"Knock, knock."
Mu Ran had just finished hashing out a fabricated identity with the System when he heard a knock at the door.
"Hi~ How was your rest?"
Shen Feibai poked his head in first, lingering at the doorway for a moment for some reason before finally entering.
Mo Yuan followed closely behind. His narrow eyes swept over Mu Ran from behind his lenses before he walked into the room with an inexplicably cold, detached stride.
*Hiss...*
Sensitively picking up on the subtle shift in their attitudes, Mu Ran felt a pang of nervousness.
Mo Yuan spoke first. "We have a few questions."
"Mhm, that’s right. Don't be nervous, it’s got nothing to do with the case~" Shen Feibai sat across from Mu Ran as if he had no bones, resting his left hand on the round dining table in a very relaxed manner. "Just some routine check-in from the police to a citizen."
Mu Ran: "...Okay."
Looking at the white glare reflecting off Mo Yuan’s glasses, he couldn't help but straighten his back and sit upright. He placed his hands obediently on his lap and tilted his head slightly, waiting for their questions.
Standing opposite the youth, Mo Yuan took in every subtle expression.
*"Though some things were burned, at least no one was hurt... Ah, speaking of which, were the children nearby frightened?"*
*"A perfect doll? Well, everyone perceives things differently. How could anything be truly perfect..."*
*"Wow, those cases sound terrifying... Why would anyone think like that? Was it because of their family?"*
*"I’ve always felt very happy. Sigh, though it would be nice if this recent streak of bad luck would just go away~"*
The youth’s eyes curved as a faint violet hue leaked through the gaps of his lashes. Sunlight, filtered through layers of sheer curtains, fell around him, making him look like a little angel shrouded in a natural halo amidst the clouds.
He seemed to love the sun. Although his heterochromatic eyes prevented him from looking directly at harsh light, he always found ways to bask in the softened rays.
He was far too much like a small animal.
He reacted the same way to these recent accidents; though he would be overwhelmed by fear and tearfully distressed at the time, he would recover quickly once safe, returning to his cheerful self, finding contentment in simply soaking up the sun. But even a puppy that had been kicked by a human would need to taste milk again before letting down its guard, wouldn't it?
Compared to the criminal personality inferred from that photograph, the youth seemed more like the perfect victim for such a person to target.
Beautiful, clean, gentle, harmless...
His dangerous psychology score was a -35, even lower than that of an average person.
Mo Yuan pressed his fingers to his brow and signaled for Shen Feibai to stop.
...
"Well? Did you notice anything?"
"Speaking of which, I kept a close eye out because of your theory. My intuition tells me something isn't quite right!"
Shen Feibai pondered for a long while but couldn't find any evidence, so he could only look at Mo Yuan expectantly.
"There is no problem." Mo Yuan frowned, inexplicably beginning to doubt himself. "Are you sure that photo was taken in that shop?"
Shen Feibai: "...?"
"Hey, hey, you were the one who suspected him first. Why are you shifting the blame to me now! ...Fine, tell me what you think now."
Mo Yuan felt a rare sense of guilt. "...The target is completely harmless."
As if embarrassed by his previous deduction, he maintained his aura and added, "But there is definitely something wrong with that photo. Take me to the scene; I need to confirm that your photography conditions didn't mislead me."
...
When the two arrived at the small shop, they remembered it had just been burned.
The doll cabinet Shen Feibai had mentioned happened to be near the stairwell; it had already been reduced to a pile of unrecognizable black charred remains.
Shen Feibai: "..."
Looking at Shen Feibai, who stood frozen in place, Mo Yuan breathed a sigh of relief imperceptibly, as if finally letting go of the conflict in his heart. "Alright, don't play jokes like that next time."
"I wasn't joking!"
"But there's no evidence now. Aren't you the one who insists on evidence the most?"
"...Doesn't the photo count?"
"There's only one. If you had a few more, I might believe you. Besides, why didn't you call me to see it that day?"
"It was creepy, but I didn't even think in that direction that day! ...Tch, forget it! Anyway, I didn't think much of it originally, so let's just forget about this...!"
The two closed the door, leaving the shop to return to silence and darkness.
A small mouse scurried through the charred ruins, seemingly bumping into something. A crisp clinking sound echoed in the silent space, likely the sound of a glass marble hitting the marble floor.
A cobalt-blue glass eyeball rolled across the floor, stained with black ash and soot, finally stopping a meter away from the door. The extremely realistic blue pupil happened to be facing the entrance.
...As if it were watching someone.
***
Shortly after the two protagonists left, Mu Ran was taken away by a certain police officer. Apparently, Ye Xuan had requested to see him.
The officer taking him was a young man. Though he was nervous himself, he tried his best to comfort Mu Ran.
