S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 5 Chapter 203

The Intelligent Killer 08 – Red Clothes

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Bai Yutang suddenly said there was someone in Lin Tian's apartment, and Zhan Zhao instinctively looked at the door lock...

The apartment door had a smart lock, which required a password to enter...

Lin Tian's keychain had three keys: one for the villa's main door, one for the villa's basement door, but what was the third key for? It definitely wasn't for this electronic lock.

While Zhan Zhao was lost in thought, he heard a sound from behind the door, as if someone was coming out.

Bai Yutang grabbed Zhan Zhao and hid by the door. The agent was also quick-witted, running far away and hiding in the corridor beside the two men.

Just as the three of them settled in place, the door opened, and a tall, skinny man in his thirties wearing glasses stepped out of the apartment.

As soon as the man stepped out, Bai Yutang's hand reached over, grabbed his collar, and pulled him out.

"Aiya!"

The man seemed startled and yelled out, but was pressed against the door by Bai Yutang.

Looking into the apartment, there was no one else coming out.

Just as Bai Yutang was about to ask who the man was, the agent shouted from behind, "Why is it you!"

Zhan Zhao turned to look at him and asked, "You know him?"

The agent had a helpless expression on his face and pointed at the man, "This is He Ke, an entertainment reporter."

Although Zhan Zhao wasn't interested in entertainment news, being someone who read constantly, he would browse through any newspapers or magazines he came across.

He was quite familiar with the name He Ke; many gossip stories were leaked by him, making him a relatively famous reporter.

"Cap Cap... Captain Bai!" He Ke patted Bai Yutang's hand that was holding his collar. "It's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding..."

Bai Yutang glanced at the agent.

The agent sighed. Although he seemed quite annoyed by He Ke, he still nodded to Bai Yutang.

"How did you get the password to Lin Tian's apartment?" Bai Yutang released He Ke, patted the creased collar, and asked.

He Ke rubbed his nose and muttered, "Well, that's a business secret..."

Bai Yutang found him amusing and was about to handcuff him.

"Ai..." He Ke quickly waved his hands.

The agent whispered to Bai Yutang, "This guy will do anything for a story, always testing the limits of the law! Arresting him would be a good thing!"

Both Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao looked at He Ke.

The reporter vigorously shook his head. "No! I really wasn't here for a story this time."

Zhan Zhao was puzzled, "If not for a story, then why did you sneak into Lin Tian's place?"

"That, it's a long story..."

"Then come in and tell it slowly." Bai Yutang pushed He Ke back into the apartment and went in with Zhan Zhao.

Lin Tian's apartment wasn't large, with two bedrooms, a living room, and a bathroom. The decor was simple, with few personal items, giving it a hotel-like feel.

Zhan Zhao checked each room, casually looking through the items in the apartment.

Bai Yutang had He Ke sit by the table and asked him what he was doing there.

He Ke said, "I have a friend named Xu Qiuyu..."

As soon as he mentioned the name, Zhan Zhao asked, "The well-known investigative journalist?"

Bai Yutang had also heard the name before, he had written a report on a case the SCI had handled, and he seemed quite reliable.

"Old Xu is my mentor. Although our styles are different, we actually work for the same magazine," He Ke said. "I've been considering changing my direction recently and plan to become an investigative journalist. So, I've been drinking and chatting with Old Xu a lot, learning from him."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both asked him, "What does this have to do with Lin Tian?"

"Old Xu mentioned to me once that he was following Lin Tian recently. He said he discovered that Lin Tian might have a big secret," He Ke said mysteriously. "At the time, I asked him why he was doing entertainment reporting, and besides, Lin Tian isn't a big star, not many people pay attention to him, what secret could he have? Old Xu told me that Lin Tian's secret wasn't some entertainment gossip. He said this was a big deal, and if he could uncover it, he might win a journalism award, maybe even get a screenplay written and a movie made."

Zhan Zhao looked at Bai Yutang – Could Xu Qiuyu have discovered that Lin Tian was the Broken Spine Murderer?

Bai Yutang shook his head disapprovingly – If he really knew, shouldn't he have reported it to the police immediately... After all, this was a serial killer. For an amateur to follow such a dangerous criminal, did he have any sense of risk?

"But not long after that, Old Xu disappeared," He Ke said.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were puzzled. "Disappeared?"

"Right! Old Xu hasn't shown up for a long time, and he hasn't replied to his phone or emails, which is quite unusual," He Ke said, not without worry. "Old Xu is single, and his family doesn't live locally, so they rarely contact him. Plus, sometimes, for investigative journalism, he would go undercover or something, and occasionally he would go missing. But this time, it felt different. I didn't pay much attention at first, but a few days ago, I received a message from Old Xu."

As he spoke, He Ke took out his phone to show Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang.

Old Xu had sent He Ke a single phrase – The incident of the woman in red.

After that, there was nothing more.

Bai Yutang frowned, and Zhan Zhao, stroking his chin, asked, "Is it the incident of the woman in red I've heard about?"

The agent sitting nearby frowned, "Woman in red..."

Bai Yutang looked at Zhan Zhao with some confusion – What was the incident of the woman in red?

