Dusk was approaching, the slanting sunlight spreading from the edge of the city, spilling streams of pale golden light between the forest of tall buildings—but deep in the old city, surrounded by high-rises where the sun struggled to reach, the alleys had already fallen into darkness.
The residual dampness and slight chill in the air seemed out of place with the dry air outside the alley, and the flecks of ice melting rapidly in the cracks of the brickwork served as a kind of "evidence," proving that something unusual had occurred in this quiet alley.
Several swiftly darting black shadows crossed the gaps between the buildings, leaping down from the air as if weightless and landing in a corner of the alley. The edges of the shadows trembled, quickly solidifying into wolf-like forms. These faceless shadows patrolled and sniffed around the alley for a while, then slowly gathered together. The leading shadow tilted its head back and let out a loud howl at the sky:
"Awooo…"
"Thwack!"
A rock accurately struck the wolf shadow on the head, knocking the half-finished howl right back down its throat. This was followed by a scolding voice from the building's shadow: "Shut up! No howling in the city—and don't add a 'woof' at the end, either! Humans aren't idiots, no one will believe you're dogs!"
The phantom-formed wolves immediately let out a few soft whimpers and obediently retreated to the side, as a somewhat petite figure walked over from not far away.
It was a short-haired girl in a black skirt and a dark red jacket. A lock of hair at her forehead curled up slightly. She looked no older than sixteen or seventeen, but her expression was remarkably calm and mature. She walked out of the shadows, passed straight through the wolves with their heads bowed, and then saw the male corpse lying by the side of the road.
A faint shadow of gloom flashed across the girl's face. She crouched down beside the body to inspect something, while a wolf approached from the side, conveying some information with low, chaotic grumbles.
"…The scent of rain?" the girl frowned, looking up at the sky, which had been clear for the past two days. Although it was now near dusk, the sky visible between the skyscrapers was still clear and bright, without a hint of gloom, only the sunlight gradually fading.
After a moment, she seemed to understand something. She lowered her head again to confirm the horrifying wound on the male corpse, muttering to herself, "…Rain, heart, the stench of frog…"
Just then, the ringing of a cell phone from a small pouch at her waist interrupted her monologue—the ringtone was the opening theme from the '86 version of *Journey to the West*.
The short-haired girl answered the call before the monkey could finish his fourth somersault.
"Hello, who… Oh, right, it's me." She pressed the phone to her ear, waving a hand at her surroundings to signal the accompanying wolves to guard the scene, while standing up and walking to the side. "I'm already here. My wolves sensed the anomaly here first… Didn't catch it. Came up empty."
The girl said, sighing, her gaze falling on the unlucky corpse.
"It was 'the Rain,' accompanied by a corporeal 'Rain Frog,' but this rain should have just been a localized projection. The affected area was only one person… Yes, very unlucky. A 'Rain' that fell for only one person. It had already stopped by the time I arrived. The Depth here has already returned to L0. 'The Rain' has detached from the Boundary."
The girl paused. The voice coming from the receiver seemed to be giving instructions and asking questions. She listened patiently for a while, then glanced at the corpse not far away.
"…Medical personnel? Just send a coroner. How could an ordinary person who encountered a 'Rain Frog' alone possibly survive? His heart is gone… Tsk, I'll keep watch here. Don't forget to bill the overtime separately."
The rambling voice of some middle-aged leader came from the phone, but the girl had already lost her patience. She gave a few perfunctory replies and hung up.
Then she sighed again, walked back, and gestured for one of the wolves standing guard nearby to lie down. She sat right down on the wolf, resting her chin in her hands and looking at Yu Sheng's body.
"Unlucky guy. I wonder if you have any family, dying all alone here… Ah, well, I'll keep you company for a bit… Must be cold, dying in 'the Rain,' huh? Too bad I'm not the Little Match Girl, otherwise I could have warmed you up before you passed on…"
The girl muttered to herself, patiently waiting for the clean-up crew to arrive. After a short while, she heard the roar of an engine coming from the intersection dozens of meters away—the sound was earth-shaking, as if a heavy armored vehicle dragging a shipping container, burning firewood all the way, had just driven over a series of ten speed bumps. Even the wolf under her was startled by the commotion and nearly jumped up—but with someone sitting on it, it couldn't move.
Then the girl looked towards the sound and saw a large van creaking and groaning as it drove over from the intersection, trembling like the 1991 Soviet Union as it went over a speed bump.
