The Eldritch Files

”You...”

”You...”

Just like when Wei Lan was first contaminated and his Spiritual Power was completely drained, Pot Lid Head was now in the same state.

His face turned deathly pale, and his jaw trembled. On a face that was usually expressionless, there was now utter shock and astonishment. He opened his mouth twice, but only managed to say the single word, ”You.”

Han Su observed his expression, slowly crouched down, and gently extended a hand toward Pot Lid Head, saying softly, ”I had to be sure you could withstand the contamination from this Mechanical Fragment before I could decide whether to let you touch it.”

”Apologies in advance, but don’t hold it against me!”

”...”

’Actually, another reason I provoked this guy was to feel that unique Spiritual Activity he has—the kind D7 members possess—and gauge his level.’

’Of course, I can’t say that out loud.’

’This guy holds a grudge.’

Surprisingly, compared to the intense shock and impact Wei Lan had experienced, Pot Lid Head’s performance was much better. He didn’t suffer from the prolonged weakness that had afflicted Wei Lan. After only a dozen seconds or so, he suddenly raised his head.

”So, it was you...”

Just one simple sentence.

For just a moment, upon being contaminated by the Mechanical Fragment, he had shown the shock of having one’s worldview shattered—or, to be more precise, the shock of a person whose life and fate had been twisted suddenly discovering the truth.

But he quickly regained his composure, and a smile slowly formed at the corners of his mouth.

This time, the smile was genuine, because his eyes crinkled into crescents.

’Why am I not the least bit curious about the expression on his face?’

Han Su just gave a slight nod and said directly, ”I know you probably have a lot of questions, so I’ll tell you everything at once.”

”The kidnapping case is still ongoing. I’ve been trying to rescue the abducted children, and I’m also investigating the case in the real world. It’s just that I’ve encountered a lot of resistance.”

”So far, I’ve only managed to rescue four children. You’re the third. Usually, the children I rescue are removed from the kidnapping case and forget everything, until they are contaminated by this Mechanical Fragment in my hand.”

”...”

Pot Lid Head listened quietly, his expression a bit blank, making one wonder if he was even taking it in. Only after Han Su finished speaking did he give a slight nod.

’That’s it?’

Han Su smiled. ”Don’t you find it bizarre? Hard to believe?”

The slight smile on Pot Lid Head’s face seemed almost shy. He shook his head. ”The first time I saw you, I felt you were interesting. At first, I thought you were my prey, but then I felt you didn’t meet my standards for prey.”

”Now, it all makes sense!”

”...”

”?”

Han Su was immediately reminded of the strange look in Pot Lid Head’s eyes when they first met.

’When I asked Wei Lan before, he couldn’t describe any strange feelings he had toward me before remembering everything. Could it be because he’s not as perceptive as Pot Lid Head?’

With a sigh, Han Su looked at Pot Lid Head and asked, ”How did you end up like this? How did you get into D7?”

”I broke the law...”

Pot Lid Head seemed to think Han Su’s question was absurd. He looked at him strangely. ”I killed someone, then I was sentenced. I was supposed to die, but I was drafted into the Disaster Management Bureau...”

”Wait...”

’Who doesn’t know you broke the law?’

He organized his words. ”I saw the news. The person you killed wasn’t exactly a good guy. Besides, your family should be quite powerful...”

”Breaking the law is breaking the law. It makes sense that they locked me up. It makes sense that they sentenced me to death. And of course, it also makes sense that they drafted me into the Disaster Management Bureau.”

A look of yearning appeared on Pot Lid Head’s face. ”Anyway, in another 350 years, I’ll be out of prison...”

That calm smile made Han Su’s scalp tingle. He waved his hand dismissively. ”That is pretty quick.”

He looked down at the scar on Pot Lid Head’s stomach. The wound had already closed up again, as if the image of it turning into a giant mouth and chanting loudly had just been an illusion.

But the torn threads and seeping blood showed that the wound had indeed just opened.

A cold glint flashed in Han Su’s eyes. ”What did they do to you?”

’I rescued all these people. This guy killed someone, so getting shot or sent to D7 is what he deserved. But from this wound, I can tell he’s been through some abnormal experiences.’

”Experiments.”

Pot Lid Head met Han Su’s gaze, seeming a bit uncomfortable. He calmly averted his eyes and said, ”Besides carrying out high-mortality missions, D7 members also have to undergo various experiments. You didn’t know?”

”With no social standing and generally decent Spiritual Activity, every D7 member is a good test subject.”

”...”

Han Su frowned and suddenly asked, ”You’ve ended up in this situation. Doesn’t your family do anything?”

’He’s the young master of the great Chen Family. If he really broke the law, getting executed would be one thing.’

’But now he’s been reduced to a D7 member, and he’s undergoing all these experiments... This is beyond what I could have imagined.’

But Pot Lid Head suddenly spoke, seeming uninterested in Han Su’s question. ”Since I remember everything now, is there anything you need me to do?”

Han Su frowned helplessly. ”In your current state, what help could you be?”

”Lots of things!”

