The Eldritch Files

”First, calm down.”

Zhang Chiguo slowly patted Han Su’s shoulder and said, ”I have information on this Mysterious Organization. Before I give you this lead, I must warn you.”

”Some things, some organizations... just knowing they exist is dangerous.”

”The mystery, the bizarre nature, and the sheer danger of this kidnapping case have reached a level that even I can’t fully comprehend. And that is precisely why I didn’t want you to get involved again.”

”If I don’t give you this lead, you won’t know who they are. To you, they might just be pedestrians on the street, people coming into the city on business, some unlucky sap whose car broke down, or a passerby who offers you a cigarette with a smile while asking for directions.”

”But if you know they exist and deliberately approach them, you might just find yourself turning into a corpse for no reason at all...”

”...”

As he spoke, he took out a third cigarette, sighed softly, and said, ”So, my advice is that you should investigate only after you have the means to protect yourself.”

Han Su was anxious, but he restrained himself and said, ”Uncle Zhang, I know you’re looking out for me, but with monsters and a Mysterious Organization...”

”What does ’having the means to protect myself’ even look like for me?”

”An Investigator!”

Zhang Chiguo said gravely, ”My advice is that you only officially approach them after you’ve become an Investigator.”

”After becoming an Investigator, you’ll receive training in Mysterious Power and gain the ability to protect yourself. The Disaster Management Bureau will also grant you a certain degree of authority. By then, it will be much safer for you to get involved with these things.”

Han Su almost found it laughable. ”Is being an Investigator really going to help?”

”Uncle Zhang, you were an Investigator at the beginning too. From the sound of it, you’re even a senior figure in the Disaster Management Bureau, but didn’t they have you pinned down so tight you could barely breathe back then?”

He really didn’t want to wait, not even for a single day.

”It does!”

But surprisingly, Zhang Chiguo replied with a very certain tone, ”The other party—whether it’s the Investigator who submitted the report or the big shot upstairs who stamped it—the very fact that they first classified the case and then suppressed it tells you something.”

Han Su frowned. ”What does it prove?”

Zhang Chiguo said in a low voice, ”It proves that their power is great, but not so great that they can just eliminate all traces of it. They still have to follow the Disaster Management Bureau’s rules to get things done.”

”He forbade me from investigating, and forbade other Investigators from investigating, simply because according to the rules, we are not allowed to use the Disaster Management Bureau’s resources to investigate ordinary cases that have been classified as having no paranormal characteristics.”

”We ourselves are members of the Disaster Management Bureau, so this rule can be used to restrict us.”

”But...”

He paused, then looked up at Han Su and said, ”Who can stop a child from looking for his own mother?”

Hearing this, Han Su was momentarily stunned.

After a long silence, he said in a low voice, ”What if they still try to stop me?”

Zhang Chiguo slowly struck a light, lit his third cigarette, and said, ”Kid, you still don’t get it?”

”Getting blocked, even being deliberately obstructed or framed—all of that is inevitable. From the moment you entered the Disaster Management Bureau, you couldn’t escape any of it even if you wanted to.”

”Huh?”

Han Su looked up at Zhang Chiguo in surprise, not expecting him to say such a thing.

’He’s someone who climbed his way up; he should be all about keeping up appearances.’

”You are the heart of the kidnapping incident. If the people upstairs don’t even want to see the report I submitted, then they certainly don’t want to see you.”

Zhang Chiguo sighed and said slowly, ”To put it another way, the Disaster Management Bureau is, by its very nature, an environment shaped by power. In fact, power plays an exceptionally large role within the Bureau.”

”If I told you that in a place where everyone is busy climbing up and down the ladder, there’s no backstabbing and competition, would you think that’s reasonable?”

At this, he slowly exhaled a puff of smoke, looked at Han Su seriously, and said, ”After entering the Disaster Management Bureau, you will inevitably attract attention from the shadows. You might even unwittingly become a target for some dangerous people.”