Zhan Zhao explained to Bai Yutang, "The incident of the woman in red is a bit like those ghost stories from The Ring series, somewhere between a ghost story and an urban legend. It is said that if you are bullied, or someone has done something bad to you, and you can't take revenge, you can ask the woman in red for help. The method is to find a window during heavy rain at midnight, breathe on it, and draw an umbrella with your finger. Then, close your eyes and silently imagine a woman in a red dress holding a red umbrella. When you open your eyes, there will be a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder, and you will see a woman in red standing in the rain with an umbrella, covering half her face."

Bai Yutang found it a bit bizarre, "Open your eyes just in time to see the lightning? So coincidental?"

"So you need to find a night with a thunderstorm," Zhan Zhao explained, "But according to the legend, if the hatred is deep enough, even on an ordinary night, it will suddenly rain with thunder and lightning when you do this."

"What happens after you see the woman?" Bai Yutang asked.

"After seeing her, the woman will disappear," Zhan Zhao said. "Then your computer or phone will receive an email asking you to sign a contract. The contract will have the name of the person you want to take revenge on, and the payment you will give to the woman in red. Once the contract is signed, it cannot be changed, and the woman in red will take revenge on your behalf."

Bai Yutang felt it was starting to make sense, so he asked, "So it's essentially hiring a hitman?"

"Tsk tsk tsk," Zhan Zhao shook his finger. "The so-called payment isn't money, but you have to do something."

Bai Yutang asked, "What do you have to do?"

"That's confidential. At some point later, you will receive an email with specific instructions. No matter what it is, you must do it as an exchange. If you break the contract, the woman in red will come for your life," Zhan Zhao continued. "But according to the legend, many people who completed a deal with the woman in red eventually died as well."

Bai Yutang nodded – Another ghost movie.

He Ke took a magazine out of his bag and handed it to Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang. "Old Xu once wrote an article about the woman in red. He investigated a series of horror stories circulating online and found that many were fabricated for fun, but some involved online scams."

Zhan Zhao asked, "So... was Old Xu investigating Lin Tian or the woman in red?"

"I don't know the specifics," He Ke said helplessly. "Old Xu's phone is unreachable. I tracked his phone's location, and the last place it appeared was here."

"Was he staking out Lin Tian here?" Bai Yutang asked. "The phone's location can only be pinpointed to this building, not a specific floor... Could it be that he also rented a room here?"

He Ke said he wasn't sure. After Lin Tian's incident, he found it increasingly suspicious, so he came over to see if he could find any clues.

"So what did you find?" Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both asked He Ke. "Did you find any clues?"

He Ke shook his head and said he searched the room, but found nothing...

Bai Yutang then asked Lin Tian's agent... Ever since He Ke mentioned the "woman in red", the agent seemed to be acting strange, and even his expression was not very good.

Zhan Zhao asked him, "What's wrong? Do you know something?"

"Huh?" The agent wiped his sweat with a tissue, and Bai Yutang noticed that the room wasn't hot at all. The agent had been fine earlier, but now his forehead was suddenly drenched with sweat.

Zhan Zhao suddenly reached out and clapped his hands loudly near the agent's ear.

"Oh my..." The agent was so startled he nearly fell off his chair, knocking it over with a crash. Fortunately, Bai Yutang caught him in time, preventing him from falling to the floor.

Bai Yutang helped him to the sofa and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Oh, it's..."

"Did you see Lin Tian with a woman in red on a rainy day?" Zhan Zhao asked him.

"Huh?" The agent looked at Zhan Zhao nervously. "How did you know?"

"Did you really see it?" Bai Yutang asked.

"Uh... yes." The agent nodded. "I was bringing Lin Tian home that day. After dropping him off at the parking lot, I drove away. Just as I got outside, I realised Lin Tian had left his phone on the passenger seat, so I drove back. I parked right by the elevator, wanting to return the phone. But before I could get out of the car, I saw Lin Tian and a woman walking into the elevator. The woman had long black hair, was wearing a bright red dress and red high heels, and was holding a wet red umbrella. I only saw her back. They walked into the elevator, and the woman kept her back to the door without turning around. Lin Tian pressed the floor button, and the elevator door closed... I didn't think much of it then. Lin Tian was very private, so I thought it was probably his wife. If not his wife, then maybe a lover or someone else. I decided to return the phone to him the next day and drove off."

Bai Yutang frowned, "You mean Lin Tian went upstairs with a female ghost?"

The agent awkwardly shook his head. "Not exactly, but... thinking about it now, it was indeed strange! Wearing all red and carrying a red umbrella. Plus, I also felt her posture was weird, she stood very straight. Normally, people turn around to face the door after entering the elevator, right? But she stood there straight, even after Lin Tian turned around."

Zhan Zhao thought for a moment, then suddenly stood up and walked to the window.

Bai Yutang turned around and saw Zhan Zhao breathing on the window.

Everyone watched his strange action. When he breathed on the second window on the left, Zhan Zhao stopped and stepped back. In the slowly dissipating fog on the window, a transparent doodle depicting an umbrella appeared.

Zhan Zhao turned to look at Bai Yutang – Exciting! It's haunted!

Bai Yutang looked up at the ceiling – Weren't we investigating artificial intelligence... how did it turn into superstitious nonsense? One foot in the sky, the other on the ground...

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Totally forgot to double upload last Friday... so here is an extra chapter to get us back on track!

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: July 12, 2024 by Angel

Edited: December 30, 2024 by Soojin