But even until evening, after searching every possible corner, I found no one who fit the “suspicious behavior” label inside or around the complex.

  Were they truly not there, or had I simply missed them? I couldn’t afford to spend too much more time on this; I still had to explore the hole.

  I probably wouldn’t be going home tonight. I needed to let Alice know somehow. Unfortunately, my apartment had no landline, and Alice didn’t have a phone (at least I hadn’t found one on her last night). It looked like I’d have to go back home briefly to tell her in person.

  Besides, there were some questions I needed to ask her face-to-face.

  And I was hungry—going home meant I could eat too.

  …Wait. I suddenly felt like I was forgetting something important.

  —

  I returned to my apartment door soon after.

  Through the fireflies inside, I saw Alice before I even turned the key. She was sitting on the living-room sofa, knees drawn up, curled into a small ball. The rolled-up sleeves and pant legs bunched in thick layers; the oversized clothes made her look even more petite.

  She hadn’t turned on the lights or the TV. She simply sat in silence, gazing out the floor-to-ceiling window at the view—looking like a small appliance that had slipped into low-power standby mode.

  Outside, the sky was in that evening gradient of deep blue fading into dim yellow, which lent her tiny back a faint, quiet melancholy.

  The moment I inserted the key, the faint sound woke her like an invisible switch being flipped. Her head snapped toward the entrance with sharp alertness.

  By the time I opened the door, she had already leaped off the sofa—only to lose her balance and fall flat.

  “…What are you doing?” I asked, dumbfounded.

  “…” She pushed herself up using the nearby coffee table, forcing her face into a composed mask as if to cover her embarrassment.

  Then she slowly walked over, circled me twice, eyes scanning me up and down. She stepped closer, inspecting even more carefully—seemingly trying to spot something in the seams of my clothes. Every so often she sniffed the air, as though trying to detect a scent.

  I didn’t understand, but I cooperated by raising both arms. “What exactly are you doing?”

  She looked up at me, then stepped back two paces.

  “…You came back really late,” she said, her tone probing—perhaps with a trace of dissatisfaction.

  I had told her before leaving that I’d only be out briefly, yet I’d been gone most of the day. That was my fault. Still, I couldn’t exactly tell her the truth, so I kept it vague: “Something came up with a friend.”

  “You didn’t run into anything out there, did you?” she asked, frowning.

  “Run into what—exactly?” I asked knowingly.

  She began listing them one by one: “For example—did you see someone who should already be dead suddenly appear alive in front of you? Or did a road appear in a place where no road should exist? Or did strange limbs and organs that humans shouldn’t have suddenly grow on your body…?”

  Wait, the last one sounded like some kind of grotesque body mutation. So the disasters her jinx constitution might attract included that kind of incomprehensible horror too… While mentally complaining, I kept my face neutral and answered: “No.”

  She still wasn’t convinced. “Really nothing?”

  “Really nothing.” I lied straight-faced—even though the “hole” perfectly matched her second example.

  “That’s good then.” She seemed to decide I had no reason or courage to lie about something like this, and her expression finally relaxed.

  Then she hesitated, glancing toward the door behind me. “But maybe I should still leave. If I keep staying here…”

  “No!” The word burst out reflexively.

  “Ah?” She flinched.

  “How could I possibly let a girl who can’t protect herself wander around outside alone?” I quickly lowered my voice, trying to sound as reliable as possible. “Don’t worry. Nothing will happen to me, and I’ll do everything I can to cover for you during this time.”

  “Uh… th-thanks?” She looked utterly baffled.

  I knew my reaction had been over the top, but I couldn’t help it. I genuinely didn’t want to let her go. Not only because I still hadn’t unraveled all her secrets, but also because—knowing that my first real encounter with the supernatural in all these years was likely thanks to her “jinx constitution”—I half-wanted to buy a baby carrier online and strap her to my chest like an infant, keeping her glued to me twenty-four hours a day.

  I admit the thought of feeling that way toward a younger teenage girl of the opposite sex is pretty questionable. Even if I had the chance, I probably wouldn’t actually do it. I was just expressing how strongly I felt.

  Speaking of her jinx constitution—there was one thing I needed to ask.

  It might make her suspicious about what I’d been up to earlier, but out of responsibility, I had to confirm it as soon as possible.

  I set my backpack beside the shoe cabinet, turned on the living-room light, and looked at her.

  “Alice, can I ask you something?”

  “Go ahead,” she said cautiously. “Whether I answer depends on the question.”

  “You said people close to you get affected by your special constitution—becoming far more likely to encounter the supernatural, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Is that effect limited strictly to people directly beside you?” I asked. “Or does it spread further outward—reaching even the people close to those close to you, pulling them into strange and dangerous incidents as well?”