The girl unhurriedly got up from the wolf's back, watching with a deadpan expression as the large van went over the speed bump, stalled, and then several burly men in black tactical suits, armed to the teeth with high-tech gear, jumped out from the vehicle and started pushing it from behind…
Another man, middle-aged with a sturdy build, a tan complexion, and wearing a khaki jacket, got out of the van, followed by a young woman in a white dress with brown, shoulder-length hair. The two of them glanced back helplessly at the team members pushing the van, then turned and walked over.
When the two got closer, the short-haired girl couldn't help but mutter, "Seriously, can't you Second Squad guys apply to your superiors for a new vehicle? The Special Operations Bureau can't be that hard up, right… I feel like the gear on any one of your team members is worth more than this wreck."
"Shh!" The sturdy middle-aged man quickly waved his hands, lowering his voice and glancing back at the stalled van and his subordinates pushing it. "Don't talk nonsense… You don't understand the situation. Our Special Operations Bureau is special. The van's just having a bad day today. Replacing it is absolutely out of the question…"
"Big organizations sure are a hassle," the short-haired girl pursed her lips, clearly not very interested in the topic. She then turned to the petite woman in the white dress who had come with him. "Good afternoon, Doctor Lin. Long time no see."
"We should be saying good evening, 'Little Red Riding Hood,'" replied the white-dressed woman known as Doctor Lin with a faint smile. Her lips were thin, giving her an air of restraint and reservation. "How's that last injury?"
"Almost healed," said the short-haired girl called Little Red Riding Hood, flexing her right wrist. "You know, wolves generally have strong regenerative abilities…"
"Human recovery is the strongest of all—it's just that humans are always quite averse to getting hurt," Doctor Lin corrected her with a serious expression.
"…Oh," the short-haired girl replied perfunctorily, then changed the subject back to the corpse on the ground. "Let's look at this first. Victim, male, looks to be in his twenties. Heart was taken by a Rain Frog. Time of death was about two hours ago. I haven't searched him yet, not sure if he has any ID on him… Yes, to preserve the scene."
As she spoke, she glanced at Doctor Lin with a puzzled look. "You came all this way… Don't tell me you're planning to treat someone like this? Is that even possible?"
"No, I'm not a god," Doctor Lin shook her head, bending down towards Yu Sheng's corpse as she spoke. "I just came to take a look. I live very close to here…"
She examined the body for a while, confirming not only the wound but also the deceased's personal belongings, and found an ID card.
"The deceased's name is 'Yu Sheng,' twenty-four years old. Registered address is 66 Wutong Road, Old District." She looked at the thin card representing his identity, comparing it to the deceased's face as she spoke. "Captain Song, have someone check this with the Bureau's equipment later and see if we can contact his family."
The sturdy middle-aged man beside her grunted in agreement and also leaned in to look at the ID card in Doctor Lin's hand, frowning. "Why is the photo on this so blurry?"
Hearing this, "Little Red Riding Hood" also leaned in curiously, looking at the ID card found on the deceased.
The portrait section on the ID seemed to be smeared with a grayish-black stain, obscuring the entire face, making it impossible to see any details.
Doctor Lin rubbed the stains with her finger and found that they wouldn't come off at all. The stains were more stubborn than expected and covered almost the entire card.
"Can't even make out the name," Little Red Riding Hood muttered. "The ID number is also unreadable. You'll have to take it back and read the chip with a machine…"
The middle-aged man known as "Captain Song" sighed helplessly and nodded. He looked at the remains on the ground and said with some regret, "A shame. If only we could have found the victim's ID card… There are too few clues now."
Doctor Lin also nodded in regret, looking at the bloodstains on the ground that had been almost completely washed away by the rain. "…Not even a body was left behind. It'll be difficult to determine what happened."
Little Red Riding Hood listened to their conversation, seemingly deep in thought. Then she suddenly looked up at the woman in the white dress beside her. "Doctor Lin, good evening."
"Good evening, Little Red Riding Hood," Doctor Lin smiled, greeting the short-haired girl. "How's the patrol going?"
Little Red Riding Hood looked around, reaching out to stroke the head of the wolf closest to her. "'The Rain' fell here, and a corporeal 'Rain Frog' may have been generated, but there don't seem to be any victims."
Doctor Lin looked relieved. "That's good."
The sound of an engine starting came from not far away. The battered old van sputtered to life, and then the engine sound gradually stabilized. The armed agents who had been pushing the van came around from behind it, breathing heavily. The one in the lead walked over. "Captain Song, the van's started. Shall we…"
The sturdy middle-aged man known as Captain Song nodded and walked towards his team members.
"Alright, let's head back to the Bureau. Oh, and don't forget Doctor Lin."