"He’s wearing a special collar for control, so don't be afraid. If there's any danger, just ring the bell immediately!" Recalling the youth's failed attempt to call for help the previous night, he uneasily corrected himself, "Uh, you can just run out too! I'll be guarding right outside!"
The door closed softly.
Mu Ran chose a seat far away from Ye Xuan and observed him with a hint of curiosity.
This villainous younger brother, who had always been arrogant and wild, looked rather pitiful now. His exposed skin was mostly wrapped in bandages, and his calf was in a splint—a miserable sight.
However, his expression was strangely peaceful, and the chaos and hostility in his eyes had faded significantly.
"Um, hello?" Seeing that Ye Xuan was only calmly observing him, Mu Ran took the initiative to greet him tentatively.
*Did the protagonist group give him psychological therapy? Ye Xuan's mental state seems much better.*
"Ah, hello." Seemingly unaccustomed to such a gentle tone himself, Ye Xuan eventually curled his lips into a smile, speaking airily in the tone Mu Ran was familiar with. "I want to have a chat with you~"
"You lied before, didn't you?" He started with a topic that sounded rather dangerous.
*Before? Does he mean that night?*
Recalling their last meeting and the subsequent development where the System beat Ye Xuan up, Mu Ran shifted his eyes nervously and gave a small, hesitant nod.
Before he could think of a reasonable excuse, Ye Xuan continued, "Why did you lie? Were you afraid I would hurt you? Or did you want to protect your 'brother'?"
"Why didn't you call for help?"
"You know my identity and you're afraid of me, but do you know his identity?"
Ye Xuan's mind still seemed somewhat unstable. Without waiting for Mu Ran's answer, he muttered to himself, following his own train of thought.
"To think he could live out here so peacefully..."
Mu Ran watched Ye Xuan’s lowered head and listened to his low, raspy voice; his hand was itching to ring the bell. To his surprise, Ye Xuan looked up in the next second and caught him off guard with a single sentence.
"Where did you pick him up?"
Mu Ran: "!"
*Wait, wait, wait!! Why did you fast-forward straight to this question?! I haven't said a single word yet!*
The script they had arranged was that the System, as one of the escaped "Lambs," had luckily survived the organization's purge and then met Mu Ran, staying by his side to protect him out of gratitude.
Although he didn't know the System's true identity, Mu Ran could see that the other party was being hunted and thus had a special status. Therefore, whenever the protagonist group questioned the System's identity, he would remain silent.
That was the plan... but being interrogated about a plot point in the script before he even started acting was terrifying!!
*What's going on? Did Ye Xuan remember things from his childhood? But if he remembered, he should know the System wasn't in the flock...?*
Mu Ran decided on a tactical play of ignorance. "What are you talking about?"
"Does he have amnesia?"
Mu Ran: "...?"
*Don't answer a question with a question, you bastard!*
However, Ye Xuan's question reminded him—their original script didn't include an "amnesia" setting... but adding it might make everything make more sense.
"What do you know?"
Since that was the case, he might as well play along with Ye Xuan's assumption.
"Incredible... To think he could still escape based on instinct even with amnesia?" Having obtained the information he wanted from Mu Ran's response, Ye Xuan felt a sense of loss instead. "As expected of the Lead Lamb."
Mu Ran: *?*
*Lead Lamb? How did he become the Lead Lamb?!*
"Strange. I feel like this villainous brother's memory is a bit muddled... He's directly identified you as the Lead Lamb."
"You've dealt with him a few times. Do you have any clues? (ConfusedCat.jpg)"
"...No."
*It has nothing to do with the deep hypnosis sessions from before... probably.*
On the surface, Mu Ran was supposed to be ignorant of the System's past, so he expressed confusion at the statement. "Lead Lamb? What are you talking about?"
"Ah, you don't know?" Ye Xuan habitually curled his lips, seemingly wanting to reveal something malicious, but that malice inexplicably faded under Mu Ran's confused gaze. "Never mind."
Abruptly, after locking eyes with Mu Ran for a moment, Ye Xuan looked away and asked in a low voice, "Are you happy? Before I appeared in your lives."
It was hard to describe the emotion in his words at this moment; they seemed to carry a hint of expectation that even he himself wasn't aware of.
For a moment, Mu Ran didn't know how to answer. He desperately wanted to crawl into Ye Xuan's skull to see what he was thinking. Why was he suddenly speaking in such a tragic tone!!
"I am."
Not knowing how else to respond and fearing that more words would lead to more errors, Mu Ran simply gave a two-word answer.
"That's good~" Ye Xuan narrowed his eyes. "I hope you can continue to be so in the future."
Mu Ran: *?*
*Is he being sarcastic?*
"But before, you..." *You even tried to feed me a brainwashing narrative through the System's psychological hypnosis.*
Ye Xuan raised his hand, feigning innocence. "I was testing you before~"
Given the youth's attitude during their subsequent dealings, how could he possibly be a controlled, pitiful creature? He clearly trusted that man completely, working hard to cover for him and hide his secrets, even without knowing the dangers of the other's desperate flight.