Pot Lid Head thought for a moment and said, ”Find the mastermind behind the kidnappings, or help you kill a few people you don’t like. Also, I’m pretty good at gardening. And during my years in D7, I learned how to unclog toilets...”

’Did I rescue you just so you could do gardening and unclog toilets?’

Han Su was already a bit speechless. He shook his head slightly and said in a low voice, ”We do have a lot to do. I’m investigating the kidnapping case from ten years ago, and many people are trying to stop me. This attack might be related to it.”

”And I’m preparing to rescue more children. I don’t know what I’ll face in the future, and I really do need a lot of help, but you right now...”

He shook his head. ”I don’t have the power to get you out of here.”

Pot Lid Head looked seriously into Han Su’s eyes, seemingly very interested in what he was saying.

Hearing this, he gently interrupted, ”You don’t have to rescue me. When you need help, I can take a leave of absence to go out.”

”?”

Han Su thought he had misheard. ”A leave of absence?”

”Yes.”

Pot Lid Head nodded. ”My sentence is still 350 years. If I want to help you, I can only take leave.”

”...”

This time, Han Su’s expression was one of astonishment. For a moment, he couldn’t tell if the guy was joking or being serious.

”I promised my father I would stay put in one place.”

Pot Lid Head gave a rare explanation, saying flatly, ”But for your business, I’ll take leave to go out and help you.”

Han Su suddenly understood. ”So, you staying in D7 is actually...”

Pot Lid Head nodded. ”You just said it yourself. My family does have a little bit of power.”

’What kind of decent person would use their power for something like this?’

Han Su was at a loss for words, finding the situation even harder to comprehend. ”If your family’s power is so great that you can take leave from D7, then these experiments on you...”

”They’ve only just completed the seventh one.”

Pot Lid Head explained softly, ”In total, there are twenty-two.”

”What the fu...”

”...These procedures, did you ask for them yourself?”

Pot Lid Head gave Han Su a look of incomprehension. ”Of course. Otherwise, why would I have come to D7?”

”?”

’Something feels wrong. How did I get dragged into his logic?’

”This time, we don’t have long to talk.”

Han Su collected himself. He had a feeling that if he kept talking to this guy, his own head would start to have problems. Although he had a bellyful of questions, he could only pick the most important one now. He asked Pot Lid Head, ”Who arranged for those three people to attack me? Do you know?”

’Although this attack felt more like they were sent for me to practice on, I still have to find out who’s responsible.’

Pot Lid Head was in the middle of destroying Jackal’s corpse. His thinking was meticulous; now that he and Han Su had acknowledged each other, he couldn’t leave any traces of his... hobbies. With some regret, he reached out and closed Jackal’s eyes, which had refused to shut in death.

At the same time, he said slowly, ”D7 is a vast world. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call it the dark side of the Disaster Management Bureau. A lot of shady dealings happen here.”

”I don’t know what their orders were. I only know that before the operation, an Executioner from D1 contacted them. They originally tried to contact me too, but gave up.”

”An Executioner?”

Han Su listened, frowning slightly. He asked subconsciously, ”Why didn’t they approach you in the end?”

Pot Lid Head said, ”Because at the time, I acted like I wasn’t interested in you. But in the end, for some reason, they sent me over anyway.”

’Just as I thought. The people who sent this guy are not the same ones who wanted to attack me...’

Han Su already had his suspicions. If the three D7 members saw him as their prey, then Pot Lid Head seemed to see those three D7 members as *his* prey.

’This guy is a natural-born pervert who hunts other perverts...’

He quickly thought it over. Knowing their time to talk was limited, he rapidly organized his thoughts, looked up at Pot Lid Head, and said, ”Then from now on, you need to become interested in me.”

Pot Lid Head understood instantly. His eyes curved slightly as he smiled. ”To what extent?”

”Find that Executioner, or the mastermind behind them.”

As Han Su spoke, he looked over his own body—arms, chest, stomach—and finally settled on his leg.

He glanced at the rebar, the roof tiles, and the gun in his briefcase.

Finally making a decision, he picked up the nearby Jackal, made a cut on his arm, and then dripped the blood onto his own leg. At the same time, he said in a low voice, ”Either kill them directly or pass the information to me. Just do whatever makes you happier.”

Listening, Pot Lid Head’s face showed a look of interest. He suddenly picked up the knife as well and slowly drew a diagonal slash from his own right shoulder downward. Blood gushed out.

”You don’t have to make it look that realistic, do you?”

Han Su tore off a piece of his shirt, wrapped it around his blood-stained leg to feign injury, and frowned at the bleeding Pot Lid Head.

Pot Lid Head said, ”This is more fun.”

Han Su was a bit exasperated. ’Fine, if it’s fun, then have your fun...’

He could already hear the faint sound of footsteps approaching from outside and prepared to act. But just then, Pot Lid Head suddenly looked up and asked, ”Our war... what stage is it at?”

Han Su met his gaze, nodded lightly, and said, ”It’s only just begun.”

Pot Lid Head’s smile suddenly became brilliant.