”Especially while you’re still just an Executioner, before you’ve been granted investigative authority by the Disaster Management Bureau, rashly getting involved in these matters is basically handing your enemies a weapon to use against you.”

”If they really seize an opportunity, it wouldn’t be very difficult for them to have you die somewhere, or to find a reason to lock you up forever.”

”...”

This talk of grave consequences paradoxically invigorated Han Su.

Seeing the serious expression on Zhang Chiguo’s face, he couldn’t help but laugh. ”I believe what you’re saying, Uncle Zhang.”

”But in that case, even if I do nothing, couldn’t they still find a way to lock me up forever, or make me disappear?”

”It’s different.”

Zhang Chiguo shook his head. ”It’s precisely because joining the Disaster Management Bureau is like walking into the lion’s den that you have to learn all the more to make rational use of everything.”

”The reason the Disaster Management Bureau can exist is because of the concept of ’reasonableness.’ If some things are done too blatantly, never mind the rest of the Bureau, even Miss Ai could easily trigger a paradox and create an internal conflict. This would damage their own foundation.”

”Don’t forget...”

At this point, his expression turned grave, even harsh, as he looked at Han Su intently. ”The greatest asset of the Disaster Management Bureau is power!”

”And power is inherently limited!”

”It’s like a river that needs to flow within its banks. Once it crosses the line, it becomes a disaster.”

”...”

Han Su still couldn’t fully comprehend Zhang Chiguo’s words, but he tried his best to process them.

Seeing his thoughtful expression, Zhang Chiguo knew it was a bit much for someone his age to understand, so he smiled and said, ”Of course, more importantly, you’ll still have me looking out for you.”

Han Su was surprised. ”You?”

”That’s right!”

Zhang Chiguo lightly tapped the file folder with his finger, smiled, and said, ”Xiaohan, don’t forget, this isn’t just your business. It’s my case, too.”

”I wasn’t just placating you back at the Public Security Bureau. I never gave up on this case.”

”Whether it was back at the Public Security Bureau or now at the Disaster Management Bureau, I’ve always believed that 25 children can’t just be allowed to disappear.”

”...”

”Uncle Zhang...”

Just moments ago, when Zhang Chiguo spoke of the dangers within the Disaster Management Bureau, Han Su had been able to smile with composure.

But now, suddenly seeing Zhang Chiguo’s true attitude, he felt a rush of blood to his head. For a moment, his chest felt hollow. He wanted to say something, but the words all got stuck in his throat.

”We’re both men. No need for sentimental words.”

Zhang Chiguo patted Han Su’s shoulder. ”I’m telling you all this just to make you understand that you don’t need to be in such a rush, don’t need to push yourself so desperately.”

”You need to make every step a steady one, to think things through completely.”

”Right now, you should focus on what’s in front of you and get through your time as an Executioner. Once you’ve truly become an Investigator and have the means to protect yourself, I will tell you every single detail about all the leads related to this kidnapping. What do you think...?”

”...”

Han Su said, ”No.”

”?”

Zhang Chiguo began to doubt himself. ’Was there something I didn’t explain clearly just now?’

”Uncle Zhang, I promise you, I won’t recklessly investigate those dangerous matters before I have the ability to protect myself.”

Han Su quickly explained, ”But the leads related to your kidnapping case—especially the information about the organization you mentioned, the one that might be connected to... her—please, tell me now!”

”It’s not that I’m planning to go against your wishes. It’s just that, what if...”

He paused, gathering his words. ”I don’t mean to be morbid, but let’s just say... what if something were to suddenly happen to you in the meantime, Uncle Zhang?”

Zhang Chiguo was completely floored. ”And you don’t consider that morbid?”

Han Su said, ”No one can predict how things will change. In any case, I’ll take what you’ve said to heart, but for the relevant leads, it’s better that two people know than just one.”

”So, Uncle Zhang, please tell me!”

”...”

Looking at his earnest gaze, Zhang Chiguo sighed softly and relented. ”I can tell you, but you must be extremely careful...”