Ah, jealousy.
To think he had previously mocked the young man for being an outlier just like himself.
"Are you feeling unwell?"
The rising, chaotic negative emotions in Ye Xuan's mind were interrupted by the youth's gentle question. He looked down and found his fingertips dug deep into his palms, blood spreading.
He spread his hands nonchalantly, eyes downcast, and answered as if joking, "Yes, I urgently need a hug to feel better~"
Mu Ran observed him from a short distance. Ye Xuan was wearing a black collar. According to the System's data, these collars were products of the organization's infiltration into the police; members of the organization had long since grown accustomed to moving freely under such electrical currents. Thus, Ye Xuan was actually still dangerous.
Furthermore, with his current sickly body, even a slightly healthy ordinary person could overpower him.
But the other person really looked like he wanted a hug...
The brief silence made the scene somewhat awkward. Ye Xuan twitched the corner of his mouth, the flesh inside his mouth stinging from where he had bitten it. He looked up. "Hmph, just kidding—"
He fell into an embrace that carried a faint scent of medicine.
He could feel the youth's frailty and softness, as if he were being briefly held and comforted by a small bird whose feathers hadn't fully grown.
The fragile yet vibrant life force of the small animal overflowed through the thin chest, more vivid and spirited than anyone else's.
In an instant, Ye Xuan became as stiff as a stone.
Even his most severe past injuries had never caused his emotions to fluctuate like this.
...
Shen Feibai, having heard that Mu Ran and Ye Xuan had met, rushed over. A glance at the emotion detection records on the collar showed a series of violent fluctuations, like a roller coaster.
After confirming the youth was fine, he was extremely puzzled as to what had happened to cause Ye Xuan's emotions to surge so much.
"Hey~ you two officers!"
Ye Xuan's mood was inexplicably high.
Mo Yuan, who hadn't intended to interrogate him, asked, "What is it?"
Ye Xuan's eyes curved. "Nothing, just curious if you were fooled by what I said that day~ Well? You didn't go and arrest that pretty little brother, did you?"
??
The two men's minds went blank. "Everything you said before was a lie?"
"Oh? You didn't realize?" Ye Xuan laughed maliciously. "If I'd known, I wouldn't have said anything~ Never mind, please continue~"
Shen Feibai: "???"
*So his deductions about the youth's behavior were all just him outsmarting himself against thin air?! No wonder there was always a strange sense of mismatch between the facts and the person!!*
Mo Yuan: *As I thought. Phew, it seems my ability to read people hasn't failed me yet.*
In the shock of just learning the truth, the subtle sense of anomaly in the corner was temporarily overlooked by the two.
***
Because of Mu Ran's discussion about Ye Xuan, the System paid extra attention to Ye Xuan's files while organizing the records.
There were several familiar, youthful faces among Ye Xuan's mission targets.
They were the "Lambs" who had once escaped with him.
That had been his first mission, so Ye Xuan had dutifully and seriously recorded the final words of several people before their deaths.
Number One: "Have you forgotten us?!"
Ye Xuan's evaluation: *It's like they're very close to me. This look of disbelief is truly hilarious.*
Number Two: "You monster! Outlier! Tamed fool!"
Ye Xuan's evaluation: *Angry. How dare they insult me! They were the ones who betrayed the organization!*
Number Three: "Wake up, please wake up..."
Ye Xuan's evaluation: *Annoying. They're the ones who should wake up, right? What are they stubbornly holding onto on their own?*
...
At the end of this mission's evaluation, the organization's highest Boss had written a meaningful comment in elegant, flowing script: *A fine hunt. A black sheep among the white flock.*
At that time, Ye Xuan had replied secretly, with a hint of displeasure: *I don't want to be a soft lamb; I want to be a wolf!*
The Boss had only left a smiley face as a reply.
Now that everything was known, that gentle smiley face looked rather ironic.
The System stared at the data on the screen and added a youth with deep blue eyes to the file.
The executioner listed next to the bright red text was—Wu Nian.
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
---|---|---
羊羔出逃事件 | Lamb Escape Incident | A past event where children (lambs) escaped an organization's facility.
头羊 | Lead Lamb | The leader of the "lambs" who escaped; also translated as bellwether.
颈圈 | Control Collar | A device used by the police (and infiltrated by the organization) to monitor and control prisoners.
洗脑包 | Brainwashing narrative | Slang for a set of false information or indoctrination used to manipulate someone.
黑羊 | Black Sheep | Used here to describe Ye Xuan as an outlier/traitor within his original group.
巫念 | Wu Nian | A high-level member of the organization; revealed as the one who "hunted" the System's current identity.
